Sorry for the absence, I was busy "dating" my books and notes that I didn't have much time to blog...
Apart from exams, there was Eunice's wedding which I attended admist mugging for my papers (Pictures are with a friend, and it hasn't been uploaded/sent out yet thus far... :( ), and a night out with darling JodY, whom I have not seen in eons of close to 8 months!! It has been far too looonngg!! Am terribly happy for her that she's found Love, and looks really happy! Yayy to that! :)
What else have I been up to, you might ask?
:P
Well, I know this is a superbly random thing to say, but, everyone has gotta try travelling alone once in their lives!
One of the most exhilirating highlights to close off 2008 was me being absolutely random, and wanting to surprise Bestie Bernie for his birthday, which was a total flop, cos I do not know JKT very well obviously! In the end, had to ask him for hotel reservations and locations, and what nots...and me, obviously being very annoying by bugging him on a lot of information...
LOL~
Best bit?
I was in such a MAD rush to pack that I left his Bday pressies on my bed...
So much for surprises!
(*Pouts*)
Sorry Dearie!
*PuLLs EaRs*
~Day 1~
After some frantic packing after taking 1/2 day's leave from work and what-nots, I was on a solo bus trip with pretty smooth roads into JB, and a cab trip headed to the airport, which still amazes people of how gutsy I was to travel in a cab in Malaysia alone, which are notorious for fleecing and maybe even robbing passengers..., (Sometimes, we just gotta take a leap of Faith, with that limited vocabulary of the Malay Language! :P ) and enduring a very long flight delay, (40 minutes became close to 90 minutes...) with the mobile phone dying on me, I was in JKT!! :)
Apart from exams, there was Eunice's wedding which I attended admist mugging for my papers (Pictures are with a friend, and it hasn't been uploaded/sent out yet thus far... :( ), and a night out with darling JodY, whom I have not seen in eons of close to 8 months!! It has been far too looonngg!! Am terribly happy for her that she's found Love, and looks really happy! Yayy to that! :)
What else have I been up to, you might ask?
:P
Well, I know this is a superbly random thing to say, but, everyone has gotta try travelling alone once in their lives!
One of the most exhilirating highlights to close off 2008 was me being absolutely random, and wanting to surprise Bestie Bernie for his birthday, which was a total flop, cos I do not know JKT very well obviously! In the end, had to ask him for hotel reservations and locations, and what nots...and me, obviously being very annoying by bugging him on a lot of information...
LOL~
Best bit?
I was in such a MAD rush to pack that I left his Bday pressies on my bed...
So much for surprises!
(*Pouts*)
Sorry Dearie!
*PuLLs EaRs*
~Day 1~
After some frantic packing after taking 1/2 day's leave from work and what-nots, I was on a solo bus trip with pretty smooth roads into JB, and a cab trip headed to the airport, which still amazes people of how gutsy I was to travel in a cab in Malaysia alone, which are notorious for fleecing and maybe even robbing passengers..., (Sometimes, we just gotta take a leap of Faith, with that limited vocabulary of the Malay Language! :P ) and enduring a very long flight delay, (40 minutes became close to 90 minutes...) with the mobile phone dying on me, I was in JKT!! :)
Hello Senai; Malaysia!Bernie was where he was, which made me relived, somewhat, as I was thinking that he wouldn't appear like how he had been joking... LOL~
Small chat over an extremely late dinner/supper later, Bernie took me to this really huge Dragonfly-lookalike place, with really hottt pole dancers!
Didn't take pictures cos was busy wanting to make Mario, a good buddy of Bernie's drunk... LOL~
Talk about clubbing after touchdown! That was awfully fun! Later I then realised that the club was filled with "Lady Companions", whom were hired to get guys to buy them drinks... Apparently, if these babes like you enough, they can go home with you to ermmm... wash your dishes and iron your clothes?!?!? :P
*Go figure*
Then checked into my hotel, which was in the heart of Chinatown, and as well as the sleaziest part of town - the equivalent of Geylang in Singapore!
Small chat over an extremely late dinner/supper later, Bernie took me to this really huge Dragonfly-lookalike place, with really hottt pole dancers!
Didn't take pictures cos was busy wanting to make Mario, a good buddy of Bernie's drunk... LOL~
Talk about clubbing after touchdown! That was awfully fun! Later I then realised that the club was filled with "Lady Companions", whom were hired to get guys to buy them drinks... Apparently, if these babes like you enough, they can go home with you to ermmm... wash your dishes and iron your clothes?!?!? :P
*Go figure*
Then checked into my hotel, which was in the heart of Chinatown, and as well as the sleaziest part of town - the equivalent of Geylang in Singapore!
