Travel bits and pieces

Java (Day 4: Staying in Jogjakarta)

2008-08-29T10:00:00.001+08:00

After the hearty breakfast at Alun Alun Kidul, we arrived at Hotel Sumaryo at Jalan Prawirotaman around 9am. It's actually a guesthouse, owned by some royal families. The owner also stays there, towards the back of the buildings which is off limits to guests.

There are over 10 rooms available for guests, and all the rooms open to a centre courtyard. There's also a small pool for use. The dining area is located next to the garden, and adjacent to the small reception area.

The house has a 70s feel to it. The room is clean but a little gloomy though. The plus point...is that it's quiet and safe. The gate closes a little after 10pm and you need to ring the door bell if you arrive way after that.

There are some restaurants located along the street. Basically, everything is within walking distance.

Since all of us hardly had much sleep on the road last night, we decided to sleep in. Well, Borubudur can wait till after lunch!

Java (Day 4 : Arriving in Jogjakarta)

2008-08-29T09:43:00.000+08:00

We arrived in Jogja at 5.30am, after an 11 hours drive from Bandung. As it was still too early to check in at the guesthouse, we drove around the city...hoping to find some stalls but none was open.

We finally stopped at Alun alun Lor, located on the north wall of the Kraton. Surprisingly it was not deserted at that hour. Locals came by to jog around the square. There was also a group aerobic exercise where anyone can join in. As much as I was still hungry and groggy from the terrifying episode in Bandung, I joined the exercise with Olen, just for the fun of it. It's just amazing to see elders (perhaps in their 60s) could keep up with the exercise.

Entrance to Alun Alun Lor

Outside Masjid Gedhe Kraton (walking distance from Alun Alun Lor)

The entrance to square outside Masjid Gedhe Kraton.

Grobak food

From Alun Alun Lor, we drove to Alun Alun Kidul, which was located on the opposite end of the kraton. Found this grobak that sells chicken porridge. I was hungry and didn't mind the street food. Tried to ignore my fear of getting sick from street food...and it was indeed my best decision ever. It was the most delicious porridge that I've ever tasted. It was of the right texture, filled with chicken strips, nuts, vegetable and crackers. We even had a choice of additional items such as quail eggs, chicken liver, etc. It was a healthy breakfast.

There we were, sitting on the mat, with our backs to the wall of the kraton...eating our porridge, drinking hot tea, and watching the people go by.

Street scene around Alun Alun Kidul

Java (Day 3 : Shopping and the visit to the emergency room)

2008-08-28T22:06:00.000+08:00

I woke up early today to the noises made by other guests, having breakfast at the centre court of the hotel. Gee...I didn't feel rested.

We checked out of Wisma Gandapura, right after breakfast. Olen wanted to get some leather shoes, so Ferry took us to Cibaduyut. She found a good pair of ankle length leather boots that was under RM100.

Later on we headed to Pasar Baru. I've started getting a headache from the drive into the parking lot. We went floor after floor, until we got our parking.

Despite been here twice before but I've never reached the upper floors. Well, this time I bought some material. I didn't want to buy lots of stuffs or else I won't have enough space in my backpack.

There are a lot of choices and if you're into shopping, you could spend hours here.

As for me, I decided on a maroon french lace, with elaborate design, complete with beads and sequins. Bought 2 meters of it. Thought I'll wear it for Himawan's wedding in December. It only cost me about Rp200,00 per meter or about RM 80.

We had planned to leave Bandung around 3pm, right after lunch so that we could arrive in Jogja early. That was why we didn't spend a lot of time in Pasar Baru.

My headache had worsened. We had to make a stop so that Ferry could massaged my head. It was a relief until I started vomitting. I thought it was over so we headed for lunch at one of the shops near the exit of the city.

What happened later became like a black hole. I couldn't hold any food at all. Was vomitting my stomach out at the restaurant. The guys didn't really have a choice but rushed me to the hospital.

I was immediately admitted into the emergency room. I was given a shot to stop the spasm. Ferry & Olen spoke to the doctor and told her that we were leaving for Jogja. The doctor told them that I was in no condition to travel that distance. She decided to keep me under observation for several hours.

I was scared...this was only Day 3. It wasn't even half the journey. A lot of things came to mind. What if I'm too sick to continue the journey? What if I have to return to Malaysia? But I calmed myself. Told myself that if I need immediate medical attention, then I would have no choice but call Pak Nasser, one of our staff, based in Jakarta.

I fell asleep due to the shot.My backpack with all my documents and money was with Olen. I basically didn't have anything on me except the clothes on my back. I just hoped that the guys are okay with it.

It was only hours later that I came around. The doctor on shift had changed. Since I was no longer vomitting and the headache was getting better, the doctor discharged me.

We finally made our way out of Bandung, around 6pm. I was still weak, so, I decided to sleep at the last row.

We made a few stops along the way...Had our dinner of nasi goreng (fried rice) and teh hangat (hot tea) at a stall in one of the villages.

As I was still feeling dizzy, I've switched to sit in front. I've never travelled at night before so I was getting restless. It would be morning when we would arrive in Jogja. Fortunately, we made some stretching break.

One thing commendable that I must point out is the condition of the public toilets....which were surprisingly clean. The "highway" that we were taking was unlike the ones I'm used to in Malaysia. It was basically a single carriageway, passing through villages. There are no proper R&R area. So, if you need to ease yourself, do stop at the petrol kiosk. Some kiosks came with a minimart, toilets, showers and some with prayer room (Musolllah).

Travelling at night is also an experience, despite the danger. There are many heavy vehicles that used the same road. I only prayed that we would still be safe. I'm glad that we decided to get our own transport instead of the original plan of taking the public transport. If we had been taking the public transport, it would be really difficult for me especially when I'm sick.

If anyone is interested to take the same route, I would suggest getting your own transport. It allows you the flexibility to travel at your own time and pace. You would also be able to stop along the way, for a taste of local food.

Java (Day 2 : Kampung Daun & Bandung)

2008-08-27T22:00:00.000+08:00

It has been a long day. After leaving the villa which we put up for our first night, we went to Tangkuban Parahu and Ciater. Before checking into our rooms in Bandung, I suggested to the group to have dinner at a favorite place of mine, Kampung Daun, located in Lembang area.

Kampung Daun:
I was there 1 year ago, and could barely remember the way there. Nevertheless, I managed to show the guys the way...We arrived just before sunset. This time, I've brought my tripod with me so that I could take night shots of the place. The food is good...and the place is cosy...so romantic.

Here's the link to the place :
http://kampungdaun.net/

Nite #2 : Bandung:

It was 9pm, when we finally reached the place where we are going to stay tonite. Tonite, we're staying at Wisma Gandapura, Jalan R.E. Martadinata, Bandung. It's quite cosy...but I guess, most importantly, it's clean. It has all the basic necessities. The room is big enough for 2 single beds. I miss the aircond...but I don't mind the fan...After all, I'm just too tired to think too much of it. Well, tomorrow will be a longer day as we'll be leaving for Jogjakarta. I'd better head to bed soon.

Java (Day 2 : Tea Plantation)

2008-08-27T16:45:00.004+08:00

We stopped by the roadside to take picture of these tea plantations...hills of them. Well, this shot was taken on our way back from Ciater, heading towards Bandung.

Bandung is known for it's tea plantations, which were first opened by Dutch colonials in the 18th century.

Java (Day 2 : Hotspring in Ciater)

2008-08-27T16:30:00.000+08:00

After Tangkuban Parahu, we headed on to a hotspring in Ciater, which is about 45 mins away. The place is big. One can either take a bath at any of the spring or plain relax your feet in the numerous pool of hot water. There are some recreational activities that you can take part in such as flying fox, paddling, etc.

Losing your way in this place?

A private pool, anyone?

You can shower here, if you want to.

Hot waterfall

Java (Day 2 : Gunung Tangkuban Parahu)

2008-08-27T14:30:00.004+08:00

It was a quiet morning. The guys prepared our breakfast and even hot water for our bath. Gee, we were getting pampered. Hehe.

We left Cipanas around 9.30am, heading back to Bandung. We arrived in Gunung Tangkuban Parahu, 3 hours later after making a few stops along the way.

I've been here before but it still amazes me. In my last visit, it was warm but this time around, it was misty and cold...and I now understand why people say that Bandung is cold. I even had to keep my jacket on.

Well, I got to do something different in this trip. Last year, I've trekked to Kawah Domas with my bestfriends but this time, we decided on horse riding to Kawah Upas, which is the oldest volcanic crater on this mountain.

Riding the horse for the first time was a challenge, especially along the long, winding and uneven trails...but what is travel, if it's not for an adventure?

The mist surrounding the souvenir stalls.

Near the crater of Kawah Ratu, busy street peddlars selling souvenirs and food.

Kawah Ratu is behind this.

The travellers riding horses along the ridge.

Kawah Upas

We rode the horses along this ridge.

Siomay

It was way past lunch time and we were getting hungry. Ferry & Erry were waiting for us near the viewing tower, eating this Siomay. In that cold weather, this steamy dish seems so delicious.

After choosing the ones you like from a variety of steamed stuffs, the peanut sauce is added on. Tada...you now have a healthy lunch.

Fancy a vase, made from carved kayu batik?

Java (Day 1 : Puncak)

2008-08-26T23:22:00.009+08:00

We arrived in Bandung, a little after noon. Yes, it feels good to be back after almost a year. Ferry & Ery came to pick us up at the airport. Gee, we managed to get a van for our roadtrip and I couldn't help but wondered if it would be fit enough to cover the entire journey.

