Bali Day 1: We felt like hobbits in Garuda Wisnu Kencana

Our flight from Jakarta was on time. So after less than 24 hours, we were off to Bali. For those who have no idea on how far is it, imagine this. Java island is the main part of Indonesia. Yogyakarta is slightly at the middle, probably more to the west. Jakarta is at the far west of the island. Bali on the other hand is an island at the far east. It’s so far that the time there is +1 from Jakarta, lol.

Most of us if not all, knocked out as soon as the flight took off.

The next thing i knew was Angeline waking me asking if i wanted to eat as the stewardess were selling their onboard food. Flying from Jakarta to Bali, we were onboard AirAsia Jakarta and so they have certain food that aren’t available on the Malaysian flights. So we tried the different variety they had and they were definitely delicious!

After filling our stomachs, i could barely sleep and started meddling with all the ridiculous apps i had on my iPhone.

Before i knew it, the captain announced that we were landing shortly.

Finally, BALI !

The Bali airport reminded me of Penang Airport before it got renovated.

Lucky for us, the weather was excellent upon arrival unlike Jakarta where it was raining. We had to walk quite a distance from the plane and everyone looked excited on what has been installed in Bali!

As we exited from the arrival hall, i could see someone holding a sign with my name on it and it was Jess ! LOL. Jess, Steven and Keat Meng joined us for the Bali portion of the trip. Initially Wai Seng was suppose to come but he caught the flu bug and he wasn’t feeling any better a day before the trip.

The three of them were in Bali a day earlier.

As you can see the picture above, our Bali portion of the trip was managed by Adokys Travel which was recommended by my good friend who is in AirAsia. After many months and after tonnes of emails being exchanged, Angie (incharge of Adokys Travel) managed to get the places that i wanted. Angie is actually a Malaysian who runs this travel business in Bali itself.

So upon meeting up with Jess, Steven and Keat Meng, our group headcount ballooned to 13 pax. I was then introduced to Yoga who would be our guide for the rest of the trip.

We stopped for lunch on the way and as usually being so hungry and lazy, i didn’t take any picture of the place. We ate at Pawon Pasundan.

After that we headed to Garuda Wisnu Kencana also known as GWK. Some who have visited this place before wasn’t told why this place even existed.

This cultural park is devoted to the Hindu God, Vishnu and his mount, Garuda the mythical bird who is his companion. Due to the recent economy downfall in the region and also unfortunate bombings in Bali, the project was put on hold.

Had the project carried on, all statues seen in the park will be attached to create a mega statue which could reach almost half a kilometer high!

Nevertheless viewing the parts of the mega statue was already breath-taking.

Their version of lion dance? hehehe

Daniel got excited, lol

David shooting from afar. That’s part of the statue, Vishnu.

This part of the statue, the upper half body of Vishnu stands at the height of 20 plus meters.

The ladies helping me make my point on how huge the statue was

The Vishnu portion was to be mounted on to this Garuda portion. Like as though he is riding the mystical bird.

Aaron getting upclose and personal with Garuda

The ladies again, this time with Garuda portion

All out of a sudden, Daniel felt small. Like a hobbit. Seriously, everything here is HUGE!

Everything just kept getting BIGGER ! Check out how huge the limestones around us !

This was the final portion that was on display, Vishnu’s hands.

Angeline posing in front of Vishnu’s hands lol.

Yoga and the driver drove right to the last portion of the statue to fetch us unlike other who had to walk quite a distance to the carpark. Hehehe both Yoga and the driver were simply awesome during our whole stay in Bali ! That’s our ride btw

Next update will be about Uluwatu !

Jakarta: Taxi = Alphard

It was like 2 months before our Yogyakarta + Bali trip and i received a message from AirAsia notifying that our connecting flight in Jakarta got canceled and it was scheduled for the next day. After going through all possible options, the best outcome was to spend a night in Jakarta itself.

Since Jakarta was never in our initial plan, we had to find the cheapest place to stay so that it doesn’t blow our travel budget.

