Belah Melon

Kuala Lumpur, Final City in Tour 2010

2011-02-19T16:31:00.009+07:00

Day 8

We had already left Mandalay Inn at 6 a.m. to catch our flight to Kuala Lumpur. We rented a minibus from the Inn which costed us USD 10 ($1,5 per person). Thank you Mandalay Inn for gave us such a great service. Definitely stay at Mandalay again if I come back to Siem Reap.

We arrived at Siem Reap International Airport. The airport was quite small, maybe the size is the same as Jogjakarta Airport. We had to pay departure tax, which was quite pricey, USD 25. The waiting room was quite big and I could use Wi-Fi in that room. Finally our plane had come and apparently, it was a blue-limited-edition- Airasia plane! Wow, we were so lucky.

The Blue AirAsia

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

At 12.00 p.m., we arrived at Kuala Lumpur Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT). Even though LCCT was just a budget terminal, it was quite big and had many store and restaurant. We took skybus to KL sentral. It costed us RM 9 and the journey took about an hour. From KL sentral, we took monorail to Bukit Bintang. After arrived at Bukit Bintang, we walked to Pujangga Homestay, our homestay. We reserved a dorm-type room, RM 25 per night per pax. The room was quite small and dark and didn’t have bathroom. The bathroom were shared outside. I suggest you to find a better homestay than this one.

Pujangga Homestay. This was our dorm. Tiny and dark.

At living room, Pujangga homestay

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Time to explore KL! Our first activity in KL was exploring Mall and shopping center in Bukit Bintang. I think mall in KL was just the same as in Jakarta. Practically we just walked around and didn’t buy anything. At Berjaya Mall, I found a Korean hobby shop which sold many K-pop goodies. If you are a die hard K-pop fans, you should go to this store. Kuala Lumpur is a city with so many tourist from all over the world. From what I saw, there were so many tourist from Middle East and Northern Africa, something I rarely saw in Singapore or Bangkok two years ago.

At sunset, we went to Merdeka Square. We went there by monorail from Bukit Bintang, changing into LRT in Hang Tuah and stopped at Masjid Jamek station. It was less grandeur than my expectation. It was just a square with a huge Malaysian Flag with an old building across the street, which is Sultan Abdul Samad building. Nothing special there. After that, we went to Petaling street by foot. Yes, by foot! We lost but finally we could find Petaling street. This place was packed with tourists. Many food stall and souvenir sellers here. We had our dinner in a food court. They sold many kinds of food such as Chinese, Indian, and Peranakan food. The taste was quite good and inexpensive. After exploring Petaling street, we went back to our homestay .

View from Merdeka Square

Huge Malaysian Flag

Sultan Abdul Samad building

KL monorail, a little bit like Bangkok BTS

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Day 9

Our first destination was Batu Cave, 13 km north of Kuala Lumpur. First we went to Bukit Bintang monorail station, changing into LRT in Hang Tuah station and stopped in Masjid Jamek LRT station. From Masjid Jamek station, we walked to Puduraya Bus Station and went to Batu Cave by bus from Puduraya. I forgot the bus ticket price to Batu Cave, but I think it won’t cost you more than RM 2. The trip to Batu Cave itself took about 40 minute from Puduraya.

Batu cave entrance gate

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Batu Cave is a huge Hindhu - Indian temple, probably the largest in entire Malaysia. The temple has a 42,7 meter high statue. The Lord Murugan statue to be exact. The statue is the icon of Batu Cave. To enter this temple, we didn’t have to pay anything.

The 42,7 m Murugan statue

There was a lot of bird in the temple

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

To reach the cave, we must climb a steep flight of 272 steps. Yesss, 272 steps means a lot of energy required to reach the cave. It was quite tiresome but it definitely worthed. When you climb, please beware of the monkeys. They are fierce and aggressive. Keep your camera, sunglasses, or your snack safely. FYI, the monkeys successfully grabbed my milk!!! I hate them.

can you see the 272 steps?

The monkeys were really aggressive. They stole my milo :(

Just Climb!

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Finally we reached the cave. From this place, we could see Kuala Lumpur skyline. Inside the cave, we could see Hindhu shrines which were used to worship God. After exploring the cave and taking some photos, we want back to Kuala Lumpur by bus.

Enter the cave

KL skyline from the cave

A shrine inside the cave

Statues

The cave's interior

Yes, even after 272 steps, you can still find stores here

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

We were looking for food in Puduraya area. We walked and found out that Puduraya was located near Petaling street. We decided to have our lunch in Chinese food court.

Our next destination was IKEA Kuala Lumpur. IKEA is located far from the city center, about 20 km from Kuala Lumpur center. We took LRT from Pasar Seni station to the terminus of Kelana Jaya line, Kelana Jaya LRT station. From Pasar Seni station, the trip to Kelana Jaya took about 20 minute. From Kelana Jaya station, we used free shuttle bus which are available every 90 minute. It took another 20 minute from Kelana jaya station to IKEA.

IKEA KL is a huge shop that sold furniture, household stuff and many more items in good and unique design but not cheap. I didn’t buy anything here. In IKEA, we also met Ira’s friend, Rudi and Maya. They studied in KL and they accompanied us exploring KL till the rest of that day.

Lunch with Rudi and Maya

From IKEA, we went back to Kelana Jaya station, took LRT to KLCC station. Yup, we were heading to Suria KLCC and Petronas Twin Tower. We spent our evening in this place,eating and taking photos.

KL skyscrapers from KLCC park

The fountain

The interior of Suria KLCC

Twin tower, the landmark of Malaysia

Pose together

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

At 10 p.m. we said goodbye to Rudi and Maya and went back to Bukit Bintang. At 10 p.m., Bukit Bintang was still packed with tourist from all over the world and there were many attractions in the streets of Bukit Bintang. We just looked for a while and then went back to our homestay.

Attractions in Bukit Bintang

Bukit Bintang at night

Attraction in Bukit Bintang

Day 10

August 4^th 2010 was our last day in KL and also our last day after 10 days touring. We didn’t do much activity that day. In the morning, we went to Chow Kit monorail station and walked into Syarikat Kamal bookstore which sold medical books in cheap price. After that, Martin left earlier because he had to catch his flight to Singapore while the rest was still busy packing.

Exploring Bukit Bintang for the last time

Finally, it’s time to say goodbye to KL. We left the homestay at 2 p.m. and heading to LCCT airport. Our flight was delayed for almost an hour. Speaking of KL, this city didn’t leave any impression to me. I’m not a Malaysian anti or whatsoever, but compared to Bangkok, Singapore, or even Saigon and Phnom Penh, KL is way too mediocre.

At last, we went back to Jakarta safely and the 10 days journey was finally over. See you at the our future entry!

Day 7: The Mighty Angkor

2011-02-10T14:20:00.008+07:00

We woke up very early that day to catch the sunrise in Angkor Wat. At 4.30 a.m. we already left the guesthouse. Heavy rain fell all over the night and we were afraid that we couldn’t see the sunrise. We went by tuktuk and it only took about 30 minutes from our guesthouse to the Angkor complex. Angkor wat complex is really huge. It’s almost impossible to travel from one wat to the other wat by foot so you must rent a bicycle, motorcycle, tuktuk or car to travel around Angkor Wat Complex.

Before we enter the complex, we had to pay the ticket first. There are three type of tickets; one day ticket (USD 20), three days ticket (USD 40) and one week ticket (USD 60). If you are a history lovers or have an interest in archeology, I suggest you to take the three days or one week ticket. But if you’re just an ordinary traveler like me, trust me, one day is more than enough. The ticket itself is quite good. The officer will take our picture and print it out to the ticket. Carry your ticket at all time in Angkor because there will be regular checks for the ticket at almost sites within The Angkor Complex.

At 5.00 a.m. we had arrived at Angkor Wat. It was very dark. Other than car’s and motorcycle’s lamp, there was no other light but The Wat was already packed with many tourists. Thirty minute later, the sky became blue but we were very disappointed because the sky was very cloudy. We failed to see the sunrise in Angkor Wat.

Mission: failed. The sky was cloudy.

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

We started to explore Angkor Wat. It was a very large temple. The Angkor Wat was built in 1200 A.D. by King Suryavarman. This temple is a Hindhu temple where Lord Vishnu was worshipped. At that time, Kingdom of Khmer reached its golden era and their territory was from Thailand to Vietnam. It was believed that one million people had lived in this Angkor town at that time, making Angkor the biggest city in Southeast Asia at that time. But then, Kingdom of Khmer became weaker and finally collapsed. The Angkor complex itself was left by its citizen and was forgotten. In 1960s, Angkor Wat became one of the prime tourist destination in Asia, even Jacky Kennedy went to Angkor. But after Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia, the tourism in Angkor collapsed until early 2000.

You can see some parts of the temple were restored

Mighty Angkor Wat

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

There was a large artificial lake in front of the Angkor Wat. The lake was also built in Jayavarman Era. Quite amazing huh. There were a lot of aggressive monkeys inside the wat. Be careful, they could grab your snacks, accessories, and even your camera. When we came to the Angkor Wat, some parts of the wat were renovated, which was quite disturbing.

Inside Angkor Wat.

Be careful, they could grab your camera.

This is the artificial lake in front of Angkor Wat

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

After almost three hours in the Angkor Wat, we moved to our next destination, Bayon. The distance between Angkor Wat and Bayon is about 5 km. Before entering the Bayon Temple, we stopped first at the “city gate”, which was still far away from the temple, to take pictures.

From Angkor Wat to Bayon

Bayon Gate

Bayon gate

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

The trademark of Bayon is four-sided-face giant stone statue which is easily recognized. Every tower in this Bayon temple contains that four-sided –faces. The temple itself wasn’t as large as Angkor Wat. Many parts of the temple had been ruined and I could see some restorations have been done. Just like Angkor Wat, Bayon Temple is a Hindhu Temple.

Whose face is this?

Can you count how many faces in this pic?

Bayon Temple

Every tower has four faces. Can you see them?

Some parts are just like this

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

After visiting Bayon Temple, we visited some little temples which were less famous than Angkor Wat and Bayon. At 12 p.m. we took a break for lunch. There was a food hawker complex near The Elephant Terrace temple. The food was expensive and the taste wasn’t really great. Definitely my worst lunch in Cambodia.

A temple near Bayon

Next destination was Ta Phrom. This temple was really popular among the tourist, definitely the highlight of Angkor complex besides Angkor Wat and Bayon. Have you ever watched Tomb Raider? If you have, you may recognize a few scenes from the movie in this temple. The popularity of Ta Phrom was huge because of Tomb Raider. Some even said that Ta Phrom is Angelina Jolie temple.

Ta Phrom

Angelina Jolie Temple

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

But other than Tomb Raider factor, Ta Phrom itself was really stunning. It is best known as the temple where many big (really really big and old) trees have been left intertwined with the stonework. It’s like a perfect combination between nature and human work. This place is definitely my favourite temple in Angkor. Just like in Angkor Wat and Bayon, there were some parts of the temple that were in restoration.

