Flip-Flops

Around & About Ho Chi Minh City

2009-06-27T09:53:00.027+07:00

Chao Dai Temple and Cu Chi Tunnel

I took one day tour to Chao Dai Temple and Cu Chi Tunnel. It took about three hours van riding from HCMC to Chao Dai temple. Luckily, an hour driving from HCMC, we stopped by at a workshop for the disable that made several beautiful Vietnamese crafts. We could go in to the workshop where the disable people work to know how the products were made and the next door is the big store where they sold the finished products. Afterwards, the journey continued to Chao Dai temple. My arse was sore because the road to go there wasn’t that smooth and the ride took forever. We finally arrived at the right time when the second mass was about to start. So, I and the rest of the tourists made our way to the second level of the temple and took some pictures when the Chao Dai believers worshiped God. The temple was very beautiful and the religion itself is very interesting which is combination of Budhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, and Judaism with some Confucianism, Taoism, Shintoism and Ancestor worship thrown in for good measure. Sounds complicated, eh?

We then headed to Cu Chi Tunnel, a complex tunnel that was dug by revolutionaries during the war. The place was really exciting. Soon after we arrived, we saw a video about the history of Vietnam War and the reason why they built the tunnel. Then we went inside the REAL tunnel. I was totally shocked to found out the tunnel was extremely small even for a person like me! I bet the soldiers back then were really petite! I found it was thrilling yet scary to be inside the tunnel especially when a girl behind me got freaked out and started screaming all the way from the point we started! Jeezz, I should have brought ear plugs! Haha!

It is not recommended for claustrophobic people since the tunnel is very narrow, dark and stuffy. Uh oh, probably good to bring your flashlight inside or at least switch on your digital camera to get some lights since it’s very dark there! Then, be very careful with the bats because they are flying everywhere!

* Daily tour to Chao Dai and Cu Chi tunnel costs $7.00 (lunch and entrance fee for Cu Chi Tunnel are not included)

One Fine Day in HCMC

A couple of weeks before I arrived in HCMC/Saigon, I’d been exchanging messages with Chaucy, a Vietnamese girl who helped me a bit with guesthouse information. Both of us agreed to meet when I got there. So, today is the DAY! Chaucy came to my hostel and picked me up since she promised me to take me around the city. YAY! Eventhough it was our first day to meet each other, we felt like we’ve been known each other for years!

Chaucy took me to the downtown with her motorcycle! It was a fun ride and I felt completely safe with her! But we didn’t wanna caught in the heavy traffic of Saigon, so we decided to park the motorcycle somewhere and walked around the city.

We visited couple of famous MUST-SEE places around Saigon. First place to visit was the Saigon Opera House which was built in 1897 by French architect. It was under construction when I was there but it looked good from the outside. Then we went to The Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica which was established by French colonists and was constructed between 863 and 1880. Both of us went inside to check out the interior inside and it was amazingly well-preserved. Then we crossed the street to The Saigon Central Post Office which features Gothic architecture styles and was designed to be in harmony with the surrounding ward. We took some pictures and I bought some nice postcards for my friends. We continued walking through a nice garden where mostly local students hanging out to go to The Reunification Palace. But we only found out that the place was CLOSED for couple of days. BUMMER. So we went to different direction and made our ways to The War Remnants Museum. It is a war museum that was inaugurated in 1975 and back then it was called “The house for Displaying War Crimes of American Imperialism and the puppet Government of South Vietnam”. This museum basically displays anything that related with Vietnam War. I couldn’t really say anything about what I saw. My heart sank. I hate WAR. It doesn’t do anything GOOD for both parties.

I thought the sadness made us hungry so from there we went to a nice Vietnamese restaurant called Rat Hue. I let Chaucy ordered everything seems she knew everything about Vietnamese food. DUH! The food was great and the place was nice. We ordered the famous Vietnamese noodle soup and spring roll and whatever! I forgot the name but I know it was delicious ;)

Then.. SHOPPING TIME! We went to Ben Thanh Market and looked for some souvenirs for my friends and my family. It was such a big marketplace! They do have different section for local cuisine, souvenirs, handicrafts, clothes, bags, clothes and even the famous Viatnemese dress called Ao Dai! It was nice to have Chaucy around because she’s a local so I got cheaper price!!

After walking for about 7-8K today, having muscle cramps (haha!), we decided to go home and called it a day.

Cruise on the Mekong River

Today is another tour day and the Mekong Delta is the destination. I left Saigon at 8:30 AM heading to My Tho city and arrived around 10:00 AM where we hopped on a small boat crossing the river to visit the coconut production chain.

We saw how the locals made coconut candy using some traditional tools. They showed us how they grind the coconut, cooked and wrapped it until it’s ready for sell. The part I really like the most when we got free candy samples! We could get as much as we want! YAY!

Then, we continued on the river to the Bee Farm. Not much to see in this place other than a small bee farm. But we got to taste the HONEY TEA for free (again??) and it was UNBELIEVABLY good!

My favorite activity of the day was we took a smaller boat which only fit 6 people. Two of them were local women rowing the boat. They gave us traditional Vietnamese hats to wear to keep us from the sun. Then the next 15 minutes we cruise a beautiful little canal in the cool and comfortable shade of coconut trees. We could see closer how the locals lived and experienced the hospitality of the local people. We couldn’t stop waving to the kids because they couldn’t stop smiling and waving. They were gorgeous.

We finally stopped at a small village. I don’t know the name because I didn’t bother to ask. Hehe. The locals served us various fresh fruits like banana, dragon fruit, pineapple and papaya. While we indulged the fruits, we were entertained by couple of Vietnamese songs and traditional music. This was a great end to my day at the Mekong Delta.

*Daily tour to Mekong costs $7 (lunch is included)

Motorbike Ocean..

2009-06-26T16:14:00.008+07:00

I had absolutely no idea that there are millions of motorbikes in Ho Chi Minh City and the riders never follow the rules! Who knows, maybe that is the only way to survive riding a motorbike in HCMH. Haha! Even though I’m from Indonesia, where there are many motorbikes, I still experienced motorbike overload!

My very first night in HCMC, I had dinner with Trinh a local friend who is Shaun’s friend. We went to the Ben Thanh Market riding her motorbike and I was scared to death sitting and praying quietly! The traffic was CRAZY! Thank God, Trinh is a good driver (DOH, what do you expect, she’s Vietnamese). We arrived safely and had a great meal.

After eating, I roamed around the night market alone since Trinh had another appointment with her friends.

My jaw dropped when I saw a motorbike ocean on the street in front of the Ben Thanh market. Christmas was coming and there was a huge Heineken Christmas Decoration set up around the area. All the locals wanted to bring their kids to go see the decorations and a million motorbikes filled the area. I COULDN’T CROSS THE STREET!!!

I was trying to be brave and just force my way across the street. But, I ended up stuck in the middle of the street and could not move! I was trapped in the motorbike ocean! Pleaseee...somebody helped me to take me out of here!! Within a few minutes I finally could walk across the street and made it in complete safety! Probably because they felt sorry for me! Nyahaha!

I learned my lesson that night and I could give you good advice when it comes to crossing the street in HCMC. Just CLOSE your eyes and cross the street! Do NOT HAVE EYE CONTACT with the motorbike riders! Trust me; they wouldn’t hit you if you don’t have eye contact with them!! Haha!

I chickened out!

2009-02-03T16:29:00.006+07:00

PEOPLE!!!!

I’m back!! Hooaa..when did the last time I posted a traveling story in my blog? I think it was ages ago, huh? Haha! Well, the traveling part definitely was AWESOME and UNREAL! But I suffered from Post Traveling Syndrome if that kind of sickness even exists, so I’m kinda having a short term memory problem to recall all the good memories I have had during my trip! Haha!

