December, 2011
Batam is the island on the border to Singapore. Many Indonesians visit it as a cheaper alternative rather than fly in through Changi airport which is really a dealmaker considering price. But is there more to it than that? Did I break the myth that there isn’t much more to Batam? I admit to say, no. Batam didn’t awe me, but I sure did enjoy the bits and pieces it offered. The city central was neat and roads were still decorated with trees. The food was a good adventure. And the famous ‘Kampung Vietnam’ located 5 bridges away, is a pleasant park.
Oh by the way, this was a family visit. I wonder if you remember my cousins face?
Activity
Coastarina. A quite park area for families to spend time together. Not much excitement though.
Nongsa Beach and Putri Island. One of the locals beach on the North East side of Batam which also is the access of Putri island. Not much to see.
Barelang Bridge is the locals hang out place. There are various street food and seafood restaurants around for you to taste.
Galang Island had a refugee camp for the Vietnamese that were looking for asylum. Now, the remains have become a park for a pleasant recreation. Entrance fee is IDR 5,000/person.
Eat
Gonggong is the seawater snail and is a local dish famous amongst the Batam people. A portion is IDR 300,000 at d'Sampan BBQ Center.
Fish soup Tarempa is soup with fillet fish. It has a subtle but good broth, worth of a good lunch. The restaurant also sells a few other items to munch on.
Barelang Seafood is a mid to high end restaurant located at the foot of the Barelang Bridge. A portion of crab, squid, veggies, and rice for 2 with Dragon Fruit juice cost IDR 300,000.
Barelang Bridge Food. There are various choices of food that you can pick around the bridge with very affordable prices.
Kopitiam is another name for coffee shop. The Harum Manis and Sudi Mampir shops located at Nagoya are good coffee costing only IDR 3,000 / cup.
Spend
Seken Singapore is where you get your second hand goods, obtained from Singapore. With a good eye for vintage and a little vintage, you can find treasures.
Getting Around
Ojegs are everywhere in Indonesia. You can use Ojeg to get to specific areas that aren't reachable by the public transportation.
Minibus roam the main streets of the city and surroundings. Take a minibus to your destination and pay IDR 3,000 / pax
Bus. This pilot project is providing an express transportation system compared to the mini busses.
Getting there
Planes head to Batam daily. Lion Air return tickets to Jakarta can cost IDR 1,300,000 / pax, or more.
Ferry is an option for those living in Malaysia and Singapore. Return tIckets to Singapore with Sindo Ferries cost about IDR 260,000 / pax, exclude port tax.
October 2011
From one of our nationalist songs, we learn that Sabang is the far west city of Indonesia. We’ve been taught this song since elementary school. But it was after I learned Geography, I knew that Sabang is located on an island called Weh. Only a few people would visit this island just to set foot on the KM 0 of Indonesia, but it’s a popular place amongst divers. It has various dive sites and so much to see. Doing 8 dives didn’t break my amusement towards this island. On the contrary, it built up my fondness to it. I SAW A SHARK! And little did any of my group know that this island is also beautiful, kind, and so laid back for travelers.
Activities
Diving
The main purpose of the trip is to dive. We dived with Rubiah Tirta Divers, one of the oldest and best dive center on the island.
Point Zero Indonesia
Weh Island has a monument that stands right at point 0 of Indonesia.
Eat
Food court of Sabang provides a wide range of cheap local dishes. My favorites were the octopus satay and the duck (in curry) rice.
Seaside restaurant (can’t remember the name) at the port provides fresh seafood of you liking.
Sleep
Stay at Santai Sumur Tiga Resort where you’ll get spectacular views and wonderful services. Rooms are IDR 230,000 / night for weekdays and IDR 275,000 / night on weekends, exclude breakfast.
Getting around
We rented a mini bus from Pak Asim that cost IDR 450,000 / day that includes fuel and Pak Asim as the driver.
Getting there
Take a plane ride to Banda Aceh. Garuda Indonesia promotional return tickets cost about IDR 1,800,000 / pax. Check out the links here for other airlines that fly to Banda Aceh.
From Banda Aceh, take the ferry from the Ulee Lheue port. You can take the slow 2 hour ferry for max IDR 85,000 / pax or the speed boat for 45 minutes that cost max IDR 85,000 / pax. Cheaper tickets depend on what class you take.
October, 2011
It had become the new identity of the town. The tsunami that happened on the 26th December 2004 had re-defined the city of Aceh and its surroundings. At a glance this city has risen from the dead. But, underneath the surface, there’s a big scar. No matter where you look and no matter whom you talk to, everything nudges the tragedy. It’s an understandable permanent scar much like a tattoo, one that will be visible and talked about. My journey this time was brief, but I still wanted to see what these Acehnese was made of. It resulted in laidback people that can accept a fate given to them and move-on.
By the way, some of this post might repeat the entry made by our friend Stania. So drop by her post here to see some information that I’ll leave out.
Activity
Graveyards are mass graves of the tsunami victims. They’re spread around the area built in to neat gardens.
Baiturrahman Mosque is the main mosque of the city. It’s a beautiful infrastructure and worth the visit.
Tsunami Museum was still undergoing completion during my visit. It contains footage, pictures, stories and some remains of the tragedy.
