The Big Apple on Christmas

What's it like to be spending Christmas in the Big Apple? Yes, it's been a month since Christmas but I only managed to post it now. So sorry! 

We stayed for 4 nights in New York to catch Christmas and the holiday sales. One reason why I love New York during the holiday season is because you can feel the Christmas ambiance everywhere you go; strangers wish you Merry Christmas while malls/stores play Christmas songs. I was hoping for a white Christmas but somehow the weather wasn't on our side and it rained instead. It was not as cold as 2 years ago when we visited. 

Here are some of the pictures we managed to take. Sorry for the bad quality. I am in need of good camera to improve my photo quality. 

Places to visit in New York 
#1 Rockefeller Center

This is the famous landmark in New York. And when you visit New York during Christmas season, a huge christmas tree can be seen there. Many tourists and locals come here to take pictures with it. 

The famous Radio City while walking to the Rockefeller Center

Rockefeller Center & its Christmas tree

#2 Times Square 

One will need to visit Times Square. It is best to visit during night time when all lights are lit up. These lights are up for 24 hours. The crowds are also part of the tourist attraction. When I was there, it was so crowded that we could hardly walk. But the crowd makes times square even more interesting and picturesque. Try taking picture in the middle of the bright light and crazy crowd. Another good thing about here is that shops in Times Square close late at night. 

Times Square

Times Square

Times Square

Times Square

#3 Statue of Liberty

There are 2 ways you can get to the Statue of Liberty - through New Jersey (Liberty State Park) or New York (Battery Park). Ticket price from both places are the same - $18 regular ticket to visit Ellis Island without entering the statue of Liberty. If you are going from New York, it is best that you reserve/buy tickets online as tickets in the counter for specific times can get sold out. Another advantage in purchasing online tickets is that that you get to skip the long line of buying tickets from the counter. Once you have visited the island, you can go back to either New York or New Jersey. Getting from New Jersey (Liberty State Park) is more convenient for me as it is less crowded and the lines are not as long as the ones in New York. 

website to purchase tickets: http://www.statuecruises.com/

View from Liberty Park, New Jersey

Manhattan Skyline

Statue of Liberty 

Manhattan Skyline from Ellis Island 

#4 Woodbury Factory Outlet 

Indonesians LOVE shopping and thus it is no surprise that we rented a car and drove ourselves 52 miles out of New York to this factory outlet. This is one of the better outlets as it has a number of premium stores such as Prada, Tory Burch, Tods, Salvatore Ferragamo, etc. One downside of this outlet is that it is PACKED with tourists. You might have to wait in a long line (30 minutes or longer) if you want to enter the premium stores. We went a day after Christmas (more sales) and there was just lines in almost every premium stores. urghh. 

Was it worth it? Well, if you are willing to arrive earlier and leave earlier then you wouldn't be getting most of the crowds. Most people would visit the outlet in the afternoon. 

website: http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=7

Food - Halal Guys 
The #1 food that people has to try when they are in New York is the food from Halal Guys. You would think that this famous food would be in a restaurant. But know that this is just a cart that sells middle eastern food. They sell falafel and pita sandwiches too, but people wold queue for 30 min just for their chicken and/or lamb platters.. a huge plate only cost USD$7!  

With Lots of Love,
Claraaaa <3

Wonderful Bali

My friends said that I was crazy enough to visit Bali 4 times in less than 12 months. But again, what's crazy when you are so in love with that place? 

We decided to go to Bali for a weekend getaway - 3 days 2 nights. A friend of ours hooked us up with this villa:

Villa Esmee Bali - located at the heart of Seminyak and only minutes away from Seminyak square. Since our friend knew the owner of the villa, we got a 50% off the normal rate IDR 1,400,000/night (2 bedroom villa with a private pool). This is relatively cheap considering that it is in a prime location. One downside to it is that it is located in an extremely small alley that will be difficult to find. Not many people will know about this villa too. Make sure you give them a call to find the exact location. 

DAY 1

Finns Beach Club

Once we arrived in Bali, we decided to spend the day over at Finn's Beach Club. It is located right beside Karma Beach Bali. This is a private beach and so we had to pay an entrance fee of IDR 250,000. This fee includes free wifi, towel, sunbed & IDR 150,000 credit for food and drinks. 

website: http://www.finnsbeachclub.com/

I decide to try out their beef sandwich for lunch and it turned out pretty good. However, the portion is small for its price. You might want to prepare yourself to spend more in this private beach. 

Beef Sandwich - Sour bread with caramelized onions, apples, cabbage and beef & fried onion on the side.

Here's the view. A small private beach, but it is very clean which I like it very much. 

