Murah pisan euy!

Kita serumpun, we share the same vices but why can’t we build upon our virtues?

1st part
Itinerary (2nd part is more about my view on Indonesia)

We arrived at Bandung(Husein Sastranegara International) at approximately 9.40(local time which is minus 1 hour to Malaysia). An Indonesian sat next to us within the flight, who upon conversation revealed that his name was Bono.

“Bono? Kumpulan U2 tu?” asked Bali. Bono was a bit blur hearing the question.
“Kumpulan orang putih tu, luar negeri,” Bali continued asking. I thought Bali would break into a chorus of ‘With or without you’ but good thing Bono finally said he didn’t know U2. Later after touchdown Bono breezed through the immigration as he is the locals while we the foreigners had to scan all our fingertips and even had our photos taken for security reasons.
Bono in action.


Owh, we forgot to ask for his autograph.
Our arrival was received by Mus, Syafiqah(syifaq), Nabila and Fawwaz, who later turned out to be superb hosts.


We began the 2nd day with a trip to a dormant volcano which had been sleeping for 100 years old, Tangkuban Perahu.

Story tells that the place was once a river, and like all folklore it began with a pair of lovers’ abscondment, running from uncompassionate and uncomprehending parents. Together, they took a boat along the river but their path was magically blocked by a volcanic eruption that blew them away. The boat was turned over hence the name Tangkuban Perahu (terbalik, terlangkup) while the girl cried as she saw her dead love, which in turn created the hot water spring, Sari Ater.
Okay, I just made up the part written in blue but upon google, the local myth doesn’t differ that much, does it? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tangkuban_Perahu.
After the 2+ hours journey back, we went to Paris van Java, a shopping complex similar to Midvalley megamall. Zara, Marks&Spencer and all those stuff, ice skating and even a small padi field in the middle of the mall with a peacock prancing around.

3rd day began with a visit to Pa-Un. Pa-Un is the short form of Pasar Unpad, while Unpad is a short-form for Universitas Padjadjaran(they sure like short form, don't they?). Pa-Un is basically a day market, where the locals buy food, clothes, utensils and even pets.

The day continued to be a shopping day as we later continued to Pasar Baru. Pasar Baru is like Pekan Rabu in Kedah where lots of small private shops sell mostly clothes, followed by local snacks and foods. I spent more than 1 million there. >.<
However the multitude of people at the Pasar Baru would probably make people think twice before going there, unless you have lots to buy. There are times there that even if you don’t move, you’ll be “moved” by the crowd pushing around you. Punya la ramai orang. It’s like Komuter at peak hours.

After brazing the macet(traffic jam) we went to Kartika Sari, a famous bakery chain in Bandung where Bali  bought  3 brownies to bring home while mine was all gone by that night. Buka puasa was at Ampera, also a chain outlet, famous for nasi lauk. (I really think Ampera used to be an electric shop).


4th day, Monday was a bit slow as the guides was having their first day of class for the semester. So we went to Jatos(Jatinangor Town Square), which is the nearest shopping complex to the university of Padjadjaran. Tengok wayang empat ringgit ja. lul


5th day was the day we went back but due to my 'ingenious' planning, the return flight was in Jakarta. Therefore we had to travel 4 hours by car from Bandung to Jakarta, thus spending the whole morning on the road. Flight home was uninteresting except that I ate something along the way that presented me with a diarrhea until today.



2nd part
Indonesia in 5 days.


-The cost of living there is not that cheap.
It’s not that it’s expensive rather it's a tad higher than I expected. Maybe I am comparing too much with Vietnam.

-Surau dia campur.
Seriously. Even in some places, the women pray just next to men.

-Tandas dia nampak terus.
This is even weirder. The only thing hidden is when a person goes for the loo.  Make-up, peeing while standing, washing your face…all can be seen by the other gender.

-Restaurants operate widely in the month of Ramadhan.
Unlike in Malaysia, where most shops closed during day and begin operation near Maghrib, most restaurants in Indonesia operate normally(if u discount the tirai). And surprisingly lots of them frequent this outlet. Kalau perempuan, yang pakai tudung, boleh kot bersangka baik, tapi macam mana pulak laki yang makan sebelah dia. Bukan Islam, mungkin? Tak pon gastrik?
Funny thing is that they put a curtain around their shops, as high as my shoulder so people passing by cannot see the people eating inside unless they stand close to the shop.

-Makanan sana sangat kreatif.
Ada pisang keju, pisang ijo dan segala jenis pisang lagi. Honestly if I didn’t fear for my stomach I would have like to try lots of the foods sold on the side of the road (not forgetting the story of bakso tikus).

-Their language is so different yet so similar.
It was the first time that I travel to another country that upon landing, I didn’t have to figure out what that weird signboard actually means. The words are mostly similar in formal writing but it’s a different case for daily conversation.

-Upin and Ipin is all the craze there.
Students tell that as they delved deeper into the suburb, doing their practical(kosas/koas) in villages, that the villagers call them Upin and Ipin. And the girls are called Kak Ros.

All in all the experience was valuable. Bandung was interesting with its food and culture but at the end of the day the same thought bugs me in the end. With so many similarities and our close relations to each other, I wonder how we become so estranged to each other. Was it somewhere along the line of history that these two countries relation turn into what it is now. Couldn’t we not close the gap?
Who knows?


Di kesempatan ini saya ingin mengucapkan terima kasih kepada tuan-tuan rumah kami, Mus, Syifaq(kek batik!), Nabila(cuba teka berapa?) dan Fawwaz. Juga kepada Fahmi, Paan dan ahli rumah yang lain sebab sanggup bagi kami tumpang. Sejuk woo mandi kat rumah budak-budak ni.
Nanti raya datang la rumah!

P.s.
1. If I’m struck by a wind of productivity, I’ll try to compose the videos and upload them.
2. tak jumpa lak gambar, yang tulis murah pisan euy! tu. :/
3. Murah pisan euy is a slogan for a supermarket there, meaning very cheap, oi! Pronounced "murah pisssaaaaaaaaaaan, oi!"