Infinite Effect Concert Indonesia

Last Sunday i went to Infinite Effect concert Indonesia. Actually, i’m kinda new to this fandom so i was really excited to see how hype their concert would be. Kim Sunggyu who is Infinite leader was my first reason why i decided to pay attention to this group. He has good variety skill and cute (of course) and funny. I started to like him when i saw him on Running Man and he had this cute love line with Eunji APink. After that i watched his MV with his group, Infinite and ended up liking the group. My bias is actually the leader himself, Kim Sunggyu, but i gotta admit that it’s so hard to decide who your bias is in Infinite. Simply, because they are really funny and attractive in their own style. For example, i also like Woohyun who is the main vocal. He seems so humble and cheerful. He also has endless aegyo (cute expression) for the fans. Not only Woohyun, i also got my eyes on Hoya. He dances really well, it seems like he is the Taeyang on Infinite. I don’t mean to compare two of my favorite idol but seriously Hoys’s move is the closest thing i got to Taeyang and that’s mean good, right? and not to forget his bitchy expression every time he heard something not making any sense to him. and as for voice, surprisingly, i like Seong Jong’s voice the most. He might be not the main vocal but he has such a soft voice that give a sooth color in the song.

Anyway, back to Infinite Effect topic, it’s such a coincidence that the time i started to like them, they held their 2nd world tour, and guess what, Indonesia was on the list. and another thing that made me happier, was the venue location. It was located at Tennis Indoor Senayan which was close to my area. I mean, i dont have to time-traveled just like when i watched BigBang concert TT.TT Despite of the nearby venue, i was kinda worry with the promotor. The promotor was the same as BigBang’s promotor. You know, BigBang’s concert event was kinda such a mess. Not the BigBang itself, but the way the event went, well for me the promotor didn’t give a good impression on handling the event. So looking at BigBang concert, i was kinda disappointed knowing the promotor who brought Infinite was the same promotor. I just hoped that this event wouldn’t be ruined again. So, after the price list was announced, as usual, a fan-girl problem is to decide which section we should take. After all consideration and thinking and seeing my saving, i decided to buy the VIP one. You know, i was that excited to see Kim Sunggyu in real life and not from a laptop screen with 1020p😦

After waiting patiently for Nov 15th to come, i finally could see them alive in front of my eyes and another thing, the VIP ticket holder got an advantage to see them did soundcheck. *screaming internally* I was in a rush because i was late for the soundcheck, as announced, the soundcheck would be start at 11.30 and i arrived at Venue at 11.55, i thought Soundcheck would last for an hour, but i was wrong. After went through a really tight security check in the gate, the security took some quite long time checking my bag which was full with my make up and he successfully made my bag into a mess, i registered at the registration table to get my soundcheck pass and ran to the venue. THANK GOD the soundcheck started at 12.00 sharp and it was lasted just for 15 minutes. Omygod, i couldnt imagine what i would be if the soundcheck started at 11.30, gotta regret that for the rest of my life i guess. I’ve never been to a soundcheck before, so seeing my favorite artist in front of me (and it was so close, from the VIP section to the stage, omygod) and they started sang, i felt like they just sang for me hahahahahaha. Unfortunately, we werent allowed to take picture while they did soundcheck. such a pity but it was good though. Sunggyu was exactly just the same as i saw him on Youtube. He didn’t talk and interacted much with the fans but he still looked cute though. Hoya was.. what should i say? sexiness overload. He wore black sunglass and sleeveless shirt and it was enough to make girls’ jaw dropped. L or Kim Myungsoo was the person who made girls scream even though he just stood there and breathe. He was indeed cute and handsome but he wasn’t really my favorite so i didn’t pay much attention for him *sorry. SeongJong was the real cute thing i think. He interacted with fans and often threw a heart sign and smiley much along with aegyo king Woohyun. I couldn’t remember what song they sang on soundcheck but 15 minutes really felt like just a second passed by. It was just too short. After soundcheck finished, we were told to go back outside venue and started to make a line for the concert at 15.00. Since i was too lazy to lining up under the sun, i decided to go to nearest mall and waiting there until 15.00.

Fifteen minutes before the concert started, i left Plaza Senayan and walked to Tenis Indoor Senayan (if you dont know where Tenis Indoor Senayan is, it is located at Gelora Bung Karno area. The closest way to get there is from Jl.Asia Afrika, its gate is right beside Fairmont Hotel, but if you take public transportation such as TranJakarta, you can get off at Halte Gelora Bung Karno and take walk through main gate of Gelora Bung Karno which is located beside F(x) mall and just walk straight to Jl.Asia Afrika, passing by the Al Bina Mosque and at the end of the street you’ll see Gate to Tenis Indoor and Outdoor at the right side of the street). I arrived at venue at 15.00 and again i had to pass the screening gate and again the security took the longest time on checking (or i should say messing) my bag. He even asked about my SK II cleansing oil which i just bought and he thought it was a perfume. I was like “it’s my cleansing oil. why? do you want some?” and he just nodded and of course i wont give him some of my freaking-expensive-and-makes-me-broke-a-f cleansing oil. I finally got inside the venue and the crowd already inside but fortunately the concert had not started yet. After waited for like a minute, the concert started. The opening song was Before The Dawn and the crowd started cheering and they did the fan chant, the fan chant was so loud it made me amazed. I gotta say that Infinite performance in this concert was amazing. I didnt expect the performance would be that great. The laser light and the stage was amazing too. They even tried so hard to speak in Bahasa. Though there was a translator who translating their sentence for the talk-time but they mostly spoke in Bahasa especially Hoya. He should’ve been given the credit for speaking Bahasa mostly. He and Dongwoo danced really well, i did enjoy their performance on Infinite H, Dongwoo was such a cheery guy who laugh to a simplest thing and Hoya just being a Hobitch as usual (you know, sexiness overload) and made my eyes stuck to him for the Infinite H entire performance. Sungyeol really is handsome in real life. Camera doesn’t do justice on him all the time because he looks sooo much better in real life. He has nice figures which is tall and slender and cheery but could be cold guy too. SeongJong was the member who interacted the most with crowd that day.The Maknae (youngest member) gave his smile all the time and he did look like a manequin and he was so pretty. Seriously. He did look like a girl. And for my bias, Kim Sunggyu, he didn’t talk that much, mostly just stood at the stage and smiling and waving his hand to the crowd that successfully made the crowd screamed. At that time i didnt focus my eyes only on Sunggyu though he is my favorite member, because i surely got attracted by Sungyeol who i thought was really attractive while the concert last.

The concert lasted for 2,5 hours. It was kinda long though since my ultimate bias group 2NE1 concert only lasted less than 2 hours *sobs* Infinite Effect Concert was one of my favorite concert. They delivered a good performance and good interaction with fans. They also brought the band so they didn’t sing on playback but with special arrangement on their song that made the concert felt more hyped up and alive. The stage even though it was small but the laser light and the pop up confetti at the end of the concert completed a perfect ending for that afternoon. the confetti on Together song also made the atmosphere became magical and mellowish at the same time since it was their last song for that day. Aaaah, i really didnt want the concert to end. Actually i like the venue a lot, since it wasn’t really big, the concert felt more intimate and humble and friendly. You know, the feeling when you feel like you can be close to your artist. And for the promotor, Mecimapro, yeah right, they did really really well this time. The security system was no joke. That was the strictest screening i’ve ever been to. They also directly warned people who brought a pro camera and ask them to delete those picture (just as i heard) and also the selfie stick strictly isnt allowed to the venue. Thank God, because selfie stick is really annoying like it easily blocked the view. Oh, and one thing, the Inspirit project which was holding banner written “Forever we’re in the same place” in Hangul while Together was sang, was a success. I even get touched by the project, and hopefully Infinite could feel our sincerity and happiness to finally be able to see them perform live.

It’s been a week passed but i still can’t move on from the concert. Hopefully they’ll last long and able to throw another concert here in Indonesia.

For a short video i recorded with my cellphone in not really good megapixel quality, kindly see my instagram post on here and here for Paradise and here for the confetti ending.

 

 

 

MADE in Indonesia Tour

Every Indonesian VIP’s must knew that on August 1, 2015, BigBang came to Indonesia, especially to Jakarta, well actually it wasn’t really in Jakarta because the concert itself was held at Tangerang. Just some kilometers away outside Jakarta and 2 thousand light years away from my house. (i know i’m exagerating but seriously, Indonesia Convention Exhibition BSD or ICE BSD was the furthest place i’ve ever been to. Sigh.) but, for BigBang, you know i’ll just do anything. LOL. Anyway, so on that day, Indonesian VIP’s including me were really anticipating for BigBang concert titled MADE in Jakarta (well, once again, shouldn’t it called MADE in Tangerang?).

After 3 years not making any comeback as a group, who didn’t miss them? The last time i went to see their live performance was on Singapore for YG Family Concert. And as expected they always deliver a really amazing live performance. But unfortunately, Seungri wasn’t present that day because he just got a minor accident on Seoul. But before that, i also went to BigBang Alive concert at MEIS Ancol on 2012. And i still remember how i still had my concert hungover for a month. Simply because they were just too awesome that i still feel the euphoria lingered in my head.

