Unplanned trip is always second to none!

Have you ever felt so lucky like when u want something so bad and suddenly it comes to you right away? I have! So i was staying at my friend's boarding house in Solo for a week cos i desperately want to explore some places before i went home, then long story short, suddenly one of my friends, Ika, who came from Pare asked me if my friend and I wanna join her to Magelang cos she'd be accompanying her bf for a project and she was afraid that she might be bored since she was alone. She told us by the afternoon, and at the night she picked us up already. So it was totally 100 percent unprepared. Haha!

We had no idea where will we be going at the time. After took 3 hours journey from Solo, we finally reached Phuntuk Setumbu Borobudur by 3:00 am. It was still very early we then decided to have breakfast first. While sitting around a food stall, we were enjoyed telling jokes with the old man who lived there.

The gate was opened an hour later. We just followed Ika's bf who brought cool cameras even drone everywhere. I was wowed and entertained by what he did cos it's the first time i saw those kind of stuffs, hahaha. He made a kind of time-lapse video, focusing and zooming out Borobudur Temple from Phuntuk Setumbu, which was quite far, but he got a full frame of it. His camera was unbelievably awesome. Hahahaha.

see that small spot that's highlighted? It's Borobudur Temple!

me beside the-unbelievable-camera i was talking about haha

All of us had been amused by the sunrise and everyone else started to take bunch of selfies. Most of the visitors are foreigners, i could hear Spanish, Mandarin, even French babbling around (i assume they were amazed by Indonesia) i wish i had guts to start the conversation with them directly. They looked nice, tho.

It took a while to record the video, once it finished we were strolling around Borobudur and demolished another breakfast that morning. He he he. Time was kicking fast as i realised it was almost afternoon already when we were off to Borobudur Temple. Well, i've been there before, i'd just sit with Pepi down the trees, that's what my thought said. Ika's bf and his friend had a lil bit discussion with the guard before we're gone inside (they didn't know that it's not allowed to fly a drone over the Borobudur Temple) so they were going back to the car, and we, the girls went in first.

Yogyakarta seriously has the hottest weather ever. I couldn't help but hide down the trees. I wasn't too excited to walk around that noon, i literally just sat down for like umm.. 2 hours, maybe? i was freaked out that i might get sunburn. hahaha. We, the-girls just patiently waited for Ika's bf and his friend came back.

That wasn't it all. I thought we would be going back to Solo after that, but as we got onto the car, Ika's bf said we'll be going to Kukup Beach to test his drone since they couldn't shot anything in Borobudur. So we did what the master said. hahaha

We didn't do much on the beach, Ika and her boyfriend were playing, Pepi was busy with her phone, and i was just walking around alone to take some pictures.

That wasn't the first time i visited Yogyakarta but the place is still the same, it hasn't even changed a bit. It's still beautiful, and still be the most romantic city i've ever been to. All the bad memories i had had just faded away and i'm grateful for that. So yeah, that was my unplanned trip to Yogyakarta. I''l definitely go there again sometime!

See ya around!
Love, D x

Read more

It was a lovely Monday at Umbul Sidomukti, Susan Spa & Resort Semarang

It has been a dream of mine to travel more since i had a really hard time in my life a year ago. I mean, traveling is just one of good therapies that makes your life couldn't get any better. You'll be more grateful when you spot a different sightseeing and you feel so small, you feel like you are nothing compared to what you've seen, to realize that world is much bigger than you thought. From that moment I always give myself time to travel or road trip at least going somewhere i've never been to. No matter if it's just playing around in a town, the only thing to do is pack my things up and get lost :))

So, this time i'm gonna tell you about my short trip last February to Semarang with my friend. Our first destination was Umbul Sidomukti. Have you ever been to this place? if you're into nature, you'll definitely love this one.

This highland with a magnificent scenery is located in Bandungan, Semarang, Central Java. As soon as i arrived here i kept looking at dragonflies that flew around the trees. It was bloody frightening for me, cos insects aren't my best-friend whatsoever (plus, i hate living things that can fly!) but it was also peaceful at the same time.

fresh air,

sunshine,

beautiful view,

a good companion.

These kind of things are to die for.

can you see those little creatures flying around?

After taking some pictures and selfies we were excited to stay there a lil bit longer, however it was so crowded and the restaurant was full booked, plus, we hadn't reserved yet. For that reason, we headed to Susan Spa & Resort straightway.

