Indonesia, Truly Asia; You ROCK!

December 2008 was a year I'd never forget; that was the time I travelled the most in my life! 1st to MNC, then to Bali on the next day, then to the Singapore Youth Camp the next day, then rushed back to Kuching for Christmas, then flew to Jakarta & drove to Bandung and then flew back. Phew...it was quite a hectic month, however I really enjoyed it though :@) The Jakarta trip was somehow a sudden decision. I have never thought one day I'd land in this land. Many people would have negative views about Indonesia in particular Jakarta. Some say it's worse than K.L, etc. Well, to my surprise, it was quite a different experience to me. The whole trip though was very short, was a very pleasant one. from the moment I landed in the airport, till I reached Bandung, I just love it! Thanks to George, Greg & in particular their parents for their 1st class hospitality. I did witnesss the rich and the poor; how gigantic some of the houses are and how tiny & run down the shacks are.

See the difference?




Found this house amusing-FULLY protected-in another word, it's like beng jailed!


This is the 1st mall that I went to. It's called ITC. What do they have? Tonnes of CLOTHES!!! It's SO scary...VERY scary!



Their very own 'Starbucks' called Bagawan Coffee-taste great!


One amazing thing about Jakarta; you have learn how to park your car illegally legally and NEVER pull the hand brake. Due to the limitation of parking space, they have to park their vehicles, blocking one another and if you are blocked, you have to laern how to PUSH the car to give way to your car... interesting huh?!

Well, I was ready to accept the fact that the traffic was bad. Well, it was indeed THAT bad. We drove from Jakarta to Bandung for 1.5 hrs and guess how long did we take to get back in the evening? 4+ hours! The whole stretch of the highway was packed with cars. You gotta be well trained to 'cut' here and there, otherwise you might not be able to get home.

A typical Jakarta street. While we were on the way to shop, there was a HUGE fire taking some houses down!

Nice mall hey!


Amused by the metal bambo design.

You will never know what this is; typre pump!


Awwww.... so sweet... George says his brother is so 'manja'...

Hey, they have 'Tut-tut' too. I think they cal it 'Bazai' here. On the right, this is George & Greg's old school.


Cute gas tank!


Tofu is a simple food but this is really really nice!
Even the horsey love to have blonde hair?

One tip for those who love shopping (for those who dislike shopping too). You gotta love the shopping scenarios in Indonesia, in particularly Bandung. O man, there were SO many factory outlets which offer GREAT stuff...GREAT stuff...GREAT stuff... man, even at this moment of writing, I still can feel the urge to shop more!!! Man, I've made a promise to myself that I'd not buy anything else in Kuching anymore, unless I really have to! I tried the local Sudanese food and man, they are the BEST that I've ever tasted!!! YUMMmmmMMMmmmMMmmmmMMmmmmmmmYYYYYYYYYYY!!!! Arghhhhh.... man! You can't miss all the Great Food there! It was just simply AWESOME!

This is Divine!

One of the most rewarding trip to Jakarta/Bandung was the 'Puncak'. It is a site for a dead volcano. Though it was declared as dead, the steam / smoke still very much visible from the top of the mountain. This is the 2nd volcano that I've seen, after the 1st one in Bali. The view was Awesome! You gotta to be there to see it. Can't tell much from the pictures though. One tip: DO NOT go there too late! When we were on our way down at about 1pm, the Q was literally few kilometres long!!! I've never seen such a LONG LONG Q in my whole life!

Stalls being set up along the way, they are quite interestingly interesting!




Hey, that was REALLY close!


Even Uncle could't resist the temptation to try jumping-it was fun!

Very skillfull people!


This horsey reminded me of Joshua in Bali.
Don't you think the Ninja is cute?


Auntie's Tart Susu is the best man!

Guess what are these?


Breakfast in the car!

Another interesting place before reaching the 'Puncak' was this place called Lembang. The weather is cool there and they could plant strawberry there! You gotta try the Fried Tofu there! It's SO simple yet it's SO nice... oh mannnn... you guys MUST try!

I was shivering; It was quite windy & cold!

Lunch after 'Puncak' & before SHOPPING!

Avocado ice blended...heaven!


Sudanese food-Ichiban!






Moved on to another spot for more shopping!


I think Igloo copied this!


Yummy pudding; I dislike the choc chips though...



Uncle can be naughty too!


Nice open-concept of the washroom!




I never know little fish could be used to make money; this is called Foot Therapy-letting your feet to be 'eaten' by the fish to clear whatever that is toxic in you. Eww...


Nice cafe outside the mall.


I thought this was interesting; a small coffee kiosk with cute chairs.


Time to sleep, after a long day!


The 2 brothers love to 'bully' one another; the expression of their love.

My final day spent at a place called Anchol. It's another version of the 'Wordly-worldly' stuff; Sea World, Movie World, etc etc. Day time was a little miserable for me, since I dislike to be exposed to the sun. Hey, we hardly find any shades!

Hey, Welcome to Lala land!

Interesting structure

Interesting semi-circle foot pier linking from one side to the other.





Love the structure of the cafe; must be really nice in the evening.



The biggest whatever thingy that you call this!




Hey, I drove!!!


This is HUGE! Looks like Heng Wei?


Ahem...George, this looks familar, don't you think so?


A brother told me to try the 'Wendy's' burger. I was TOO full to try that HUGE burger. Instead, I got myself Smoothies...


Just before I flew, we met up with George's friends. They are very friendly people.

Indonesia, truly Asia? I can't disagree more man... love it love it love it!

View more pictures here:
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