East Java & Bali Road Trip December 2013

Tomorrow I am starting my road trip with a friend for the end of the year of 2013....

Finally the time has come!!!! :) :) :)

Starting on December 20th finishing on December 29th, my route trip would be an adventurous one, exploring East Java (especially Banyuwangi Regency) and Northern Part of Bali and probably also The Gili Islands in Lombok, my favourite islands.....

My Road Trip Route is:
1. Surabaya - Banyuwangi (by train - IDR 140.000 per person)
2. Banyuwangi - Mount Ijen - Banyuwangi (by car & foot - IDR 500.000 for tour guide)
3. Banyuwangi - Sukamade Beach - Banyuwangi (by car rental - unplanned yet)
4. Banyuwangi - Pulau Menjangan Bali (by ship & bus - unplanned)
5. Pulau Menjangan Bali - Lovina (by public transport - unplanned)
6. Lovina - Singaraja (by public transport - unplanned)
7. Singaraja - Tulamben (by public transport - unplanned)
8. Tulamben - Amed (by public transport - unplanned)
9. Amed - Ubud (by public transport - unplanned)
10. Ubud - Kuta (by public transport - unplanned)
11. Kuta - Gili Islands Lombok (by boat)

So mostly this trip is unplanned except for Mount Ijen part since we need to prepare for everything to prevent bad things happening during the hiking since it's a rainy season in Indonesia.

Hotels are also unplanned and we plan to shop around for hotels on each day. I don't know if it's a good idea in terms of price but for sure it will be fun....

I decided to explore Northern part of Bali since it's the part of Bali that we rarely go and I haven't actually been there since 10+ years ago. And there will be a lot of snorkeling during this trip....

I am super duper excited for this road trip.....

I hope I can stay healthy, strong, and safe for this trip....

How about you all? Any plan for this holiday season?

Pulau Sempu - Hidden Paradise in East Java

One spontaneous decision to explore and go on a road trip to somewhere new....

Me and a friend decided within 2 hours on a Saturday Morning that we were going on a road trip from Surabaya, where we live, down to South Malang (still in East Java).

We drove for about 3 hours down to Malang and stayed overnight there. Very early in the morning at about 5am we departed our hotel and continued on another 3 hour drive down to Sendang Biru Beach where we chartered a boat to get across to the island.

But before we took the boat, we had to register and pay some fees to the Park Officials for a permit.

It's actually a good move for a first timer because some people have been reported missing in the past because the didn't know the ways in Pulau Sempu.

The boat ride took about 15 minutes. It could be much faster though if they use faster and better boats.

As soon as we arrived in Pulau Sempu, we had to walk inside the jungle for about 2 hours. It could be quite challenging for an unprepared physical body condition. Therefore, it's best if you prepare your body, bring enough foods and water along the way.

The most famous destination in Pulau Sempu is Segara Anakan (a lagoon). (Photos below)

The calm water in Segara Anakan is the only place (as far as I know) that you can swim in. Some people choose to camp overnight here and swim in the "lake", but we decided to just have a look and didn't swim because there is no fresh water in the island where you can take a shower after a swim.

Segara Anakan 

 Swimming at Segara Anakan

Calm Water at Segara Anakan

Taking Picture at Segara Anakan

Camping Colony at Segara Anakan

South Sea

On the Cliff

Waves Against the Cliff

After having a good time at Segara Anakan, we decided to go to the next beach. The hiking trail to the two next beaches is quite steep and we had to be very careful with our steps....

A Quite Beach at Pulau Sempu

Chillax at Pulau Sempu

A Quite Beach at Pulau Sempu

Calm and Chillaxing

Waves at Pulau Sempu

Pulau Sempu is a hidden paradise yet to be discovered.....

But, in my opinion, Pulau Sempu should be kept quite and natural so that we can reserve the natures in Pulau Sempu.

And please if you go to Pulau Sempu, don't litter on the beach or anywhere in the jungle. And if you are nice enough, like me :), you would also help collecting the garbages along the way, like we did :).....

Have a great adventure of your life!

Go Back in Time at Fort Rotterdam Makassar

A visit to Makassar, used to be Ujungpandang, will not be complete without a visit to Ford Rotterdam....

Entry to Fort Rotterdam is absolutely free. You can sign up your name as a visitor at the entry office near the entrance.

Fort Rotterdam is basically operated as a museum in Makassar City.

Fort Rotterdam is one of the highlights when I visited Makassar in September 2013.

Toraja - Rich in Culture & Tradition

So, I haven't been updating this travel blog of mine for quite some time. But, I decided to update this blog with an entry of my recent travel to Tana Toraja in South Sulawesi / Celebes, Indonesia.

It was such a surreal experience. While it might not be one of the most popular travel destinations among Indonesians, it could be very interesting to international tourists who are looking for something new, especially those who are interested in cultures and traditions.

Starting my journey by car from Makassar, the Capital of South Sulawesi, at 10pm, the road trip took about 8 hours. We decided to sleep in the car for that night. Thank God for a good and strong driver who didn't sleep through the night. Thinking about it now, it was quite insane and tiring. But it was all worth it when we saw the many interesting and unique sites in Toraja.

We arrived in Toraja at about 9 am, since we took a roadside break for about 2 hours to let the driver catch some zzz-s.

The first site we visited was LONDA. The site which has graves in caves....

In front of the graveyard caves....

Venturing inside the cave... At some parts we had to crawl up and down through the cave....

We were also lucky enough to attend a Torajan funeral ceremony which was apparently visited by some foreign tourists. One of the tourists said that they had to donate a cow for the ceremony while we didn't have to.....

A tourist taking picture of the ceremony

 The relatives of the deceased....

After watching the ceremony, we went to the next site which was Kete' Kesu which is a colony of some villagers.... it's so nice to see a group of "Tongkonan" (traditional Torajan ancestral Houses) and the types of houses where they live in....

Next was Londa with a Torajan tomb in a high rocky cliff.

There is also this unique custom in Tana Toraja that the bury babies who died before they reached six months old in trees.

"Baby Trees"

Apparently a trip to Tana Toraja was a quite unique and interesting one..... A trip which you won't forget for the rest of your life and probably the only experience you can't get anywhere else in the world.

A look at one of the many cultures of Indonesia at Tana Toraja was an absolute eye-opener of how rich Indonesia is in culture and tradition....