mY reallY-thE-firsT triP ~ Jakarta/Puncak/Bandung

This was my first time leading a group for tour
This was my first time travelling overseas
This was also my first time sitting in an aircraft
my FIRST TIME...

so, there's a lot of things to learn

a lot of things to do

and of course, a lot of things to experience

Day 01

last 22nd April 2009...

i know i must arrive airport on time, dont want to miss my first flight. i took an ERL train, cost me RM35 per way. my first time at KLIA, i observed around. where's the terminal, where's the gate, where's the food court (i'm starving). i arrived there bout 3pm something. our flight is at 1615hrs. since i only got 1 hour to spare, i walked fast to the Burger King fast food restaurant. i'd never eat at BK before, cz my friends said the taste is lousy.. is it? i ate the fries only. it's ok, i'll eat onboard. straight to Terminal J, KLM check-in counter. "Oh, under renovation?" i speak to myself.. ok, where's the information counter? the friendly staff advise me to go to Terminal C.. okey..

nothing much while i was in the flight. similar like sitting in a bus. the best part, they served us with our local cuisine. aha! Chicken Fried Rice & Roti Jala totally makes my stomach smiling. definitely Halal and the taste was nice. FYI, KLM Royal Dutch is a flight from Amsterdam, going to Jakarta but transit in KL, offers a cheap fare than MAS or Air Asia. Seating 3-4-3. i changed my seat with other passenger, to get the window seat. but nothing much to see up there.. only a white cloud.. that's all.

after 2 hours flight, we arrived JKT airport, Soekarno Hatta airport in Cengkareng to be exact, at 1715hrs local time. JKT minus 1 hour from KL time. Met the guide, Ibu Yanti, quite old n skinny. Proceed for dinner at Lembuh Kuring Rstn which served Sundanese food. Lembuh Kuring = My Village, as mentioned by that old guide.

then, another 3hrs journey to Puncak via jammed highway. arrived Puncak at night. can't see much, but i can felt the cold atmosphere, similar like been to Cameron Highlands. Check-in at Surya Indah, the best hotel in Puncak. Slept early cause the next morning, again we'll have a long journey. but this time, we are going to Bandung...

Day 2

Breakfast with fried noodle, fried rice and fried maggie..?? hmm ok, cant expect too much, cz we were in Indonesia.. before get into bus, there's a lot of huckster keep following us with their goods to sell. annoying! go away! i've been advised not to deal/start bargain with them and take care of my belongings well. scary, isn't it?

we arrived at Taman Safari. we enjoyed watching both tame and wild animals around our bus. the most excited one, when there are 2 tigers crouching each other. what an awesome 'life performance'! and of course when some monkeys were mating in front of us. haha funny!

enough bout that. taking 3hours land journey to Bandung - a shopping paradise for most Malaysian. yeahuuuu! shopping time! but before that, lunch first. enjoyed Padang food at Simpang Raya. Damn nice! 100% better than Sundanese food. it comes in pairs. i mean, they served everything in pairs - 2 fried fishes, 2 slices of Jantung Pisang, 2 slices of meats, etc etc except for vege.. i hates the taste of the blend jasmine tea, so i ordered the local must try "alpokat juice" yummy!!! It is from avocado fruit. 

Time to Shop!!! we went to the Factory Outlet (F.O) in Jalan Dago. very cheap! but i couldn't found anything to buy. so, i went outside and bought some local bread.. spent about an hour there, then we went to other place, not a F.O but to Pasar Baru,  a wholesaler. here, we can bargain up to 70%. wallawei!! i bought a telekung for my mom, a dress for my convocation day, and some tudung for my siblings. here, they use a big note in IDRupiah. 1,000 rupiah equal to our 35cent. i bought that telekung cost me 170,000 rupiah, means RM50plusminus. very cheap compared in M'sia. again, there are plenty of huckster in front of Pasar Baru. they are everywhere.. some of them, carried a baby. some of them, sell a lot of plastic bag. how pity they are..

before check-in at Sukajadi Hotel (3*). we had a dinner at D'Cost "Mknn 5 bintang, Harga Kaki 5" haha whatever! at night, free activity, so me and my friend went to Paris Van Jaya, an exclusive shopping centre in Bandung. not enough with that, we went to a food court nearby Cemerlang Hotel. i tried a lot of local food. sorry, i cant remember the names, but the taste were nice. 