Right after lunch, we headed for Puncak. It's simply a beautiful place, with rolling hills, planted with tea.

Opss...we later found out that there was slight miscommunication. Ferry thought we only wanted to travel for a day trip to Puncak and that we would return to Bandung for the night...The three of us, however wanted to stay overnite in Puncak.

Fortunately for us, it wasn't weekend and in no time we managed to find ourselves a villa to put up. There were some locals waiting on at Puncak Pass, asking the tourists if they would like a place to stay.

The first villa we viewed was a 3 bedroom and 1 bath, single storey house, located 2 doors away from the mosque. The house felt gloomy...So, we decided to check out another one which was about 1 km away in Cipanas.

It was a double storey house, and gated. It has 2 bedrooms & 2 baths, and a nice cosy family hall in the upper floor. The kitchen was also fully equipped. We immediately decided to take the house. For Rp 400,000 it was damn cheap. It could even fit 1 big family.

The only thing that was missing was the hot water heater. Gosh, it was so cold in Puncak and without a heater, we just needed to boil the water and wait for our turn to shower. Well, I didn't want to wait and it was an experience taking a cold bath.

As for our sleeping arrangement throughout the journey, I will get my own room and Olen & Miss Wong will be sharing. For the first nite, I got a room upstairs...and I felt safe because I have the two guys sleeping at the family hall, just outside my door.

Java (Day 1 : Fancing some titbits?)

2008-08-26T16:15:00.003+08:00

Since we skipped Jakarta in the plan, it was natural to backtrack in terms of our starting point. Having flown into Bandung, we drove to Puncak, which was about halfway between Jakarta and Bandung.

Along the way, we stopped to take a picture of River Citarum from the bridge and later stopped in Cianjur, for some titbits. Apparently, Cianjur is famous of it's asinan (preserved fruits) of all sorts....and it's seriously yummy.

I found an interesting fruit on our way, called Sawo Sunda...It looks like unripe mangoes, yellowish green in color...and it tastes like Avocado. Yikes, not something that I would fancy tho.

This titbit which looks like kerepek bawang is just delicious...Oooohhh....the chocolately taste.

Some kedondong and sengkuang asinan.

Java trip - the final plan

2008-08-09T23:50:00.001+08:00

With just weeks to go till my ultimate trip to Java...I need to do a minor change to the plan. Initially, we wanted to really rough it out...travelling across the island using the public transportation i.e. buses, trains, etc. Somehow, Olen had a change of heart...She was worried for our safety throughout the trip, and suggested that we engage her local friends who work for a tour agency to help us with the ground arrangement.

We gave our list of to visit place to Ferry and he quoted the fee that we need to pay. Seriously, we got a good deal. Each of us paid around Rp 3,800,000 which is about RM 1400...and that would cover our transportation, accomodation and entrance fee to the tourist attractions.

And that took our headache away.

It's finally in the drawing board

2008-05-01T00:08:00.001+08:00

I wrote earlier about my dream to travel across Java. Well, I'm just one step closer to it.

Olen & I took the opportunity of the Indonesian promo at the Air Asia website that ended last sunday.

My original intention was 10 - 14 days travelling but after considering my workload, I figured out that 10 days was the maximum I could take time off. So, I gathered info and asked around. Olen was the only one who responded. That was when we really talked about it. We decided that we were proceeding with it, even if the others would not be joining us.

So, there goes. Bought cheap tickets that cost us under RM300 for return journey. It would be from the 26 August until 3 September. We also decided to skip Jakarta and Bali since both of us had been there before.

At the moment, I'm thinking about how to go about with the plan with just 9 days. Too ambitious, I guess. Hehe.

Anyway, these are the tentative plan:

Day 1 : Travel from KL to Bandung / Tour Bandung city
Day 2 : Tour Bandung outskirt
Day 3 : Bandung - Jogja train ride / Borubudur
Day 4 : City tour / Prambanan / Jogja - Solo train ride
Day 5 : City tour / Candi Ceto & Sukuh
Day 6 : Solo - Surabaya train ride
Day 7 : Surabaya - Cemoro Lawang
Day 8 : Climb Mount Penanjakan (to get the sunrise view of Mount Bromo) / Return to Surabaya / city tour
Day 9 : Travel back to KL from Surabaya

So, stay tune for updates!!!

Jakarta (9 - 12th Dec '07)

2007-12-15T18:20:00.001+08:00

I was just there in October, and now back again in Jakarta. However, it's a little different this time. We got to stay in the south of Jakarta...putting up at the Gran Mahakam hotel. It's a nice cosy hotel, with lots of detail. The journey from the airport takes more than half hour, costing about Rp 170,000.

Part of the lobby of Gran Mahakam.

The south of Jakarta gave me a different kind of feel than the usual city centre. The hotel is near residential area. There are several eating area near it such as Izzi, and a Padang restaurant are right across the street. An eatery called Dapur would be about 10 minutes walk from the hotel. There are several spa also within the vicinity...but if you're lazy like I was...I only check out the massage service at the hotel itself. A nice, 1 hour relaxing aromatherapy massage would cost around Rp 150,000 or only RM60.

For shopping, Blok M Plaza is also within walking distance. Things definitely to check out there is the local departmental store called Matahari. Found some good blouses that cost me about Rp 130,000 or RM 52. Good workmanship, with european designs. Found some flat shoes that cost me about RM30. Oh yes, do check out the hair salon academy. Can't remember the names tho...I had a hairwash there which cost me only Rp 17,500 or RM 7 (OMG...I initially thought that I heard the girl wrongly).

If you're into local music...check out a big music store right across the hotel. It's called Aquarius. Not that it's cheap but it has a good range. I bought some tho not as much as during my October trip.

Oh yes...talking about this trip...I definitely have to talk about the experience of a lifetime. On the first day of meeting, the organizer decided to give us a local experience during dinner. We were going to a local restaurant called Mbak Jingrak, right at the corner of the street. So, the organizer arranged for the Bajai, a local transport to pick us up from the hotel. It's something like tuk tuk. It fits 2 passenger at a time. Only cost us Rp5000 for the trip.

Seriously...it definitely isn't for the fainthearted. It cleverly maneuvre in the street...or in my standard, recklessly. I had the horror of my life when my bajai squeezed itself between a moving bus and a parked van. I thought the side of the bus was slighly more than a feet away from my face!!! When I reached the restaurant, my knees were still shaken from the horrifying short journey. The funny thing was that none of my Indonesian friends had even gotten into bajai themselves.

Things I saw in Jakarta

2007-12-11T22:47:00.001+08:00

These are some scenes one can find in Jakarta.

A typical traffic condition during lunch time on a weekday...crawling...and there would always be someone selling stuffs on the road.

Gamelan set at the airport. Here, in the foreground, two men were playing saron.

Kuching, Sarawak and such

2007-12-08T21:21:00.002+08:00

I was in Kuching in October...It's not something new for me as I've been there numerous of times but I thought it would be best to share it with others.

Kuching is the capital city of Sarawak, the Malaysian largest state located in the island of Borneo.

In brief the history of Sarawak...from the 14th century onwards, it was under the Sultanate of Brunei. Sir James Brooke became the first white rajah of Sarawak in 1841, as a reward from the Sultan. Sir James was later succeeded by his nephew, Sir Charles Brooke, and followed by his son Charles Vyner Brooke. Following the World War II, it was ceded as a British Crown Colony. In 1963, together with Sabah, and Federation of the Malay States, it formed Malaysia.

Anyway, for anyone who wishes to travel to Sarawak but do not have the luxury of time, it is best to start in Kuching. There are numerous historical buildings, a bulk constructed during the Brooke Raj (1841 - 1941).

You may want to start at the Kuching Waterfront. There's a historical walk that you may want to follow. It's indicated by the 13 bronze plaques located at the waterfront. Suggest that the journey starts from the Riverbank Suite, walking towards the Main Bazaar.

The waterfront:

From there, you would also be able to see part of the Fort Margherita across the river. The Fort was built in 1879, and most of it's existence it had served as the police headquarters.

As you walk further up, you'll be able to see the Astana.

The Astana was build by Rajah Charles Brooke in 1870, for his wife Ranee Margaret. It is now the residence of the Governor of Sarawak.

Other historical buildings that you can see along the way are the temple Tua Pek Kong, and the Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

At the esplanade, you can't help but notice the Square Tower. It is located on the site of Kuching's first fort, which was burned down in 1857.

And about 50 metres away from the Square Tower, you'll notice another colonial building.

The above building is the court house, built in 1874. Now it serves as multi purpose centre.

If you want to get a unique local experience, you can take the boat ride across the river. Otherwise, you can check out the bazaar and also India Street. Also, walk past the court house and you'll see another colonial building i.e. the General Post Office, looking majestically with its Corinthian columns.

Walk further up, you'll reach the Padang Merdeka. Surrounding it are numerous historical buildings as well, such as the St. Thomas and St.Joseph schools, the Pavillion, and of course, the must see building of all is the Sarawak museum. It is said that the museum houses one of the most comprehensive collections in South East Asia.

I might have missed other buildings but it would be quite sufficient for the entire day. Be mindful to wear a good walking shoes as it'll be quite a walk.

Other things to check out in Kuching:
1. Climb the mount Santubong
2. Visit the Sarawak Cultural Village (Good to start on cultural awareness of the multi ethnic people of Sarawak)
3. Buy the famous kek lapis Sarawak (layered cakes but with artistic designs)
4. Eat Laksa Sarawak
5. Seafood, seafood, seafood

The ultimate Java experience

2007-12-01T21:59:00.001+08:00

This is something that I've been toying with. I've asked around if anyone would be interested to travel with me but to date, only Dill is. Cousin Ron was lukewarm...as he already has plan to travel to LA for the Olympics.

