// alveta rorio

Danika's Hello World

2012-01-16T19:25:00.007+03:00

I am not one who floods my friends' timeline with baby photos and activity updates because I realize not everyone likes babies. Not to mention the potential misuse of my child's pictures in this digital age. However, surely this journey into motherhood deserves a mention in this log.

Much to my relief, this kid has been so good to her mother. The absence of morning sickness, followed by a relatively quick normal delivery and so far no troublesome allergies... I recon the first week following birth was much tougher. It was just the two of us, my man and I, gritting through every fussy cry, relying on doctor Internet to make sense lots of it :) My mom came to help for about a month after that, but looking back, I'm kinda grateful for that one week of the three of us learning about one another.

Nothing much to report at the moment. The little thing just feeds, poops, and if we're lucky... sleeps all day long, basically. Some goo-gah when she feels chatty. She just began to be aware of her surrounding, meaning getting easily distracted. I just hope for strength to continue to keep up with this little princess.

It's the people you meet

2011-08-19T06:54:00.002+03:00

During the 2 years I lived in one of my home's neighbouring countries, I had to constantly explain to people there that Indonesia is much more than Java and Sumatra (and yes, that includes Bali). Now, tucked away in a corner of Africa, it's a surprise every time I meet a person who knows my country well enough to greet me with "Selamat pagi". None of that "Never been to Indonesia but stayed in Bali for a few weeks" bull. It's more towards "Worked at Arcadia for a few years, the rain-drenched traffic was hell. Had monthly visit to a factory in East Java, that Lapindo thing is terrible, huh". I even met a local who studied in Surabaya for 3 years. Can't even resort to Javanese to talk about the person with a fellow Indonesian in front of him :P

Maybe it's the different people I meet, used to be mainly young students compared to grown ups nowadays. Maybe it's the different places, like the more exotic the location is, the more seasoned people with broader knowledge come there.

First First Trimester Bonanza

2011-04-02T10:49:00.003+03:00

Don't eat raw food (okay..)
Don't travel (which is fine if you can enjoy the glitz & glamour of the city.. wait, where am I?)
Don't go near wild animals (riiigghtt... I'm in Africa. Why do people come here again?)
Don't exert yourself (there goes swimming, bowling, and whatever left of the things keeping me entertained)

Entering week 9 now, I'm fortunate to have no morning sickness and still have enough strength to climb up 5 levels of stairs to my apartment. Aside from the occasional mood swings and unbearable laziness (which may not be related to my condition), everything is all right. Considering it is, after all, the ultimate reason to have hubby consoling to my every needs :)

Ice, Monkeys and Elephant Poo

2011-03-12T17:15:00.005+03:00

There are several things to be the first casualties of the climate change, thus need to be savored before they are gone. Amongst them that are in my list are the atolls of Maldives and equatorial ice caps. Blessed to be smacked in a place less than a day driving from the vicinity of the great Kilimanjaro, it just seemed fitting that a visit is in order. However, since I have no confidence whatsoever on my body's ability to acclimatize to the mountain's altitude conditions, I chose to appreciate it from Amboseli, a small national park at the Kenya-Tanzania border. The trip also concurred with my other mission of making the most of my East Africa residency, making it way cheaper to enter the national parks as compared to tourists.

My husband and I got a 2-night road package from a tour operator who used to cater the Indonesian Ambassador travels. We were picked up in the morning and embarked on a 5-hour drive to the park.

The Mountain

It was around mid day, about 2 hours away from the park gate when we caught a glimpse of a white plateau in the midst of light clouds. Naturally, we went tourist-crazy going ooh-aah rampantly clicking the camera. The backyard of our room at the hotel had a view of the mountain top, but an obscured one unfortunately. Looked like they tried to avoid the animals from having a clear path to the visitors' room. So when we went out for the afternoon game drive, we headed to the Observation Hill for a clearer view.

Amateurs and impatient we were because it turned out that the view would be clearer in the morning game drive because the clouds only started to form around mid morning. The winds were chillier in the morning though, and my wrongly-dressed partner wearing only T-Shirts was already huddling inside the van during the drive.

Lucky the clouds cleared up a bit that afternoon and somehow made the view a little more melancholic. From above, the melted-snow swamp at the foot of the hill also looked amazing. It's like watching the movie Earth in super high definition.

The Monkeys

"Make sure you close the screen door, otherwise the monkeys will get in." - a hotel porter's message when we got to our room.

Living in the wild, even inside a human establishment area, means that you share space with the locals, in this case mostly monkeys and lizards. The lizards most often just sun bathed on some rock the whole day. The monkeys, on the other hand, wanted to get to know the visitors. The hotel employs a few men from the local tribe, Maasai, to clear the perimeter but some were bound to sneak in once in a while.

The door to our room's backyard was a double sliding panels, a screen door on the outer side and a lockable glass one on the inner side. The porter seemed to have underestimate the intelligence and perseverance of our long tailed fellows because one time a mother carrying her baby sled open the screen door and slipped inside. My menacing yet hesitant manner (hey, she's showing her teeth.. and I had vivid memory of the movie Outbreak) didn't seem to do much intimidating as she scoured the trash bin for food. A friend of hers even followed inside before my hero finally responded to my screaming and came out of the bathroom to do the rescue.

On another encounter, I was sitting alone in the lounge overlooking the savanna when one curious monkeys joined me at the table and snatched my mucus-drenched tissue (suck it, you ugly ape!).

The Game Drive

There were not as many animals to see in Amboseli compared to other popular national parks such as Maasai Mara. We saw plenty of elephants (alone and in herds), zebras, wildebeests, hyenas, ostriches, gazelles, birds, and hippos. Curious to find some lions, we spent the second day morning and afternoon drives screening the bushes looking for some cats. Not an easy feat. I guess that camouflage skins work well. I would've been really stressful if I were a zebra, with the possibility of fangs and claws springing up from any bush.

Near sun-down on the second day, just before we return to the lodge, our driver suddenly sped up after hearing something from the communication radio. I couldn't tell what it's saying as the conversation was in Swahili. A few minutes later we arrive at a spot with safari vans and jeeps lined up on the road side. People were looking at a spot in the bush and after much fumbling with my freebie binoculars, there was a movement of a black-white striped tail. A mother cheetah, followed by her two young kids. The mother soon disappeared behind a bush though she took her time walking, not as shy as I thought she would be. The kids, however, seemed to appreciate the crowd's attention, lounging on a dead branch in clear view.

All in all the game drives were quite fun. Staring at herds on wide open space, the occasional whirlwind sending little cyclones of dust high into the air. The dust was not really disturbing, until I saw drying piles of elephant poos all over the place. It's wild, baby!

Into Africa

2011-02-01T18:28:00.004+03:00

"We came to see the gorrillas."
- American lady to Kenya's immigration officer.

Some cringed when I told them I'm moving to Nairobi. What the heck will I be doing in Africa? One even listed down all the bugs carrying diseases that I should be aware of.

Others got excited and even hated me for going to such an exotic destination. Of course, it's the center for safari, an activity that seems to fascinate many people. Kenya also has lakes and 2 highest mountains in Africa among which one being the member of the world's seven summits (the top is across an international border, tho'). Perhaps I'm not really a nature lover, but how'd those differ from the safari parks, lakes and mountains I've visited?

Call it the magic of air travel, but even after 15 hours covering the vast distance, even with a very different population welcoming me, it didn't feel that drastically different from home. Probably the similar climates have something to do with it.

Maybe I should explore more to have higher appreciation on the continents.

Walk Like an Egyptian

2011-01-31T17:40:00.003+03:00

I've been watching Al Jazeera coverage of events unraveling in Egypt for several days now. I have very little knowledge of the nation's history nor the earlier breakout in Tunis that seemed to trigger this extraordinary revolution. Nonetheless, the courage and determination of the people there is amazing. They stand up together against guns, tanks, fighter jets.

Yet, it's also baffling that the government has been so stubborn. How is it possible to maintain the status quo after such movement? Surely there are a lot in stakes not only for Egypt's current ruler, but also for many parts of the world with the critical Suez canal and the country's position relative to Israel. But still, change is imminent, no? So whatever it takes to achieve the people's demands there would be the bar for other nations aspiring for the next reform.

Of course, in every large protest, there are casualties. In this case, it's a shame that Egypt's cultural treasures (i.e. mummies) have been damaged. Hopefully the looting doesn't continue.

I hope to visit Egypt one day. So, may the people find their way and stabilize the country. Be strong!

Crimes of Passion

2011-01-31T15:00:00.001+03:00

Kebetulan yang menarik manakala vonis 2 kasus high-profile diumumkan berdekatan. Kasus pertama adalah kasus korupsi milyaran rupiah diselingi dengan acara jalan-jalan tersangka ke luar negri selama proses persidangan. Kasus kedua adalah kasus video asusila yang tersangkanya tersekap di sel selama sidang, kemungkinan untuk keselamatannya sendiri. Keduanya kejahatan hasrat, yang satu karena harta, satunya lagi.. tahu sendirilah, ya ;)

Yang menarik adalah reaksi sebagian masyarakat terhadap kedua kasus ini. Banyak yang menilai dedikasi para pemrotes kasus kedua jauh lebih tinggi ketimbang kasus pertama, padahal dampak finansial dan politik kasus pertama jauh lebih besar. Sebuah artikel mempertanyakan prioritas masyarakat yang sepertinya lebih rela dijarah habis2an, ditipu dan dibodohi tokoh2 politik ketimbang disuguhi hiburan gratis berdurasi beberapa menit (yang kalau tidak suka, bisa dilewatkan dengan mudah).

Tanpa menilai mana yang lebih banyak/berat pasal yang dilanggar (itu tugas hakim) atau lebih jahat (itu tugas yang menghitung dosa), IMHO orang kemungkinan akan bereaksi lebih keras terhadap hal2 yang dianggap lebih dekat dan lebih berpengaruh pada diri dan keluarganya. Korupsi milyaran rupiah itu bukan uang pribadi siapapun, tapi video porno itu masuk ke HP anak2, dengan tokoh utama seorang 'idola' yang wajahnya dikenal di mana-mana. Sepertinya tidak banyak yang terpikir bahwa jumlah milyaran rupiah yang masuk kantong koruptor itu harusnya bisa dipakai untuk meningkatkan pendidikan anak2nya juga, meningkatkan jaminan sosial, dll, dst. Heck, mungkin jumlah milyaran itu bahkan tidak terbayang berapa besarnya. Belum ada ya, yang bikin perbandingan jumlah korupsi Gayus dengan jumlah anak yang bisa disekolahkan selama setahun, atau jumlah vaksin apalah..

Knowing what they want to know, ditambah dorongan2 pihak2 tertentu akhirnya terbentuklah opini 'publik' yang terlihat, meskipun yang terlihat itu belum tentu merepresentasikan mayoritas. Tuntutan mayoritas pun belum tentu juga yang paling benar. Seorang career coach mendedikasikan dirinya menolong orang menemukan passion dalam pekerjaan (halo, Rene). Mungkin kita perlu seseorang yang bisa mengarahkan passion masyarakat (halo, Mr. President).

Professional Skepticism

2011-01-13T23:46:00.003+03:00

Living in Indonesia, Jakarta especially, makes me ready to get my rights screwed over. Incompetent government, shaddy law enforcement, all that jazz. No wonder some less morally conscious people choose to balance that by paying very limited part of their obligations... like not queuing properly whenever the opportunity arises. That way, I kind of expect the worst in people. Such a skeptic view on life is not the one that I'd prefer though.

I found an interesting breakthrough economic book today. One of the chapter's titles goes something like "if you expect the worst in people, that's what you're gonna get". So then, it's a question of how do you prepare for the worst without making it worse?

Ignorance

2011-01-02T11:03:00.001+03:00

Just took an elevator ride with peculiar people. Well, peculiar and annoying to me, but probably common around here, sadly. So there's a teenager and an older woman who could be the mom. First, the teen entered the small elevator without waiting the people inside walked out. Then the teen stood near the floor buttons. When some people tried to walk out and got smashed by the closing door, the teen didn't make any move to hold the 'open' button. On top of it, the teen laughed at them! The alleged mother did not make any comment whatsoever.

I know that there's no elevator riding lesson in school, but isn't it suppose to be the basic thing, helping each other out? What do parents teach their kids these days, anyway? Smoking and riding motorbikes without a license?

No wonder the roads are full of helpless idiots, they don't care that they endanger other people. Who would want to live in that kind of society?

Twenty-ten Wrap Up

2010-12-24T12:09:00.006+03:00

Counting my blessings this year and.. wow, the Big Boss has been good to me. Managed to roam to 3 continents, hubby got a gig overseas, we got a new Kiwi family (hopefully we could visit there soon), got a fabulous new car (gosh, I'm gonna miss that Red Rooster!), I left my job without a glitch and even finally got some decent play by the national football team (#nurdinturun teuteup!). Still clueless on what I'm gonna do next year, but the possibility of having a long holiday is getting less daunting and more exciting everyday. Bring it on, life!

For the general population, from the way I see it, it's been a buzzing year for the tech world. With Facebook (courtesy of Time Person of the Year) and Twitter going rampant, 3D visual and augmented reality going mainstream, space tourism.. looks like we're nearing those futures described in sci-fi stories. The World Cup was okay, tho' it still sucks that England didn't prevail. Going local, well.. unfortunately, Jakarta is doomed. So glad I'm leaving the city just in time before the horrendous traffic caused by the flyover and subway development. May the force be with you, Jakartans.

It's been a wild year for nature with 3 major natural disasters in Indonesia, big flood in Pakistan, devastating Haiti earthquake, gulf oil spill, a volcanic eruption and extreme winter disrupting flights all over Europe... and Copenhagen conference resulted in nothing. We can't control earthquakes and volcanoes, but to continue to fail on controlling illegal logging and carbon emission... Sad to say, the worst is yet to come.