Fantastic interaction between The tree and the stone

If you watch Tomb Raider, you can easily recognize this place

Ta Phrom is amazing. Definitely my favourite place in Angkor

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

After Ta Phrom, we visited many small, less famous temple. Honestly, I felt bored because there were nothing special at those temples (at least for me). In my mind, they started to look the same, from one temple to the other temple. It was 4 p.m., we were already bored, got nothing to do, but we had to stay at Angkor to watch the sunset.

Mati gaya

I love this place

Just another temple in Angkor Complex

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

At 5 p.m. we went to Phnom Bakheng. It’s the best place to see the sunset. Apparently, to reach Phnom Bakheng wasn’t easy at all. All I can say is prepare your stamina. First, we had to climb the hill. The path was really long and twisty. After we reach the top of the hill, again we had to climb the temple to reach the top level of Phnom Bakheng Temple. The stairs were really narrow and sharp, we had to be careful. Finally, we reach the top level and I must say that the view from up there was really fantastic. You could see Angkor Complex in 360^o view. I even could see Angkor Wat from here. Really beautiful. Unfortunately, the sky was cloudy again. We failed to see the sunset.

View from Phnom Bakheng. See. the sky was cloudy again.

Sunset in Phnom Bakheng

The temple itself is quite beautiful

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

We went back to Siem Reap town. We decided to taste The Cambodian version of KFC since Vietnamese KFC tasted great. The menu was different from Vietnam and Indonesia. Apparently, Cambodian KFC was more expensive and less delicious than Vietnamese KFC. Cambodian KFC also didn’t provide rice. After having meal, we went straight to the Inn and rest. We didn’t go anywhere because we were very tired. Besides, we had to wake up early to catch our flight to Kuala Lumpur.

Day 6: Welcome to Siem Reap

2011-02-10T08:41:00.006+07:00

We left Fancy Guesthouse at 7.30 a.m. Before we left, we said goodbye to Mr. Phannak. I was quite impressed with his guesthouse and his service. I will definitely stay in this guesthouse if I come back to Phnom Penh.

The Apsara Khmer minibus picked us exactly at 7.30 a.m. It was a 15-seat minibus. The ticket to Siem Reap was US$10, including bread and mineral water. The benefit that you can get if you use minibus are: 1) Minibus is much faster, it only takes 4 hours to get to Siem Reap (if you use conventional bus, the journey will take 6 hours); 2) Of course, much comfortable and less stopover. The minibus only stopped at a restaurant in Kompong Thom, for only 30 minutes. We had our lunch there. The food was quite expensive ($ 3 - $5) and wasn’t very special.

At about 12.30 p.m., we arrived at Siem Reap town. My first impression about Siem Reap was less hectic and much more organized than Phnom Penh. The minibus stopped at Apsara office and the tuktuk drivers from Mandalay Inn have come to pick us. It was a free service and we had our first tuktuk experience in Siem Reap. It was nice, exploring Siem Reap by tuktuk.

Tuk-tuk-ing in Siem Reap

Siem Reap is greener than Phnom Penh
Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Finally we arrived at Mandalay Inn. They have a hilarious slogan “Looks expensive but actually not”. Well, I must say that the slogan was completely true. I stayed at triple room, equipped with hot water, cable tv, and fridge. The room was also quite big. With all those facilities, I only paid for $16 per room per night ($5 per pax). I think, it was incredibly cheap, not to mention that we also had free internet and wi-fi service. The location was also quite strategic, near to the central market and the French quarter.

Mandalay Inn

Looks expensive but not!!!! (LOL)
Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

I had a pharyngitis at that time. It made me feel so weak, fatigue, and nauseous. I must say that I couldn’t enjoy my visit in Siem Reap because of that. I had a non-stop cough with runny nose and also muscle pain. I went to the pharmacy to buy some medicine in the central market but unfortunately they couldn’t speak English, so I had to use my body language. When I got the medicine, I laughed so hard because the medicine was produced in Bekasi!!!!

We hadn’t do much activity in our first day in Siem Reap. We took a rest first. At 4 p.m. we went to the central market for shopping. Yes, we loveeee shopping  The price in Siem Reap was almost the same as Phnom Penh. You had to bargain if you want to reduce the price.

Siem Reap Central Market. Looks like Indonesian traditional market, doesn't it?
Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

After shopping at central market, we moved to supermarket to buy our daily needs. Again, I laughed after I read a “Fi-Wi” poster. Fail.

Free Fi-Wi Service!!!
Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

After sunset, we went to French quarter. It was the Siem Reap’s tourist center. So many foreigner from all over the world came to this place. French quarter was a complex of old two-stories building from French colonization era. Nowadays, The French quarter was packed with café and restaurant. Every night, this area was packed with tourist.

French Quarter, full of cafe, restaurant, and bar

Red Piano. Angelina Jolie visited this cafe in 2000 and made her own mixture
Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

We had our dinner in a street hawker. They sold BBQ set with only $3 per pax and fresh juice (3000 riels). We also ordered chicken amok. My friends said that the foods were great but for me, I couldn’t comment because I had lost my appetite since I was sick. During our dinner, I could see four or five bus, filled with Korean tourist, stop in front of our restaurant. There were many Koreans visiting Cambodia.

Cheap BBQ!
Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Actually. There was a night market but we didn’t go there because I was too tired to go there and also because we had to wake up very early for the next day. At the hotel, we reserved two tuktuk for one day tourin Angkor Wat. The tuktuk costed us $13 from 4.30 a.m. until sunset. Stay tuned for our story in Angkor Wat 

Day 5: Phnom Penh's Darkest History

2010-12-18T18:05:00.011+07:00

It was a fine morning, the weather was perfect and the cars were ready to serve us. We were ready to explore Cambodia’s darkest history. In fact, the tragedy in Cambodia was one of the darkest history of 20^th century.

For you who have no idea about Khmer Rouge, I will give a brief explanation. So, Khmer Rouge was a Ultra-communist party which led Cambodia from 1975 until 1979. The party’s leader was Pol Pot. This party wanted to make Cambodia as a 100% agricultural country. All books, library, school, movies, temple, and hospital were destroyed. All intelligent people such as doctor, teacher, lecturer, scientist, engineer, and people who have connection with foreigner were captured, tortured, and finally killed. Even man with eyeglasses were also captured and killed because they thought that people with eyeglasses were an smart and intelligent people and they could be dangerous for them. Such an irrational reason right? So, those innocent people were jailed in the Toul Sleng S-21 Prison where they were tortured very hard. After that, they were executed in this place, Choung Ek, The Killing Field. It was believed that 2 millions people died when this regime ruled, most of them died because of malnutrition. It was also believed that 17.000 people were executed in this Killing Field.

Our first destination was Choung Ek Genocidal Museum. Choung Ek is also well known as “The Killing Field”. It was located at the suburbs, 15 km from Phnom Penh center and took about 20 minutes by car. The driver was Mr. Phannak’s brother and since he only spoke little English, we didn’t have much conversation with him but overall he was very nice person. During the journey to Choung Ek, we could see some places of interest such as Independence monument, Naga Casino, and Vietnam-Cambodia friendship monument. The road to Choung Ek was in a good condition although a little bit dusty.

Welcome to the Killing Fields

Finally we arrived at Choung Ek Genocidal Museum a.k.a The Killing Field. The entrance fee was US$ 2 per person and if you wanna add a tour guide, you have to pay more but we didn’t use a tour guide at all. First, you will see a 17-stories monument in the center of Choung Ek. This monument contains so many skulls and bones. Those are the Khmer Rouge’s victim. The ground floor was filled with the victim’s shirts and trousers, the second until the seventh floor was filled with the victim’s skull and from the eight floor was filled with the victim’s other bones.

The Ticket was US$2

Choung Ek Monument. It was filled with victim's bones and skeletons.

Can you see the skulls? It was a large amount of skulls. Tragic.

Close Up version.

A Mass Graveyard. More than a hundred headless corpses were found here. Yes, they were headless. Really tragic.

Another mass graveyard. You can find so many teeth here. Yes, they were the victim's teeth.

The Victim's Clothes. Full of blood stain.

This tree was used by the Khmer Rouge to kill babies. They hit the babies to the tree till the babies died. Really heartbreaking, isn't it?

The so-called Magic Tree. When the khmer rouge killed someone, the speakers,which were put in this tree, were releasing a sound. The aim was to covered the victim's scream so the residents who lived near the area couldn't hear the victim's scream.

There were also a mini museum in this place. It had a mini theatre which played a movie about Khmer Rouge every 30 minutes. The movie itself explained about the actual fact of the event happened in Khmer Rouge era. It was a good movie, made me understand more about this Killing Field.

Museum inside the Killing Fields.

After about an hour in this place, we moved to our second destination which was Toul Sleng Prison. Toul Sleng was located near the city center. The Toul Sleng museum was just as depressing as Choung Ek. The prison was actually a high school building but Pol Pot transformed it into a prison. Inside this prison, the victims were treated very bad. I have no words to describe how tragic this place is. It’s just so tragic, so scary, and also spooky. I think the photos will explain this place better than words. The entrance fee for Toul Sleng Museum is US$2 per person.

Tuol Sleng Prison. It was a Junior High School

This wire has a function: to prevent the victim to jump so they couldn't suicide

Small, dark, dirty cells. I just can't imagine how they could live here.

The Victim's photos. They all were photographed. From 17000 victims here, only 7 could survive.

The victims were tortured in this room. Sometimes, they were tortured to death. But if they survived, they were sent to the Choung Ek and they were killed there.

This Illustration was made by Van Nath. He is one of seven survivor in Tuol Sleng.

After visiting those two depressing places, it’s time for us to do shopping! The driver brought us to the Russian Market. They said that the price in Russian Market is cheaper than the Central Market. FYI, the Russian Market had also appeared in Amazing Race. The market itself wasn’t really big but the atmosphere was really similar to the Chatuchak market in Bangkok. In fact, in this market I could find some souvenirs which were also sold in Bangkok. I bought many souvenirs here with a very reasonable price. Of course, you must bargain hard first to get the best price. But I must say that the goods’ price in Phnom Penh was still a little expensive compared to Bangkok or Saigon.

This is The Russian Market. Reminds me to the Chatucak Market in Bangkok

In the center of this market, we found many food hawkers and we decided to have our lunch here. I think it was our first time to have a meal in the center of the market. The place wasn’t comfortable but I felt so excited about the food that was sold there. There were so many food stalls there. Finally I ordered a pork fried rice (3000 riel). Then I found a satay seller and I ordered beef and pork satay (1000 Riel per satay). Although the place wasn’t comfortable at all, the food was really delicious. I really loved the satay, it was very delicious and the price was also cheap. I really recommend this place for you to do shopping and have your meal.

Food court inside the market. The market is really similar to the traditional market in Indonesia

Me and the pork satay

Our next destination was Cambodian Royal Palace. This place opened everyday but at 12 p.m. until 2 p.m. the gate was closed. After 2 p.m. the gate would be opened again and the visitors could enter the palace. The entrance fee for Royal Palace was quite expensive. It was 25.000 riel or US$ 6.25. For females, you weren’t allowed to use sleeveless shirts and shorts.