Fyi, this pretty building is normally used as a place for a wedding party or pre-wedding photo session, as you can see there's an aisle inside the white-glass building and some chairs for the guests. i've searched how it's gonna be look like for a wedding venue and i got this :

IT IS FREAKING BEAUTIFUL

ISN'T IT?

Don't you see those bunch of pink flowers and lights........ 

I just can't 😭

If you're wondering why I went to that place, no, i didn't book anything for any special "event", or had a special photo session, i was there just for walking around and taking selfie hahaha.

beside providing a wedding venue, Susan Spa and Resort is just like a tourism place. We paid about 25K per-person I guess.. I don't remember exactly but it wasn't more than 50K and it was holiday so it'd be cheaper if you go there on weekdays. After we were full and satisfied with the photos, we directly went to the hotel.

On the next day, my friend and I had a brunch at Pesta Keboen Restaurant. Uhm.. this restaurant is a little bit spooky hahaha but my friend said since the structure of the building and the properties are from decades ago so that's why it's very classy and unique (and creepy) :p

and the menu is written like the old Indonesian writings e.g:

"Restoran Pesta Keboen Bernoeansa Semarang Tempoe Doeloe Menjandjiken Menoe Masakan Eropah dan Djawa"

(it took me a few minutes to understand what it was about, no joke! hahahaha)

If you wanna come to Pesta Keboen Restaurant, it's located in Jl. Veteran 29. The foods price start from 20-80K and for the drinks start from 10-60K :)

As usual i'll give you guys some tips :

1. Wear proper clothes. Umbul Sidomukti is a highland and it's a lil bit windy up there, if you don't wanna catch a cold at least bring your sweater.
2. It's better to use automatic car. The road is very high and hard and it's sooooo far, i forgot how many hours i've spent to sit quietly and sleep and eat and then sleep again. (I went from Solo, by the way.)
3. Don't go on holidays. Our mistake at the time was we didn't realize that it was holiday, so it's very crowded and we felt uncomfortable in the end.
4. Bring your action camera. Because the view is very breathtaking you have to capture all of them!
5. Be careful. Semarang is a busy city, just like Jakarta, turn your GPS or Waze on, so you don't get lost.


So that's all about my trip in Semarang, don't forget to travel more!
Love, D

Read more

The best 6 months in my life so far! (Pare, Kediri)

Hiiiiiii guys i am finally back blogging! It's been a long time since i published my last post -- it was about a year ago i guess haha. I'll tell you what kind of place that makes me didn't wanna go home for months. Yes yes, it is Pare, Kediri or people usually called it Kampung Inggris (there are so many courses in Pare not english only tho.. we should've called it Kampung Bahasa instead!).

Well.. let me start by telling you guys what was my purpose came to Pare back then, the first one is not to improve my language, it's just because i wanted to leave home so bad as i was so bored and desperately need more traveling, besides, my parents didn't allow me to work whatsoever before i apply for my master degree next year. Pare was the best choice at the time so i could leave home by saying that i wanted to improve my english.

So I went there on August 2015 and i chose Mr Bob English Club as my course (click to get to know about them cause they are AMAZING!). My first impression was beyond my expectation, because i really thought that Kampung Inggris is just like a small town, nothing's there, but the reality was totally different. It wasn't as worse as i expected. Once i arrived in Pare, i registered myself and went to the camp immediately, also rent a bicycle for my daily vehicle. I took one month ++ package which means i had to wake up earlier than usual to follow their programs in camp. It was difficult at the first time cos in home i used to stay up and sleep pretty late but day by day i was getting used to it. I love being there surprisingly except to deal with the weather cause it burns everyone's skin. lol

I had been staying in Pare for 6 months, actually when i was a member for 2 weeks, i applied to be a tutor camp, then interviewed by the HOD and i passed the test. after i finished my lesson (cos i took 1 month package) i directly became a tutor camp. Being a tutor wasn't like a 100% teacher, you have to teach and be their friends at once. It was quite hard at first, cause i'm a passive-type-of-girl that i don't usually start the conversation with people for the first time i meet with. Despite of the fact that when i was in college i often joined some kind of organisations, I still found it hard yet I learned so much from it though. I get to know so many kind of cultures with different people whom i've never met before, from people who lived in a big city until the ones who lived in the city outskirts, i had to get along with them (who had different characteristics and habits) in order to be a good friend. it was exciting and challenging, i would say. But that was exactly what i wanted, try new things and leave my comfort zone. At the beginning, i positively said to the others that i'd stay in Pare until December, which means it will only take 3 months to stay there. But i was way too in love with Pare as I ended up staying there until the end of February hahaha.