My first laptop

2010-12-07T03:34:00.003+03:00

More than a decade of computer twiddling, a degree in computer science and only now.. preparing for joblessness, that I have my own. Before, it's either company-supplied, school-provided or mommy-lent devices. Navigating through the sea of hardware types, my eyes fell on the beautiful tattooed HP Touchsmart. Alas, there's no stock everywhere in my town. Keeping up with the touch/pad trend, I settled on the second layer HP Mini Touch.

So far, I'm quite happy with its performance, especially the battery life. Now eagerly waiting to fiddle with Chrome OS with this baby.

29 days later

2010-08-27T10:07:00.001+03:00

You were right
And I don't wanna be here
If your gonna be there
Was that supposed to happen

I'll hold tight
I'll remember to smile
Though it has been a while
And without you does it matter

There's no room
No place to start
When our souls are apart

I wanna travel through time
See your surprise
Hold you so tight
I'm counting down the days tonight
I just wanna be a million miles away from here
I'm counting down the days

How've you been
It's just the usual here
And days are feeling like years
And every day's without you

Now I cry
Just a little too much
When I think of your touch
And everything about you

I feel cold
I'm in the dark
When our souls are apart

I wanna travel through time
See your surprise
Hold you so tight
I'm counting down the days tonight
I just wanna be a million miles away from here
--Natalie Imbruglia, Counting Down the Days

Information Siege

2010-08-16T10:22:00.003+03:00

RIM is negotiating user data security to avoid service blackout in the middle-east. India is considering to block Google and Skype due to security reasons. Also, with the Ramadhan momentum, Indonesia is blocking adult sites (with the ministry's background, it would've been shocking if this doesn't happen, really). Gone is the untouchable persona of the interweb where the law of nations catching up to gain sovereignity over the bytes flying under their airspaces. Aside from the vanity of efforts in completely blocking whatever the government desires, the limitation has imposed a certain restriction which reduce the appeal of being a global netizen, free to do whatever, whenever, wherever *Shakira's hip shaking here*. Maturity?

It used to be Informatics-Economics hybrid which seemed to appropriate in utilizing the full power of those sneaky little bits. Will Law be a strong contender in the future?

X10 Mini Pro

2010-07-16T05:57:00.009+03:00

Finally got one during an expo promotion, after my friends and even my mom told me it's out (yes, thank you.. at last retiring my dumbphone). Quite happy with it, despite the tiny screen. Still searching for more apps, but in the mean time, these are my personal assistants:

Opera Mini 5
Vignette Camera (demo) - if only I could buy the full version..
Documents To Go
Simple Weather
eBuddy
Blogger-droid
PdaNet
Notes
Compass - my husband finally could go in peace knowing I would know where I am at all times
Advanced Task Killer
Stop Mosquito - hey, we're living in the tropics
ASTRO File Manager
Fring (direct download from it's mobile site)
Movies and APV PDF viewer (direct download from Freeware Lovers)

Would love to have Vonage for Facebook but cannot find in Market (probably version problem). Tried to direct download from Freeware Lovers, but having trouble with signing in to Facebook. Any suggestion?

Jakarta in an American Eyes

2010-06-27T16:08:00.002+03:00

Here's some of my colleague's impression on the city and the country:

the first thing he noticed was the crazy mopets/scooters: "They didn't look back!"he's paranoid being an American, working for an American company, staying at a hotel that got bombed

he didn't know Obama's link to IndonesiaI didn't realize how scary we are to them, but then I thought I would probably be worried too if I'm in their shoes. So, got a long way to go fixing that... but at the end of their visit, they said they would definitely come back. That's a good start, right?

Kelly Clarkson @ Jakarta

2010-04-28T13:34:00.001+03:00

Despite having an Alicia Keys sponsorship mayhem deja vu, the first American Idol stuck by her fans and went out with a banging refrain of All I Ever Wanted followed by the funkier version of Miss Independent. Personally, my idology leans more toward Lambert than Clarkson, but I do admire her power and consistency. The stage that night was very simple, yet it has quite attractive lighting effects. The singing-along patrons filled the arena without making it really packed, so it was pretty comfortable. The sound system was OK, although I enjoyed Kelly's voice better in the acoustic half of the show.

After two hard thumping numbers, during which the few lame lame people in the crowd in front of me were too stuck up to move a muscle, it's good to see she finally smiled and greeted the audience girl-next-door charm. She dedicated the following Impossible to the current situation. Keeping her prime vocal and energy throughout the 1,5 hour show, it's like watching your high school friend perform. A friend with a very good voice, that is. That's how down to earth she is.

I liked her solemn cover for Alanis/Kings of Leon, but I must say that Since You've Been Gone brought the house down. Even the boys seemed to get some kick, as a dude next to me got excited when she belted out a White Stripe cover at the encore. Right at the end, everyone at the festival arena was jumping high for My Life Would Suck Without You. The cardio session gave me muscle sore towards the next day, but it was a fun night to remember.

Daftar Sebagian Angkutan Kota Jakarta dengan Emisi Buruk

2010-04-21T06:23:00.034+03:00

Kenapa bus sekolah aku dapat stiker lulus uji emisi padahal asapnya bau?

--my 3rd-grader nephew

Jakarta sesak dengan polusi meskipun konon kabarnya ada Undang-Undang dan badan pemerintah yang mengatur emisi. Melihat angkot-angkot tidak berperikemanusiaan menyemprot racun karbon & timbal ke pejalan kaki, saya percaya sepenuh hati bahwa semua peraturan itu hanyalah dongeng belaka. Agak sulit dipercaya belum ada gerakan yang sedikit memaksa pemerintah untuk meningkatkan kualitas udara. Dulu ada Clean Air Project yang menyediakan SMS hotline untuk laporan kendaraan beremisi buruk, tapi sepertinya tidak jelas hasilnya. Ada lagi sebuah inisiatif di tingkat Asia, namun itupun belum bisa menghadang akar permasalahan.

Katanya lagi, warga bisa protes lewat surat resmi atau surat pembaca... yang mudah-mudahan dibaca oleh petinggi badan perhubungan/transportasi dan moga-moga ditindaklanjuti. Saya sendiri skeptis terhadap jaminan mudah-mudahan dan moga-moga. Lagipula, saya bukan "orang jalanan" yang punya banyak kesempatan mengumpulkan data angkot-angkot keparat untuk disetorkan para penegak peraturan. Jadi, biarlah saya protes di sini saja, plus saya jadi bisa mengajak partisipasi pembaca menyumbang data. Kemungkinan data di bawah ini akan terus diperbaharui. Sampai kapan? Sampai Jakarta keluar dari Top 10 Kota Paling Berpolusi di Dunia (one can only dream...).

Bajaj (apa kabarnya rencana penggantian unit ini dengan yang berbahan bakar BBG?):

1004 FD, 1006 FD, 1092 AM, 1163 FD, 1348 DE, 1520 FD, 1788 FN, 1819 DE, 1928 DE, 1933 FN, 1988 FN, 2099 GA, 22114 HE, 2212 PA, 2243 FD, 2284 BA, 2393 DE, 2420 MA, 2494 FN, 2784 EE, 2793HE, 2840 VN, 2870 FN, 2953 EL

Kopaja:

7002 EM, 7089 ER, 7111 DG, 7113 DG, 7115 EV, 7183 ML, 7206 VZ, 7210 NP7246 NL, 7253 MA, 7265 KA, 7265 NP, 7267DE, 7300 DG, 7335 EM, 7359 NL, 7377 NL, 7389 TA, 7405 DG, 7466 DG, 7485 DG, 7485 SS, 7498 NP, 7502 NA, 7512 NP, 7571 GD, 7577 GD, 7588 WL, 7591 DG, 7653 DG, 7680 WL, 7685 EP, 7735 DG, 7758 DG, 7817 EP, 7847 GD, 7880 FA, 7884 DG, 7909 DG, 7935 WF, 7949 NP, 7962 SA, 7996 XT, 7999 FL

Kowanbisata:

7094 FV, 7900 DG

Mayasari:

7106 LA, 7186 AS, 7285 BX, 7316 BK, 7359 BK, 7407 EW, 7746 BK

Metromini:

7003 AV, 7018 XT, 7072 EZ, 7076 EN, 7086 NP, 7106 AW, 7130 NA, 7179 EM, 7196 NP, 7252VM, 7335 ED, 7356SA, 7382 AV, 7393 TA, 7427 GD, 7439 EL, 7453 AR, 7461 NL, 7717 ES, 7581 ED, 7460 EM, 7545 BS, 7573 GD, 7580 AT, 7623 HA, 7668 NM, 7728 DA, 7732 EH, 7744 AM, 7744 SA, 7785 AZ, 7790 DG, 7794 ES, 7815 DG, 7837 EW, 7839 GD, 7860 GA, 7871 AZ, 7882 DG, 7882 FA, 7892 AV, 7893 AZ, 7901 AW, 7904 RA, 7909 AZ, 7917 EM, 7931 AW, 7953 EM

Patas PPD:

7018 TW, 7290 BK, 7383 VB, 7395 ZT, 7419 BW, 7471 BW, 7765 ZT, 7851 ZT

Tidak mudah mengumpulkan data di atas karena seringkali plat kendaraan tertutup arang hitam akumulasi buangan kotornya atau halangan lain yang, entah sengaja atau tidak, letaknya membuat nomor tidak bisa dibaca. Jadi, mungkin perlu disclaimer juga bahwa nopol-nopol yang ada di sini adalah benar saat pengamatan sejauh sepengatahuan pengamat.

Authorities, please do validate them and take action.

QED

2010-04-12T12:29:00.003+03:00

Thanks to Flashforward, I now know the abbreviation beyond it's popularity in Latin:

Quantum electrodynamics
Quantum entanglement device

both of which are intriguing but not appetizing enough for me to learn the details ^^.

Go Green, Go Dutch

2010-04-06T11:27:00.009+03:00

I know that the Netherlands is a popular destination for Indonesian students. Apart from the familiar cuisine being readily available, I suspect it has something to do about the numerous Noble Prizes won by the Dutch. I don't really keep track the patented technology registered under this nation's flag, but there is one big engineering achievement by the Meneers that stuck at the back of my mind ever since I saw it on the Discovery Channel: Shell's offshore wind park. The rows of humongous poles sticking out of the sea is just a marvelous view to behold.

Photo by Phil Hollman

As one of the biggest wind farms at the time of it's construction, Egmond aan Zee has the capacity to power 100,000 households, emission free. It is also an interesting connection to one particular Dutch icon.

Densely populated and surrounded by water, the Dutches are acclimated to live side by side with nature. We, a nation fancy in polluting the air and destroying forests, may benefit from learning a thing or two from them. Plus, their national soccer team ain't so bad either ;)

So, alternative energy initiatives, water management.. next on the list of the great Dutch contribution to sustainability is the Nuna. The little solar car from TU Delft has won the World Solar Challenge for a record of 4 times in a row. Shown here is the 5th generation which can run well above 140kmh. Pretty impressive, don't you think?

Photo by Nuon Solar Team

I haven't been to the land of the tulip for some time... the time being over 20 years. I didn't even remember my experience back then. It would be interesting to go back, especially with their love for sustainability because then I can see all the nifty green buildings all over the city. Like this one UI's new library is imitating. As the capital of bicycles, it should also be a good fun (and exercise) to go cycling around the Amsterdam, says the girl who could never get up to enjoy Jakarta car free day -.-'

Anyway, you guys already stranded there got anything to add, by all means...

Images licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

Indonesian Hot Air Balloon Adventure

2010-03-26T11:29:00.005+03:00

From IHABA2010

It's baffling that despite the awesome natural beauty just sprawling on every corner, Indonesia only has one hot air balloon attraction (AFAIK) in Bali. Even that one is tied down to the ground, so no challenge there to Turkey's world famous hot air balloon ride. So I am hoping this IHABA event could be a much welcome start to a new nation-wide trend (looking forward to have one in Bromo).

Booing the price for the one-hour ride of IDR 5 million (as opposed to Sydney's AUD 300), I opted for the petty 10-minute anchored lift for IDR 100k. So there I was, rising in the dark on Saturday morning *yawn* to catch the morning flights (prefered the sunset time, but got somewhere else to be). The schedule for the morning session was 6-9am. Arriving at 6.30, the queue line was already intimidating. Then came the news that the afternoon session from the day before was canceled because of bad weather. So that morning, the only people going up the 100k ride were those who already got ticket. Since I mayor may not get the ticket and ride the next day, on which I was also unavailable, I gave up and stood aside to watch the baskets drove in at about 7am.

The next half hour was quite interesting as the warmed up the balloons and they rose one by one. The unique-shaped ones include an orange, a pair of jeans and a pink elephant's head.

Rides, Shows and Rockin' with Mom

2010-03-19T10:50:00.011+03:00

It had been a while since I spend time with my mom. So despite the nag of giving her a grandchild already, it was nice to have a vacation together. Considering the spread of location, we got ourselves a tour package to Macau, Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

Viva Macau

It was my first time hopping on this budget airline. It has pretty much the standard no frill policy so I was just happy that both flights were on time and there was no funny business in the cabin (smoke or otherwise).

Disney Resort Train

Mom was more excited to go to Disneyland than yours truly who rather have the indoor skydive @ Genting. Nevertheless, I couldn't help to grin shamelessly watching the very cute Disney train taking us from the Sunny Bay station to the resort. Its trademark Mickey shaped windows and hand rails, plush velvet seat (somehow got me thinking of Hef's room interior) and the memorabilia on display really are a nice warm up before entering the fantasy land.

The Space Mountain

I didn't know that HK Disneyland has an indoor roller coaster. So it was an exhilarating surprise to find out that I'd be riding in the dark with tiny lights imitating the stars whoosing past me. The G force is not for the fainted hearts either, so be prepared.