Near the Palace's entrance

The Complex was quite big and very beautiful. There were some spot where you weren’t allowed to take picture. The Palace itself was so grandeur and the interior was so stunning. There was also Temple of Jade Buddha, just like in Bangkok! I wonder which one is authentic, Bangkok or Phnom Penh. Overall, this place is a worth-visit place and a you must not skip this palace if you are in Phnom Penh. But having said so, I think Bangkok’s Royal Palace is still much better than Phnom Penh, at least for me.

Such a beautiful palace

The silver pagoda

One of many pavillions in Royal Palace

Another pavillion

This is the Temple of Jade Buddha, similar to the Bangkok one.

When I was in Royal Palace, I started to have fever and sore throat. Suddenly, I felt unwell and very tired. Then Christo and I went to the Sisowath Quay to have a Khmer Massage. I was hoping by having massage, I would feel a little bit better. For an hour of Khmer Massage, we had to pay US$ 7. Well apparently Khmer Massage was just like a massage I routinely had in Indonesia. Maybe I chose the wrong place because I didn’t really feel the massage.

After having a massage, I chose to go back to the guesthouse because my condition was getting worsen. I went straight to my room and took a rest. That night, I didn’t go outside but my friends did. They even found a great restaurant. So sad, I couldn’t join.

*) Story: Krishna

Photographer: Zarwindo

Finally... Doctor

2010-10-03T23:23:00.005+07:00

Congratulate us... We are officially a Medical Doctor now! Many thanks to God for His uncountable blessings. to our parents for their endless support, to our teachers, and to our friends. Really, you can't survive in this medical school without friends. Now it's time for us to step into the next chapter, becoming a real doctor, bringing a great responsibility to serve individual and community. Please pray for us so we can handle this responsibilty perfectly.

Travel buddies for 3 years

Belahmelon's creator

For belahmelon reader, thank you very much for visiting and reading our blog. We just hope that belahmelon can help you to make a good travel itinerary for your vacation. Since we are a doctor and we are working now, we have no idea when our next journey will start. Hopefully, we can still continue our backpacking "career" next year. We are hunger for another beautiful, white sand, crystal water beach tough. See you at another entry!

Cheers,
Krishna, MD & Kozzy, MD

Day 4: Phnom Penh

2010-09-22T19:43:00.007+07:00

It was six in the morning and we were ready to go. Because we left early in the morning, we didn’t get breakfast. It was time to say goodbye to Ngoc Linh Hotel. We walked to the Sinhtourist office. At 6.35 a.m., the bus came and we departed from Sinhtourist. This $10 bus was quite comfortable with AC and reclining seat with a driver and his assistant. Slowly, the bus left the Saigon city center. From the window, I could see how hectic the morning traffic in Saigon. As usual, the motorcycle was the king of the street, with their massive numbers and their noisy horns.

My Last Pic in Saigon

The assistant checked every passenger’s passport to make sure that the passenger has the Cambodia visa. If you don’t apply visa in advance, don’t worry, the Visa on Arrival (VOA) is available. We paid US$25 for the VOA and our passport were collected by the assistant. The journey from Saigon to the Vietnam-Cambodia border (Moc Bai – Bavet) took about 2,5 hours. Nothing much I could see from the window. The panorama was almost the same as Pantura.
At 9 a.m. we arrived at Vietnam border. There were already a long queue in the immigration counter and we must wait for our VOA first. We stuck at this place for more than an hour. The VOA processing really took forever and we were really really bored to death.

Vietnam Border (Moc Bai)

So, finally the VOA-thing were done and we officially left Vietnam and enter the so-called “no man’s land”. We went back to the bus, crossing the “no man’s land” by bus. After like 2 minutes, we arrived at Cambodia border. The immigration process was quite fast and simple and we officially entered Kingdom of Cambodia and we continued our journey. From my observation, there were a lot of casinos near the Cambodia border. The casinos looked big and fancy. They built so many casinos here because they didn’t have to pay taxes.

My Visa on Arrival

Cambodia Border (Bavet)

Casino in Bavet

The traffic in Cambodia was very different than Vietnam. While Vietnam’s road was packed with cars and motorcycles (mostly), the Cambodia’s road was very quiet. I barely saw car and motorcycle. The panorama from my window was almost the same as Vietnam but clearly, Cambodia was less hectic and less developed than Vietnam. Finally, we saw the Mighty Mekong River. Mekong River is the 11th longest river in the world and officially the longest river in the Southeast Asia. The river itself was very wide but unfortunately there are no bridge, so the vehicle must use the ferry to cross the river. Maybe The Cambodian government still can’t afford to build the bridge, idk.

This is the Mekong ferry. Reminds me of Merak-Bakauheni ferry

At 1 p.m. the bus arrived at Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia. The bus stopped at the Sinhtourist office. From my window, I could see people from the hostel had already come to pick us. In Phnom Penh, we stayed at Fancy guesthouse and the owner, Mr. Phannak himself, come to pick us. He provided two cars to pick us to the guesthouse and it was free of charge. In the car, we had a conversation. Mr. Phannak asked where we come from, how long we will stay, and our next destination. Mr. Phannak also told us about Phnom Penh. He said that the economy is getting better, the living is easier, and many Korean corporation come to Cambodia to make investment. Mr. Phannak showed us the construction and he said that they were making the tallest building in Cambodia and It was a Korean investment.

Fancy Guesthouse, at the left side

Finally we arrived at the Fancy Guesthouse. We took 3 rooms. Two rooms with one bed for two people and one room with two bed for three people. The room was very nice and comfortable. There were also cable TV, fridge, and hot water. At the lobby, there were two computer that could be used for internet, free of charge of course. The location was quite strategic, not far from The Grand palace and Sorya mall. The staff was very helpful. With all those facilities, we paid for only US$15/night for two people and US$25 for three people. Mr. Phannak also offered us the minibus ticket to Siem Reap using Apsara Khmer Bus Company for only US$10. He also offered us the tour to Choung Ek- Toul Sleng – Russian Market with car for US$ 21. We accepted his offer because those location was quite far from the city center (about 15 km).

Clean Bathroom with hot water

This is the USD 15 room per night

So, after a long chit chat with Mr. Phannak, we finally explored Phnom Penh. Our first destination was Sorya Shopping Mall. We planned to have lunch there. Sorya is the largest mall in Cambodia but please don’t compared it to the luxury mall in Indonesia or Singapore. For me, Sorya Mall is more like Arion plaza in East Jakarta.

Before continuing the story, I will explain about the currency in Cambodia. The official currency in Cambodia is Cambodian Riel (Riel). US dollar is widely accepted in Cambodia. In fact, the US dollar is much more accepted than Riel. Everything is valued with US dollar, not Riel. The US dollar that circulated in Cambodia is probably the worst US dollar I’ve ever seen. I mean, the dollar is very dirty and “kumel”. The rate is 4000 riel for US$1. The most annoying thing is, if you buy something in dollar, let’s say the price is $ 1,25 and you pay with $2, the change will be in Riel which is 3000 Riel. Yeah, it’s quite confusing and quite annoying.

One interesting fact in Phnom Penh is the fact that many people have luxurious cars. I was truly amazed, seeing so many brand new Toyota Land Cruiser, Lexus Harrier, Toyota Camry, Toyota Celica, and Mitsubishi Pajero in this town. I mean, this is a poor country but its citizen can buy those kind of cars. Most of the cars even were just parked at the streetside and most of them were dusty. Finally, I asked Mr. Phannak’s brother about this fact and he said that Lexus Harrier’s price in Cambodia were only USD 11.000. It’s like 1/6 – 1/7 Harrier’s price in Indonesia!!!! I don’t know why the price is so damn cheap, maybe there’s no tax for luxurious car. I don’t know.

Toyota Celica. You can easily find this kind of car in Phnom penh

Another interesting fact is most of the street don’t have a name. Instead, the street’s “name” is simply given in number. For example, our guesthouse’s address is on 48 street. The parallel of 48 street is 52 street. Only the big/protocol street has a name.

Typical building in Phnom Penh

Back to the story, we had lunch in the food court. The food’s price range between 5000-8000 riel. I had pork as my lunch and the taste was quite good. After lunch, we went to the upper floor of the Sorya Mall. From there, we could see Phnom Penh’s panorama. We also went to the supermarket to buy drinks and some snacks (it was my first transaction using USD and I got Riel as the change).

Phnom Penh from Sorya Mall rooftop

We went to our 2nd destination which was Central market. This market has an unique architecture. It was like a dome with four hand. Unfortunately, it was already 4 p.m. and the market was already closed. From what I read, most travel guide don’t suggest you to do shopping here. They said that Russian Market is cheaper.

Central Market with its unique architecture

Since Central Market had already closed, we moved to our next (and last) destination of the day which was Sisowath Quay. I think this place is the most touristy place in Phnom Penh. There are so many bars, travel agent, saloon and massage, and hotel in this area. Sisowath Quay is beautiful. It’s a riverfront area. It runs along the west bank of Tonle Sap River, but in the southern side, The Tonle Sap river will join the mighty Mekong River. The Sisowath Quay is a perfect place to enjoy the sunset. The atmosphere was great. So many Cambodians came here to walk around, jogging, or just gathering. In this place, there were flags from almost nationality. We found the Indonesian flag and we didn’t forget to take a picture.

Tonle Sap River

Sisowath Quay, Phnom Penh's riverfront area

One Two Three... Let's do the exercising

the other side of Sisowath Quay

Merah Putih in Phnom Penh

For dinner, we ate at The Pizza Company. It was like a carbon copy of Pizza Hut. The ambience, the lay out of the restaurant, and the menu was similar to the Pizza Hut. I think Pizza Hut taste better than this restaurant.

See, the interior is similar to Pizza Hut!

It was 8 p.m. and it was still crowded in the Sisowath Quay. I suggest you to go back to the hotel earlier because I read that the crime rate in this town is quite high, especially to the tourist. So, at 8 p.m. we went back to the hotel and a big and meaningful journey had waited for us for the next day.

Expenses
Visa on Arrival USD 25
Fancy Guesthouse USD 7,5 / person/night  2 nights USD 15
Killing field Tour USD 21 per car ( USD 6 per person)
Minibus to Siem Reap USD 10
Lunch USD 2
Snack and drink USD 2
Dinner @ PizzaCompany USD 4 per person
Total USD 64

Day 3: Saigon - Cao Dai - Cu Chi Tunnel

2010-08-29T20:57:00.013+07:00

For this day, we wore the same shirt which we bought at the night market, the Vietnam Flag shirt. Before we started the day, we had our breakfast at the hotel. Again, the French Baguette came as the breakfast menu and just like the previous day, I had a hard time to chew those hard bread. After we finished our meal, we went to Sinhtourist. That morning, The Sinhtourist was full with so many tourist. I could see a bus to Phnom Penh, bus to Mekong Delta River and some other destination. From this tour agent, I could conclude that tourism in Vietnam has developed into a massive business and the Vietnam government has succeed to develop their tourism section. Anyway, our Cao Dai – Cu Chi Tunnel full day tour was scheduled to depart at 8.00 a.m. but the tour was delayed until 8.30 a.m. Beside us, there were another four tour member. They were a couple from France, a 50s-year old man from Australia who was accompanied with a young lady from Vietnam. We used a minibus as our transportation and our tour leader was Mr. Anh. At 8.30 a.m., we departed from Sinhtourist.

