Tangkuban Perahu

Tangkuban = Terbalik
Perahu = Sampan

Tangkuban Perahu, its volcanic smoke billows like a overturned boat from far... I had told En. Arip earlier that we were going to Tengkuban Parahu, but I didn't mention what was going to be there, and neither did he Google about it before the Bandung trip. He thought it was going to be a place with a huge sampan, by the beach... Hehehehe....



The "Kawah Ratu", the main crater which is no longer active...






The ugly, pink horse... so sad to see this...


Forced to be photographed together by our hired ranger...


A short briefing about Tangkuban Perahu, and the route to its hot spring...


A mounted leopard... the victim of poisonous volcanic gases...


This poor guy, too... At the Information Centre prior to the hike down...


The staff was so nice! But nice in a cunning way, or "ada udang di sebalik batu"!


We walked through the jungle for almost 40 minutes...


Bumped into a handicraft stall in the middle of the jungle!


Beautiful, rite? But I got quite annoyed with the souvenir peddlers following me everywhere...


Left: the hardened lava from a previous eruption... We actually walked on this slippery track.


Finally, we reached the hot spring, after walking almost 40 minutes!


They said FREE foot massage...


Yes FREE massage! After this "special therapy", they will force u to buy their overly-expensive souveniers. We couldn't avoid it, as we were surrounded by 8 of them, with our camera and shoes in their hands. We had no options, and ended up spending 4 million RP for some stupid souvenirs! DAMN these pests!, ...

Sukajadi Hotel, Bandung

Out of ten points, I'll give this hotel a seven. Location wise? Not too bad... It took us only 15 minutes to walk to the most popular factory outlet in Bandung - Rumah Mode. It's about 20 minutes from their railway station by taxi.

What I like most about this hotel, are their helpful staff, its cosy environment and the best of all, their excellent laundry service! To me it's a highly recommended hotel, if u want to have a relaxing stay in Bandung. This hotel is what I would call a hidden treasure - a great place not known to many. You get peace, minus the usual holiday making crowd!


The view from my room...


Peacefully quiet...




The hotel facade...


It was 6 AM, and I took my morning walk...


There was a great restaurant just a few doors from Sukajadi - The Ampera restaurant. I really love their food, especially their pepes ikan masin, on the left in this pic. It was sooo marvelous!


The porridge (with soy bean fritters) at Sukajadi was nice, too. And Indonesian avocado is really cheap and huge in size!


Breakfast by the patio...


The hotel provides a real relaxing atmosphere during the night...


The hotel also sells souvenirs and antiques. And they were quite cheap!


The following day, we went to Tengkuban Perahu and its hot spring...

Bandung

Sorry for the slow updates... I'll be back on track by next week, Insya'Allah, and will be replying your comments! I am facing internet connectivity problem now, actually... I'll skip my Jakarta entry for now and will continue it later. For this update, let's go to Bandung!

I know many of u have been to Bandung. Me? This was my first time! We took a train from Jakarta to Bandung, and it cost us about RP100 000 on the Argo Gede, their executive coach, inclusive of light refreshment served onboard. What I must say is, the scenery enroute to Bandung was awsome!



The Gambir Station in Jakarta


Interior of the Argo Gede coach


The scenery...




To be continued!

Jakarta - Hari Pemilu

Hari Pemilu (Election Day) in Indonesia seems fair to all parties - Each party was allowed airtime on local television. It was fun to see their approach on TV!

Visiting Indonesia during their election period has been a great experience! I wish one day, we in Malaysia will also practise the same freedom - giving equal chances to all political parties to lobby on national TV.


Peaceful demonstrations could be seen everywhere...


Election cake!


Ni nak join Hari Pemilu gak ke?


Gigantic monument just by the MoNas entrance.


Part of Jalan Mohammad Husni Thamrin closed to traffic on Sunday morning to let pedestrians "rule" the day!


When else do I get the chance to stand right in the middle of one of Jakarta's busiest streets?


En. Arip at the MoNas...


Although the breakfast buffet in Sari Pan Pacific wasn't as good as the one at Le Meridien KL, I would still give them 4 out of 5 stars, since they took the trouble to serve halal food. No pork stuff was served in the dining hall... and the selection was great, too!


Nasi Goreng Gila... Food in Indonesia is cheap and comes in big varities! It's up to u to try these hawker food... Me? I didn't want to take the risk of trying them!


This hygienic and tidy-looking restaurant offers good food at a good price. In our case, I had tried almost every dish they put on my table, and the bill came up to about RM25 per person