Crossing 3 nation borders with so many diversity in between, I expected a lot of sightseeing and maybe a bit of shopping. I got those and some more. It turned out that there a lot of interesting shows to seat in during the trip.

Splendid China Park

We caught two shows in this cultural park. The first one was inside the Impression Theatre showing the variety of tribes in the most populated country in the world. The next one in the evening was in an outdoor stage. Both shows have elaborate make up, costumes, lighting and animals. My favorites are the ones about Niu Lang & Zhi Nu aka Nawang Wulan & Joko Tarub aka Tanabata & Mikeran (Hagoromo) and the part where they were using the smoke from the fireworks and shoots laser lights creating a mystic tunnel through which someone floats through.

From Asia2010Disney Parade, Philharmagic & Fireworks

We were very lucky with our timing. About 15 minutes after we arrived at the Disneyland, the parade started. It was full of music, people with plastered smiles including one very blond caucasian Alice speaking... what else, cantonese. The park was still crowded despite being low season and Monday, but it was still convinience in term of queues. I'm a bit disappointed that the Lion King festival was not showing at the time, but there were still plenty of others to see. The Golden Mickey's was quite entertaining, but I especially love the Philharmagic, a 3D show with 180 degrees wide screen and wind/splash effect. The flying carpet ride was what Avatar in Imax 3D should had been. The famous fireworks in the evening, on the other hand, did not live up to expectation, the fog & smoke covered a great deal of the dancing colors.

The Bubble, Money Tree & Dancing Fountain

Back in Macau, after going ooh-aah at the Venetian, we went for an award winning show at the City of Dreams near the Crown & Hard Rock. The show was in a half bubble with adjustable waterfall at the center. The entire wall of the bubble was the screen, so when a dragon swam around, you'd feel like you are being circled by a very hungry predator. Best of all, it's free and starts every half hour! Next stop was the money tree at the Wynn. It's a usual fake tree. The ornate thing here was the way it appeared. Domes at the ceiling and in the ground opened up every hour to reveal a monstrous chandelier and a golden tree. After the tree was all wrapped up nicely again, we walked to the opposite yard to catch the dancing fountain. Again, a bit of a let down because I was expecting Vegas' 15-minute show and only got about 2 minutes.

Other personal highlights of the trip include the Avenue of the Stars (my hand fits perfectly to Sammo Hung's print, who'd guess) and the Victoria's Peak. For those I would come back to see the city bathed in neon rays during the Symphony of Lights.

A Friendly Reminder

2010-02-02T10:10:00.002+03:00

Sydney IMAX 3D

2010-01-26T02:10:00.001+03:00

Menyebut dirinya layar terbesar di dunia, LG Imax Theatre di Sydney kebetulan menayangkan film fenomenal Avatar dalam format 3D saat saya berkunjung ke kota itu. Tentu harus dicoba, nih. Sebelum berangkat, sempat cari info untuk pemesanan online. Namun berhubung harus ada nomor kontak lokal, plus ada biaya tambahan dan jadwal saya di sana yang belum pasti, akhirnya baru beli waktu hari pertama sampai di sana. Untung juga, karena ternyata ada potongan 20% di guide book gratisan yang bisa diambil di bandara, hotel & tempat informasi turis.

Memang dasar film laris, seminggu ke depan kursi yang tersedia tinggal sedikit dan pastinya di posisi yang kurang strategis. Akhirnya saya dapat di baris tengah paling kanan. Tidak terlalu buruk, leher tidak sampai pegal. Waktu pertama masuk dan melihat layarnya, sepertinya ukurannya tidak beda jauh dengan Keong Emas. Bedanya format film di TMII sama seperti bioskop biasa (widescreen) jadi gambar terpotong banyak di bagian atas dan bawah. Di Sydney walaupun formatnya mengikuti bentuk layar yang agak kotak, tetap saja layar hanya terisi sekitar 3/4nya. Tidak yakin juga apakah itu format widescreen yang ditambah bagian atas dan bawahnya atau justru dipotong kiri kanannya.

Sayangnya, teknologi 3D di sini bukan realD. Kalau di Jakarta, mungkin mirip dengan 3D di 21 atau XXI, rada gelap dan kurang berasa perspektif 3Dnya. Padahal sudah berharap adegan terbangnya bakal seru.

Dari segi sound juga tidak ada yang istimewa.

Journey to the OZ

2010-01-25T08:46:00.016+03:00

Akhirnya ada visa yang ditempel di paspor saya!

Dalam rangka aji mumpung, tujuan liburan kali ini adalah kota Sydney & Melbourne dengan menumpang kamar hotel suami yang mau ujian CCIE. Agak kuatir sebenernya kalo inget rekor cuaca Sydney di musim panas (50 derajat aja) plus sensitifnya saya sama matahari. Beberapa minggu sebelum berangkat sudah ada berita kebakaran liar di sekitar Perth. Untungnya, taun ini iklim berpihak pada saya dengan melampiaskan winter gila di Eropa dan mengirimkan hujan2 kecil ke belahan selatan. Yey!

Perjalanan ini hanya selang beberapa minggu dengan insiden teror di pesawat Amerika. Kabarnya banyak airport yang memperketat pengamanan. Penasaran juga bakal diperiksa seperti apa berhubung negara yg mau saya kunjungi ini suka norak ikut-ikutan Paman Sam. Ternyata prosedurnya cukup standar. Terbang dengan Qantas lumayan nyaman. Baru tahu kalau bahasa kedua yang dipakai saat pengumuman adalah bahasa lokal. Jadilah salah satu pramugaranya berceloteh dengan Bahasa Indonesia patah-patah dan logat bule kemelayu-melayuan ^^.

Sampai di Sydney, saya kedinginan. Walaupun matahari cukup cerah, anginnya lumayan dingin. Jadi maklumlah banyak orang yang jogging jam 2 siang, menanjak bukit pula. Ngomong-ngomong bukit, jalan-jalan di kota ini cukup menyiksa betis juga. Herannya, para wanitanya tetap setia dengan high heels. Kudos! Orang-orang di kota ini cukup helpful meski kelihatan agak jutek. Suka banget sama cara mereka menjawab terima kasih dengan "No worries" atau mengganti OK dengan "Cool!".

Sebagai pencinta laut & santai di pantai, lumayan semangat juga waktu mau melihat Samudra Pasifik, perairan bebas terbesar di bumi ini untuk pertama kalinya. Sayangnya, belum sempet nyebur di Great Barrier... next time.. Setelah sempat nyasar sedikit, akhirnya sampai di Bronte. Indahnya... pantai pasir putihnya tidak terlalu besar tapi dikelilingi tebing-tebing dengan rumah pantai berjejer. Airnya gradasi turquoise ke biru dan berkilatan di bawah cahaya matahari. Ombaknya juga seru, jadi banyak juga surfer bertebaran terombang-ambing tidak jauh dari pantai. Puasnya dapat pemandangan begini, hitung-hitung pelipur lara sebelum bisa ke Santorini :P

Di sepanjang sisi ini, ada coastal walk yang menghubungkan Bronte dengan beberapa pantai lain. Tadinya berambisi jalan dari Bondi ke Coogee. Berhubung nyasar dan mendarat di Bronte dan kaki yang masih pegal akibat jalan-jalan hari sebelumnya, akhirnya dari Bronte saya jalan ke utara ke arah Bondi saja. Pemandangan di sepanjang coastal walk ini keren banget. Di beberapa titik disediakan bangku taman yang menghadap laut untuk menikmati pemandangan dan angin semilir. Sampai di Bondi, saya turun untuk berjalan menyusuri pantainya. Pasirnya yang lembut cukup menguji ketabahan iman dan otot kaki. Pantas saja kebanyakan yang datang ke sana hanya bergelimpangan tanning di pantainya, dengan atau tanpa atasan :P

Tujuan di hari berikutnya: Royal Botanic Garden, taman besar yang menghadap Harbour Bridge & Opera House. Di Down Under sini banyak taman dan udaranya bersih, jadi iri dengan para pegawai di sana yang bisa istirahat makan siang sambil tidur-tiduran di taman dikelilingi burung-burung. Pangeran William kabarnya mau berkunjung ke taman ini, tapi sampai saya pergi suasananya masih belum ramai. Dari situ saya menuju ke pusat kota untuk melihat-lihat tempat belanja. Sayangnya, saya tidak dapat buruan karena barang yang terjangkau kebanyakan bukan buatan Australia (baca: Made in China). What's the point, right?

Besoknya saya mampir The Rocks untuk melihat jejeran gedung-gedung bata bergaya lama sebelum naik feri ke Taronga Zoo. Sebenernya agak malas datang ke atraksi yang harus bayar tiket masuk. Toh, di tempat lain juga ada atraksi sejenis. Tapi kebun binatang ini dibangun di bukit yang menghadap harbour, jadi asik juga bisa melihat skyline Sydney dari sana. Sekalian juga nengok para penduduk asli benua kecil ini, koala & kangguru yang ternyata sangat-sangat pemalas. Seru juga melihat singa laut NZ yang ukurannya lumayan besar.

Esok harinya kami berangkat pagi-pagi ke tempat jemputan bus ke drop zone di daerah Wollongong, sekitar sejam dari Sydney. Yang stres habis ujian mau terjun tandem dari pesawat. Pingin juga, sih nyoba kapan-kapan kalau lagi mood. Sorenya ke IMAX Theatre di Darling Harbour buat nonton Avatar 3D. Cerita soal nontonnya di-post kepisah, ya. Selain ada teater, Darling Harbour ini lumayan enak buat nongkrong. Ada tempat makan, mal, fountain yang sekaligus tempat bermain dan mendinginkan kaki plus beberapa museum.

Pagi berikutnya kami mengejar kereta pagi ke bandara untuk naik pesawat jam 7 ke Melbourne. Mendarat di bandara Avalon yang agak jauh di luar kota, middle of nowhere, di tengah padang rumput dan peternakan biri-biri. Untuk ke kota harus naik shuttle bus yang jadwalnya mengikuti jadwal penerbangan, saking sedikitnya yang mendarat di situ. Kabarnya bandara ini sedang di-upgrade untuk jadi bandara internasional, mungkin untuk yang low-budget seperti Tiger Airways. Sejam setelah mendarat sampai di stasiun Southern Cross untuk ketemu teman yang bakal jadi guide hari itu. Wiken pagi di sana sepi, orang-orang baru keluar setelah lewat makan siang.

Sepanjang hari kami jalan kaki keliling pusat kota, menyusuri sungai Yarra (yang agak bikin ilfil karena airnya butek ^^) dan beli oleh-oleh suvenir Australian Open buat bokap. Sore terbang lagi ke Sydney buat pulang besok sorenya.

So that's 3 continents down, 4 to go...

Complete album here>>

End of a Decade

2009-12-28T09:27:00.003+03:00

These are the weeks of "Top Ten in 2009", "Best of the Decade" and "Top Ten Reasons to Stand by Luna Maya". Okay, the last one isn't as popular but it's buzzing nonetheless. This is my first decade as an adult, so to speak, which makes it a bit... duller than the previous two I lived by. Can't say I expected that since I was hoping that by understanding things a bit better, things would get more exciting. Then again, the rocking '80s and the broad shoulders of the '90s are hard to compete anyways.

So here's my point of view of the '00s.

First, despite the absence of flying cars and the still existing Kopajas (can we please exterminate that by the next decade? pretty please?), technology has surely transformed the way we live, at least socially if not so much physically. Take the impact of one tweet from the above mentioned subject for example. Who would've guessed that you can reform the journalism ethics by less than 140 characters?

Next come the economy. Boy, aren't those derivatives dangerous. The international connectivity and the impact it's bringing is staggering. I wonder whether things will stabilize over the next decade or two, or whether flux is something we're about to get used to.

Early on, terror acts got big. The good side is people quickly adapted. Not by announcing unnecessary wars, but by the instilling the rejection to be afraid or by fighting the actor head on like in recent attack. Aside from the diminishing main actor, hopefully terrorism will simply be outdated as its effect won't be as big.

Irreplaceable

2009-08-21T11:12:00.001+03:00

The best paid people are the ones doing what no one else can. So it sounds like a decent career goal, except that I am much too aware of the contra fact that there is no such thing as free lunch. Being "the one" could simply mean giving up your life, since in any given circumstances there may be no one to cover for you. As one who loves one's life, I've been positioning myself as, well, replaceable, which may not be wise in some turbulent times. It would be nice to indulge one's ego to be known as the best, though it would be a tremendous challenge when there are two in a family.

Hence, I think I'm currently lacking so called ambition.

A Love Before Time

2009-07-26T06:21:00.001+03:00

If the sky opened up for me
And the mountains disappeared,
If the seas ran dry, turned to dust
And the sun refused to rise
I would still find my way
By the light I see in your eyes
The world I know fades away
But you stay

As the earth reclaims it due
And the cycle starts anew
We'll stay, always
In the love that we have
Shared before time

If the years take away
Every memory that I have
I would still know the way
That would lead me back to your side
The north star may die
But the light that I see in your eyes
Will burn there always

Lit by the love we have
Shared before time

When the forest turns to jade
And the stories that we've made
Dissolve away
One shining light will still remain

When we shed our earthly skin
And when our real life begins
There'll be no shame
Just the love that we
have made before time

-- Coco Lee, OST "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon"

~menye mode ON

Babushka Pasopati

2009-06-14T16:46:00.003+03:00

Today I've got to say the coolest answer, ever, to my mom's "Where are you?": In a submarine.