Anyway, I should start with something! So, here we go guys..

I have thought to do solo backpacking around South East Asia for many, many months. Gathering information from some good Travbuddy friends, researching the internet and reading travel books were my TOP priority activities for the past few months as part of preparation for fulfilling this dream. At first I was very thrilled and confident about my plans. However, a bit before my departure my confidence faded and I was apprehensive. No, probably more than apprehensive, down right nervous about undertaking a solo trip to Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Kuala Lumpur.

Thanks to several good friends, I was convinced that I could handle such a trip, that I was an experienced traveler, that I had a knack of meeting new people while traveling, that I had a half-way decent head on my shoulders and that I should be prepared to have the best time of my life. A little bit of apprehension is a good thing, but I found out that enjoying the Anticipation of a new experience is the best way to start any challenging trip!

I off to Singapore the next day as my first pit stop of this leg. My good friend Najiah welcomed me warmly. She picked me up at the bus shuttle near her house and served me a nice brunch with chicken rice, grilled chicken, soup and sambal. The food was great and my tummy was really happy!

Afterwards, we made our way to the downtown area, but we went different directions. Najiah had to go to her Spanish class and I had an appointment with a friend named Renny at MRT Hall. Renny is an Indonesian woman who works in Singapore. I had a great time with her not only because she was so kind to show me around the city, but also because we could speak our native tongue, Bahasa, in foreign country. Haha!

Then, I made my way to Singapore Cooking Meet Up. It was an occasion which was organized by The Singaporean Travbuddy members. Some people were very kind to cook for the rest of the group! I was quite surprised that I was the first person there, and I wasn’t even part of the cooking crew! But I’m glad I came early because I had a chance to get to know Winnie and her cool son Dylan! Not too much time passed and Bri showed up and they decided to start cooking. I’m sorry, but I’m just not cut-out to be a cook, so, I had to excuse myself and ran away from the kitchen area and ended up playing Monopoly with Dylan in the living room! LAME! Since I was in the living room, suddenly I changed my role to be an usherette because I was the one who always opened the door and welcomed everyone to the Cooking Meet Up! Hahaha!

Around 7:30 PM when the food was ready and everyone had shown we started eating (that part I’m good at!). I had to give two thumbs UP for the cooking crews because they are really talented. I felt a very warm sense of family chemistry that night. Everyone clicked really well with each other and we exchanged stories during the meal just like one big happy family :) A Photo session should never be crossed out from a Meet-Up agenda. So, we took some pictures after eating.

Najiah and I decided to leave the meet up early since I had to catch my flight to Ho Chi Minh City the next morning. I thought I could sleep early. But well, it didn’t happen! Both of us were having a blast talking until the wee hours of the morning and I was only able to sleep for about 2-3 hours. But no regrets, it was WORTH it!

A small note for you...

2008-12-17T11:23:00.005+07:00

Dear Friends,

It’s been awhile! I’m kinda caught up with work these days! I couldn’t believe myself how hard I’ve been working for the past three weeks! Haha, I don’t normally work real hard!

Anyway..
In this post I just wanted to let you know that in 3 days I’ll be going for my first Solo Backpacking trip to some countries in South East Asia! The countries are Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Malaysia. Huuii.. can you tell that I’m so thrilled?? Well, to be honest, I’m kinda nervous as well, but this is something that I really want to do! I wanna experience getting lost in translation by myself, try to take picture of myself which would be really hard (I may ask some people to take my picture..haha), make new friends with another fellow travelers, eat local food, pick up some new foreign languages, etc etc etc..

So, wish me luck guys!
I will try to in touch with you from wherever I am in the next 2 weeks :)

Okie dokie..
Last but not least..for those of you who celebrates Christmas..
MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!! Hope your day is filled with JOY and hope you get your favorite TOYS! Haha!

FOR EVERYONE!!!
Happy happy new yearrrr!!!!

Cheers,
Rintjez

Visiting Alas Kedaton, Tabanan, Bali

2008-12-03T10:46:00.009+07:00

Alas Kedaton is a Monkey Forest located in Tabanan, Bali. This is definitely a place for MONKEY LOVERS! Even though the monkeys are more behaved and friendly compared to Sangeh and Uluwatu, it is a must to be escorted by a tour guide when you enter this place. The guide will instruct you on how to feed the monkeys and how to avoid too much L-O-V-E from the monkeys!

As at similar areas, the monkeys are always thrilled by the peanuts! You can buy peanuts at a booth provided in the garden for only Rp. 3000 approximately US$0.30 (30 cents). You are allowed to give the peanuts to the monkeys and they will play and climb on your shoulder, or actually, all over you! Sort of cool, if you like Monkeys, but still, be calm and careful!

Be really careful when you are in very close contact with the Monkeys, because sometimes, if they don’t understand your “affection” they might scratch or bite you. Fortunately, the monkeys are regularly injected; therefore they are tetanus-free.

I had a blast playing with the monkeys at this park! And I know you will too!! So,you should visit this park and experience it by yourself!!

Visiting Elephant Safari Park, Ubud, Bali

2008-11-27T17:20:00.005+07:00

My friends and I made it to come to Elephant Safari Park in Ubud. I was smiling when we reached the Park, because there was a big sign says ELEPHANT AREA, BE AWARE!

Not too long, I already sat comfortably on Fitri’s back, the Sumatran Elephant who will take me around the park. Little did I know that Fitri was terribly hungry that time. While we were cruising, suddenly she was off the track and pulled out some small trees around her with her trunk! Oh me God, it was a disaster for me!! My body was tossed left and right and I was really scared to death!

Good thing Fitri’s tamer knew her really well and was able to calm her. We stopped for few minutes to give her time enjoying her food. The rest of the journey was really fun! At the end of the journey, we went in to the small pool where the elephants normally pooped! I'm not joking! Look at the color of the water!! Hahaha! Afterwards, we fed the elephants and had the opportunity to play with them! They are such a smart animals!

At the Elephant Safari Park, we visited the little museum/gift shop there, the guy who was part owner, I think his name was Bill told us his story. At first we were looking at these different tusks that were carved and I think even some for sale, so I was confused because I know that there is an international ban on trade in ivory from elephant tusks, so when we asked the guy he said that all the tusks came from elephants not only dead (duh), but extinct for many, many years.

He told me that he goes up to Alaska, usually by himself, and explores in the creeks and small rivers that come out of the glaciers and there he finds the tusks. These tusks came from Mammoths, ancestors of modern elephants that used to live in that area tens of thousands of years ago. I don't how long Mammoths have been extinct but it was during the time of cave men 'cause they used to hunt them. Anyway, long ago the Mammoths in that area died and their skeletons either got buried in the snow and ice or in the ground, or over time as ice has melted or soil eroded the tusks have reappeared in the creeks and small rivers.

Since that species is extinct, there is no ban on the ivory, not trading in the ivory is not going to save these animals, 'cause they're all freaking DEAD already, ya!

Anyway, it was pretty cool that he would go get these tusks, places where there are no roads, no villages, he has to take an airplane that can land on lakes then brings along a canoe and tries to collect these tusks, which then are really big and not so easy to even get back to the developed world! There's danger of grizzly bears up there not to mention he has to bring with him everything he needs, no stores, nothin' there. He has to be ready when the plane comes back to get him. It's cool to know that the ancient tusks he found in the northern part of North America are now in Bali, a tropical zone, over 10,000 miles away!

Rafting on The Citarik River..

2008-11-18T09:33:00.006+07:00

The Citarik River which is located in Sukabumi is one of the most well-know rivers for exciting rafting in Indonesia. I was blessed to be there for my first experience in rafting.

