I did watch the sequel to PoTO titled “Love Never Dies” in Melbourne, 2011. Phodi and I were already an item that time so we watched this together. I enjoyed it especially its song “The Beauty Underneath”. Phodi however, was almost asleep halfway through!

When I saw the ads that it’s showing soon in Manila, I was excited but didn’t have the heart yet to ask Phodi about it. Then the ads kept on appearing on my igstory roll so I thought I’d ask and see what he said. Of course being he kind husband that he is, he said ok but please find a friend.

Luckily my kind Japanese mom friend is also into musicals. After pinning on the date (which was harder than finding a needle on hay stacks), we booked our tickets for Sunday, March 17. Woohoo! This was our only mom date in Manila as we both are leaving the country soon.

It was a beautiful production indeed. I was captivated by the whole acts when Phantom and Christine went on the boat and came to the Phantom place. Their voices and the stage props (all those “candles”) were just top notch. Pretty sure I hold my breath several times during this part.

I also loved the act when Christine and Raoul sang “All I Ask of You”. It was very intimate and moving. Like I could feel the night breeze on the roof caressing their love. How romatic! Another favourite act of the night.

My only question though, what is the age recommendation for Phantom? The story is definitely not for kids and some of the acts (the surprise hanging scene, the implied killing scene) were definitely not kids friendly. I saw kids as young as 9 or 10 and I wonder what they’re thinking about those.

Anyhow, I’m happy that I’ve watched PoTO. It was beautiful beyond my expectation.

Not wanting to be trapped in the crazy traffic along C-5, I was determined to choose a destination that doesn’t involve “going south” for our family day trip.

After much consideration, we decided to embark on a day trip to Rizal province. Oh wait, I actually didn’t consider the heat BUT what can you do when it is summer.

Family time

We were tight on days because my brother was only visiting for a short time so we exclude anything that requires an overnight stay (byebye Zambales, Baguio, La Union, La Casas de Filipinas and others). I googled high and low and finally decided on the following itinerary:

Brunch at Rustic Mornings, Marikina

Sightseeing at Pililla Windmill Farm

Calinawan Cave, Tanay

Daranak Falls, Tanay

Tanay Church

Tanay lighthouse

Dinner at Vieux Chalet, Antipolo

So off we go!

First stop: Rustic Mornings, Marikina.

We went here because we saw some people went here the week before and they said it’s a nice hidden sanctuary very near the city.

Verdict: True! They keep the gate closed for whatever reason but there’s an open sign. We enjoy a nice alfresco brunch eventhough it was mid morning. And a plus point for me, their service is pronto. It bugged Phodi and I that food service in Manila is generally very slow but Rustic Morning was very quick. And their hash brown is rosti like! Yummmm

Next stop: Pililla Windmill Farm

1.5 hours away from Manila, is a sustainable renewable energy farm. This amazing farm is an answer for the future guys. The farm at Pililla is the 2nd in the Philippines, with the first windmill farm located in Bangui, Ilocos.

As it is summer, we were practically burned under the sun. Heheh open air, mid-day, on top of the mountain.. Perfect combination. Regardless, we enjoyed the place. They provided extensive information on the structure and the energy usage. I learned new things by visiting this place. Nathan also had fun reading the information.

We noticed that the local government just started building the site to be a tourist attraction. We saw some preparation to shift the road from gravel into cement. So yes, it was very dusty (because of the strong wind.. obviously that’s why they build windmill farm in the area!). But there were CR near the information center. Also as the time we visited, it was free entrance.

Some Pililla Wind Farm trivia:

• there are 27 windmills operating
• they can generate power for 66.000 houses in the area.
• the windmills are imported (from Germany, I think) to Manila Bay and it took 2 days to bring them up to Pililla
• the times when we use most energy (AC and lights), are also the time when winds tend to blow stronger. i.e. 12-4 p.m. and 6-9 p.m.
• it’s the 2nd wind farm in the Philippines

My trivia: I enjoyed listening to the constant “whoosh whoosh” sound that the windmill produces

Next stop: Calinawan Cave

My mom, kids and I stayed in the car for this one. My mom and Nathan don’t like darkness and I couldn’t bother going in with a baby. My dad’s verdict? It was good but we have been to a better one in Indonesia. Sorry! The cost per person is P40 and P200 for the guide. Nice photo spot.

Next stop: Daranak Falls

I actually wanted to go to Batlag Falls which google said is better. However, because our driver was quite persistent to go to this one so oklah… lo and behold, it was too crowded even though we went on a weekday. We were prepared to go swimming but I lost interest as soon as we arrived. The cost to go in was P50 per person. The water was a bit murky because there were too many people. I think you can rent a floater for P50 and a tent for P200.

Although we didn’t swim, we still had a nice time there just enjoying the sound of the falls. I think it was also the kids’ first time to see a natural waterfall. Nathan now has a clear picture of waterfall vs fountain. Haha.

Next stop: Tanay Church & Tanay Lighthouse

Nothing too special at the Tanay Church. I barely remember what I saw there. Oh wait, there’s the (cardboard) Pope at the church.

The lighthouse was even more interesting because it is very… short. Haha. Oh but it’s ok, at least we went and saw the view. It was a nice area for the local to hang out while waiting for sunset. Most of all I’m still amazed that there was no one smoking! Thank God that we get to be in the Philippines after the smoking ban imposed.

dessert platter at Vieux Chalet

Next stop: Vieux Chalet in Antipolo

Vieux Chalet is a Swiss restaurant owned by a Swiss – Filipina couple. They said you need to “reserve in advance so we can serve you better”. Truth is, because everything is homemade they need reservation so they could calculate how much to prepare in order to maintain freshness. On the day we dine there were only 1 drink available. Hehe.

Food wise, it was ok. I wouldn’t say fantastic but it’s definitely different. The view though is nice especially because we can see our side of the city from here. Marco Polo Hotel in Ortigas is easily seen because the lights make it distinguishable.  Now I know that the mountain view I see everyday from our condo is Antipolo. Anyways, the view and the price of Vieux Chalet make them popular for proposal. In fact, we found out that one of our dgroup friends proposed his then girlfriend here.