From Monkasel

Setelah berkali-kali ke Surabaya dan menginap beberapa langkah dari tempat ini, akhirnya kesampaian juga mampir ke Monumen Kapal Selam. Waktu lewat siang harinya, jiper juga lihat antrian di tangga masuk. Populer juga tempat ini rupanya. Untung juga kita ke situ malam, lebih sepi dan dapat ruang bernafas. Yap, di dalam kapal tua itu masih panas walaupun sudah dipasang AC di beberapa sudut. Ga kebayang cerita pemandu yang juga mantan petugas komunikasi kapal itu yang bilang suhu di ruang mesin bisa sampai 40 derajat Celcius dan berhubung persediaan air tawar terbatas, awak kapal tidak mandi selama belum merapat ke darat. Oksigen juga terbatas, ngobrol pun dibatasi. Pantas saja moto mereka Tabah Sampai Akhir ^^.

Firday I'm in Loev

2009-05-28T18:43:00.002+03:00

Walk the World Jakarta

2009-05-28T11:19:00.005+03:00

brought to you by the World Food Programme.

update: Pizza Hut ticket counter cancelled :(

International Quotes

2009-05-22T19:24:00.009+03:00

You control the debt, you control everything. You find this upsetting, yes? But this is the very essence of the banking industry.
--Umberto Calvini

There's a difference between truth and fiction. Fiction has to make sense.
--Wilhelm Wexler

Sometimes the hardest thing in life is to know which bridge to cross and which to burn.
--Louise Salinger

Diminishing Hunger

2009-05-17T06:33:00.003+03:00

Two summers ago, I wanted to watch every single blockbuster movie being released. Today, I think I'll live just fine if I miss one or two. Sylar playing as Spock isn't that appealing and I'm more into the next generation anyway... Instead, now I'm a wanderlust and an enthusiast for anything new. Somehow there's an urge to fill out the curiosity immediately as I know that I may lose interest in the future. Perhaps a near one at that. Plus, places are drowning and being destroyed away, global warming and all that.

It's worrying to anticipate that the world is getting less and less exciting, even though you know with your current perspective that it's just getting more and more awesome. It may not be regret in the end, as I may not crave for anything that much by then. But wouldn't it be a shame to miss out so much?

But alas, grown-ups have responsibilities and need to prioritize. Being stubborn on nurturing the inner child/obnoxious teenager, it could be a bit frustrating at times.

Green Map

2009-05-08T16:48:00.011+03:00

Just found out about this cool initiative. Found the latest print for Jakarta @ Citos' Aksara. Quite a number of other Indonesian cities already mapped too. Too bad there are too few printed, but I guess that is where the green part comes in. Can't kill to many trees to print some maps.. Unfortunately I could not find any link to buy the digital version.

Kinda like their catchy phrase too:

Berpikir Mendunia, Memeta Tempatan!

I wanna go..

2009-05-07T15:59:00.001+03:00

I wanna go where the mountains are high enough to echo my song
I wanna go where the rivers run deep enough to drown my shame
I wanna go where the stars shine bright enough to show me the way
I wanna go where the wind calls my name
--India Song by India Arie

Paragliding @ Puncak

2009-05-03T15:42:00.005+03:00

I wish that I could fly
Into the sky
So very high
Just like a dragonfly

I'd fly above the trees
Over the seas in all degrees
To anywhere I please

Oh I want to get away
I want to fly away
Yeah yeah yeah

Oh I want to get away
I want to fly away
Yeah yeah yeah

Let's go and see the stars
The Milky Way or even Mars
Where they could just be ours

Let's fade into the sun
Let your spirit fly
We'll be a one
Just for a little fun
Oh oh oh yeah !
--Fly by Lenny Kravitz

From Paragliding

Salah satu yang bagus dari cuaca maha cerah akhir-akhir ini adalah kesempatan untuk mencoba paralayang. Sebelum musim hujan benar-benar menghampiri, naiklah kami ke Puncak dan akhirnya menemukan spot Indonesia Paragliding. Waktu daftar buat tandem (tanda tangan disclaimer kecelakaan seperti umumnya olahraga nyeleneh lain), sudah ada 2 peserta yang sedang menunggu angin. Melihat mendung yang mulai mendekat, begitu penunjuk angin bergerak naik, meluncurlah mereka. Parasut untuk beberapa penerbang solo dan tandem berikutnya pun langsung digelar.

Tidak ada orientasi teknik atau keselamatan yang ribet. Petugas di sana hanya memasang gembolan besar di punggung saya dan bilang, "kalo disuruh lari, lari ya..". Jadi, larilah saya dibantu tarikan seorang aki-aki, sementara 'pilot' saya di belakang mengembangkan parasut. Agak ngeri juga waktu sampai di ujung landasan yang dipasang curam, karena setelah itu saya jatuh... sekitar 2 meter sebelum parasutnya memberikan efek tergantung di udara.

Damainya di atas sana... berputar-putar, kadang hampir diam di satu titik. Sepi, tanpa suara mesin seperti saat terbang dengan pesawat. Sedikit rintik hujan sepertinya tidak terlalu mengganggu. Baru berasa agak pusing saat putaran terakhir sebelum pendaratan yang berlanjut untuk satu jam berikutnya (meh..!). Perbedaan tekanan tiba-tiba tidak pernah nyaman buat saya. Mungkin harus mempertimbangkan kembali keinginan skydiving, yang indoor mungkin lebih cocok ^^.

Pendaratannya lumayan mulus, bisa langsung ngaso karena dalam posisi duduk. Ada juga yang mendaratnya bisa dalam posisi berdiri setelah berlari kecil saat menyentuh tanah. Anak-anak lokal yang membantu membereskan peralatan sepertinya sudah pro. Tidak lama setelah mendarat, kita diangkut kembali ke tempat peluncuran sekitar 5km ke atas.

Thanks to someone who insisted to do this even with the long detour...

Geek Quote

2009-04-22T05:06:00.000+03:00

There's no Place Like 127.0.0.1

Close Encounter of the Theethy Kind

2009-04-10T06:51:00.004+03:00

Para ahli seringkali bilang hiu itu korban persepsi yang salah. Tetap saja suara ceburan air saat mereka belingsatan mendengar (atau merasakan?) suara motor yang mengarahkan kerangkeng bagian dari pertunjukan pemberian makan ke arah kolam bukan sesuatu yang menenangkan. Berdiri di sana, memasang BCD di badan, saya mencoba mengira-ngira akan seperti apa puluhan ikan buas itu saat ember berisi ikan kecil berlumuran darah menyentuh air. "Hiu di sini jinak, kok", kata penyelam yang menemani saya di kerangkeng, tentunya dilanjutkan dengan "Tapi teman kita ada yang pernah dapat 56 jahitan karena digigit dan daging tangannya terkelupas karena dihisap hiu yang besar itu (menunjuk ke hiu tutul sepanjang 3 meter di kolam)."

Beberapa menit kemudian saya sudah diturunkan ke dalam kolam. Sambil berpegangan ke railing di dalam kerangkeng, memandangi beberapa mulut hiu dengan deretan giginya yang tajam merayapi sekeliling kerangkeng, saya mengikuti instruksi pertama mas penyelam: lambaikan tangan ke penonton. Dua keponakan saya ada di antara penonton. Keren juga jadi tante gagah berani, meskipun ibu mereka bilang tidak mengira itu saya di dalam kerangkeng karena badan saya terlihat lebar sekali (I hate wetsuits and convex glasses).

Hanya hiu-hiu besar yang benar-benar mendekat ke kerangkeng. Mungkin lebih baik begitu, karena yang kecil lebih buas. Saat saya diberikan tongkat plastik dengan ikan kecil ditusukkan di ujungnya, saya julurkan ke luar kerangkeng. Mulut terdekat segera menyambar ikan dan menariknya sekuat tenaga. Bye, little fishy.. Si mas beberapa kali memberikan langsung ikan dengan tangannya... hard core...

Itulah kegunaan sertifikat diving saya yang paling seru. Kabarnya, dubes Amerika Serikat juga ingin berkunjung ke SeaWorld Jakarta. Entah kenapa saya lebih kuatir dengan 2 penyelam yang harus berjaga di luar kerangkeng saat Mr. Ambassador memberi makan para hiu.

Menyelam di main tank juga lumayan seru. Pari dan penyu di situ sering mendatangi penyelam, nyundul2. Untungnya semua makhluk di situ aman disentuh, duri2 pari sudah dibersihkan katanya. Abi bahkan sempat menunggangi salah satu penyu besar di situ. Saya sendiri kurang suka dengan arus buatan dari pompa yang kadang suka bikin kita terseret dan membentur pinggiran kolam.

Akhirnya, setelah begadang nonton konser dan menghabiskan tenaga melawan arus itu, badan berasa remuk hari ini.. untung liburan masih panjang ^^.

Jamiroquai's All Beat No Nonsense

2009-04-10T06:50:00.001+03:00

this review is dedicated to Met, wish you were here and rockin' along ;)

Funk it UP!

Jamiroquai (Picture from VIVAnews/Anindhita.M)

After the annoying cancellations of Rihanna and N.E.R.D concerts in Jakarta, finally Jay-Kay and the team decided that Indonesia is still worthy of the presence of smashing international artists. Thanks to whoever responsible in convincing everyone that a music show a day before Election is doable. Impossible is nothing! Yeah! Perhaps the choice of location, quite a distance from the buzzing high-risk capital, has something to do with the approval. Fortunately, the new convention center did not disappoint in terms of sound, stage and seating quality.

The show was warmed up by a respectable performance of 6-month expecting Dimi, with a lame interval of guest appearance of Afgan. Halfway through the act, the middle and front sections of the huge capacity hall were still barren. Things got interesting when at the madame's last track, the organizers let the audience seating at the top corners (i.e. the cheapest seats) to move towards the middle. So, there we were, scrambling in the dark through Through the Fire. Good thing we're traveling light, just the 3 of us. People with larger groups were easily separated by then.

After an almost half-an-hour sound check, finally the group showed up on stage, answering the roaring crowd with a couple of continuous tracks that I... never heard before :P I pledge guilty to being mainstream on this, only finding some recognition by the time Seven Days in Sunny June, Cosmic Girl and Little L were played. Of course I screamed my heart out at the intro of Canned Heat. The last barrier broke lose when the annoying distance between the stage and the front row seats were trampled down by the fans (VIP paying audience eating their hearts out) in the middle of a track towards the end part of the show. I got a few rows a head, keeping an angeled view as opposed to getting blocked by the taller population, and did not stop dancing right through Love Foolosophy and the powerful rockin' encore of Deeper Underground.

Although some popsters were disappointed by the lack of communication (only some hellos and the compulsory "Please vote tomorrow") the absence of the iconic head piece and the slightly distracting backup singers, IMHO the musical performance PAID. IT. OFF. They're doing everything up there, playing with the tempo, getting sick with the bass, Jay-Kay jumping around twisting hips here and there...

It was a good good night.

Coffee

2009-04-06T15:20:00.001+03:00

...maybe sometime you can buy me coffee. a cup, not a franchise.
--Samantha on Samantha Who?

Not As We

2009-04-06T13:59:00.001+03:00

akhirnya ada yg keren lg dr Alanis Morisette

Reborn and shivering
Spat out on new terrain

Unsure unconvincing
This faint and shaky hour

Day one day one start over again
Step one step one
I'm barely making sense for now
I'm faking it 'til I'm pseudo making it
From scratch begin again but this time I as i
And not as we

Gun shy and quivering
Timid without a hand

Feign brave with steel intent
little and hardly here

Day one day one start over again
Step one step one
with not much making sense just yet
I'm faking it til I'm pseudo making it
From scratch begin again but this time I as i
And not as we

Eyes wet toward
Wide open frayed
If God's taking bets
I pray He wants to lose

Day one day one start over again
Step one step one
I'm barely making sense just yet
I'm faking it til I'm pseudo making it
From scratch begin again but this time I as I
And not as we

The Beginning is The End is The Beginning

2009-04-05T04:01:00.001+03:00

Smashing Pumpkins
- OST from Watchmen trailer

Send a heartbeat to
The void that cries through you
Relive the pictures that
have come to pass
For now we stand alone
The world is lost and blown
And we are flesh and blood disintegrate
With no more to hate

Is it bright where you are?
And have the people changed?
Does it make you happy
You're so strange?
And in your darkest hour
My old secrets laid
We can watch the world
devoured in its hate

Delivered from the blast
The last of a line of lasts
The pale princess of a palace cracked
And now the kingdom comes
Crashing down undone
And I am master of a nothing place
Of recoil and grace

Is it bright where you are?
And have the people changed?
Does it make you happy
you're so strange?
And in your darkest hour
My old secrets laid
We can watch the world
devoured in its hate

Time has stopped before us
The sky cannot ignore us
No one can separate us
For we are all that is left
The echo bounces off me
The shadow lost beside me
There's no more need to pretend
Cause now I can begin again

Is it bright where you are?
And have the people changed?
Does it make you happy
you're so strange?
And in your darkest hour
My old secrets laid
We can watch the world
devoured in its hate
Strange
Strange
Strange

Feel Good Inc.

2009-04-02T14:37:00.004+03:00

Tadi ke tempat klien baru, sebuah bank syariah. Di ruang tunggu, ketemu pasangan suami istri yang ke situ buat setor dokumen diri, karena menang umrah! Entah kenapa, kok gue jadi ikut seneng. Tambah berasa seneng lagi, waktu pak satpam yang jaga di situ cerita, kalo yang menang suka ga percaya kalo ditelpon. Biasanya si bank bakal bela2in bawain surat pemberitahuan ke rumah nasabah itu biarpun di pelosok. Masih tambah seneng lagi, waktu pak satpam bilang, 25 pegawai bank itu tiap tahun diberangkatin haji dengan standar ONH plus (meskipun ada juga yang maunya ONH biasa biar lama di sana dan rela nunggu bertahun-tahun buat masuk di quotanya).

