jakarta

a city of 'macet'(jammed), congested & high living cost. I made mistakes by coming back after trip to Bandung.. Better plan should be staying in Jakarta first, then move to Bandung & go home via Bandung.. higher airport tax (150 000 Rupiah/person), carrying heavier luggage (add on in Bandung) & extra cost for supir ( 5hours from Bandung because macet).. No time to go to Puncak since the alterations of my jeans takes time & this means my original tentative goes down the drain. Jakarta can be divided into 5 districts- Jakarta Utara, Jakarta Pusat, Jakarta Barat, Jakarta Timur & 1 more( forgot -maybe Jakarta Selatan?).. Each region was quite far away (consider the traffic congestion!), so it would have been better to allocate 1 full day for places of interest in different region. My initial itinerary included 1)Rumah Mini/Taman Mini Indonesia Indah(Jakarta Timur) , 2) Museum Fatahillah/Cafe Batavia/its surroundings(Jakarta Barat), 3) Ancol Seafood passing by Ancol Dreamland(Jakarta Utara) and 4) the remarkable MONAS & Masjid Istiqlal(Jakarta Pusat).. Shopping complex - Tanah Abang & Mangga Dua.. For more shopping, perhaps Sarinah Mall & Thamrin City should be added to the list.. However, as for me, i spent 1 extra day in Bandung & 5 hours journey to Jakarta (arrive around 12midnight at Jakarta) & 2 subsequent days at Tanah Abang, plus public holiday on Thursday, so most shops & places of attractions were closed). Not much experience in Jakarta . For Mangga Dua, there were lots of Mangga Dua , namely WTC Mangga Dua,ITC Mangga Dua and Mangga Dua Square.. We just went to ITC Mangga Dua but few section closed due to public holiday.. The same goes to Pasar Baru in Jakarta, some shops were closed.. As for the big building of Tanah Abang, i cant remember how many sections were there. i only know Pusat Grosir Blok A, Pusat Grosir Blok B (grosir = borong) & Metro Tanah Abang. Limited choice for kain sulam (or maybe i dont know the exact location?). Need to know exactly what you want because it seemed as mission impossible to explore the whole Tanah Abang building, unless you are energetic & full of stamina. Some locals may not helpful, so that call for better planning.. it's a waste of time to wander around , not knowing where to go & not to mention, walking around was tirung.. By the way, iTanah Abang was very busy, both with vehicles or locals doing their activities - selling at stalls, packing goods & so on & it was more crowded than chow kit.. if the supir wasnt there, i wouldnt dare to cross road! (parking inside Tanah Abang may consume time (one way road, no other exit. I dont dare to waste time on last day because i need to take heavily congested traffi into consideration... perhaps if i'm not rushing, it was okay to park inside the building.. Talking about pusat grosir, the prices were cheap when buy in bulk. Depending on your haggling skills,the price may go down sometimes. But going together with supir on last day, there were difference up to 50 Rupiah between the price of grosir & buy in small quantity ( or perhaps because i dont have haggling skills, i need to pay more & not much discount. when talking about wedding stuff, jakarta had lots to offer, especially lace & wedding gifts.. As for souvenir, MONAS offered wide array of t-shirts; fridge magnet, keychain, pen & other souvenirs at cheaper price compared to mall/ shopping complex