Well, I've been travelling a bit to Java island. The more I see it, the more I'm interested in everything it has. So, it has got to be the one trip of my lifetime.

The plan is to fly to Jakarta, then take a train via the south route, travelling from West to East of Java. I haven't really decided on which stops but the south route should take me from Jakarta-Bandung-Jogjakarta-Surakarta/Solo-Surabaya.

I intend to make a stop at the major cities for 1 to 2 days. Among the must see sites would be Borubudur and Prambanan. Of course, not forgetting to visit the keratons in Jogja & Solo (the 2 great Mataram empires) and listen to the gamelan performances.

However, it doesn't stop there. From Surabaya, the journey continues to Ketapang, a town to the east of Java. Then take a ferry to Gilimanuk, Bali. Then fly back to Kuala Lumpur from Bali.

I'm not sure how long it will take me but I assume that it would probably take me more than 1 week. Rather ambitious...So, now I really have to plan carefully, especially on the logistics and timing.

Well, just check this blog from time for updates!

Jakarta (October '07)

2007-10-06T16:56:00.001+08:00

I had an opportunity to visit Jakarta again, for a 2 days business trip.

The group stayed at Hyatt Hotel, just by the famous fountain and welcome statue. The hotel is connected to Plaza Indonesia (PI), so, I managed to browse and window shop. We took time off after the buka puasa to walk to Sarinah. There's a good collection of batik, of higher end. I bought myself a batik silk shawl. I was eyeing some kebaya but didn't buy any. Bought telekung for Tini, as a birthday gift.

After the meeting, I extended my stay for another day, just to go around a bit and then meet up with Wan. As Wan was working, I took the opportunity to buy music CDs at the PI. The shop that I had bought gamelan CD in the last trip, was closed. But I managed to locate other music stores and ended up buying tonnes of local pop music. For original CD, each cost about Rp 30,000 or RM12...which was so much cheaper than KL. I bought a range of music, from both known and unknown artiste. I also bought a coffee table book on Bali architecture, which cost me about RM100.

I also went to the National Museum, taking a Blue Bird cab. If you're adventurous, you can take the busway. There's a station in front of the hotel, and later you can stop at the MONAS (Monumen Nasional) station.

The museum consists of two buildings. One is old and another new, adjacent to the old one. The old wing contains vast collection of statues, ceramics, and brass. Whereas the new one has a collection of all economic activities, gold, etc.

The entrance fee to the museum was only Rp 750, much to my surprise. Anyway, the museum is extremely, so, it would be good to go with friends. As I was alone, I got myself spooked...Foolish me.

As I went there on Friday, the museum closes early. I think it was noon. Point to intended visitor, do check out the business hour to avoid getting chased out of the museum.

The museum was across MONAS, so, if you have the time, you might want to visit the surrounding.

Going away...again...

2007-09-20T16:16:00.000+08:00

As much as I'm still upset about the cancelled Jakarta trip, I can't help but feel excited about the upcoming trip.

Next week, I'll be away in London and Wales. I've checked the BBC weather news. It's a bit chilly now in London. Maximum temperature around 19 degrees celcius. It'll be much colder in Milford Haven tho.

My preparation? Well, I'm done with the financial part. Only left is to exchange some pocket money and inform HSBC about the trip. The exchange rate is around RM7 to every pound sterling. Well, that leaves me with not much choice about how much for my subsistence expenses.... I've also bought myself the other day, a long jacket and other accessories to keep myself warm....Now I need to figure out what I can do during the 13 hours flight out.
Schedule is quite tight there but hopefully, I'll be able to enjoy it.

Milford Haven

Besides London, we'll be travelling to Milford Haven by taking the train from London to Port Talbot. From Port Talbort, we're taking a car to Milford Haven. For the return journey, we're making a stopover at Bridgend. [I believe my colleagues intend to check out the designer outlets at Bridgend. :) ] From Bridgend, we're taking the train back to London.

Yay, London, I'm coming...to see the Queen...

Bandung (Day 3) - Saying Goodbye

2007-07-03T10:00:00.001+08:00

Our flight was in the morning, therefore, we get to do much things on the last day.

My take away from this trip...an entirely new experience. I felt like I was a sponge, trying to absorb my surrounding, from it's food, noise, architecture, and nature. I left with a sigh! Well, I'm glad that I chose to spend my Bandung trip in this manner and just for shopping.

Not everything was great but what I gathered from the not so good stuffs, is a feeling of humility. Say...when I saw an old lady, cradling a child, sitting by the roadside, I told myself that how lucky am I to be born in the condition that I am...that I can live comfortably.

As much as people warned about street children, I believed that what we can do is just be a better human.

[While waiting for Shima & Miza shopping at an outlet, I was sitting outside the shop...there were a group of children, selling newspaper. It was a hot day and I didn't have a heart not to do anything. Not that I needed a newspaper but there's this urge to do something. So instead of giving them money, I bought drinks and gave them to the older kid, for her to distribute to the others...One of them later came to me, and thanked me. Well, it didn't cost much, only a meagre RM1 per child. And the feeling out of that...was something that I carried along with me for a long time.]

Well, goodbye Bandung...I'll come back again.

Bandung (Day 2) - Kampung Daun

2007-07-02T18:05:00.001+08:00

Wan recommended me to go to Kampung Daun. Apparently it's known for its great ambience. But nothing really prepared me for the experience.

We arrived in Kampung Daun at about 4pm. It's located at an exclusive housing area (something like Country Height, Kajang). It's not a restaurant per se but spread across an area. You can either make a reservation or walk in. The reception is located at the entrance. The eating area is consisting of numerous huts of various sizes, located all over. You can have a view of the hill, streams and waterfall.

Our sauk (hut) is by the hill. The distance from another hut was within 2 metres, so, one can really have the privacy. Everything is green...it's like you're transported into a dense jungle...close your eyes, listen to the sound of nature...it's really soothing. The service is very personalised. To call for help/assistance/order, just hit the bamboo chime. The waiters would be just right at your hut within minutes. Great service!

As for food, I can't really comment much as everything seemed new to us. We decided to try out varied food, range from sambal belut, rice in bamboo, etc. Desert was serabi...it looks like the kuih panjeram, except that it wasn't made in brown sugar...but used other stuffs. We took the one with banana.

Price wise...it's really reasonable considering the good food.

After lunch/early dinner, we walked around a bit at the compound. There was a waterfall right at the end of the path.

If you're interested to go to Kampung Daun, go there early while it's still bright and stayed on until way past sunset. First, its because of the view. Secondly, because the condition of the road is bad.

Personally, I think it's such a romantic place. Can't help but dream away...a romantic dinner with loved ones...perhaps, getting a marriage proposal...hehe...I wish!

For further info, here's the website to kampung daun. http://www.kampungdaun.net/

Bandung (Day 2) Gunung Tangkuban Prahu, Bandung

2007-07-02T17:09:00.001+08:00

Over in July, my friends and I decided to travel to Bandung. It was I who decided on our holiday destination, simply because I didn't get to see much of the place the last time I was there in March. Second time around, I would do it my own way.

Anyway, I'll write in a different posting about my Bandung trip later.

This time, I would like to share about Tangkuban Prahu. Most of the Malaysian that I knew who had been to Bandung, never actually went to Tangkuban Prahu. [The typical shopping habit of Malaysian explains it!]...It's such a shame. No one should go to Bandung without going to the mountain.

The journey from Bandung city to the mountain took us close to 1 hour or so, passing the mountain village of Lembang. Gunung Tangkuban Prahu, an active volcanic mountain has not had any major eruption lately. The mountain is over 2000 metre in elevation.

It doesn't take much effort to get there. The car can take you right to the rim of the crater of Kawah Ratu actually. Among the things that I noticed as I got there is of course the smell of the sulphur, the strange looking trees that looked like they are from the LOTR movie, and lots of dragonflies flying around us.

To get a good view of one of the volcanic craters is to go to the watch tower. Be very mindful of the local peddlars, who would go around and pester you to buy stuff. As much as possible, be polite and FIRM! If you'd ever say, "Later" rather than "No", they would literally take it. So, really mean what you say. If you think that you would buy the souvenirs just because you're being polite, forget it. The souvenirs are so much more expensive than the city.

Also, when approached by locals wearing the Guide vest and offer to take you the nearest volcanic craters i.e. Kawah Domas, do ask how much they charged. We had a hard lesson the other day. We thought it was just like any other national park or so, where rate is standard. Apparently not!!! We only knew it when we were returning from the crater.

[We had a scary experence though. Besides the guide, the souvenir sellers actually followed us to the crater. It did cross my mind on how dangerous it could be for us. There we were, 3 ladies travelling, with about 5 or so men, trekking along a lonely trek at the mountain. If something were to happen to us, there would be no way anyone would come to our help. There were no one else in sight, perhaps not within 1 kilometre. Besides being lighteasy about the walk, I couldn't help feeling uneasy about it, especially when Miza was walking way ahead of us with the guide, leaving me & Shima with the men.]

Well, back to the crater...the walk DOWN will take you more than half hour, if you're not fit. The guide told us that it would take us about 20 minutes, trekking down the 1.2km. Oh boy, we were fool to think that it would REALLY take us 20 minutes.