DAY 2

Warung Babi Guling Pak Malen

Located at: Cross Road Sunset Road Kuta-bali | In front of Kuta Point, Kuta, Bali, Indonesia

Phone number: +62 361 7452968

Bali is known for their babi guling (succulent roast pork). There are many good places for babi guling but my favourite is Babi Guling Pak Malen. It is located near Seminyak where our villa is at. I apologize my picture does not do justice to this wonderful food. This mouthwatering dish only cost IDR 40,000! Be sure that you come early in the morning because this place can get really crowded or even sell out by late afternoon! 

Babi Guling Pak Malen 

Legian Beach

We stopped by Legian Beach located over at Kuta. This is not a private beach and many tourists come by this beach. In my opinion, this beach is one of the least cleanest beach in Bali. You can see plastic bags while playing in the water. NOT comparable to Finns Beach club. Sunbeds are available for rental at IDR 50,000 per pair. You can do manicure/pedicure/massage at a relatively cheap price - about IDR 50,000 to IDR 100,000. However, if you are a tourist/Caucasian, they will mark up the price about 5 to 10 times more expensive. 

Sunbeds available for rental

DAY 3

Sisterfields 

This is a new brunch place in Seminyak and only 2 blocks away from our villa. Overall, it was an above average brunch place for in Indonesia. Portion is smaller than usual, so you might want to order something to share aside from your own food. I like their fresh juice too. 

website: http://www.sisterfieldsbali.com/

Beverage Menu

Tuna Tataki and soft sell crab (IDR 125,000) with pureed avocado, black radish & daikon

Toad in a hole (IDR 60,000) - Pan fried brioche & egg with sauteed mushroom and truffle oil & thyme (I could barely taste the truffle oil)

Banana French Toast (IDR 65,000) - Caramelized banana, candied walnuts & banana rum ice cream on the top. Yummieeehh

This was a very relaxing trip with us not doing anything much except eating good food, enjoying the beach and relaxing in the sun. 

With Lots of Love,

Claraaaa <3

Medan Cuisine

Been hearing many good reviews about Medanese cuisine. Indonesians also said that Medan people are the most picky when it comes to eating because they have the best food in their hometown. A close friend of mine lived in Medan and we decided to visit her for two days (since aside from food, there's nothing much you can do in the small town). Our friend was so excited that she fed us 11 times in those 2 days (basically 24 hours!). We couldnt say no to eating because the food was soooooooo good. Thus, I declared that Medan has one of the best culinary in Indonesia! 

Medan is the 3rd largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta and Surabaya. It is also the largest city outside of Java. The new airport Kuala Namu International Airport (KNO) was recently opened in July 2013 and I was surprised that it was really clean and well organized, even better than Jakarta's airport. The downside of the airport is that it is in the outskirts of Medan and it would take about an hour to get there. 

Before my visit to Medan, my impression of the town would be that it is an extremely small town that barely has anything. Medanese people always complain that there's nothing much you can do there. Much to my surprise, Medan is not as bad as I thought. Okay, maybe the awesome food is the only raving thing about the town. But there's still some 'touristy' areas you can visit if you are willing to drive - the most famous would be Danau Toba (Lake Toba). It is not a metropolitan city like Jakarta, but it does has few high rise buildings and malls that is definitely much better than other cities. It is a pretty decent city. 

Here are the 11 delicacies we had in the 2 stays we were in Medan:

1. Ondo - Batak Food 

Our first stop is trying out Batak food. The pork ribs and crispy fried pork are the best of the 2 dishes. Unfortunately, I did not take picture of it. :(. 

2. Rujak, Sate Ayam & Kambing, Buah Es & Lemper - Kalimantan Mas

Lemper Ayam (sticky rice filled with shredded chicken wrapped in pandan leaf)

Definitely one of the best lemper I have tasted. The lemper taste freshly made, with the sticky rice being so soft when you bite into it. Yummilious! 

Es buah (Fruit drink)

Not a big fan of this fruit drink as the drink is really sweet from the syrup. So this is just a variety of fruits combined in a glass with sweet sryup. mehh. 

Sate Ayam & Kambing (marinated chicken/lamb meat in a skewer)

The difference between Medanese Sate and Jakarta Sate is the sauce. This sate sauce is really thick and it is orange in color, different from Jakarta sate sauce that is dark brown. I am not sure what the sauce is made up from, but it sure taste super good! Not a big fan of sate because they are usually sweet from the dark soy sauce, but this one is pretty good (not too sweet)!  

Rujak (Indonesian fruit salad serves with thick spicy peanut sauce)

This is another Indonesian delicacy called Rujak. I believed Malaysia & Singapore have the same dish. Not a big fan of this because you have to dip the fruits in the thick dark peanut sauce with a little sour taste (vinegar?), which seems really weird for me. Why do you mix sweet fruits with sour & salty sauce?! Aside from that, the fruits are sweet, so I just ate it without the sauce. 