Mungkin berasa senengnya karena prasangka buruk gue tiba2 terburai luluh lantah. Kalo di pikiran gue, bank itu maunya cari untung aja. Ga salah juga sih, namanya juga institusi finansial. Di sisi lain, sekarang lagi gencar2nya perusahaan berhemat, seperti ada yang keukeuh nyari asuransi kesehatan yang paling murah buat pegawainya dan sampai 3 bulan setelah asuransi tahun sebelumnya hangus, masih belum ada kartu asuransi pengganti (hmph!).

Ternyata masih ada korporat yang ngebelain hal-hal kaya gini buat pegawai dan nasabahnya. Rombongan pemenang umrah itu diberangkatkan 2 kali setahun. Mestinya daripada memasang piagam penghargaan bank terbaik ini-itu, bank pamerkan saja foto senyum pasangan suami istri yang seumur-umur belum pernah sekali pun dapat undian sebelum menang umrah itu.

Asian Gateways

2009-03-28T14:18:00.002+03:00

Ultimate in Diversity: Amazing, Incredible, Unique. Wow! Discover The Soul, Truly Asia

GRE Argument Writing Excercise

2009-03-27T12:50:00.007+03:00

Again, welcoming your honest commentary on my practice writing on the following argument:

The following is a letter from an editor at Liber Publishing Company to the company's president.

"In recent years, Liber has unfortunately moved away from its original mission: to publish the works of regional small-town authors instead of those of big-city authors. Just last year, 90 percent of the novels we published were written by authors who maintain a residence in a big city. Although this change must have been intended to increase profits, it has obviously backfired, because Liber is now in serious financial trouble. The only way to address this problem is to return to our original mission. If we return to publishing only the works of regional small-town authors, our financial troubles will soon be resolved."

The editor's argument reasoned the financial trouble of the Liber Publishing Company on its decision to publish more of the works of authors residing big cities. Furthermore, the editor appeals to the President to return to Liber's original mission to publish the works of regional small town authors to resolve the financial trouble. Although this shift of trend may seem to be the cause and resolution of Liber's current problem, there are some factors that may cause the argument to be invalid.

First, there may be other causes of the Liber's financial trouble than the change in choice of authors. To see whether there is any connection at all between the two, Liber needs to analyze the sales records from both type of authors. Even when there is a decrease in sales when more big-city authors are being published, it may be caused by other internal and external factors, such as the economic condition, competitors, mismanagement, marketing methods, change in the costumers' reading habit, etc. Considering that most publishing companies have certain criteria about the content they publish regardless of the author's origin, if Liber maintain its characteristics even with the change of authors, these other factors may exert greated influence in causing the change in its financial condition.

Depending on the actual cause of Liber's financial trouble, changing back to the old preference of small-city authors may not be the ideal solution to get Liber back on its feet. The trends of books that sell well may not be related to what kind of city the authors live in but may relate more to the books' topics or writing style. While the books' content may be affected by the authors' residential, the relation cannot be determined for sure for all authors published by Liber. In addition, the original decision to publish more big-city authors to increase profit may be based on dwindelling number of small-city authors which hampering Liber's publishing rate. If the condition persists, reverting back to the old preference may even worsen the problem rather than solving it.

> scoring guide

GRE Issue Writing Excercise

2009-03-27T12:46:00.008+03:00

Instead of spending $55 for pre-test scoring, I would try to make use the free time my reader(s) to judge my practice writing on the following issue.

In any field of endeavor—the sciences, the humanities, the social sciences, industry, etc.—it is not the attainment of a goal that matters, but rather the ideas and discoveries that are encountered on the way to the goal.

The human race has always been trying to find new advancement in every aspect of their lives. More often that not, the efforts are launched based on a for of aspired set of goals. The goals attract the resources required to achieve them, whether it is people, budget or other kinds of support. Also, without a purpose, every work done by one person or a group of individual may be sporadic and not sufficiently structured to contribute to something bigger and give more advantages to a larger community.

However, we cannot disregard any discovery or idea encountered during the course of pertaining the predefined goals. Whether or not the objectives are finally achieved, the findings and new ideas noted along the way may be a great use. For an example, the accidental discovery of the penicillin, which is part of a research with a different goal, was greatly beneficial to the world of medicine and human population in general. In another plane, the understanding of different cultures and perspectives gained during years of diplomacy is not only beneficial but required to not only attain, but also to maintain world peace, the ultimate goal for so many.

In addition, it may take longer than a generation's lifetime to achieve a particular goal but the society may gain advantages from ongoing research and development. NASA's projects aimed to sustain life in the outer space, results in many inventions that are also applicable to the life of ordinary people on Earth. We may not see the day the human race starts to colonize Mars, but we can certainly find a way to use the Velcro, Teflon and other technologies originally designed to be used by an astronaut.

So, while it is necessary to formulate goals to spark up a movement, we must also value what we can obtain from the road traveled towards those goals. We may even be able to choose certain roads with more chances of side innovations as milestones than simply going straight for the jackpot.

> scoring guide

Earth Hour

2009-03-25T08:33:00.003+03:00

Iconic places in Jakarta switching off for Earth Hour:

Hotel Indonesia’s roundabout (Bundaran HI) and its fountain
National Monument (Monas) and its fountain
Jakarta City Hall
Statue of Indonesian Youth (Patung Pemuda)
Statue “Arjuna Wiwaha”

Also, Starbucks will switch off some of the lights at their venues and the Nat Geo Channel will suspend normal programming for an hour that night. To make an impact, hubby's office will switch off for an hour during the day. Too bad mine isn't planning anything for this.

What will you switch off?

Singapore for Movie Marathon

2009-03-25T05:16:00.003+03:00

In addition to all sorts of restrictions on imported goods these days, I just heard a discussion on a radio that the Ministry of Culture and Tourism has forced a rule starting this year to inhibit the import of Hollywood films. The first major impact we feel is Watchmen has been delayed indefinitely.They say it is to promote the local film production industry. As if there is not enough Pocong lying around. For a more complete opinionated narrative version in Indonesian, go there. Goodbye high-end cinemas, hello... piracy.. (?)

This is outrageous!
Those Rp0 AirAsia tickets to Batam has started to look very appealing.. Going to check out the complete releases of summer movies in Singapore...

Alternative Weekend

2009-03-25T05:16:00.000+03:00

Jakartans are notorious mallers. Our avid boredom is cured by variety in movies and.. what else, more new malls. Even that is still numbing. With Dufan, Taman Mini and Waterboom crowd being so overwhelming, I found some alternatives. It may not be appealing to everyone, but the most interesting things are just interesting to few, no?

So here's my list of things to do for the next few months:

Muara Angke eco-trip - birdwatching, peeking to the mushy side of the metro..
Taman Buah Mekar Sari - lots of fun activities here, not just fruit picking
Outbondholic Ancol - okay, so this is part of a crowded area too during weekends. However, I hope not that many people have the guts to try out the most extremes, like zipping through the 7-story high flying fox..

Anyone wanna join?

PS-I may update the list should something else comes up. You may want to subscribe to the feed ;)

Birthday Trip

2009-03-11T18:59:00.011+03:00

Sedikit berbagi pengalaman dari suatu pojok dunia..

Daftar TKP
Airport: Untuk sebuah airport internasional yang cukup sibuk, bandara ini cukup garing. Di arrival hall-nya ga ada bau2 'selamat datang di surga dunia' seperti yang mungkin diharapkan penggemar "The Beach". Toko pun cuma sedikit dan adanya setelah lewat imigrasi. Ngomong2 imigrasi, itu kan udah low season, trus denger2 dunia lagi krisis.. cukup mengezutkan (dan menyebalkan juga) kita perlu antri 1 jam buat imigrasi. Itu semua counter udah dibuka.. ga kebayang kalo lagi peak kaya apa. Mestinya mereka punya antrian khusus ASEAN passport ya...
Yah, paling ga toiletnya gaya asia (alias ada semprot2, ga cuma pake tisu aja)

Hotel: Maksud hati ingin mencari new buzz dengan ga melulu tinggal di pinggir pantai, akhirnya memilih hotel Bhukitta yang letaknya di Phuket Town. Downtown, kebayangnya rame, banyak resto dan toko2 yang tourist-friendly. Ternyata meleset beberapa kilometer dari pusat keramaian. Waktu baru dateng itu hari minggu sore. Dua jiwa kelaparan berkeliling di sekitar hotel untuk menemukan ruko2 berlabel huruf cacing yang tutup semua. Akhirnya ketemu 7-eleven yang buka buat beli pop mi dan waktu balik akhirnya resto di depan hotel udah buka.. jadilah kita ber-tom yam (seafood, no pork!) dan ice thai tea ria.
Hotelnya sendiri masih baru. Kecil, bersih, minimalis. Cukup nyaman, asalkan ga mandi di 'jam sibuk' karena airnya jadi ga terlalu hangat :P
Well, at least the free Wi-Fi is superb, a major plus point for some one..

Pulau: Phuket itu jauh lebih besar dari perkiraan gue. Dari hotel ke pantai yang rame (Karon & Patong) perlu kira2 setengah jam. Dari airport ke kotanya aja berasa Jakarta-Bogor, highway-nya enak sih.. Masalahnya, ga semua orangnya sadar pariwisata (baca: ngerti bahasa Inggris). Apalagi tampang kita yang asia banget, jd mereka cuek aja ngomong pake bahasa Thai. Akhirnya paling nyambung memang dengan universal language of Tarzan, dan kalo makan, kudu nyari yang ada tulisan latinnya buat ditunjuk-tunjuk. Jam buka bisnisnya juga aneh.. ada mall yang baru buka jam 11 siang (Starbuck yang terkenal early riser pun, cuma buka 1 jam lebih awal), ada tempat Thai Massage yang baru buka jam 1 siang...

Comm
Soal harga2, memang relatif terjangkau. Ga beda jauh dengan di Jakarta kalo dikurs. Kecuali GSM provider-nya yang aje-gile-mahal-bener. Berhubung ga punya roaming internasional, jadi terpaksa beli nomor lokal. Mengikuti rekomendasi dari supir taksi ("DTEC number one, Thailand"), jadilah beli kartu perdana seharga THB99, yang ternyata pulsanya cuma THB32. Sekali sms abis THB5 (luar-dalem sama) kurang lebih sama dengan nelpon lokal 3 menit.

James Bond Discovery
Ini salah satu tur yang populer di Phuket. Walaupun sampai sekarang ga inget di bagian film Bond yang mana yang ngambil latar di sini, ternyata cukup menarik tempatnya. Mulai dari naik kapal kayu melewati liak-liuk bakau dan jejeran bukit2 batu di tengah laut (i LOVE big things! kayanya ciri khas landscape asia, ya.. di film silat banyak yang begini), keluar masuk goa dengan menumpang kano sambil minum kelapa muda, makan siang (yang sangat telat!) di resto terapung, belanja suvenir dan terakhir mampir ke kuil yang banyak monyetnya. Ngomong2 belanja, yang dagang ga kira2 euy, ngasih harga. Misalnya magnet hiasan kulkas, pertama ngetik di kalkulatornya 450, begitu kita ga tertarik dia ketik lagi 150, ditawar 50 ga dikasih. Besoknya pas jalan ke mall, dapet yang dijual seharga 80 (yey!).

ATV
Asik juga ternyata ngegeber ATV, meskipun lama2 rada pegel dan bising sama suara mesinnya. Pagi menjelang siang, kita iring2an naik gunung di tengah hutan diiringi ringkikan jangkrik, beberapa kali ngelewatin jalan yang lumayan terjal. Sempet foto2 di 2 view points. Bisa beli foto & DVD dari guide-nya juga kalo mau.

Massage
Kudu nyoba, nih.. pijat di tempat asalnya. Berhubung yg di hotel mahal, di sekitar situ ada yang sepertiganya, THB300 buat 1,5jam. Waktu liat2 di area Patong, memang kira2 THB250-300. Tapi di sana sore2, mbak2nya duduk bejejer di depan parlour-nya dengan sarung seragam dan makeup lengkap. Di tempat kita ini, yang mijet mbak2 pake kaos & celana pendek, di kamar yang mirip kos2an dengan 2 kasur di lantai. Mijetnya pun sambil nonton sinetron Thai... halah2.. yasulah.. untung lumayan enak.

Sekian laporan pandangan mata dari utara khatulistiwa. Mulai merasa semakin banyak melanglang buana, semakin cinta negri sendiri ^^.

Surat Pembaca

2009-03-06T04:41:00.003+03:00

... telah dijelaskan kepada yang bersangkutan secara tertulis.

Begitu kira-kira bunyi balasan terhadap keluhan seorang nasabah dalam Surat Pembaca sebuah koran nasional.

Can't help to think, are they really that dumb? Or do they think we are that dumb?
The person who complaint obviously had tried, to no avail, to find some sort of resolution with the company before writing to the paper. Written explanation definitely will not do.

WANT!

2009-03-03T13:09:00.003+03:00

JAMIROQUAI @ Sentul, 8 April 2009

How my world come crumbling down

2009-03-03T04:44:00.002+03:00

Need it, lost it. Can't fight for it. Got nothing to pull through..
and all the happiness in the world felt like a crime

My Cocktail

2009-03-02T05:26:00.001+03:00

Get Your Personality cocktail
From Go-Quiz.com

Engrish Billboard

2009-03-01T13:51:00.005+03:00

a billboard in the southern Jakarta spells out "Come home to serenety...".
one can only guess, whether the name refers to a wife, daugther, maid or the genderuwo chilling on the tree at the front yard.

Caramello @ Kemang

2009-02-28T18:23:00.005+03:00

Caramello baru buka di La Codefin Kemang. Walaupun masih lebih mahal dari langganan yang biasa setelah harganya naik, diskon pembukaan sampai akhir Februari bikin bedanya ga terlalu jauh. Lagipula, dari sekian banyak tempat sejenis dalam radius yang walking distance (yap, ada sebanyak itu), tempat ini masih jauh lebih murah. Jadi, sabtu pagi ini memutuskan untuk langsung datang dan nyoba. Kayanya memang lebih enak go-show, karena ternyata di situ kalo booking rada ribet peraturanya. Ada minimum charge (bisa jadi 2-3 treatment) dan batas waktu keterlambatan. Tapi jadi bisa booking di luar jam kerjanya, dengan tambahan 20% dari total.