At Sinhtourist. We wore our "uniform", the Vietnam Flag shirt.

The Distance between Saigon and Cao Dai temple is about 90 km. Mr. Anh said that the journey to Cao Dai temple would take about 3 hour. The minibus slowly left Saigon and entered the national road. As usual, I did some observations. The motorcycles were as fierce as usual. The panorama was almost exactly the same as Jalur Pantura (North Java Road), you know, with the rice field and buffalo. Oh ya, I think I haven’t told you that in Vietnam, the driver is in the left side and the car runs in the right side of the road.

Kk io slept

Panorama in the suburbs

typical panorama in the rural area

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Apparently, the driver didn’t take us directly to the Cao Dai temple. After like one hour, They brought us to a some kind of handicraft center. The handicrafts here were made by a group of handicapped. We could visit the workshop and saw them make some handicrafts. Of course, we also could do some shoppings here but I didn’t recommend you to do shopping here. The price was just too expensive. For example, the keychain that I brought in the night market was 9000 VND each but in this place, with the exactly same design and material, the keychain’s price was 57000 VND. Such a money ripping right?

Handicapped handicraft. Pretty but very expensive

The workshop

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

After 20 minutes, Mr. Anh called us to go back to the minibus and the long ride continued. During the journey, Mr. Anh told many stories about Vietnam history, from the French colonization, the Vietnam war, the communist government, and the life in Vietnam after Doi Moi era. He said that life in Vietnam nowadays is becoming much better.

Finally, after total three hours ride from Saigon, we arrived at Cao Dai Temple, Tay Ninh Province. Maybe many of you have no idea about Cao Dai. Cao means high and Dai means platform, so it means higher place. Cao Dai is a kind of religion that combined Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism as their foundation with a little influence from Christianity and Islam. The temple itself was located in a large complex of Cao Daiist and was built in 1926.

There were so many symbols in the building and I didn’t really hear the explanation from Mr. Anh. The only thing that I could understand was The Divine Eye. In the temple, you could see an eye, left eye to be exact, in the center of the building. That’s Divine Eye. It’s a symbol of God, The Highest Power.

Cao Dai temple

The priests and the disciples

Our tour leader, Mr. Anh, explaining about Cao Dai

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

At 12 p.m. the noon prayer began. We entered the temple but before that we took off our shoes. We could see the Cao Dai disciples wearing white robe entered the temple. We also could see some Cao Dai priests. Some of them wore red robe, the other priests wore blue robe and there were also priests who wore yellow robe. Those three colors symbolize the three foundation of Cao Dai- yellow for Buddhism, blue for Taoism, and red for Confucianism.

Red, yellow, and blue robe

The disciples singing and playing music

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

The visitor were allowed to watch the noon prayer from the 2^nd floor. During the prayer, they were singing and chanting. The noon prayer took about 30 minutes but Mr. Anh asked us to go back to the minibus at 12.20 p.m. so we didn’t follow the prayer until finish. So, let’s move to the next destination!

The visitor are only allowed to watch at the second floor

The noon prayer. You also can see how beautiful the temple's interior

I think, the left statue is Jesus

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Before went to the 2^nd destination, which was Cu Chi Tunnel, we had our lunch first at Nam Thanh Restaurant. The tour package didn’t include lunch so we must pay by our own cost. I ordered spring roll with rice (35.000 VND) and ice coffee milk (12.000 VND). My spring roll’s taste was quite good but of course not as great as in Quan An Ngon. In this restaurant, we asked the French couple, the Australians, and the Vietnamese girl to take picture together.

Posing at Cao Dai

This is our full team!

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

The journey from Cao Dai to Cu Chi tunnel took about 90 minutes. We arrived at Cu Chi Tunnel at about 3 p.m. To enter this place, we must pay 80.000 VND per person (the ticket wasn’t included in the tour package).

Cu Chi Tunnel entrance

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Mr. Anh brought us to the hall. In the hall, there was a Cu Chi Tunnel diorama, a television and a DVD player and a Cu Chi map. First, Mr. Anh gave a brief explanation about the Vietnam War, the Vietnam Communist, and the tunnel itself. The Vietnams made a very long and deep tunnel, about 3 metres depth. Inside the tunnel, there were a hospital, kitchen, discussion room, bunker, and of course, the deadly trap for the foreigner who enter this tunnel. For me, the tunnel is quite complex and I can’t imagine how can the Vietnams build this structure, especially in their hard time. Mr. Anh even said that he stayed inside the tunnel when he was 2 years old. After Mr. Anh’s explanation, he played a documentary film about the Cu Chi area in the Vietnam War era.

Brief explanation about Cu chi tunnel

The map and the diorama

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Before the film finished, Mr. Anh called us to follow him. The Cu Chi tunnel tour began. First, Mr. Anh showed us the small camouflage hole. There were a lot of camouflage hole in the Vietnam War. At first, an Vietnamese officer demonstrated to us how to enter that tiny hole. After that, our group were given a chance to try that. Without doubt, I said that I wanna try to enter the camouflage hole because that’s one of my “to-do-list” in Vietnam. Actually, it was not that hard to enter and hide in the hole, maybe because the hole was made bigger than the actual size for the tourism purpose. I strongly recommend you to try this! Zar and the French man also try to enter the hole.

The officer is demonstrating how to hide in the camuoflage hole

Oh, how I love this pose

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

The next interesting thing in Cu Chi tunnel was the trap. There were so many variation of trap made by the Vietnams. There were tiger trap, fish hook trap, clipping armpit trap and many more. Those traps were very effective to weaken the US soldiers. Besides the trap, there were also a Vietnamese soldier diorama.

Everyone gathered to see the trap

It is a tiger trap

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

See saw trap

Fish hook trap, it will make you suffer so much

Soldier diorama

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

For military lovers, you actually can try some weapons you like. Weapons like AK47, M16, and M30 are available. For AK47, the bullet’s price was 35.000 VND each but unfortunately, you must buy at least 10 bullets. That means, you must provide 350.000 VND if you really want to try AK47. Because of that, nobody in our group buy the bullets. Instead, we just did some poses with the weapon.

Yes, zar is pretending to shoot

Bomb

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Finally, the next attraction is the tunnel itself. We went inside the tunnel! Mr. Anh said that the length of the tunnel is 50 metres but we could quit at the 25 m if we’re tired. Finally, we went down to the tunnel. It was very dark and the tunnel was narrow. Actually the tunnel has been widened for the tourism purpose. So, I really couldn’t imagine how narrow the origin tunnel. One thing, inside the tunnel, you must crawl. Don’t do the “jalan jongkok” like I did. Oh, for you who are claustrophobia, don’t ever go inside this tunnel.

The dark and narrow tunnel.

Our tour was ended here. Time to go back to the city. From Cu Chi, it took about 90 minutes to Saigon. At 6.30 p.m. we arrived at Sinhtourist office and then we walked straight to the Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) for our dinner. The menu, of course, was very different from Indonesia and also cheaper than Indonesia. A package including rice, breast chicken, puree, cola, and soup only costed me 40.000 VND.

After dinner, we went back to the People’s Committee Hall. The building looked so pretty at the night. I recommend you to do the night shot here. So pretty.

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Zar also took pictures at Trung Nguyen.

Trung Nguyen Statue

Irgi Fahrezi in Saigon???
Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

After hunting pictures, we didn’t do nothing much. Ira, Rio, and Zar went straight to the hotel while the rest went back to the night market before back to the hotel.

Day 3 expenses

Lunch 47.000 VND

Cu Chi entrance ticket 80.000 VND

Mr. Anh’s tip 20.000 VND

Dinner at KFC 40.000 VND

Circle K 45.000 VND

Hotel payment 456.000 VND ( 152.000 VND per night)

Total 678.000 VND

Saigon Day 2 (July 27th 2010)

2010-08-20T22:06:00.011+07:00

Story : Krishna
Photography: Zarwindo

At 8 a.m. , we were all ready to explore the town. But before that, we had our breakfast first at the hotel. The menu was a French baquette and a sunny side up egg. Itwas my first time eating French baquette and I didn’t really like it because it was really really hard to chew. French baquette is widely sold in Saigon because Vietnam was the colony of the French. You can easily find it everywhere in the street.

our hotel was in this alley
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

Our first mission was to exchange our money. Luckily, there was a bank near our hotel. I gave US$100 to the bank then I got 1.900.000 VND! Yeah, suddenly I became rich! Anyway, I suggest you to exchange your money in the money changer because they have slightly better rates. Okey, we all had our dong in the pocket and we were ready to rock! Our second mission was to book the tour for the next day. We walked to De Tham street and we were looking for Sinhtourist office. From what I read in the internet, Sinhtourist offered so many tour package and their service is quite good. We chose to take a full day tour to Cao Dai and Cu Chi Tunnel. The price was 165.000 VND and we should ready at the Sinhtourist office at 8 a.m. We also bought the bus ticket to Phnom Penh here. The Sinhtourist bus to Phnom Penh only available once daily and the bus go at 6.35 a.m. The price was 195.000 VND. We got the tour and we also got the ticket to Phnom Penh, so let’s start the city tour!

@ Sinhtourist
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

I started to observe this city. Saigon is the city of motorcycle. There were so many motorcycle. Saigon totally beat Jakarta in term of motorcycle population. Even worse, they always ring their horn, driving recklessly, and some of them use pedestrian as their way. Jakarta is chaotic but Saigon is even more chaotic! But the car’s population in Saigon is definitely less than Jakarta. That chaotic traffic made us difficult to cross the street. It was almost impossible to cross the Saigon’s streets. I swear that my heart beat so fast everytime I crossed the street. For the cleanliness, Saigon is much cleaner than Jakarta. I rarely saw trash on the street. I also noticed that there were so many parks in Saigon. Those parks were full of trees and really shady. People always gather in the parks every morning to do some exercise or just walking around.

anyone dare to cross this street?

Park in Pham Ngu Lao area
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

One thing that I also noticed in this city was how chaotic the electricity cable. It was very unorganized. Some of them even went down until we could reach them. In some place, we even should mind our head because of the cable thing. Beside the cable, I also noticed many propaganda billboard in the street. It was the characteristic of a communist country. We could also see the communist mark everywhere in the city. An unusual scenery for us.

Chaotic cable

OMG...the cable!!!
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

In Saigon, the place of interest are mostly located in District 1 and the location from one place to the other is not far. We explored the district 1 by foot, no need to use the motorcycle or rickshaw. Besides, from what I read in the internet, the motorcycle and rickshaw driver in this city is always overcharged the tourist so I don’t recommend you to take those transportation.

From Pham Ngu Lao area, we walked to Le Loi street. In our way to Le Loi street, we passed the Trung Nguyen statue and the most famous market in Saigon, Benh Tanh market. We didn’t go shopping in Benh Tanh market because I heard that the price in Benh Tanh is more expensive than in Saigon night market. Back to Le Loi street. In this street, there were many international cloth store such as Bossini, Giordano, and Nike. Unfortunately, the price was as expensive as in Jakarta. I also went to Fahasa bookstore to buy Saigon map.

