Farm Visit

My son is turning 9 . Last week we talk about how we will celebrate his birthday. As a winter child these past 6 years we celebrated his birthday indoors due to chilly weather. This year we are staying in Jakarta with 29 degree almost everyday. Wow..what a life, this year we are escaping winter, no more below 0 C degree.

Anyway, I told Omar that birthday is not always about big celebration or big party. Birthday also means spending quality time with people that he loves or doing hobbies that he likes. So we talked about any possible activities we might do on his birthday.

It turned out there is a new nursery Kuntum Farm Field in Bogor that we haven't visit yet. Children can pet baby animals and feed sheep and cows with milk bottle. It's a perfect choice for his birthday since we are going to invite Omar cousins too (which are still in their toddler years).

So yesterday we went there and the children love every minute of it.

Makassar Beauty

So glad to be back and write again in my blog. On my last post I wrote about how I dreamed to be back at the sea again. Somehow it came true last month. We went to one of the biggest island in Indonesia, Sulawesi. We had been planning on this trip for quite a while and when we landed in Makassar, South Sulawesi we knew we made the right decision to go. Our time was short, 5 days to explore the huge and well developed city but it was worth every cent.

We stayed by the Losari beach which has the best view toward the sea...

a view from our hotel

The Losari Beach, Makassar, South Sulawesi

a couple enjoying the beach..

On the second day, we took one day trip to visit Khayangan Island, an hour from Losari Beach. It's a small beautiful island, too bad the government has not prepare a proper accommodation (for e.g ferry boat would be suitable for passengers) to get to the island, otherwise it would be like the Princess island in Istanbul where tourist can wander to the island anytime they want and feel secure to go there. Even local Turkish loved to go to the princess island on weekends just to enjoy the view.

If you wonder how we got to this island, we took the fisherman motorboat, which is a little bit scary. Nevertheless we enjoyed the view...

care to choose which of these fisherman motorboats suitable for your journey ?

welcome aboard

view from the boat

what a huge ship when you look at it from a small motorboat..

The beautiful Khayangan Island

looking for empty shells

When we reached the island, there was nothing much to be seen in this island, I hope in the future the government would maximize the island's potential, at least they could open a public space, people won't mind having lunch at the island every now and then. If the government prepare this island to be a tourist destination, I think it will not only attract investors or international tourist but also local people who loves to spend more time in the nature. Anyway, so what we did in that island was...of course having our lunch, what could be better than seafood barberque-ing by the beach. We ordered grilled fish fresh from the sea and this was what we were having at that time...yummy...

grilled fish

fresh coconut...

By the time we sailed back to Losari Beach, it was almost sunset...

sailed back

almost sunset at Losari Beach, Makassar

For each of our trip we never forget to bring back something, something to remind us of our trip to the island. Makassar people are very proud of being a sailor, it's in their blood and their sailing skill has been passed from generations to generations. Bugis people are well known of their skilled craftmanship of building their phinisi, two masted sailing ship. A Phinisi boat has always been their symbol of persistence to outcome every challenge they have in life. So this is the souvenir that what we brought home, a tanah liat painting of traditional Phinisi boat made by Zaenal Beta at the Rotterdam Fort Museum Gallery.

Zaenal Beta made this tanah liat painting for us just in 15 minutes

So there was our trip to Khayangan Island, Makassar. I will write again about Makassar other attraction in the near future. Meanwhile I hope this post make you want to go visit Makassar yourself, until then, have a nice Saturday Night !!

Prince's Island, Istanbul

Awww how I miss my blog...I miss writing and taking a whole chunk of things out of my head. I don't know something about me feels like I am about to sail, yes we are about to move..but why I have been thinking of sea lately..and dreaming of it...perhaps because we just got back from one beautiful trip to the sea and me wanting to go back so much...oh well.. here are some pictures from our last trip to Prince's Island, at Marmara sea in Istanbul. Tell you one little secret, this place has been recommended by Melodi on Garance's blog so I have been wanting to go there ever since I've read that post.

One hot day about 37 degree, we took a TurYol ferry from the ferry dock, Istanbul Kabatas .

The view was fantastic on the way to Buyukada the largest of four Prince's Island. 

We can see boat and summer houses along the coast or on other smaller islands.

By the time we reached Buyukada, we are ready and very curious to explore this island. 

It is about two square miles, not only it's the largest of four,

it has the most of beautiful view to be seen.

The island landmark clock tower and Mediterranean houses are few of the things 

that decorate the island beautifully.

You can explore the city in two ways, jump in to fayton -the horse-drawn carriage or by bicycle.

After that we can not resist to stop by at one of the restaurant,

and try the best fish fillet served with salad and the most delicious bread, 

what a perfect lunch by the sea..with an amazing view..

 

don't forget to buy some baklava and off we go back to Istanbul city... 