I happened to be in a conference for my company in Jakarta. So, my experience started from there. Since it was going to take 3 hours driving from Jakarta to Sukabumi, my friends and I, a total of 12 people, woke up at 4:00 a.m and left the hotel at 5:00 a.m. Even though we were still heavy-eyed we were very excited! On the way there we stopped by at the traditional chicken porridge eatery on the street and had our breakfast there. The taste was so good, I guess because the taste was mixed with dust and exhaust-polluted air from the cars passing by. Huhehehe. Then the journey continued on.

When we arrived in Sukabumi, particularly our rafting agent’s base of ARUSLIAR, we got our rafting equipment, like life jackets, paddles and helmets. Then, we went to the starting point, another 4 km by TRUCK!! We were like cows being taken to market in the truck! The road was very steep and with many curves; we screamed the whole trip!! And, we hadn’t even started the rafting yet!!!

Once we got to the starting point, we were divided into 3 groups. My team was named Matahari (Sun) the other teams were Bintang (Star) and Bulan (Moon). The length of the rafting trip was 8 km, but every 2 km we stopped for various games and rest.

The first game was flipping our rafts over. So, as a team we had to flip over the boat with a provided wire. Once it was flipped over, we then needed to flip it back in the right position. It sounds easy but when you have to pull yourself up to the boat, it was really hard! One of my friends first pushed my butt so that I could climb into the boat and then I help pull the rest of my team in. Even though this was a game, it was also a safety procedure as sometime the river rafts can overturn when we don’t expect it.

Then the second game was called “slaloms”. This was the hardest one. We had to paddle our raft against the current and touch a particular thing that was placed on the other side. It was really hard. We paddled and paddled and paddled. I was so exhausted but my team did it!

The third game was “head to head”. It was racing between 3 teams and my group was the loser!! hahahha!! But our group ended the race by flipping our raft over by accident!! It was a great ending of my rafting trip.

Of course, we always had “splash war” using our paddles with other teams along the way of our rafting trip. We also had countless falls down from standing in our rafts when we go through strong current and rapids and bump into big rocks. However, it was still so much fun even though at the end of the day I got several bruises all over my body.

Afterward we soaked ourselves in the river and the water was very fresh! Oh, and I was able to see so many different kinds of wonderful flowers, beautiful birds and biawak along the river. It was awesome. And to get back to our base, we had to ride the TRUCK back again!!! Another screaming session!!

Soon we arrived at the ARUSLIAR base, we took a shower. The agent provided us a great lunch. We had famous West Java food like Sayur Asam (Sour Veggie), Karedok (raw vegetable mix with peanut sauce), Tempe Goreng (fried soy cake), Tahu Goreng (Fried Tofu) and Ikan Asin (Salted fish).

I would recommend this rafting trip to anyone traveling in this part of Indonesia, it is easy to do, the cost is low and the fun and excitement are high. Take my advice, and get wet!

Sikuai Island, West Sumatera, Indonesia

2008-11-03T09:31:00.013+07:00

Some friends were a bit skeptical when I told about our plan to Sikuai Island. What worried them was logical since many earthquakes hit West Sumatera and tsunami warnings were announced for the past weeks. However, Fransiska and I were hard-headed and kept our plan going. At the last minutes, 2 others friends, Era and Fajar joined our trip to Sikuai Island which located in Padang, West Sumatera.

A 7 hour car ride from Pekanbaru to Padang was enjoyable. Some “dangdut” songs from the radio accompanied our journey. The most memorable song was AKU BUKAN PENGEMIS CINTA (I’m not a love beggar) by Joni Iskandar!! A lot of stories, jokes, laugh and snores entertained our trip and it was whole lot of fun!

At 2:30 in the morning we stopped in Lubuk Bangko and had our very early breakfast at Terang Bulan Restaurant (it screwed my diet :D) I tried the famous spicy PADANGNESE food and drank TEH TALUA (Egg tea). The taste was really yummy!

We arrived in Padang at 4:30 in the morning and crashed at our friend’s house for awhile and then at 9:30 we headed to Muaro bay (Dermaga Wisata Bahari). It took only 15 minutes by speedboat from Padang to Sikuai Island.

Enjoyment of this trip continues as soon as we arrived on this island. We saw a white and soft sandy beach and gentle waves with crystal clear water decorating the whole island. When we entered the resort, we were welcomed by friendly resort staffs and fresh coconut drinks. We stayed at the only resort on the island named SIKUAI ISLAND RESORT. Two nice bungalows right on the beach with sea view already prepared for us.

Can’t resist of the beautiful nature surround us, we decided to explore the whole island by foot. Every minute we stopped to take pictures. This photo session was full of joy and laughter. Besides taking pictures, we also saw monkey, an eel that was trapped on the reef, a sea snake and different kind of tropical fishes.

After photo session we headed to snorkeling point and had a really good time there. Different kind of tropical fishes such as blue trigger fish, Picasso trigger fish, angel fish, dog puffer fish and trumpet fish are easily found. Surprisingly, I saw a beautiful spotted eagle ray! Amazing, isn’t it?
I don’t know how many gallons of water that Ffransiska and Era drank because the snorkel seemed so big for their mouths. However, they were still had fun to see starfish and sea urchins down there!

Tired and hungry, we went to the restaurant for our dinner. The food wasn’t that great, but the fact that we were starving made the food tasted delicious. Then, we went outside to enjoy the beautiful full moon and watched people fishing. We headed back to our bungalow, turned off the light and zonked like a baby. We were very fortunate to sleep accompanied by the sound of the waves for our lullabies.

The sound of alarm clock awakens us at 5:00 in the morning. We hiked up to the top of the island, a place named Plaza Sunset. Breathtaking scenery accompanied our hiking activities. When we reached this place, we were a bit disappointed to find out that this place is not good for taking sunrise pictures but we still had more pleasure to see Teluk Bayur Bay and small islands nearby like Snake Island and Cubadak Island.

We spent the rest of the day by playing in the water, taking more pictures, snorkeling and packing! More jokes, more laughs and more fun happened and filled our hearts with excitement and joy. We hoped that the fun wouldn’t end. However, we still have to leave this beautiful island. This time we took a big boat instead of speedboat. It was raining so hard when we were leaving, but when the rain stopped we took pictures and just chilled out at the deck of the boat. It was so neat!

It was already dark when we arrived in Padang, so we went to Simpang Kinol right away to taste the best PADANGESE SATAY. Besides we also ordered friend rice, gado-gado, sate jawa (we were starving..). Afterwards, we stopped by at Silungkang, a souvenir place for a bit then headed back home to Pekanbaru. Thought the fun ended, but the car had a mini TV for us to karaoke with choices of Oldies Indonesian Songs.

Heavy-eyed, worn-out when we arrived in Pekanbaru around 4:00 in the morning, however we were happy to make this trip!!

*More information about Sikuai Island can be read below....

Sikuai Island, is a small secluded island located in Padang, West Sumatera. An enjoyable 15 minute speedboat ride from Muara Bay (Dermaga Wisata Bahari) would take you to this beautiful island. As soon as you arrive on this island, you will see a white and soft sandy beach and gentle waves with crystal clear water decorating the whole island.

Get in touch with the nature by exploring the whole island on foot or by beach bike. A nice connecting bridge as well as a cement pedestrian walk is provided for you to make the exploration more fun. A combination of views like white sand, light blue ocean water, green coconut trees, big rocks, colorful wild flowers, all different kinds of wild trees and curious monkeys will certainly entertain your eyes and fill your heart with amusement.

Snorkeling is a must activity to do here. Many different kinds of tropical fishes such as blue trigger fish, Picasso trigger fish, angel fish, dog puffer fish and trumpet fish are easily found. When you are lucky (like me) you would even see a spotted eagle ray!! Amazing, isn’t it?

