Crowne Plaza Hotel, Jakarta

"Hotel Bintang Lima"
The words that captured my eyes first when we arrived at the reception.
If you ask me which hotel in Malaysia I can put as referance, well...I have to say, Hotel Istana perhaps:)

Macam biasa la, sampai-sampai kenala daftar masuk kan..I think hubby took forever to check in.
And it wasn't entirely the hotel reception to be blamed. He is just fussy like that.
We siap tukar bilik lagi because he disliked the first hotel view...I was pity the hotel attendant yang kene assist us ke hulu hilir:/
But then after I know how their 'tipping culture', well, I decided to maximize their function >.<

Ours was Deluxe room. I think the setting was standard as any other deluxe rooms in other hotels pun.
Despite of that, I have to highlight some point here:D

Spaaacious bathroom!Seriously spacious. Boleh buat dance rehersal kot :P

Came with bath tub. Biasa la kan...hehe..

Kind of extra spacious for a Deluxe room.

Awesome view:) with 100x better at night:) I was tak jadi nak marah when i stepped into this room:P 

Where I spent my mornings:) You can have your breakfast buffet here too ^_^

This hotel is located in the middle of Jakarta, nearby the busiest road of the city. When  I said the busiest...trust me, Jalan Ampang at 6pm is nothing compared to this >.<..From this photo you can see, setinggans are at every spaces available. Just behind the walls of this hotel, there lived many families in setinggan..Banyak sangat hawkers. So, actually tak susah pun nak cari Indonesian food :) *again, if you don't have issue like us did:P*

 n

Couldn't do much to leave my trace for hubby. Just simple dinner overlooking the awesome night view of our room:)  

I would strongly recommend this hotel if you are planning to visit Jakarta.
One important factor is, the location.
This hotel is located in the middle where you can find Blok M and Tanah Abang (and Kota) at opposite sides of each other. For Tanah Abang fans (like yours truly), it is only 20minutes by taxi (with minimum macet, maximum about 2hours). Tapi seriously, dekat sangat. On the day I went (alone), 20 minutes and I think actually dekat sangat.
Another plus point, Plaza Semanggi is just next to it. So, shopping?not a problem *grin*

Entertainment wise?
There are varieties of channels like, Sports, AXN, MTV, V channel, STARworld, Cinemax, HBO, Discovery channel, History channel, and banyak lagi yang kalau amek kat Astro dikenakan bayaran tambahan:P haha...So, the whole week, keje I memang pegi shopping, tengok TV, pergi pool, baca buku and abeskan duit laki >.<

Food wise?
I may be biased. But Malaysian foods are just unbeatable :P (despite of the `hotelness`)

Service?
Tidak lupa juga, hotel attendants were all kind and so helpful with acceptable english command.
Every guests are entitled with 3 pieces free laundry service every day, which is a very important point for hubby yang akan tinggal in the very same room for 6months!

Security wise?
...sigh...security in Jakarta or other parts of Indonesia memang di tahap level yang lain. Entries of every buildings are equipped with body scanner and airport-level security guards. Every things has to be scanned for..you know what.
Not just people and stuff..taxis and cars are also checked (under, inside) for...you-know-what which I think also contributed to the massive traffic jams at every point.
*I feel like boarding a plane every time entering any building*
The system will be so much upgraded if the places are of high class:D
As for this hotel, credit for the private lift to our own floor ^_^

Other facilities?
Restaurants!Plenty of it. In house. Sushi house sahaja ada dua :D There's cake house, pub(s) and formal dine-in.
There's gym and bridal house too:P

Hopefully, I did covered much of the important points here:D
Ok, then. Tata ^_^

p/s: I have to say that I would love to come back here again. *To pick up my heart which I left at the hotel room* T________T

Best steak

Steak vs chicken chop..

Honestly..I love steak more. Tatapi..susah sangat nak cari 5 star steak, especially yang halal and lokasinya di Malaysia. 

Tapi, yours truly tidakla selayaknya mengulas lebih lanjut mengenai lokasi-lokasi steak terbaik di Malaysia ye..sebab diri sendiri ini juga under observation sebab tekanan darah rendah..