Kayaking Weekend

It's a freezing summer this year. As I writing this the temp showed 12 C degree outside. I don't know about you, but lately I have been feeling like going to the sea, sailing on a boat or canoeing on the lake or simply swim and dive. Perhaps it's the weather, it might be because this is summer, it means that the sun and water is something that you want to collide into, but the weather these days seemed just too absurd, no sun in July is feeling like autumn already.

Anyway, I remember when I was still studying in Bandung, Indonesia, my cousin used to take me kayaking and canoeing with him and his friends every weekend. We used to go to lake Situ Patenggang or to go kayaking in Citarik stream. I really miss those times, I used to take dozens of pictures of me and my cousin's outdoors activities.

Now, whenever I saw kayak being piled and tight, I remember how we used to pack the kayak on the top of my friends car like these pictures below. I took these pictures beside the lake not so far from where I live. Hmm..how I wished I could go for another kayak trip with my cousin in Bandung again....*wishful thinking.

Secret Alleys

When travelling in Europe, I couldn't help to notice medieval alleys that are unique and pretty... I use to imagine they hold so many secrets, stories untold. Not only they captured your sight but you can't help feeling curious of where this alleys lead you to. These alleys had witnessed whatever happened in the past centuries and they keep all of those history in silence.

These few pictures are secret alleys that I took from several trip.
I hope you like them as much as I do.

@ Passau, Germany

@ Berlin, Germany

@ Cordoba, Spain

@ Granada, Spain

"Silence is the absolute poise or balance of body, mind and spirit. The man who preserves his selfhood is ever calm and unshaken by the storms of existence … What are the fruits of silence? They are self-control, true courage or endurance, patience, dignity and reverence. Silence is the cornerstone of character." -Ohiyesa, Santee Sioux- 

via runningnakedthroughtheforest

"True silence is the rest of the mind; it is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment". via kriminalromantic

Let's Sail Away

Have you ever thought of going somewhere but you don't know where your destination would be ? I have been feeling like that lately...

I remember in 2003, my friends and I went sailing in Bali with a family who sailed from Italy to Indonesia...that was a long journey...around the globe was their destination. I wish I could be like them...they seemed like they don't have the burden to settle down somewhere, just sailed wherever the wind took them...

 

picnic at a sea..what about it ?

"The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are."  John Pierpont (via hopelesslymg)

"I found that every single successful person I’ve ever spoken to had a turning point and the turning point was where they made a clear, specific, unequivocal decision that they were not going to live like this anymore. Some people make that decision at 15 and some people make it at 50 and most never make it at all."  Brian Tracy (via hopelesslymg)

"Go without a coat when it’s cold; find out what cold is. Go hungry; keep your existence lean. Wear away the fat, get down to the lean tissue and see what it’s all about. The only time you define your character is when you go without. In times of hardship, you find out what you’re made of and what you’re capable of. If you’re never tested, you’ll never define your character." 

Henry Rollins (via dailystendhalnitesaudade)


Found some fancy picture of people sailing around the net, like this cute family or cute couple and sexy lad. What a girl can do when she's sailing ? What she's wearing ? Dangerously sexy ? or simply beautiful ? Who's going to tight the rope ? Or should we just enjoy the beauty ?

I love the old sailing pictures of John Kennedy & Jackie O, what about this woman hat, the wind may blow her hat...what a perfect kiss, and look at this cute couple. What about this pink yawl and all of these colorful headsail..would give everything to go sailing again...one day.

So let's sail away and be forever baby...

Coffee Travellers

A family from Germany is planning to visit Indonesia for the first time this summer. I think about recommended places to be visited by them. One of them is the Losari Coffee Plantation in Central Java. I went there in 2004, I remember I was mesmerized by the beautiful panorama of mountain view and enjoyed the unique resorts and spa there. Gabriella Teggia, a native of Rome, who came to Indonesia in 1965 and the former owner of Amandari Resort in Ubud Bali, developed a new concept of resort. She preserved the Architectural Heritage building, by moving the old Ambarawa station Mayong-Losari to this resort as its main front office. Plus she provided the only one Turkish Hamam spa in this region and unique decorated villas where you can rest and relax.

the view from Losari resort

If you are a coffee lovers, than this place could be your favorite destination. You could experience trekking in a coffee plantation and see how the farmers work from grinding to harvesting this organic Robusta coffee.

The workers are following the old Javanese traditional coffee processing...these are the coffee beans that are well known as the earthy wet process Indonesian Coffee and I'd got an opportunity to help them..*wink.

So I hope one day you would have and opportunity to visit my country and enjoyed so many variety of organic coffees. Just don't get lost and addicted to our dangerously beautiful nation. Have a fun summer holiday !!

"I hate how coffee turns into an addiction and how it keeps you up all night. How it burns and makes your heart beat fast, especially how it makes you crave for its rich and sweet promises of grains, milk and sugar. Moment later, it puts you into a melancholic mood of coldness. Before you realize, it has consumed you before you should consumed it. Empty. Hollow. Bitter. Then again, you crave for another cup. Just like love." Unknown (via alliwantinmylife) 

via kriminalromantic