Le Loi street
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

After some walks, we finally arrived at People’s Committee Hall. The building was an European-French style building. It’s a large and beautiful building. Unfortunately, we couldn’t enter into the building. In front of the building, there was a park which had a Ho Chi Minh (or everyone said Uncle Ho) statue carrying a child. Uncle Ho was the first Vietnam president. He was the most important figure in Vietnam. Eventhough he had died many years ago, he still has respect from the Vietnamese. You can easily find so many Uncle Ho picture in the street or in the public place. I recommend you to wear a hat or maybe use an umbrella in this park because the weather was very hot. Near the People’s Committee Hall, there was a historical hotel named Rex hotel. It was the place where Westerner press and soldier stay in Vietnam War period.

People's Committee Hall

Ho Chi Minh a.k.a Uncle Ho
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

After finished at People’s Committee Hall, we walked to the Saigon Opera House. Before we got there, we passed the odd-shape-fountain. Until now, I wonder what statue is that. For me, the statue is like two or three people who are having intercourse hahahaha… Oke enough, so we finally arrived at Saigon Opera House. This building was another European-French influenced building. The Opera House wasn’t big but still beautiful. In front of the Opera House, there was a Louis Vuitton store. It was amazing considering that Vietnam is the communist country (and I assume that they don’t like capitalism). As usual, we took some pictures here.

The Opera House

Odd shaped fountain
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

From Saigon Opera House, we walked to Dong Khoi street. It was like Saigon upper class area. In this street, you can see many international brand such as Louis Vuitton, Burberry, and Dolce & Gabbana and so many elite store and café. There was also Sheraton hotel in this street. Waw, this communist country had been lured to the capitalism. We walked on this street until wee saw Saigon River. Well, to be honest, Saigon River didn’t meet my expectation. From the photos in internet, I thought that Saigon River view was beautiful but in the reality the view wasn’t beautiful and I didn’t recommend you to visit this area. The only thing that you can do here is posing with cannons. That’s it.

Dong Khoi street

Saigon River
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

After visiting Saigon River, we walked to Notre Dame Cathedral. There was a funny moment. When we were walking to Notre Dame, Iroda bought some cakes from a street hawker. Iroda asked the price and the seller said “one five thousand”. Iroda thought “one package of cake was 5000 VND” and then she gave 5000 VND to the seller. The seller got angry because her definition of “one five thousand’ was 15000 VND. So Iroda paid 15000 VND for the cakes.

One five thousand!!!!

Can you count how many flag are there?
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

Finally we arrived at Notre Dame Cathedral. The Cathedral itself wasn’t as big as I expected but the architecture was quite pretty. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get inside the cathedral because the door opened at 3 p.m. and at that time, it was 1 p.m. This cathedral is often used by many couples to take pre-wedding picture. When we were there, there were a couple taking pre-wed shoot. Overall, this building is a nice old-European-esque building but I think Jakarta’s cathedral is much better than this.

Notre Dame Cathedral
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

Next to the cathedral, there was Saigon Post Office. This is also a must-see bulding if you visit Saigon. It has a nice internal architecture. You must take the picture inside the post office. I don’t know, for me this building reminds me to Jakarta Kota train station. Eventhough it’s a post office, this place also sold many kind of souvenirs, from postcard, keychain, t-shirt, and so many handycraft. I even bought Trung Nguyen coffee here. Inside this post office, there was also Saigon tourist center. You can ask Saigon city map here for free.

Saigon Post Office

Inside Post Office
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

It was almost 2 p.m. We had walked for almost six hours, already feel tired and hungry. We decided to have lunch first. We ate at Quan An Ngon restaurant at Pasteur street, not far from Post Office. I really really recommend this restaurant. Totally superb. Eventhough it was a big restaurant and so many westerner ate at this restaurant, the food’s price wasn’t as expensive as I thought. The price range between 40.000 – 70.000 VND. I ordered spring roll and rice and the taste was great. Officially the best spring roll in the town. I also tried the other’s food and they all tasted so good. Conclusion: 9/10.

This is Zar's order

Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

After finishing our meal, we moved to the next destination which was Reunification Palace, a must-visit building in Saigon. This is an important place. It was the home and workplace of the President of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War ended when the North Vietnam Soldier succeed to take over this palace from the South Vietnam. This moments is widely known as “The Fall of Saigon” and happened on April 30th 1975. After that, North and South Vietnam reunited and hence this palace is called Reunification Palace. To enter this palace, you must pay 15.000 VND first. This building is a four stories building excluding the basement. Visitors are free to go to any floor but aren’t allowed to enter the rooms, so visitors can only look from the outside. This is an interesting place for history lover. Outside the building, there are tanks and helicopters which were used by the North Vietnam army to invade this palace.

This is Reunification Palace

Reunification Palace

Tank that was used to invade the palace
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

We took another walk to War Remnant Museum. It is a must visit place for a military/ war/ history lovers. This museum contains so many information about what happened in Vietnam war. Outside the museum, there’re so many aeroplane that were used in Vietnam war. Inside the museum, there are so many photos and explanation about the damage that had happened in Vietnam War. You can see the effect of agent orange, a very teratogenic agent, to the Vietnamese children. There are also so many pictures about the victims who were killed, mostly women and children, and the pictures are so explicit, so prepare your mental. From this museum also, I knew that USA couldn’t achieve their objective in Vietnam and the Vietnamese were perfectly defended their country. To enter this museum, you must pay 15.000 VND. For me, it was a worth experience to be able to visit this museum.

US Air Force

Guillotine

The Prisoner
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

After historical session, we looked for another culinary things. Our choice was to go to Fanny Ice Cream. Some sources said that Fanny is the most delicious ice cream in Saigon. One scoop of ice cream would cost you 28000 VND. There were so many flavours. The Parfait’s price ranged from 50.000 – 70.000 VND. I ordered mango rhum parfait which costed me 65.000 VND. Overall, the ice cream was great but the price was a little expensive.

Time to enjoy some ice creams

Delicious!
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

It was time for dinner! We had our dinner at street hawker in the night market because we also wanted to do shopping. The night market itself is located outside The Ben Tanh Market, so it’s not hard to find. We had pho, fried noodle, fried rice, and spring roll. The food price ranged between 20.000 – 40.000 VND. Quite cheap but the taste was mediocre. After dinner, we went to the night market to buy some souvenirs. Do some bargaining. The seller offered me a Vietnamese-souvenir-shirt for 80.000 VND but I could get it for 30.000 VND after bargaining. Another example, Rio got a cheong sam for only 150.000 VND. Before bargaining, the cheong sam’s price was 590.000 VND.

Propaganda Billboard
Photo (C) Zarwindo S,2010

It was already 10 p.m. , time to go home. We took a walk from the night market to the hotel. On our way to the hotel, we passed a park. The park was full of couples who did the lovey-dovey thing. They kissed, touched, and hugged each other on the motorcycle. Well, it seems that Vietnam is much more “open” than Indonesia.

Ok, that’s the story from our second day in Saigon. See you in the third day!

My expenses
Cu Chi – Cao Dai full day tour package 165.000 VND
Phnom Penh Bus Ticket 195.000 VND
Circle K 27.000 VND
Buy souvenir at Post Office 149.000 VND
Lunch at Quan An Ngon 62.000 VND
Reunification Palace 15.000 VND
War Remnant Museum 15.000 VND
Fanny Ice Cream 65.000 VND
Dinner at night market 50.000 VND
Night Market Shopping 280.000 VND
Total for Day 2 1.023.000 VND = Rp 512.000 (yeah, I'm a big spender)

Saigon Day 1 (July 26th 2010)

2010-08-13T21:31:00.013+07:00

It was 12 p.m. and I rushed to the DAMRI bus terminal in Bekasi. Despite the take-off still was at 16.35 but I was on rush. I had a nightmare nights before. I missed the flight and It happened three times (hahaha… I’m just too paranoid). Finally, I got my DAMRI bus. It took exactly an hour from Bekasi to the airport and costed me Rp 30.000. Arrived at terminal 2 D, I waited for the others at Tony Jack’s. After all team members were complete, we went to the AirAsia counter for check in and we also paid for airport tax for Rp 150.000. Then we went to the free fiscal counter. It’s quite easy to free yourself from fiscal. What you have to bring are NPWP of your father/mother/yourself, a copy of your parents’ ID card, and a copy of family card. After all the administration and immigration thingy were clear, we waited at the gate. We finally take off at 5 p.m. , 30 minutes late from the schedule.

The flight itself took about 3 hours. During the flight, the weather wasn’t so good and we got turbulence several times. Finally, we arrived at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Ho Chi Minh City at 8.30 p.m. No time difference between Jakarta and Ho Chi Minh City (from now on, I will call the city as Saigon) . The airport was quite good, even better than Terminal 2 Soekarno-Hatta.

Picture 1: Inside Tan Son Nhat International Airport. Much better than Soetta. Picture 2: Outside the Airport

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

Outside the airport, Martin’s uncle, who lived in Saigon, had waited for us. He accompanied us till the hotel. He chose the taxis and make a deal with the taxi drivers so we didn’t get overcharged. FYI, from the internet, I found that only two taxi company which can be trusted, Vinasun and Malilnh. The other company usually charge the passenger with unbelievable price so please be careful.

We had made room reservation in Ngoc Linh Hotel. The hotel was located in Pham Ngu Lao, District 1. Pham Ngu Lao was just like Jalan Jaksa, Jakarta or Khaosan Road, Bangkok, it’s the backpackers center in Saigon. The taxi from airport to Pham Ngu Lao took about 30 minutes and should cost you less than 120.000 VND. From the taxi, I saw “Saigon-motorcycle-terror”. I always think that motorcycle in Jakarta is chaotic but in Saigon, the motorcycle traffic is far more deadly and far more chaotic than in Jakarta. Not only chaotic, they are also very noisy since they always ring their horns.

Finally, we arrived at Pham Ngu Lao. The Ngoc Linh hotel was located in the alley so it was quite difficult for the newcomers to find this hotel but thanks to the taxi driver and Martin’s uncle, we could find the hotel easily. The hotel itself was quite strategic and it consisted of 5-6 floors and there was NO elevator. So if you got a room at the 5th floor, it means you just do “some” exercise. We reserved two triple rooms and Iroda reserved her own single room. All rooms equipped with AC, cable tv, fridge, and hot water. For the triple room, it costed us US$ 24/ night, that means, US$ 8 per person per night. Quite cheap, wasn’t it? The hotel had one computer near the receptionist table which you can use to access the internet and it is FREE. The staff is also quite helpful. The conclusion for this hotel: 8.5/10.