There's one year ni, I tak berani makan daging. I makan sikit je (enough for nutrition wise). Sebab I takut sangat tiba-tiba kepala tak boleh angkat masa tengah drive (which happened once just after I ate lotsa daging dalam mee bandung :/). I was warded and jabbed :/

Oh well, now slowly I think I am improving..

Let's look at the best steak I ever had!

Victoria grilled yadda yadda (sigh...nak promote tapi tak ingat nama T____T) Memang tahap kesedapan die..speechless >.<

Hubby snapped this picture to show my muka yang tengah amazed dengan kesedapan steak tu >.< I cannot tahan...sedap!!I siap request nak lagi sepinggan...gila!>.<

Jangan risau...di mana-mana pun ada steak ni..
Pergi ke Outback SteakHouse and look for menu with 'Victoria.......'.haha..

Steak lover..this is a must try!

Sunda Food Dining:Jakarta

My Indonesian friends here knew about my visit to Jakarta. Their common recommendation to me was that I have to try the food as for Indonesian themselves, Jakarta is a food heaven. 

So, in my head all the way was always to use that opportunity to experience how heaven it could be :P

Well, the problem was, I don`t know where to start. Furthermore, my husband has this principle; `you tak jab thyphoid, so, we will only do fine dining -__-`.

Actually senang sangat you all nak indulge in their authentic cuisine. There are everywhere in the form of stall..I have to say, almost all spaces available are occupied by the hawkers selling (trust me) salivating Indonesian food. But, I could`t due to hubby`s amanah to me>.<

What we did, before we leave the hotel to get taxi, we asked the hotel person their recommendation. I insisted, it must be Indonesian food>.< So far, my favourite was Sunda.

Makanan Indonesia banyaknya digoreng seperti di atas ini. Picture shows sunda food selection (part of it)

Sunda food restaurant in Cikini, Jakarta. Ambiance.

Sayurnya pula dalam bentuk ulam-ulaman..I was at first did`t get the difference between Sunda and the others. My frined (Indonesian) told me Sunda has their special sambal (green color)..and I was like `ohh...ye..sedap!` 

Kesian..balik kerja kene entertain wife yang sedang dalam misi mengembara mencari Food Heaven >.<

We had, sup buntut (no, I did`t eat the buntut..story about it..later >.<). Nasi nye beras merah..lain sangat rasa dia...makan 2 sudu kenyang (yes..I meant my husband..surprise??o_O). Sambal ikan kering, ikan tilapia bakar (yang rasanya lain sangat), ulams, tempeh (a must) and I had jemput-jemput as starter (seriously..sedap!). The sambal (which at first we reluctant to take (sebab kami tak berapa gemar kot...). Tapi sambal itu (hijau especially) made everything sedap 100x!. The tea (complimentary I guess coz we never ordered) completes everything we had on the table:) This restaurant has planted a good image of Jakarta in my brain:)

Because this restaurant brings good memories for us:) Bumbu Desa, we will definitely meet again:)

Besides the food, all other aspects of this restaurant deserve 5 out of 5 star from me. I have to compliment on their service. They are beyond some waiter/tress and cashier. The same when I visited Food Opera in Bandung. I never seen such friendliness between customer and server. As for the taxi, we don`t have to stand by the road to stop it. The counter will call the taxi for us, for free. From hubby`s and my experience, the friendliness is not just inside this Bumbu Desa:) Indah kan?

And yeah..trust me..the price sangat sangat sangat sangat sangat sangat sangat sangat sangat murah!!!!(bayangkan kalau makan dekat stall or canteen o_O OMG!)

Just tell taxi driver, Bumbu Desa di Cikini kalau anda di Jakarta nanti ya! ^_^

Later!(fetching my just baked cookies :D)

Bandung in 16hours

Of course I went to Bandung despite of the blocked nose:P haha..

I bet ramai antara kamu sudah pergi Bandung kan?I je yang tak lepas lagi mainly due to my husband yang enggan menjejakkan kaki ke Indonesia. Now, he has to go outstation there, baru la I bole menjejakkan kaki kat situ. I must say, takdir menyebelahi si Puan wife *grin*

Our trip was so short!One day trip..Tapi alhamdulillah, since we are living in a considerably strategic hotel, one day trip is so much possible. Personally, I think it is enough.