3. Durian Pancake - Mei Cin

The first bite of this durian pancake sent me to heaven right away. IT TASTE OH MY GOSH SO GOOOOOOD! When my friend mentioned that we were going to eat durian pancake, I thought it was flat durian flavored pancake. I was wrong. I dont know how they make this but it is basically durian meat wrapped in a thin dumpling-like skin. This delicacy was the highlight of my trip - definitely one of the best I have eaten. You'll bite through the soft skin and into the durian meat tasting so goooood. 

4. Avocado Juice - Macehat

Unfortunately, I did not take picture of this drink because it taste too good that I forgot. On our way to our dinner place, our host decided to stop by a cafe and ordered avocado juice. We initially did not want it because we were still full from our previous meals. I was glad she still bought it. This avocado juice is sinfully good - blended avocado with chocolate syrup, tiny chocolate bits and another chocolate component. So good and yet so unhealthy. 

5. Bubur Ayam, Mie Pangsit & Nasi Hainam - Selat Panjang

Bubur Ayam (chicken porridge), Mie Pangsit (chicken noodle) & Nasi Hainam (hainanese chicken rice)

Though we were still extremely full from our meals #1 thru 4, we decided to go for dinner. We ordered Bubur Ayam (chicken porridge), Mie Pangsit (chicken noodle) & Nasi Hainam (hainanese chicken rice). All taste really flavorful and on the spot for our Indonesian tongues. Yummmm.. My favorite would be the chicken noodle (because I love noodle). Though every food we had are flavorful, I dont think they have MSG in it since we dont feel thirsty after eating that much. 

6. Martabak Tipis Chocolate - Martabak Pirjing Murni

Our first dessert after dinner #1 would be trying out the Martabak tipis, chocolate flavored (chocolate flavored thick crepes). I think it was okay since I am not a big fan of the chocolate. The cheese crepes would taste better. 

7. Kwetiau - Kwetiau Jie Mei

Our 2nd dinner for the night is getting 3 Kwetiau (fried flat rice noodle) for the 4 of us - 2 without any toppings and 1 regular fried kwetiau cooked with pork sausage and vegetables. One thing about this dish is that it is very oily and yet tasty. 

8. Durian - Durian Ucok

one pile of durians

Our final dessert of the day is Durian feasting! This durian shop is unique - they will let you try the durian and if you are not satisfied with the taste, they will open another one free of charge until you are satisfied. The durians are sweet and soft. YUM!

9. Lontong Sayur Ah Hua - Pasar Beruang

Our first meal of day 2 is Lontong Sayur (rice cakes served with coconut milk curry) from a nearby marketplace. The soup is very flavorful and complement well with the rice cakes, vegetables and fried onions. 

10. Bihun Bebek Kumango - A Sie

This is the dish that I've been dying to try. Medan is known for their bihun bebek (duck vermicelli soup). We visited the most famous bihun bebek and also happens to be the most expensive (IDR 50,000!) So this dish is served with the duck soup (naturally brewed) and the dry vermicelli topped with shredded duck meat, green onions and lots of fried garlic. BIG THUMBS UP!

11. Nasi Campur - Chasio Pui Asan

The final meal is Nasi Campur Medan style (Rice with BBQ & Fried Pork and gravy). The BBQ Pork is so soft and sweet while the Fried Pork has the right saltiness to it. 

That marks the end of our culinary trip in Medan. Our tummies were never this satisfied and happy. Cant believe that 2 days is not enough! I would want to go back and eat all the good food over again. 

Aside from that, we brought home Bolu Meranti (Cake rolls), Bika Ambon (dessert made from tapioca flour, eggs, sugar, yeast and coconut milk), & more Durian Pancakes! 

GOODBYE MEDAN!~

With Lots of Love,

Claraaaa <3

Toraja - Land of the Heavenly Kings

First of all, I am extremely sorry for the late post. Been very busy for the past month because of the holiday season - which means that I have been traveling extensively. Fret not, I will be posting every travel. :) 

In the first week of December, I traveled to Sulawesi Island to visit the city of Toraja. This trip has been one of the most unique trips. I was very excited to be going to Toraja because of the many interesting facts about the city. 

What/Where is Toraja?

Tana Toraja is a city located in the mountainous regions of south Sulawesi, Indonesia. There are about 1 million Torajans, of which about half live in Tana Toraja. Toraja have very strong culture that they follow up till now. These people are known for their extravagant funeral rites. 

Day 1: Makassar - Toraja

Took us a lot of effort to finally arrive in Toraja: 

Jakarta - Makassar: 3 hour flight

Makassar - Toraja: 8 hours bus ride. To make things worse, the road was really bad and winding. X.X. 