My friends and I when we were a member, i looked happy as you can tell haha

Me and my best girls at the most famous place in Pare called "Tansu"

My very first family as a "mom"

My boys! they were willing to let their foreheads written by me lmao

Why is Pare interesting?

Everything is cheap.

You can have your meal by under 10K, it includes vegetables, chicken, rice and drink, i swear! snacks  and juices are also cheaper than in Jakarta (of course) haha. To rent bicycles, you just have to pay for around 80-150K per month. But if you're lucky you can find the one that costs only 60K. Also, if you want to travel around with your friends on weekend, you can rent motorcycle for 24hrs and it costs around 70-100K, depends on the rental. Or even car, 300-350K for 24hrs. Pretty cool, isn't it.

It's a place where you can travel to many places.

For me, Pare is quite near from everywhere like Malang, Blitar, Solo, Yogyakarta, Bali, Surabaya, Jepara (Karimun Jawa), etc. So it's easiest for you to travel around. Do not have any friends to go with? Travel by yourself like what i did!

You'll be surrounded by new friends from different cities and cultures.

It will be very interesting for you to meet new people and be with them for quite some time. You'll be adapted with their habits or even get to be their best-friend. (and you may be able to visit them to their hometowns!)

Not only english, but there are other languages you can learn in Pare.

Japan, Mandarin, Deutsch, Arab, etc. You can learn it with affordable price.

You might bump into "someone".

So many friends of mine get boyfriend or girlfriend there, don't u wanna try? hahahaha.

Those are seriously based on my experiences and i must tell you that I hadn't got friends in Pare but family. I've been home for almost a month now but i strangely miss those circumstances where i was really stressed out because the things didn't run well and i received so much love from my second family. You guys have no idea that i left some parts of my heart, there :)

Until we meet again, Pare! ❤️

Read more

Dolphin Island, Kepulauan Seribu

*This actually has been saved to my draft since last year but i forgot to publish it tbh*
So my friend Betsea impulsively asked me to join on her trip with some of her best friends, it was totally unprepared (like usual) cause i had to accompany my dad to Singapore for his cardiac surgery two weeks before the trip. but i finally joined them, cause the surgery went well and thank god my dad is okay now (he even went shopping the next day after the surgery lol).

our plan was go to Pulau Sepa at first, but turned out we couldn't build tents right there so we moved to Pulau Dolphin instead. dari mulai berangkat sebenernya udah banyak kendala, ya biasalah namanya juga liburan niat gak niat. pas berangkat aja udah ngaret, janjian di stasiun Lenteng Agung jam setengah 5, terus akhirnya masuk jam 5 lewat, terus didalem nunggu temennya Betsea lagi, ujung-ujungnya naik kereta jam setengah 6-an -_-

kalo diurutin, ceritanya begini :

1. Kita berangkat dari Stasiun Lenteng Agung Depok, menuju ke Stasiun Jakarta Kota.
2. Sampai di Stasiun Jakarta Kota, kita sewa angkot ke Muara Angke. (asli bayangan gue sampe Jakarta Kota tinggal nyebrang ke pelabuhan Muara Angke taunya naik angkot terus mayan lagi HAHAHAHA)
3. Once we arrived di pelabuhan Muara Angke, langsung beli tiket dan itu ramenya lebih-lebih dari antrian H&M kalo lagi sale. asli parah rame banget, karna udah kesiangan juga kita nyampenya. dari yang kece sampe yang udah lepek semua jenis manusia ada disitu ngedablek. shock lah gue.
4. Akhirnya naek deh tuh kapal gitu, lumayan gede. nah ini temen-temen gue pada sok IDE naik kapal duduknya diluar yang emang ga ada atapnya gitu. YA BELUM MANTAI AJA UDAH GOSONG DONG.
5. Dari Muara Angke tujuan kita yaitu ke Pulau Harapan. Perjalanan kurang lebih 3 jam. Tapi kapalnya mogok, terus ngaret lagi lama.
6. Sampe Pulau Harapan naik perahu lagi tapi yang agak kecil. nah terus yaudah tuh masalah nongol lagi. semua plan gagal, kapal udah pada di booking orang, kita gak kedapetan, sekalinya dapet itupun join sama 2 cewek yang liburan berduaan aja, terus nunggunya lama banget, DAN DAPETNYA KAPAL NELAYAN, yang emang kecil dan keliatan rapuh gitu. Terus setelah ngobrol sama si akangnya, ternyata Pulau Sepa gak bisa pasang tenda. Harus sewa cottage. Yaudah, bye.
7. Si akangnya nyaranin ke Pulau Dolphin, awalnya sempet nyoba ke Pulau apa gitu gue lupa cuma ternyata harus bayar kalo mau pasang tenda dan itu mahal banget kaya hampir 400k ya mending sewa cottage sekalian kan mikirnya. Yaudah, bye lagi.
8. Itu udah hampir jam setengah 5an akhirnya langsung caw ke Pulau Dolphin. Sampe sana rame banget. Kotor. Sedih.
9. Tapi airnya jernih banget, yang kotor itu di pulau-nya aja, bekas orang yang pada ngecamp disitu dan buang sampah sembarangan. >> ber-api api kesel mampus.
10. Bete kan.
11. Nyari lahan, terus pasang tenda, ganti baju, beberes.
12. Gak lama orang-orang pada pergi, ternyata ramenya cuma sama yang pada singgah aja. baru deh disitu betenya ilang, udah mulai woles liatin sunset di pulau yang bisa dibilang agak private. masih rame, cuma gak crowded banget masih bisa keitung berapa orang.