To take advantage of the “special occasion” mood in this place, we told the waitress that we’re celebrating my brother’s birthday. His birthday was the day after anyway. He was given a chocolate lava cake on the house. Thank you for the nice gesture!

After a full day adventure around Rizal, we came home pretty much sticky and dusty. I think it was a good day trip to do from Manila though. The main point of interest is definitely the windmill although nothing much can be done there. Would I do it again? Hmm… I don’t think so. Would I recommend it? Maybe if you’re interested to learn about sustainable energy. Otherwise it will be a no.

Wait up Philippines, we’ll travel more!

Notes on our trip in Seoul can be seen here and shopping in Seoul can be read here

Gosh.. I’m hungry now just thinking about writing this note. It’s 22.34 and such a perfect time to nibble before sleep. Hahaha. We came to Seoul with a handful restaurants list that we wanted to try. Yet we didn’t manage to visit all of them simply because we’re too tired to walk the distance. One restaurant we didn’t manage to try was Tosokchon, famous for its samgyetang. I have to be honest that I’m still regretting our my decision not to go back to the area.

Most of the time we dined at whichever food court / restaurant we saw interesting. By interesting I mean a nearly full house / the number of people queueing if it’s at a food court. Even we had a stroller with us, we were up for the adventure by going to small restaurants where we had to leave our stroller outside. Lol. All for the sake of food. We also didn’t bother to check for a high chair as somehow Nathan was eating well most of the time. He sat on my lap and ate in a good manner. That well that he didn’t spoil his bib. Traveling magic?

Disclaimer: I’m not a food blogger so I don’t have names for most of this restaurants. I also don’t have the exact address for most of them and decent photos. Most of the times we’re so hungry that we forget to take a photo. Walking makes you hungry indeed…

Hadongkwan (link here)

Myeongdong area

Upon entering this restaurant, you’ll be asked to choose from 4 dishes. Actually one dish with 4 filling (price) variations. Regular beef soup, special, extra special and extra extra special. Ok, I made those up but it was something along that line. We ordered the cheapest beef soup and the one above it to see what’s different. Apparently the regular (cheapest) beef soup only has meat and the slightly more expensive has other parts.

Hadongkwan Beef Soup

This was one of the best dishes we had in Seoul. The beef soup was so clear yet flavoursome. Nathan loved eating this and was so upset when I took his bowl for top up. One tip, go for breakfast because it’s open early morning until late afternoon. And because it’s nice to fill up with a warm dish for a busy shopping day.

Myeongdong Kyoja

Similar to Hadongkwan, Myeongdong Kyoja only has 4 dishes. Handcut noodle in soup, noodle in soya soup, noodle with spicy sauce and mandu (dumplings). We both love noodles so we opted for 2 bowls of handcut noodles and a portion of mandu. I would love to try the spicy noodle but as I had to share with Nathan, it wasn’t an option. Next time I will!

Myeongdong Kyoja

It was so good!! Seriously, all the soup dishes we had in Seoul was really good. It’s always tasty but not over the top. I initially thought that the portion was too big but I actually wanted to have a second bowl if they can serve half portion. Haha. We came in around 7.30pm and it was full throughout. But people eat and leave so don’t be afraid just show up and dine.

Myeongdong Kyoja, last meal in Seoul

The tiny restaurant behind Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art

We met up with Phodi’s colleague, Jun and his lovely family for a Saturday lunch. We said we wanted something authentically Korean. They brought us to this TINY restaurant behind MMCA, near the Gyeongbokgung Palace. It was TINY TINY. The restaurant only fit 12 people max. 2 on bar stools with street view + 10 on long table tatami style. The entrance of the restaurant is straight to the kitchen and on the left side are the 2 stools and the tatami area.

tiny restaurant behind MMCA Seoul

half of the restaurant. On the right side (same width) is the kitchen

Jun ordered for us some Kimbap (spicy and regular) and 2 bowl of soups. Nathan who just woke up from 1+ hour nap in the park enjoyed his lunch. He loves nori so Kimbap became our go-to food/snack for Nathan during our trip.

with Jun and his lovely family

Noryangjin Fish Market

We had a dinner date here with our Melbourne friend, Icasia, who’s currently studying language in Seoul. Ica said none of her friends are interested to go so (hopefully) she’s happy that we asked here to bring us here. We’re lucky that the market has moved to a new building. The old building, located in front of the new one, was definitely not appealing.

They moved in February 2016 and it definitely felt new. Yet it’s a fish market so expect wet floors. The smell, on the other hand, was ok. Just be ready for water splashes as the sellers like to show off their sales. I had mini heart attack when a seller suddenly pull a lobster out of the aquarium and almost drench our stroller. Luckily Nathan was asleep in Ergo. Also be aware with fish killing that might happen. They will take out your fish, put it on a scale, if it’s ok, they’ll hammered the fish’s head and chop chop. Ouch.

Lots of fishes, jumbo crabs, lobsters, various clams, abalone (crazy cheap!!), and lots more seafood that we didn’t recognise. Too bad we had language barriers that we couldn’t ask for more information. Sea urchin (uni) was very popular and thus, cheap. I think it was ₩10,000 (A$ 11) for 4. I remember eating one in Melbourne and it was almost tripled in price.

On stalls with sashimi service, you choose your fish, choose the serving size and they’ll prepare your sashimi right here and now. Otherwise, you can bring your seafood to one of the restaurants upstairs. More likely you’ll be approached by a staff who will help you to choose and bargain. That’s our guy in the middle. He speaks 4/5 languages, definitely to cater tourists like us.