So, anyway, i’m gonna write about the MADE in Jakarta concert this time. I got myself a ticket for Blue section. At first i was afraid because i got no friends to go there, but suddenly my high school friend decided to join the concert crowd too. Since my house was located on East Jakarta, so it wasnt really easy to go to the venue concert which happened to locate across my district. And to make it worse, there is no public transportation around the venue. After spent some time to googling and asking my friends who lives nearby venue, i decided to take the Commuter Line from Tebet Station and transferred at Tanah Abang Station and go to platform 6 to take Commuter Line to Serpong and I got off at Rawa Buntu Station and met my high school friend there. At Rawa Buntu Station, we rode Ojek there to ICE for 25.000 IDR each. Since it was already afternoon, riding Ojek gave us an advantage. The traffic around ICE was kinda packed so we could get there in a short time.

When we arrived at the venue, i didnt see any kind of BigBang concert banner (or was it just me and my poor sight?) so i had to ask the venue security on which hall i should enter because there were some events beside BigBang concert there. After walked from hall 6 to hall 10, i went inside to exchange my ticket booking confirmation to the real ticket. Then i went inside the venue and queue on Blue section line. I queue alone since my friend had to buy ticket first (and she happened to buy the Pink section ticket so we technically separated for the whole concert). There was no banner for any line, so i had to ask people in every line to make sure i queued on the right line. After waiting for 20 minutes, the Blue line were guided to walk to another place and had to make another line to go to venue. There were already many people (mostly girls) queueing in line. The minutes before 6 o’clock, i heard a rough sound from the Orange section line. I didnt know what happened but seems like some people screaming and some boo-ing to the event crew.

At 6.15, i finally got myself to the concert venue. I was given a Blue coloured wristband that i had to wear while the concert last. The wristband was so sticky that i had to ask for the crew to put it on my wrist. On the concert venue, i was a bit surprised because the stage was kinda far from my section. I knew that i didnt get the closest section to stage but judging from the price i paid and the map it shouldn’t be too far away. And to make it worse, the stage wasnt shaped in a T letter, so it was just a plain straight stage. It such a big disadvantage for me *hiks* how am i supposed to see G Dragon from this far away section?

After 10 minutes waiting, i still had not seen any sign the concert will be started though it was written that the concert will be started at 6.30. The venue still half empty. There were Purple, Gray, Red, Yellow and Orange section that hadn’t been filled. And i thought to myself that this was really a disaster. I kinda dislike a late concert and thinking how on earth the organizer event manage this. When i was watching BigBang Alive concert, it was also a mess. I got in venue 10 minutes before concert started. And not to mention that i almost got no seat at that time. But at least, the concert was started on time. It was 25 minutes later that finally the light was off and the VCR was seen on TV signing that the concert will start. But when i turn my head around, the Gray section (which was the last section to get in venue) was still in process on being filled. How come they let some people in just when the concert started. That was a pretty crucial mistake for me. Though it didnt happen to my section, but if i was at that section i’d totally get upset to the crew for making me missing the concert opening.

But despite of the concert that started 30 minutes late, i was so happy that i could see my favorite male group performed in front of me. As expected BigBang delivered a lively performance. They were more chatty and funnier than they were at the concert three years ago. This is why i love BigBang, they might look scary on the MV but they were really funny, humble and chatty on concert. They spoke english really well, at least the audience understood what they were saying. They were really interactive with the crowd especially Taeyang. Who doesnt fall in love with that moon like eye smile? And as usual BigBang brought their band along with them. The live band performance made everyone cheering and jump as well. On every YG artist concert, i always confused whether it’s a KPop concert or a party? Because you can’t help but jumping along with the music. and when Daesung solo performance came up, he sang one of my favourite song which is Wings. He didnt fly up in the sky wearing a string like the last concert, but he just stand on the stage though he didnt lose his charm while singing it. It still made me want to jump since the song was kinda upbeat song, but then i look around and the other people were just shaking their lightstick so i just moving my body along with the music and not jumping around. Aaaaack this is the disadvantages of watching concert alone, i felt bit embarassed if i had to jump and dance alone. Hiks. Anyway, in the middle of the concert, GD and Taeyang had to warn the crowd not to push each other because they could see from stage, the crowd on VIP and Pink section were pushing around and i heard that some audience were faint at that time. Thankfully my section was all calm though i felt like smack and scold some people who brought selca-stick and record the concert. Aaah, they might some fanbase admin, but still how am i gonna enjoy the concert if their camera blocked my view? Geeez.

After 2 hours, the concert finally came to an end. They sang Bang Bang Bang once more and it was really amazing. You can see one of the example of how amazing they were on Bang Bang Bang stage in this below youtube video.

I can’t believe the concert was ended. It last shorter than i expected. I thought the concert would be for 2,5 hours hehehehehehe. After i got out from venue, i waited for my friend at hall 10. Unfortunately it was raining hard, so i had to wait inside. I finally met with my friends and we got confused on how we could go home. Since it’s already late at night like 11 p.m and no taxi around, no Ojek, no any kind of public transportation appeared. It was a pity for a venue as big as ICE to not have a good access. We finally had to wait for my friends’ friend to pick us up and then i took taxi from Kebon Jeruk. It still far away from my house, but at least it’s already on Jakarta region. I heard that people need to walk to Giant at BSD to get a taxi and it is far from ICE. As a person who loves going to concert, i really wish that Jakarta has a proper venue for concert and hopefully it’s located at downtown area. And if it’s not, please make a good access like train station or bus or whatever, because it’s really difficult to go to ICE BSD. I just feel pitiful towards foreigner audience who happened to watch concert here. It must be difficult from them to get in or get out there. Because when i watched YG Fam at Singapore, it was really easy for me to get there and though it ended late night, the subway near venue still operate, so i had no worries to go back on late night.

And for the organizer crew, i hope they learn from their mistake which was really crucial i think. And for BigBang, they were really the best. There will be no regrets watching YG Artist concert. Kekekekekekekeke. Hope YG Fam concert will be held in Jakarta.🙂

VIP Ocean

See you.🙂

Anyway, a little update, here’s video Report Tour Manila and Jakarta. Can’t believe Indonesian VIP’s had so much energy in them. ^^

See you again VIP’s🙂

Last Hours as a 26 Year Old Girl

Oh my god.. please remind me again, how long have i been abandoning this blog? *one months, two months, one decade..give up on counting*

Anyway, i’m actually writing this while i’m in public transportation on my way going home from work. Since tomorrow is my birthday, i forced myself to at least make a one or two wise words for myself, in case the future me will open this blog again while cooking fried rice and carrying my fifth child.

Anywaay.. so, usually when i was young, i’m still young though by soul, i used to get so excited when it comes to my birthday. I’d be busy counting months, counting days, and hours until my birthday come. And hoping that something special would happen on my special day.

I used to think that 27 January is a sacred day for me. A special day. A hopefully-happy day. Well, It is actually a special day for Indonesian since our dear former president, Mr.Soeharto, died on that date.

But, this year i’m not really excited about my birthday. Maybe because i realized that i’m getting older by age, you know i’m not 25 anymore, but there are a lot of things i haven,t achieved and i just don’t wanna leave this twenty phase, a range of age where people considered as young age. Where i can do some crazy stuffs, adventurous staffs, suka-suka gw stuffs, and i still got an excuse to do those by saying that i just wanna enjoy my youth or even use my young age as an excuse.
I know that there are still a lot of things i wanna do, but that doesn’t mean i’m not satisfied with what i’ve done in my life until now. To be honest My 26, is like the best age of my life. I can do whatever i wanna do. And maybe i still want to be able to do whatever i want to do. Maybe i’m just not ready to be less selfish. But how? As far as i know i’m the most selfish person in the world. It’s gotta be about me and me and me and me.

Can someone tell me how to be forever young? You see, I started to routinly taking care of my skin with those korean skin care products and religiously watching those skin care tutorial on YouTube so any kind of wrinkle will stay away from me. And i still want to fangirl over those korean boyband. how am i gonna supposed to remove my love for the only one my dear baby Kim Min Seok? I still want to wear those hi-sneakers and loose top and going to the mall. I still want to make myself fluent in Korean. I still want to travell far far away. I still want to continue my degree. And i still have no idea about what i want to be. What if i want to be..a doll? Wait, i dont wanna be a doll. What if i want to be..a dancer? Well that’s impposible i cant even make a body wave.

Aaaaah so many things i want and so many fears i have in mind.

Well, that’s me contemplating about my life. Things i always do under the shower beside re-evaluating my life choices or when i lay in bed before sleep when the next day is Monday (while counting countless sheeps), or when i stare blankly outside Mikrolet 44’s window and thinking how can i get stuck in this endless traffic jam?

Maybe in paralel universe i’d be Counting hours to 27 January with Kim Min Seok 오빠 beside me. Amin. Well let me be whatever i want to be on my parallel universe.

Anyway here’s my wish list for my birthday.. (in case Santa Claus accidentaly read this and i do wish Santa Claus read this)

of course the first one will be..

how can he be so cute? like, how? source from xiu-love-min.tumblr.com

then,

i waaaant

thirdly, my favourite thing..this could be the death of me, beside Kim Min Seok.

picture from http://www.stradivarius.com/id

Lastly, i think i’m gonna be my own Santa Claus for this.

source from uk.accessorize.com

That’s it. my wish list for my birthday gift. hopefully, tomorrow will be a better day as i become a better me. see you on the next post.

bye byeee

EXO The Lost Planet in Jakarta

Hari ini adalah hari yang membahagiakan. Sebagai pecinta K-Pop berdomisili di Jakarta, tentunya hari ini adalah hari yang gw tunggu-tunggu dari sebulan lalu. Apalagi kalo bukan karena konser EXO yang bertajuk The Lost Planet in Jakarta.

Perkenalan gw dengan EXO berawal dari iseng download lagu mereka yang judulnya Peterpan. Bok, enak banget bok. Mana artinya sedih pula. Lagu ini sukses jadi soundtrack hidup gw selama 3 bulan lebih. Menemani di saat gw bengong dalem mikrolet 44 buat pulang ke rumah, bengong di meja kerja pagi-pagi karena masih ngantuk, ngebabu di hari Sabtu, dll dll. Setelah ketagihan dengerin Peterpan, gw jadi penasaran sama lagu lainnya. Mulailah dengerin MAMA, Wolf, Growl dan yang terakhir Overdose. Ternyata enak semuaaaaa. Ditambah lagi ini yang nyanyi unyu-unyu bangeeet. Gw sampe bingung mau milih yang mana diantara 12 bocah ini buat gw seriusin naksir. Hahahahahahha. Awalnya gw suka D.O karena mukanya yang super imut plus mata nya yang belo’ macam orang Jawa. Tapi makin kesini gw mulai ngelirik Xiumin alias Kim Min Seok alias abang Umin.

Kalo diliat dari fans nya sih kayanya dia ngga sepopuler Sehun atau Luhan. Tapi anak ini lucu bangeeeet. Pas dia masih chubby, dia unyu banget kaya bakpau. Pas sekarang kurusan, dia ganteng beneeeer. Dari 12 orang bocah-bocah EXO ini, cuma Xiumin doang yang menurut gw punya sex appeal. Yang aura laki nya keluar gitu loh. Yang laen aura nya tuh hanya sekedar aura dede-dede gemez doang.

 Nah, setelah gw mulai tergila-gila sama EXO ini, tiba-tiba datanglah berita kalo Indonesia masuk daftar konser mereka. Ohemjiii, emang kalo jodoh ngga kemana ya. Dilirik juga ini Indonesia sama mereka. Kirain bakal dianggurin bertaun-taun macam 2NE1. Hiks.

 Setelah cap cip cup belalang kuncup mau beli tiket kelas berapa, section apa, harga gimana, banting tulang banting piring kerja rodi, akhirnya kebeli juga tiket Premium C, karena konon katanya solo stage abang Umin dimana dia bakalan nge-dance ada di  stage sayap kiri. Napsu banget dong gw pengen ngeliat abang Umin dari deket.

Hari H pun tiba, demi terlihat bak ABG Jakarta masa kini, gw pun pagi-pagi niat men-tancho rambut gw jadi warna hitam. Ceritanya sih biar kaya Taeyeon SNSD. Selesai nge-cat rambut, buru-buru keramas, pake baju se-anak muda mungkin, lompat ke mikrolet dan dimulailah perjalanan panjang gw menuju Lapangan D Senayan.

Sumpah ya hari itu Jakarta lebih tepatnya Jakarta Timur macetnya kaya setan. Udah bukan si Komo lewat lagi gw rasa, si Komo ngelahirin di daerah tebet kali makanya macetnya macam Pantura H-2 Lebaran. Setelah gondok dengan abang mikrolet yang demen banget nge-tem di tiap tanjakan ataupun turunan, akhirnya gw memutuskan untuk naik taksi. Biar cepet. Mengingat satu jam lagi acara mulai dan gw masih di depan Ambas. Subhanallah sekali.

 Setelah melalui perjalanan panjang pake acara nyasar kejebak macet dan lari-lari buat masuk ke komplek GBK, akhirnya sampe juga gw di tempat penukaran tiket. Selesai nukerin tiket, gw buru-buru ke gate. Yang gw pikir udah kosong mengingat gw nyampe gate jam 6 kurang 10. Ternyata masih ngantri aja gituuuu. Dan yang bikin riweuh adalah para orangtua ABG-ABG ini yang melepas kepergian anaknya dengan ngerubung di sekitaran gate dengan wejangan yang kira-kira sama semua. “ati-ati ya dek” “loh si xxx mana kok ngga sama dia?” “kamu jangan sampe ilaaang”. *sigh.. nasib nonton konser 20 tahun ke bawah.

 Yang bikin gw happy di konser ini, dibagi-bagiin banner EXO plus kipas EXO. Lumayan banget deh, karena panasnya ampun-ampunan itu Lapang D. Dan yang bikin gw heran, tiap kali gw lewat gate pengecekan, crew acaranya selalu nanya pake bahasa inggris. Lah kan gw jadi bingung, perasaan gw cuma pake bandana bunga-bunga, masa sampe segitu disangka Taeyeon nya cuma gara-gara ini bandana doang? *kemudian dilempar Baekhyun* mungkinkah mereka menyangka gw orang asing? Atau makhluk asing? Hiii. Yasudahlah ya, dengan asalnya gw pun ngejawab pake bahasa inggris juga. Belagu dikit. Mentang-mentang lagi les bahasa Inggris. Kalo lagi les bahasa Swahili mungkin gw jawab pake Hakuna Matata.

Setelah melewwati gate terakhir dan dipasangin wristband akhirnya berhasil juga gw mendarat di Premium C. Widiiih panggungnya gede bener. Plus JAUH BENER KE PANGGUNG UTAMANYAAAA. Hamdallah ya gw gak jadi beli yang section paling belakang. Jauhnya ngga nolong. Itu sih mending gw beli dvd konsernya aja deh di lapak jembatan busway. Pake teropong juga percuma gw rasa. Beruntunglah gw dateng sendirian. Soalnya bisa selip sana sini sikut kanan kiri sampe akhirnya gw bisa nangkring di barisan kedua dari depan. Aaaaah aku siap bangeeet liat abang Umiiiin. Uwuwuwuwuwuwu.

Lima belas menit menuju start konser, penonton mulai harap-harap cemas menanti anak-anak EXO. And out of the blue, panitia mengumumkan sesuatu

“bagi saudara xxxxxx, ditunggu ibunya di gerbang untuk pulang ke rumah.”

…

…..

…….

(insert burung gagak lewat here)

……….

Entah dosa apa yang dibuat itu anak ke emaknya sampe emaknya tega bener nyuruh panitia bikin pengumuman macam begitu. Curiganya sih dia bawa remote tv atau bolos les sempoa.

Anyway, pas pukul setengah 7 lampu stage mulai dimatikan dan munculah video VCR EXO yang menampilkan anggota EXO dan kekuatan super power mereka. Kan ceritanya mereka dari planet EXO, jadi beda dong dari manusia biasa. Hahahahaha penting banget.  Setelah video VCR, munculah mereka ngebawain lagu debut mereka sebagai sub-unit, MAMA. Selesai nyanyi, para dede-dede gemes ini menyapa penggemarnya satu-satu. Bayangin deh ada 11 orang masing-masing gantian ngomong menyapa penggemar..lama juga yak. Belom lagi tiap mereka abis ngomong satu kalimat, langsung diterjemahin sama penerjemahnya. Duile berasa nonton dvd pake subtitle deh gw. Setelah memperkenalkan diri, mulailah mereka nyanyi-nyanyi. Daaan yang bikin gw bete, gw kan udah pelajarin set list mereka dan mencekoki diri gw dengan mendengarkan lagu-lagu korea mereka selama 3 bulan penuh. gw bahkan apal lagu Peterpan sampe abissss. Tapi ini mereka nyanyi lagu nya dicampur gitu. As we all know ya, EXO ini kan ada dua sub-unit, satu EXO-M alias EXO Mandarin yang lagunya pake bahasa Mandarin, satunya lagi EXO-K alias EXO Korea yang nyanyinya pake bahasa Korea. Dan ternyata disini mereka nyampurin dua lagu berbahasa berbeda jadi satu lagu. Ih kan gw jadi bingung. Hapalan gw buyar semua deh. Hisssh. Bener-bener ini konser dual language.

And lucky me, abang Umin did come to my section some times. Beuuuuuuh gantengnyaaaa abaaang ngga nahan. Dia kurus bangeeeet. Apalagi pas pake kemeja lengan panjang putih plus celana bahan item. Biar kata kaya calon pegawai kelurahan, tetep keluar kok aura laki gantengnya dia. Ngga cuma abang Umin yang lewat-lewat depan mata gw, si manly man Luhan pun berseliweran pake acara berenti pas banget depan gw. Sempet dadah-dadah, senyum, ketawa, nunjuk ke banner yang dibawa sama orang depan gw, ketawa lagi. Subhanallah. Maaaaaaak, gantengnya ini anak. Sumprit dia kaya pahatan marmer. Mulus. Cakep. Udah itu doang yang gw inget dari Luhan. Sehun pun sempet beberapa kali nangkring di section gw. Uwow banget ya doi, ganteng. Dia ngibasin rambut, penonton tereak. dia dadah-dadah, penonton histeris. Sampe kata temen gw, dia menghela napas aja, satu venue tereak. Yang bikin kaget ternyata si Tao. Si maknae yang selama ini gw liat di youtube biasa aja, ngga taunya ganteng bok. Gantengnya lebih manusiawi sih dibanding Luhan. Maksudnya dia cukup ganteng lah kalo disuruh maen FTV di SCTV. Kalo Luhan udahlah ngga usah dibahas gantengnya dia masuk kategori mana.

manly man Luhan yang tampangnya ngga manly

our lu-lu

Tapi sedikit kecewa sih karena solo stage nya abang Umin bukan di section gw. Aaaaah. Padahal kan gw udah napsu banget pengen liat dance hot-hot pop nya dia. How many times do i have to say that he is really hot like all you wanna do just watch him dance, talk, and take him to KUA together and merenda kasih bersama? Yes he is that Hot with capital H.

mmm..bang miisi bang, sprei nya mau dirapihin..

Anyway, salah satu hal yang bikin gw panik juga adalah ketika hujan turun. Awalnya cuma gerimis, lama-lama makin gede. Ya ampuuun rambut tancho-an gw apa kabaaar? Bandana bunga-bunga gw gimana iniii? Dandanan ala Taeyeon gw iki piyeeee?? Oke, lesson learned ya. Kalo mau ke konser outdoor, bawalah selalu jas ujan. Buat yang rambutnya rambut catokan macem gw, pasti gak mau dong dateng konser cakep macam Yoona, kelar konser rambut kaya singa paddle pop? Tapi tadi gw bodo amat sih. Cuma nutupin poni pake kipas aja. Lumayan lah. Bagian terpenting dari hidup gw terselamatkan.

Overall, konser EXO menghibur banget sih ya. Fan service mereka bagus. Secara visual, mereka bener-bener ngga nahan. Ngga ada yang ngga ganteng. Serius deh mereka itu macam patung yang dipahat. Proporsi muka nya pas, ngga mencong-mencong kaya beberapa boy group lain di luar sana. Suho apalagi. Walaupun mukanya kaya muka mau nangis mulu, mungkin karena beban idup kali ya, ditambah drama soulmate nya si Kris keluar, jadi mukanya sedih mulu. Tapi itu kulitnya, buset, dari jauh aja udah keliatan mencrang sendiri. His skin is so bright even brighter than my future. Sampe sekarang gw masih ngga abis pikir kok bisa SM Ent ngumpulin 12 laki yang ganteng semua begini?

Tapi kalo dari segi performance, cenderung biasa sih menurut gw. Gw baru 3 kali ke konser K-Pop. Sebelumnya ke BigBang sama 2NE1. Kalo dibandingin sama 2NE1, yah, jauh banget lah. Sejauh jarak pandang gw tadi di Premium C ke panggung utama. 2NE1 itu udah masuk music performer kategori keren buanget daebak amazing jinjja awesome. Kalo EXO sempet di beberapa lagu, gw yakin banget mereka lipsync. Bukan playback lagi. Tapi yasudahlah ya dimaapin. Ganteng soalnya hahahahahaha. Dari segi fan service, mereka bagus lah. Cukup niat buat belajar beberapa kata bahasa Indonesia, ngajak ngobrol penonton walaupun dengan bantuan penterjemah.

 

Overall, lumayan seru lah ya buat ngeliatin 11 laki tampan rupawan bekeliaran, senyum senyum. Yang biasanya kita liat di youtube, tiba-tiba bisa liat versi hidupnya. Kadang bikin gw terharu aja sih. Semacam kaya “o my God, they are real. They are moving in front of me.” ngga cuma ngeliat dari layar laptop. Sigh. Nasib K-Popers. Dan yang terpenting adalah gw jadi belajar bahasa-bahasa ABG sekarang. Karena sekeliling gw di Premium C isinya ABG semuaaa. Mereka tuh ya kalo ngomong selalu nyelipin kata “Anjir”. Semisal “anjir..something something” atau “something something..anjir” atau hanya sekedar ungkapan”ANJIIIR”. Dan kata anjir itu akan selalu ada minimal satu dari 2 kalimat yang mereka ucapkan. Kaya misalnya “anjir, Kai ganteng banget, dia makhluk ciptaan Tuhan yang paling indah.” tsk. oh girl, you obviously never see T.O.P a.k.a Choi Seunghyoon. Hahahahahha nyinyir banget ya gw.

Anywaaay, satu yang kurang dari konser ini. Kris. Sayang banget leader EXO-M ini ngga ada. Bak tulisan di buku organizer jaman SD, tiada kesan tanpa kehadiranmu Kris. Penasaran aja sih gw seganteng apa dia aslinya. Mengingat di layar laptop gw yang berdebu aja dia udah keliatan ca’em.

Yah untuk mengakhiri post panjang ini, buat para EXO-Love (exo fandom name), ngga nyesel nonton ini. Kapan lagi ngeliat 11 laki ganteng dalam satu moment di hidup kalian? Ngga usah ragu buat beli tiketnya. Berpeganglah pada prinsip beli dulu baru nyesel kemudian. Hahahahahah setan banget gw. Tapi kalo untuk penikmat musik, hmmm gw sarankan beli CD nya. Karena live performance mereka sama kaya di CD. Hahahahaha. Anyway, EXO will forever be 12 members for me. *Galaxy fan fan, yes, i’m talking about you*. Dan abang Umin, ngga akan tergantikan sebagai the sexiest and the manliest in EXO for me.

EXO, let’s love!!

Explore, Dream, Discover

Hi all, sorry for abandoning this wordpress blog since oh-so-many-years. I feel so bad for being such a lazy-moody blogger. But i just bought a new smartphone (#Important News #TheWhole GalaxyShouldKnow ). So hopefully this so called smart phone can help me bloging anytime anywhere. Kekekekekke.

Anyway, one day my friend said something intriguing to me. She said that i could buy my own car if only i travel less. Her statement kinda makes me thinking.

Well, buying a car has never been in my to-do or to-buy or even my wish list. I can’t imagine myself driving a car just like i can’t imagine myself eating meat again. I actually have a driving license and only-God-knows how on earth i could have that driving license while my driving skill is one out of hundred. One of the reason why i dont wanna drive a car is because i was once rode an ATV during my holiday but then i lost control on that ATV that made me slid into a gap and hit a tree. I thought i was gonna die but thank God i was all fine and i swore i would never ever ride any kind of vehicle again. And plus Jakarta`s traffic jam is already like a living hell. Driving a car in Jakarta is not really a good choice. So many time, gasoline and money will be wasted. Plus i just let my future husband to buy a car for our future family. Huahahahahaha. I mean, one car for one little family is enough, dont you think?🙂

So, an option to travel less is really not an option for me since I always get curious on how people in other country live, what the city looks like, the weather, the tourist attraction, the public transportation, the people, THE SHOPPING PLACE (that one i need to capslock it kekekekeke), and it brings some excitement for me. I`m not a hardcore backpacker actually, I consider myself as a Flashpacker, i still demand for a comfy place to stay though. But the way i think is just since i`m still in my young age and my body is still in good condition, i think i can handle the difficulties to carry a heavy backpack along the way, hop into a local bus, get lost in a new city, Walk for most of the time, waiting patiently (actually not) for the delayed flight, i mean as i get older i`m afraid that my body will get weaker and surely demand for more comfy trip. In Indonesian Language it would be “Mumpung badan masih bisa diajak susah”. So i just wanna use this healthy body and some of my money that i earn to explore at least small part of this BIG world, to have a new experience so i could tell my children what the world looks like, to learn new things so i could have an open-minded mind, to feed my curiosity, and to go away for a while so i could realize that no matter how ugly Jakarta is, it always be the place for me to come back.

Seriously, i mean sometimes we have to go far away just to realize that what`s called home is not a place but people.
And to be honest i sometimes get worry about what if i`m not able to travel again as i get married and be a housewife. I mean, as a woman, i do wanna get married but in the other side i`m afraid that i could not be able to travel again. But one day, my office colleague said “arent we supposed to marry a person who will support us in doing our positive hobby?”
Well, i look at her and her marriage life, she has one toddler and still able to manage traveling anywhere with budget airlines. She’s kinda a living proof that even if you already married you still able to do your positive hobby.🙂

So, if I should travel less in order to buy a car, I definitely will say no. I mean nowadays, we can travel to some places in low-cost budget plus I’d rather save my money to buy a property or clothes or SHOES. Just something that will not be depreciated in the future.

So, since we just celebrated new year a week ago, here is one of my 2013 resolution >>> going to Cambodia and Phillipine. I dont know why but i have this big urge to see ‘Museum Genosida’ though people say that ‘Museum Genosida’ is so creepy but..i’m really curiouuus. And the place that i have been dreaming to go to are Seoul and Tokyo. Aaaah i wish i could have a chance to go to those place and feel the winter. Kekekekekeke.

So, that’s my thought about my interest in traveling. Well, whatever people’s dream or hobby in their life is, hopefully it’s something positive and could bring goodness for ourselves (hopefully for other people too).

so, HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONEEE!!

Share Some, Get Some

I once watched a movie with its tagline “happiness happened when shared”. Omg, i forgot the movie title though. But, what’s make that tagline kinda memorable for me because i just think that about sharing what we have in life, that’s kinda true. I mean, since human is a social creature, which we were made to be a social creature, so it was kinda impossible for me to live alone. Like totally by yourself like the main star does in that movie. I honestly a pretty individual person. I like being in a crowd but i love to have some me-time more. And by me-time, means letting myself getting away from the crowd or from people some times. For example like i’d rather watching dvd, reading books or just browsing the internet in home than going out in some crowded place. But yes, there are some times i feel like i want to spend my days hanging out with my friends. But, basically, i could say that i am an introvert and individual (or i might say self-center) person.

So, about this sharing things, lately i’ve been busy whining and complaining about my job. Hah. And i was kinda tired and feel so sick about it, but since this month is Eid Fitr month, so every company is supposed to give their employee a THR (what’s THR in english? Mmm, Holy Day allowance for people who celebrate, is that right?heheehe). and thank God, i also given the THR as equal as one month salary of mine. As i received that allowance, i was so excited and i gave some of it (and by some means soooo little of my THR) to my parents and my brother. And suprisingly, after giving some of my THR to them, i feel happier. It was like my hard work lately was paid off. All of the after office hour meeting that i hate to the core of my heart, the boss’s anger to me, vendor’s ‘maki-makian’ to me, office colleague that act like a pain in the ass, etc etc, i was like “oke those shitty days i received were for this”. I know that the nominal of the money i gave to them was nothing, but apparently, it feels good to share what i earn to closest people.

And in this month, i also planned to make a little surprise to some friends of mine. I once had made a little surprise by giving a little christmas gift to some of my friends, and this time i decided to give a little gift to my friends in office. So, i bought some cookies in the night and i came to office earlier than them and i put those cookies each in their desk. I have no specific intention at all, actually. I just feel so grateful for their existence in my daily office life (which is sucks, most of the time, i mean my office life) and for their sincerity. I know that sincerity in people is priceless and can not be returned in any form of stuffs. Especially cookies. But, since i have difficulties in expressing my feeling, so i just love giving gift to express my grateful to people i respect. And this time, cookies it is. I just love planning surprise and seeing their surprised expression. It’s kinda giving a happy feeling for me. Making people, who makes me happy, happy. That’s kinda makes me happy. Hehehe. Omg, i used the ‘happy’ term too often.

Anw, one day i had this moment. The moment where i had to stay late in office on Friday night because of the work load. And out of nowhere, this thought crossed my mind “what do i do here? To whom this hard work for? Though i earn some money, but isn’t it sad when i don’t have someone to share with?”

Yea, that was one of my thought that made me think so hard, and some times i still think that way too. But, apparently, we can share with a lot of people. Family, friends, strangers or other creature. I’m actually kinda a picky person when it comes to share the money i earn. Since, i don’t earn money easily, well no one does, so i hate people who is so lazy that they think most people has a money tree that grows in their rooom so that’s why they can have a lot of money. So this lazy people just easily ask for some money, sometimes forcely, and if we don’t give our money they will curse us. Hey, you jerk, if you wanna have some money, work your ass off and earn some, like normal people does, don’t just sit lazily there, drinking some beer, walking around in public transportation, singing and talking when u’re drunk and asking unpolitely for some money from innocent and hard-work people. I swear those people will never ever be successfull in their whole life if they never change their attitude and their mindset. And i don’t give what i have to those lazy people. My mom always tell me to help people who help themselves. Who makes an effort in their lives, and that’s the people who deserves another helping hand.

I also heard that God help people who help themselves. So, make an effort if you wanna have a better life.

Okay, so that was my thoughts of sharing things that we (i) have. Hope this post i shared with you could be useful. You know, the idea of making this blog is to share what i have in mind, to share what happened in my life, and especially ideas. Idea is powerful. Maybe not my idea, but who knows. so this blog is one of my form of sharing. Ehehehehehhe. I always hope hope hope, what i share in my blog (even the most unecessary post) could be useful to people. Amin.

Regards,
Carissa

Unfinished Short Story

i just found a short piece of my short story in one of my diaries. i wrote this long time ago, i’m not sure if it was made on 2008 or 2009. well, it was kinda unfinished story. it was my bad habit to start either a short story or the long one, but i always left my fiction story unfinished. oh, maybe some stories already finished, but i forgot where i put them. so, since i just found this, i decided to post this in my blog. i’m not a pro writer though so, this is what i called an ‘ala kadarnya’ writing. hehehe. Please enjoy.🙂

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“sometimes i get tired of my me-first attitude. you are the one thing that keeps me smiling. that’s why i’m always wishing hard for you…”

Aku terpaksa membuka mataku begitu terdengar alunan ringtone handphone yang cukup keras. Aku kenal lagu ini. Lighthouse Family. Lost in Space. Aku suka lagu itu, tapi aku juga tidak rela kalau tidur siangku ini harus terganggu karena suara handphone yang tidak berhenti sejak semenit yang lalu.

Errrrgh, handphone siapa sih itu?? Dengan bersungut-sungut dan mata masih mengantuk, aku mencari sumber suara itu. mana sih?…doh, itu dia! Mataku seketika tertumbu pada sebuah Motorola Razr V3 hitam yang bergetar dengan tidak santainya di antara kertas-kertas yang bertebaran di atas meja Rendi.

Aku mengambil Motorola Razr V3 berwarna hitam itu. Loh, ini kan handphone nya Cylla, kok bisa ada disini? jangan-jangan ketinggalan tadi pas dia ke sini. Aku melihat ke LCD kecilnya yang tidak berhenti berkedip-kedip.

‘uvuli calling..’

Hahahahaha. kayanya si Arga nih yang nelfon. uvuli? apa pula itu artinya? aaah, sebodo lah, buat apa aku pikirin artinya apa, yang pasti kalau aku jadi cowonya Cylla nanti, aku ngga akan sudi namaku senorak ini di phonebooknya dia. Setelah beberapa detik, aku memutuskan mengangkat telfon entah dari siapa itu yang berhasil mengusik tidur siang sakral ku ini.

“Cyll, CDMA kamu kok ngga aktif sih? Mati ya? Makanya aku kan udah berkali-kali bilang, kalo batere nya tinggal satu di-charge aja”. Seru si penelpon di ujung line sana yang langsung aku kenali suaranya. Arga.

“…..”

“Cyll, Cylla, kok kamu diem aja sih?”

“Ini Aldi, ga.” jawabku akhirnya dengan singkat, padat dan jelas.

“Tadi handphonenya Cylla ketinggalan, ini gw baru mau nganterin ke kosannya.” lanjutku dengan enteng.

“Loh?Ketinggalan dimana?”

“Iya, tadi Cylla ke kosannya Rendi. Trus dia udah balik sekarang, tapi kayanya dia ngga sadar kalo handphonenya ketinggalan.”

Aku menjelaskan dengan santai. Hahahahaha. Rasanya aku pengen banget ngeliat ekspresi mukanya Arga ketika mendengar suaraku tadi.

“…..”

Waduh, Arga kayanya masih shock nih. Hahahahaha. Aku jadi geli sendiri.

“Yaudah lah kalo gitu, gw mau pergi sekarang ke kosannya Cylla”. kataku akhirnya .

“Hah? ngapain lo kesana?”

“Ya mau balikin handphone nya lah.”

“Ngga usah, gw aja yang ke situ sekarang, gw mau ngambil handphone nya Cylla, biar gw yang anter ke kosannya.”

Hmmm, pantang menyerah juga ini orang. Pantesan kayanya si Cylla sangat mengandalkan pacar tercintanya ini. Pacar? hah. Tempat lo bakal segera tergantikan sama gw, Ga. Secepatnya!.

“Oh, terserah lo lah, gw lagi di kosannya Rendi..”

“Gw kesana sekarang.”

..klik..

picture from here

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ok, that was it. my unfinished short story. Hope i could finish it and at least write in better quality. Hehehehe.

A Writer Writes

“Orang boleh pandai setinggi langit, tapi selama ia tidak menulis, ia akan hilang di dalam masyarakat dan dari sejarah. Menulis adalah bekerja untuk keabadian.”

― Pramoedya Ananta Toer

“Tahu kau mengapa aku sayangi kau lebih dari siapa pun? Karena kau menulis. Suaramu takkan padam ditelan angin, akan abadi, sampai jauh, jauh di kemudian hari. (Mama, 84)”

― Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Child of All Nations

Lost in Translation among Vietnamese

I am curious, I love making discoveries, travelling, speaking with people, go shopping.
-Maria Grazia Cucinotta-

This time i’m gonna share my experience when i went to Vietnam 2 weeks ago. it’s gonna be a verryyyyy loooong post [it took me 2 days just to write this, hehehe] so, i’m gonna divide this story into 2 post. enjoy😀

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Akhirnyaaaa, berhasil liburan juga setelah setiap hari mantengin website low cost airlines dengan muka harap-harap cemas, berharap ada tiket murah dengan tujuan kemana aja. iyes, kemana aja. saking puyengnya gw, gw bahkan udah ngga pilih-pilih tujuan yang penting harganya ngga bikin gw harus mengkonsumsi Indomie selama 2 bulan penuh. Setelah berkutat dengan sejumlah low cost airlines, akhirnya dapet juga tiket ke Vietnam tepatnya ke Ho Chi Minh City menggunakan apalagi kalo bukan AirAsia dengan harga IDR 651.000,- return, all in. semacam orang kesetanan, gw langsung ngasih tau tentang tiket murah ini ke temen gw yang doyan jalan-jalan juga. Blingsatan gw nyari tanggal cantik akhirnya ketemu lah tanggal 4 Juni sampai 7 Juni dan kebetulan emang pas tanggal segitu yang tiketnya paling murah.

Boarding pass udah ditangan [baru tau kalo AA bisa web check in, jadi ngga usah check in lagi di bandara], hotel plus itinerary udah dibikin, waktunya menunggu hari H. setelah diberikan ‘siksaan’ di kantor dan menghadapi hari-hari dengan keringat dan sumpah serapah, akhirnya 4 Juni datang juga. HUWOOOOOW.

Kebetulan dapet penerbangannya penerbangan sore yaitu jam 16.35 WIB dan di terminal 3 pula. Agak norak nih gw begitu tau semua AA ngendonnya di terminal 3. mengingat itu terminal baru dibikin ya dan yang terlihat paling futuristic dibanding terminal-terminal lainnya di Soetta. Jam 15.00 WIB masuk boarding room dan ternyata pesawatnya delay. Krak krik krak krik. Baru tau gw AA bisa delay juga, biasanya kan Lion Air yang juara delay dan baru tau juga AA kalo delay dikasih makanan. Agak murah sih ya gw anakya, delay bikin emosi tapi dicocokin makanan jadi ketawa ketiwi lagi. By the waaay, akhirnya pesawat ke HCMC berangkat jam 18.00 WIB dan sampai di Tan Son Nhat Airport sekitar jam 9 malem [ngga ada perbedaan waktu antara Vietnam dengan Indoensia]. Sampe sana nuker duit USD ke VND dan nyari taksi.

Bok, ketakutan gw akan tiada orang yang bisa berbahasa inggris di Vietnam pun jadi kenyataan. Mau nyari taksi aja harus pake bahasa kalbu. Ngga deng, bahasa tubuh. Capek banget deh badan gerak gerak mulu. Setelah keukeuh maunya naek taksi Vinasun [karena konon katanya Cuma taksi Vinasun dan Mailinh lah yang bisa dipercaya karena pake argo meteran] akhirnya dapet juga itu abang taksi. Pergi lah kita ke daerah District 1 buat ngejar bus ke Dalat. Pas mau bayar, kan kita rada dodol nih ya, kita pikir itu argo pake USD, nanyalah kita ke abang taksinya “bang, bayarnya pake USD atau VND?” pake bahasa inggris tentunya ngomong sama si abang. Eh, dia ngga ngerti malah ketawa-ketawa, lah dia ketawa kita bengong. AAAAARGGGH KONYAKU PENERJEMAH MANA KONYAKU PENERJEMAH??? Demi dewa dewi Olympus gw frustasi banget saat itu. Sempet rame di sekitar taksi yang gw naekin, karena orang-orang pada heboh niat mau ngebantuin abang taksi kucrut itu ngomong ke kita, lah yang ada makin puyeng kita, orang semuanya ngomong pake bahasa Vietnam. &^*&%@*&%#^!! Entah gimana akhirnya settle juga masalah dengan tukang taksi dodol itu dan kita langsung buru-buru mesen bus ke Dalat.

Bus malam yang kita naikin itu dari agen travel bernama Phuong Trang. Bus nya cukup bagus dan nyaman. Dikasih selimut, air minum dan tissue basah. dan di setiap kursi ada bantalan lehernya gitu biar leher ngga cengklak. Lumayan kan perjalanan panjang, dari HCMC ke Dalat sekitar 7 jam. Dan di perjalanan itu pula, pertama kalinya gw minum Antimo yang legendaries itu. Berharap gw bisa tidur nyenyak di bis, dan bener aja loh, gw minum Antimo kaya abis dibius total. Ngantuk berat, teler, bahkan buat melek aja kayanya tanpa kesadaran. Pokonya tiba-tiba dibangunin abangnya pas udah sampe terminal bus Dalat.

Sampe Dalat jam 5 pagi dan dingin bangeeeeettt. Udaranya kaya Puncak jam 5 pagi. Di terminal kita have no idea harus naik apa buat sampai ke hotel. Dan layaknya di Jakarta, abang-abang taksi mulai meneror kita dengan pertanyaan ‘neng, mau kemana neng? Naek taksi abang aja. neng, ntar abang anter’ kira-kira begitu translate-an nya dari Vietnamese ke Bahasa Indonesia. Udah mana maksa banget pula mau nganternya, dih, pacar bukan, temen bukan, maksa banget deh. Tapi kan gw pernah baca di blog orang ya kalo disediakan taksi GRATIS dari terminal bus ke tujuan kita di Dalat. Setelah tanya-tanya ke mbak penjaga loket, akhirnya kita berhasil dapat info kalo kita bisa naek taksi gratis ke hotel. Jadi kayanya sih karena kita pake FutaBus kita dapet fasilitas taksi gratis gitu semacam shuttle car gitu sih sebenernya dengan nunjukkin tiket bus kita tadi.

Jam 6 pagi, sampailah kita di La Pensee Hotel yang udah kita booking lewat www.agoda.com dan udah kita wanti-wanti kalo kita akan terlambat check-in nya. Otherwise, we will be considered as a no-show. Hotel nya cukup bagus dan kamarnya gedeeee untuk ukuran harga kisaran IDR 230.000 ya. dan twin bed pula. Walopun balcony view nya ke balkon penduduk sebelah. -.-“ Setelah itu bagaikan Energizer Bunny, kita langsung lanjut ikut Dalat City Tour jam 8 pagi yang kita booking lewat The Sinh Tourist yang konon katanya lagi, agen tur&travel paling tenar dan terpercaya seantero Vietnam. Sebenernya gw paling ngga tahan tuh ya lack of sleep and rest gitu, huhuhu tapi mau gimana lagi, mengingat hari liburan yang seadanya, semua hari harus digeber. Huks.

By the way, pas kita ikut tour ini kita diajak ke beberapa tempat wisata di Dalat, antara lain Bao Dai Summer Palace [semacam villa peristirahatan Raja], Crazy House [sebenernya Cuma rumah tinggal biasa dengan arsitektur yang aneh aja sih], Penn Waterfall [which is hanya air terjun biasa yang juga bisa ditemui di Ciater atau pelosok-pelosok pulau Jawa lainnya], Valley of Love [tempat wisata yang mana isinya serba Love Love, bahkan sampe paving block nya pun bentuk hati] dan terakhir Flower Park [kalo Indonesia nya mah Taman Bunga Nusantara di Puncak]. Di tour itu kita barengan sama 2 wanita dari Hongkong, 1 bapak beserta 2 anak laki-lakinya dari entah-darimana-mereka-datangnya, 1 gadis Singapura, sepasang lovebird lintas Negara [wanita local dan bule amerika sepertinya] dan 2 pria Swiss. Overall, service tour nya cukup baik, harga tur pun include Lunch.

Tapi entah kenapa kok gw ngga terlalu amazed ya dengan tempat wisata di Dalat ini. Karena semuanya nampak too artificial, bahasa sunda nya fake. Hehehehe. Maksudnya terlalu dibuat-buat. Apalagi Valley of Love itu, lope lope di udara bangeeet. Even gw punya pacar ya, gw kayanya gak akan ngajak pacar gw kesitu. Menurut gw sebagai seorang yang tidak ada romantis-romantisnya dan cenderung metal di hati, Valley of Love itu too corny. Bao Dai Summer Palace pun semacam Museum Linggar Jati, Crazy House, entahlah ya, didn’t amaze me much, Penn Waterfall, bok Ciater mungkin lebih bagus dari itu, Flower Park, malah bagusan Taman Bunga Nusantara.

But anyway, selesai tur yang kira-kira jam setengah 4 sore, kita balik ke hotel, istirahat bentar dan jam 7 keluar untuk makan malam. Pas makan malem mau sok-sok belagu, makan di V Café, semacam café yang kayanya cukup nge-hip diantara turis karena rata-rata yang dateng bule. Pas buka buku Menu, huaaa harganya cukup mehong ya buat kantong gw yang turis gaya koper tapi budget ransel ini. Kira-kira kalo dirupiahin, gw mengeluarkan uang sekitar IDR 35.000 untuk dinner. Such a splendid dinner. Kalo di Jakarta mah 35ribu sekali makan bodo amat ya, lah ini di Negara orang, bawa duit VND juga pas-pasan, huhuhuhu. Setelah itu kita jalan ke downtown tepatnya Night Market. Tadinya mau foto di Little Eiffel yang tenar itu, tapi sayangnya itu Little Eiffel [yang ternyata adalah menara BTS] ngga nyala lampunya. Sial banget deh cuuuy kita. Niat mau nyirik-nyirikin orang dengan berfoto depan Little Paris pun musnah sudah.

Night Market Dalat ini jualannya rata-rata seragam, knitted clothes [mungkin memang warga Dalat ini pada doyan ngerajut ya], pashmina which I bought one for IDR 40.000 or VND 80.000, pajangan dari rotan dan gantungan hand phone. Kita juga sempet nyobain minuman bernama &*%*%$ entah itu namanya apa, tapi pas dirasain itu adalah susu kedelai. Cara minumnya ternyata unik, pemirsa. Disediakan dengan bermacam roti Baguette yang nanti rotinya dicelupin ke susu kedelai itu. Mungkin semacam kolak ya, lah kok kolak, bukaaan, itu loh kacang ijo yang kita makan pake roti. Jam 10 malem jalanan makin sepi, dan kita pun pulang ke hotel sebelum digrebek oleh satgas setempat.

Additional info nih, Dalat itu dikenal sebagai Flower City tapi unlike Bandung ya yang di Indonesia pun dikenal dengan kota kembang tapi kembangnya jarang, Dalat literally filled with flower. Flowers, in fact, are spread everywhere. Romantis sih, ngga heran kalo Dalat jadi tempat tujuan Vietnamese pergi Honey Moon. Dingin ya bok.

(continued)…

Half the fun of the travel is the esthetic of lostness. ~Ray Bradbury

Lost in Translation among Vietnamese [Part 2]

(continued post from previous post)

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Sampe hotel, buru-buru keramas dan tidur karena besoknya, kita harus naik bus ke Mui Ne jam setengah delapan pagi. Huwooooow, gw yang sama sekali bukan Morning Person tersiksa banget dengan jadwal bus ini. Ngga bisa siangan dikit apaaah. Btw, kita naik bus nya pun booking di SinhTourist itu, bookingnya via online dari Jakarta, biar sampe Vietnam tinggal lompat ke bis gak usah bayar lagi dan rempong segala macem.

Bis berangkat sekitar jam 8 pagi dan sampe Mui Ne sekitar jam 12 siang. Kita segera check in ke hotel which is Sunshine Beach Resort yang udah dibooking dari Jakarta. Walaupun menyandang gelar resort tapi Sunshine Beach ini ngga mahal lho. Cukup IDR 180.000 saja per malam. Lumayaaan, pinggir pantai, tempatnya bersih, twin bed include breakfast pula. Dan ada shuttle bus dari SinhTourist untuk bis ke HCMC. Kebetulan di hotel kita nginep ini, dapet pantainya yang bagus, bersih, sepi dan airnya masih biruuuu.

Di Mui Ne ini kita juga ikut tur Mui Ne Half Day tour dari SinhTourist. Di half day tour ini tujuan wisatanya ke Fishing Village, White Sand Dunes dan Yellow Sand Dunes. Tour selesai jam 5 sore. Fishing Village, so so ya. tapi yang menarik, ternyata Vietnamese mancing ikan nya pake perahu bentuk bunder. Setelah itu yang paling remarkable dari perjalanan gw ke Vietnam kali ini adalah….White Sand Dunes!! Untuk mencapai kesana butuh waktu kira-kira 20 Menit dari downtown. Tapi baguuuuuus bangeeet. Udaranya berangin, pasirnya putih dan bersih, berlembah, berdanau dan ada pohon pakis nya. Berasa di Korea deh. Cocok banget buat meditasi, instropeksi, negosiasi dan mediasi. *lah. Dan disinilah kita macam turis norak yang kerjaannya foto di setiap 3 langkah. Pokonya White Sand Dunes bagus banget, sangat alami dan ngga dibuat-buat macam Valley of Love itu loh.

Selesai dari White Sand Dunes, tur lanjut ke Yellow Sand Dunes. Jadi ceritanya di Mui Ne ini, ada 2 jenis pasir, putih dan orange kemerahan. Unik sih. Dibanding Valley of Love. hehehehe. Tapi sayangnya di Yellow Sand Dunes ini ngga terlalu breathtaking macam White Sand Dunes. Karena tempatnya rame dan kotor. Btw, disini banyak bocah-bocah penjaja jasa maen sliding papan gitu. dan amazingly, gw nemu bocah penjaja yang bisa bahasa inggris SANGAT FASIH. Please note sangat fasihnya itu, bahkan logatnya pun kaya Keira Knightley. FINALLYYY SOMEBODY IS SPEAKING ENGLISH. Nemu orang yang bisa bahasa inggris disini bahagianya kaya ketemu gebetan deh. Bikin hati berbunga-bunga, because finally someone understand you. *dramatis*

Selesai tur, kita menyusuri sepanjang jalanan downtown Mui Ne sembari nyari makan malem. Sepanjang pesisir jalan banyak tempat makan seafood macam di ancol gitu, tapi surprisingly Mui Ne yang gw pikir mirip Kuta nya Bali ini, ngga terlalu rame yang bunyi-bunyi musik jedak-jeduk gitu. cenderung sepi malah. Yang bikin gw ngiler lagi, daerah sini banyak banget tempat Spa. Entah spa esek-esek atau beneran, tapi sukses bikin gw ngiler kepengen masuk. Sambil mata jelalatan ngeliatin tempat makan yang bisa disinggahi berhubung cacing perut udah bikin konser metal ya di dalem, akhirnya sampe juga di suatu tempat makan yang bertitel Budget Restaurant. Sebagai orang yang penuh perhitungan cenderung pelit, kita pun masuk ke tempat makan ini yang dilihat dari buku menu, harga nya nampak pas di kantong.

Disitu gw mesen Pho Cay. Pho ini sejenis mie yang menjadi makanan khas Vietnamese. Dan berhubung gw Pescetarian, gw pun mesen Pho yang isinya hanya sayur-sayuran. Namanya Pho Cay ini. Btw, sedikit tips nih, untuk yang Muslim kan suka susah tuh ya kalo nyari makanan halal di sini, jadi gw kalo mesen selalu bilang ke mbak nya ‘mbak, ada menu vegetarian ngga?” untuk meminimalisir ngga sengaja kemakan daging babi aja sih. Hehehehe. Pho Cay yang gw pesen rasanya enak banget, tepatnya kuah nya sih yang enak. Kaya kuah bakso. Entahlah ya kuahnya pake kaldu daging apa. huhuhu. Berhubung perut kelaperan parah, gw mesen Nasi Goreng lagi ke mbaknya. Overall, untuk dinner gw makan 2 porsi lah.😀 kali ini gw mesen Nasi Goreng Garlic [lupa nama Vietnam nya apa]. Ini nasi goreng isinya hanya nasi yang dicampur bawang yang bentuknya kaya lada gitu. Basically sih gw makan nasi doang ngga pake lauk. Maklum turis budget ransel. Hikshiks. Selesai makan, balik ke hotel dan packing-packing biar besok ke HCMC ngga grabak-grubuk mengingat bus nya akan jemput kita pagi-pagi di hotel.

Pagi yang cerah ceria di Mui Ne, niatnya kita mau bangun subuh mau liat sunrise di pantai, tapi ya entah kenapa kasur itu selalu terlihat menggairahkan di pagi hari, jadilah kita baru bangun jam 6 yang mana sunrise nya udah pindah ke New York. *yakali. Untungnya breakfast kali ini include ke harga hotel, akhirnyaaa bisa makan yang proper juga which is Waffle dan Peach Juice setelah beberapa hari makan roti Baguette doang buat sarapan ataupun lunch.

Di Mui Ne ini ternyata ombaknya cukup besar, sandal temen gw sampe keseret ombak pas lagi foto-foto pinggir pantai. Untung ya bukan temen gw yang keseret, ngga kebayang deh gw rempongnya kalo begitu. Mesen makanan aja ngomongnya ribet, apalagi bilang ke orang setempat kalo temen gw keseret. -.-“

Pas jam 08.30 pagi bus dari SinhTourist jemput ke hotel.Pergilah kita ke HCMC melewati jalanan yang kurang lebih kaya jalur pantura di pulau Jawa. Sampe HCMC tepatnya diturunin di District 1 sekitar jam 2 siang, kita langsung pergi ke Ben Tanh Market yang tenar itu. Dari District 1 naik taksi ke Ben Tanh ngga terlalu mahal kok sekitar VND 45.000, mengingat kita bawa tas ransel seberat dosa, kalo harus naek bus kayanya gw pingsan deh.

Ben Tanh Market ini cukup luas dan even judulnya pasar, tapi pasar indoor gitu. semacam Tanah Abang. Jualannya macem-macem, ada souvenir [gantungan kunci, dompet, you name it], kaos, tas, makanan, kopi, manisan, kosmetik dan lain-lain. Yang bikin gw bete disini, mbak-mbak yang jualan suka maksa deh. Misalnya gw nanya harga dompet berapa, dia buka harga, gw tawar, dia ngga mau, yaudah ngga cocok gw pergi kan dengan sebelumnya bilang ‘Thank You’plus cengiran termanis gw, eh bok yang ada dia langsung nahan tangan gw trus bilang ‘loh kok gak jadi beli, kan tadi lo bilang ke gw kalo lo mau beli, gw udah ngasih harga ke lo, ya beli dong’ kira-kira begitu ya gw translate secara bebas dari gerak tubuh, gerak bibir dan bahasa inggris nya yang belepetan. Dengan segala cara gw berusaha membebaskan diri dari mbak jutek nan rese ini. Di tempat lain pun begitu, yang jualan kopi, maksaaa banget biar dibeli ‘ayo dong beli dong beli dong’. Hadeuuuuh. Sampe ke tukang jual makanan pun, pas lagi gw tawar si ibu penjualnya ngga mau liat muka gw gitu. I was totally being ignored. Iiiih emosi jiwa raga, tapi disabar-sabarin aja deh. Di Negara orang, salah-salah bisa dikeroyok gw.

Sedikit additional info, di Ben Tanh ini panas dan pengap banget ditambah crowded pula. Jadi harus pakai baju senyaman mungkin, ngga usah sok-sok an bawa ransel isi baju kayak gw kalo ngga kepengen pingsan. Dan kalo mau beli sesuatu mending tanya-tanya harga dulu ke toko-toko lain, karena bedanya bisa cukup jauh loh. Gw beli serenteng gantungan kunci seharga VND 120.000 pake nawar dengan adu otot sampe pasang mata memelas tapi ternyata di toko sebelah VND 80.000 aja gitu pas dia buka harga. Gondok ngga tuh gw. Sayangnya karena tenaga yang udah terkuras habis di bagian bahu yang harus manggul tas ransel, I became cranky. Capek banget bok. Akhirnya kita merapat di sebuah café and bar di pinggir pasar Ben Tanh. Tempatnya cukup nyaman dengan harga yang memang cukup mahal. Tapi bodo amatlah udah mau pulang ini, abis-abisin aja duit VND nya.

Yang kocak di Café and Bar ini [lupa nama tempat nya apa] pelayannya nanya-nanya gitu kita dari mana, pekerjaan kita apa, eh ujung-ujungnya dia minta diajak ke Indonesia. Gusraaak. Kata dia ‘wah kamu pasti banyak duit ya, henfonnya aja ada dua, ajak kita dong ke Indonesia, kita mau kerja disana’. Hahahaha. Emang ya kalo gw pikir-pikir kebanyakan orang Indonesia gede di gaya, henfon setidaknya minimal dua, belum gadget portable lainnya. Not to mention smartphone yang semacam jadi barang wajib para abegeh. Hihihihi jadi miris sendiri pas denger abangnya ngomong begitu. Ngga tau aja dia gw bawa duit pas-pas an, tiket pesawat pun nyari yang termurah. Ngga papa deh jarang-jarang disangka orang kaya.

Selesai makan, kita ke terminal bus pas di depan Ben Tanh Market buat naik bus ke Bandara. Dan kata abang di café itu, kalo jam 5 biasanya suka macet. Dan bener aja loh, jalanan crowded, motor banyak banget, bahkan traffic light pun mungkin ngga ngaruh ya di sekitar pasar itu. Tapi amazingly, orang-orang nyebrang santai aja gitu, ngga perlu nunggu jalanan kosong atau lampu merah berubah warna. Udah biasa kali ya. Di terminal sempet pusing nyari bus no.152 yang ke bandara, nanya ke cewe yang berdiri di sebelah, ternyata dia bisa berbahasa inggris dengan cukup fasih. HUWOOOOOOW. Berkat arahan dia kita berhasil nemu bus no.152 dengan ongkos VND 8.000/orang. Lumayan kan dibanding naik taksi yang bisa VND 140.000 sendiri. Di dalem bus, deket pintu masuk ada mesin tiket nya gitu, tapi karena kita dodol ya, jadinya sopir bus nya yang bantuin nuker uang ke tiket di mesin itu. Ngga terlalu lama naik bus, cukup 45 menit saja, dan jalanan ngga terlalu macet. Crowded sih. Banget tapi ngga sampe parkir begitu.

Akhirnya sampai juga di Bandara Tan Son Nhat, check in, lewat imigrasi dan boarding room. Oiya, sempet beli air mineral di sini, dengan harga VND 45.000/each mahal bangeeeet, gila ya abangnya mark up harga ruar biasa banget, harusnya kan Cuma VND 5.000. dan di Bandara ini juga gw hampir kehilangan Blackberry gw. Sampe di boarding room baru sadar kalo BB tersayang ngga ada di tas, saku, kursi dll. Udah panik, ngga lucu banget gw ke Vietnam bermodal 2 juta-an tapi harus kehilangan BB seharga lebih dari itu. Diinget-inget lagi ternyata itu BB ketinggalan di toko souvenir pas gw lagi asyik masyuk milih-milih gantungan kunci. Lari ngepot ke toko souvenir dan Alhamdulillah sekali BB nya disimpan dengan baik sama abangnya. Ceroboh banget deh gw, padahal gw suka marahin temen gw yang cerobohnya ngga ketulungan. T.T

Setelah melalui penerbangan selama 3 jam full of rough turbulence, akhirnyaaaah, sampai juga di Soetta, jam 12 Malam. Sampe abang imigrasi nya nanya ‘kenape lah tu wajah capek sekali?’ gw jawab aja ‘ngantuk, laper, berat’. Setelah lewat imigrasi baru sadar, kok itu orang ngomong pake logat Melayu ya?. ah sudahlah, mungkin impor dari Malaysia :p

Selesai sudah liburan gw. Banyak orang yang nanya ‘kenapa Vietnam sih? Emang bagus ya? ih bagusan juga Jakarta’. Iya sih tapi kan gw butuh some get away place,terserah dimana asal bukan daerah konflik aja. dan kebetulan tiket nya yang murah ke sana. Kalo ditanya Vietnam gimana, sepenglihatan gw sih..mmmm…biasa aja. hihihihihi. Tapi kan gw belom ke Hanoi atau Ha Long Bay yang legendaries itu ya. tapi cukup menyenangkan dan menantang kok. Menantang karena bisa belajar bahasa tarzan, menyenangkan karena bisa liat White Sand Dunes, ketemu turis-turis lintas Negara, and I’m kinda proud of myself because I could carry a super heavy backpack bag along my way. include hop into a local bus. Dan kalo kata nya Paulo Coelho, sebenernya kalo lagi traveling jangan banding-bandingin Negara tujuan dengan Negara kita, karena kan tujuan kita liburan ya bukan studi banding macam anggota dewan itu. But I can’t help myself to not compare between this two countries. Hehehehe.

Ternyata traffic di Jakarta ngga seberapa dibanding HCMC. Di Jakarta memang macet sih, ngga gerak pula, tapi masih teratur. Kalo di HCMC, mungkin ngga macet, hanya padat, tapi waaaw ngga teratur banget. People honking their vehicle every second and motorcycle are everywhere. And I can barely walk at the pedestrian because the pedestrian are filled with street hawkers. But things I like about HCMC, transportasi nya cukup memadai walaupun ngga ada MRT. Bus nya manusiawi dan pakai system tiket. Orang-orang pun naik dan turun bus di halte, bukan di tiap tikungan atau tiap 8 meter. Taksi nya pun ada mesin untuk pembayaran pakai kartu. Canggih deh. Dan di Vietnam ada sleeping bus. Gw ngga sempet naik sleeping bus sih, tapi sempet liat di jalan, kayanya cukup nyaman ya untuk perjalanan panjang. Living cost disana pun cukup murah dibandingkan di Jakarta. Cuma ya satu hal kendala menurut gw, we were lost in translation among Vietnamese. ;p

Regards,

Carissa

If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay home. ~James Michener