Enjoy sunset and sunrise at Sunset Plaza which is located on the top of the island. Breathtaking scenery will accompany your hiking activity to reach Sunset Plaza. Take pleasure in the swimming pool while you enjoy the sunset and sunrise views. Beside that, from this point you would be able to see Teluk Bayur Bay and small, beautiful islands nearby like Snake Island and Cubadak Island.

Indulge yourself on this private island. Sleeping in a comfortable bungalow and listening to the soft, soothing sound of the surf for your lullaby will complete your stay on this beautiful island.

Information:
Sikuai Island Resort
Sea view : Rp. 1,500,000
Garden view : Rp. 1,300,000
Include 21% government tax, breakfast for 2 and transportation from Muaro Bay-Sikuai Island-Muaro Bay

Activities:
Snorkeling : Rp. 50,000 per 2 hours for rental equipment
Diving : Rp. 1,250,000 – include diving equipment, snack box, dive instructor and boat transfer to diving areas.
Beach Bike : Rp. 100,000 per hour
ATV : Rp. 500,000 per hour

Once you arrive in Padang, head to Muaro Bay (Dermaga Wisata Bahari) where the boat to Sikuai Island is normally stand-by. You could also take a day trip to this island which will cost Rp. 250,000 per person.

Boat Schedule:
Muaro Bay - Sikuai Island : 10.00 AM and 2.00 PM
Sikuai Island - Muaro Bay : 11.00 AM and 4.00 PM

Berastagi, North Sumatera, Indonesia

2008-10-29T16:30:00.007+07:00

Berastagi or Karo Highland is located in the North of Sumatera Island. Berastagi is a small city. However, this place becomes my favorite choice for weekend getaway when I lived in Medan, North Sumatera. If I wanted to be away from crowd city, busy streets and hectic jobs, I normally drove my car to go to this town with some friends for a day to find peace in my soul. Berastagi offers great view of high hills, green rice fields, various vegetable farms and colorful wild flowers.

Berastagi produces good quality fruits and vegetables, a couple of times my friends and I helped the local farmers to harvest tomatoes, carrots and oranges. When we drove the car and saw some farmers harvesting, we offered a hand to help and they always welcomed us warmly. Working with them was really fun. We worked for free! But normally the farmers gave us free and fresh fruits and vegetables to show gratitude!

Some other time, I visited a small church. The member of the church was only about 20 people and most of them don’t speak Bahasa Indonesia. They speak Karo dialect. Despite of the language barrier, it was a good feeling to worship God with them. I could feel the warmness of their hearts from their smiles.

Every time I visited Berastagi, I always tried to stop by at the beautiful Sipiso-piso waterfall. Cemented stairs are provided to make us easier to go down to the bottom of the waterfall where you can relax your minds or simple playing around. Always ready to get wet when you are there!

Sipiso-piso waterfall also offers the view of beautiful Lake Toba from West Coast. It is unbelievably remarkable! I could sit around the area forever just to appreciate the beauty of nature that God has created for us.

* Approximately 50 km away from Medan, this place is easy to be reached. You could drive your own car or take public transportation.

I H.E.A.R.T Flying Business Class

2008-10-25T18:54:00.009+07:00

After giving a good bye hug to aRJay outside NAIA Airport Terminal 2, I checked the flight information screens and headed to Philippine Airlines check-in counter. While I was waiting in line, I observed there was a PAL officer who was roaming around and asked almost everyone “where are you going?” I couldn’t believe he was doing that because what is the use of the Departure Boards in every check in counter if he still asked people this question?

It was by now my time to check in. Normally, I would ask the officer to give me an isle or window seat. But, I forgot! When the officer handed me the boarding pass, that was the time I realized my BIG mistake. 5B! Middle seat!! NO waaaaayyy!!! 4 hours flying and cramped in the middle!! A hell torture!

Still mourning about the mistake I made, I approached the immigration line slowly. While queuing there, I just realized that I didn’t have the departure form with me. AGH! So, I quit from the line, went back and got the form, and filled it out.

Remember the “where are you going” officer? Suddenly, he stood right next to me and asked that famous question…

Officer: “Miss, where are you going?”
Rintjez: “I’m going to Singapore, Sir”
Officer: “Are you traveling alone?”
(Rintjez thought “what sort of question is that? Don’t you see I’m alone?”)
Rintjez: “Yes, I am”
Officer: ”Come with me to the check-in counter”
Rintjez: “Sir, Am I in trouble?”
Officer: “No, you are not. I’m actually going to upgrade you to business class”
Rintjez: “You gotta be kidding!!!!!”
Officer: “No, this is for real”

I was starting to jump up and down with glee when I finally received my new boarding pass. MABUHAY CLASS. NO MORE MIDDLE SEAT! BIG RECLINING CHAIR! PILLOW! GREAT FOOD! FREE ALCOHOL (Oh! I don’t drink!), still YYAAAAYYYY……………..

Before I headed back to the immigration line, I talked to the “where are you going” officer. I asked him.
Rintjez: “May I know why I got upgraded to business class?”
Officer: “Miss, it’s just your lucky day”
(Rintjez jaws dropped and felt like giving a big hug and wet kiss to the officer! Haha!)

Long story short, it was great flying business class. I enjoyed every bit of it. I ate a lot because they kept feeding me with great food. I was laughing my ass off watching Tina Fey movie and had a good nap during the flight. The recliner chair was very comfy for 4 hours flying. Everything worked out perfectly!

As soon as I arrived in Changi Airport, I made my way to the Sky Train Station to go to Terminal 1 where Garuda Indonesia check-in counter is located to catch my connecting flight to Pekanbaru, Indonesia. I was 4 hours ahead from the departure schedule, but they let me checked-in early. I handed my passport and my e-ticket to the officer. He typed the booking code in the computer then asked me..

Officer: “Miss, are you flying business?”
Rintjez: “Hmm…I can’t afford to purchase a business class. I’m pretty much sure I’m flying economy class”

He looked at me with a confused look on his face but he didn’t say a word. He continued working. When he handed me the boarding pass, I almost fainted. It says EXECUTIVE CLASS and attached with it, an entrance pass to the Sky View Lounge. Right that minute I asked the officer to make sure that he didn’t make a mistake because it clearly stated in my ticket that I fly economy class. He smiled and said “I don’t make a mistake and you will fly business class. Enjoy.”

Woooo-Woooo!! Flying business class again??? This is the best day in my life!

I proceed to the Sky View Lounge as soon as I stepped in to Transit Mall Terminal 1. Still not believing what happened to me today. What “where are you going” officer said was true.. “IT’S YOUR LUCKY DAY”
Indeed it’s my lucky day :)

*traveling is full of surprises! I experienced bad things while I travelled.. but most of the time I experienced countless good things that I will cherish for the rest of my life..

Natural Soda Hotspring, Tarutung, Indonesia

2008-10-14T13:41:00.021+07:00

Do you known that area near Taturung, in north Sumatera has a natural soda hotspring? The hotsprings in this area are attractive, especially since Tarutung is located at high elevation and is pretty cold, for Indonesian weather.

Hotsprings are not an unusual occurrence, but a soda (or carbonated) hotspring is extraordinary! It feels like you are soaking yourself in a million gallons of hot Sprite!

I didn’t believe in a soda hotspring until the day I went there myself. The natural soda hotsping is located in Parbubu Village. It was only 15 minutes drive from the heart of Tarutung city to this village. The good news is it’s FREE to enter the pool since it is actually used as a common natural bath for the local people to bathe in. It was very surprising to see people soaping their bodies or washing their hair at the edge of the pool. Once their bodies and heads are full of bubbles, they would jump in to the pool to wash off!!