I was demam. But, I segar sangat the next day. Sebab nak pergi Bandung yang dah lama rasa nak pergi sejak sebelum kahwin lagi!in fact sebelum dapat hidayah berkahwin lagi (semua gara-gara my uni friend yang nak membuat saya kesal shopping banyak di pasar siti khadijah this once upon a time >.<) 

Beli material wedding dress di sana pulak, suami I kata, `Jakel sudehhhh`..maka semua impian itu terkubur. 

Ajak pergi honeymoon di Bali pun takmau:/ 

Akhirnya!!!pukul 4.30pagi mata yours truly telah terbeliak walaupun hidung...masih tersumbat >.<

Tapi walau yours truly siap cepat macam mana pun, room mate yours truly masih tidak sedar dari mimpi T___T

We planned to catch the earliest feeder bus to Bandung.

Alhamdulillah...sebab our hotel (Crowne Plaza Hotel, Jakarta-do google the location) is located next to Plaza Semanggi which is also one of the location for the feeder bus. MashaAllah...semuanya dipermudahkan:)

The feeder bus from Jakarta to Bandung ada banyak. Di Plaza Semanggi ni, namanya Transliner. Kami lihat keretanya cantik-cantik. So, no need to worry. Fee/person is about 70,0000rupiah (7000en). Sangat kerap, so, tak perlu risau:)

Sebab kami sampai cepat sejam:D behind us is the feeder bus. Very comfortable !Termasuk kami,  ada 3 orang saja yang naik on that time..memang sangat rilex perjalanan kami:) 

After 1 hour and 45minutes of...sleeping, we arrived at the Dago Plaza.
I was asleep...of course.haha..at times the car stopped I was awake feeling the warm and fuzziness yang turut tido juga -__-".
A few times shocked by the appearance of kids with creepy mask at the car window, most of the times dancing with other kids carrying a radio. Sometimes they just stare at me. There are kids beggars.
This one time hubby main lawan-lawan pandang dengan budak tuh. Memang nak kena dia nih >.<

End point is at Dago Plaza if you ride Transliner. Here, we waited for my sister in law who is  a student there. Here I saw lots of this kuda..

Banyak I read from bloggers and heard from friends, usually Malaysian will employ a day supir to bring them around Bandung. Since we have our own 'tourist guide' there, it has eased our visit here:) Arigatou Amal chan!
I must say, with her presence, we had sort of experienced the true Bandung :P We ride on 'angkut'!

Our main transportation there..angkut (the green van). Anyways, different `company` different van`s color. A little bit scary..but, buat derk aje. Saves you a lot:D Tambang?No fixed price. Teka-teka sendiri aje. Cheapest you could hand the the driver would be about 1000rp (10en):D Tapi Bandung kecil saja..naik angkut sudah memadai:)

What is 'angkut'?

Based on my definition, it is a small van, buruk sikit. Ada pintu kecik so the passengers can climb up and down from its back which was modified to accomodate around 15 people! So, kalau ramai orang, you really have to squeeze your butt! Angkut can only accomodate you if you are seated. The space won't allow to to stand (walaupun dengan 'ketinggian' yours truly *facepalm*). So, nak naik turun, kenela bongkok-bongkok sikit:P
Fees are according to...distance in which you have to valued it yourself. You have to take risks when handing the fees to the driver when you alight. If you pay less, you are entitled to be chased by the whole clan of the angkut! To be safe, better pay more >.< Tak mahal pun, If you hand them 2000rupiah pun ok:)

If not because of my SIL yang dah biasa naik, I don`t think we have ideas how to ride the angkut pun. Furthermore, we had a lot incidents with angkut.

The way we have to stop the angkut is by lifting your jari telunjuk. If you wanna play magic, you just lift your jari telunjuk (even its hidden) and suddenly the angkut will be at your service. 