*You can charter a small plane (8 seater) from Makassar Airport to Toraja and it will take about an hour.*

Overlooking the city of Pare Pare when we stopped over for lunch while en route to Toraja. 

Another stop over in a cafe that has this magnificent view of the mountains

Day 2 & 3- Toraja

Our itinerary in Toraja was very interesting:

#1. Visited the market where they sell Water Buffalo & Pigs for insanely high prices

Torajans devoted much of their time and energy into raising Water Buffalos, Pigs, Chickens, etc, primarily for ceremonial sacrifices and consumption. In fact, both water buffalos & pigs are the 2 livestocks that are highly in demand in the city. The people slaughter these animals during their funeral celebrations. In addition to that, water buffalo is also use as a symbol of wealth. The more white patches the buffalo has, the higher the price of the animal. For instance, this buffalo below costs IDR 650 MILLION (USD$60,000) !!! Why the insane price? -> that's because the buffalo has the 'Caucasian' skin which is white patches. Selling this buffalo should be enough to cover one's funeral celebration. A normal buffalo price starts from IDR 30 million (USD$2,500). Pigs price starts from anywhere between IDR 1 million to IDR 15 million. Once these animals are bought, they will be slaughtered and eaten during the funeral celebrations. I cant imagine having to eat a USD$60,000 buffalo meat. THAT IS INSANE! 

#2. Went to a stranger's funeral

As I mentioned earlier, Torajans are known for their elaborate funeral rites. It is also one's most expensive event. They believed that dead people should be celebrated because they will entering a long journey in the afterlife. Funeral ceremony is often held for few days, weeks or even years, so that the deceased's family members can raise enough money to cover the funeral expense. 

So we visited someone's funeral that has been ongoing for 2 weeks. I felt really weird attending someone's funeral but they treated us really well and gave us plenty of food and drinks. Everyday during the funeral, they have to slaughter pigs and buffalo to feed those who came for the funeral. So you can imagine how much a 2 week funeral costs. Our tour guide mentioned that basically Torajans lived to prepare for their death. These people started saving up for their funeral from a very young age. 

#3. Visited 4 burial sites 
Toraja is also known for their burial sites. Torajans believed that one should not be buried in the soil because soil is a source of life. Instead, one should be buried in the rocks that are non living things. They would carved out the rocks and put the tombs inside. The wooden statues outside symbolized the faces of the dead people. It is amazing how far they would go to bury the dead people up in the rocks. You can get see their burial sites & real skeletons right in front of you. Some of us even took pictures with them! I wouldnt dare to do that, so I just took picture of the skeletons.. and NOT with it. :X Just wayyy too creepy for me. 

Lemo #1

Baby Grave #1

Baby Graves #2 - this used to be where infants were buried - up in this tree.  

Kete Kesu #1 - this is 'Tongkonan', a traditional Toraja house.

Kete Kesu #2 - Real skeletons lying in Kete Kesu. It is said that one should not touch the skeletons unless they want to be visited by the spirits. 

Kete Kesu #3 - real skulls. Don't you feel like you're in halloween city?!

Londa #1 - Another famous burial site where dead people are buried in the rocks.

Londa #2 - The entrance to the burial site inside the rocks

Day 4

Makassar - Jakarta 
We stayed for one night in Makassar so as to have a taste of their culinary. Makassar's food is good, but not as good as Aceh's. 

Tasted like a hot and sour soup with shrimp paste and thick sago. It tasted very weird to me because you have to swallow that chunky sago. If you were to chew on it, it would just feel even weirder to be chewing on a sago.. !

definitely my favorite food for the whole trip - this is banana wrapped in mochi skin & shaved ice! (aka Pisang Ijo) Such a good delicacy for a hot day.

Fried with thick sauce on the top. This is kind of like the Thai Rad Na, except that the noodle is like instant noodle before being cooked. (Jakarta people would recognize this as IFUMIE)

Managed to visit a mini waterfall inside a supposedly butterfly garden (but no butterflies at all).

And the final destination is to take picture here in Pantai Losari (Losari Beach) so as to let people know that we've been to Makassar! ~

Was it worth the trip? 

Hmm, personally it was worth it. However, this trip might be suitable for those who has traveled everywhere and is looking for something extremely different. The usual things that we see as a tourist would be scenery and good food. Toraja does not offer that. What it offers is something more unique than just scenery and food - the strong culture the people live in. This city makes you feel that you left the 21st century and entered into somewhat primitive place where people value their livestock as a symbol of wealth and bury their dead ones on the rocks because soil is a source of live. Phone signal can be really bad, so be prepared to be disconnected from the world for at least half the day. Overall, this trip has been very interesting. But I wouldn't be back for the second time. Once is enough since I am more of a 21st century kind of girl ;).

With Lots of Love,

Claraaaa <3