Hooaaa! I can read your mind! You must be thinking that the water is dirty because people take a bath there! Well, fortunately, you are wrong! The soda water in the pool is always clean because it is constantly coming up from its source and washes out from the pool. In fact, you will also find out that the water is crystal clear. This water is also used to irrigate the rice paddies around the area.

You must be wondering why that guy in my picture has goggles with him. The reason is that you can put your goggles on and dive in the pool to see plenty of small sulfur holes, which are the source of the soda water.

The pool is sited at the corner of a rice paddy. So, while you sit and indulge yourself in the hot soda water, you can also look out and soak in the beautiful view of rice paddies and the activities of the farmers who work at that moment. The green hills behind also add another remarkable sight of Indonesian nature.

It was a very unique experience to indulge myself in the hot soda water and enjoy the beauty of nature surrounding the spring.

Felt just like heaven!
___________________

*How to get there:
From Medan to Tarutung will take about 4 hours driving. Alternative transportations:
- Bus ticket costs Rp. 25,000 ($ 3.00)
- Rent a car + driver + fuel for 24 hours costs Rp. 550,000 ($60.00)

If you take a bus, once you arrived in Tarutung, take a public transportation (mikrolet) to Parbubu Village. It will take about 15 minutes to get there.

For your information, this review is also being published online in Travbuddy website until October 16, 2008.

EXPLORE - Anything You Want To Know About Changi Airport

2008-10-09T15:21:00.005+07:00

*A review about EXPLORE - Free Airport Magazine at Changi Airport and a story about my traveling experience*

As soon as I stepped in Changi Airport Singapore, I grabbed a small magazine named EXPLORE which was provided by the airport to help me go around since it was my first time to be there. I was thinking I would be such a WORLD dumbass if I get lost in this huge airport and miss my connecting flight. However, that was not the only reason why I grabbed the magazine. Somehow, it’s like my weird habit to get free travel magazine or anything associates with traveling because I think it can be another extra useful souvenir for me in the future.

I was extremely surprised that EXPLORE has all the information you need to know about Changi Airport. Money Changer, Food Court, Toilet, Sky Train, Taxi, Bus, Transit Hotel, Swimming Pool, Exciting Transit Experience, etc are easily found here. You name it, you get it…

My favorite part in this magazine is WHAT YOU CAN ENJOY FOR FREE AT CHANGI AIRPORT. Haha, who doesn’t love FREE STUFF? For your information, Changi Airport offers FREE Internet at over 500 Internet Stations, Movies at the Movie Theatre, Singapore City Tour, Online Xbox and TV Entertainment.

With the help of EXPLORE, I was able to go around within Terminal 1 & 2 by Sky Train safely and easily. However, I also stopped by at the Information booth couple of times just to make sure I went to the right direction.

Little did I know, my weird habit could help someone’s travel experience. It started when I was waiting for Sky Train at Terminal 1 to bring me to Terminal 2 where my connecting flight was located. Sitting next to me was a blonde girl with a big backpack, looking at a map with confused face. I didn’t sweat saying hi to her because she looked really lost. Suddenly, she asked me a question “Excuse me, do you know how much does the train ticket cost?” I was pretty much sure that it’s FREE, so that what was I told her. She gave me a surprised look, then she opened her map again and pointed out the name of terminal she wanted to reach.

I figured out that she actually needed to go to the city first in order to reach her final destination. However, can it be done by Sky Train? Where is the Sky Train to the city located? Is taxi cheaper? All sort of different questions popped up in my mind until I remember about “EXPLORE”
*Drum roll please…*
Thanks to EXPLORE because it has every little detail that we needed to get to the city with different alternatives of transportation.

Both of us then headed to Terminal 2 where the MRT station to the city is located. She asked me nicely to help her finishing all her business and I agreed to help because I have all the time in the whole world and it would be my benefit when I visit Singapore in the future.

Through this process, we really had a great chit-chat. Barbara Weiss as she mentioned her name is from Switzerland and actually on her ROUND THE WORLD trip. Singapore is her first pit stop. She would be traveling for another 7 months to different countries to complete her trip. We finally managed to get her MRT ticket from the machine and once it was done, we said good bye by hugging each other. It was such a weird yet pleasing experience for me.

As you read my story, I do hope you can learn something out of it about traveling tips. If my story is too long and too boring, I will figure it out for you:
1. Never ever underestimate the power of free travel magazine or brochure or map at the airport. Grab one or two that suit your need. If you think those things are too heavy and not useful, don’t throw it. Put it back at different racks so that other person can use that information.
2. Always ask some information from officers or people around to make sure you are going to the right direction. It may cause you 5 minutes to ask them but it would be better than lost for hours in a place you are not familiar with.

*Traveling gives me the opportunity to be out of my comfort zone and bump into new friends from all over the world along the way. Those are the reasons why I never stop traveling*

Blog Award...

2008-10-07T12:45:00.005+07:00

I would like to say Thank You to Ivana who has given me this award. It is such an honor for me to receive this award since it has only been a month I start blogging :) I always have good feeling when someone recognized my hard work :)

At this moment I will pass this award on to some friends of mine. Here they are:

Brokoli Sehat aka PopiTuris Gembel aka Rini Indonesian Culture aka Ibnu原味.风铃 aka Huiling
Wayuk aka CarlotaMengenangmu Adalah Pesona aka NataliaMy Life, Love & Bad Hair Days aka Enno

Hope you guys would also share this award to some other people to let them know that you are enjoying their blogs :)

Lake Toba, North Sumatera, Indonesia

2008-10-06T16:21:00.011+07:00

To be exact, Lake Toba is sited in a beautiful small town named Parapat which is about 5 hours driving from Medan. Lake Toba became a famous tourism object in Indonesia because it is the biggest lake in Indonesia. According to www.new7wonders.com Lake Toba is the LARGEST VOLCANIC LAKE in the WORLD at 100 km long, 30 km wide and approximately 505 m at its deepest point!

Personally, I would like to call it O-C-E-A-N! It’s just extremely H-U-G-E that I couldn’t really see the end of the lake when I visited this place. Amazingly, this gigantic lake has a small island in the middle that is named Samosir Island.

According to my research, Lake Toba existed because of super volcano explosion for about 75,000 years ago. After the explosion a caldera was created naturally and it formed a Lake. This Lake is called Toba which means beautiful bathing place. A high pressure to the surface by the magma which had not been released before cause Samosir Island formed.

This lake is also surrounded by green hills. I felt like I was in Austria when I visited Lake Toba. Well, I’ve never been to Austria. But being a big fan of Sound Of Music, the green hills and pastures look just the same with what I see in Lake Toba.

So in conclusion, why bother going to Europe if Indonesia also offers a million dollar view of green hills and amazingly gigantic lake?

Nias Island, Indonesia

2008-09-25T18:10:00.012+07:00

Nias Island is located off the northwest coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatera. Nias is famous for its waves for surfing and a lot of world champion surfers come to this place to take pleasure in surfing. Even though I’m not a surfer, luckily my pervious job at an NGO brought me to Nias. I was assigned to lead a capacity building training for the local staff at the Nias Office which located in Lolowa’u.

When I arrived at the airport check-in counter to head to Nias, I was queuing with a lot of Caucasian guys with their big and long surf boards!! I had to duck down and moved aside a little bit here and there everytime they moved. Haha!

I could tell they must be serious surfers because Nias Island is considered a small, remote and undeveloped island in Indonesia. If those surfers could almost kill me to go to Nias Island, that means there is something special about this island. Being there myself, I have to tell you that Nias Island offers world class waves for surfers. The well-known beach for surfing competition is Sorake and Lagundri Beach.

The venue of the training workshop I led was at Moale Beach. It is only one of the many beautiful beaches in Nias. The training was a fun learning process and everyone seemed to really enjoy the activities.