Lampu’uk Beach is a swimless beach not too far from the city. You can enjoy fresh seafood and coconuts beside the bay.
Eat
Rujak Aceh is the Indonesian fruit salad with palm sugar and peanuts in its sauce.
Ayam Tangkap is fried chicken fried with curry leaves. It’s tasty with that extra leafy flavor which makes it all good.
Spend your money to buy the local goods at a local store for snacks, coffee, handicrafts, and even mini ‘rencong’ (traditional machete). Stores are across the Bautirrahman mosque.
Getting Around
Take a ‘becak’ around town. ‘Becak’ prices depend on the distance of your journey. Don’t worry, it’s moved by a motorcycle so you don’t have to feel bad if you’re heavy or traveling a fair distance.
Rent a car to visit all the historical places in a day. The distances of some places are quite far, so public transport might take up a lot of your time, something that I didn’t have. Rahmatullah rentals provide cars of IDR 450,000 / day, exclude driver and fuel.
Getting there
Take a plane ride to Aceh from Jakarta. Garuda Indonesia promotional tickets were IDR 1,800,000 / pax which was purchased a few days after Lebaran day. Flights are daily.
Other airlines also provide services to Aceh. Links of airlines here.
Traveled on Nov 11 - 13, 2011
I admit that I can be very picky when it comes to choosing travel mates. I’m not so adventurous that way, sue me. But as I was surfing the net and found this weekend trip to Baduy Village, West Java, organized by strangers, I thought, “What the hell, I’m in!” How else could I have access to this secluded village, especially Baduy Dalam, the part with limited interaction to the modern world? So I went with my friend Diyan and 11 strangers who turned out to be a fun bunch, up and down the hill, sweating the most sweat in my whole life, conquering my wish to just quit and roll back down the hill. Ooh yeah!
HOW TO GET THERE
- From Jakarta to Baduy Luar: train to Rangkasbitung, minibus to Ciboleger village, and walk to Kanekes village.
- From Baduy Luar to Baduy Dalam: hike!
ACTIVITIES
- Baduy Luar: traditional crafts, sight seeing.
- Baduy Dalam: live like the locals, a.k.a. back to nature.
- Hiking.
IN BRIEF - SLEEP
At locals’ houses.
EAT
Whatever the locals can cook. And instant noodles.
SPEND
IDR 285,000 to IDR 400,000 for the whole 2N2D trip. Omigod, it’s less than USD 50!
October, 2011
Abud and I had two things in common. We can be in Yogyakarta a day earlier than Vira and we had to visit Taman Sari. Abud loves the Taman Sari complex. Maybe it’s his inner royal-wanting-concubines-self that is drawn to this place, maybe he was a concubine in his past life, who knows? Whatever it is, it’s great to have him as a semi-guide on this visit. Although located so close to the Keraton, oddly only a handful of people really talk about it, which was kinda weird because I found the complex to be interesting. Agreed, this is an underrated historical site. And it didn’t end there! We popped in a batik home industry, hung out at Malioboro street, and I drooled over charming princes on horseback. Oh Yogyakarta, can you stop teasing us with your endless list of things to do?
Activity
Taman Sari Water Castle is the royal bathing grounds of the first Sultan. Pools are great to dip in your feet.
Batik Workshop located on Ngasem area. You can do a workshop for IDR 50,000 / person to make 2 handkerchiefs.
Malioboro street again, there’s always something to see and do on this street, including watching the rehearsal of the royal wedding that coincidentally took place when we were there.
Sleep
Tiga Lima Homestay is a homestay that can accommodate long term stays with great facilities with a few affordable VIP class rooms. VIP room cost IDR 250,000 / night, breakfast not included.
The homestay is located around the Jl. Gejayan. More information, check out their website (link)
Eat
Gudeg Yu Jum, which serves the famous Gudeg of Yogyakarta. It’s located in the Wijilan area near the Keraton. A portion is about IDR 20,000, which includes the main dish and sweet ice tea.
Rumah Jejamuran is for the mushroom addicts. Mushrooms are heavily abused being cooked to so many ways. A good meal costs about IDR 30,000 / person. Detailed address at ‘eats’.
Semesta coffee shop is known as the hang out place for those who are both coffee drinkers and nondrinkers. It’s open 24 hours a day and serve cheap but good simple tasting coffee and snacks. It’s on Jl. Abu Bakar Ali no. 2.
Malioboro street is filled with street food. Take a pick and be ready with your diarrhea pills. Not saying it’s unsterile, just saying you have different bugs in your stomach than we do.
How to get there
Train. The Yogyakarta train station is well connected to the main cities of Java. There are day and night trains between towns with various schedule. I took the night train which cost IDR 300,000 / pax, departing at 5 pm from Jakarta and arriving at 2 am in JogjakartaYogyakarta.
Plane
A return flight from and to Jakarta cost IDR 450,000, purchased a few months in advance.
Getting around
Becak is an affordable humble public transportation choice that can take you around the main places of interests. Becak can be rented for the whole day or based on your destinations. Haggle is the best way to get the best price.
Bus Yogyakarta has now applied a bus route throughout the city. It also passes the Malioboro making stops along the road.
Other Trips
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