Once you find your seller, choose your seafood and bargain. Can’t bargain too much though as their price is competitive anyway. Then the restaurant guy will lead you to his restaurant and explain the pricing scheme. Our was free for sashimi, ₩5,000 for steam / boil / grill and ₩3,000 charge per head for plates. Silly us for not asking these beforehand. Like what could we do now that our seafood’s in his hands??

dinner with Ica! – suspicious baby who just woke up

We came here with one particular mission: eating octopus sashimi. When I was 12, my dad went to Seoul for the first time and he told me of how he ate octopus sashimi. Too bad I couldn’t try it as I’m pregnant. Ica and Phodi tried it and here’s their reaction:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbXczkMY_R4

TBH I’m glad that I didn’t have to try it. Those tentacles look like worms! Yuck. But Phodi and Ica said that it wasn’t that special apart from fighting to get them away from the chopsticks. Oh well… at least they’ve tried it.

Korean BBQ

When in Korea, eat Korean BBQ for sure!! What surprised us is the fact that we were not allowed to mix pork and beef on the same grill. Here in Indonesia (and also in Australia), we could mix everything on the grill. Beef, pork, chicken, seafood, whatever. The waitresses were equally surprised when we asked why. It was like us asking why the sun rises from the east. LOL.

Our first Korean BBQ was in the lively Jongno-Gu. After we walked along the Cheonggyecheon Stream, we found a hype alleys area in Jongno-Gu and randomly chose a restaurant. Busy, packed with locals, pictures on menu… all good. So there we had our first Korean BBQ in Seoul. We accidentally burnt our pork belly and the ahjuma exchanged it with the new one. After a long and deep sigh that is. Sorry!!

Namdaemun Noodle Alley

I’ve mentioned the alley here. It’s really just an alley with noodle stalls on its sides. Pick your stall, order and start eating. It’s either noodles or bibimbap. Easy peasy!

feel free to ask for extras

making hand cut noodle

Lotte Foodcourt

We didn’t have time to eat in (who wants to cook anyway!!) but looking at this fresh produce at Lotte Supermarket was satisfying. And they sold a whole box of uni for A$10 / Rp. 100.000. WANT!! (But can’t)

KIMCHIIIII

And saying bye-bye to this…

So we settled with tamago nigiri and strawberries!!! Korean sweet strawberries which Nathan looooove.

and on other day, some Bibimbap and mandu for dinner.

close up look

Korean Fried Chicken

With all the craze about Korean fried chicken, we wanted to try what the locals have. After our walk along the Hangang River, we found this busy bar-like stall that only sells fried chicken. Thanks to the help of a friendly local, she ordered us a non-spicy box which turned out to be spicy. Poor Nathan for he only ate pickled raddish, bread and small sausage for the night (bad mom alert). Luckily he was entertained by the colourful Banpo Bridge view outside.

A Japanese cafe in Insadong with only 3 items on the menu

What to do when a cafe only have 3 items on its menu list? You order all! A pork cutlet curry, cold soba and a salad. The cafe was lovely too with lots of air and lights coming in. We enjoyed it.

Conclusion…

We love Seoul!! Thank you for the delicious food, the lovely weather and for showing us that technology and culture can live side by side. I was truly mesmerized each time I stood in an ancient site and seeing high rises buildings in the background. And even more amazed when I saw young people wearing hanbok freely on the streets. Things that never happened in Indonesia during ordinary days. Thank you for reminding me to be proud of my own culture.

surrounded by Korean girls in their hanbok

And as for Nathan, we loved seeing him exploring each day. Not wasting a day without outings to the park where he ran or just playing with sand. We noticed that he was replicating the activities he did at home. For example, he was moving the sand from his side to over the rope fence. He was so into it that 2 brothers came over and curiously watching then following him. Hahaha. Their mom was looking at us like “WHAT IS YOUR KID DOING?!!!” but we’re happy that he could create a game on his own.

the world is a playground

Until next time, Seoul! We’ll be back.

airport shot – bye Seoul!

If you’re into shopping, Seoul is definitely a city to visit especially if you love skin care and cosmetics. Most of us should be familiar with K-Pop and K-Drama where most all of the stars have flawless, dewy and youthful looking skin. Go to Seoul and you might figure how to achieve similar look. But Seoul is not only for cosmetics and skincare.

Their locally produced clothing, especially children clothing are to die for. While they’re not the cheapest, Seoul offers the widest range of children clothing I have ever seen. We also saw markets specialising in toys and stationery (cute stickers!!). Funny thing though, Nathan was always asleep when we visited toy areas so he kinda missed the fun.

he actually said, “Papi, foto sini” and posed

The government is taking this shopping business seriously as South Korea’s tourist tax refund starts as low as ₩30,000 (USD25 / AUD 35 / IDR 345,000). Meaning, when a tourist shop in a shop for ₩30,000 or more, he’s eligible for a tax reduction. Not all shops participate in this program but most do. Some shops even have in-store tax refund scheme which means your purchase is automatically tax free. We didn’t shop much but we saved some amount that equals to a meal at Myeongdong Kyoja. Not bad.

During our visit, here are the places we went to for shopping;

Myeong-dong 

Girls, keep your purse tight as this is the most dangerous area for you. Roads and alleys full of skincare and cosmetics shops. Each store with its own sales promotion person to lure you to visit. Some will hand you a “service”, usually a face mask, for free as you enter and look around the shop. Once you buy some products (it’s hard to resist only buying A product), they’ll give you more freebies.

As I mentioned about tax refund earlier, I think it’s better to shop at one go. Especially if the shop offers extra discount if your purchase is above certain amount. Heck, I realise that I sound like a shopaholic but when you know that it’s so much cheaper than buying at home, how can you not?

shopping haul from Myeongdong

For the guys, if you’re not interested with skincare, Myeong-dong has lots of shoe stores for you. Phodi and I enjoyed feasting our eyes with the variety of sneakers they have. Too bad I still couldn’t find that Superstar Adidas that I’m looking for. And for everyone, Myeong-dong has lots of street food options once the night arrives. Fish shaped waffle ice cream, juice, egg bread, ddeokbokki, potato ring, soft shell crab, lots of things to satisfy your tummy.