bandung

Bandung needs no introduction.. Culinary, shopping & sightseeing were the main attractions. If you do internet search on factory outlet , you will eventually come across to Bandung , thanks to rave online reviews that it has received from its loyal patron.. So, why i choose Bandung instead of thousands other destination in this world? 1st, it's situated in South East Asia, just nearby Malaysia, so the language doesnt differ much (although they converse in Bahasa Indonesia, it's still understandable!).. So, it's a shame if i never set my feet there.. 2nd, its Rupiah currency vs RM allow me to kill 2 bird with one stone, shopping while enjoying the nature it has to offer.. Having experiencing shopping spree in Vietnam, why not consider shopping in my itinerary? 3rd, it's accessible via Jakarta. Jakarta was the capital of Indonesia, so, i can proudly say that i used to go to MONAS at the capital city of Indonesia. What to shop depend on your favourite. For me, i consider kain sulam first (i know Bukittinggi offer more kain sulam but hey, i'm more attracted to inactive volcano & highland of Bandung with strawberry farm & tea plantation more than shopping alone ).. Different shops/outlwts have different design & pattern, so it's best for you to grab the pattern that you like straight away.. I leave some spaces for Jakarta's kain sulam but there were limited choice for me ( i dont know if i went to wrong location but not much choice at Pasar Baru Jakarta, Tanah Abang, IT Mangga dua(the section for kain sulam closed that day) & few other places) The lists continue with 1) telekung solat- Telekung travel is cheaper here(light & isnt bulky, helpful to reduce a kilogram or few gram in your luggage while teravelling here & there) For ordinary telekung, sulam dominated most of the pattern, some even have bag for that telekung & some contain sejadah.. The same item was expensive in Malaysia ( expensive is subjective ) 2) perfume - i'm not a fan of branded perfume but here in Bandung, you can request any smell that you want, just name your favourite perfume brand, be it Lancome, Christian Dior, Anna Sui, Hugo Boss or any brand that you like, chance are, they'l be ready in just few mibutes!(if the queue isnt long).. The extra feature that i like most is, i can request for alcohol free perfume! Although they are colourless ( the coloured one usually contain alcohol- that was what the boss at In Parfum told me) & the price tag for alcohol free perfume doubled than normal price (the price doubled because they use more concentrated essence & skip the alcohol diluent), believe me, it's worth it. In fact, i cant differentiate the original brand with the fake one. The smell of my perfume lasted for 1 - 2 days & i love it! If you bring along your original container, no one will say that you use imitation!( oh, exception for those yang brand conscious, maybe this cheaper alternative doesnt suit you!) 3) jeans Tailor-made jeans are widely available here.. as for me, i made few items, including peplum & overall(being a copycat, 100% copy the idea of my friend).. i can choose the material & the design. For the peplum, i googled the design & choose one & gave the picture to the staff & i'm satisfied with the outcome. Even my mother & my friend's mother complimented that my choices were good (not fit & design ok).. However, that was the result of fitting, alter, fitting & alter again.. the reason? the owner was a chinese, & usually, the Chinese love the design that fit your body perfectly ( showing every curves that you have) & when she measure, she use that 'fit' measuring & note 'lebih longgar'.. However, that lebih longgar wasnt loose at all, so need to alter it.. Both my friend & i said add 2 inches but 2 inches in Indonesia means 2 cm & that 2 cm doesnt make any difference.. & that call for 2nd alteration! The best solution here is to give 2-3 daus extra time so that if you need alteration, you still had plenty of times to wait.. Bring along the sample for measuring purpose if you dont believe their measuring skills! 4) Factory outlets' items like branded clothes/ trousers/children attire/ leather products, shoes, bags & the leist continue.. 5) Souvenirs - Fridge Magnet & keychain are cheaper in Bandung than Jakarta. For those who love to collect FM as a proof that you had once being there, it's advisable to buy it in Bandung because it contained Jakarta's FM as well . For nature, i want: 1) volcano & the breathtaking scenery along the journey to the volcano Kawah Putih located in the suburb of Ciwidey.. The journey to Ciwidey was a pleasant one, woth its natural bauties / well preserved nature.. The sight of tea plantation areas, strawberry farm, horse with carriers ( i dont know what's the name but it's common in the outskirts of Ciwidey.. Bajaj(bajai?) & angkut were available in the town but not in the village) .