The view from my room's window in the day...
And in the night, with my reflection! LOL!And was surprised to see... ...
Durex!! It's afterall got a reputation as somewhat of a sleazy hotel...
With pole dancers/strippers in the hotel's club!
TeeHeeHee...
At least there is some form of social responsibility!!
LOL~
~Day 2~
Bernie took me to this crazily HUGE mall in the heart of town for lunch (Thai food! :) ) and some shopping!! Managed to grab some stuff discounted due to the stronger SGD! And how surprised I was to find a bangle that I have been eyeing for some time at close to 50% cheaper in Jakarta!! :)
Bernie, being Bernie, made me totally LOL over how he's so proud to carry a shopping bag from a UK shop that I went to, for the shop's stuff are apparently expensive...
Totally forgot to snap a shot of that smug look on Bernie's face!! :(
My fave place of the entire trip - Social House!
Apparently, Bernie had wanted to take me there for lunch, but their waiting list was 3 frigging pages long!!
(O_O)
LOL~
~Day 2~
Bernie took me to this crazily HUGE mall in the heart of town for lunch (Thai food! :) ) and some shopping!! Managed to grab some stuff discounted due to the stronger SGD! And how surprised I was to find a bangle that I have been eyeing for some time at close to 50% cheaper in Jakarta!! :)
Bernie, being Bernie, made me totally LOL over how he's so proud to carry a shopping bag from a UK shop that I went to, for the shop's stuff are apparently expensive...
Totally forgot to snap a shot of that smug look on Bernie's face!! :(
My fave place of the entire trip - Social House!
Apparently, Bernie had wanted to take me there for lunch, but their waiting list was 3 frigging pages long!!
(O_O)
Even the napkins are pretty!!:)
So it was a good thing that it was relatively empty over tea time with really yummy cakes & sandwiches and cute menus and what-nots!!
Reminds me of a local Marketing/Advertising firm's work as they'd also use similar fonts and what-nots...But isn't it sooo pretty?
=)
It was relatively affordable, once again, due to the stronger SGD...
There can be no place in SG that would have free flow of tea refills and such yummy cakes and biscuits at SGD$15!!
I kid you not! :D
There can be no place in SG that would have free flow of tea refills and such yummy cakes and biscuits at SGD$15!!
I kid you not! :D
The way it was served already deserves top marks!!It was extremely yummy and filling too!
Was so tempted to nick the cute lil' chair home BUT Bernie was pretty shocked and slightly embarassed that I resisted the urge to take the lil' chair home! :(
Isn't it lovely? The menu's so well-designed as well!
:)
Nice place to chill, and the service was definitely much better than SG's standards!
It's a definite must that I will head back to Social House when I return to JKT!!
:D
Isn't it lovely? The menu's so well-designed as well!
:)
Nice place to chill, and the service was definitely much better than SG's standards!
It's a definite must that I will head back to Social House when I return to JKT!!
:D
The next time, I will steal the chair!!
*EviL LauGhs*
:P
*EviL LauGhs*
:P
It was Bernie's bday celebrations at one of the most popular nightspots in town in the evening,... Apparently almost all the famous socialites and beautiful people head to BlowFish... the interior reminded me of Helipad somewhat, very dark, plenty of sofas... But very tiny strips of space for dancing! It's a wee lil' pretentious for me, how people won't like really let their hair down and really dance...
Obviously Bernie and my other former secondary school mates kept asking me to drink, and I got bored after awhile that I think Mario was irritated with my "I'm so bored..." speech!
LOLx~!
So, I decided to dance and grind Bernie's gal-pals at random, which made some of them pretty shocked at first!
My belief ~ it's dark, no one can see you, most people are drunk anyways, so let the hair down and have fun!!
:P
Obviously Bernie and my other former secondary school mates kept asking me to drink, and I got bored after awhile that I think Mario was irritated with my "I'm so bored..." speech!
LOLx~!
So, I decided to dance and grind Bernie's gal-pals at random, which made some of them pretty shocked at first!
My belief ~ it's dark, no one can see you, most people are drunk anyways, so let the hair down and have fun!!
:P
Pity that Bernie left quite early; Apparently 3am's considered late in Jakarta's clubbing terms... plus he had to drive extremely carefully cos I sensed that squinting of the eyes meant he was dead tired...
