SK-II Dream Park #DreamBig

SK-II has been knocking out amazing inspiring viral videos after videos.
Ever since the start of their #ChangeDestiny movement, it's just been one great video production after another.
Kudos to them!

Have you seen the latest video by them? It's called Dream Again (will attached the video at the bottom). And it's part of the new Dream Again campaign #dreambig

I was invited to the Dream Park in Pavilion few days ago and they really took it up a notch in their set-up. The place was filled with red balloons and red and white roses. It really did feel like a dream park!






They were collaborating with BloomThis for the roses, and for every RM800 spent you get a specially curated BloomThis rose box. They were also giving out free red fruit juices and free scoop of ice cream from Inside Scoop for everyone, with a special rose lychee flavour created just for the event. Calligraphy art were present to write inspiring quotes for the guests and you get a chance to play the Japanese claw machine where you would win prices from SK-II (I didn't win anything *sob*).

It was impressive.


Some of the photos from the day.

Yogyakarta: Borobudur Sunrise and Cycling Tour

Leaving Bandung behind, the trip brought 40 of us bloggers and influencers to Jogja, or more internationally known as Yogyakarta.

The itinerary got more intense with each passing day, waking up at 5:30am on a daily basis to pass our luggages down to the hotel lobby for check out, had breakfast, and it was time to leave for the airports/train ride/boat ride.

We had one day in Jogja and on this day I was woken up by a morning call at a monstrous hour of 2:30am. After sleeping in for a total of 5 hours (thank god for getting a cold, I got to bed early; some of the bloggers only had 1 hour of sleep, siao), I was up and down at the grand lobby of Royal Ambarrukmo (which btw is an 18th century royal palace reconstructed into a hotel) within half an hour to depart for the sunrise at Borobudur temple.

The sun rises at 5:30-5:45am in Jogja. By the time we get passed the entrance, walked the stretch of the garden and climbed the stone steps, it was 4:30am and it was pitch black but there were tons of tourists at the top of Borobudur already. It was quite the challenge to get a good spot for sunrise though not impossible.

Oh and I started playing with Lightroom. Spent most of last night grinding the app. Who knew photo editing can be this tough, and fun!

Behold, the sunrise at Borobudur.

photo credit to Febrian

Misty morning

Right after Borobudur, we adjourned to a cycling tour in the village nearby Borobudur. The cycling route was picturesque enough to be worth setting aside a full morning. I didn't take any photo, since you know, I was busy cycling, but I borrowed one from Febrian below. :p 

photo credit to Febrian

The one hour cycling tour ended with a performance lunch at Pendopo Onthel Tingal, which I sadly did not join as I was feeling too ill so I slept through lunch on the bus. #fml 

Borobudur Entrance Fee

Local - IDR 25,000

Foreigner - USD 13

Borobudur Bike Tour

IDR 450,000 / pax (min 4 pax)

include: 

- bicycle rental 

- drinks and snacks

- make your own pottery or batik

- lunch 

5 Things to Do in Bandung Besides Shopping

Waking in Sheraton's bed was a very pleasant way to start my day and trip in Bandung. 

So what do you know about Bandung?

Aside from plentiful of shopping and "Bakso" (beef meatballs), here are five things you could make your itinerary more interesting when visiting the capital of West Java province. 

1. NuArt Sculpture Park

If you enjoy art, and you probably should (since you are in Bandung), check out this 3-hectare sculpture park of Nyoman Nuarta who built his 'empire' and gallery from scratch (no external funds). Having made many monumental brass and copper sculptures across Indonesia, most of them in Bali, his latest gargantuan project "Garuda Wisnu Kencana" is set to complete in 2018. But you can see many of his smaller art pieces at his gallery here in Bandung. 

Visit to the workshop can be arranged from the tour desk at the park. A cafe is present if you're feeling peckish. 

NuArt Sculpture Park

Jalan Setraduta Raya No L 6, Bandung 

Opens 7 days a week. 

Contact: +62 22 2017812

2. Dusun Bambu Leisure Park

Aptly named "Bamboo Forest", the park's famous bird nest pods can be rented on an hourly basis starting from 100k rupiah for you to dine in (you would need to purchase your own food from the stalls/cafe nearby). This eco-tourism leisure park is most suitable for families with kids, but if you're a couple who enjoy long walks, there's a lake, hilly rice fields and a flower garden catered for you. 

Dusun Bambu 

Jalan Kolonel Masturi KM 11, Situ Lembang, Cisarua, Kabupaten Bandung Barat

Opens 7 days a week. 

Contact: +62 22 82782020

3. Armor Coffee Cafe

Being an artistic town, there are no shortage of quaint and creative cafes around town.
So it only makes sense if you take a morning off to visit some of them. One prominent cafe to visit is the Armor Coffee Cafe, built in wood and comes with an outdoor alfresco area overlooking a field in a forest, it gives a whole new experience for the usual city cafe hoppers.





Apart from serving good selections of coffees and teas (self-service), you get to order local delights such as "Pisang Goreng" (banana fritters with cheese) and "Cireng" (deep fried savoury glutinous rice paste with spicy sauce); both dishes surprisingly delicious.



Armor Coffee Cafe
Jalan Legok Randy, Ciburial, Cimenyan, Bandung
Open 7 days a week.

4. Saunt Angklung Udjo 

Set up in 1966 by the late Udjod Ngalagena and his wife, Uum Sumiati, the art studio was a place for art performance and laboratory for art education, and also a foundation to preserve sundanese art and culture, especially Angklung - a traditional musical instrument made of bamboo that produces a single musical note.

The daily performance starts from 3:30pm - 5pm, consisting of Wayang Golek (wooden puppets), mask dance and interactive angklung performance where the audience get to be part of a musical production (my favourite part of the show). It ended on a high note with an impressive Angklung Orchestra orchestrated by the son of the founder who performed a wonderful semi-jazz piece using these Angklung instrument. This performance alone was worth the entrance fee.



Local:
IDR 70,000 (weekend)
IDR 60,000 (weekday)

Foreigner:
IDR 110,000 (weekend)
IDR 100,000 (weekday)

Saung Angklung Udjo
Jalan Padasuka 118, Bandung
Open 7 days a week.
Contact: +62 22 7201587
www.angklung-udjo.co.id


5. Rumah Mode Factory Outlet 

I know I said this post will be a list of things to do aside from shopping, but do you really think I am not going to include at least one factory outlet into this list? Well I am. So there you go.

A factory outlet selling all kinds of fashion wear from bags to shoes to clothes. You won't get branded but you will find something at a cheap price. I got a Mickey Mouse top for my beach wear at IDR150,000.

Easily spend a good 2 hours here before you head back home or onto your shopping spree in the rest of Bandung. Don't forget to head onto the streets to scour some good local designer boutiques that scattered the city. This place will dress you up like a modern hipster in no time.

Rumah Mode
Jalan Setiabudhi No.41, Pasteur, Sukajadi, Kota Bandung
Open 7 days a week.
Contact: +62 22 2035498 

Train from Jakarta to Bandung

The train from Jakarta to Bandung was an easy affair.

The Argo Parahyangan train cost IDR 120,000 one way (~RM38). Has comfortable reclining seats, separated into first and second class seatings and comes with a kitchen cart selling Indonesian bento sets with drinks.

The whole journey takes 3 hours from Jakarta to Bandung and you get to enjoy the scenic views across West Java. Both cities have Uber services so travelling to and from train stations are not a problem for the intentional travellers, so long you have data on your mobile devices.


waking up in Mercure Sabang, Jakarta after spending a night in the city with 40 bloggers/vloggers/influencers flown in from all over South East Asia.



Train ride with a view



The view while passing by Purwakarta Station


And so began my 12-day Trip of Wonders 2016 journey by Ministry of Tourism Indonesia through four amazing destinations. Bandung - Yogyakarta - Lombok - Labuan Bajo