Myeongdong. Happy shopping!

The thing that fascinates me the most about Myeong-dong is the fact that the same brand has several shops, less than a kilometre away from each other. Brands like Nature Republic, Innisfree, Skin Food, Face Shop have multiple shops in the area. It’s amazing to think of the quantity of products they supply for this area alone (a million face masks possibly??!) Oh when in Myeong-dong, don’t forget to visit the LINE Store at Myeong-dong’s main road.

we don’t even use LINE…

Anyway, while I was browsing the shops, my boys did this…

Namdaemun Market

Namdaemun Market reminds me of Pasar Baru in Jakarta. It’s Pasar Baru on steroids. Actually every shopping area in Seoul is on steroids. Namdaemun have different areas for stationery, linen and bedding, kitchen ware, women’s clothing and our main destination, the children’s clothing. We had bitter sweet feeling seeing all these adorable baby wear. Sad because we didn’t know the gender of baby no. 2 yet but also relieved because our wallet was left undamaged.

one of children’s clothing store at Namdaemun

super crowded!

stylish children’s wear everywhere

While in Namdaemun, we found this little alley called the “Noodle Alley”. A small alley with lots of hand cut noodles stalls (doh!) When I say stalls, they really are bar style stall. You sit in front of a long table which is also used to store kimchi and other ingredients. We chose a stall based on the ahjuma’s smile. Lol. How else can you choose it as everything is written in hangul. Nathan was eyeing Korea’s fat and long beansprout all the time.

Namdaemun Noodle Alley

Breakfast at Namdaemun Noodle Alley

So we sat, ordered 1 noodle & 1 rice, no spicy. The very friendly ahjuma gave us 1 full bowl and another half portion as a service. She also gave Nathan a small bowl of rice with lots (LOTS!) of nori. “For baby,” she said. Then she gave Nathan sweet potato and a banana. When she saw that he had finished the banana, she gave me another one while signing ‘put in your stroller’. That was one of the sweetest experiences we had in Seoul. She also helped Phodi to mix his bibimbap because we couldn’t do it properly. Hahaha.

Nathan’s rice bowl, kimchi, soup and bibimbap. Yummmm

Namdaemun is definitely one market that we highly recommend. You can find almost anything here and it’s highly accessible. We wouldn’t recommend bringing a stroller here though. The stores’ alleys are narrow (worst than Mangga Dua in Jakarta) especially in the children’s store. Don’t forget to bargain and enjoy!!

How to go?

Hoehyoen Station (Line 4), Exit 5

Noodle alley: Walk into Namdaemun Market from exit 5 and the alley is on the left side, at the beginning of the market

Information center: Little white booth along the Namdaemun main road from exit 5

Dongdaemun

We went to Dongdaemun specifically for its toy area. There are 2 streets dedicated for toy shops. We found this 3 stories stationery / toy store and spent close to an hour there. Buying stickers, crayons (cute Tsum Tsum ones), kids dining ware (Mickey bowls, Pororo chopsticks and all other why so cute characters) for Nathan and souvenirs. Then few shops down we found this big shop and Nathan, who was just woke up must thought that he’s in heaven.

Dongdaemun Toy Alley

Toys and stationeries

How to go?

Dongdaemun Station (Line 1 & 4), Exit 4.

or

Dongmyo Station (Line 6), Exit 6. I can’t remember clearly but I think this is closer to the Toy Alley

Insadong

morning at Insadong (and I look so sleepy already…)

Phodi and I enjoy walking around the alleys of Insadong. Too bad it was raining after we had lunch so we didn’t explore further. Yet Insadong is a much smaller area than say Myeong-dong. A lot of websites say that Insadong is the place to go if you want to shop the “cultural/traditional” souvenirs. I’d strongly advice you to pass Insadong. Although there are lots of shops selling Korean souvenirs, we found that the prices were actually cheaper in Dongdaemun.

not so sure if I can make new friends…

Insadong reminded me of Flinders Lane / Little Collins area in Melbourne. Little boutiques of local arts from clothing to jewelries. The kind of goods that you wouldn’t see anywhere else. Just lovely!

How to go?

Anguk Station (Line 3), Exit 6. Go 100m straight then turn left

Part 3 of the story will be about the delicious food we had in Seoul. Get ready!

Annyeonghaseyo Seoul!! Or as Nathan said it, “nyongseyo..”

Seoul as seen from our apartment

Our flight

Phodi, Nathan and I visited Seoul from 13-19 May 2016. We had a fun time in Seoul, which was also exhausting (at times) for me. Nathan was being his wonderful self most of the time but of course we can only expect so much from a 21 months toddler. Most times he would fall asleep in his stroller for 1 to 1.5 hour. Meaning Phodi and I can have a good walk. You know, like dating but with a stroller. Haha. But when he’s overtired from being over excited, he went into crying series and can only be calmed by boobs (!!!) on Ergo. Thankfully he can be transferred to Phodi, still asleep on his Ergo. This Ergo carrier is seriously the best invention ever.

where’s N? Sleeping in Ergo

Why Seoul? Phodi and I never talked about going to Seoul ever. We were originally planning for Japan but while Phodi was in Manila, SQ had promotion fare and using some of our miles, we only paid Rp. 5,8 million (AUD 580) for us 3. Who would pass such a good deal? Definitely not us!

play area at Jakarta Airport

The trip was also Nathan’s last long haul trip as an infant. We’ll surely make the most of it. We had a full 4-seat-row both ways which was amazing. Nathan got his own seat and an extra space to move around. I could also stretch and sleep without having to share a space with him. If you’re  flying SQ, make sure to select appropriate meals for your child. They have 3 different meals for infant; more information here. Nathan’s meals were less tasty (less salt and seasoning) but he had a burger while we’re stuck with the usual ‘Chicken / Fish?’ Travelling with a child, we also had the privilege for a fast pass at Incheon Airport. No queue, straight to the x-ray and immigration line.

