The Road To Puncak

Two months ago, I spent the weekend in the Javanese Highlands in an area called Puncak (pronounced pun-CHAK).I was getting my Jamaican grove on with the small Jamaican contingent I know in Jakarta. It was DJ P's birthday and he wanted to celebrate out of the city and enjoy the lushness and calm plus building some irie vibes with his friends.

Puncak is situated around the peak of Mount Gede – Pangerango in West Java and is about a two hour drive south of Jakarta. With its lush greenery, low level of pollution and all around chill out factor, it is no wonder why it is so popular with Jakartans especially on weekends so driving there should be a breeze, right? Eh, no!

In what was supposed to be a two hour journey, took over FIVE HOURS! To say I was not a happy camper from leaving Jakarta to getting stuck in about hundred miles traffic on the highway to Puncak had put me and my travel companions in a foul mood. Not to mention that some people turned back to Jakarta including my ride home There was a solution to this whole ordeal and that is to take an alternative route. How to find one is the question, therefore we got a little help on the way.

While we were stuck in traffic thinking out loud on how to get to Puncak. It was already dark at 7:30 and we were getting antsy. Our Indonesian driver spotted this young lad walking along the traffic queues saying he knows an alternative route. The driver and JP (South African who speaks fluent Bahasa) pricked up their ears and spoke to the young boy. The polite enquiring then turned turned into a heated negotiation about how much it would cost them for the information he's given.

So we agreed RP70,000 plus he gets to ride with us for assurance.

With the ride being fraught with dark and narrow back roads up a mountain, our little helper giving us football banter (he's a Chelsea fan) and getting a little lost on the way. It took us over a further 2 hours to get to the villa. So we got there at 9:30, a little pissed off and busting for the loo but all those ill feelings were set aside when I saw the food and liquor on offer. With lovely Jamaican food in my belly and building up some good vibes. We all danced the night away and had some great conversation. Our good time was halted by an Indonesian who was clearly not a fan of Dancehall music (kill joy), I went to bed and slept in one of the many beds available at the villa.

 

We left a few hours later at 9:30am to avoid the traffic back to Jakarta but alas the traffic gods that be just cannot let it be. We were stuck in the hills of Puncak in miles of traffic facepalm. I was not impressed again we took a dangerous alternative route thanks to an ojek. We got back to Jakarta around 1:00pm. So if you calculate it, we spent more time in the car than in Puncak. This made me frown. I already griped about Jakarta traffic in a previous post, but this by far was the most unpleasant journey I've had since I've been here.

Despite this I took some pictures of the lovely setting and I would love to give Puncak a second shot:

Living room in the villa

Lakeside of the villa

Rice and Peas and Oxtail

I stayed at Puncak Bukit Danou.

A Day Out at Taman Mini

The Indonesian Archipelago as seen from a cable car

On a lovely public holiday in June, Little C and I decided to go to Taman Mini Park. What is Taman Mini you ask? Basically it's an open air museum dedicated to Indonesian culture, landscape and architecture. The park is divided up into the main islands of Java ,Sumatra, Sulawesi, Sunda Islands, Malaku, Kalimantan and Papua along with having attractions such as an IMAX cinema, cable cars, monorail and a man made lake which contains a replica of the to scale size of the Indonesian Archipelago and apiary with a collection of exotic animals. Within the main island areas, each island's province has their own individual area showcasing different architecture and culture that is indigenous to that part of the island; for example, within the Java area you have Central Java, East Java, North Java and South Java.

Taman Mini is a bit of a trek to get to so Little C and I took a Rp70,000 taxi ride (ouch!) Our first stop was the cable cars to see what the place was all about. There were some impressive views like the archipelago shot above. C and I decided to have a walk around the place a task which was so daunting as there was a lot of ground to cover I mean check out the map :

So we decided to just go where ever our feet. Here are some pictures of some of the sights:

Mini Monas

A North Sumatran house

Chocolate Bule on the man made lake

Istana Anak-Anak  Indonesia (The Castle of Indonesian Children)

Haleuya Protestant Church

Bird Park

Santa Catherina Catholic Church

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Little C in the cable car

We walked do much I think we both lost a stone with all that walking but we did not see everything so I have to go back one day to see all the things I missed out on. My personal highlights was the Indonesian Archipelago and the the Bird Park. If I'm being honest, I was a little underwhelmed by Taman Mini. While I appreciate that something like this is necessary and an awesome way of seeing Indonesian culture, I just felt the place needed some TLC and modernizations of some of the facilities like the monorail, cable cars and museums and buildings. Other than that it is worth a look!

Update!!!

Hey sorry for the hiatus, I've been feeling a little bit uninspired and not been in the mood to write about what has been going on so here goes:

• I've been off the booze - Since Ramadhan started, I've been off the liquor. I decided that it was time for a cleanse because my first three months I was partying up like it's 2999 when I was not teaching. So while I did not do the puasa (fasting in Indonesia), I thought this would be a great opportunity to enjoy a booze free month but boy I could murder a drink right now.
• Little C has flown the coop - Little C left Jakarta on Wednesday with her parents (they came to visit and deliver her back to Canada). She has been a great friend and awesome house mate and for sure I will keep in touch with her. She will be missed by all who knew her here and mostly by me and Girl J.
• Happy Leberan to all so where am I going? -  No where I'm afraid. I have a week off work - along with everyone else -and I will be staying in Jakarta while everyone else is off to exotic locations. Jealous much?! Well yes and no. The main reason why I am not going away is because I could not afford to go anywhere. Prices shoot up like they do at Christmas or Summer back home so after paying for my trip to Bali, I could not pay for another trip despite having the time off. On the bright side, Jakarta is going to be a ghost town so it will be clean,quiet and most importantly traffic free!
• House sitting for the Jays - Scottish J and Girl J are on holiday in their respective home countries so I've been tasked to look after their love pad. I have no issue with this as it is an awesome place with a pool and a gym. So I've been meditating my worries away in this tranquil space enjoying the peace.
• I am not in love with Jakarta - I came here with an open mind at expected the chaos and madness that comes with living in an Asian Metropolis. After nearly six months here, I have become bored with the traffic, the horrible smell and night clubs (where the music is the same). I am just plain old BORED of Jakarta hence me not liking it. I hope my feelings change about Jakarta and hopefully Doc's visit will left my spirits.

Sorry for being such a downer but I am looking forward to my week off. Hopefully, I will be zen and raring to get back to teaching.

Happy Ied Mubarak when it comes!

Bali Bound!

I just booked tickets to paradise aka Bali for myself and Doc. I have always been curious about Bali perhaps it has or to do with the fact that it stands out as being a Hindu island in dominantly Muslim Indonesia. It's a major tourist destination because of its beautiful beaches, lush vegetation and gorgeous sunsets hence it being the place of choice for Doc and I to relax and reconnect.

I am mainly looking forward to spending time with my love and abandoning Java for the beaches and tranquility of West Nusa Tenggara.

CAN'T HARDLY WAIT!

Have you ever been to Bali? Any suggestions on what to see and do?

BEST NEWS EVER!

On holiday in Greece 2010

I will be reunited with my beloved Doc on the 27th of August.By the time he gets here, it will be 8 months since we had last seen each other, crazy eh?! We will most probably head for Bali to relax and reconnect. I am so fortunate to have this wonderful man in my life that I am literally bursting with joy and excitement!

Do you have loved ones visiting you in far-flung places?

Quick update (I really need to write more!)

I am aware that I have been off the grid for the past few weeks but just a quick overview of how I've been in the last 2 weeks.

1. I am suffering from a mild form of Conjunctivitis that has rendered my left eye blood red and teary-eyed so that frightens the kids, hehe! It doing much better now that I started a course of antibiotics.
2. I really DISLIKE the kids at this new school. In one of my last posts, I mentioned that I have been teaching at another on Tuesdays and Thursdays. These kids are over-indulged brats that I cannot stand and therefore, I have no serious motivation to teach them. Thankfully this is not permanent.
3. I will be doing Corporate teaching in the next couple of weeks so that means more money (YASSS!). Scottish J observed my Business class and made the recommendation. I guess I can teach, so long as I have a solid enough lesson plan and not crap myself.
4. I have the TKT (Teacher's Knowledge Test) to do next week. I have not been revising much so God help me on this one.
5. It is looking very likely that Doc won't be coming during Eid-Ul-Fitr, which suck because I have nine days off from school (major holiday this part of the world). Therefore, my plans have been made awkward because everybody have booked their holidays and I haven't, ugh!
6. Little C is finishing in 4 weeks and I am dreading it. She has been best friend here and it is going to suck not having her here. *ugly cry*
7. T is no longer my DOS, but I like our new DOS Brummie A. I've known her for a while as she was a DOS at a sister school. So I reckon things will be just fine but I do miss my bro T.
8. It has been over 4 months now since I started this crazy TEFL gig. Weird huh?!

5 Places I Am Desperate to Visit

Going off the topic of life as an English Teacher in Indonesia ; I want to chat about countries I've dreamt of visiting. I was inspired to write about this after reading posts by Oneika the Traveller and Brenna from This Battered Suitcase - two awesome ladies who write fabulous posts about travels - about 5 places they would love to visit. As an aspiring traveller, there are so many places in the world I would to go, but if I were to narrow down my top choices these would be it:

1. Brazil: The Olympics and the FIFA World Cup are going to be held there in the next few years so it will be the country the world will have its eyes on. Apart from that, it is also home to a mix of Amerindian, European and African cultures making it a kaleidoscope bursting with colour and vibrancy. Oh and participating in the Rio Carnival as a part of a Samba school (bucket list me thinks)  
2. India - Ever since I was a little girl, Indian culture fascinated me. I love the food, the films,monuments, the heroes, Indian weddings (I would love to have an Indian themed wedding) and history has made India a MUST for me to visit. India will be one those countries that provides an assault on all the senses for which I am totally up for!

Taj Mahal

3. Kiribati -If I could put all of the Pacific islands on this list, I would not have any room. Kiribati does take the biscuit for one reason though; these islands will cease to exist in the next twenty years because of the ever rising sea levels. I think for that reason alone, it is something I have to see to believe and say ' I visited those sunken islands'.

4. Italy - Another country where I am more in love with the food than anything else about the country. Italian food is my favourite cuisine. Crispy thin pizza, creamy risottos, indulgent gelato can bring me to my knees. I am also a fan of old Italian cinema and Italian men (don't tell Doc, lol!) Seriously, Italy is a country I always had great love for and a trip there when I get back to the UK is a must-do!

5. South Africa - This is a country that gets bad press for corruption and violence, but what the media neglects to tell you is that it is one of the more successful countries governed by Blacks. I am also fascinated by the languages, wildlife and landscape of this beautiful country.

What are your top 5 countries?