Picture 1: Triple bedroom (featuring Rio). Picture 2: The bathroom

After we put our bag in the hotel, we immediately went to the Pho restaurant near the hotel. It was our first dinner in Vietnam!!! We were sooo excited. The restaurant’s name was Pho Quynh. They sold beef pho with several variation. The restaurant is quite cheap, the price range between 30.000 - 40.000 dong and the Vietnamese ice coffee milk was only 10.000 dong. The taste was great. We were so happy because we didn’t choose the wrong restaurant. The only problem that we had was the servant didn’t understand English so we must do some “body language”.

Picture 1: The Menu. Picture 2: The Real and Authentic Vietnamese Pho

Photo (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

After having great time at the restaurant, we had a little walk in Pham Ngu Lao area. There was a park full with young men. They played a game that we never see before. They used a shuttlecock-like-thingy and they kick that shuttlecock to their opponent, just like sepak takraw. Later, Rio bought the shuttlecock. We also had a little walk at De Tham street and Bui Vien street. We found a bar with an eye-catching billboard then I decided to take a photo with the billboard as the background.

Bui Vien Streetscape 1

Bui Vien Streetscape 2

This is Crazy Buffalo!!!

An alley near our hotel

Pham Ngu Lao's Park where so many Vietnamese doing exercise in the night

Photos (c) Zarwindo S, 2010

It was almost midnight. Time for us to take a rest because the 2nd day would be a long and exhausting day.

Expenses:
Bus DAMRI Bekasi – Soekarno Hatta: Rp 30.000
Lunch at Tony Jack : Rp 18.500
International airport tax: Rp 150.000
Taxi (-)  apparently, Martin’s uncle paid for the taxi
Beef Pho: 30.000 VND
Vietnamese ice coffee: 10.000 VND
Shopping at circle K: 10.000 VND
Total expense at day 1: Rp 198.500 and 50.000 VND

Tour de PSSS 2010 –Prelude-

2010-08-10T19:26:00.005+07:00

Hi belahmelon reader, long time no see! This is Krishna speaking (or writing hehehe…). As I said in previous entries, this year I will go to Vietnam-Cambodia-Malaysia. Yup, after 10 days 9 nights journey, I’m already back now and I bring so many story inside my head. I hope I can tell the story perfectly.

This year, I went traveling with 6 friends. Three of them (Johnny, Rio, and Christo) are my regular travel buddies and the other three (Zarwindo, Martin, and Iroda) are the newcomers.

From left to right: Zar - Christo - Rio - Krishna - Martin - Iroda - Johnny

So, our route this year is Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) – Phnom Penh – Siem Reap – Kuala Lumpur. Total cost for the transportation? Only Rp 860.000. Yup, Rp 860.000 for three AirAsia flights and two busride in Cambodia. Isn’t it cheap? Many thanks to AirAsia promo!!!!

The Details:

Jakarta – Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) flight Rp 249.000

HCMC – Phnom Penh (bus) USD 10

Phnom Penh – Siem Reap (bus) USD 10

Siem Reap – Kuala Lumpur USD 34

Kuala Lumpur – Jakarta Rp 125.000

Total (in rupiah) Rp. 860.000!!!!

Jakarta - HCMC (red) // HCMC - Phnom Penh (green) // Phnom Penh - Siem Reap (pink) // Siem Reap - KL (blue) // KL - Jkt (purple)

Exploring Indochina region was one of my secret ambition. I’m glad that the mission is finally accomplished last week. Actually, this trip was the longest and the most exhausting trip I ever had. I even fell ill in the middle of this trip but anyway, I still have a really great time! So, enjoy my story and hopefully this blog can help you who also wants to go to Indochina.

9 Juli 2010

2010-07-10T21:43:00.005+07:00

*Ini adalah ucapan terima kasih saya secara pribadi..*

9 Juli 2010
Itu hari terakhir kuliah saya.
Bersyukur saya bisa menyelesaikan perkuliahan tepat waktu.
Bersyukur telah diberikan kesempatan untuk dapat belajar mengenai sebuah ilmu yang tidaklah mudah untuk dipelajari.
Bersyukur atas diberikannya kesabaran dan ketekunan.
Bersyukur telah diberikan kesehatan selama enam tahun ini.
Bersyukur telah diberikan kesempatan bertemu dengan pasien-pasien sebagai sarana untuk mengasah otak, kemampuan, dan hati kami.
Berterimakasih telah diberikan pengajar-pengajar yang terbaik di negara ini dengan segala dedikasi dan ilmu yang diberikan.
Berterimakasih untuk segala fasilitas, buku, yang mendukung pendidikan ini berjalan.
Berterimakasih kepada orang tua dan keluarga yang senantiasa mendukung, mendoakan saya setap hari, memelihara dan memenuhi keperluan dalam menuntut ilmu.
Berterimakasih kepada setiap pihak yang telah mendukung dari sopir2 angkot, bus, kereta, sampe bemo, mas2 dan mbak yang nyediain ruang kuliah, mba2 yang jualan ramesan di anak, sekretaris bagian2, mami dan mba kamar koas, mpok kansit.
Berterimakasih kepada teman2 saya seangkatan dari suka mau pun duka, kelompok-kelompok kecil dalam setiap diskusi dan membuat tugas, teman2 belajar bareng: krishna, johni, tommy, yudi, christo, nessa, vina, vidya, yong, dewi ,ari, arum, kucing, sasa.. teman2 jalan bareng, teman2 di KMK dan AMSA: martin, daniel, novi, ck, jepi, tupi, firman, sandi, angga, teman2 panitia2 kegiatan2 selama enam tahun, mantan pacar, Ro Shi, teman2 jaga malam, teman jalan-jalan: seru sekali liburan bersama kaliaaaannnn, teman2 karaokean ahjumma uki, aci, chrisen, ipe, ayu, ira, otet, martin, nana, nonton bareng, teman2 voli: acong, wece, yudi, delon, carls, paik, andrew, nashrul, teman2 di kereta: yenny, jeje, debby, fourin, kukum, cakra, bobby, ci lulu, ko irwan, teman2 yang selalu mendukung dan yang juga suka makan teman, teman smp: Siska & Adi, teman2 di kelompok A2 di semester akhir ini.. Terima kasih atas segalanya.

Tidak lupa juga saya ucapkan terima kasih banyak kepada kakak2 kelas atas ilmunya, tips2nya, pinjaman buku2nya, cerita segala pengalamannya... Buat Bram, terima kasih atas bimbingan sbg kakak angkat, buat KMK 03 yang wonderful.. Thank youu!

Dan kepada adik-adik kelas, terima kasih atas segala dukungan dan doa nya.. terima kasih atas nafsu2nya meriksa pasien, hehe..

Kepada setiap bagian baik preklinik: anatomi faal biokim kimia fisika matematik biologi gizi PA parasit PK farmako smuaaaaaaaaa ilmu nya sangat bermanfaat.. Terima kasih kepada para pembimbing, dosen, yang unik2 dan tak terlupakan cara mengajarnya ("Slide.." *dengan suara sengau*)

Dan tentunya yang klinik: 3 bulan di IPD bersama kelompok Haaaa... Kenangan gila bersama kokoh acong, mba dinis, dika, akang yudi, mba welas, cici cide, kucing, ka benjeeeeee, dan bidan Gina. Makasih selama 3 bulan menjalani capek dan lelah itu dari tiap bangsal ke tiap folo up, dari jaga satu ke jaga lain.. terima kasih banyak... Kalian hebat2.. Perawat2 bangsal dan IGD yang selalu sigap... pasien2 yang saat ini sudah dapat tersenyum kembali baik di kamarnya maupun dari atas sana.. Terima kasih banyak atas segala ilmu yang diberikan dengan cara kalian masing-masing.
Lalu racik2 obat di farmasi bersama para apoteker hebat dan rapih dalam bekerja, dan gimul... :D
Terima kasih juga buat psikiatri yang melatih kami dalam menggali orang melalui perkataan dan percakapan, thanks for Mami Heri yang udah nraktir hehe (ga bakal lupa). Buat tim penelitian gizi IKK: Chrisen, Dewi, Derry, Cecep, Kitin yang semaput kerja bikin penelitian bawa timbangan seca, food model nyebar2 form.. terima kasih banyak kawan2.. meski kita berurai air mata dan keringat, di CV kita sudah bisa menulis: "pengalaman menulis karya tulis ilmiah". Buat radiologi, terima kasih banyak atas pencerahannya terhadap dunia hitam putih itu. Terima kasih juga buat neurologi, cabang ilmu yang saya sukai.. namun tampaknya hehe.. ga jadi diambil :p
Dan salut buat staff pengajar kulit yang ga bakal terlupakan atas segala dedikasinya dalam mengajar dan meong meong kuuu.
Sekalian bagian anak, terima kasih buat bagian yang penuh kenangan, suka dan duka.. Kelompok anakku: dora, kucing, ncum, ncep, derry, dimas, jeung di all together now! *tresno iki!!* buat Prof. Pardi dan dr. Waldi, terima kasih banyak banyak atas segala fasilitas dan limpahan ilmu yang diberikan.. Indomienya yang mur mer, ruangan yang pw, laporan paginya yang beleberan ilmu2nya... Buat dr.Nadjib yang telah menguji dengan bahasa Inggris.. huhuhu.. so sorry with may bad english..

Selama tingkat enam... tahun penantian...
Dibuka dengan Bedah dan Objin, terima kasih untuk segala ilmu bedah dan objin yang akan sangat terpakai kelak. Terima kasih atas segala bekal dalam persiapan nanti menghadapi pasien2 gawat dan ibu-ibu hamil.. Buat ibu-ibu hamil yang sudah dipalpasi perutnya, dirogoh-rogoh, dan diperineorafi, buat bayi-bayi yang sudah saya bantu keluarkan, terima kasih sekali lagi.. terima kasih..
Terima kasih kepada kelompok bedah: dr. Aldi, chief Irien, jagut Vensong & Ami, dan 1a mas benje.. "rames yuu.." Dan kelompok objin yang cihuy.. Kapan2 kita ke warung bu edo lagi :D
Dan IKK... truly badromancer with my ikkcrazy team kitin xto carls (the non bebe) sama atid ayu dita asti (bebe), barengan irien putri mba welas benje cecep pandi.. Gengges gila yang bikin IKK menyenangkan.. Terimaaaa kasih buanyak buat Kiara dan para stafnya yang sekarang udah pake seragam hejo.. bidan atiiikkkk, emak, ibu joss, mas yudha, mba epriiiiii (dengan nada tinggi), dokter2, pasen stukas dan folo eup, puskesmas pulo gadung, babeh, bu nadra, mba seli, ursula dan segenap bapak2 ibu2 puskesmas yang setia melayani pasen2 dari loket sampe apotek cihuy..
Terima kasih buat kitin, partner menggila sejak IKK, membabi buta bikin evapro stukas dan eek2nya, buat xien-xien juga makasih banyak buat bala bantuannya. Selepas IKK hati terasa paling lega... Saya selalu ingat saat kita loncat-loncat setelah keluar ruang ujian di hari itu..

Lalu.. Kepada segenap staf forensik dan mas2 yang bantu2 otopsi, terima kasih atas bekal ilmu yang terkait legalitas dan hukum.. semoga di kedepannya dapat bermanfaat baik dalam memvisum atau pun dalam segala tindakan kami dalam bekerja. Buat jenazah yang diotopsi, nothing in this world can explain how thankful i am.. May you all rest in peace.