Besides better known Banda Aceh, Nias was also affected by the earthquake and tsunami in 2004. One thing that I found was a lot of dead corals around the beach. This happened after the earthquake and tsunami since the water level is now lower than the corals on the beach. It made me so sad that this natural disaster not only destroyed human life but beautiful nature as well.

*Something I never forget about Nias is in the morning I left that Island, I saw Nias kids wearing their school uniform to go to school and they used banana leaves to cover their heads because they didn’t have umbrellas. It was such a heartbreaking moment in my life and I couldn’t hold back my tears*

Amazing Palau is being published online in http://www.indobackpacker.com/

2008-09-24T08:25:00.007+07:00

When I opened Indobackpacker Website yesterday, I was surprised because my article “AMAZING PALAU” is being published there. I was so overwhelmed and my heart was full of joy! I was jumping up and down in my office until I realized, some officemates gave me a weird look! So, I stopped doing it right away. Haha!

It really made my day.. I’m so proud of myself..

Visit the website by click AMAZING PALAU if you wanna read the complete review.

Banda Aceh, Indonesia

2008-09-18T11:18:00.009+07:00

Clockwise: green hills, Great Mosque, Sampan at Ulele Harbor, Flipped over, sunset at Lhouk Nga, cute baby

Banda Aceh is located on the west tip of the island of Sumatera. It is well-known when the most devastating tsunami in history hit this place back in December 26, 2004. Since then, a lot of people from around the world, mostly foreigners who work for International Humanitarian Aid agencies, packed this place.

My previous job at an international NGO (Non-Government Organization) brought me to this place to help the local people rebuild their hometown and their lives, the same mission and vision like the other NGO workers. The first time I touched down on the land of Banda Aceh, I was really amazed by its nature. The view of green pasture and rice fields with farmers were entertained my eyes along the way to the town. I never imagined that this place could be so spectacular.

When I reached the town, Great Mosque is still standing strong even there was some damage shown on the building. The Tsunami was not able to tear it down. People in Banda Aceh believe that God is protecting His holy place.

My journey continued to Ulele Harbor. Sight of people fishing, children swimming and young people just chilling out could easily found here. Colored sampan - traditional boats are also decorated the harbor.

Not too far from the harbor, beautiful beaches are also accessible. The most prominent beaches are Lhouk Nga and Lampu’u beach. Golden sand and coconut trees ornament these awesome sites. These beaches are always full with young kids playing soccer on the beach, swimming and learning how to surf. These juvenile surfers try really hard to overcome the waves. They flipped over so many times but never give up. The sunset view is spectacular from these beaches.

I purposely stopped by at the prominent Kedai Kopi Ulee Kareng (traditional coffee shop). Rumor has said that the coffee is mixed with marijuana. I don’t care if this is true or not. The only thing I know is that was the BEST COFFEE I’ve ever tasted in my life. Though everything was a bit blurred after I drank one. Haha!

I stopped by at Rumah Makan Aceh Rayeuk to try the famous local delicacy, Ayam Tangkap (literally means Catching Chicken). It’s basically a fried chicken but they cook it with green chili and curry leaves. Great taste!

Banda Aceh in general is a secluded place for you who love to travel to serene locations. You will feel the strong Malay and Islamic culture in this place but the people there still respect people with other religions as well.

Weh Island (Sabang)

For your information, AirAsia flies from Kuala Lumpur to Banda Aceh directly. For those of you who loves snorkeling and scuba diving, a 2 hour boat ride from Banda Aceh will take you to Weh Island (Sabang) which famous for its breathtaking underwater world and serene beach. Lumba-Lumba Diving Center which located in Gapang Beach and owns by a friendly Dutch can cater your diving desires there. The rate stated there is in Euro, but you can still pay in Rupiah or American Dollar.

When you visit Weh Island (Sabang), do not miss KILOMETER ZERO (Kilometer nol) of Indonesia. Isn’t that cool that Indonesia actually has KILOMETER ZERO? I was so proud that I’ve been there :)

Clockwise : Me going scuba diving, gapang beach in the morning, playing around, view on the way to kilometer zero, kilometer zero, sunset at Pantai Kasih

Palau Underwater World

2008-09-11T16:50:00.002+07:00

The real attraction of Palau is the below water’s surface. The underwater world of Palau is fantastic. You do not have to be a certified diver to enjoy its beauty. Crystal clear water helps you to view the beautiful soft corals, colorful small fishes and spectacular reefs. When you are lucky, you could see sharks, napoleon wrasse and turtle from far away. Cool, isn’t it?
Best snorkeling spots are Soft Coral, Cemetery Reef, around Fantasy Island and around Ngermeaus Island.

If snorkeling is that amazing, what about diving? A mixture of tropical fishes with warm water and great visibility are appealing for divers. Most Wanted Diving Spot in Palau is Blue Corner. When the sky is clear and tide is high, more than 100 divers could dive in this place. Wondering why? Two things that make this place very famous; first, you are challenged to dive in the strong current. Second, you are tested to dive with school of sharks!! Imagine there are 10 sharks swimming around you? Not to count some of nursing sharks that sleep on the bottom! However, do not be afraid because these sharks are used to the presence of the divers, so they would never attack you. Not everyday you could have this experience, diving with school of friendly sharks!

Tips: never forget to bring your reef hook so you can hold on to the reef wall to enjoy the sharks show.

Another well-known dive spots in Palau is German Channel. In olden times, Germany completed this channel to help the boat travel through the barrier reef in Southern Palau without having to be trapped by the reefs. What you can find in German Channel is Manta Ray and Spotted Eagle Ray. Camouflaged Sting Ray also easily found here. Normally these big creatures having its cleaning station in this spot.

Palau’s diving is also famed for its wall or drop-off diving. It is recommended to dive in Big Drop-Off and New Drop-Off. In these spots you can have beautiful scenery of various soft corals, colorful anemones, anthias, school of barracuda, bumphead parrot fish, napoleon wrasse, giant clams and turtles!

Blue Hole, Siaes Tunnel, Turtle Cove, Shark City and Ulong Channel are another great dive spots. Palau also offers Wreck Dive, but I was not able to do it back then. I believe it would be as great as the other dive spots.

Recommended dive operators are: Neco Marine, Sam’s Tour, Fish and Fins and Ocean Hunter. Guarantee you will have an unforgettable diving experience in your life! What are you waiting for? Get WET!!

Jellyfish Lake, Palau

2008-09-10T19:10:00.008+07:00

You can’t miss Jellyfish Lake when you go to Palau. It is a MUST to visit this place. This spectacular thing can only be found in two places in the whole world. One in Derawan-Indonesia and the other one are here, in Palau.

Jellyfish Lake is located somewhere around the Rock Islands. Since the lake is a bit isolated, you need to exercise your hiking and climbing skill to get there. It’s not hard at all. In fact, it’s really fun!

The lake is a salt water lake, trapping the jellyfish that live there and also developed their symbiosis with photosynthetic algae. As a result, they lost their ability to sting.

Uh oh, so does it mean they are sting less jellyfish?? Yes, they are!! You don’t have to worry to get rashes from touching the jellyfish!

During the day the jellyfish follow the cycle of the sun. Normally the jellyfish head toward the surface to harness the sun's energy when the sun bright over the lake. The lake is a fragile ecosystem. Visitors are allowed to swim with the jellyfish but it is recommended that you do not use fins and swim slowly and carefully as to not disturb the jellyfish.