👆🏻diatas kapal, mataharinya ada banyak, langsung item seketika

muka senggol bacok :>

kapal nelayan that's-not-fancy-at-all hahaha

Sepa Island

the girls's lovely tent

After all was done, we (the girls) were busy taking some selfies, indeed. after struggling on the boat finally we just had to wait up for the beautiful sunset disappear while having a quality chit chat. 

Malemnya,

ternyata,

panas banget.

So instead of sleeping inside the tent, all of us had come to a decision to sleep outside. itupun masih kepanasan. asli, liburan paling nyiksa sepanjang 2015 sih ya gue nobatkan ke Dolphin ini. hahaha. but thankfully, semua bisa tidur dan gak ada yang aneh-aneh.

Then the next morning i was shocked that i've woken up to this beaut view and the clearest sea water ever!

those pictures are original i don't even retouch the color at all. bagus banget kan, bayangin aja lo bangun pagi pagi terus yang diliat beginian, depan kamar lo. right in front of your eyes, matahari nongol terus kedengeran suara desiran pantai, sama burung-burung yang berisik kelaperan. kebayang ga? harus bayangin! baaaaguuuuuuussssssss parah. not trying to be overrated, tapi emang beneran bagus kok T_T (gue udah 3x bilang bagus, tandanya gue ga bohong hahaha)

Setelah puas foto-foto, karena udah kelaperan dan ikan kita busuk (so smart i know) akhirnya jam 9an kurang kapal udah dateng, then we straightly went home. Rutenya sama aja, dan naik kereta lagi ahehehe

Ok so i have some tips for you guys :

1. Prepare. Kalo yang mau nenda a.k.a nginep gratis ga di cottage, preparenya harus bener-bener ya. mulai dari prepare makanan, air (paling penting), kalo mau bakar ikan, ikannya jangan dimasukin tas, jadinya bau.

2. Search for the information first. Still linked to tips number 1, cari informasi kalo bisa dari jauh-jauh hari sebelum sampe sana. karna sewa kapal dadakan pas sampe itu susah banget, apalagi kalo kalian ga ada kenalan. gue sama temen temen gue buang waktu lama banget di tempat transit sebelum ke dolphin cuma nungguin abang nelayan.

3. Buy masks. Siapin masker banyak-banyak, pasang mulai dari kereta sampe Muara Angke. Debu dan bau-nya parah.

4. Remember simple stuffs. Tissue basah jangan lupa, payung juga deh asli panas banget, sama lotion nyamuk.

5. Snacks are your life. Beli cemilan banyak-banyak!

6. Bring fan portable. Kalo punya fan yang portable kecil gitu bawa deh.. lumayan banget, di kapal itu berguna karena lagi lagi >> PANASNYA AMPUN-AMPUNAN.

7. Tour Travel or Tour Guide? Kalo gamau ribet karena beli tiket ini itu, sewa angkot kapal dan segala macemnya, saran gue mendingan pake tour travel aja. banyak kok yang nawarin ke kepulauan seribu. tapi kalo berangkat sendiri kaya gue kemaren dan temen-temen gue, i guarantee you it'll be so much fun cos unpredictable things will always happen!

Good luck! xx

Read more