Kepada departemen THT, terima kasih banyak atas segala dedikasi ilmunya, dan terutama saya ucapkan terimakasih kepada dr. Dhani atas bentuk perhatiannya dan kepeduliannya kepada mahasiswa. Terima kasih banyak atas segala bentuk bantuan dan doa kepada teman saya Alm. Elisabeth Niken Sasanti (Sasa). Saya tidak tahu mesti berkata apa lagi selain terima kasih dan peluk hangat buat dokter. Dan tentunya tim paduan suara THT terima kasih telah menyumbangkan suara indahnya di acara mengenang Sasa. Semoga jalan pendidikan dan karir dr. Anggi serta kawan2 dilancarkan dan diberikan kemudahan.

Anestesi, meskipun bagian paling capek.. dateng paling pagi pulang paling malem.. Meski banyak menunggu, saya kepingin mengabdikan saya di bagian ini... Terima kasih pada staf yang udah ngajarin dan ppds yang baik2 yang mau melimpahkan ilmu-ilmunya.. Pasien2 yang mau diintubasi, meski gagal.. hooo... Terimakasih terima kasih..
Semoga saya diterima di bagian ini nantinya ^^

Dan Mata... terakhir. dimana hari-hari terakhir penuh dengan keluh kesah.. dan kelelahan.. Ilmu mata yang berharga, staff yang juga 11-12 sama kulit, ngajarnya enak, buat dokter Susy yang bikin saya membaca Kanski, buat dokter Anna Gaga, yang semangat banget kalo ngajar, hoho.. (dan katanya diskusinya juga enak banget huuu... saya di RSP T.T), terima kasih banyak atas ilmunyaaa....

Saya juga mengucapkan terima kasih kepada segala pihak: RSP, RSUT, dan Harkit, dokter, perawat, akbid, semuanyaaa.. terima kasih banyak, buat Aide yang udah ngejahitin baju jaga, buat Kuku Tony & Tante Lena yang udah ngasih gadget2 canggih dan tiket2 gratis hehe.. Buat Ai, Kim, Tante, II, Kuku, Oom, Cek, Oo, Kukong, Kimpo, sepupu2: cici koko dan dede2 semua yang terus mendukung melalui masakan, family time, dan doanya selama ini. Dan.. buat mami yang paling SUPER! I love you mom! Buat cici maybe yang juga selalu mendukung saya selama ini. And thanks to my daddy who always smiles from up above. Terima kasih... terima kasih..
Buat semua barang2 yang mewarnai hidup saya selama enam tahun ini: laptop acer yang tetep awet, pc yang mulai keok, Lady Gaga si mother monster, infotainment di kala
saya bosan, paperkraft yang sempet jadi trending topics, sepatu2 kets ku yang putih yang setia menemani, kemeja kotak2 keberuntungan buat ujian pasien, tempat pinsil celana dalam, bebe yang sangat membantu hidup, semuanya, terima kasih banyak.... Dan tentunya.. para pembaca setia belahmelon. Nantikan cerita baru kami dalam kehidupan yang baru.. and I am no longer de' Kozzy anymore.. karena saya sudah bukan de koass lagi!

Terima kasih dua kata yang saya ucapkan kepada pihak lain yang mungkin kelewatan dan belum diucapkan satu per satu. Mohon maaf apabila ada salah perkataan dan perbuatan. Mohon doanya untuk mendoakan saya agar menjadi dokter yang sudjana.

Tidung Island... Meh!

2010-06-26T00:25:00.059+07:00

Last week, I went to Tidung Island with my friends (19 people). We stayed there for 3 days and 2 nights. The island was not that good like people used to tell in many blogs. Dirty beach, thick grey clouds, and bad accommodation really made us wanna leave that island as soon as possible. I'm really sure that every kind of animal would agree to close their eyes. Here's the story.. but let this monkey close its eyes first..

Our expenses:

1. Taxi in front of Mall Taman Anggrek – Muara Angke Pier: Rp 30.000 (for 5 ppl) @ Rp 5.000. Tips: drop your team at the gas station or a thug will ask you Rp 2.000 for the taxi.

This is Muara Angke.. Weks!

Yes.. close your eyes.. (and your nose, my friend)

2. Boat ticket Rp 33.000 one way (Muara Angke – Tidung Island). (Ask local people which boat you should take. No need to buy ticket. The sailor will collect the money on the boat.) You may choose to sit on the roof or inside the boat. We choose to sit inside the boat. When you choose to sit on the roof, bring your jacket and put attention to the hot “knalpot” (exhaust pipe). Just don’t touch it.

This is the boat: pay attention to the destination.

This is a picture from the inside of the boat. It may be crowded in the weekend.

3. Accommodation: Rp 1.000.000 for two nights (20 ppl) @ Rp 50.000. They give us one house divided into two small houses. Each small house has one bedroom (for 3-4 people with a bed and a fan), small kitchen with one water dispenser without stove, one living room (where we slept with carpet and a mattress 6-7 ppl), and one bathroom with bunged up water drainage. There is also one air conditioner that flows into the two small houses. The electricity at that house was so bad, on and off for several times.

Looks good from outside, but it's bad in the inside..

ouch!

4. Meal: each Rp 15.000. Too expensive for little dish and bad taste. You better buy the food outside; there were several food stalls selling fried chicken (pecel ayam), instant noodle, etc. They also open up to midnight. But I suggest you to order and wrap the food for lunch when you go for snorkeling.

They could find some food at night. Don't you worry about the food.

This is the meal: nasi, tempe, ikan, teh.

kaing..

5. Bicycle: Rp 17.000 for one day. Just order it for one day. You better use bicycle when you want to go Small Tidung Island. The distance is quite far (15 - 20 minutes bike riding). You also charged for bike parking @ Rp1.000. And tell the rental to take them back after finish using it. Don't park it in front of your guesthouse. They will charge you the bike that you don’t even use if you don’t give it back.

Use the bicycle to go to Small Tidung Island.

The parking lot

6. Small boat for snorkeling: Rp 500.000 for one day (@ Rp 25.000). The boat can accommodate up to 30 ppl. The guide will bring you to the smaller islands: Payung Island, Air Island, Karang Beras Island. They will check for the stream first. If it’s safe, then you can jump into the water. They also rent snorkeling equipment: snorkeling glass & pipe, life vest, and fins; all for Rp 35.000.

The smaller boat.

7. Barbeque at the beach: @Rp 20.000. We ate 4 chicken-fish (ikan ayam-ayam), several squids, with rice, chili, and some vegetables. It’s optional, and it is depend on the weather also (raining or not).

Ikan Ayam-Ayam

8. For guide: we have to pay Rp 300.000 for two days for two guides (@ Rp 15.000).

9. Going back home: Boat ticket (Tidung Island – Muara Angke): The guide bought us the ticket with the same prize: Rp 33.000 (Rp 23.000 for students) or you can also buy it on the boat.

10. Back to Jakarta, from the pier there are several public transportations waiting (taxi or public transportation). We used B01, Suzuki Carry with red color. The fare is Rp 4.000 from the pier to Grogol Bus Station.

Day one: June 8^th 2010, Exploring Tidung Island.

06.30 In the morning, we arrived at the pier. There was also a group of people (around 16 people) go to Tidung Island and several ibu-ibu using the same boat with us. The boat was not that full like I used to see in several blogs.

07.15 The boat sailed. The weather was not that bad even though I only saw grey clouds outside. Better bring playing cards, mp3 player, your ipod, PSP, or drink Antimo to spend your 3 hours on the boat. There was a small box at the back of the boat, you can use for pee-ing.

10.15 We arrived at Tidung Island dock, and the guide picked us up. We went for lunch and watching Silet discussing the leak sex tape.

After we arrived on the islands, Azmil was upset because __________.

The clock showed 12:00 already and the guide said that our guesthouse wasn’t ready yet. He was begging us for apologize for the inconvenience. That was the time when the first bell for unprofessionalism rang.

Abandoned...

13:00 we still trapped in the same temporary house and we insisted the guide to clean the house faster and start the island tour as soon as possible.

Meh!

13:15 we moved our body and our backpacks to our guesthouse and started our tour exploring the island. We used the bicycle to the east side of the island (Small Tidung). Like I said, it was 15-20 minutes bike riding. After we park our bicycle, we went to the bridge. That was the only thing that the Island has for attraction. Since the weather was not that good, the water wasn’t that blue and green like I used to see.

The view from the top of the bridge.

The love bridge.

We went on foot crossing to Small Tidung Island. Small Tidung Island is used for coconut farming, only the farmers stayed in that island. There was a tomb of The Black Commander. The guide said that the Commander was a huge person. The guide said that we should go to Virgin Sand, located at the end of the Island. After walking for a very-very long time… we arrived at the Virgin Sand. I don’t know why people gave that name; I didn’t even see any labia shaped on it. All I see was trash along the beach: from baby diapers to pink jacket, from helmet to bottle of infusion. So sad, that Jakarta’s trash all stranded into this island.

Trash!

Yes, that's what we SEE in small tidung.

Close your eyes, pussy!

The pathway in Small Tidung Island, surrounded by coconut farm.

Keep walking.. Don't watch him..

He just wanna pee...

We had to walk through this kind of pathway to
the Black Commander's grave yard & the Virgin Sand.

Keep walking... don't look at the trash..

This is it !!! The end of Small Tidung Island: Virgin Sand.

All of the virgin should strike a pose here.

Yes... this is the Virgin Sands... I think it's already lose the virginity.

I'm still virgin..

We see the dolphin !!! But it's dead.

Don't cry..

The beach from the other side of the island is cleaner.

Come and take a pose first.

Star fish !!! Finally... and sandals, hehe..

Some beautiful spots for taking picture.

ihiy.. No drugs..

Ayo foto!

Foto lagi!

Last shoot before leaving the island.

After walking through bushes and rocky dirty beach, we went back to the bridge. They called the bridge as the bridge of love. You must jump and scream from the top of the bridge. That was quite relieving after several hours walking for insect bites and bad shits.

It's gonna rain...

But we prefer to take some pictures :p

Everyone! Strike a pose!

Background: Great Tidung Island

Background: Small Tidung Island

You can take beautiful pictures on the brigde.

All together now !

Emaaaaaaaaakkkkkk.....

Yes, you MUST try this!

Woooo hoooooo !

Back to the house, and sleep. That's the end of our first day trip.

Day two, June 9^th 2010, Island Hoping and Snorkeling

06:00 some of us went for the sun rising. But I prefer to sleep and waiting for the breakfast. Our menu for breakfast was nasi uduk with tempe bacem, one fried fish, and kerupuk (this is it for Rp 15.000 ?! Oh nooooooo….) McD should open their branch at this island. It's quite ruining my mood that day, but thanks God that the sun was shinning so bright that day and I can see Mr. Bluesky up above me.