Do take it slow. The trek down is okay but do remember to get a good walking shoes. Be extra careful as the trail might get slippery...and you could trip over uneven steps. Enjoy the view and scenery. Notice that the vegetation changes as you walked further down the mountain.

After making a few stops, we finally arrived at the bottom of the crater. Coming from a non volcanic country, it was an amazing experience for me. There you'll be able to see the bubbling water from the hot spring and steam coming out from the ground.

If you're up to it, get to relax your feet in the hot water...and since there'll be strong smell of sulphur, don't stay too long...it's kind of hazardous to be exposed for long.

The trek back didn't take us as long as we did when we came down. The reason is that we took the short cut back to the main road. If you decide to do this, make sure you inform your driver to wait at that point....otherwise, you'll have to find other means of transportation to take you back to the top or...TREK back...The short cut was of easier trek as we only needed to climb up to about 100 metres and then trek alongside the mountain until we reach the main road.

It was definitely a trip to remember, which was coming very close to a volcano (well, my Gunung Batur trip didn't count. )

Last pointers:

It is not that cold at the mountain (if you're comparing it to Mount Kinabalu), so, you don't really need a warm clothing

A good pair of walking shoes would be excellent, though a normal flat shoes is sufficient.

Bandung (Day 2) - Sightseeing

2007-07-02T15:33:00.001+08:00

After a full day of shopping, we made arrangement for sightseeing. We decided to use Pak Atang to drive us around. He was a cab driver that drove us from the airport to the hotel. An entire day would cost us around RM120.

We started quite early....but first order of the day was the money changer. While waiting for Miza & Shima at the money changer, I spoke to Pak Atang. I asked a lot of things and Pak Atang was patient enough to explain. I gave him a list of buildings that I wanted to see and he planned our journey.

We later drove around the city. It's rather difficult to take picture from inside a moving a car. Some of the things that I managed to see were the masjid agung, cathedrals, jalan asia afrika, Hotel Savoy Homann, ITB (Institute Teknologi Bandung), Bank Indonesia, Gedung Sate, etc. We also stopped at Muzium Geologi as I really wanted to see the Java Man specimen.

Bandung is an old city with lots of old, colonial buildings. Therefore, it's a great experience if you could move about the city, viewing these old buildings. I wished I had more time. It would be a nice if I could walk inside a cathedral, looking at its sculpture and stained glass. However, one has to be a bit more practical as it can be time consuming to try to view all the buildings. So, do make your homework before travelling to Bandung & prioritise on the things that you want to see.

After touring the city, we went up to the mountain i.e. Gunung Tangkuban Prahu (there's a separate posting on it). After spending few hours there, we left for Kampung Daun for lunch. We arrived in Kpg Daun at bout 4pm (seriously starving).

Bandung (Day 1) - Shopping!

2007-07-01T14:35:00.001+08:00

My Bandung trip isn't something that I had planned for long. I was there briefly (less than 24 hrs) in March, as an extension of my biz trip. Due to that, I told myself that I would definitely come back...and I did!

Miza was toying with the idea of a ladies getaway, and I blurted out Bandung. We managed to get tickets and get everything arranged in perhaps about 1 week. Shima was coming back to KL, and then decided to follow us for that trip.

Well, back to my trip...We took the AirAsia early morning flight. As we didn't get to purchase our tickets earlier, our return tickets had cost us about RM700 (inclusive of tax and all). We arrrived in Bandung at about 10am, local time.

After checking in, we decided to go for some shopping (well, it was my bargaining item. I had promised the girls that I would allocate the 1st day for shopping & the 2nd day for sightseeing). As we were staying at the Santika Hotel, there were some factory outlets located along the same road. The girls got to do some shopping but I didn't.

We had lunch at one of the roadside shops, and nothing fancy of that sort. I introduced them to some local dish. Shima decided to have Nasi Timbel and Miza and I had nasi goreng. We also had advocado juice (Jus alpukat) and orange juice (Jus jeruk). As in any other indonesian food, it was definitely yummy.

There was something in the menu that we didn't know, i.e. Nasi Goreng Terasi. We asked the guy from the shop what terasi was but he couldn't explained. Fortunately for me, I have Wan (an Indonesian friend) who lives in Bandung, but working in Jakarta. He was in Malaysia for his masters and therefore, knew the Malaysian word for it. Funny thing...Terasi is actually belacan!

After lunch, we bought lots of titbits from the shop next door. We bought the local munchies such as pisang salai (with varied flavor), cheese sticks, and lots of other kerepek.

We went to pasar baru, after sending off our stuffs back to the hotel. Pasar baru is a place where you can buy all the local produce, largely textile. It's worth to note that the place is a very busy place, and crowded. So, do bear in mind about your handbags and purse. It also closes early, about 5pm. Therefore, do allocate a FEW HOURS to be there. As per the first trip there, I hardly ventured into the other part of Pasar Baru...only managed to cover the ground floor.

Among the things that you can find there are batik attire, embroideries, kebayas, and muslimah attire. There's a particular shop that I took Miza to, that sells finely tailored muslimah business suits. It was definitely a deal...A nice 2 piece pant suits, and lined, cost only about RM70.

As for batik attire, it ranges from blouses, nighties, kids pyjamas, etc. I bought some batik blouses (long sleeve, chinese colored) and they cost me slightly more than RM10 (about Rp 35,000 to Rp 45,000). There are a lot of varieties, so take a lot of time to choose the one you like.

My interesting find this time was the kids clothes. I bought Jareth a 2 piece attire and for Girl, a dress. Both are made from batik jawa, with excellent workmanship....not to mention that it was extremely cheap. Each was about Rp 15,000 which was like RM6.

For muslimah, there are a lot of things to buy. It range from telekung to swimsuit! Telekung (or Mukena, in Bahasa Indonesia) is something that you definitely have to buy. There are a lot of choice. Most of them are beautifully embroidered, and are in many colors. Being Malaysian, the prefered choice would be white. The materials also varied. The more expensive ones would be the ones made from imported cotton like french cotton or japanese cotton. But that would only cost about RM100.

There are some being sold with bags or separately. For the kids, there are choices of colors. It was strange for me though but according to the mba' at the shop, the kids' telekung are mostly colored as that attracted the kids, plus, as kids play a lot, the telekung won't be that dirty unlike white.

During this trip, I didn't buy any of the telekung but Miza & Shima did. I bought one during my trip in March, for Mas. Bought her a white telekung with gold embroidery. The embroideries were so intricate, around the hemline and also way filling the back.

Other muslimah stuff...a swimsuit. It's a 2 piece attire, with the top long enough to cover the bottom. It alco comes with a headgear, covering the neck as well. Shima bought one. Can't really remember how much it was but if I'm not mistaken, it's about RM50.

Beside that, there were lots of choice for tudung (headscarves). Shima bought the one made from pashmina shawl, which she intended to wear for her New Zealand trip.

There were other things that a muslimah can find such as a neck cover, which one can use together with a low cut blouses/shirt. Basically, there are a lot of stuffs for covering aurat. Probably even things that you can never imagine.

Well, pasar baru was definitely a shopping experience. However, coming back from the pasar could pose some problem. Either you make an arrangement with your cab driver or hail a cab from the roadside.

Getting into a cab can also be tricky thing, which we experienced. The roadside was crowded, not to mention that the road was exteremely busy. Because the staircase is literally next to the road, there wasn't a space for cab to properly stop. Therefore, making it really difficult to get into the cab.

For us, as Shima & I sat at the back, so, we got in thru the passenger door but Miza had a problem to even open the door as she was sitting in front. The other vehicles moved so close to the cab that there was only about less than 1 feet gap! It was only after the security guard stepped forward & stopped the oncoming vehicles that Miza could enter the cab. Come to think of it, it was really a funny experience !!!

Note: The picture above is of Shima trying out her swimsuit, much to the amusement of the ladies at the shops!

G'day mate!!!

2007-03-30T20:52:00.002+08:00

I had been in Sydney since Wednesday nite. Havent seen much of the city except for The Rocks which I had the chance to wander around during lunch & in the evening. That has always been the case with business trip.

I arrived at the hotel around 9.30pm on Wednesday. The suite had a view of Sydney's skyscrapper & part of the Harbour Bridge. Thought I could check out a place to eat but was told that the nearest restaurant, down at the corner of the Essex street would be closing by 10pm. So, that was basically an early nite for me then.

Yesterday evening, my friends & I walked to QVB (Queen Victoria Building), down by George St. The building was simply amazing. Well, we managed to shop a bit at the QVB. It's quite fortunate as the business hour is extended to 8pm on Thursday nite.

I finally got that Corduroy jacket that I've been meaning to get. [Oh yes, I'm in cloud 9]

And today, after a quick lunch, we took a walk to The Rocks. I really must say that the government had done a great job preserving all these old buildings. Well, since it was only a short walk, I made a mental note to come again.

The picture posted is taken at The Rocks, at the junction of Harrington Street & Argyle Street. Notice the cleanliness of the street & the condition of the traffic? Great, huh.

This evening, after the training was over, we walked to Circular Quay and the iconic Sydney Opera House. Ling left me on my own to travel. After walking about the Circular Quay, I made my way back to The Rocks, to have my dinner. It was such a pity that I didn't manage to walk around much to take more pictures before the sun set.

At this point, I'm planning to go there again, after breakfast tomorrow to catch the market before checking out of the hotel.

Well, I love it here in Sydney. The pace is much slower than KL even though it's a city. People are not rushing away like mad men. The city is clean and people are law observing. You won't even have a hard time trying to cross the streets. I like the old sydney & amazed at the restored buildings. I like the happenings of Circular Quay. I like the weather and its cool breeze.