Ready to gooooo…

Our accommodation

As we only stayed in Seoul, we decided to stay in one accommodation. We chose an apartment from AirBnB, considering the convenience of having a washing machine. Yes, sadly I did laundry in Seoul. After a day playing with sands and grass, I’m grateful to be able to wash Nathan’s clothes straight away. Amazingly he ate tidy enough that his clothes were clean for the whole day. That was until on the very last day he decided to drink Kiwi juice straight from the cup and drenched himself. And afterwards during lunch he accidentally spilt his soup all over his shirt. Of course things happened only on last day!

the back alley of our apartment

Location wise, our apartment was a B+. Less than 5 mins walk to Chungmuro Station (line 3 & 4), 10-15 mins walk to Myeongdong shopping area and 3 mins walk to airport limousine bus. There were also lots of restaurants behind the apartment and it’s 5 mins walk to Namsan Hanok Village, where we did our hanbok experience. Our host was also friendly and helpful. However we were threatened by the neighbour who said that we were too noisy. Meh.. but drama aside, the apartment fit us well.

as long as my baby sleeps well…

One random thing I figured about Korea is that their Disney Junior Channel shows are dubbed to Korean. So Nathan was watching Mickey Mouse’s Clubhouse and the likes in Korean. Is it because most people aren’t familiar with English or rather it actually causes kids to be unfamiliar with English?

Our itinerary

We stayed in Seoul for the week with the intention to keep enjoyable. So no morning calls, no rush and a loose itinerary. Technically we were on Bandung’s time zone even though physically we’re in Seoul. Our days started around 8.30 (most open after 10 a.m. anyway), had breakfast at the apartment/nearby, went out for 11-12 hours and back at the apartment by 10 p.m. Nathan would sleep around 11 p.m. after having banana milk or Winnie the Pooh / Doraemon chocolate milk. Oh the boy was in heaven for having lots of selections of milk and characters biscuits. And strawberries! He could finish half a punnet by himself

savouring sweet Korean strawberries

The complete itinerary for the week;

Honestly we’d like to visit more places such as the Children’s Grand Park and DMZ. Also trying the famous samgyetang at Tosokchon and going to Yeouido Church, the biggest church in South Korea. However we decided not to as towards the last day, our feet refused to walk too far. We also couldn’t go to DMZ as the tour prohibits children under 12. From the few places we went to, I enjoyed walking along the alleys in Insadong the most. Too bad it was raining so we didn’t get to explore much.

lunch at Insadong. I love the alleys there

Above all the places we went, the good food we ate and the nice people we met, I was most impressed by Nathan. I’m with him everyday at home yet during our trip I discovered lots of new things about him. He learnt to say “kamsanida (kamsahamnida / thank you)” whenever someone gave him things. He was turning independent trying to put on hat, shoes, sunnies, seat belt and eat by himself. I loved seeing him running freely in parks, playing with sands and stones as if they’re his sensory toys. Although at the end of the day, he’s still a baby who loves being tickled and cuddled before bed.

running free at Gyeongbokgung Palace

Bottom line, being able to spend time with Nathan and Phodi with very limited internet access available beats all the fatigue.

chillin at Namsan Tower

Our verdict… travelling with a toddler

We enjoyed our time in Seoul. Phodi said somehow the city reminded him of Melbourne. A bit of cultural heritage scattered around the city, contrasting itself with the newly built high rise buildings. Apart from culture, we enjoyed Seoul’s food. Nathan was fond of the dishes he had in Seoul, especially beef soup, gimbap and ice cream. Ice cream always wins.

dads and kids ice cream time at O’Sulloc

We were also thankful for the metro system in Seoul. Vast network, clean carriages and stations and most importantly frequent trains. Their subway and underground road networks were impressive! You could actually walk 4 blocks underground, away from scorching sun or windy rain. They even have underground shopping centres, so it’s hard not to shop in Seoul.

while waiting for the train

That being said, Seoul is not the most stroller friendly city. I would say that Seoul is toddler friendly but not exactly stroller friendly. Lifts to the subway is usually limited to 1 per station, so you either have to carry the stroller along the stairs or walk around to find a lift. Then you’d need to walk quite a distance again to find the lift to the platform. The problem is, most stations only have 1 tiny lift and you have to compete with elderly and people with disabilities. Most of the times, we took the escalators as once a subway staff actually told us to go by escalator instead of using a lift. However, some older stations don’t even have an escalator even though the platform is on B3 (Basement 3). Cray cray! Definitely an exercise for me.

3 + 1

I’ll write up more notes on some of the places we went to. Watch this space for more updates.

Continuing from our day 1 in Melaka…

For dinner, when in Melaka don’t miss the satay celup (dipped/steamboat satay). Based on Google search, we chose Ban Lee Siang (45E, Jalan Ong Kim Wee, Melaka). The idea of satay celup is to have everything you eat in a satay style, meaning your food is stacked on a stick. Then each table will have a pot, filled with hot satay gravy. Not only hot, the gravy is also a bit spicy.

As for the satay, it’s up to your liking because all the satays are stored in a big fridge and you can choose which one you’d like to have. They have meat, innards, seafood and of course vegetables. Each stick was RM .80 and the sauce was free (remember that they’re spicy!) You could also order a small plate of bread as a substitute for rice. Overall we enjoyed the meal as the sauce was really tasty! Of course, don’t forget to order a glass of cold barley to go with the hot and spicy satay celup.

the first half of our first round of satay celup

After our tummy was full, we drove to Jonker Street to see if we can find any ice kacang for dessert. Much to our surprise though, Jonker Street area was dead quiet at night. We knew that the night market is now only on weekends but we didn’t expect that the area would be dead before 9pm on weekdays. So then we decided to drove around the city for sightseeing. We passed Little India which was so vibrant with colours and then we stopped in front of Menara Taming Sari and took a picture of the festive cart in Melaka.

these passenger carts are all around Melaka

FYI, these carts are also available during the day and officially they cost RM40 for an hour. These carts were so festive with dolls (Hello Kitty are the most popular although we saw some Minions and Smurfs) and some had loud music on as well. When night comes, these carts will turn on their lights and voila, turn the area into a festival of lights!