In a way, it was a wasted trip, cos we all wanted to see him dead drunk and all... but from the other side of the fence, it was good that he wasn't dead drunk else he'd be thrown into my hotel room, probably meaning me sleeping on the cold floors and perhaps him puking everywhere in my room! (O_O")
*Phew*
But knowing me, I'd still make sure he's okay and all... ... LOL~
~Day 3~
Went to a SG-looking mall (There were the local BreadTalk, Old Chang Kee, and even Bak Kwa!) for lunch with Bernie and Mario over fresh sashimi but decent salmon bento... (No photos again!!), and we chilled over drinks with plenty of laughs and deciding on where to head off to later in the night!
But plans got cancelled as it was the eve of Hari Raya Haji, and since it was an Islamic country, the places that served alcohol had to be closed until Tuesday!! :( I had been looking forward to hear Bernie croak/hold a tune! LOL~
*BUT there's always next time!* :)
BUT I did hear him snore during his catnap though!
Opppsss...!!! :X
LOLx!
So, I began the nightmare of packing up, and re-painted my smudged nails, and was terribly hungry but Bernie haven't showed up with beers as promised...! :(
So, me being me, I decided to take pictures!!
In a way, it was a wasted trip, cos we all wanted to see him dead drunk and all... but from the other side of the fence, it was good that he wasn't dead drunk else he'd be thrown into my hotel room, probably meaning me sleeping on the cold floors and perhaps him puking everywhere in my room! (O_O")
*Phew*
But knowing me, I'd still make sure he's okay and all... ... LOL~
~Day 3~
Went to a SG-looking mall (There were the local BreadTalk, Old Chang Kee, and even Bak Kwa!) for lunch with Bernie and Mario over fresh sashimi but decent salmon bento... (No photos again!!), and we chilled over drinks with plenty of laughs and deciding on where to head off to later in the night!
But plans got cancelled as it was the eve of Hari Raya Haji, and since it was an Islamic country, the places that served alcohol had to be closed until Tuesday!! :( I had been looking forward to hear Bernie croak/hold a tune! LOL~
*BUT there's always next time!* :)
BUT I did hear him snore during his catnap though!
Opppsss...!!! :X
LOLx!
So, I began the nightmare of packing up, and re-painted my smudged nails, and was terribly hungry but Bernie haven't showed up with beers as promised...! :(
So, me being me, I decided to take pictures!!
The rooms of this hotel are of different colour themes on different floors...Initially I thought I would have had Neon pink, but looking from the corridors when I went to explore, I think Green's so much less sleazy! LOL!
MeMeMe! In My Heineiken tee, waiting for booze to arrive!! :P
Bernie popped by my hotel with cans of local beer and I finally tasted local food at one of the tiny food shops along the streets cos I waited for Bernie until 11pm and was totally famished!!!
But the nasi padang was worth the wait cos it was very yummy, although salty! :) The sugarcane juice along the streets was really nice too! Very fresh! :D
But the nasi padang was worth the wait cos it was very yummy, although salty! :) The sugarcane juice along the streets was really nice too! Very fresh! :D
The damage to our livers...
I admit I didn't drink much, cos the beer tastes weird! One of them tastes somewhat like sourplum juice! LOL~
And how I dislike my beers too cold! :P
So we chatted and channel surfed and came across my Jay Chou speaking in Bahasa in "The Curse of the Golden Flower" cos it was dubbed over! And Bernie irritated me by not changing the channel!! (O_o)
And I had thought Wi-Fi was free in my hotel, but we apparently had to pay by the hour! :( Bernie was sweet enough to bring his laptop over for me to surf some YouTubes and FaceBook! And I saw his Internet Explorer Favourites folder and stuff in his Lappy!
Hahaha!
:P
That was how we counted down to his 26th Birthday!
With his phone ringing with heaps of Birthday wishes!
Bernie's pretty popular and well-liked, apparently!!
*LauGhs*
~Final Day~
We were supposed to meet for breakie at my hotel, but he overslept, and I spent 1 hour in the showers cos the water flowing from the shower head was so tiny!! :(
But I can't complain, cos the bed's real comfy!! :D
So, while he was dolling himself up before driving out to pick me up and check out of the hotel...
pZ did her best to camwhore!!! :P
And how I dislike my beers too cold! :P
So we chatted and channel surfed and came across my Jay Chou speaking in Bahasa in "The Curse of the Golden Flower" cos it was dubbed over! And Bernie irritated me by not changing the channel!! (O_o)
And I had thought Wi-Fi was free in my hotel, but we apparently had to pay by the hour! :( Bernie was sweet enough to bring his laptop over for me to surf some YouTubes and FaceBook! And I saw his Internet Explorer Favourites folder and stuff in his Lappy!