Hey, I don't even mind staying in a city like this.

I wish I could stay longer here & explore so much more of Sydney but I can't really ask for more.

Well, signing off from down under.

Breezing away in Bandung (Day 3 & 4)

2007-03-09T22:42:00.002+08:00

I definitely have to come back to Bandung. We literally spent few hours (less than 24 hours, to be exact) in Bandung and that was it. Arrghhh...tak puas hatinya.

We finished meeting rather late and pushed back to Jakarta, sending off a Manager before traveling to Bandung. We were caught in a traffic crawl!! (Yeah, my experience with Jakarta's macet) It took us more than 1 hour just to get out of Jakarta city itself. We made a short stop at a rest area just before the highway, to have dinner and refuel the car. My colleagues even managed to buy some warm clothing there. (err...I found out that wortel is actually carrot. I wondered what that was in the menu)

The journey took us almost 2 hours via the highway. It was pitch dark hence we were unable to appreciate the view. As we got to Bandung, we were struggling to find our way to the place where we're putting up i.e. Hotel New Sany Rosa at the Jalan Hergamanah as our driver was not familiar with Bandung. When we got to the hotel, there wasn't much to see or do.

It's a nice, cosy hotel...seriously, forget the view. There's a nice courtyard right in the middle of the hotel. If you need food, McDonald's right across the street (if only you manage to cross the road).

The room rate is about RM100+, inclusive of breakfast. If you have a driver, the hotel has a different type of room for him. It costs around Rp 100,000 or RM40, and that includes breakfast which is delivered to the room. I think that's pretty fair and convenient.

Having reached Bandung rather late at nite, we decided to just have our rest.

We started early the next morning and managed to check out some factory outlets. Not into shopping, I took the opportunity to catch up with a local friend. Hey, it was a nice chat over chocolate chip crepe & ice blended coffee durian!

My friend later took us to this restaurant called Sambara, and introduced us to Sundanese food. Great ambience, delicious food and damn cheap. For 5 of us, it was slightly over Rp100,000. It was definitely a deal!

We left Bandung right after lunch as we wanted to reach Jakarta by late afternoon.

The first official trip...to Indonesia - Jakarta/Bogor (Day 1)

2007-03-07T22:00:00.000+08:00

We arrived in Jakarta just after 10am, local time. As my colleague had made prior arrangement for immigration assistance, we just breezed through the immigration via the diplomatic lane. Cool!

We later made a stop in the city for lunch, eating nasi padang (a must!) & I've tried the avocado juice, with chocolate syrup. Strange taste though...thick, filling and seriously, delicious.

Jakarta, as in any other city, full of life...but some of things that caught my eyes were the numerous statues around the city. Wished I had the time to take pictures of all of them, rather than rushing through the city to get to Bogor.

The journey to Bogor took approximately 1 hour, via the highway. We're staying at the Novotel Bogor at the Golf Estate Bogor Raya. There were beautiful mansions located at the golf estate. It reminds me of Country Height.

Bogor is nicknamed "Kota Hujan" and that explains it all. It was raining since we arrived and throughout the afternoon. So, guess we are stuck at the hotel.

Today is quite free for us. We had a short discussion with the team late afternoon & followed by an early dinner together. Hey, I tried the nasi timbel. A specialty sunda food. I consider it as a very healthy meal as it contains everything. :)

The best thing about today is that, before we retire for the day, almost all of us had booked a massage service. I tried the aromatheraphy massage and for an hour, it cost me slightly more than RM60. It'll be double that price if it had been in KL. It was good & I really needed one. Truth is, I fell asleep along the way. haha.

I left my heart there! (Tanjung Simpang Mengayau, Kudat, Sabah)

2007-01-23T18:41:00.002+08:00

If I could choose a spot in the world to live, I would probably had chosen this....Tanjung Simpang Mengayau, the northern tip of Borneo island with it's blue sky, blue sea and white sand.

I left my heart there...or is it that I've fallen in love there?!

p.s: Will write more on this trip to the place in other postings.

The lake cruise

2006-09-17T22:00:00.001+08:00

If you happens to be in Putrajaya, do check out the lake cruise. It'll cost about RM30 for adult. The journey will take about 45 minutes along the shore of the lake. There's also a tour guide who would explain on various buildings and magnificent bridges of Putrajaya.

The above is a picture of the Prime Minister's Dept, as seen from the cruise.

Chasing dolphins in Kuala Lumpur

2006-09-10T15:33:00.000+08:00

Walk a bit from Suria KLCC, towards the bridge. As you pass the bridge, you'll come across these amazing dolphins.

3 days on an island (Gaya Island, Sabah)

2006-04-14T08:59:00.002+08:00

Have you ever imagine holidaying on an island, all by yourself?

Well, that was exactly what I did almost 3 years ago. Friends thought that I was crazy, planning a trip alone to Gaya Island, off Kota Kinabalu. Not only had I planned to go alone but it was for 3 days.

They didn't see what I could be doing for the whole 3 days there. Gaya Island, after all, isn't one of the favorite spot among Sabahans as it's used to be known for its illegal immigrants.

Well, what the heck. I needed a break!

The island is bout half hour boat ride from KK jetty. I chose to stay at the Gayana EcoResort and had booked myself the water villa.

The balcony of my villa was overlooking the open sea. It felt good, having all the space to yourself and nothing else but you and the open sea. What else can you do but read a good book and soak in the sun.

I also managed to check out the marine research centre, and later hanging out often there, learning about new stuffs, looking at the fishes, corals, etc. I even tasted the sea grapes. I also signed up for the adopt a coral program. This is where you get to choose the corals from the nursery, snorkel to your prefered spot & then transplant them. I chose a spot, near the natural pool. [I found out months later that my baby coral didn't survive. ]

I also kayaked to the mangroves nearby. A bit scary at first as I wasn't familiar with the open sea kayak. Felt too light to paddle...but I managed though. It was an exhilirating experience being in the mangroves. As we paddled further inland, it was so still and tranquil. In the background was the chorus of the forest insects.

After kayak, I snorkelled at the Taman Tuanku Abd Rahman marine park. It felt like walking in a garden...I vowed then that I must take up my diving licence. There's so much to explore.

For those intending to visit, you only hv one place to eat which is the island restaurant, built on stilts, extending to sea. Grab the seats by the edge & enjoy the view of the fish underneath it. Some place else to hang out is the beach bar. Great place to be during sun set. It also has a stunning view from the deck above.

Beside kayaking & snorkelling, you may want to hike along several treks.

Further info on the resort:

http://www.gayana-resort.com/info.html

Kampung Kuala Nyalau

2005-09-15T14:51:00.000+08:00

Few years ago, I organized a motivation camp for school children at a village called Kampung Kuala Nyalau in Bintulu. The drive there took us more than 2 hours, partly through a oil palm estate and jungle. Despite the long drive, nothing beat the scenery that awaited us there.

To get there, take the Bintulu-Miri road. Take a left turn after you had passed the Bakun Dam junction. You'll then pass thru the confusing roads in the oil palm estate. Can't really remember the route but after the estate, it's the jungle. You'll also be seeing the winding Likau river. A recommended form of vehicle to get there is a 4WD due to the condition of the road. It's really offroad!

It's a small idyllic village by the sea. The kampung folks told us that before there was a road, it used to take them many hours to get to Bintulu by boat. I could hardly say that there was a proper road but at least it's better than taking the boat, especially during the rough monsoon season.

Durian by the river (Selangau, Sibu)

2005-09-14T21:39:00.000+08:00

Selangau is a small town along the Bintulu - Sibu road.

The Balingian river flows thru the town. Picture was taken in December 2004, on my way back from a visit to the army camp in Oya. We made a stop at the local market, bought some durians & ate all those durians by the river.

KK - Last day (Pasar Filipin)

2005-09-05T15:00:00.000+08:00

Feeling a bit impulsive in the morning when I took my mum to Pasar Filipin. We were there for about one hour before heading back to the hotel, in time to get ready for our flight back in the afternoon.

Some notes :
Taxi from Pacific Sutera to Pasar is RM10 (vice versa). To get back to the hotel, taxis are available across the Pasar, near the junction of the newly opened Le Meridien Hotel.

If you intend to buy pearls, it's better to have a look first. Then, settle for at least 1 stall so that you can bargain. A good bracelet would be around RM20. A pearl necklace is around RM40 or more depending on the style, length & types of pearls. Pearl studs is RM10. Brooch is more or less the same. I managed to get a rice pearl, white color necklace, slightly longer than the ones I had for only RM40. The last time I bought a necklace, it was pinkish, corn pearls that cost me RM80.

Anyway, do try your bargaining skill. You could land yourself a better deal.

KK - Day 3

2005-09-04T22:19:00.000+08:00

Mum & I got ready early today. We had planned to go with Bro. Paul to Kota Belud, a small town about 1 hour drive from the city of KK. We had to go early so that we could make it to the Tamu i.e. the market.

We left the hotel around 8.40am & took the Sulaman road. We arrived at the Tamu almost 10am. There were still lots of local people selling stuffs. I bought a colorful box made from palm leaves by the Bajau people. I was told by the lady that it was also meant to keep the wedding hantaran or gift. Found other interesting stuffs too. Bought the kuih gelang and colorful fish cracker (in various shapes).