08:00 we arrived at the pier and started the islands hoping for snorkeling. We went to three spots: Payung Island, Air Island, and Karang Beras Island. We didn’t snorkeling at Karang Beras because the stream was too strong. So we were brought to another spot near Tidung Kecil Island. We spent all the day by snorkeling, or some other fishing. The coral wasn’t that bad, but that was also not that good (comparison to Karimun Jawa or PhiPhi Island). Overall the group were having fun by snorkeling all day.

The pier.

Our boat is at the back one (red).

Always sit on top of the boat!
That line was the bridge that we've crossed yesterday.

Snorkeling time!

Finally!

Anaz, manteup dah jadi model snorkeling.

From one spot to another spot.

Can you see the coral ?

This is Air Island. (private island)

Air Island

Ada kapal.. numpang foto dulu bang!

Bunda & Nisa

The beach is beautiful here, the water is clear.

All together now!

Ayo mbaaa.. udah ditunggu.. foto muyu.

Another JUMP!

YAY !!!

Gadis penjual pelampung

*saingangadispenjualkorekapi*

16:00 we sailed back to Tidung Island. I went back to the beach for sun setting with some of my friends, the rest were taking bath and watching news about another leaked tape.

Ibu-ibu bermain voli! Hip hip hura!

Judulnya sun-setan.

Nih setannya. :p

Hajar Bang Boi !

19:30 we had barbeque at the beach near the park. They served us better food than the common meals.

Get ready for BBQ.

The squids.

Azmil is being fed.

Come and eat !

Around 9 pm I went back and payed off to Mr. Mur, some others were still burning some fishes and clam shell. We finished our payment as the deal that already made through the telephone. The additional charge was the guide. He insisted to hire 2 guides with his bureaucrazy blahblahblaah reason. I think one guide is enough. Besides he insisted us to pay the bike for two days. So sad.. We didn’t even touch the bike for one whole day. So meh! So sorry, I can't recommend you to my friends.

Last Day, June 10^th 2010 Say Goodbye and Never Come Back Again

Early in the morning (06.30 am) we went to the dock and jumped into the boat. The guide bought us the ticket. 07.20 the boat sailed. After drinking two pills of Antimo and zappp! I woke up by the smell of Muara Angke. Jakarta, we’re back!

Last pose before leaving..

Walking to the pier.

They missed the city.

Back to the pier.

And back to the boat.

In conclusion, Tidung Island wasn’t that good like I expected before. The special thing from this 'too commercial' island is just the bridge and jump from the top of the bridge. For the snorkeling, you better save your money for another Islands.

*special thanks for: Dita, Alia, Indah, Chrisen & Nisa for the pictures.

Tidung Island, here I come !

2010-06-06T23:21:00.006+07:00

It was a very sad sad news.. that i cancel my plan to go to Finland. (T.T)
But, I'm going to Tidung Island this Tuesday. Hope it will goes well, and it can cure my heart from this sadness..

It's located on the north of Jakarta. It's one of the districts in Thousand Island (Kepulauan Seribu). You can go there by boat, 3 hours from Jakarta.

From the picture, the beach is very clean (I hope it's still clean, 'coz I heard that 2000 ppl visit this place last long weekend) crystal water, white sand, and perfect sun.

And, you must know the price: it's only+/- Rp 300,000,00 for 3 days and 2 nights trip with that kinda perfect beach! Let me review for you on my next blog. I can't wait for Tuesday !!!
Bora-Bora.. St. Lucia.. Bahama... *delusional*

Another Day in Semarang

2010-06-06T21:17:00.033+07:00

One wedding.

Two-way (free) plane ticket.

Three days.

And Four Ladies.

That’s the best description for my latest trip to the one day is more than enough city, Semarang. I went back there purposely for attending my cousin’s wedding, Patricia. I went there also for tour-guiding the Gang: my mom, and her sisters (AiDe & A’i), and also my sister (Maybe). I also went there with my uncle Tony, Aunty Lena, and their children (Sindhu, Krishna, and Yudha, also Ook Irene) – thanks for the ticket & accommodation! *sponsor resmi*

So, here’s the story..

December 25^th 2009

At Soekarno Hatta Airport, I met Farah Quinn! Chef Farrrrrrrrrrrrahh… I thought she was JuPe at first, but she’s too small.. (out of topic :p )

10 a.m. checked in. 11 a.m. boarding in. And at noon, I arrived at Ahmad Yani Airport. It was a small airport, but nicely it was clean.

I met Oom Ciat and Boris (Patricia’s poppa & bradda) at the airport. We went out for lunch to Bandeng Juwana (2^nd floor). Deliciously undeniable!!! I honestly missed this place. I ate like a pig.. I ate Bandeng Sriyani, I ate Bandeng Cabe Ijo, Nasi Bandeng Bakar, Bandeng Sambal Bali, Bandeng Balado. You MUST eat there and taste every menu! It’s highly recommended by me.

After that, I went to our hotel (definitely not Rahayu Hotel) with the Gang, meanwhile the rest went to Gumaya Hotel preparing for the ceremony.

Anw, the radio aired ‘Telephone’ by Gaga ft. Beyowulf 2 times in one hour that time! (It’s not so popular in Jakarta at that time, but Semarang has tons of little monsters—Gagalupe worshiper).

After we checked into our hotel and soon, our first place to be visited was Sam Poo Kong. I could enter into the temple and took some pics inside (last time we couldn’t some inside). If you want to come inside, you can buy Hio for Rp 10.000 and you can enter the temple. Here are some pics from inside the temple.

This is Farah Quinn !

Same gate

A’i was praying

She’s still praying.. Umm… do you see penampakan here?!

Praying inside the Gedung Batu.

Gedung Batu entrance

Outside you can see sculpture.

Wall relief.

The curling tree, they said that it was a rope from a boat.

There was a huge tree inside one of the temple.

The bell

So.. Chinese

Nothing is wrong with this pic.. Just want to upload it. Ha!

The Kaisar and Princess are coming !!!!

Lawang Sewu was the next destination. It was an old building which was used as an office (in Colonial period) and also prison (in Japan period). First, by ticket Rp 5.000 each person. Then, hire a guide—pay him voluntarily. He took us around this building and explained about the architecture and so on.

In front of Lawang Sewu there was an old train. This building was renovated to be revitalized as Central Train Office in the next few years.

Same pose with the 1000 doors.

No need to be afraid. This building was opened until night to proof the public that there’s no ghost activity in this building.

Into another room

Balcony view

Who is it ?

The water tower, never been here before. It would remind you to some action movies.

Near the tower you can pose at the balcony next to Tugu ! Perfect spot.

Where am I?

The never ending doors.

The next destination was Gereja Blenduk, but we didn’t enter it ‘coz we’re so hungry, and yes.. I brought them to Sate Kambing in front of Gereja Blenduk. We ordered umm… I forgot the name of the menu, actually it’s kidney. And… yaikks… I would never order that again!

Eating at Sate Kambing 29

Our first day was closed by shopping and shopping. They never skipped this one. Ha!

Let’s count for our first day:

Plane ticket: free^^. Local plane offers Rp 200-400K (two way)

Driver & Car: Rp 300-400K for one day. (we used Toyota Avanza)

Eating at Bandeng Juwana: Rp 8000 – 20.000 for each menu. (mild to moderate J)

Buy Hio @ Sam Poo Kong: Ro 10.000

Lawang Sewu: Rp 5000 each

Lawang Sewu guide: just tips. Rp 50.000 for 5 ppl

Eating at Sate Kambing: Rp 15.000 – 30.000 for each menu (moderate prize)

December 26^th2009, The wedding day

Before the wedding, we went to Bandungan. It’s 1,5-2 hours driving car from Semarang. It’s a place similar with Puncak. There, you may visit Gedong Songo Temple. There were 9 (songo) temples with beautiful green mountainous view. Because it was a very large area, you can rent horse in order to reach the ninth temple. It is also good for some youngsters to take a walk by following the path until reaching the top. Since the ladies are not the youngsters anymore (physically), and they wore heels also.. We just reached the first temple. And don't forget to buy ticket (Rp 2.600)

Gedong Songo Complex

We went to a place called Rawa Pening Restaurant for lunch. They have beautiful garden, warm interior design theme (maybe because it was Christmas), and they also rent some room for sleeping. We recommended you to eat there although the service was extremely poor (patient is the word).

Once you get there, you MUST try the kroket, very cheap, but very D E L I C I O U S. And ordered as many as they have, or you have to be very patient. They served local foods for the main course such as fried rice or soup and soto. They also served western foods like beef, chicken, tuna steak and some soups. DON’T order the soup, it was the worst one E V E R. The price was mild to moderate (from Rp 3000 – 30.000). *kachiiing*

Find this logo at Bandungan: Rawa Pening Restaurant

Front View

They decorate with rice!

Feels so homy in side

Room for rent

Then, I came back to our hotel and the ladies went to beauty salon. At 6 p.m. we went to Gumaya Hotel for the wedding reception. It was such a beautiful wedding. Great one with great foods !!! Congratulations !!!

The wedding: Boris, Ai Nani, Ko' Irawan, Ci Patty, & Oom Ciat

My family: Oom Tony, Mom & Sis, Ahjumma Ur & Sa'ie Lena, Ook Irene

That's all of my story from Semarang City. Thank you very very much for all of the accommodation.

You should also visit the other town like Ungaran and Bandungan for some fresh air and horse riding. Better than mati gaya di Semarang.

Next Project: Tour de PSSS -Fourth Edition-

2010-05-30T21:18:00.007+07:00

This year, de' Kozzy and I will have a separate project. I won't reveal about de' kozzy's plan in this entry,I will let him revealed about his project by himself.

So, where will I go this year?

It started in October 2009. Indonesia Airasia had just opened its new international route to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Spontaneously, I contacted my travel buddies and most of them agreed to buy the promo ticket. We got the promo, Ticket from Jakarta to Ho Chi Minh City only costed us Rp 249.000. One month later, the one million free seat promo from Airasia started. At the first time, I tried to get Bangkok-Jakarta promo ticket but I failed =.= (later I feel grateful that I didn't get the ticket considering the Bangkok political situation lately). So, I tried the plan B and finally got the promo ticket from Kuala Lumpur to Jakarta which only costed us Rp 120.000. Finally, I got the promo ticket from Siem Reap to Kuala Lumpur. The price was only Rp 330.000. Total cost for aeroplane ticket was only Rp 700.000!!! Amazing isn't it? The cheapest I ever had.

The trigger

How about the route?
Here is the plan. We will fly to Ho Chi Minh City by Airasia. After three nights, we will go to Phnom Penh, Cambodia by bus. We will stay there for 2 nights and continue our trip to Siem Reap to visit the mighty Angkor Wat. Finally, we will fly to KL, stay there for two nights, and go back to Jakarta. It will be a 10 days 9 nights journey, will be the longest trip I ever had.

The Highlights

Saigon's traffic

Saigon's old building

Cu Chi Tunnel

Royal Palace

The Killing Fields

Angkor Wat

Ta Phrom (Angelina Jolie was HERE)

Twin Tower

Well, I just hope that everything will be alright and we can go touring again this year. I'm very excited. Exploring Vietnam and Cambodia is one of my wish list since years ago and it will come true this year. Oh July, please come faster!!!