Before the trip, Angeline and i googled for transportation, food as well as places to stay. Estimated cost was to be less than RM150.

It was raining when we arrived. As i looked out of the window i realized AirAsia Indonesia had a bus to ferry us from the plane to the terminal. WHAT a relief! Imagine getting soaked in the rain >.<!

The clip is kinda fuzzy. Took it with my trusty e71

The terminal that we were in was some sort of like low cost terminal but definitely better than LCCT. As i said earlier, Angeline and I have done our homework on the price of the taxis. That enabled us to be sure of what to take.

I was told to get the BlueBird taxi but since i had 10 pax, 2 taxis won’t do.

As for the place that we were gonna overnight, we gone with the guesthouses along Jalan Jaksa, which is famous among backpackers.

So a quick check with google maps on how far was Jalan Jaksa from the airport, i was able to estimate how much the taxi fares could be as they run on meters.

The magic number we were looking was about Rp 200,000.

I negotiated with the counter on what kind of taxi that could fit us all and after browsing through their list of taxis, i went with the …

ALPHARD !

It was no ordinary Alphard but one that is equipped with GPS and WIFI!

Yes! WIFI man!

We all walked out of the terminal and within minutes 2 Alphards appeared and their doors opened automatically! Hahahah damn stylo! Too bad half of us looked like Ah Pek kia. The driver that i got was named Dadee, pronounced as Daddy and he was one of the most friendly drivers i have ever met!

He conversed with us non-stop and he was fluent in English. At one point on the highway, Ai Ling spotted a man in his cart selling food and so she asked what is he selling.

Dadee answered, “Bak Pau”.

The rest of us were like Hah? Bak Pau?

Dadee replied,” Yeah the filling is PORK!”

At that point i was amazed that i am in the largest Muslim country and there we saw a man selling Char Siew Pau in the middle of the road. The driver himself had no problem saying Bak Pau! Respect ler.

He then talked about the shopping complexes in Jakarta and there are more than 300 complexes in Jakarta alone! Probably one day i should spend a weekend in Jakarta alone.

Upon arrival at Jalan Jaksa, our meter showed, Rp 199,950. Thus rounding up to Rp 200,000. Love google maps, hahaha.

The guest house that we aimed to get was full for the night (we can’t reserve over email and had to walk in). So we ended up at Bloem Stead.

It was only for the night and no one complained. After all it’s a backpacking trip. After unpacking and washing up, we walked the streets in search for dinner.

Right at Jalan Jaksa, there was a shop that had Nasi Padang and since everyone wanted to try, we walked in.

The thing about Nasi Padang is that all types of dishes would be brought to your table and you only pick what you want. Those that aren’t taken wouldn’t be charged.

But then again, being foreigners and being in a place that had only a few shops opened so late in the night, the price tends to be higher than usual. Maybe Nasi Padang is expensive on the whole. Price a side, i thought the food was nice especially the Rendang. I know David just couldn’t stop eating that particular dish.

After dinner, we continued walking aimlessly in Jakarta until we realized we were kinda lost. Out came Google Maps again. It started drizzling and decided to call it a day. Before sleeping, i made a booking with the same taxi service to ferry us back to the airport at 8am.

The next day i got a wake up call from the taxi people themselves!

“Hello, ini Bapa Satkuru?” (Hello, is this Mr Satkuru?)

Yeah yeah

“Taxi akan tiba pukul 5 minit lewat 8″ (The taxis will arrive 5 minutes to 8 )

OK terima kasih (Thank you)

Damnnnnnnnn, that’s some taxi service!

All of us packed and waited outside for the taxis way before 7.50am. We wouldn’t want to be late and we were told Jakarta has one of the worst jams. Missing our flight to Bali was the last thing we would ever need.

I was dressed like an Ah Pek, shorts, slippers but who cares. I wanted to travel in comfort and light! This is the way to arrive at the airport …. in style!

