Catatan Perjalanan

Banyak teman yg komentar pada saya 'enak ya pindah-pindah tinggalnya. Di luar negeri lagi.' padahal apapun itu pasti ada enak dan tidaknya. Pindah-pindah terlihat enak karena berarti kita (dipaksa) jalan-jalan. Tapi kesenangan itu juga perlu 'perjuangan' loh. Diluar masalah keriuhan mengepak rumah, mencari tempat tinggal-sekolah-dan mempelajari kota baru (lagi) , ada hal-hal kecil yg luput dr perhatian saya sebelum menjalani hidup nomaden begini.  Yang paling jelas adaptasi tentang makanan. Karena berpindah jauh dr akar saya, hobi jajan terpaksa di rem. sebab kalau mau jajan ala kampung halaman pasti mahal! Mencoba masak sendiri berarti kerepotannya berlipat. Pertama mencari resep. Lalu belajar masak. Belum lagi hunting bahannya. Yg akhirnya juga tidak murah. Makan waktu dan tentunya uang. Yg lebih apes belum tentu juga makanan yg dimasak enak!  Namun memang sejak merantau, saya jadi lebi pede bermain main di dapur. Dan mulai pede juga mengundang teman utk makan ke ruma...

Dilematis memang soal taksi menaksi di KL. Di satu sisi jasa taksi sangat dibutuhkan baik oleh warga maupun turis. Tapi di sisi lain mendapatkan pengalaman buruk naik taksi di KL sudah bukan rahasia lagi. Walaupun KL dan sekitarnya tercakup dalam sistem transportasi kereta, tapi kita memang akan sering butuh taksi. Entah karena belanjaan banyak, kepanasan, jarak tujuan jauh dari stasiun kereta atau karena kaki sudah pengkor seharian jalan kaki. Skenario menyebalkannya ada banyak macam. Yang paling juara tentunya taksi ‘nembak’ yang mangkal di depan pusat perbelanjaan dan obyek wisata. Supir taksi tipe ini sangat mengerti kalau pengunjung kedua tempat itu rata-rata turis. Karena warga lokal biasanya tidak ‘gentayangan’ di kota Kuala Lumpur kecuali para pekerja kantoran atau karyawan toko. Dengan alasan sudah lama menunggu, mereka enggan menggunakan argo. Akhirnya turispun menyerah karena tidak tahu jalan atau sudah banyak belanjaan ataupun kepanasan tak sanggup jalan. Skenario menye...

Last week I planned to go up the sky bridge of petronas twin towers. Unfortunately I got the information wrong. First about the entrance fee. Apparently since 2 years ago they sell ticket on a price of 50 RM for each sky bridge visitor. I went there many years ago and even the travel guide book I just bought from local shop yesterday said the same: it's free. Second is about visiting time. Previously you can only obtain ticket for the same day slot. You could que up to get ticket in the morning and choose the time in the afternoon that suits you (if the morning group has closed/full). Now you are allowed to get ticket one day prior to visiting time. It could safe the waiting time if we have several days in our kL visit schedule. So, if you are among tourists who need to say : i've been there, here's what you can do to get up there: Go to Petronas building, there's access from Suria shopping center, not far from its middle court. Ticketing office is at basem...

Its quite a quick trip, only in 3 hours to walk around Bristol city center. We have good impression and wish we could spend more time to explore.  I always like water element. That's why I like Bristol, its a harbour city in the south west England. Although Dave keep telling me that it was famous for criminals, I dont feel insecure to wander around. It has also different type of car for taxi, not typical black cab like London. The '@" for children activity center also offer various activities that Jasmine really wanted to do. Too bad we had time constraint.  Next time you have the chance to visit Bristol, take your time to try one of the fancy restaurant by the river precinct. It must be nice!    One among houseboats at Bristol harbour arrived at Bristol Train Station The Bridge to Bristol high street In front of Bristol @ctivity Center Jasmine getting cold at Bristol Harbor

Sesuai namanya, kota ini terkenal karena tempat permandian air panas alami sejak jaman romawi dulu. Di kota yang seluruhnya dinyatakan sebagai cagar budaya oleh UNESCO, kita masih bisa merasakan aura romawi lewat tata kota yang tidak banyak berubah dan permandian air panas yang masih terawat. stasiunnya aja bernama 'Spa'  Untuk ke kota ini kita bisa naik kereta ataupun bis. Ada 2 stasiun kereta, pilihlah tujuan stasiun Bath Spa, karena lokasinya yang di tengah kota, hanya perlu berjalan kaki ke tempat-tempat wisata utama. Dari London jarak tempuhnya sekitar 90 menit. Kereta tersedia setiap setengah jam.  Saat saya dan Jasmine berkunjung, cuaca tidak terlalu mendukung karena tidak lama hujan rintik dan temperatur yang turun hingga 3 derajat. Persiapan pakaian kami sesungguhnya tidak memadai untuk cuaca dingin seperti itu. Kami siasati dengan jalan cepat dan mampir ke dalam gedung yang ada. Bath Hotspring with Bath Minster in Background Tempat pemandian a...

Here's a pic taken from near our apartment building. Yes, we're landed in Malaysia. Although it means bye bye london, but the expat life the company will provide us seems promising. Looking forward to it. See, life does have it's ups and downs. :) New journey begins! Cheers for that.

15 is the restaurant made by Jamie Oliver for his apprenticeship program. Called 15 because there were 15 apprentice when it was started. Until today Jamie still provide the recipe and monitor this project of him. First in London, now 15 also have other locations include Amsterdam. Apparently it the first 15 is just walk distance from my flat. We went here for lunch. Their menu is changed weekly and this week menu is not that tempting to me. As they dont serve just beef (only combined with pork), they serve mainly lamb and fish. Also for lunch you should do 2 or 3 set course instead of ala carte. It was 3 of us and we order only 2 sets. Not bad after all for our pocket hahaha. However, i must say its not special. Its good but not great. Its yummy but not that tasty. The restaurant in the basement gave you a look of their kitchen. But for lighter bites, you can sit upstair. Here's the look for our meals :)) enjoy!