In the morning, after breakfast we went to Jonker Street to see what this famous street is all about. Jonker Street is the place if you want to shop for knick knack… or toys! They have a lot of Lego knock off and sell it for the fraction of price than in KL. The reason for this is because these toys are made in Melaka. Just don’t forget to wear hat and put on some sun screen before you walk around the area.

Jonker Street

my man is strong!

30 weeks pregnant

When noon came, the best thing to do was looking for food. This pregnant lady was exhausted from the heat anyway so we headed to Donald & Lily (No 16 (Ground Floor) , Jalan KSB 1, Taman Kota Shahbandar). We read about this restaurant on a magazine when we arrived and apparently we passed this restaurant when we went for dinner the night before. Donald & Lily has been in business for a long time and they serve classic nyonya dishes. Regardless of the weather, I opted for Laksa and it was yummy! Actually we also ordered Ice Kacang and Fried Kwetiau which weren’t pictured because we ate those as soon as they were put at the table.

Laksa

By lunch time, we have ticked all the must see in Melaka and have explored a bit more. We then decided to head back to KL and went to IKEA. No IKEA story is required, I suppose… so we’ll skip that part. After IKEA shopping and some meatballs (yum!) later, we headed to Firefly Park at Kuala Selangor. We heard about this place on our previous KL trip but we didn’t have time then. The drive took almost 2.5 hours and we blame Google Map for exceptionally dumb this time.

First impression of this tourist attraction? “Eek… what were we thinking when decide to see this?!!” It was so quiet and… dark. It was drizzling as well when we arrived but fortunately the still run the tour. So we paid RM30 for both of us and we walked in the park which was totally empty. We then saw a hut and the guard gave us inflatable life jackets and off we went to the jetty. In the darkness, a man helped us to board a boat and without any introduction or question, we sailed the river. Seriously, it was like a perfect murder scene with a cloudy sky, a hauntingly serene river, a guy that we never met before and us on a boat in the middle of nowhere.

But then we saw twinkling lights, hundreds or probably thousands of twinkling lights among the trees. It reminded me straight away to Christmas and its warmth. We sailed along the trees and those lights were twinkling so beautifully. It’s definitely one of the most magical views I’ve seen in my life. For 20 minutes we forgot about the eerie river, thanks to God’s magnificent creation. Isn’t it awesome how God made such a small animal like firefly so magical that we can enjoy? So was the 4.5 hours drive to the Firefly Park worth it? Definitely yes, we really enjoyed the experience and was so thankful that it was quiet that we could enjoy each other’s accompany more.

We had another night to spend in KL before heading back to Jakarta the following afternoon. We decided to take things slow and just enjoying our time together. So grateful that we could have some time off just the two of us. It’s quite daunting that our next holiday plan will include a baby!

when in KL

To be honest, I was dreaming of a sun-sand-and-water kind of babymoon. To be more honest, I was actually laughing at the word “babymoon” but how could I resist the idea of a trip? I love trips! Regardless of the name, I will always say yes to a trip.

Due to a jam packed calendar in April & May (a terrific combination between family events and conferences), we decided to lengthen our existing Malaysia trip and a road trip to Melaka (Malacca) was decided. Our main consideration was of course the baby. With 30 week pregnant during the trip and most airlines have a restriction of 32 weeks for international flying. Of course it’s still 2 weeks away but the thought of being checked and asked turned my travelling spirit off.

We were flying to KL separately because Phodi had to travel to Manila before arriving in KL for my brother’s graduation. We flew with Malaysia Airlines and to my surprise, I wasn’t being asked about the pregnancy. Not a single word was asked so the letter I got from my doctor was useless. Heheh. Probably this pregnant belly was not big enough to be a concern (ha!) or it was hidden behind my arm sling (remember my dislocated shoulder?) Anyhow, no question was asked either at the check in counter or at the gate. Nice!

I arrived in KL on Thursday and Phodi arrived just after my brother’s graduation ceremony ended.

My parents took my Popo and some of their siblings to KL for my brother’s graduation so it was like a family trip. Let me tell you that when you travel with my mom’s family, it means walk and shop til you drop (literally!) If you in need of a good leg exercise, you should go with them. Hehehe.

Anyway, after the family left on Tuesday (and totally killed Bukit Bintang), Phodi and I headed to Melaka. We chose Melaka because we both haven’t been there and it’s relatively close to KL. Located 150 km from Kuala Lumpur, Melaka is a UNESCO listed historical city so we thought why not. As per our previous road trips in Malaysia, the drive was so pleasant. Clean, smooth road and light traffic once we enter the highway. We can only dream that one day we’ll have more like it in Indonesia

Welcome to Melaka: “Visiting historical Melaka means visiting Malaysia”

Once arrived, we headed straight to our hotel which was the Hatten Hotel. It’s located at the centre of the city, connected to shopping centres as well. It’s actually not a perfect hotel to stay in a cultural city like Melaka but with 2 large luggages and me being pregnant, we wanted to avoid boutique hotels/motels with no lift. We made the right choice though because the hotel was very neat and clean, and the breakfast buffet had good selections as well.

Dataran Pahlawan from our hotel

After we checked ourselves in and grabbed a map from the concierge, we started our walk around Melaka. We crossed Dataran Pahlawan to reach A’Famosa, a Portuguese fortress that was built by Alfonso d’ Albuquerque. If you did your primary school in an Indonesian school, I’m very sure that you’re familiar with this name. Yes, he’s the same guy that was told during our history lesson.