It’s magical to swim, snorkeling and diving with millions of jellyfish around you! I was thrilled! I bet you will too :)

A country named P A L A U

2008-09-09T12:48:00.012+07:00

Left - Right : Malakal Port with Rock Islands in the background, KB Bridge aerial picture, Rock Islands seen from Malakal Tower

I believe most of you never know there is a country named Palau (in Palauan language called, “Belau” but officially Republic of Palau) in this whole earth. Located 800 kilometers from East Philippines, Palau is known as one of the most beautiful islands in Micronesia, and the world. Unfortunately, Palau is not as famous as Maldives, Tahiti, Fiji or other islands. However, it is still a recommended amazing tourism destination for beach and ocean lovers. Most of tourists come to Palau are divers because Palau is a Diving paradise for Diving freaks!

What attracts people to come to Palau is the Rock Islands. As it is called, Rock Islands are collection of rounded coral islands raised up from the reef that seems to float above the surface of the water. Most of them are topped with vegetation which makes them look like mushroom. Some of them are small, but many of them are large and have beautiful sandy white beaches decorated with water lily flowers to rest and relax even for overnight stay. The famous beaches around the islands are Ngermeaus Island, Fantasy Island, Ngemelis Island and Ulong Island. An island hopping trip through the islands is extraordinary!

Diving, Snorkeling, Fishing, Island Hoping, Beaching are the main things you can do around Rock Islands. I will share you more information about it in my next entries.

Wondering why I could end up living in this country? Work brought me here. At first I thought it would be a disaster but I was totally wrong. It was a blessing to live in this tiny island :) Hoping to go back there again someday...

Left - Right: Eleven islands, Rock Islands aerial picture, Ngemelis Island at dawn

Palawan, Philippines

2008-09-08T18:30:00.026+07:00

Rock Islands and beaches surround Palawan

Palawan is one of famous tourism destinations in Philippines. This place is well-known for its beautiful nature which means amazing white beach, crystal clear water, spectacular rock islands and remarkable underwater world.

I was blessed to be there for freaking 10 days with my classmates to do school assignment for helping the community by building websites for the local governments and entrepreneurs.

To accomplish this project, what we mainly did in Palawan were island hopping, snorkeling, hiking, trekking, caving, relaxing in the natural hotspring, camping out….
Wait a minute.. Did I say helping the community? Seemed we were having fun instead of helping the community. Haha! Yeah, we could not resist for not having fun in one of the most beautiful islands in Philippines. So, we were trying to combine both. Work hard, play harder! LoL!

We departed from Silang, Cavite and took a bus to Manila. Excitedly, we jumped in to Superferry that would bring us to Palawan. The ferry has many bunk beds which allowed us to sleep during the trip since it took the whole night to get there. It was early morning when we arrived in Coron, Palawan. As soon as we jumped out of the ferry, we took tricycle to go to the resort which will cater us for 10 days.

As soon as we finished unpacking and cleaning up, we hit the ocean because we were so eager to start doing our work (well, that’s not true..haha!) That day we went island hopping to the small different beaches nearby. On the way to these beaches, we could see the line of hills which form a GIANT SLEEPING BEAUTY.

Clockwise : Rocky climbing to Barracuda Lake, Barracuda Lake, Kayangan Lake, Great Sunset, Marquinit Hot Spring, The Group

On the way back to our resort, we stopped by at MARQUINIT HOT SPRING. Back then the entrance fee was only 20 pesos. There was a big pool in the middle and a small pool attached to it. People say the small pool is hotter, but they are actually the same temperature. What is the approximate temperature? I don’t know but its H-O-T! We normally dipped in our body here and relaxing or make a massage line :) It was always hard to leave this place because it was just too good to soak our bodies there. Best time to visit this place is in the evenings because if you come in the morning, you may burn your skin there. Haha..

The next day we went trekking to the indigenous TAGBANUA VILLAGE. It took hours for us to go from one end to another end. However, it was such an expedition. We got to see and experience loads of things. Passing by the native houses, the native people and felt their hospitality. Saw a pig that look like and acted like a dog or a dog that look like and acted like a pig? Amazed to find in this remote area they have a nice cemented basketball court!!! Jeez, it really shows how Filipino love basketball to the max! Passing through thick mangrove jungle and crossing the river which has a crocodile but no one got bitten :) Lucky us..

KAYANGAN LAKE and BARRACUDA LAKE were our next destinations. Great rock island views and crystal clear water will entertain your eyes in these lakes. The quite surrounding will definitely help you relaxing your mind. The water is fresh and cold which is good for swimming. Those lakes look similar. However, I love the challenge in Barracuda Lake because to get there, you had to climb steep and rocky mountains.

Clockwise: Dibutunai Island, Black Island, Black Island Wreck

We experienced camping out in different islands surround Palawan on the way to Culion Island for couple of days. We had camp fire to warm our bodies. We slept on the bumpy sand that cause muscle sore for days. We didn’t take shower with fresh water for couple of days. We always used emergency toilet which is big ocean water to pee and hole in the sand to poo (Hahaha!!) But all the troubles were worth it to enjoy great sunrise every morning, great sunset every evening, beautiful thousand stars in the sky every night, white sandy beach, crystal clear water and most of it was enjoying the friendship we have.

The most memorable one for me was when we camped out in DIBUTUNAI ISLAND. It was because we were able to spend Sabbath in this island. It was great to spend time with God in the middle of his beautiful creation. After we finished our Sabbath service, we headed to BLACK ISLAND. There is a hidden cave inside this island where you could explore.

After long journey we finally made our way to CULION ISLAND. Long time ago this place was known as the ISLAND OF LIVING DEATH because this island is one of the oldest leper colonies in the world. People were still afraid to visit this place which is ironic because this island is very beautiful. We visited the Culion Fort and Church. The church itself is very beautiful and well constructed. The fort has old canons and overlooks remarkable ocean view. We walked around the city and visited Culion Sanitarium and Museum. It was sad to visit this place because we got to see the general idea of the “colony” from pictures, news clippings, coins and human rattan to transport the patients. It was just so sad.

That was the end of our journey in Palawan because the next day we headed back to Manila. You must be wondering what happened to our community project, right? Well, we worked our asses off days and nights after the trip and built 4 websites for 2 local entrepreneurs and 2 local governments in Coron and Culion.

Clockwise: Culion church inside, Culion church outside, Culion fort

Boracay, Philippines

2008-09-04T18:28:00.014+07:00

Randy and I learned our lessons! So this time, we did our homework :) We did a lot of researches about Boracay Island for about a month before our departure date. We flew from Manila to Kalibo with Cebu Pacific and took a bus to go to Caticlan. It took us 2 hours to reach Caticlan, but it was a jolly ride. The view is amazing because we could see the ocean on one side and the rice paddies on the other side. After we arrived in Caticlan peer, a guy from 3-5-7 Boracay Resort picked us up and helped loading our bags to the boat. Another 20 minutes to reach the destination and finally we were on White Beach of Boracay!

SNORKELING
Our first stop to snorkel was Crocodile Island. It was so pretty and the fishes were very friendly. Despite of the strong current, we were so happy being in the water! We found NEMO, Lobster, soft corals and we fed different kind of fishes! In this spot, you could fee the fishes easily.