Link on the tamu : http://www.sabahtravelguide.com/travelogue/details.asp?articleid=35

After Tamu & brunch at a coffee shop in Kota Belud, we proceeded to Bro Paul's village. It was about half hour drive along a winding & steep road. We were actually driving along the hills. The village, Kampung Bundu Paka is located at the valley of the Mount Kinabalu. It's not really that cold there despite the location. The backyard of Bro Paul's house is the Sungai Kedamaian, that flows from the mount. The water was definitely cold. It's so refreshing to listen to the water through the creek.

We left the village about 6pm, taking the Ranau road to KK. It was a winding road but with superb view of the mountain.

Tonite, we had dinner at the Garden Seafood, not far from the traffic light towards Tg. Aru.

The mountain river (Kota Belud, Sabah)

2005-09-04T16:09:00.001+08:00

Kampung Bundu Paka, Kota Belud, Sabah. Here, the kids, Yan & Adik are having a good time at the Sungai Kedamaian that flows from the Mount Kinabalu.

Notice the suspension bridge or "jambatan gantung" in the background?

KK - Day 2 (The wedding)

2005-09-03T23:30:00.000+08:00

The highlight of the day was the wedding.

The service at the Sacred Heart Cathedral started at about 10.30am. A beautiful wedding, conducted in Kadazan language with songs in English & Malay. The bride's sisters wore the kadazan attire too. The whole do at the church ended till about 2pm.

The family later hung out at Tg Aru beach. Quite a significant change from the my last KK trip, 2 years back. It even had San Francisco coffee now!

The wedding reception was held at the Pacific Sutera. Also in attendance was the city mayor. A low key reception, basically just the dinner, cake cutting, toast and singing. Frankly, it was a sample of the muhibbah spirit...there were people of different ethnic background. In our table alone were Ibans, Dusuns, Kadazans and even a matsalleh (a mixed canadian & native american) who's now married to a Dusun girl. We even had a muslim Kadazan, wearing tudung who sang a Kadazan song on the stage while some relatives danced the sumazau on the dance floor.

I was sporty enough to sing a song specially dedicated to the couple..."Will you still love me tomorrow?" hehe

KK - Day 1

2005-09-02T22:00:00.000+08:00

Arrived in KK past noon. The flight took slightly more than 1 hour from Bintulu. After settling in at the hotel, we went out for a drive along the Sulaman road. Later we stopped at Salut, for a taste of Kelapa Bakar (burned coconut), grilled oyster and another molusc, locally known as Lokan. Great stuffs!

For dinner, we went to the restaurant called Kampung Nelayan, located in Bukit Padang. Nice ambience, great seafood coupled with cultural show that started at 7.45pm which lasted for an hour. Recommended for people who want to sample Sabah.

We're staying at the Pacific Sutera, with the view of the marina & golf course.

Link on KK : http://worldfacts.us/Malaysia-Kota-Kinabalu.htm

Kuala Lumpur-Bintulu-Kota Kinabalu

2005-09-01T22:30:00.000+08:00

I still haven't recovered from my Bali trip. Just barely managed a day of rest, doing my laundry, unpacking & packing for the Kota Kinabalu (KK) trip. Still very tired. Flew from Kuala Lumpur (KL) to Bintulu on the early morning flight yesterday. And tomorrow, I'll be flying to KK for the wedding.

Saying goodbye to Bali

2005-08-30T15:00:00.000+08:00

We had just taken off for about half hour. Must admit it that I'm sad to leave the island of the Gods. It had been a wonderful cultural experience. Ati & I promised each other to come back again. There was definitely so much to see and do. For the last 2 days, I tried to absorb as much as possible. It was quite tiring but we just have to keep on moving.

Bali has so much to offer. I don't know what appeals to others but for Ati & I, we were much into the cultural thingy. No reading or research could prepare us for the experience. I've been reading about Bali for the last 1 year but we were still awed by the experience.

I didn't even managed to hang out at the beach nor the spa (tho I had planned for it!). There wasn't enough time. The culture, art, architecture, religion, people, sight...they all blend into one lifestyle.

As Ati puts it, everything the Balinese do is their devotion to their faith. Comparing to Malaysian, we can't really point what's our identity...but for the Balinese, it's in everything they do, from offerings to their Gods to building their homes. It's in everything we see, hear, smell and touch. Every gate or door or roof has the same feature, no matter where. Their devotion is shown in everything they do...from their art, carvings, crafts, etc.

Everytime you turn, you'd pick up a new experience. If ever you're in Bali, take time to smell the rose or...ehem, take time to study the details on their doors.

I'm still perhaps in cloud nine and no word could ever trully describe how I feel at the moment.

Till my next Bali trip, all I can say for now is Matur Suksma (Thank you in Balinese).

Bali map

2005-08-30T11:37:00.000+08:00

For the reference of the reader to this blog. Here's the map of Bali, indicating where we've been on this trip.

Day 4 - Last day (La Mayeur)

2005-08-30T11:25:00.000+08:00

We'll be leaving Bali soon. The flight's later in the afternoon and we're on the way to the airport.

With heavy hearts, we managed to do last minute packing, had a good breakfast and checked out the La Mayeur Museum. The museum is about 10 minutes stroll from the hotel. It's located beach front.

La Mayeur was a Belgian artist who used to stay in Bali. Was married to a Balinese legong dancer. In fact, most of the paintings in the museum were of his wife. The museum is used to be La Mayeur's house, before it was handed over to the government.

We were amazed with the intricate carvings we found throughout the whole house, more than the paintings that was displayed. Must have been painstaking effort to build this house. I can't help but asked myself then, "Did people actually live in this house?" In Malaysia, it would have belonged to some royal families. I hope that in time, the museum can be preserved well.

For those interested to buy prints of La Mayeur's work, you can buy them at the souvenir shop next to the museum.

In the picture above, you can see the intricate carvings on the windows and the walls of the house.

Pura Tanah Lot & the wooden "ehem"

2005-08-29T22:10:00.002+08:00

Pura Tanah Lot, temple of the earth (tanah) and sea (lot). This is one of the most spectacular temples in Bali and a perfect place to watch sunset.

When we visited Pura Tanah Lot, it was low tide, so we could walk all the way to the island’s rocky caves. We didn't go into the cave at the base of the island though. There were lots of people entering the cave, seeking blessing from the priests.

From the entrance to the Pura is approximately 2 kilometers, so be prepared to walk. However, there are a lots of things to see along the way…row after row of shop selling knick-knacks and other touristy stuffs. You could even get yourself temporary tattoo. Gee...It was tempting but I figured out that it wasn't a wise thing to do since I'll be attending my bestfriend's wedding in KK next week.

Did manage to get some stuff there, e.g. carved wooden flowers (normally used to decorate either sides of the door or gates) and few t-shirts with cool designs. Didn’t see them elsewhere before. Bought one with the naming convention of Balinese. The wood carvings were great...I wish I could bring back some for the feature wall but it'd be too heavy to carry.

Ati & I found something interesting though...quite in abundance at the souvenir shops…first in Sukawati and later in Tanah Lot. It’s actually “ehem”, the man’s private part. Well, we were amused at first. Okay, can’t blame us. People definitely do not sell that publicly in Malaysia.

It came in variety of forms e.g. table centerpiece, key chains and even, bottle openers. Imagine holding the penis of about more than 6 inches long while trying to open the bottle. Funny, huh. We thought of buying some for our male friends but later had a second thought. The guys would think of us as perverts!!! Hahahaha.

Since it was almost everywhere, we figured out that it was probably some kind of symbols of fertility for Balinese.

Pura Taman Ayun

2005-08-29T22:00:00.000+08:00

Pura Taman Ayun (Temple of a beautiful garden) is the temple for the royal family in Mengwi. Brief overview : Pura Taman Ayun was built in 1634 by the Raja I Gusti Agong Anom.

It's surrounded by a massive moat. When we were there, the moat was being drained as part of its regular maintenance.

The inner courtyard of the Pura is complete with magnificent Merus, bales & shrines. The higher the meru, the more important it is. There are 3 very important Meru here,honoring the 3 important mountains in Bali i.e. Gunung Agung, Gunung Batukau & Gunung Batur.

Bali - Day 3 (Tour, shop & gamelan)

2005-08-29T21:50:00.000+08:00

We took slightly a long time to get ready today. Enjoyed our breakfast at the restaurant, sipping our coffee, looking out to the sea & listening to the soothing gamelan music in the background. Suddenly a guy came & asked if we were Malaysian. Only when we identified ourselves did he introduced himself. Huzni Muit, the operations manager for the hotel...and he's Malaysian! We had a good conversation later. Having been living in Bali for the past 1 year, he gave us lots of info about going about there. He recommended a place to visit or more likely to shop...Geneva. Hey, if only we had met earlier.

Putu & Bpk Wayan were already waiting for us at the lobby at about 10am.

Today, we didn't have a proper agenda. We thought of covering the places that we didn't manage to visit for the past 2 days. Didn't know if we were going to have some time to visit Geneva. Not only that, was thinking about the things that we had bought...Not even sure if my bags could fit all of them...ehem.

The first to visit was Sukawati. Read so much about it & decided that we check it out. It's basically a small village with blocks of single storey, wooden shophouses. The locals were buzzing about, carrying out their daily business. The ladies donned in their kebayas were carrying trays of fruits, knick knacks, etc. Having had the terrifying experience with the street vendors in Kintamani, Ati was basically clinging to me or Putu...She was being paranoid! :P Actually, the street vendors in Sukawati were quite polite. We only needed to say "No" & they were okay with it instead of pestering us.