how i survive in jakarta & bandung

1) Hotel 101 Bandung Dago Hotel was good, be it the room & amenities or location.. All is well for me & the breakfast was marvellous ( i dislike indonesian cuisine, the hotel breakfast was the only 'close to home' food that i had - the menu were almost similar to Malaysia & staying in Indonesia for 1 week, made me appreciate local cuisine ).. I'm not a fan of Maggi, so no stock of Maggi .. when it comes to food, i just grab whatever that the cafe /restaurants offer.. Back to hotel, my supir said that he can book 2 room at Aston Marina Hotel Apartment for RM200.. Suitable for a family / a gang of travellers.. I dont fancy apartment for 3 person because i care about safety most(scary if there were only 3 of us!).. The price for 101 Hotel is a bit pricy for me but that was okay because i paid just 1/3 of the total cost! Location wise, hotels in Dago were more expensive than other areas/roads because there were lots of Factory Outlet there.. If you want to save cost, better to stay at Jalan Cihampelas or Jalan Riau (Factory Outlet banyak jugak, cuma x sebanyak Dago).. But if you aim for XL-sized clothes, i think FOs were not suitable for you... most of the clothes are small & fit your body perfectly (i dont like that type of clothes!) In Jakarta, i stayed in Hotel 55 Mangga Dua, but frankly speaking, i dislike the environment.. Much like a typical budget hotel but the environment outside was similar to Chow Kit.. Stayed for 2 night there, for me was more to 'have a place to sleep & rest' since we came back to hotel late ..not recommended for fussy traveller & even if you are a backpacker, for me, better you choose a hotel with a safe environment like near shopping complex or nearby decent restaurants.. i cant complain much since i dont know where to stay in Jakarta & there were lots of bloggers stayed in Hotel 55, so i thought it should be okay.. Please take note that the decorations of hotel was full with Buddhist statues ( nampak patung mcm patung Buddha je).. Another alternative was to find a good deal/promotion at Traveloka, indonesian based website with no hidden charge.. My supir told me that it was a new website that always come up with fabulous & attractive prices for hotel.. 2) Simcard SIMPATI for 5 days was my choice but using too much internet lead to overuse of credit ( bila kuota internet habis, kuota untuk call ditelan).. So on Day 4, i was out of credit & hence, need to top up ( takut bila lost contact & xdapat hubungi sesiapa especially in emergency).. 3) money exchange My friend teach me about TT rate (telegraphic transfer) -, so that i got good deal.. However, considering the location, i cant apply it but I'm grateful because he shared this precious knowledge. Boleh cuba tukar duit dengan TT rate lepas ni bila nak travel oversea (dengan syarat bukan kat location yang tersangat strategik - mesti laa pengurup wang tu action & insist bagi normal rate bila ramai orang tukar dengan dia). In Malaysia, i change my money at UO Chow Kit (rate paling murah yang dijunpai di Malaysia lepas survey kat airport, area Chow Kit & Quill city Mall tapi x semurah di Bandung).. Golden Money Changer near Pasar Baru was my choice in Bandung.. That was the cheapest rate that i could find .. I think the company operated using TT rate because i got the same rate when i withdrew money from CIMB in Bandung ( i dont convert all my money to Rupiah because my friend said that some shop accept RM in Jakarta).. Bila Rupiah di tangan sudah habis tapi xsampai Jakarta pun lagi, memang terpaksa withdraw dari mesin ATM laa.. I activate my card the night before departing to Jakarta in case of emergency & it turned out to be useful.. Minus the RM10 charge for withdrawal through Atm, the rate was okay.. Baik withdraw banyak klu nak ambik thru CIMB sebab rugi charge RM10 tu.. Lagi untung tukar duit kat money changer sebab xde hidden charge.. Rate Jakarta agak mahal, jadi lebih baik tukar duit di Bandung.. But if you are rich & doesnt care about rate, just change your money at airport @ maybe use your ATM card at CIMB, request to dispense Rupiah currency ( ade mesin ATM khas untuk dispense dalam Rupiah, Saudi Arabia Riyal, Hong Kong Dollar, US Dollar, Euro & few other currencies.. 4) Food Choose the cafe or restaurant that you can tolerate rather than stall or masakan Padang (serve all sort of food, you choose what you want to eat & paid only for the portion that you eat@ choose few side dishes & not touch the side dishes that you dislike) to avoid risk of AGE/acute Gastroenteritis @ cirit birit(diarrhea) + sakit perut(cramp).. If you want to cut coat on food, avoid a well known restaurant.. Just choose a regular cafe.. I made mistakes by choosing few popular restaurants but the food wasnt up to my expectation... & talking about Kampung Daun restaurant in Bandung, i think it was overrated.. Lebih kurang Puncak Mutiara Cafe kat Penang je tapi harga mahal.. Environment? Lembang Floating Market & de Ranch offer better scenery. 5) Supir Pak Rudi in Bandung & Pak Nono in Jakarta were both good & dedicated to work.. In Bandung, there was another guide in Pasar Baru,Mas Gono (price already included in supir cost - s