Before we could enter the departure hall, the security guard didn’t allow us in as we didn’t have any tickets. Even after explaining to her that it’s ticketless and we had our booking numbers, she persisted not to allow us through. Foreseeing this scenario, i printed each and every booking itinerary as proof. After digging it out and presenting it to her, she reluctantly allowed us through.

We had about 1 hour plus to spare and so we tried their currypuffs, something like Old ChangKee. Not bad actually. Aaron had a few and so did i. None of us had breakfast.

Try 1A Crispy Puffs if you are ever in Jakarta

I hope i got the name right.

Next stop Baliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii !

P/S: I have to speed up with my Indonesia entries T.T Next trip is less than 2 months away

Yogyakarta Day 2: Swimming pool filled with wives

After Prambanan temple, we headed back to our guest house and packed. Some of us took a quick shower while some waiting at the lobby. We were only asked to pay before leaving which worked in my favour, as i had no idea how the place was gonna be and paying over the net wouldn’t be ideal.

We got into our van and left for the Water Castle which is in the middle of the town, nearby the fun fair we were at the night before.

As i have said in the previous entries that we only had less than 24 hours in Yogyakarta because of a last minute change in our flight schedule. That didn’t really hamper our plans, we just had to make sure we used the time well to cover the three main point of interests in Yogyakarta. The first day was dedicated for Borobudur, simply because it was really far. The next morning was Prambanan, which is actually on the way to the airport and after checking out, we would drop by Taman Sari, which is also on the way.

The Water Castle also known as Taman Sari acted as the bathing complex for the then Sultans. Entrance fee is Rp7000, which works out to RM 2.60. Before we entered, we had a confusion. We were told that we had to pay for our cameras and it was gonna cost us RM 18 ! We wasted time on this matter, thinking if it was worth that much. I walked back and asked the person why is it so expensive. He replied, “Cause it’s for 10 pax”

Earlier on i asked him nicely, how much would be person and not once he mentioned that it was for 10pax. Some communication skills that fella has -_-!

To make matters more interesting, he even calculated wrongly. Per entry is Rp7000 (RM2.60) and for the camera its Rp1000 (RM0.37). So it’s only 37 cents to bring in your camera.

We then got ourselves a guide with no extra charges. Most of the people who work in this grounds, cleaner, guide, painters, etc, are all decedents of maids and helpers of the Sultan. The guide explained that they were not paid was given a place to stay and food. But as time goes by, their jobscope changes. Though the guides are free of charge but they usually expect tips at the end of the tour, which i think is fair enough

Notice that it’s in plural? Wives. Yeap all of them will swim in the area, yes all together, at the same time.

Here we have Angeline reenacting what one of the wives could have done, many centuries ago. Hahaha. Notice the tall building on the left side?

There is a reason why it’s there.

As we walked towards the 3 level building, our guide stopped and plucked a certain fruit from the plant you see above. He then told us this was used as the nail polisher in those times. So the girls took turns to have their fingers done.

Earlier on i said the tall building has a reason for being there, well here it is, the highest floor. Aaron reenacts how one of the Sultans could have done. No no, not take a photo but to have his pick.

You see, having so many wives and all of them swimming in the pool below, the Sultan would pick one of them to join him in the private pool which is behind this very building.

This observatory area is actually quite small. When the 10 of us got up there, the other tourists were asked to wait till we came down back. Ai Ling also having a pick i think, hehehe.

After the Sultan has swam with the chosen one, both of them will them end up in the bedroom which is on the 1st floor.

Noticed the holes below the bed?

That’s where they burn charcoal if i am not mistaken, to keep them warm on a cold day.

After that we headed down and on the way out, we were shown their handicraft shop. Our guide kept reminding us that they only survive by being a guide and selling handicraft goods. We on the other hand were on a backpacking trip, thus budgets are kept to a minimum.

We gracefully declined any purchase and before leaving we collected a few thousand rupiahs from each of us as tips for the guide.

I realized i never took much pictures of myself during my Cambodia trip and this time i did make it an effort, LOL.