Hahaha!
:P
That was how we counted down to his 26th Birthday!
With his phone ringing with heaps of Birthday wishes!
Bernie's pretty popular and well-liked, apparently!!
*LauGhs*
~Final Day~
We were supposed to meet for breakie at my hotel, but he overslept, and I spent 1 hour in the showers cos the water flowing from the shower head was so tiny!! :(
But I can't complain, cos the bed's real comfy!! :D
So, while he was dolling himself up before driving out to pick me up and check out of the hotel...
pZ did her best to camwhore!!! :P
Guess who? It's David Cook!!
Flanked by the remanents of beer from the night before!! :P
Flanked by the remanents of beer from the night before!! :P
Bored, and hungry...
My attempts to eat some buildings up as was soo hungry!! LOL~
I *heart* Jakarta! Loved the effect of the clouds in this picture!!
:)
Lousy beer! But if it pays me well-enough, I don't mind being it's spokesperson...*In my dreams*
:P
Bernie and I went to check outta my room and we went to this really chic and uber nice Peranakan place for lunch!
Blurry pictures of the interior decor of the place... The photos don't do justice!
HurHur!
Blurry pictures again!
:(
Apparently, it's pretty famous in Jakarta, and it is usually packed at night with the Indonesian Chinese yuppies and the expat crowd...
It was really dark, and filled with Peranakan-styled furniture, and the interior kinda reminded me of my old place, which brought back loadsa memories! :)
It was really dark, and filled with Peranakan-styled furniture, and the interior kinda reminded me of my old place, which brought back loadsa memories! :)
The servings were huge but really nicely decorated, and the lemongrass drink was real nice!
Hint of Lime, and the taste of lemongrass was something I've never tried before, and it was very yummy!
Bernie took this shot of me squinting in darkness...And after that very yummy dinner (it costs about SGD$4o + for 3 pax, which is considered cheap at such a beautiful place with such nice decor rich in history and an uniquely Asian culture! But to Bernie, he said it's expensive as we would find it cheap due to the exchange rate and standards of living...), we were supposed to catch a movie, as the local theatres have beds in place instead of seats, which I was curious about; and Twilight was already showing in Jakarta!!
But Mario wasn't that keen on watching a movie, so we went to the old school...
Video Arcade!!!
But Mario wasn't that keen on watching a movie, so we went to the old school...
Video Arcade!!!
Mario actually busted his toe and was bleeding while playing the football game... :(
Hope his toe's gonna be alright! :)
Before we know it, was time to send me on my way to the airport... Not before me finally having the honours of treating Bernie to a meal in the form of AnW, which no longer operates in SG! LOL~
I hate saying goodbyes, cos it's always with a tinge of sadness, but flights don't wait for pZ! So after promising Bernie to return with a vengence soon, I went and check-in, and bought some highly expensive chewing gum for my colleagues!! >.<"
I managed to get a seat selection, which is amazing cos budget airlines usually don't allow seat selections... Managed to get a window seat, and lapsed in between reading my new buy at the airport in the form of... "Twighlight"!! :D
Hope his toe's gonna be alright! :)
Before we know it, was time to send me on my way to the airport... Not before me finally having the honours of treating Bernie to a meal in the form of AnW, which no longer operates in SG! LOL~
I hate saying goodbyes, cos it's always with a tinge of sadness, but flights don't wait for pZ! So after promising Bernie to return with a vengence soon, I went and check-in, and bought some highly expensive chewing gum for my colleagues!! >.<"
I managed to get a seat selection, which is amazing cos budget airlines usually don't allow seat selections... Managed to get a window seat, and lapsed in between reading my new buy at the airport in the form of... "Twighlight"!! :D
Goodbye Jakarta! This definitely won't be the last I'd see of ya!
:)
The plane ride home was smooth, was early, and the crew were so friendly!!
But I did feel my throat getting weird, and the nose getting all stuffy...
The coach ride out to Johore immigration was fast, probably there aren't that many cars at night, but there was a massive jam into SG, just because everyone was going back, and a bus getting towed away didn't helped the situation! LOL!
I got home close to 1am, somewhat tired and pretty amazed at myself, from how I just decided to book a ticket to Jakarta, flying alone, handling not-very-foreign, yet not-very-familiar languages of Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Melayu along the way, and at how I took the courage to just randomly hop onto a cab in JB, hoping I'd get sent to the airport in one piece!