Tempatnya bersih dan terkesan pro. Pelayananya juga bagus. Soal sakit, toleransi sakit cewek kayanya sangat bervariasi tergantung siklus, ya. Tapi sih perasaan di sini lebih ga sakit. Hasilnya juga lebih halus dan tanpa iritasi. Bolehlah kapan2 dicoba lagi kalo lagi ga mood ke Ampera.

Janji, Kontrak, Bukti

2009-02-27T09:32:00.005+03:00

Partai banteng hitam berlatar merah itu mencantumkan iklan Kontrak Politik di Kompas hari ini. Mungkin maksudnya penekanan niat dan usaha ketimbang sekedar janji-janji seperti partai-partai lainnya. Tapi apa bedanya, toh sangsi jika tidak memenuhi sama saja: nothing. Bentuk iklan politik lainnya yaitu memamerkan bukti-bukti pencapaian.. lengkap dengan persentase kenaikan dan penurunan ini itu. IMHO, statistik itu tergantung dilihat dari sisi mana, pakai axis berapa dimensi, sampel, dll.. Dengan perbedaan kepentingan tingkat tinggi seperti sekarang, ilmu canggih itu cuma jadi kosmetik.

Mungkin ini menguntungkan untuk partai-partai lama yang sudah punya nama, tapi mungkin lebih baik menilai bukti bukan dari kata-kata orang pertama. Pemberitaan media selama periode pemerintahan baik mengenai keberhasilan ataupun bobroknya pemerintahan bisa jadi lebih terpercaya. Tentunya bukan dari media yang dikontrol politisi juga (jadi inget nonton M**** suatu malam dengan niat update isu dalam negri, bosen sama E! ceritanya, eh... yang ditayangin pidato S**** P**** nan menggebu).

Nia Dinata yang menulis di Kompas kemarinnya, mendambakan calon pemimpin dan politik yang modern. Tidak menggunakan bahasa dan gaya lama yang terkoreografi ("tangan terkepal mangacung" came to mind..). Ada kok, mbak.. yang ga pake penata gaya, tapi bentuknya 3gpp bersetting kamar hotel :P

Apa justru tidak ada yang berani menampilkan wajah sebenarnya karena tidak akan lolos rating PG? Atau ketahuan premannya seperti yang baru-baru ini transkrip rapatnya dengan Dirut Pertamina beredar (ada yg mo pilih dia lagi?).
Hopeless-lah..

PS-Pemilu 2009 joke of the day: Ahmad Dhani for VP. Oh wait, it's for real?

Me Want Green

2009-02-27T08:59:00.002+03:00

Deep Indonesia 2009

2009-02-26T13:23:00.004+03:00

this I won't miss..

Booking Blogs

2009-02-25T11:40:00.006+03:00

Been blogwalking lately, mostly to local blogger sites. Despite half of it are monetized and thus not really that interesting, there sure is much more content than when I started mine 5 years ago (yey..). Some of them got the honor to be published offline. Several actually have a legitimate interesting topic, such as the shopahollic and the travelhollic. Others are just manic ramblings of day to day lives. With the materials ready and followers collected (the publishers practically left with the job of hitting the "Print" button), I'm guessing the trend will not falter soon.

In another part of the world, by another kind of writers, blogs are used in the opposite way. Blogs are used to support the books, updating issues and letting the author interact with the readers. Like this one here, freakonomics, where the book is so groundbreaking that I decided to follow the updates on the blog.

IMHO, web and book each has specific characteristics. Sometimes mixing the two works, but when it doesn't... you shouldn't push it.

Why I Don't Go

2009-02-24T12:39:00.005+03:00

A few of my friends found it odd that I'm not going to the Java Jazz festival this year. I take it as a compliment, that they may see me as a hip music enthusiast ^^. Well, aside from that major belt tightening I have to do until next year... jazz is actually not really my thing.

It still is the best company while lounging and sipping caramel macchiato. Great for groovin' too, with a bit of acid in it (the jazz, not the coffee). Other than that, I don't really know much about the genre. For instance, I only recognized less than half of the names listed as performers in the Java Jazz. Tak kenal maka tak sayang?

My main reason of not going, however, is the crowd. Not a big fan of a big crowd. Gives me headache, particularly when predominant by ABGs. Rather be enjoying an unknown band with quality, somewhere with room to breath.

Today in Six Words

2009-02-20T16:47:00.001+03:00

Done little, spending the night alone.

On Hating

2009-02-19T12:56:00.003+03:00

should you hate just because you should?

personally, i could only be consumed with this particular sin when the object of my hatred had something to do with me. someone thrashing on my country may be as far as it goes. in the heat of the current situation, people are quick to judge. this spread of hate is not comforting, i should say..

say country I is in war with country P. country U is an ally of country I, but not physically involved in the war. Mr.X is a citizen of another country, happens to have the same religion with the majority of country P. Mr.X automatically despises everything about country U (and country I, of course).

maybe Mr.X feels such a strong brotherhood bonding with those residing in country P. he may not realize there are good things coming from another part of the world he collectively hate.

will it be a hypocrisy if we do not hate something in its entirety?
if we choose to not appeal to a principle, should we hate everything based on it?
how can a good thing such as brotherhood bonding results in so much hatred?

Being Boring

2009-02-18T14:26:00.004+03:00

I totally agree with an article I stumbled upon recently, that one of the things a mom would be is boring. Talking endlessly about playgroups, schools, diapers, milk, child doctors & medicines, recipes... maybe it's because i do not relate to that kind of life, at all. The thing is, those topics need to be talked about. As time goes by, choosing schools get more and more complicated, and even the wrong kind of milk could kill you. Perhaps someday I would be that kind of boring. Considering I'm not that exciting as I am now, how bleak would that make me?

Now, I am not a celebrity (thank God!). There is no requirement for me to be interesting, but what if I bore myself out? That's not a very nice way to nirvana...

Be all that you can be.

Switching it up could be a good idea. I could still be the reserved, geeky me but doing different stuff. Not necessarily exciting stuff. Just interesting enough for the time being. Probably that's why I always look for new things. Luckily I am settled in the guy area. Juggling works and loves is just asking to be insane.

The Lesser of All Evil

2009-02-18T06:07:00.003+03:00

Nothing's perfect. Even the combination of the best people may not result in the best outcome. So when we have to choose, sometime all we can do is vote for the lesser evil and hope for the best. IMHO, people who do not vote or those who tell others not to vote are either stupid or do not care enough.

First of all, GOLPUT does not change anything. The Government will not collapse if the majority decided not to draw a few tick marks. The people just gave away the rights to rule to those wanting to rule, for the better and worse reasons. It's like opening your house wide open and letting robbers get away with anything. Can't you at least fight for it?

Darwin debate aside, and with high hopes in progressing education, I believe in natural selection. It will get better. If it's not, it will destroy itself and something new will take it over.

Phuket Trip - Planning

2009-02-17T12:50:00.004+03:00

Dalam rangka memanfaatkan kebijakan bebas fiskal bagi pemilik NPWP, diriku berhasil menyeret misua untuk ngerayain ultah di Phuket *victory dance*. Alasannya, denger2 pantainya keren dan ga sejauh Maladewa (kapan juga bisa terdampar di sana...).

Sekitar awal tahun ini, dimulailah riset dan perencanaan (halah, ribetnya..) liburan kali ini. Sebenarnya, cukup banyak promo paket tour untuk tujuan Thailand. Salah satunya dari Mandiri Travel Center yang harganya cukup ekonomis, bisa dicicil pula. Kapan2 harus dimanfaatkan itu, tujuan lain mgk... Masalahnya, semua info tour yang saya dapat, melalui kota Bangkok sebagai tempat transit. Dengan kejadian demo besar2an tidak lama lalu yang menyebabkan bandara internasional Bangkok ditutup berhari-hari, sepertinya kalau bisa ada pilihan rute lain akan lebih aman. Tambahan lagi, sebisa mungkin kita mau memanfaatkan Frequent Flyer Milleage yang sudah saya tumpuk selama 2 tahun tour of duty :P Kayaknya kalau paket, ga bisa redeem.

Cari punya cari, ketemu penerbangan AirAsia dari Singapore langsung ke Phuket, dengan harga promo SGD 25 sekali jalan (plus2 tentunya, tapi lumayanlah..). Yippeee, artinya bisa pake tiket redeem ke Changi dan tinggal cari tiket murah dr situ buat pulang. Ngirit abis, mang.. Plus, jadi bisa mampir Ikea Singapore nunggu transit pulang :D

Berikutnya, mencari akomodasi.
Nominasi pertama, beli paket dari GoHoliday AirAsia: hotel + transfer from/to airport, karena katanya bisa lebih murah. Tapi setelah 'berselancar' (masih virtual, blm sampai pantai soalnya), ternyata kalau beli pretelan masih lebih murah. Di sini, nih... tantangannya. Apalagi dengan tujuan wisata yang sudah 'pro' seperti Phuket, banyak penawaran yang tersebar di seantero jagad internet (Bali kapan kaya gini, ya?). Harus sabar membandingkan antar situs, antar paket. Tentunya diutamakan situs yang certified oleh departemen pariwisata sana. Bikin pusing, tapi bikin seneng juga. Sempet kepikiran, apa jadi konsultan jalan2 aja, ya? :P

Anyway, salah satunya situs yang laik rekomendasi dari segi harga & kelengkapan (hotel, activities, transfer, etc) itu Hotel Thailand. Kalau mau go-show bisa sih. Kata nyokap yang pernah ke Bangkok, begitu sampe terminal kedatangan, bakal banyak banget yang nawarin paket liburan. Tapi berhubung parno kena tipu, kalo bisa, ya direncanain aja semuanya dr rumah.

Akhirnya itenarary pun jadi. Voucher hotel beli di situs A & ATV di HotelThailand.com, transfer pesen langsung ke hotelnya, voucher kayaking di Phuket Easy Tour (yang agak2 risky karena ga ada tools pesen buat tanggal berapa & emailnya ga dibales.. tp beda jauh ama yang lain, jd dicoba ajalah). Lumayan lama nyusun ini, sampai harus geser jadwal berangkat karena tiket promo-nya tiba2 fully booked >.<

Updated after the trip:
Except for a few expected glitch, iyalah.. masa murah mo lancar & enak semua.. ternyata lumayan sukses juga perencanaannya. Paling ga, trip yang dipilih memang lebih murah beberapa ratus Bath kalo pesen via Internet. Cerita komplitnya menyusul ya...

Reality Bites

2009-02-13T06:02:00.003+03:00

sometimes it gives you inspiration beyond beliefs
the overwhelming diversity
unexpected outcomes

when it distracts, it blocks
dampening your own thoughts with its buzzing noise

sometimes it drives, fuels
other times it halts, pushing everything back, down

no constant
many surprises, but not enough

Recession do Good?

2009-02-10T04:43:00.003+03:00

With the recession causing the automobile industry tanking low, the growth of new cars rolling on the road is at check.
With less money, people travel less. The airlines around the world are already reporting decrease in number of passengers.
Factories closing down, productions dwindling..

I wonder whether it will all have any impact on this year's level of CO2 pollution. Finally reversing the global warming?

No Stress - Anggun

2009-02-02T11:57:00.002+03:00

I don’t wanna work today
Maybe I just wanna stay
Just take it easy cause there is no stress.

I know it’s not an awful crime
Something special in my mind
Nothing’s gonna cause me distress.

I text my baby on her phone
Try to get her Sexy body home
That’s the way I wanna spend my day

Got to find an alibi
Cause I don’t wanna waste my time
I don’t wanna feel this stress.

It’s not that I’m lazy
I think I’m just crazy
I’m just crazy

No stress

I think I’m just crazy
No need to fight against my feelings
Because the life is not depressing

No stress
Oohoo

Let The Music Heal Your Soul

2009-01-31T04:22:00.003+03:00

RULES of THE GAME
1. Put your music on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1. WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
Get Your Number - Mariah Carey
(laku, nih.. :P)

2. WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
Lesson Learned - Alicia Keys
(yep, wisdom got to do it)

3. HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
Leaving on a Jet Plane - Chantal Kreviazuk
(oh, wow.. right on the spot!)

4. WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
Coffee & TV - Blur
(damn, my shuffler knows me!)

5. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
Waiting for a Girl Like You - Paul Anka
(hm.. maybe my future daugther?)

6. WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
Jealous Ghost - MJ
(yes, I'm jealous of many things..)

7. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
Dream You - Stacie Orrico

8. WHAT IS 2+2?
When will I see your face again - Jamie Scott

9. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
End of the Road - Boyz II Men

10. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Linda Ronstadt
(awww.....)

11. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
Introduction - Fort Minor
(always introducing myself? sounds like a business woman)

12. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
Girl from Ipanema - Stan Gets & Astrud Gilberto

13. WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
Bad Day - Daniel Powter
(at least it's sad..)

14. WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
Cool - Gwen Stefani
(I didn't have it then, but it would've been nice)

15. WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
Surrender - All Saints
(take me, Prince! hehe...)

16. WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
There they go - Fort Minor
(yep, this chick goes places)

17. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
All About Us - Tatu
(well, that's big..)

18. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
Butterfly - India Arie

19. WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
Ghetto Superstar - Mya
(somehow it reminds me of Akon, right Met? ;D)

20. WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
Can I Walk with You - India Arie
(tears of happiness here..)

21. WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
Thank You - Christina Aguilerra
(weird sense of humor, this media player has..)

22. WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
Control Myself - LL Cool J
(guess I should've let loose more, huh)

23. HOW WILL YOU DIE?
I am Falling in Love - Tompi
(Valentine mood alert!)

24. WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
Things - Robbie Williams
(I have, guess I'm gonna have things in it)

25. WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
Red Island - Cafe del Mar
(now this is funny)

26. DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
Petrified - Fort Minor
(muahahaha... I sound intimidating alright)

27. WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
My Funny Friend and Me - Sting
(imaginary evil friend?)

28. IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
Nobody's Fool - Avril Lavigne
(gone to bring back some education, be right back!)

29. WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
Let The Music Heal Your Soul - Bravo All Star
(great title!)

Grandeur

2009-01-18T14:31:00.002+03:00

yes this is true 'coz what i do no one can do it better
--When I Grow Up, PCD

some people live for greatness. they have such non-stop drives that belittling others like mad. or it's just me. been having an intimidated period. by what? don't really know.. probably by my own expectations. in my case, it's rather depressing than motivating really.

then again, there is no uniform standard on how one's value is measured. i guess it depends on what one's expect in life. personally, i would like to live life to the fullest. my version of full, however, does not include running international companies. i would, in turn, leave some kind of mark. how primal is that?

2009-01-11T10:38:00.005+03:00

One said that "Life is what happens when you're busy making plans." So, what if I go through life without long term planning? Seems like it's been going on that way this far anyway. Maybe it's my style, my niche, my comfort zone (how's that for irony?). Or maybe, I am too afraid to screw up any plan I come up with. A trace of OCD left from my childhood.

It doesn't matter much why, though. The complication is now coming from someone else whom I happen to vowed to be one with, forever. That someONE could turn into TWO or THREE in a blink of an eye. So, I could go by with nothing, but would it be irresponsible not to have plan for my significant others? Contrary to the visage, I don't think it as strings attached. It's just another challenge how to infuse me and the rest of me. It may not be the form followed by the general public, which is part of the challenge. Just wish me luck on this.

Doing Different Things

2009-01-10T10:52:00.003+03:00

I'm starting to think that career is overrated.

Growing up where I was, surrounded with people doing what they learn in college, it seems to be such a waste doing otherwise. Even more considering I went to a state university. The description of someone I aspired to be would be: I have been a for 20 years, recently promoted to VP position, have 2 genious kids and drive my own Audi. In short, a superwoman. Now, after 2 years on the same job, 20 seems like such a waste to be doing just one thing. The world is just right outside the door, offering so much.

Maybe I didn't get the job I was supposed to. Not many does in their first time. Nonetheless, I can't help to wonder whether I am more suited doing short term projects, different thing each time. Walking the "abnormal" route is never comfy, though. I feel like I would be unfocused, having no special skills on which someone, in my perspective at least, are valued in the job industry.

Yes, twenties is the time to be confused, trying out things. I don't find youngsters with such a vivid and rigid mind what they'll be when they grow up that intriguing anymore. How can you decided what to do for the rest of your life when you know so little?

Kawai!!

2009-01-09T11:14:00.000+03:00

OX

2009-01-09T06:21:00.002+03:00

new year, new ...

: Traffic Management
This town is doomed. The shifting of school schedule to release some traffic jam in the morning lasted for about 2 days. Then, the new equilibrium is reached. With the current governor abandoning busway, so much for a better mass transport. No new progress here, I suspect..

: Travel Rules
Despite the going-abroad tax being totally erased by 2011, it's still exciting to be able to get the privilege early. AND, ASEAN citizens traveling to other ASEAN countries should get 20-30% discount on accomodations and stuff. How cool is that?! The exchange rate is not that supportive though, but heck.. it could still be a cheaper holiday abroad than roaming the seas and islands of this archipelago (tanya kenapa?). Time to redeem those mileages... muahahahaha... Gosh, I really wish I could make a living out of travelling.

: Global Talks
There'll be a new guy running the House/World. there are so much expectations on this rather inexperienced figure that there's just bound to be some disappointment. his "dire" comment on the economic crisis is one. The way i see it, economic downturn is just a way to get things into balance. spreading of wealth, people getting the opportunity to try new things...
About the war(s), well, I rather comment on people protesting the war. First, it's stupid to destroy KFC counters. Secondly, if you want to boycott certain country's products, with today's free trade... it could be tricky. The products could be anywhere.. So in the end, who's the hypocrite?

Brow

2009-01-09T05:28:00.008+03:00

Quotes of the day:

< mythbusters >
am i missing an
eye brow?
< /mythbusters >

--Adam Savage's T-Shirt

When in doubt, C4.

-- Jamie Hyneman

One Borderline Insanity

2008-12-29T17:55:00.006+03:00

From Bali 2008

This is one proof that I can lack fear and consideration when the facts are known and the chance of excitement is greater than the chance of death :) So, during a trip to Bali my rockin' partner and I decided to walk right up to the Double Six Club at Seminyak, climbed the AJ Hackett tower and stared at the face of Doom... muahahahaha... Well, it' more of a Beautiful-Setting-Sun off the beach than Doom, but one couldn't help to be dramatic being swayed by the wind 150 feet off the ground. We were lucky enough to get a treat up there. Right before our turn, the jump master was getting strapped to a motorbike, ramming the engine mad and off he went, vroomed into thin air.

So there we were, strapped together at the edge of crazy. Without wasting much time, logic and courage, we jumped.. screaming our lungs out. It feels like floating towards the sea at first before a split second later when the law of parabolic motion took over and the view of swimming pool rushed towards us. The blood rushed to the head when the bungy string gently bounced us up and around. I have to say, the stupefying weightlessness gave a sense of an amazing freedom. Only by the sound of people clapping and cheering below that I realized we were not alone. By the 4th bounce, however, the headache started to set in and it was time to touch down.

Back to the reception desk, with shaky hands and blushed cheek still, we grabbed our cool T-shirts and reminisce the glory. It was a great afternoon.

>> video (warning: full of manic screams)

The Problem with Pemilu 2009

2008-12-18T05:09:00.003+03:00

It's democracy at its freest form. Workshops and advertising of political consultancy are going public now as practically anyone could nominate themselves as Caleg, a house rep. With 44 parties enrolled, each could have up to a dozen individual candidates to choose, the election is gonna be one big headache. With old school bureaucracy at its heart, this doesn't help much.

The thing about direct voting is, you really need to know the candidates at personal level. This is the beginning of the problem, specially with people my age, whose colleagues are not "up there" yet. How are you going to believe that a person has enough grit to fight for what you need? Even after you are convinced, that person is not necessarily belong to the right party (i.e. fighting for what you believe in).

The banners costing the nominees so much and causing a complete utter destruction of cities' aesthetics, are also as empty as my bank account. People, I need to know your vision! I don't need your detailed facial expressions or your education titles (those are meaningless nowadays). A simple Jujur, Berani & Setia could deliver so much more than an "S.Sos", don't you agree? Less pompous too (so what if you have a degree).

Why isn't anyone put up an online campaign HQ where you could ask questions directly to the candidates (and get anwers, of course)? I know it's a small percentage, but it could win the hearts of the future I-generation.

Golput is gonna rave high next year, sadly. Well, at least it's supporting the economy a bit for a year in this global crisis.

Shift

2008-11-27T12:15:00.001+03:00

There are a lot of traditional mindframes should be updated nowadays, or at least mine. Especially in the light of the current economic turnmoil. Wealth of a nation for example. Now I wouldn't guess that the top 5 richest countries could go bankrupt or that developing countries rule the global growth. The future is getting more and more unexpected.

Media and communication
A bag with 2 handphone slots seem to be absurd 5 years ago. Now, one may need a whole bag just to carry gadgets. GSM phone, CDMA phone, Blackberry, laptop, IPod, Nintento DS... consumerism's triumph against technological convergence? The change in media transforms the way people communicate. I still found it weird that someone with rigid facial expression could be very creative using emoticons.

The world is getting younger
When I was a kid, looking up to great people inspiring the world... people in their 30s and beyond. Now, 20s seem to rule with their ideas, guts, and newly found wisdom.

T.G.I.F Tunes

2008-11-21T12:02:00.001+03:00

... coz being a DJ seems to be much more interesting this time of the week.

Put Your Record On - Corrine Bailey Rae
Dance into the Light - Phil Collin
Dance like there's No Tomorrow - Paula Abdul
Rock Steady - All Saints
Dance into the Night - Santana feat. Chad Kroeger
Hey Mama - BEP
Crazy in Love - Beyonce
Lose My Breath - Destiny's Child
Mercy - Duffy
American Boy - Estelle feat. Kanye West
As - George Michael feat.
Love Foolosophy - Jamiroquai
All For You - Janet Jackson
Wordplay - Jason Mraz
Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing - John Legend
Sexyback - Justin Timberlake
Flashing Light - Kanye West
Wow - Kylie Minogue
Harder to Breathe - Maroon 5
Just Fine - Mary J. Blige
Grace Kelly - Mika
Beautiful - Moby
No Sleep Tonight - The Faders
Closer - Ne-yo
When I Grow Up - PCD
Get the Party Started - Pink
Don't Stop the Music - Rihanna
Rock DJ - Robbie Williams
Get Busy - Sean Paul
I Like to Move it - Madagascar OST
Push the Button - Sugababes

An Unjust Life

2008-10-31T09:01:00.003+03:00

Nope.
Got nothing to complain except the terrifying notion that it would someday balance out. You heard it well, when it seems too good to be true...

You know, when all is against you, there's a bunch of folks and self help books ready to assist you on being strong. But what if everything is in favour of you? Of course greed should be avoided (barely) and I did try to spread some good karma around. Nevertheless, it's difficult to be content when we know that others are miserable.. and that person could easily be us. In an instant.

Oh well, why not enjoy it while it lasts.

Titling

2008-10-18T04:35:00.004+03:00

Somebody grumbled when I circled 'Ms.' instead of 'Mrs.' for the Title field in some form last weekend ^^. it's not that i'm not used to being a spouse, but I've always chosen 'Ms.', even when there is a 'Miss' option. I think that the ambiguity gives a certain aura of mystery which is kinda cool. Besides, 'Mrs.' gives connotations of someone old and.. owned. Even more, titling myself a 'Mrs.' without changing my last name doesn't sound right. "Mrs. Budiarti" will probably refer to my same-gender life partner.

So why on earth did the form creator, which is a legal entity in Indonesia, choose to westernize the form instead of using the more equally sound 'Bapak' and 'Ibu'? They did not need to further complicate it by throwing in 'Nona', for sure. 'Nona' sounds so naive, Hollandish and so 60s, don't you think?

I once came across a Malaysian website which has the longest Title option list I ever encountered. They have local titles aside the western ones, plus the royalty titles (malaysian AND british). Being overly respectful or just plain a waste of time?

Marriot Dance Ad

2008-10-16T02:55:00.002+03:00

Love this!

Artsy Blogthings

2008-10-12T16:15:00.002+03:00

You Are Ballet

You are quite introverted. You enjoy keeping to yourself and cultivating your talents.

You are dedicated and focused. If practice makes perfect, you're willing to keep practicing.

While some people may dismiss you as boring, you can be quite edgy and interesting.

You can fit in almost anywhere... and your style ranges from conservative to funky.

What Dance Are You?

You Are Best Described By...

Composition with Red, Blue, Yellow

By Piet Mondrian

What Famous Work of Art Are You?

Kemang Sushi Ranking

2008-10-12T16:00:00.006+03:00

After around 3 months dwelling in the heart of Kemang, Jakarta, I managed to rank in the Japanese snack vaganza within 300m radius of my crib. Mind you, I love fusion sushi, so to the hard core, traditional, Sushi-Tei mania, this list may not apply. The criteria is the combination of taste and value for money.

Japanese Sushi Roll

24-hour Dim Sum

Sumo Sushi

Body Shop

Chopstix

Tamnak Thai

Sushi Nobu

QB bookstore

Sushi Underground

Some

Sushi Mise

La Codefin

Next time you're in the area and have the urge to binge raw fish, you'll know where to go ;)

My First Global Financial Crisis

2008-10-06T12:48:00.003+03:00

It sucks that my mutual funds have been having a thrill sliding down to the bottom pit of capital hell, but other than that, the panic on the other side of the Earth has not seem to affect much to life here. The Lebaran season, the upcoming election, and for me personally, the recent promotion and not-as-lame-as-last-year raise are giving a shelter to otherwise a very puzzling mess.

I've read the Subprime Mortgage for Dummies comic a friend of mine sent me. I attempted to find rationalizations in Newsweek articles, which in the end gave me even more headache. Honestly, I still cannot figure out how such a huge mass of supposedly smart people got very stupid... together. Somebody must have seen it coming... anybody..?

Yet, in this unsettling condition when everybody is looking for security, we may take up on a big risk, making us very brave.. and maybe also very stupid. I barely got into a comfort of a stable career, which is just another way of saying I almost got bored to death. Being young and, well, sometime stupid, I always treasure my chance of trying out and doing things I enjoy. After all, last time we were hit with a crisis, some people actually turned it to their advantages.

Udah Isi?

2008-09-05T04:40:00.002+03:00

Okay, I know that it is a standard chit-chat line upon encountering a newlywed. Something so common that you have to be the subject to realize how it can be incredibly annoying, or even offensive.

First, how if the girl isn't expecting, but just gaining a teeeeny.... bity weight on? ;P
Next, consider a couple trying hard to get pregnant, but have not been successful?
Or, they just simply want to hold it off a while... which in the mind of en elder Javanese, might be weird if not unheard of. Then it continues with vague advice not to put it off. With a demanding smile, of course. As if they have any say when the couple should start the production line.

I have not come at peace with our society's need for small talks... and this just adds the awkwardness.