We got into our van and headed towards the airport. On the way we stopped by at some shop by the road side to have our lunch. I kept reminded the driver i want something local and not some restaurant like how we had our lunch the day before.

The name of the shop is Soto Pak Marto. I ordered Soto Campur and Es Sejuk. Sooner or later i realized some of the food names were familiar like in the food court in Western Digital.

This was what i wanted, local food!

I was satisfied in a way but the portion was so small ! T.T

Before paying, ah kua walks in and starts uttering God knows what. She or he had a basket for so called donations. When we all ignored and walked off to the counter to pay, he/she said something which was an insult i think but i couldn’t care less.

We left for the airport and upon arriving, we stacked our bags on the trolley and headed to the departure gates. Before we could even enter, the lady security guard stopped us and demanded a boarding pass. I explained to her that we are on AirAsia and we will only get our boarding pass when we are in the hall.

She still demanded to see the boarding pass.

I knew something like this would happen, that is why i printed out each and everyone’s itinerary. It is thick and heavy but it definitely comes handy in this kinda situation.

After reviewing the itinerary, she reluctantly allowed us through.

Next stop ….. JAKARTA !

Yogyakarta Day 2: Prambanan Temple – Largest Hindu Temple in Indonesia

We woke up early the next morning as the journey to Prambanan was quite far and on top of that, we had a flight to catch in the afternoon. For the complimentary breakfast, i had Nasi Goreng (Fried Rice) and a cup of coffee. Everyone was informed to do their packing in the morning itself so that we don’t rush later on and once we were all set, we shot off towards Prambanan.

On the way, we stopped at a traffic light and come across the above scene, lol. Never expected to see them in the broad daylight, more over in the middle of the road.

After 40 odd minutes, we finally arrived !

Prambanan – It’s the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia and one of the biggest in South East Asia and it was the answer to Borobudur temple which was for the Buddhist. When Angeline and i planned this trip, we marked this 2 places as the main agendas for both the days. Die die also must go see cause both are listed in the UNESCO’s heritage site.

For foreigners, the ticket price is $11USD and if you can present your Student ID then it’s $6USD. An additional 600,000 rupiah was paid to hire a guide for our group which is optional but i do recommend to get a guide. After all 600,000 rupiah isn’t that much once you have divided amongst yourselves.

We were given Marsono as our guide. He was showing us the before and after the main eruption that affected Borobudur and Prambanan.

Marsono explains …

The best time to visit Prambanan would be in the morning or evening. At least the scorching sun would burn you and it would be ideal for photography.

The whole tour in Prambanan took about 1 and half hours but it could differ based on your tour guides. We did take slightly longer cause we spent most of the time snapping photos.

As you exit the main Prambanan area, you will either have to walk back to the entrance or you could wait for their shuttle train. Since we had some time to spare, we walked even further to see the other smaller temples around Prambanan. For this, i think it’s better if you sit on the shuttle train and view these temples because walking all the way in and back out is time consuming.

Upon exiting the grounds and into the carpark area, you would have to go through a souvenir area just like in those theme parks, etc lol. Just that, this is open air and it’s the same people that usually man the stalls around tourist attractions but here they are arranged in an orderly manner. But that doesn’t change the fact that you would still be chased by the handicraft people right to the door of your car.

More pictures in my gallery. Really loved the sky when we were there !

Yogyakarta Day 1: The nightlife laughter that haunts you

Very often i would read other people’s experience in Indonesia but rarely they would document the night life and in this case Jogjakarta a.k.a Yogyakarta’s night life. A few weeks prior to our departure date, i tried looking up google for any pictures or videos on the Jogjakarta at night but to my avail there were barely anything.

Probably because there’s basically nothing to show other than the typical night markets that are scattered all around town.

Fortunately for us, when we were dropped in the middle of the town there were quite a number of things that were going on. First off there was a movie shoot and on the other end of the road there’s their local funfair.

We headed towards the night markets in search of light snacks.

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