The next stop was Crystal Cove. We had to hike and walked down through a steep stairs also crawled through a tunnel to be able to snorkel there. It was worth doing because the water was as clear as crystal and warm and no current! Randy and I jumped into the water and started to explore the underwater view. It was great until I saw a SEA SNAKE!! I was scared to death and started swimming away and left Randy all alone and freaked out. Haha. Both of us almost got heart attack! :D

DIVING
There are many dive shops on the island but we decide to dive with Calypso Diving Resort. I went to Balihay wall with Jade, the dive guide and Masa, a Japanese guy. It was a good dive. I saw a baby stingray, lion fishes and pigmy horse and sea snake! (not again...:D) At noon we went back to Calypso because Randy was going to take a Discover Scuba Diving class. He was very nervous since he doesn't know how to swim but as soon as he suited up, put on his diving gear and jumped into the water he was excited! It took an hour for him in the swimming pool to learn basic knowldege of diving. That afternoon we had to dive in different dive spots since Randy is not certified yet. My dive at Fridays Rock was awesome! We dove with school of bat fishes around us, I got to see different nudibranchs, 3 kinds of puffers and a FROG FISH! Randy enjoyed his diving as well. He found NEMO! The funny thing that Randy told me was his instructor had to drag him around :D

SUNSET - SAIL BOAT
This is the activity that we enjoyed the most while we were there. We enjoyed the sunset on a sailboat that brought us around Boracay Island. Very romantic and relaxing. But, always get ready to get wet...

NIGHT LIVE
Boracay is so alive at night! There are so many choices of food and places to eat on the beach and you could enjoyed live music too! We ate at Hobbit House, pretty unique experience. Buffet is very cheap and the food are great, mostly cost less than Php300. Shopping still can be done at the D Mall Boracay. It's a nice complex to hang out and sightseeing. Challenge yourself to try Wall Climbing in that area!

Beside enjoying the nature, we learned that sometimes we need to step out from our comfort zone to try new things. I'm very proud of Randy to try scuba diving eventhough he doesn't know how to swim and really enjoyed it! We really enjoyed our time in Boracay and wished it didn't come to an end :) We got back to Manila and unpacked our dirty cloths, exhausted but the memories stay in our minds forever.

Mount Batulao, Philippines

2008-09-04T14:11:00.017+07:00

Mount Batulao is located in Nasugbu, Batangas which is 1,5 hours from Silang, Cavite. One of famous mountains for mount climbers in Philippines. It was Mr. Dunder’s idea to go there for HIKING. I was really excited about going since it would be my first experience hiking in Philippines.

We rode a jeepney to reach the foothill and continued walking and hiking for hours like there is no ending. It was really tough because I was totally out of shape and the sun was killing me!!

After walking and hiking like For-EVER we finally could see (..only see) the top of the mountain. Then Mr. Dunder challenged us if we want to hike to reach the top. Some of us decided to give it a try, some was a bit hesitate and some were crying (haha!). It was totally hard for amateur people like us to do this and it was acceptable to cry at that moment :) But I did not.. I was strong like BULL!

After a long brainwashing process, all of us decided to go up. Jeezz, it was harder than before and I almost passed out suffering from the heat and dehydration. Unfortunately, me and the group made it!!

Euforia!! Such an achievement!! Everyone suddenly forgot about what they had been gone through. What I could heard was people were “ooohhhh-ing and aaaahhh-ing”.. admiring the beauty of the nature. An awesome view of green pasture and hills were entertaining our eyes as fas as we could see.

Unbelievably remarkable. I thank God for the beautiful nature he gives us to enjoy..

Puerto Galera at a glance

2008-09-04T12:35:00.015+07:00

Found these old pictures when I was in Puerto Galera with friends couple of years ago :) Remind me of the good old and crazy days. Do not focus on what we do on these pictures or else you got really frustruated. Haha. Focus on the beautiful nature people! The hills, waterfall and crystal clear water. Enjoy :)

Puerto Galera, Philippines

2008-09-04T10:50:00.008+07:00

White beach and Sabang in Puerto Galera are my regular getaway destinations since they are close to Silang, Cavite the place where I lived. These two places have nice white sandy beach, crystal clear water and great ambience to loosen up all the stress I have from work and study too much. What I normally do there is snorkeling and scuba diving. The underwater world is awesome. Below is a piece of story about my experience in Sabang, Philippines with my best travel buddy in the whole world, Randy.

Randy who is famous for being "Mr. Planner" decided to be spontaneous and came up with the idea of going scuba diving to Puerto Galera with only a day preparation. We only did a little research on where to stay and made a phone call to Action Diver Dive Shop only a night before we went.

I did all the packing on Friday morning and at noon we started our journey. It took about 1,5 hours to go to Batangas peer by van. We caught up in the heavy traffic that afternoon and almost missed the boat to Puerto Galera. We had a great boat ride to Puerto Galera. We saw school of Dolphins and they jumped in the air so many times. It was really neat.

Once the boat stopped in Puerto Galera, we were confused. We didn’t know that Puerto Galera has several beaches and we had no idea that the place where we would stay located on which island. (I realized that doing research is important when you are traveling in a new place).

So, I told Randy not to worry because the place where would stay is located on White Beach island (eventhough I wasn’t sure either!). We took a tricycle and asked the driver to bring us to White Beach. It was a long trip and when we arrived, we only found out that we went to the wrong beach! We supposed to go to Sabang! It was already dark and I was frustruated and upset with myself. But, there was no choice, we had to go back to Sabang.

The trip to Sabang was longer, bumpier and scarier! Randy was kinda making fun of me and made some comments about being spontaneous (jeezz) Once we arrived on Sabang the torture continued on. To reach Portofino, the place where we would stay, we had to walk like 10K! Walking on the sand and carried my diving gears was a real pain in the ass. Could any trips be more tormenting than this???

The next day we went to Action Diver Dive Shop to check the diving schedule and I decided to dive at noon. I was kinda nervous because this would be the first time I dove without Keith. But it turned out to be the bestest one! I saw a green turtle and different kind of anemones! It was totally different underwater view from Palau since Philippines is famous for its macros. My second dive was interesting because it was a drift-dive and the current was so strong, but I had a chance to saw different kind of nudibranchs. My third dive was in Sabang wreck. When we descend, we were welcomed by school of batfish. On the wreck, I saw 3 different FROG FISH, snake eel and couple of Scorpion fishes :)

Randy and I had a blast in Sabang! We enjoyed the torture to got there (haha), the sunset, the stars, the white sandy beach, the great underwater world, or just simply relaxing. We went back to Sabang a couple of times after and never got lost again. Haha.. we learned our lesson :)

Philippines - Where it all started

2008-09-03T14:49:00.010+07:00

I was freaked out when my parents decided to send me to Philippine to continue my study. Part of me was excited that I would study overseas, but the other part of me was totally scared to death!

The decision was against my will, but finally in March 2002 I flew to Philippine. Little did I know this was a big step I have ever made that opened window of opportunities in my life.

Since English is not my first language, I had to take an English class before I continue my MBA program. It was freaking hard! 2 months program was like a hell torture. Can you imagine that I had to memorize 150 new vocabularies every week? Listening and reading session every afternoon and not to mention the composition homework every day! Phew, I’m glad I survived!

AIIAS stands for Adventist International Institute of Advanced Studies. It is an International School which located in Silang, Philippines owned by Adventist worldwide organization. I had a blast being a student there. I met many friends across nations and countries who helped me to broaden the way I think.

One of my teachers, Mr. Dunder was the one who introduced me to the world of traveling and photography. Normally every term ends, he would took us to new places for beaching, trekking, island hopping and snorkeling. It was fun and addictive. I followed his footprints. I never stopped traveling since then.

Introduction...

2008-09-03T10:14:00.005+07:00

I’m just a poor traveler girl who has a big dream about traveling. Backpackings, fly with low cost airline services, stay in cheap hostel, sleep at the airport, shopping and bargaining at the flea market, ride a motorbike, cramped in the van and ride a bus are my main agenda when I travel.

It started when my parents sent me to Philippine to continue my study. Then, my work brought me to Palau - a small paradise in the middle of Pacific Ocean. The passion stays in my heart since then.

I would love to share my traveling experience in this blog even though I haven’t been to many countries yet. Besides, I would give some recommendation about places to go and places to stay base on my experience :)

This blog is dedicated to those of YOU who have the same passion like me. Traveling.