My gfs and colleagues were soo surprised and shocked cos Jakarta wasn't really safe when I booked the tickets... But I went ahead anyways cos I'd only live once!
I am somewhat in awe at how I can be so bloody independent! Perhaps I've always been subtlely dependant on men (Daddy, Brother, former boyfriends, colleagues, etc...) that I forgot how it was to stand on my own 2 feet on heels! Hahs!
But travelling alone is fun! :)
I am planning for another trip soon, where I'd return with a bang, i hope! LOL~
Bernie has always been there for me when I was feeling down, and always cheer me up with that uniqely neRd sarcasm; so I thought it'd be nice to take the longg weekend trip to wish him happy birthday! Besides, he's always the one doing the visiting, so it's nice for a change of things! :)
And I sensed that he hasn't been himself recently... Knowing how he bottles up stuff like me, I really do hope he's all cheered up seeing how I travelled miles to just pop by for a visit! :P
(And some shopping, obviously! :P )
But I did feel my throat getting weird, and the nose getting all stuffy...
The coach ride out to Johore immigration was fast, probably there aren't that many cars at night, but there was a massive jam into SG, just because everyone was going back, and a bus getting towed away didn't helped the situation! LOL!
I got home close to 1am, somewhat tired and pretty amazed at myself, from how I just decided to book a ticket to Jakarta, flying alone, handling not-very-foreign, yet not-very-familiar languages of Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Melayu along the way, and at how I took the courage to just randomly hop onto a cab in JB, hoping I'd get sent to the airport in one piece!
My gfs and colleagues were soo surprised and shocked cos Jakarta wasn't really safe when I booked the tickets... But I went ahead anyways cos I'd only live once!
I am somewhat in awe at how I can be so bloody independent! Perhaps I've always been subtlely dependant on men (Daddy, Brother, former boyfriends, colleagues, etc...) that I forgot how it was to stand on my own 2 feet on heels! Hahs!
But travelling alone is fun! :)
I am planning for another trip soon, where I'd return with a bang, i hope! LOL~
Bernie has always been there for me when I was feeling down, and always cheer me up with that uniqely neRd sarcasm; so I thought it'd be nice to take the longg weekend trip to wish him happy birthday! Besides, he's always the one doing the visiting, so it's nice for a change of things! :)
And I sensed that he hasn't been himself recently... Knowing how he bottles up stuff like me, I really do hope he's all cheered up seeing how I travelled miles to just pop by for a visit! :P
(And some shopping, obviously! :P )
Ciggies are for a colleague!! Not me!! :IGum for the colleagues,
belt (Something that Dorothy Perkins in SG sold out on!
Got it cheaper in JKT! :)
Bangle cost me S$20+, but the boutique here sells it at S$49!!)
I *heart* the clutch bag! Looks tiny, but surprisingly roomy! :)
Brown wallet's a Christmas pressie for my darLing MeowMeow~!
And "Twighlight"!!
Very narrative in the early chapters, haven't gotten onto the exciting bits yet... :)
And I didn't really sleep until the wee hours, and I went to work with a stuffy nose, and being dead tired!
And now, my nose is blocked and I've been sneezing!
I think i might have brought home a souvenier from Jakarta!
The FLU!!!
(>.<")
To Bernie -
Thank you for being the wonderful sweetheart that you are, for driving and showing me around...
For being my shopping bags carrier, for the nice food, lovely company and wonderful conversations! :)
And for making sure that I am okay!
:)
I am truly amazed that 13 years, with some distance, and previously in different continents, and time zones, suspicious ex-boyfriends of mine and how I used to take you for granted (Sorry!), our friendship has stood the test of time and how you'd never ever fail to be there for me!
I am truly thankful to have you around Dearie!! :)
Hoped you enjoyed your birthday!! :)
neRd's da BEST!!
*huGs*
For being my shopping bags carrier, for the nice food, lovely company and wonderful conversations! :)
And for making sure that I am okay!
:)
I am truly amazed that 13 years, with some distance, and previously in different continents, and time zones, suspicious ex-boyfriends of mine and how I used to take you for granted (Sorry!), our friendship has stood the test of time and how you'd never ever fail to be there for me!
I am truly thankful to have you around Dearie!! :)
Hoped you enjoyed your birthday!! :)
neRd's da BEST!!
*huGs*
2 comments:
glad u enjoyed your stay in jkt....
JKT was sooo fun!!! Im missing my stay there!! :(
Really thankful to have such a wonderful tourguide!
If u ever come to SG, I'd return the favour, kay?
*huGs*
Post a Comment