The market place was a 2 storey building (reminded me of Pasar Payang in Kuala Terengganu) and next to it was a small street, flanked by rows of wooden shophouses. There was so much things to see & buy there at fraction of the price we paid for elsewhere. Was so tempted to buy more paintings but had to resist it. There were lots of carvings, paintings, knick knacks, etc.

Bargaining was expected here. Ati had proven her skill in bargaining. She bargained for my white cotton blouse which we got for only Rp75K and tank tops for Rp25K! "Harga pas gitu"

Bought few other stuffs there...bought a salt & pepper shaker set, made from cinnamon that matched my cinnamon bowl that I bought earlier in Tampaksiring. By the way, the shakers cost me only Rp 10K (and that's like RM4 only!!!)...I couldn't resist buying a pareo that cost Rp10K only...and a great carved, wooden chess set for only Rp35K. Even Ati bought the chess set too. We thought it was a good buy & didnt want to bargain much. So kesian at that makcik...her stall was way at the back on the first floor of the market place.

Ati bought lots of t-shirts...So much so that her plastic bag looked like the santa's christmas bag. hahaha...Putu must have thought that we had lost our mind. Good of him to help carry Ati's shopping bags.

[It'll be good to check out Sukawati first if you intend to buy lots of stuffs. The price is so much cheaper than other touristy area.]

After Sukawati, we had lunch at a nice restaurant on the way to Pura Taman Ayun. Can't remember the name of the town. Well, each of us had a big portion of nasi & mee goreng and fruit juice...To our surprise, it cost us both slightly Rp100K. Cheap, huh.

Later in the day, we visited Pura Taman Ayun & Pura Tanah Lot. It's basically, crossing from East to West of Bali.

But before we ended the day, Putu & Bpk Wayan drove us to Denpasar since Ati wanted to get another travelling bag. Well, with all the shopping that she had made, she definitely needed another one. Denpasar seemed quiet but somewhat developed. We were admiring the kebayas on the mannequins in front of some of the shop. Made a mental note to ourselves to drop by in Denpasar, the next time we visit Bali.

While waiting for Ati to buy the bag at the departmental store, I checked out the music store. Hey! I found the gamelan CDs...tons of them...ohhh the passion of my life. Bought 4 of them at Rp40K each...and that's RM16 each. Putu & Bpk Wayan didn't understand why I went nuts at gamelan. To them, it's just some music in the background. I had always loved listening to gamelan...and these CDs add to my collection.

There's separate postings on both Pura Taman Ayun & Pura Tanah Lot.

Bali - Day 2 (The tour)

2005-08-28T22:24:00.000+08:00

We got up early today, about 6am.

Didn't sleep well last nite. The mattress was a bit hard & I couldn't help feeling a bit spooked thru the nite. haha.

Since it was still too early, we decided to take pix in the garden (yup, we were still in our PJs). It was quiet and refreshing. In fact, it was a nice change to walk in the garden early in the morning before getting ready for the day.

We were already at the restaurant way before 8am. Surprise, surprise...There were lots of people on the beach. Kids played at the beach, people flew kites or swam in the sea, flocks of people going to the temple, carrying their baskets of offerings, etc...Gosh!...We should have brought our camera to breakfast. Didn't expect this...Hey, this is not even 8am. In Bintulu (my hometown), people don't really get up that early on a SUNDAY morning, let alone, going to the beach.

Later we met our guide for the day at the lobby. A young chap, in his 20s, dressed in a traditional balinese attire. He introduced himself as Putu. Our driver for the day was Bpk Wayan. As we drove off, Putu informed us about the unique names for Balinese where the children are named by their birth order. The oldest will be named Putu/Wayan, 2nd as Made, 3rd Nyoman/Komang and 4th Ketut. The names are then repeated for any more children. To differentiate further, the names are added "I" for male & "Ni" for female. Example, as for my case it would probably be Ni Wayan Elly. hehe.

The first program for the day was the Barong performance in Batubulan which were starting at 9.30am but since we were quite early, we were brought to the Batik gallery somewhere in Gianyar (can't remember the exact location)...spent about 40 mins there.

After the Barong performance, we went to Celuk, a village famous for it's silver. Alongside the road in the village was numerous silversmith. Wow! Some even make to order. Excellent designs too. We finally left this particular silver gallery, more than an hour later & having spent hundred of thousands Rupiah. Phew!

We didn't stopped at Mas for the woodcarving. Instead, we headed on to an art gallery somewhere .... We were introduced to varied style of Balinese painting. I could just spend the entire day there. The paintings were beautiful. Bought framed paintings of Rama & Sita (their version of Romeo & Juliet). The frames were beautifully carved. I thought it would be the perfect wedding gift for Dez. Other than that, I bought a modern painting of Balinese dancers and a painting of Balinese village in young artists' style.

(Note : if you were ever tempted to buy paintings at art galleries, hold on to the thought first until you get to smaller village where the same painting will cost only a fraction)

After the art gallery, we proceeded to Kintamani for lunch. We made a short stop at Tegalallang to take picture of the rice terrace. Cool!

The journey to Kintamani took us almost an hour to reach there. Kintamani is located more than 1000 metre above sea level, hence the cool air. The restaurant had a stunning view of Mount Batur (3rd tallest volcano) & Lake Batur (the largest lake). What better way to end the lunch but to sip the Bali coffee & looking at the mountain...ahhh....

(There are a number of street vendors outside the restaurant, calling for you to buy their stuffs. So, you tend to get distracted while enjoying your lunch. It's sad tho having to be selfish & ignoring them.)

Initially we were supposed to visit Pura Besakih (Mother Temple) but since we wanted to catch the 6.30pm cultural show in Batubulan, we visited Pura Batur instead. Pura Batur is the 2nd largest temple in Bali.

On our way back to Batubulan, we made a stop at a art market in Tampaksiring. Found nice souvenirs there. Since there was still time before the cultural performances, we took the opportunity to visit Pura Desa Batuan.

We then headed back to Batubulan for the Kecak & fire dances. The performance was about 1 hour. Later, we went back to Sanur for dinner at a restaurant where we were entertained by more dances e.g. bumble bee dance & Baris.

We finally got back to the hotel past 9pm. It has been a tiring but great day.

So for tomorrow, we had decided to charter the car with driver & guide for 7 hours. We had just made the call, requesting for both Putu & Bpk Wayan for our day trip tomorrow.

As for the plan, we're just going to cover some places that we had missed today.

Kecak and Fire Dances

2005-08-28T19:30:00.000+08:00

Kecak
Perhaps one of the best known of the many Balinese dances. It is also unusual in that it isn't accompanied by Gamelan. Instead, the background is provided by a chanting 'choir' of men who provide the 'chak-a-chak-a-chak' noise. It's performed by a large group of chanting men, sitting in a circle, waving their arms and swaying to and fro, in times with the chant.

The dance is deeply rooted in local tradition and Indian mythology and is inspired by Ramayana, an epic poem written in Sanskrit. It brings to life the tale of King Rama & his wife, Dewi Sita.

The performance generally lasts one hour and takes place in the evening, around 7pm.

The trance dances - Sanghyang Dedari & Sanghyang Jaran
The sanghyang is a divine force that enters the bodies of the entranced dancers. The two common dances are Sanghyang Dedari & Sanghyang Jaran.

Sanghyang Dedari is performed by 2 pre-pubescent girls. The girls are supposedly untrained and can keep in perfect time with each other, even though their eyes are firmly shut.

Meanwhile, Sanghyang Jaran is performed by an entranced boy, riding a coconut palm hobby horse....something similar to Malaysian's Kuda Kepang. The boy would dance around and through the fire.

In both dances, a priest is always on hand to help bring the dancers out of their trance state at the end of the performance.

Pura Desa Batuan

2005-08-28T18:00:00.000+08:00

Batuan, an old Buddhist-Brahman village located in the Southern Gianyar regency. It's main temple, Pura Desa Batuan was built in 1022 AD.

A striking feature of this Pura is the beautiful carvings in the entire temple.

The picture above is taken from outside the Pura. Just look at those carvings...marvellous!

Pura Danu Batur, Kintamani

2005-08-28T15:00:00.000+08:00

A Balinese temple is divided into 3 parts. To enter the first courtyard, one passes the candi bentar (split gate). Then a 2nd gate rising high, with faces of guardian demon, leads to the 2nd courtyard. Inside would be numerous pavillions used for various purposes. In the final courtyard, one may find the meru pagoda, sanggah (spirit houses) and pedestrals for the offerings. Stones and wood carvings would be apparent here.

The first Pura (temple) we went to was Pura Batur in Kintamani.

Pura Batur, located on the cliff, overlooking the Mount Batur (1717 metre). It's the 2nd most important temple, after Besakih.

A word of caution, the street vendors can be quite agressive there. Ati & I had a terrifying experience outside the pura where the vendors followed us to our car & one of them almost got into the car with us. Was hard to ignore them.

Barong at Batubulan

2005-08-28T10:00:00.000+08:00

Pictured here, the front view of Barong.

Most well known dance. A story telling dance, narrating the fight between the good and evil. The followings are the variation we watched in Batubulan.

Opening Act
The Barong, a symbol of good, elegance & simplicity is an illustration of the lion. It's danced by 2 people. In the opening act, the barong showed off it's elegance. The barong was later seen leisuring in the forest, with a monkey, which is a character of friendship to the barong. The monkey entertains and annoys the barong, and creates the atmosphere of entertainment to the audience.

3 masked men then appreared, representing men making palmwine in the forest, whose child was killed by the barong. The men got angry and attacked the barong, which is helped by the monkey. During the fight, one of the men's nose was chopped off by the monkey.