A week in bandung & jakarta: part 1

Firstly, this isnt a post to show off because i just go to bandung & jakarta. i dont work there/dont have relative in bandung or jakarta .. However, experiencing the ups & down for a week, i think it's better for me to share the experience here. Because for a free & easy traveller who want to experience something that package wont offer ( most packages offer almost similar tentative & i want more than that!) , going on your own was 100 times better.. Moreover, i hope this can help the first timer to decide & arrange your vacation (i always depend on blogger review to arrange itinerary & hotel/find uaeful tips) Although i dont go through package, this trip cannot be classified as backpacker trip either. For a group of first timer, hiring supir is a better option to move around. I decide the itinerary, my friend handle the booking(hotel, flight ticket etc) & the other one handle other details.. Overall, Day 1: boarding train ( Argo Parahyangan) from Jakarta to Bandung. From airport, the initial option was taking Damri bus to Gambir station. However, upon arrival, we dont know where to take Damri bus or bluebird taxi since there were lots of taxi with blue colour & not to mention the huge parking areas (2 level). So, we opted for taxi driver outside airport. Our luck: the driver was okay. Actually, need to be careful with the taxi apart from bluebird because sometimes, let's say they quote Rupiah 200 000, when you reached the destination, the' ll request 200k per individu.. Talking about a scammer! & if some people wonder why we dont hire supir upon arrival, my answer is, we wanted to go to bandung via train to view the breathtaking scenery during the journey, so hiring a supir was redundant (paying extra for airport transfer is not preferable since that amount would help me to shop more =). & another remark, when i hire a supir, i dont expect him to be just like a taxi driver, transporting us from one destination to another destination without any guide/useful information.. Translated, why pay more for a supir who just act like a taxi driver? Better to save cost & channel your money to items that you like most (i mean shopping!).. & my two cents' worth: better hire a supir with good reputation & dedicated to his work rather than going for a cheaper alternative but the supir leave you alone not knowing where you want to go & worst of all, waste your precious times there & turned your holiday into a sour experience since you were exhausted exploring an unfamiliar places but that wasnt up to your expectation! & to top it off, you got nothing at the end.. So, my advise, choose your supir wisely.. If your good supir offer a slightly higher or more expensive quotation, just accept it or you'll end up with nothing (oh, maybe an unforgettable memory of being lost in huge shopping complex/place of interest!).. Talking about itinerary, please bear in mind that we only propose but god dispose! An accident occured at one of train station, causing the train to delay for 3 and half hour, so we end up viewing the darkness of Jakarta & the whole route to Bandung! Lucky our supir in Bandung was cool enough to wait until 9pm(expected arrival time: 6pm).. & lucky the process of check in went smoothly & the dinner was okay. Thinking back, i was relieved that we hire supir that day because arriving at an unfamiliar place at night , of course there were risks of danger (criminals/overpriced taxi/ exhausted & hungry since most cafes/restaurants closed early)... By the way, for those who still dont know that 5pm in Bandung was equal to 7pm in KL/Peninsular Malaysia, be careful when you make your own itinerary.. Avoid arrival at night if you wish to view scenery from train (like us).. & another note, i think 'sedekah ' to a foreigner is a a good way to do charity(since our train was delayed, we were hungry but not really sure if the food at train station were halal or not, so we go for a temporary hunger strike =).. Lucky a local sitting beside me offer her pisang bollen keju .. Enough to gave energy to continue our journey.. I'm thankful for that an unexpected 'rezeki' & i think, that was a good way to do charity.. 'Sedekah' halal food for a muslim foreigner (first timer)..