Zeke and the Popo

2008-08-26T08:34:00.002+03:00

Thank you, Guys!

for having such a cute name
for being on the billboard at SCBD
for putting a smile on my face and upping my morning spirits

I may never know your music, but I sure love how your name sounds! =D

Quick Update

2008-08-13T12:03:00.000+03:00

Let's start like most people do, with the weather: it's beginning to gloom after months of bright sunshine. Really sucks on mondays.
IHSG just touched the lowest point during the 2008 period, despite the decrease in oil price. I got my confirmation that IDX is heavily dependant to stocks from mining industries (like, D'OH).
Recent survey shows that nearly 90% of junior high girls smoke. The MUI (Islamic Leader Convention) is preparing to formally ban smoking.
Another stupid war just broke.

All this shows how far i've got from being a positive thinker, huh?

Liv @ Plangi Sky Dining

2008-08-13T05:24:00.003+03:00

Deriving from the ad posters, at first I thought the Sky Dining at the 10th floor of Plaza Semanggi is an extravagant dining place. The kind that is suitable for a cheesy/formal one-year annyversary celebration. Then a friend of mine rebutted the image by saying that there is Solaria up there. Well, must not be that extravagant, eh..

So we gave it a try. Lucky it was a clear night, because the first thing to notice is the area is an open air dining court. Sure they have tents, but avoiding getting winded, we took up the seat inside one of the restaurants there, Liv. The place is actually cozy and the view from the glass window is quite pretty. I don't think the charm is working like it's supposed to, though. It was pretty desserted with only 2 tables with guests on a weeknight. That makes the waiters become a bit over attentive (read: annoying).

Now, some words from the taste buds. The dim sum sucks, but the main course is tasty. The Sze chuan bean curd and the lemon fried squid really were satisfying. The bill was less than 150K for 2 persons.

For you who are not so interested in eating, there is a pool bar to lounge around. By the way, to save the elevator ride, if you plan to visit here, bring cash. Most restaurants have not installed digital payment station yet.

I dove Bunaken!

2008-07-22T12:38:00.007+03:00

This is the real life. The one back there, isn't.
--a South African diver pointing at the sand, sea & sky, commenting on our returning to Jakarta

It's been 4 years since I received my A1 diving certification and with the alarming rate of global warming, it was about time to pay a visit to the best place to dive.

We were blessed with clear weather when we flew over the islands north of Sulawesi and caught the breathtaking view of green-blue gradations of the shore lines. So there we landed, on the city of Manado which apparently is having major developments as the preparation for the very first
World Ocean Conference next year. We were picked up at the airport together with a South African couple and their 15-month-old baby. Passing through the little hilly city, we joined another group of fellow tourists at the boat heading to the Bunaken island. About 40 minutes later, we set foot at the Bastianos
resort in Liang beach, greeted by orange squash and Marley tunes.

Took the chance to sign the diving safety disclaimer while waiting for our bags to be unloaded from the boat. Some of the guests went straight to the beach with their snorkles, taking what's left of the afternoon sun.

Bunaken is truly a cozy retreat for sea lovers. There is no bustling clubs and local traders pushing you to buy things. There is only a small marketplace selling souvenirs and snacks (bakso, instant noodles and coconuts) near the small building showcasing the island's richness in bio-diversity. Snorkling is truly at your fin tips. Just walk a few meter off shore and there you go, the Nemo family in their anemone homes, starfish and a variaty of corals for your viewing pleasure. The snorkling area is so shallow during the day at low tide that it may be difficult swimming without scratching on something or to return to the beach without threading carefully on the sand.

With a little boat ride, we snorkled alongside the plunging wall, being careful not to get trapped in strong current. There are numerous schools of colorful fishes, in this area. It's like swimming in a huge aquarium. We even caught a glimpse of a sea turtle, just swimming lazily near the surface.

Since my other half has no dive certificate, our diving session at the Lekuan spot was limited only to 15m. But even at that shallow depth, there are so many bautiful things to see! Sure beat the washed off dead corals I saw at my first dive off shore Pramuka island. Being a non-maritime biology background nor enthusiast, I prefer snorkling though. Since the sunlight can still show the true colors of the creatures. Down there, without some kind of artificial lighting, all are bluish. Plus, my head does not seem to handle pressure very well.

We were truly blessed with clear weather during our stay. About two weeks afterwards, my Dad went to Manado for a convention and the could not cross over to the island due to bad weather. So, check the predictions thoroughly if you want to go.

NB: thx to Nadine's blog, I know that Bastianos has installed Wi-Fi ;)

more info: Dive North Sulawesi
photo album

what happened before...

Lilin, Lulur & Leisure (Part 2)

2008-07-22T06:37:00.001+03:00

Tradispa
Penasaran karena sering lewat spa di pojokan Cibubur ini, akhirnya mampir juga. Ternyata bangunan 2 tingkat dengan 8 ruangan (inc. 2 ruangan utk couple), 2 kamar mandi dan 2 ruangan berendam ini menghadap ke sawah. Asri dan bebas desing hair dryer & bau obat rambut, tidak seperti di kebanyakan 'salon & spa' lain. Paket2nya juga ga terlalu mahal, yang paling lengkapnya Rp300 ribu (4 jam). Khusus perawatan pernikahan ada paket Rp1 jt untuk 4 kali datang selama sebulan. Berhubung waktu itu tinggal 2 minggu sebelum hari-H, akhirnya ditawari versi ekspresnya, Rp450 ribu (5 jam).

Setelah ganti baju dengan kimono & disposable panty yang disediain, hari itu dimulai dengan senam. Ceritanya sih untuk melemaskan otot sekaligus latihan kegel. Tapi capek juga, mirip2 pilates. Setelah itu baru dipijat, lulur, facial (bisa pilih yg ga usah dipencet-pencet kalo takut jd radang), hair spa diiringi musik2 instrumental dan kemudian favorit gue: mandi kembang =) berasa putri banget, meskipun agak terganggu dengan bau rempah2 yang dicampur ke airnya. Sauna di-skip karena rada keliyengan entah kenapa, padahal dikasih kue2 dan buah setelah mandi. Akhirnya langsung ratus lalu meni-pedi aja.

IMHO, tempat ini recommended bgt. Fasilitas & alat2nya bersih, dekor Jawa-Balinya bikin nyaman, staffnya juga lumayan pro. Setelah selesai, bisa duduk2 sambil ngeteh or ngopi di gazebonya yang menghadap sawah. Staffnya bilang, sawah di situ selalu hijau. Jadi kapan aja ke sana bisa sambil mengistirahatkan mata yang sepet kebanyakan liat monitor komputer... speaking of which, signing out dulu.

Lilin, Lulur & Leisure (Part 1)

2008-07-08T13:00:00.003+03:00

Dalam rangka persiapan menjadi pajangan sehari, aji mumpunglah mencoba bermacam paket perawatan diri.

Studio Wax Poetre
OK, bagian ini kecil pengaruhnya buat penampilan luar di hari-H dan lebih berguna untuk malam-H ;P tapi sebenernya udah lama juga mau coba berhubung gue lebih suka yang licin2. Awalnya tanya2 tempat yang bagus dan dapet rekomendasi di daerah Petogogan. cuman ya, begitu denger di situ antri lama esp. wiken plus ga bisa booking, akhirnya dicoba alternatif berikutnya: tempat baru di Ampera yang katanya co-owned by Wulan Guritno.

Waktu Sabtu siang ke sana ga begitu rame, cuma nunggu gantian dengan 2 orang yang dateng duluan karena 'ruang kerja'nya cuma disekat untuk 4 orang sekali masuk. Tempatnya lumayan nyaman dengan ruang tunggu kecil dan kamar mandi yang lumayan lega buat bebersih sendiri. Selain waxing, bisa bleaching, threading, meni-pedi n ada pijet juga dengan harga yang cukup terjangkau (Rp 18.000 - Rp 160.000).

Jadi gimana pengalaman penyiksaan dirinya?
Pertama, gue ga menyangka kalo pengerjaannya perlu segitu banyak ronde (btw, ini ambil paket full brazillian) alias dijebret berkali-kali ajah. Dan walaupun Ms. Guritno bilang tempatnya ini spesialis waxing tanpa sakit, there is no such thing. Tapi entah toleransi sakit gue tinggi atau gara2 pengalaman usus buntu & luka pipi dlm gara2 geraham yang luar biasa sakitnya, atau memang dia kerjanya bagus, ga sesakit itu tuh. Justru lebih 'mengganggu' waktu di-threading dan di-pluck pake pinset buat bersih2 terakhirnya.

Hasilnya cukup memuaskanlah, dengan 30 ribu saja. Halus, bersih, dan sehari setelahnya udah ga berasa iritasi lagi. Buat yang mau booking, bisa telepon ke (021) 781 3841.

Next: Tradispa...

Go use your bandwith for a good cause...

2008-06-18T05:43:00.000+03:00

Green Living

2008-06-13T11:03:00.002+03:00

So I'm starting to handle our own (rented) place. At the light of the Green trend, having the classical (soon-to-be) newlywed issue of saving up and living in a tropical environment, I picked up a few areas to save energy/electricity bill--temperature related.

# Forget temperature regulating water dispenser
This is one convenience we could easily live without and yet I rarely found a home not using one. Boiling water, especially using gas stove instead of electric jug should be much more efficient than warming it up all day long. For the cold stuff, the fridge (which is more of a must-have) is more than happy to provide chills. They even got the types with built-in ice and water dispenser but in my experience, these add-ons often break quickly and thus become annoying useless accessories. Anyway, the fridge is also more efficient loaded than empty. Hence, when there's a lack of binging supply, just fill it up with bottles of H2O.

# Air Conditioner vs Air Cooler
Here is another way to optimize Garfield's favourite home appliance. Air cooler, basically a standing fan column unit, uses ice water to emit cool air. It looks better than those round plastic fans, uses much less electricity and is much more affordable than Air-Con (about 20% of the price). Suitable for living room and such where you do not spend the whole day/night in. When Air-Con is a must, they have ones with wattage as low as 300. I prefer the smart ones too, progammable to live and die alternately every 2 hours or so.

# Water heater
The ones with water container are so last year. The ones that heat up water instantly, thus only need to exerts power for the 10 minutes you spend in the shower as oppose to the whole day, or hours before you take your bath. It's surprisingly compact and affordable (about Rp1.5 million).

So much for Renaissance

2008-05-26T12:47:00.001+03:00

I planned to pick up the new mock invitation for my wedding that morning. As usual, I surfed through the news on TV, paying a bit more attention due to the raising demonstrations against fuel price increase. A scene of raging youngsters throwing stuff at the Anti Anarchy Force made me change plans in an instance, for the location was in the vicinity of my destination. Turned out the rumbles started the evening before, continued on to the next day and ended in a bloody raid by the Police.

A hurting reminiscent of what happened 10 years ago...

Merely a week has passed since the glorious national celebration, in which I opposed the booing from the audience when the Police Brigade performed. Shame, that the troops had to live up to the expectation.

I Am Legend alternate ending

2008-05-25T10:11:00.001+03:00

Next Stops

2008-05-15T09:51:00.005+03:00

... there.

then, with a bit more fortune... here.

Indonesia: 10 years in reform

2008-05-12T12:53:00.003+03:00

I was in junior high when I found out that man hunting down man did not happen in war zones only. A realization that I had been living in a false sense of security puzzled me. I used to think that being a democratic nation was what it was said in the text books, people being able to voice their opinions. I started to question our history and everything that had been taught to me.

Entering the university later on, the student community seemed to hold on to their '98 glory. They fueled the new recruits by attaching the "Agent on Change" label. Today, the fresh bloods that started the ball rolling a decade ago are still outnumbered by the old faces. Let me quote my friend to describe the achievement so far:

Indonesia is below Iraq in GDP ranking, and Iraq is in the state of war.

Has it made life any better? Considering the poverty level, probably not... not yet anyway (crossing fingers hard for 2015 Development Goal). However, considering how it would suck living in one of the world's Internet black holes, which without the turnover may very well include us, I would say I'm quite happy with ourselves now.

So for me, what happened 10 years ago was a revelation. Reforming is growing up. A lot of stupid mistakes along the way are inevitable, so it seems. Being a continuous process, we may never arrive to what we expect as the outcome. But I'd like to have faith in people. I'd like to believe that we get better every day and it is possible because ten years ago the House of People's Representative really became the house of the people. Sadly, it's now more of the House of the Elites, Deaf and Morons.

Ten years of reformation. A hundred years of renaissance. What have you done for your country?

Jazz Dance @ Fitness First

2008-05-10T12:21:00.003+03:00

Fitness First has just included Jazz to its array of Group Exercise classes in Jakarta. As a dance lover myself, it's pretty exciting to finally got the chance to experience one of the groovy contemporary branch of ballet. Took up the weekend class at the Pacific Place with Dede (a pro dancer, judging from his dance shoes) as the instructor. Surprisingly, there are quite a few guys joining the class.

Now, if you think it has a lot to do with jazz music, you are mistaken. The music is some instrumental electro upbeat thing that's a bit 80s. So is the choreography, which somehow reminds me a bit of Ari Tulang style with a lot of posing and sliding... ^^

Over all, it's kinda fun... Try it!

Journeys

2008-05-09T09:35:00.001+03:00

The typical commute of an auditor in Jakarta: the modern day of up-and-down-hill-across-rivers.

Took an ojek out of the housing complex, followed by a short angkot ride to the station. Hopped in the Express train for half-hour speedster into the heart of the city before taking a short cab ride to the office. Took another cab to the client's office. Planned to take another cab in the afternoon but couldn't find any available one after standing for half an hour. Cursing for an hour for I had to walk to the Busway shelter on 9cm heels carrying the monstrous laptop bag. Finally met my mom to hitch a ride home.

Actually kinda lucky that my mom was available that day. On another typical night, I usually took a Busway ride which the queueing line looks like this: