I've been thinking about being more active here to train my writing muscles (which wasn't there from the start) and still not doing it until today. A little update, I'm moving to London this year to pursue a master's degree in public administration, yeay *cue fireworks*. I will talk about that later in a separate post, but in the meantime since I just realized that postgrad life will actually *begin* in a few months, I literally have no other choices but to condition myself with this exercise.
For a starter, let's begin with the thing that always sparks joy to my life: music.
These are the three songs that I enjoy so much lately.
1. Foster The People - Imagination
It's funny that I was 6 years late when I found this song. The first time I listened to this song, it reminded me of an old friend I was once close with. Suddenly the dynamics we experienced in our younger days came back to life: the flame of teenage love, our confusion, questioning each other's decision, the fact that we were in love with each other but never had the guts to be in each other's embrace. It was a sad fate but and honestly it's a nice thing to commemorate. I see us dancing by ourselves we do it better with no one around, just you in my imagination. This song just touches my soft spot but unfortunately I can't afford soft spots now (not because I'm married now but more because I am an adult and being an adult means there will always be deadlines to chase :( )
2. Thee Sacred Souls - Weak for Your Life
Lately, I've been into Thee Sacred Souls, a soul music trio which song went initially viral on TikTok. People often associate how the vocalist sings with Marvin Gaye's singing style. For me, since I know nothing about Marvin Gaye, I just simply love this song. I thought it's a 70s song but turns out it's not. Need to check my Spotify statistics first (God I love it when apps start to give me statistics, I feel SEEN *in a good way, of course*), but maybe I can say that in 2025 there's no day in my life went without listening to their songs.
3. Tokyo Tea Room - I Would
I had no idea about this band. It was never in my orbit, pure newfound from Spotify algorithm. The song is dreamy, longing, the one that plays slowly and will definitely invite you to explore the emotions behind. Such a gem.
I think that would be all. Thank you for staying until the very last part. Don't forget to give my songs a go :)
There were times when I thought I might dedicate some of my time to come back writing on this blog again. But try it as you might, it was almost impossible to spare some time, let alone energy, to do something ‘leisure’ after work, commute, and babysit my daughter. If I can summarize what it feels to be a mother, it is that you’re already thinking about something else the same time you’re thinking about something. The interval between one thought to another is so brief and that explains how easy it is for a mother to be overwhelmed by even the most trivial stuffs around her.
It’s been more than two years since I wrote something I wish I never had to write: obituary to my beloved grandfather. They say, people come, people go. That’s true, because a couple months after grandpa passed away, I gave birth to his first great-grand daughter. Someone whose presence was enthusiastically awaited by everyone in the family, including him. Occasionally, I spent my night thinking how wonderful it could be if he had stayed a little bit longer so that he could see my daughter himself. If only he had stayed a little bit longer to be in the family-portraits, for the first time ever, because someone in his family could finally afford it. I could talk for long hours about this.
After I gave birth to my daughter, I graduated with bachelor degree from the same school I got my diploma degree from. It was probably one of the most monumental phase in my life. If it’s not because I decided to pursue my bachelor degree there, I wouldn’t move to Jakarta, begin my current career, nor live under the same roof with my husband. Thanks to my fiery, adolescent energy, that kept my persistence strong enough from the very first start to last. You know, it’s actually funny how one simple decision could deviate your life far off from the life what you thought you deserved.
Pada awalnya, gue pengen banget nulis sesuatu yang reflektif ala-ala new year, new me same old mistakesdi awal tahun ini. Namun tentu saja niat tersebut berlabuh di tempat yang sama: wacana. Ya sudah, pikir gue. Mungkin nanti kala ada kejadian menarik yang kayanya bakal lebih representatif untuk diceritakan, gue akan nulis tentang itu (bayanganku: saat skripsiku tembus jstor/mewakili Indonesia dalam acara-acara keren yang membuat gue nampak pintar/mencetak skor ielts 8,5 (hahaha *laughing off damp tearmarks on kaplan book*)). Wew dasar karma, niat itu harus gue tunaikan sekarang karena ada cerita yang ingin gue sampaikan hari ini. Sayangnya cerita ini ga ada sangkut pautnya dengan halusinasi prestasi skripsi atau skor ielts yang gue ceritakan tadi (ya mungkin nanti bund *ada aamiin ku dapat??* *tetep*)
So, I was confirmed COVID-19 positive 2 weeks ago.
Sesiap-siapnya gue untuk kena COVID-19 (iya. bener. habis, ekspektasi apa coba yang cocok lo dibangun ketika 'terjebak' di suatu tempat yang amburadul penanganan pandeminya selain ekspektasi "nunggu sial aja nih gue kapan kenanya"), rasanya tetep aja kaget ketika virus yang tahun lalu masih sebatas mitos bahkan bagi menkes (iya, menkes), yang "engga kok, itu kan di Wuhan sana, ga akan sampe sini", yang dulu cuma gue liat di tipi (liputannya), kini sampe juga di badan gue. Hffft. Cuman gue mau pengakuan dosa ni, mungkin gue jarang keluar rumah, pake masker kalo di luar, dan selalu cuci tangan. Tapi .... gue masih sering banget ketemu sama temen-temen dan lepas masker saat lagi ada di rumah sama mereka. I thought we're safe in the bubble .. but actually no one, i repeat, NO ONE is safe inside and outside the bubble during a pandemic.
Kejadian dimulai ketika suatu hari suami gue mengeluh badannya demam. So unlikely untuk suami gue yang selama ini jarang banget sakit. Gue ukur termometer ko di atas 37,5C ya.... mulai malam itu, kami memutuskan pisah kamar buat mencegah penularan jika ada. Besoknya pun kondisi engga membaik, setelah dia minum paracetamol, demamnya malah sempat naik bahkan hingga 38,5C. Gue sempet konsul pake dokter di halodoc dan dikasih resep penurun panas, obat batuk, dan antibiotik. Setelah 2 hari, kondisi suami gue makin membaik. Meskipun suami gue sempet bilang kalo ini cuma kaya flu biasa, jujur gue was-was banget dan pikiran melanglangbuana ke kemungkinan kena covid. Sejak itu, gue rutin cek temperatur dan saturasi oksigennya. Btw, oxymeter harganya cuma 200rebu, termometer cuma 100 rebu. BELI! lo gakan menyesal ngeluarin 300ribu tuk beli alat ini di kala pandemi gini.
Udah 2 hari dan gejala sakit suami gue akhirnya mereda. Tapi gue tetep khawatir dan langsung watsap dr. Tara, teman SMA-ku yang juga dokter andalanku (Tara, Tara, if you read this know that you are our hero *nangisss*). Tentu saran Tara adalah swab PCR supaya tau pasti apa yang terjadi. Nah kebetulan 2 hari setelah suami gue demam, di kantor suami memang lagi ada jadwal swab... tapi swab antigen. Gue sempet ragu mengizinkan suami gue berangkat ke kantor dalam kondisi mungkin dia infeksius, mungkin dia covid, mungkin dia pingsan di jalan, tapi setelah pagi itu dia ga demam, meyakinkan bahwa dia udah enakan banget badannya, pake masker medis 2 lapis + 1 masker kain, dan berjanji akan jaga jarak, akhirnya dia berangkat.
Singkat cerita, sesuai dugaan... hasil swab antigennya positif dan dia langsung test pcr saat itu juga. Sayangnya, PCR suami gue baru keluar 3 hari mendatang. Lah was-was juga kan. Begitu dikabarin, gue yang lagi kuliah onlen di rumah langsung ga fokus dan langsung cari klinik swab PCR paling deket rumah, gue pun book di SpeedLab Kemang harganya sekitar Rp 875.000. Swab jam 3 sore dan jam 10 malem gue dikabarin kalo PCR gue positif. JRENGG! Saat itu memang hasil swab PCR suami gue belum keluar tapi gue dapet kabar kalo swab antigen hasilnya positif, maka hampir 90% hasil swab PCR akan positif juga. Di titik itu, gue dan suami langsung menyimpulkan bahwa kami berdua Cov+ walau PCR suami gue belom keluar.
Di sinilah kebingungan kami dimulai karena kami minim info mengenai harus ngapain, ini sakit kami parah atau engga, dan minimal harus kemana. Kebingungan ini diperparah dengan dengan kondisi gue yang keesokan hari setelah PCR tiba-tiba merasakan berbagai gejala: demam, meriang, sakit tenggorokan, batuk, lemes, dan badan gue pegel-pegel kaya abis nyangkulin tanah pak harto. Lagi-lagi, langsung tanya Tara harus ngapain. Sebetulnya kami sempat ditawari opsi untuk isolasi di fasilitas dari kantor. Namun, rumor haz it that untuk ke sana cukup antri dan sepertinya akan lebih baik kalau dipake sama yang lebih butuh (misal: orang yang di rumahnya hidup bareng anggota keluarga yang sehat dan harus memisahkan diri agar keluarga yang sehat engga kepapar). Berhubung gue cuma tinggal berdua ama suami dan kita berdua positif juga, yasudah diputuskanlah untuk isolasi mandiri di rumah saja. Thanks to technology, gue nemu thread dr. Febrina di twitter yang kasih guidance gimana cara menerapkan isoman yang aman di rumah. Langkah-langkahnya kurang lebih begini (+dengan penyesuaian kondisi gue ya):
Hubungi puskesmas terdekat. Gue cari nomor telfon puskesmas dan lapor bahwa gue dan suami PCRnya positif. Lewat telefon pula gue laporan tentang kondisi gue dan suami saat itu (H+1 terkonfirmasi positif) serta gejala apa yang kami rasakan. Pihak puskesmas cukup cepat tanggap di sini. Gue dan suami sempet disuruh dateng ke puskesmas untuk screening darah dan urin. Saat tes, kami dicek saturasi oksigennya pake alat punya puskesmas. Nah di situ juga setelah tahu bahwa gejala kami ringan, kami menolak dirujuk ke Wisma Atlet karena merasa lebih nyaman isolasi di rumah sendiri. Jujur setelah ngisi surat penolakan rujuk, gue kaya dilepas gitu sama pihak puskesmas. Ga ada approach sama sekali dari mereka. Gue dikasi si nomor WA 1 dokter yang bisa gue tanya-tanyain tapi dokternya ga pernah tanya kabar sama sekali, guenya yang inisiatif untuk lapor/nanya. Walaupun tetep akhirnya gue lebih sering konsul dan lapor ke dr. Tara
Waktu dateng ke Puskesmas pas banget lagi ada jadwal penjemputan pasien COVID yang mau dirujuk ke Wisma Atlet dan RS. Sungguh sedih liat 3 bus sekolah ini penuh.
Evacuate. Assess apakah kalian bisa isolasi di rumah atau harus evakuasi ke tempat lain. Tentu ini dipengaruhi berbagai faktor, misal: apakah serumah sama yang sehat, apakah serumah dengan yg punya komorbid, apakah gejala yang dialami ringan/sedang/berat, dan lainnya. Jadi, walaupun kita punya preferensi isolasi mandiri, perhatikan kondisi kesehatan dan gejala yang dialami. Pasien yang kondisi kesehatannya rentan memburuk pasti ga cocok isoman di rumah. Konsultasikan dengan dokter/profesional ya.
Assess kondisi kesehatan secara berkala. Ga banyak yang bisa dilakukan karena memang kita cek mandiri. Cek mendasar yang dilakukan 2-3 kali sehari yaitu cek temperatur, cek saturasi oksigen dan pulse rate, dan bisa juga ditambah cek tekanan darah. Catat historinya. Gue bikin grup WA yang isinya gue doang dan gue taro semua foto Oxymeter selama isoman serta lapor ke Tara. Segera lapor dokter kalau mengalami hal-hal yang engga biasa atau merasakan gejala yang cukup mengganggu seperti sesak. Jangan lupa kabari keluarga dan teman dekat supaya mereka ga khawatir dan supaya ada yang bisa bantu cepet just in case something not good happen. Hal ini juga mencakup koordinasi dengan keluarga dan tetangga ketika mau isolasi mandiri. Kabari bahwa kalian akan isoman 14 hari ke depan. Dalam kasus gue, karena gue tinggal di apartemen, kami harus ngabarin pihak manajemen gedung bahwa kami + covid. Pihak gedung cukup responsif dan memastikan bahwa mereka akan bantu jika kami butuh apa-apa. Oh ya, karena di apt itu barang kiriman biasanya di drop di lobbi, suami minta tolong sama manajemen gedung supaya barang-barang, makanan, dan obat yang dikirim untuk unit kami bisa dianter sama security gedung sampai depan pintu unit. Sama kaya dr. Febrina, gue juga bayar ekstra untuk ini.
List what you need. Setelah persiapan tempat isoman oke, koordinasi oke, kami mulai masuk rumah dan ga keluar untuk sekitar 10+4 hari ke depan. Lorong apartemen dan lift yang kami pake langsung dispray disinfectant oleh manajemen apartemen. Orait, untuk pasien covid yang bergejala ringan sebenernya engga banyak yang harus dikonsumsi dan rata-rata yang disarankan pun berupa vitamin, bukan obat. Vitamin yang dikonsumsi per hari: Vitamin C 750mg, D 1000 IU, B complex, Zinc. Gue minum merek Becomzet tuk Zinc B dan C, trus untuk vitamin D ambil merek Puritans Pride. But again, any brand will do ya. Menurut gue sama bagusnya. Pastikan konsumsi banyak protein, buah, dan sayur. Dari dokter di kantor suami, kami juga dapet resep antibiotik dan antivirus. Karena gabisa beli obat ke luar, gue langsung googling apotik besar yang deket rumah dan minta nomor WA mereka. Gue juga cari tau nomer WA indomaret di apartemen gue. Bersyukur banget segalanya dimudahkan dengan teknologi karena kebutuhan obat dan perlengkapan gue bisa dipesan 1 text away, dikirim pakai ojol, dan sampai di depan pintu unit dengan aman. Begitu pun dengan kebutuhan makanan, selain banyak temen-temen yang kirim makanan, madu, buah, obat-obat herbal, juga yang kirim semangat dan doa (we thanked you so much, you know who you are!), kami juga sangat dimudahkan dengan aplikasi semacam sayurbox, happy fresh, gofood, grabfood, tokped, dan shopee.
Taking further measures to our hygiene routine. Tiap hari tentu mandi bersih dan cuci tangan ya kaya pejabat (waw).. kita juga nambah rutinitas bebersih untuk beberapa hal. Pertama, kumur dengan cairan antiseptik (betadine gargle biru). Kedua, cuci hidung religiously (pakai nasal spray merek Sterimar/Respimer/Betadine/Breathy; atau bisa pakai spuit 20cc + air infus). Ketiga, semprot surfaceyang mudah kotor dengan disinfectant (saniter/dettol/karbol). Keempat, sebenernya ga berhubungan ama hygiene si tapi bermanfaat tuk asupan vitamin D yaitu berjemur minimal 30 menit sehari. Ah kalo inget berjemur, gue suka inget keinginan ke Bali yang sekarang udah gue kubur dalam-dalam wqwqwq.
Makan enak. Paksain makan walau rasanya gaenak. Sel-sel yang dirusak sama si virus harus direcover dengan cepat. Mau gamau, lo harus makan untuk memudahkan proses itu. Waktu anosmia (hilang indra penciuman) dan ageusia (hilang indra pengecap), rasanya dunia hampa banget. Dua gejala ini yang bener-bener gong segong gongnya bikin sedih T_T (alhamdulillah gue engga mengalami sesak). Tapi beneran ya, parfum paling nyegrak yang ada di rumah gue itu gue coba cium, sampe gue tempelin di lobang idung, dan ga ada baunya sama sekali. Rasain makanan juga ko ya ga jelas, kadang asin, kadang manis, kadang cuma kerasa ngeresep-ngeresep doang di lidah. Tapi, tetep harus makan suapaya indra-indra bisa kembali berfungsi normal. Makan buah bantu banget naikin selera makan karena gue masih bisa rasaian manis walaupun agak kedistorsi. Jadi stok buah yang banyak kaya apel, jambu merah (untuk jus jambu), pisang, dan jeruk. Bisa juga ngemil makanan yang bite size kaya brownies, beng-beng, cookies, marie regal. Hindari makanan berminyak dan pedas supaya tenggorokan lo engga ngamuk.
Minum air putih. You know what to do. That will help you. A lot. Like a lot.
Latihan pernafasan. Konon kena covid rentan bikin orang kena penyakit paru. Oleh karenanya, wajib latihan pernafasan supaya at least ga muncul gejala sesak. Untuk caranya, gue ngikutin video youtube di bawah ini. Gue juga sempet ikutin saran untuk tidur tengkurap untuk memastikan udara mengalir ke paru-paru bagian atas. Cuma jujur tidur tengkurap itu menyiksa, jadi mungkin bisa dicoba tapi gausah dipaksa ya.
Jangan stress. Di isoman hari ke-5, gue sempet berkeluh kesah dan menangos ke suami karena rasanya ko cape ya gabisa cium bau, gabisa rasain makan, trus jujur khawatir muncul gejala lain seperti sesak nafas. Anxious, parno sendiri. Bayangin aja, beberapa kali gue makan dan gue muntahin semuanya. Namanya muntah pasti perut kosong harus diisi lagi. Eh pas mau isi perut, makanannya ga ada rasanya. Evil loop bund. Nangos aja. Yuyur walaupun disuruh jangan stres, stres juga bund mengalami sakit yang belum jelas apa juntrungannya ini. Ga kebayang untuk yang harus dapat penanganan ekstra karena bergejala sedang apalagi berat. Rasanya impossible engga stres sih... Tapi kalo bisa, kendalikan emosi. Lakukan hal-hal yang senang: nonton, olahraga ringan, baca buku, gambar, zoom call sama temen-temen, dan juga tentu saja tidur cukup.
Okee. Pelajaran berharga dari kena covid ini adalah bahwa sehat itu bener-bener ga ternilai rasanya. Ini kaya sesuatu yang mudah dilalui tapi percayalah bahwa kita ga tau nasib kita bakal kekmana kalo kena si penyakit ini. Gue dan suami masih bisa dikatakan beruntung dibanding temen-temen yang harus dilarikan ke RS dan dipasang alat.
Hari ini adalah hari ke-14 isolasi mandiri di rumah. Harusnya si gue udah bisa keluar rumah, tapi gue baru akan keluar rumah Sabtu nanti untuk swab yang ke-3. Doakan ya semoga hasilnya bagus dan tentu saja segera negatif. Untuk yang lagi recovery dari COVID-19, tetep semangat yaa! Ikut kata dokter dan ikhtiar semaksimal mungkin. Buat yang masih sehat, semoga tetep sehat dan jangan coba-coba menantang takdir dengan langgar prokes tipis-tipis. Ngga ada yang tahu seberapa kuat/lemah respon badan kita ketika dihinggapi si virus ini. Just don't push your luck. Bener-bener sayangi dirimu, keluargamu, teman-temanmu dengan jaga kesehatan yang dimulai dari diri sendiri.
*quick update: alhamdulillah swab ke-3 gue hasilnya negatif. yuyur waktu nunggu hasil pcr kemaren rasanya kaya lebih degdegan daripada mau ketemu nicsap. syukurlah, ternyata kami bisa recover dengan cukup cepat. sungguh abis ini kayanya gue mau puasa ketemu orang-orang dulu haha. mau ke tukang sayur di bawah aja kayanya harus pake jadwal lagi ni biar ga sering-sering. again, stay safe, stay healthy, y'all.
I really hope you're doing okay and great. I know it is impossible to stay sane and completely unbothered by the fact we're living in the middle of a Covid-19 pandemic but really I wish the best for you and your family's wellbeing during this hard time.
Today marks the 53rd day of me not going to school and the 9th day of social distancing. I was supposed to go back to Jakarta last week but they decided to prolong the holiday as a precautionary measure to avoid the spread of coronavirus. How do I feel? Mostly I'm just bored or feel nothing I guess. Some days I woke up in the middle of the night feeling anxious about how's life gonna be tomorrow. Honestly, I worried a lot about my parents and grandparents but the rest, I was just sleepy all the time. There has been so much to talk about life during Covid, sure I'll write that in a separate post but today let's just think about happy places instead of grieving bad days.
simple outdoor seating with a carpet of gravel stones
As one of the hottest tourist spots in Bandung, Jalan Braga lives in this beautiful charm that never fails to attract more and more people to come there. It's like the street remains the same when in fact, it changed a lot. Sometimes it's so hard to keep up with these rapid changes in Bandung but as a birthplace to new-found concepts and ideas, I actually wasn't surprised because this is what this city is all about. Sawo is the change I notice the most when I went back to Braga last month. Located across Starbucks Braga, the coffeeshop stands under the roof of a 2-floor white building with its delicate interior design. The concept is so different from coffee shops nearby like Toko Kopi Djawa or Upnormal which is so determined to preserve the original shape of the building (which is fine). Sawo took a big move as a newcomer to the coffee game as there were already multiple options of coffee stops in Braga. Even though they're still young, Sawo is always packed with teenagers especially on the weekend.
the indoor area is quite big but there are only 25-30 chairs inside
I ordered Lemongrass and Ginger Tea the first time I went there (probably because I watched too much TV the day before. 4 weeks ago, our health minister said Indonesia won't be affected by coronavirus as we're accustomed to drinking herbal tea and jamu which established a strong immune system. He also denied research coming from a Harvard epidemiologist who said coronavirus has possibly hit the country by the time he released the study *facepalm* --yeah look at us now, 4 weeks after, we're struggling sooo hard with 10% death rate--). Anyway, because I came a bit early to the shop (it was only 9 or 10 in the morning), I sat on a hot seat where there is a table for two with an electricity socket. They had amazing mixtape, which I think is as important as how good the coffee tastes, along with fast internet connection (most important important). The only problem I found is the electricity socket, unfortunately, couldn't hold the weight of my bulky laptop charger. I need to prop the charger up so it could function as usual but I could not hang long so I decided to use the remaining battery.
Pain au Chocolat
One day I came again there and ordered Iced Sea Salt Chocolate and a butter croissant because I haven't had anything for breakfast. I had zero expectation to both drink and meal but I got to admit, it was -so far- one of the most perfect combinations to indulge in the morning. The croissant was warm and moist it almost impossible to believe that there's a perfect croissant like this in a local coffee shop. The chocolate wasn't that sweet like St*rb*cks' signature chocolate because it was made of 59% dark chocolate and the hint of sea salt made a little twist to the taste. It feels ... so comfortable to drink this one. They had various options of coffee ranging from espresso-based to manual-brewed ones. They also had this Es Kopi Sawo and Es Kopi Aren in their kopi-susu range. As someone who doesn't drink coffee, I usually choose between manual-brew tea or ice chocolate.
coffee stations with a small display of bakery and cakes
They have a couple types of tea leaves but what excited me more was they have multiple choices of chocolate drinks. There are Milk Chocolate, West Java 60%, Sulawesi 72%, and Sea Salt 59% available. The percentage is the amount of pure cocoa contained in the drink: the higher the number the bitter it'll taste. I am so happy to find this kind of option because rarely I saw something like this, especially in a local coffee shop before.
what Sawo had but other coffee shops didn't: well-thought furniture and simple-cut wall decors
Besides its great beverages and food, Sawo is a comfortable nest for those who just wanted to talk over coffee and also to college students who seek a cozy place to study (except on weekend). The indoor area is quite big but they have very limited seats inside. I don't know what's the reason but other coffee shop managers (like me, for example, hahaha) maybe will add 3 or 4 extra tables with extra 8 chairs (business-wise.....). Yet at the same time, the lack of chairs and tables clearly made the room broader so both customers and crews were comfortable to walk around.
The relaxed mood was built by well-thought choices of furniture, wall decor, indoor plants, and warm lighting set-up. Its sleek interior design captivated people to utilize this place as an Instagram-approved coffee destination. I won't deny, people come to instagrammable places these days! This place usually packed by the weekend so make sure you come early if you want to try the place out.
Sawo on Saturday night
Sawo Coffee and Roastery Bandung
Jl. Braga No. 76
Bandung
Verdict Pros
1. Big space, prime location, comfortable ambiance
2. Great F&B
3. Electricity sockets available (sockets couldn't hold the weight of bulky
charger laptops, recharge your laptop first if you don't want to take
any risks of not being able to use the socket properly/ask the crew to
help you out)
4. Affordable
5. Good and nice service from the crews
Cons
1. No parking space for cars and limited parking space for motorcycles (park your car in the mall across the cafe)
2. Limited seats, packed and quite loud on the weekend
3. Gravel stones in the outdoor area made it's quite dusty outside, be careful if the dust gets into your cups/plates
Two weeks ago, I went to visit a small local diner located behind the hustle-bustle of Balubur Town Square Bandung called Imah Babaturan (Imah Babaturan is a Sundanese term to a friend's house). This time I tagged along my boyfriend cause we've been wanting to visit this place for quite a while. Obviously, it was his first time there but not mine. Yet, because I haven't been there for about six months (or more?), it felt like my first time all over again.
The welcome gate where you could read a brief of their history
Imah Babaturan is located at Jalan Kebon Bibit No. 3 Bandung. They define themselves as an old-school coffee-shop (warung kopi) albeit they are more famous with their home-made cuisines. Various choices of simple and comfort foods you usually encounter at the top of dinner table at home are ready to be served starting from 7 in the morning every day. I should thank my friend Ulay because without her excessive Instagram-stories and rave about this place, I would never find this gem two years ago.
The indoor area is the area with white wall, separated by the sliding door with the outdoor area which is the one with blue wall
The place is quite small for a diner but comfortable enough to shelter about 50 people at once. The shape of the building clearly shows us that it is a house turned into a business place. They use old-fashioned school chairs and benches that are mostly repainted in blue. Walls are painted in rustic style and some parts were left unpolished just like common warungs nearby our house. Not so picturesque and far from sophistication but this set-up really emphasized a modest feel as if I was literally visiting a friend's house. Divided into two parts, we could choose to be seated outdoor or indoor. I'd prefer outdoor area at any time unless heavy smokers flocking there (no offense but I have a terrible problem when breathing cigarettes' smokes). Indoor area is air-conditioned and restricted for non-smokers only. When rainy days come, the outdoor space is a perfect spot to indulge in the best dishes while enjoying the cold mist that goes down slowly outside (yes, I'm still a sucker for cold places).
Cashier guy looking so serious behind his 'bar'
Spot this blackboard in the diner where you could see chef's recommendations
Every dish is made promptly after you place the order. That's why in the middle of a lunch break or on the weekend when the diner is full, you have to be extra patient as every dish is made individually. This is not a fast-food chain so please bear with them. The most unique part of Imah Babaturan is because they have 2 kinds of main course menu which are the everyday menu and the weekly menu. The everyday menu consists of meals you could order every day because they are practically available throughout the year. On the other hand, they also have a weekly menu that consists of specific/curated dishes available only for the specific week. The weekly menu will change every week and will vary depending on the cooks and owners' choices.
Cumi Sambal Kemangi
Bebek Bumbu Hitam that comes with chunks of bala
We ordered Nasi Cumi Kemangi, Nasi Bebek Item, Tongseng Kambing, and Bala-Bala Sambal Kacang. More than plenty for two but we had no other choice cause everything is so tempting. My favorite is Nasi Cumi Kemangi which basically grilled squid cooked with sambal bawang and sprinkled with lots of fresh basil leaves. The squid was juicy and chewy at the same time. It was perfectly seasoned that I undoubtedly approve this meal as my personal super favorite in Imah Babaturan. It's delicious, savory, and also super hella spicy as every dish with sambal should be. D had his warm steamed ricewith Tongseng Kambing and Bebek Item along with a nice basic omelette. I could see he was struggling with the spicy sensation coming from the meals as he bathed in sweat all over his face. Eventually, he enjoyed them too of course with a help of kerupuk kaleng and perpetual glasses of ice tea hahaha. Note that most of the dishes are spicy but if you want, you could ask the chef to make it less spicy for you. What shouldn't be skipped too is everyone's favorite: Nasi Cumi Cabe Ijo which is steamed rice topped with a generous amount of squid cutlets cooked with green chili. This is also spicy but far below the spiciness index of Cumi Kemangi.
Temulawak Extract, Cold Brew Coffee, and Apple Cider in a beer-like bottle. The temulawak extract is sweet and will be best served chilled.
If you feel like having something lighter, they also have Bala-Bala Sambal Kacang (vegetable fritter with peanut sauce), pisang/singkong/ubi goreng (banana/cassava/sweet potato fritter), or Ketan Susu (sticky rice with milk gravy) which is also great at taste.
Old camera display placed on a shelf inside the diner
I always have an amazing dining experience here in Imah Babaturan. This is probably one of the best places to go when I crave something simple and warm. Oh, they're also available to order through ride-hailing apps like gofood and grabfood with limited choices of meals. Don't forget to give the driver extra tips or drinks cause I'm sure they will have to wait quite a long time.
Cheers,
R
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PS: If you're lucky, the Tabebuia tree in front of the diner will bloom with pinkish sakura-like flowers once a year. I once came there when the trees were on a full-bloom making it even prettier. PSS: The krupuk kaleng (crackers inside the hanging tin) is free of charge. You could have as many kerupuk as you want.The most delicious one is the one inside the middle tin.
I cannot find any suitable words to represent how my 2019 was other than those words above. Many things happened along with life lessons and wisdom to learn. But most of all, this year taught me how important it is to stay true to ourselves more than to others and more than before.
In 2020 may we be courageous enough to be unapologetically ourselves, and as Harari said, may we keep our fears under control and be a bit more humble about our views.
Even though I went to Bali frequently, I have to admit that parts of Bali other than its southern sides stand as a closed book to me. The closest approach I made to get there was only by seeing its beaut through refined snaps on the screen of these instagram darlings. I have never been to Ubud as I found it was kind of .. overrated. What's so special this place would be compared to other places with rice terrace? We have plenty of greens here in Bandung so why bother to fly across the islands only to see paddy fields? Until a twist happened. On the day I read an article about this pretty village in the deep of Ubud, I did nothing but putting Ubud on the top notch of Bali's go-to list.
1. Warung Nasi Bali Men Weti
Nasi Ayam Men Weti (Men Weti's Chicken Rice)
Before going forth for Ubud, we decided to have a quick breakfast fix at Warung Nasi Bali Men Weti in Segara Ayu, Sanur. Mbak Rina told me it's a sin to skip this one, so there we were trying out this famous nasi ayam. The warung is located not too far from Sanur's coastline. It was only 8 in the morning but the queue was already long and seats were almost full. At first I thought we had to get in the line to get our meal but fortunately some Bli(s) were ready to distribute it right to where we're seated. A plate of nasi ayam consists of steamed white rice, chunks of betutu chicken, half slice of pindang egg with special red sambal, fried peanuts, sambal matah, and crispy chicken skin as a major kick to the dish. That's a plate of festivity, I would say. And then how was it? Just try it by yourself and thank me later. (hint: It was so good I assume this meal was a drop of heaven)
Quick stop at Sanur Beach on Sunday. No time is too early to indulge your vitamin sea
2. The Blanco Renaissance Museum
Within one and half hours, we drove our rented motorbike into what seems to be a more serene and peaceful side of Bali. As someone who is familiar with greens and chilled weather, I expected the trip would be bland and boring for the road we took would be far and endless. Yes it was long and endless but the atmosphere was 180 degrees contradicted to glitz and glam at Seminyak's seasides. It felt more tranquil, relaxed, and comforting here. Along the way, art and craft shops lined up on both sides of the road offering us charming scenery and retail therapy at once. Our first stop at Ubud was an art museum called The Blanco Renaissance Museum.
The museum is located on the top of the hill next to Campuhan River. Uniquely, you wouldn't find any museum-like building from the parking lot but soon as we climbed up the stairs and walked down the alleyway of lush of greens, a vast field with huge building came as a surprise to us. Don't forget to take pictures with its collection of beautiful birds as they'd welcome you at the end of the alleyway.
The big house at the side of the field presented collections of Antonio Blanco's best artworks from a wide span of time. He's famous with his paintings on portraying the beauty of Balinese women and its culture. Some find it erotic as most of his paintings involved the presence of topless Balinese women, some even featured nudity. The museum not only spotlighted his personal paintings but also his son's and couple of local artists'. You could also visit his studio and took a look at the collections as couple of them were available for sale and auctions. Unfortunately I didn't manage to take a lot of pictures especially because they didn't allow us to do such thing inside the gallery.
3. Bali Pulina Coffee Plantation
I'm not a coffee drinker myself but whenever someone pointed me a good coffee place, I would visit it certainly. This time is Bali Pulina's turn. Bali Pulina stands prominently as a distinctive coffee heaven for coffee junkies. As Ubud is very famous with its agrotourism, Bali Pulina is one of dozens coffee destinations you could try around. What makes Pulina different to others was because they didn't only offer us coffee drinking experience but also coffee making and event planting experience. To start the journey there, we have to buy ticket that could be exchanged to 2 large cups of your preferred beverages (you can go for their luwak coffee (real one, of course)), 10 kinds of small cups of coffee and tea plus sweet and savory snacks.
Once we enter the plantation, a local guide greeted us warmly and showed us luwaks in a cage. Inside, I saw they're sleeping next to a basket full of coffee cherries. The guide explained us how coffee cherries fermented by the luwaks. From what I heard, they assured us no harm was done to the luwaks (well I hope so!) but still I refuse to agree with the idea of interrupting luwak's natural digesting process only to produce one cup of coffee. Anyway, we were then being escorted by another guide to get closer to know the next process such as drying, roasting, and brewing the beans. At the end of the journey, we were redirected to a seating area facing a very beautiful rice terraces with cups coffee and tea to complete our laid back moment. This place is both educating and entertaining at the same time. To my personal preference, I would completely recommend this place as a part of your next Ubud's must visit. It's worth every of your penny.
4. Desa Panglipuran
A visit to Bali Pulina successfully recharged our energy bar to a proper level. Never knew that motorbike ride from Seminyak to Sanur then to Ubud would absorb our remaining power *this* much. After making couple of considerations, we decided to continue our journey visiting a beautiful village, a cultural village, in the deep of Ubud. At first I was hesitate to get there considering its long distance, not to mention how much time and energy we should commit to the journey. But we did it anyway.
It was a long, really really long road to get to Desa Panglipuran. Our only compass was google maps attached on my phone which unfortunately didn't quite helpful on showing the correct direction. We got lost in the middle of Ubud's jungle for multiple times lol. I would blame my phone's inability to deliver accurate information about our location but truthfully (confession) I am *also* so poor when it comes to reading maps let alone navigating the street I've never been before. We roamed and roamed the road and relied upon our remaining memory about the village location. It was extremely quiet on the road for the only sound I heard was our conversation, our motorbike's, and the hushes between the trees. I have never been feeling this disturbed by the absence of people nor sound around us. Things were getting a tad creepy. The day was getting older but we were nowhere near the village until we saw a bamboo forest which I completely sure represented the sign of the village. Suddenly we saw a couple sitting on a motorbike that was parked at the corner of the forest (don't ask me what they were doing in this remote place). We were so lucky that they're actually humans not ghosts kind enough to give us the fastest route to reach the entrance gate of the village. I felt like rolling on the ground the time we saw humans and buildings (hahahaha please bear with me!). It was nerve-wrecking to get lost in the middle of nowhere like that).
The village is extremely neat and clean. It has this unique layout that is said following old Bali spatial and architecture rules. From above, you could see similar-shaped traditional houses lined up on the left and right side of stone-made pavements. The people of Desa Panglipuran are so friendly and welcoming. Thus, do not hesitate to walk around and send them your warmest greetings. If you happen to be around of their houses, they would happily greet you with smiles and explain you a bit about the village.
Some of these houses also sell gifts, art stuff, and foods and drinks. On the top of this village stands a remarkable Pura where people pray. I managed to try on Balinese's traditional outfit I rented from local booth at the upper side of the village. Pictures of me wearing the outfit with the Pura standing as the background was one of the best snaps I got during the whole Bali trip. I felt very comfortable inside the pretty outfit as if the outfit was made personally for me. I felt so pretty no wonder one of the booth owner mistaken me for a TV star hahahaha! As the night came closer, we decided to go back to Seminyak (this time we didn't get lost, yay). Ubud is hell of a ride. It's tremendeously tiring and challenging to go there but it's a perfect place to indulge the authentic experience of Bali. Ubud stands as if it wasn't bothered by modernization and fabrication. It demands us nothing but paying respect to nature. Suksma, Ubud. I had my zen moment there.
Last time I went to Bali was in 2017 when my office sent me to a workshop program somewhere in the middle of Legian's hassle. Going there again was never an option since the fares of domestic flight have increased up to the top limit and we're charged for checked baggages. For someone who would fly mostly for leisure, I wouldn't pay such amount to fly let alone for the baggages. But it's been two years and I have never missed Bali this much, thus I decided to book a return flight there two weeks ago.
Bali was unusually chilly at that time. Australia's winter apparently brought cold weather to the surface of Bali. This is new but this is ... perfect. I swear there's nothing more lovely than being here on sunny days when the temperature dropped below normal. It reminds me much about spring in Holland (without the canals of course).
This narrow gap below the cavern leads our way to the coast
SULUBAN BEACH
After having a late lunch in Nasi Ayam Bu Mangku, we made a trip to the seaside to watch the sun sets. Torn between going to Seminyak or Suluban, I chose the latter because: 1) By weekend Seminyak would be too crowded, I don't like crowds; 2) I have never been to Suluban before, so Suluban it is.
No angry tides here at the coastline as the reefs broke the waves from afar, I guess this makes Suluban a children-friendly beach
Suluban beach is located near Uluwatu, South Kuta. Taking the same route heading to the famous Uluwatu Temple, it took us an hour and couple minutes bike-ride from Seminyak to reach the beach. This place is --how do I say this?-- magically, peacefully, hidden behind its neighboring cramped tourist spots such as Uluwatu Temple and defeaning fancy bars standing on the top of the rock. No ticket required here for as long as I can remember, I only paid 5000 Rupiah for parking fee. Bad news: the beach is located quite far below the parking ground. Good news: they have stairs there. We need to go down the cliff by the stairs for about 10 minutes walk. Going down is easy, but if you have some breathing issues, going up is something you need to think deliberately because it'll be a wee bit more challenging than it seems to be. No pain, no gain, huh?
Limestone formations along the coast
Suluban beach sits like a surprise to us who's willing to 'unfold' the cliff face. At the edge of the stairs lies narrow gap where I could snoop the beautiful sky and overhear sound of the waves. As we reached bottom level of the cavern, I noticed that this shady spot is a perfect shelter to those who didn't want their skin be exposed by Bali's scorching heat (Sun can be pretty intimidating here!).
The coastline wasn't as long as beaches in Seminyak's but it's more quiet here and that made a good deal to me. From far I enjoyed the view of pro surfers cruising giant waves back and forth. It made me jealous to see how easy it seemed to them ripping curled stream as if they're dancing on the floor. Girl, I can't even dance properly. But I can walk on the shore with a sight of wonderful sunset scenes on a reasonably warm afternoon with person I love to be around with.
After a short (but quite challenging) walk, we agreed to pay a visit to a place on the top side of the cavern. I insisted on going to Single Fin because I've been there before and I thought it's a good choice. But someone spared me a better option. Up and up we hiked the cliff then roamed the alleyway packed with cafes and shops owned by locals. It's bitter to see how empty and deserted the shops and cafes were but I guess it was natural when Instagram-friendly places like Single Fin started to flourish the market. Not too long after the alleyway walk, we reached the end of the cliff. There it was, a cafe named 'Edge'.
The view we got from above
The place is literally on the edge of the cliff where best view of vast South Bali's sea served. The bartender (except he didn't quite formulate drinks behind the bar, but still ...) sold cheap beers and soft drinks and chips (Happytos! because we bought one! it's the only snack they had there hahaha), he also was loud and basically talked to everyone. His voice and laughter raced with intense upbeating sound came from EDM playlist he set in the cafe. Eventhough it's weekend, the cafe wasn't so stuffed thus we were lucky enough to secured hot seats facing directly to the sea. I'm not gonna lie, the view was 95% better from where I sat at that time. From above, I could see clear water became teal, turqoise-y and gradually sunk in cobalt blue. To be honest, I enjoyed this combination of staring scenic view, chugging cheap drink, and listening to white noise behind at once. It's sweet and serene at the same time.
What a time to be alive. I'll be back for shore! :D
I wasn't actually planning to write this as a 2019's kick-off post (ok I know it's halfway through 2019 already, beg your pardon! haha) but I can't stand not to share this for the thing I'm gonna tell you about is simply fascinating and irresistible.
So yeah, did I tell you I'm kinda fan of TV series? Not that devoted one actually but I know some of them which is really good and binge-worthy: Modern Family, Lie To Me, Black Mirror, Stranger Things, Midnight Diner, Chefs Table, Our Planet, and a couple of K-drama series. Family-themed, slow-paced shows were my favorite ones but I wouldn't deny to try something novel. This time I'm gonna highlight few of them.
First, on the top notch: Game of Thrones. Game of Thrones played a huge part in my TV series career (ok this sounds exaggerating, but reality check: it was) as I've been following them for quite a long while. Long enough to say that it's the only series I've put a commitment to hahaha! I mean this show has made us wait for another season in months even years voluntarily. But frankly speaking, I (plus half of the world, I bet) was not satisfied with its closing episode considering the storyline failed to address the proper way to terminate its casts' stark characters. We had our expectation sky-rocketed then submerged into deep sea. Though it ended not in a way we had expected before, I'd always consider Game of Thrones as hell of a work. Even the word 'exceptional' is an understatement to expose how much the show made us feel. Well done, GoT. To those of you who haven't tried GoT yet, I suggest you to watch it soon as possible. Note that the first 9 episodes were the most boring one (lol), please bear with that because only by passing through it, you can understand the remarkable journey that follows.
Now let's move on to what possibly be the creme de la creme of this post. After a not so pleasant/satisfyintg finale of Game of Thrones last month, I dug into a number of TV series recommendations to find GoT substitute. I thought it would take me long to move on from GoT but instead it's an easy job (man I'm just too good at goodbyes #jk). Blame the technology as its vast and immensely rapid development served me outstretched choices of good TV shows. In less than a month after GoT ended, I discovered another TV series which I think is on par to GoT as they scored 9.7 out of 10 on IMDB and got 96% on Rotten Tomatoes. This is, by far, the top rated TV show of all time. Nuts, isn't it?
It's Chernobyl. An original miniseries created by HBO which was aired for the first time in May 6, 2019. The series contains only 5 episodes and by the time I write this, the finale episode has just aired on TV (sorry we got a situation here *as expected, delayed post*, the show ends few days ago). Some of you might find the title quite familar because it comes from the same Chernobyl as the nuclear accident happened back in Ukraine on 1986. Let's take a glimpse on given explanation by HBO on its website:
On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine,
Soviet Union suffered a massive explosion that released radioactive
material across Belarus, Russia and Ukraine and as far as Scandinavia
and western Europe.
Jared Harris portrays Valery Legasov, a leading Soviet nuclear
physicist. As part of the response team, he was one of the first to
grasp the scope of the unparalleled disaster that occurred. Stellan
Skarsgård plays Soviet Deputy Prime Minister Boris Shcherbina, who is
assigned by the Kremlin to lead the government commission on Chernobyl
in the hours immediately following the accident. Emily Watson portrays
Ulana Khomyuk, a Soviet nuclear physicist committed to solving the
mystery of what led to the Chernobyl disaster.
The
pilot episode begins with its lead character's, Valery Legasov,
monologue over a recording device. He questioned something that in some
way hit me (and you too, maybe) in certain notes: "What is the cost of
lies? What is the cost of truth?" The questions then became key point of
what this series is about. Spoiler (but not so spoiler): the show ended with the same questions.
The show narrated the story of world's worst civilian nuclear disaster happened at Chernobyl's reactor number 4 in Pripyat, Ukraine decades ago. This is based on true story, I repeat, this is based on true story. All this time I only knew Chernobyl tragedy was about the power plant having some technical issues that it blown up, produced ashes containing radioactive, and spreaded fatal radiation nationwide that citizens living close to the zone were found dead or alive but suffered cancer. Today I'm so glad I watched this because the show depicts something beyond the tragedy. Not only it displays how sickening corruption and greed can be, but also how confusing it is to stand in between reality and morality. Speaking of the roles, oh, it just can't get any better. We watchers are privileged to get to know each of the character deeply eventhough in a short time. Each of them seems super-realistic with their human, vurnerable, and flawed sides. In the other hand, they also showed up their heroic side so that we can easily symphatize on what they did. The same goes with Dyatlov character that exposed evilish attitude even by the look (sorry for judging but ..). He mustered all the bad stuff that can possibly grow in a single human being. Legasov, Khomyuk, Shcherbina, and the plant workers who were on shift that night stood out as true heroes to the tragedy, of course with a price to pay. From there we can see how dilemmatic the situation was for the lead roles especially because they lived under the strict governing system of USSR at that time.
Thanks to Comrade Legasov, I'm sorta getting my nuclear-physics PhD in only 3 days. *lel*
Final verdict: the plot is very very well-tailored. They keep me under great suspense as if I, like other 3 lead roles, was subjected to find the explanation upon why and how the tragedy happened. While in fact, I'm just someone on the other side of the screen (Fortunately, I am. Of course with no desire to stand in the real scene *getok meja*). These five episodes reminds me so much of five stages of grief introduced by Kubler-Ross: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance which is exposed in each episode respectively. This is just outrageously good and truly terrifying at the same time. Although there's been polemic as Russia government said the show didn't even close to showing up the real situation (which I strongly oppose), I urge you guys to watch this one. You just won't regret it.
I hate traffic but as long as I have a superb playlist (good internet access and sufficient battery on the phone) on my hand, I am okay
Note: This is not a story about ear surgery (lol) you can keep reading without creep -
It wasn't long until I recognized a talk about music is kind of talk I enjoy the most. Ever feel like you're sunk into deep and not wanting to be saved? Ok, that's a bit of exaggeration but yes, that was what it felt like to me every time someone tagged me along a music talk. Now imagine you're sitting at the dining table and there's an empty plate in front of you waiting to be filled with different kind of meals. It could be mashed potato, garlic chicken, roasted carrot, and little greens on your plate. It could be a stack of pancakes with simple syrup. It could be steam rice with beef ribs soup and some rice crackers (that's my plate). Or, it could be empty because you are on diet. And just like food, our music preference could be different each other from time to time. I want to proclaim myself as an avid listener of indie music because nothing beats the burst of excitement when people started to ask me what song I was currently listening to (hmm, does this thing convert me into an attention seeker? lol ok then). Why indie songs? Walking against generally accepted taste is hard but finding a really good song people don't usually listen to is a treasure to me. It's a pride and a joy at the same time. This is a story about songs I really fond of.