Act 1
2 girl dancers appeared, representing the servants of the Rangda, looking for the servants of Dewi Kunti who were on their way to meet the Patih (prime minister).

Act 2
Dewi Kunti controlled by her sadness was influenced by a witch and later ordered her Patih to take Sahadewa to jungle to be sacrificed to Rangda. The Patih was later controlled and influenced by the witch. He captured Sahadewa and tied him up to the tree, to be eaten by Rangda.

Act 3
Unknown to Rangda, the God Siwa appeared & gave Sahadewa immortality. Rangda appeared & was ready to kill Sahadewa.

Act 4
However, Sahadewa couldn't be killed. Rangda then surrendered and asked Sahadewa to redeem herself. He agreed and killed Rangda.

Act 5
One of Rangda's servant, called Kalika came up before Sahadewa & asked him to redeem her too but he refused. Kalika got angry, changed herself into a boar and fought Sahadewa but the boar was defeated. She then changed herself into a bird but got defeated too. She finally changed herself into Rangda.

Closing act
The eternal fight continues. Only the pure heart of Barong can overcome the bad spirited Rangda. The dance was later followed by "Kris dancers", men armed with kris daggers who had come to help Barong to fight the evil Rangda. The witch spell reversed their fury back to themselves & they plunged their kris against their own body. Barong, with it's powerful charm, protects the men against the self inflicting harm.

Bali, finally!

2005-08-27T21:30:00.000+08:00

The day had finally arrived!!!!

Ati & I couldn't contain our excitement.

"Hey, Elly, we can finally strike off Bali from our wish list", she said as we settled in our seats.
"Hold on first, we haven't reached Bali yet." I commented with a grin.

There was a delay at KLIA due to the heavy traffic...We took off almost an hour later. Yikes! Imagine the restlessness being in the flight for a solid hour, waiting for our turn to take off. I tried to remain cheerful though, until I dozed off soon after.

It was about 2 & half hour later when we saw in a distance, a volcanic mount rose high above the clouds. We weren't sure of our exact location. Could be Java though.

All of a sudden, Ati nudged me. "Is that eruption?" There, I saw, a blow of dust out of the volcano. We were almost screaming & took lots of shots of it. We had never seen a volcano before. haha, so sakai.

"Hey, check that out!" As I peered though the window, I noticed that we were passing by another volcanic mount. It was so close that we managed to take the picture of the crater.

We arrived in Bali at about 2.35pm, at Bandar Udara Ngurah Rai. Bali...ahh, all green with blue sea & sky. We were greeted by the intricate wood carvings at the airport & soothing sound of traditional music that played in the background.

(Note : There'll be lots of tour brochures for grab on the way to the immigration. You can really get good deal there.)

There were hundreds of tourists arriving at about the same time. It took us almost an hour to clear the immigration. On contrary, baggage claim and customs check were a breeze. (Note : There's no electronic board indicating where to claim your luggage, so you may have to look a bit.)

I basically had an idea where to go for the taxi but I asked the guard anyway, before exiting the arrival hall.

"Pak, di mana ya kaunter taksi?"
"Keluar dari sini, langsung ke kanan."
"Ma Kasih, Pak"

Hehe...I'm definitely going to try to speak Bahasa Indonesia as much as possible.

There were swarms of people outside the arrival hall, a bit chaotic. Drivers, porters, tour operators, hotel operators, etc. You'd probably be asked if you are interested in about anything. Anyway, just to be safe, we decided on the airport taxi. Oh boy, another long queue..but we didn't really mind, as we were admiring the surrounding. The blue sky, the swaying coconut trees, etc. ooohhhh, we're holidaying at a tropical island.

Taxi was Rp 60,000 to Sanur and the journey took us about 40 minutes. There were lots of "oohh", "ahh" and "check this out" along the way. We felt dizzy later, trying to look at both sides of the road. haha, very funny. There was simply too much to see. (Note : Get your camera ready to snap some pictures along the way. We missed some good view then.)

We were feeling a bit worried when the driver told us that we were arriving at the hotel. The junction was small. We didn't see any signage that said 'Diwangkara Holiday Villa' (http://www.holidayvillabali.com/index.html ). The street leading to the hotel was so small that it could fit a car at a time. As we passed through the gate, we saw a 2 storey building with a small parking lot. The taxi then stopped in front of the small lobby. The reception counter was like 2 metre long and the hotel was really quiet...Gee...I prayed hard that we didn't make a mistake choosing the hotel.

After the speedy check in, we were then showed the way to the our room, passing through a beautiful garden. The building we saw earlier was only the admin block. In the garden, there are a temple, a big pond and few statues.

Our room is just next to the garden with a small pond in front of it. There are 2 chairs outside where we can sit and admire the garden. Stone carvings on the wall and above our door. The room is so cosy, with the warmth of the wooden furniture. Yes, there's the 4 poster bed. Another stone carving adorned the wall above the door to the bathroom.

After settling in, we took a walk in the garden. This is exactly what I had in mind if I ever own my own house...a Bali garden. The pool (deepest end is 2.5 metre) and the restaurant were located near the beach, after the garden.

We surveyed the beach. The sand isn't white but slightly brown. The sea is calm as the waves break at the reef about 50 metre out to the sea. There were a good mix of both locals and foreigners at the beach, doing various activities. Sanur is definitely a place to relax as it's quite laid back. The sea breeze is cooler than the one I'm so used to in Malaysia. There were a number of stalls selling knick knacks at the beach, and La Mayeur Museum is located about 20 metre from the hotel.

As for the first nite in Bali, we decided to stay in and had dinner in the room. While resting, we were busy looking through the pamphlets. It would be cheaper to charter the car with a driver if you know where do you want to go but because we didn't really have the sense of distance in Bali, we decided on for a full day tour of about 13 hours and later booked it. The tour that we chose cost USD35 per pax and it includes car, driver, guide, all entrance fees, performances, lunch, dinner and also sarongs for the temple.

Tour starts at 8.30am tomorrow, hence, we're retiring early.

Good nite.

Counting the hours...I'm dreaming away

2005-08-26T16:23:00.000+08:00

This will be the view that I'll be seeing tomorrow. Can't wait. Candi Bentar (split gate) at the Ngurah Rai airport.

Anyway, I've done most of my preparation. Changed the currency this morning, with a minor change to the original plan. I felt that it's more practical to carry the money in 2 currencies i.e. Rupiah & US dollar as well. Well, at least enough Rupiah to last the weekend. For once, I felt like a millionaire. haha. The bank gave me a better rate than the commercial money changer but the Rupiah was not available in smaller notes. Ati made a frantic call this morning, telling me that she was unable to get hold of any Rupiah in Miri. She' s banking on changing the currency at the KLIA.

Talking bout Ati, there's another change to the plan too. She's only meeting me in KLIA instead of spending the nite at my place.

Other arrangements :

Map (done)
Luggage (bought it!)
Walking shoes (I decided to scrap off the idea & will just use a pair of sandals instead)
The cab (Cancelled. Mon will be driving me to the airport)
Camera (Ati's bringing the digital camera, with 1GB memory card. :p)

I've done some packing last nite. In fact, I just chunked stuffs into the bag. Will look at it again tonite.

Must sleep early tonite. Will be leaving for the airport at 7am. Yawn!

Details, details

2005-08-24T10:11:00.000+08:00

I'm still overwhelmed by the detail planning. First thing first, I guess.

Some checklist for Bali :

Change currency (Will do on the last day. Hv finally found the idea of not having to carry all the rupiah. For once, feeling like a millionaire. hahaha.)
Luggage (Found the one I like. Maybe getting it today. Wasn't in time to repair my trolley bag that was broken during my last trip.)
Tour plan (Tentative plan done, including slots for spa.)
Medication & the likes (Done. Ati teased me about preparing the first aid kit. I think I'm just being paranoid.)
Map (To get one today. Saw a good one at Kino the other day. Else, I can still rely on the maps in the Discovery channel guide book to Bali)
Walking shoes (My saucorny pair seem too bulky. The hush puppies is oh so tempting.)
International roaming
Packing list (tentatively done.)

That's all I can think of at the moment.

Hey, I had just stumbled at this website called Bali Blog. Cool.

Countdown to Bali

2005-08-16T10:09:00.000+08:00

It's 10 days to the Bali trip. Can't help feeling excited about it. My boss had just approved my leave yesterday.

I've made most of the arrangement. Paid up the package (hotel & flight), read the book on Bali & checked out the travel website, while jotting down all the to do & to see stuffs, among which will definitely be the Gamelan show. Ati had not done much homework & will rely on me. Yikes!

My cough is pretty bad. Blame it on the haze...I hope I'll be well enough for the trip.

...For a start...

2004-11-30T18:13:00.000+08:00

When I was very young, we hardly travelled as a family. As far as I can remember, my school holidays were always spent at the village with my cousins. We would swim in the river, helped out at the fruit orchards or rice fields, etc.

But the most memorable trip the family had taken was a trip from Bintulu to Kuching back in 1983. We took a 3 hours bus journey from Bintulu to Sibu. Spent the nite in Sibu. Did a bit of sight seeing there.

The following day, we took the ferry to Sarikei and spent the nite there. We continued our journey the next day by bus to Sri Aman, and again spent the nite there. And the last leg of the journey was from Sri Aman to Kuching. Managed to spend few days of sight seeing in Kuching. After a journey of over 700 km by land transport, we flew back to Bintulu.

I could hardly remember the details of the trip but only remembered the journey I took with my late father.