A’Famosa fortress

D’ Albuquerque was part of Indonesia’s history as well

From there we walked along various museums (Islamic Museum, UMNO Museum and Art Museum) to reach the Stadthuys. It’s a big brick-red building that has become a symbol of Melaka. While A’Famosa was built by the Portuguese, Stadthuys was built during the Dutch occupation in Melaka and was once the office for the governor. Next to the Stadthuys was the Christ Church Melaka, which was also built by the Dutch. The church is still used as a protestant church until today and it’s probably Melaka’s most photographed building.

in front of Christ Church Melaka

When in Melaka, you shouldn’t miss the river cruise along Melaka River. Similar with many other river cruises in other cities, the Melaka cruise will give you a glimpse of the city. For me personally, what’s interesting was the fact that the government has been trying hard to preserve the cultural area. Along the cruise we passed different villages and cute cafes that obviously were decorated to attract tourists. The cruise last about 40 minutes on return journey and costed RM10 a person.

After cruising and walking around the historical area for about 2.5 hours, we headed back to the hotel to freshen up. We had two welcome drink vouchers after all! We headed back just in time for sunset and it was so pretty! After a refreshing non-alcoholic drink (obviously!) we took our car to go for dinner and a night walk at Jonker Street. The story will continue in part 2…

sunset in Melaka

Sunshine Coast

The last 4 weeks have been fantastic! This mama-to-be was so blessed with a good health and perfect weather in Australia. The main reason we were in the country was for my husband’s work. I didn’t want to be left alone for a month so I tagged along. My obgyn was happy with our last check up so he gave us the clearance to fly. As a recap, we travelled to Sunshine Coast (via Singapore and Brisbane) on February 1st and did some short trips during the month. I went to Melbourne on the 11th before my husband joined in on the 13th. Then on the 20th, my parents joined us and we went to Gold Coast and Brisbane.

At Movie World, Gold Coast. Time to unleash the child in us!

In between the travels, we had to sort and repack our boxes filled with stuff that were sent from Melbourne back in April 2013. Crazy thing! If you remember, early 2013 my husband (then fiance) got a new job and was relocated from Melbourne to Sunshine Coast, and later positioned in Bandung. Before our wedding in May, we packed our stuff and sent them off to the coast because we thought we would stay there after a 10 months project in Indonesia. As you know then, we ended up staying in Bandung and thus our boxes in the coast were left untouched until last month.

Looking back at the amount of energy spent to unpack, sort, sell/throw and repack, I am glad to have a strong and well behave unborn. My mom was so concern about this, and to be honest, I secretly was too! Especially at those early weeks when I couldn’t feel any movement or sign of the baby. Some nights I wondered if the baby was still growing and moving, all because I didn’t feel anything. Eventhough according to the Android app I have, baby’s movement in 1st pregnancy won’t be felt until week 18 or later, deep inside I was worried.

"Will I get one?"

One thing that comfort me was the sign of my growing tummy. Two of my pants didn’t fit afer a week and so I decided to buy a pair when I was in Melbourne. Surprisingly, this pants was so tight when I wore it during my return trip to Jakarta. That happened within a fortnight! Lucky that I always prefer to wear dresses than pants anyway so I packed quite a lot of them and they fit the Coast’s weather better too. So yes, growing tummy is one sign of a growing bub.

My ever favourite Koko Black's Ice Chocolate

So far, I haven’t felt like missing on anything fun or nice apart from the roller coasters fun that I have to skip on our trip to Gold Coast. But I have tried all the rides so I didn’t feel bad about not able to go. (Psst.. we went to Gold Coast because it’s on my dad’s bucket list. Lol). Also with the abudance of fresh seafood available in the Coast, I’m glad that mom actually pushed me to have more seafood especially prawns. Prawns and crabs are my favourite and they were extremely easy to find (and fresh!!) in the Coast. Yum yum!! I have to admit though, that I miss eating sashimi. Hmmm…

No, I didn't eat the oysters

And thanks to this well behave and eating machine baby, I could savour on every food on my list without issue. This continuously contributed to my growing tummy! Before going to Melbourne I made a list of food / restaurant that I wanted to eat. Most of them were my old favourite such as sichuan food, Menya’s gyu tan don, Laksa King’s loh mee, Thai Culinary’s kana moo grob, Koko Black’s ice chocolate, good slice of cake from La Petite Gateau, spicy bratwurst from Vic Mart, KFC’s wicked wings (haha!) and of course, coming back to our first date spot: Bistro Vue.

It was a funny feeling to come back at the exact spot where we first dated, now with an extra person in tow. We ended up choosing the same plats principaux (viande and poisson) but different entree (my favourite escargot this time!!). We never thought that one day we will be back there, especially not after we’ve left the city for good. God is good

Smilers++

My girls sans Evans and Sheryl

All in all, February was a good month. Catching up with my girl friends (how I miss them soooo much), enjoying fresh air every single day and feeling the sea breeze playing through my hair… how I’ll miss walking outdoor comfortably, just how zen and enjoyable it can be. I will surely be back with my little one!

Every year, Solo and Salatiga are in my family’s year end agenda. The only two times (as I remember it) we didn’t go there were 1) when the family gathering was in Bandung, 2) during my first year in Melbourne and my parents came in to visit me. And both my brother and I had each a 1 red flag for not coming back “home” because of work. Funny thing is, eventhough we never lived in Solo we always refer going to Solo in December as “coming home”.

That being said, last December was my millionth time going to the grands (well maybe not that much). I always love going home, apart from those time when my dad preferred driving rather than flying. It’s always a pain in the ass in its most literal term. The travel time usually takes us 12-14 hours for 562 km, including 2-3 short toilet breaks, a quick breakfast and lunch. The pretty view along the new-ish tollway in Cirebon and some other areas along Pantura give a bit of zen but definitely not doing anything to my poor rear part.

Once you got to Salatiga or Solo though, it feels like a whole different world. Time seems to stop in these cities. The daily holiday routine will usually go like this; 8am: wake  up time, 9am: breakfast (usually Soto or Noodle), 10am – noon: visiting relatives or going shopping, noon: lunch, past noon: going shopping or having nap then chatting about what to have for dinner, night: having dinner then more warungan or angkringan to finish the day. The next day same routine will happen with different kind of dishes to savour! Yum!