Day 3

Tangkuban Parahu! a must go place in Bandung. it's an active volcano with a strange smell of crater, but the scenery was nice, the weather also was nice, however the huckster wasn't so nice. there's a different story of the myth behind this crater, and how this place got it's name. read this --> The-Legend-of-Mount-Tangkuban-Perahu. a story of a son fall in love with his immortal mom. very interesting, you can see how happy i am when i was there:-

continue my shopping activity at Jalan Setiabudhi. consist of Rumah Mode, Zenith, Donatello.. but i can't manage to go to Cihampelas cz majority from my group want to shop again at Pasar Baru.. Y_Y.. since i've been there the previous day, i took this opportunity to walk around, outside that building. i saw the nearest hotel - Kedaton Hotel and Aston Bandung Hotel & Residence. i went to the local "matta fair" named "Pasar Kaget Wisata Asita Jabar Travel Fair 2009 (PARKAWIS)" such a long name. done, went back to Pasar Baru, took the bus, stopby Batik Shop, and dinner at Kembang Pare - interesting with the salted eggs at the top of the rice called "Nasi Liwet", the name given is not suit with the taste. Went to Jalan Riau to shop at Terminal Tas (handbags) and Kartika Sari to shop a delicious taste of local Brownies. Back to hotel, last night in Bandung.

Day 4

woke up early for breakfast (with same thing-fried noodle+fried rice+some fruits)and check-out. today, we are going back to Jakarta, 2hrs via highway. karaoke and slept in the bus till my friend wake me up cause we've already arrived at Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII), similar like Mini Malaysia @ Malacca, if you ever been there.

the bus driver drop us at the Padang's Bigger House - kinda museum. but i was attracted with the dancing monkey in front of those houses. Lunch at Salero Bondo. Enroute, stop at Istiqlal Mosque and MONAS (Monument National) Monas by Wikipedia; very hot, so i stayed in the bus.

shopping at ITC Mangga Dua. but not for me, cz i took this chance to experience a Bajai (local trishaw/tuk tuk) ride from Mangga 2 to our hotel in Jakarta; Orchardz Hotel. a very nice 3* hotel, located right behind the Sheraton Hotel. but looks like 4*, might be 3.5*. done the advance check-in. back to Mangga 2 by Blue Bird cab, surprising the rate (using meter) similar like taking the Bajai.. not so-called the best view : there's a 'black' river at the middle of the city. eyaks!! still got some local people do fishing there.. gulp!

ok, that's it! cause i would like to continue this story about we having dinner at Riong Sari Rstn, owned by one of local celebrities in Indonesia.

i don't prefer to shop at Mangga 2, too crowded plus i was lost! haha the guide told us to search for the McD as the landmark then go straight at the back to find our bus.. but i cant find any McD. confusing.. then, i asked people around. i managed to bought some souvenir on my way to find the McD.

after check-in at that wonderful hotel, they ask me join them for another karaoke. but i'm not interested, cause my interest definitely to go to Hard Rock Cafe! enjoyed the live band there. such a awesome performance. i bought a Hard Rock T-Shirt for my sister, cost me IDR 170,000 = MYR 52 only. wow, very cheap! seriously! good night everyone... (last night in Jakarta)

Day 5

Breakfast, with the same menu.. experience the full body massage, RM10 for half an hour, while other people still shopping (last minute) at Tanah Abang. i'm packing my stuff and check-out. Lunch at Sari Minang Rstn before transfer to airport for departure home. flight on 645pm, so spent the last few minutes at Starbuck.. finishing all Rupiah Money!
 "farewell Indonesia".. will be back Soon! InsyaAllah 

flew home.. safely arrived KLIA at 10pm, going home

~home sweet home~