This one time, hubby just talked about the jari, suddenly angkut came to us in reverse manner:/ so magic >.<

Angkut also has their good point. I feel like somehow they are so much better than RapidKL *Lol!* cause they are everywhere!We never had to wait a minute for them!>.< 

Kadang-kadang, you just walked alongside of the road, they saw you they'll made attempt to stop. That's how 'friendly' angkuts are:D

Plus, Bandung is not so big, angkut will be more than enough to experience the city of Bandung:)

Another plus point, it saves your money...A LOT!

Adik ipar saya cakap ini antara restoran termahal di Bandung. hehe...Tapi kalau anda guna yen, inshaAllah jaw anda akan `beterabur` kerana terkejut dengan harganya..hehe

Kan Bandung famous dengan kain, telekung, yadda2..yang berkaitan dengan pakaian..
Mana tempatnya??Actually, I also just knew the name..hehe..(punyala tak buat kajian sebelum pergi >.<).

First destination ..Pasar Baru. Seryes tak reti nak jalan kat sini..too many offers by the kedai-kedai. Too many competition. If tak ada tourist guide (SIL), memang tak reti la...

The morning we siap-siap, I was so pelik..why hubby bawak 'beg balik kampung'?? He said I might need it later. I was like..."No..I just wanna see Bandung. I don't know what to buy. I have everything already."

You're right Wani!>.<

Just brief pictures around:D and the beg yang penuh tak cukup tangan. 'Beg balik kampung' tu tak muat pown!>.<

Food in Bandung?

I nagged hubby to dine Bandung cuisine since we are here. I don't know what Bandung is special for. Mee Bandung perhaps?:P

But I had this Nasi Ambel? Yours truly suka ini. Whoaaa..sedap!tapi pedas >.<

The Food Opera. One restaurant I would strongly recommend to you if you  are looking for a fine dining Indonesian cuisine in Bandung:) Cantik sangat the restaurant. Ada live band at night. In front of your eyes..

Other things Bandung is famous for?

1. Their cake and sweets especially of Kartika Sari.

Kartika Sari. What Bandung is famous for. This is where you can find the famous boelen, cookies and cakes. 

2. Outlet store.

Bandung memang famous dengan outlet. Banyak sangat kedai baju di sini. Tapi sehelai pun yours truly tak beli. Oh no, I bought one cardigan:P tp sama je harga dengan Jepun. Tapi here is the best place for bargaining branded attires. The authenticity? I am still questioning that.

One of the outlet we visited. Banyak sangat outlet..Ada yang kadang-kadang barangnya sama, harga berbeza. Kena pandai la untuk mensurvey...

Me nak datang Bandung lagi? I think I`ve seen enough. I have scratched it out of my long list:)

To my love, Arigatou gozaimashita!!!

A man with his wife`s shopping stuff and his wife:D

Never goodbyes, see you again, Bandung!:D

Sampai Jakarta

Sambungan daripada cerita semalam, when I had to rush back from the bride`s reception.

Since morning, I rasa tak sedap badan, hidung pedih gitu. I could not stop sneezing. But I took panadol that morning and I felt a little bit okay. 

In the afternoon I felt sick again. Maybe the drug dah habis degraded in my body kot..

On the way to LCCT I felt terribly sick. All I want to do was to board the plane, pray the plane to light speed so that I could reach 'my meds' ASAP.

Tapi...when it`s about 15 minutes to boarding time, the plane was announced to be delayed T__T

Plane was delayed for about an hour. At that time I went around the boarding area looking for ubat flu...huhu..you know how the start of flu could be so uncomfortable:/

I fell asleep as soon as I click my safety belt:p I could not recall the take off pun..huhu..That`s how sick I was :/ After 2 hours, I arrived at Soekarno Hatta International Airport, Jakarta. That`s the meeting point for me to get into `my meds`:) My meds is in the form of a person. Always:P

Me with `my meds`. Ready to be transported to the hotel where hubby will stay for another 4 months.

While he`s checking in...I did checking out...hehe...ada KamaSutra??0_o

I just want to take his picture as many as possible:P

That night I was diugut by `my roommate`; if I didn`t get better the next day, no Bandung trip for me:/

Maka, dengan semangat waja, I clean myself, ate a little and took Japan`s made medicine (which has been proven to work better on my body). 

Did I go to Bandung the next day?