There are too many good food to enjoy in Solo and Salatiga for me to post. So if you’d like to know more about what to see and where to dine, shoot me an email or leave a comment below Enjoy!

off we go! Dad went earlier for his high school reunion

Selat Solo (Javanese beef steak) – first meal in Solo

Shi Jack in Solo – fresh milk with a twist

what milk you’re having tonite?

preparing milk. the “milktender” always put up a show

sweethearts

look who visited me in Solo! We treated him with a Nasi Liwet night

cousins <3

Wedang Ronde Jago Salatiga

Wedang Ronde Jago Salatiga – hot ginger and nut dessert with mochi

preparing Wedang Ronde

greens near my grand’s in Salatiga

working!

Breakfast from Kartoali Salatiga

at Roncalli Salatiga, a nice green complex where my dad learnt English back in the 70s.

dear hub looking at Keleteng Sam Po Kong (Sam Po Kong Temple) in Semarang

more view of Sam Po Kong

Toko Oen – I think it’s the oldest eatery in Semarang

waiting for our lunch at Toko Oen

the super famous Lumpia Gang Lombok (Gang [aisle] Lombok’s Springroll)

Lumpia basah (wet/unfried springroll) ala Gang Lombok. Super good!

Bro waiting for his springroll

the space to dine in is TINY so we have to squeeze

Lawang Sewu (Thousand Doors) in Semarang. They say it’s the most haunted building in Java

Courtyard of Lawang Sewu Semarang

Us with Oma. First Christmas without Opa.

and this is how we roll. Selfie with the whole family.

homemade seafood fiesta at my grand’s, thanks to my eldest aunt

with dad before going to the airport

time to go home. Got the whole airport lounge for us

Kesempatan untuk berada di Ambon Manise ini datang karena sang suami mendapat tawaran untuk bergabung dalam sebuah acara KKR yang diadakan oleh pemerintah kota Ambon dan Voice in the City yang bernama “Ambon Berdoa dan Bersyukur”. Karena perjalanan ini adalah sebuah perjalanan kerja, kami tidak berkesempatan untuk mengunjungi pulau-pulau lain di kepulauan Maluku. Beberapa tempat juga saya kunjungi tanpa suami karena komitmen pekerjaannya. Untuk membaca lebih banyak tentang KKR ini, klik disini.

Mata saya terpaku pada pulau yang berada di bawah langit biru dan lukisan awan putih saat Pak Pilot berkata, “Selamat datang di Ambon.” Tidak pernah terlintas dalam pikiran bahwa suatu hari saya akan menginjakkan kaki di tanah Maluku, negeri yang terkenal dengan sagu, cengkeh, pala, minyak kayu putih dan mutiara. Rempah-rempah pula yang membuat kepulauan ini begitu diinginkan oleh bangsa Portugis bertahun-tahun yang lalu.

Dibalik keindahan pulau ini, masih tersimpan kesedihan mendalam karena konflik 5 yang pernah terjadi di tahun-tahun yang lalu. Saat kami menuju pantai-pantai indah yang ada di pulau ini, Pak Aleka, supir yang membawa kami berjalan-jalan, beberapa kali menunjukkan puing rumah-rumah yang habis terbakar saat terjadi keributan di Ambon. Miris rasanya mendengar begitu banyak amarah dan kekerasan yang pernah terjadi di sini sementara kami mata kami terus menerus dimanjakan dengan hamparan air laut yang begitu meneduhkan.

Selain mata yang dimanjakan, lidah kami juga dimanjakan dengan berlimpahnya ikan bakar yang ada di kota ini. Sebagai sebuah kepulauan, tidak heran bahwa makanan yang mudah ditemui di Ambon adalah ikan bakar dan hasil laut lainnya terutama cumi-cumi. Sebagai pecinta makanan laut, saya menikmati berbagai ikan bakar yang tentu saja ditemani oleh segarnya sambal colo-colo. Jika setelah perjalanan ke Surabaya kami memutuskan untuk puasa makan ayam (baca ceritanya disini), tidak demikian dengan jalan-jalan ke Ambon. Kami malah tambah ingin menyantap ikan bakar yang segar seperti yang kami dapatkan di Ambon.

Saya begitu terpesona dengan keindahan alam pulau ini dan saya berharap bisa kembali lagi suatu hari nanti. Mungkin untuk membawa anak-anak saya untuk bermain dengan bebasnya seperti anak-anak manis yang saya temui di Santai Beach. Satu doa yang saya selipkan seraya memandang keindahan matahari terbenam di Tanjung Latuhalat adalah agar Ambon Manise bisa kembali berjaya dan dicintai.

Menuju Ambon

Feri untuk menyebrangi Teluk Ambon

Pepeda, makanan khas Maluku yang terbuat dari Sagu. Alat penyendok bernama gata-gata.

kuah untuk Pepeda

Makan Rujak di Pantai Natsepa

makan rujak dengan matahari terbenam

menikmati matahari terbenam di Pantai Natsepa

Pattimura, sang pahlawan dari Maluku

mengunjungi Museum Kebudayaan Maluku

berolahraga di Lapangan Merdeka

nuansa natal di sekitar Kota Ambon

ulang tahun ke 25!

Makan ikan bakar setiap hari!

Es buah khas Maluku yang menggunakan jus sirsak

Talam sagu, cemilan khas Maluku

Babi goreng dan sate babi. Oink oink

Coto Makassar, dimakan bersama boras (sejenis lemper)

Ikan dan udang bakar dengan sambal colo-colo yang segar

cemil-cemil di sore hari dengan sirup pala yang menyegarkan

Rarobang; kopi susu dengan serpihan kenari

Pantai Pintu Kota

Pantai Pintu Kota

saya jatuh cinta di Santai Beach

air laut yang menggoda untuk diselami

air pantai yang begitu jernih

Bersama Pak Aleka di Tanjung Ratu Halat

matahari terbenam di Tanjung Latuhalat