JKT - BDG TRIP PART 1

Two weeks ago i had the opportunity to go on a trip to Bandung courtesy of the Company. And since i am in the midst of preparing for my wedding, it was indeed a blessing  that i was given a "FREE TRIP TO THE CAPITAL OF FABRIC" so i can get some kain for the wedding :) aside from asking for tips and reading up on what to buy from various blogs, i managed to get an estimated figure of the fabric's price per metre and what other items i can get from the major shopping haunts. (awesome how technology and social media eases the burden for you).

i started with a list of what to buy in Bandung/Jakarta (since my group will make a short trip to ITC Mangga Dua in JKT before heading off to BDG):

1. Telekung (for the hantaran, for myself, for my mum, for Faliq's mum, for ANYONE)
2. Sejadah 2 Pcs (for the hantaran)
3. Kain Nikah (consists of Lace, Chiffon, Lining, and border lace for the veil)
4. Kain Reception (I have no idea what to buy kept thinking a beaded chiffon, but i didnt know how many metres i should buy, i will explain later what has become of the dress -.-")
5. kain for the twins, and ibu (preferably shantung silk because i read that it's cheap there and Ibu loves Shantung)

so prior to my trip Jaja (my housemate) pesan for 9 m of Chiffon so she can make 3 sets of skirts. so back to my list now i have an added item making it 6 items altogether. and then Eza (my uni mate who is now my colleague, asked if i can get her brownies so now i have 7 items that i MUST get in Bandung)

it's been so long since i've been on a plane, pergi Jakarta pun excited lebih..considering my last trip was to Melbourne and that was 2 years ago!

so what happened was:

1st day: Jakarta

We arrived at Noon. with a party of 30 it was pretty hectic + chaotic to get everyone under control plus the Jakarta Sukaerno-Hatta Airport is quite crowded when we arrived. it so happens that we arrived on the same day as a group of Jemaah umrah from indonesia, HO MAI you can imagine the crowd and how PENING it was.

as we waited for the bus to come i noticed that Indonesians in general are very well-dressed. well, they dress better and more kemas than us Malaysians. we tend to be very slouchy, selekeh; wearing slippers are a norm  even when you're on an outing (which i know sounds snobbish tapi memang selekeh), baju kadang-kadang lari colour dgn tudung -.-"

i didn't realize Jakarta was going to be a little bit hotter than KL. aku pegi pakai two-piece punya top plak -.-"

As the tour included Jakarta AND Bandung, right after we arrived we were taken sightseeing all around Jakarta. some places we managed to visit/squeeze in our very tight schedule was the Monumen Nasional or MONAS as the Indonesians call it. it was also my first time berdepan dengan peddlers yg stalk kau sampai kau jadi rimas. the trick is "unless ur interested to buy then by all means talk to them, if you haven't the slightest interest, don't touch don't even make any eye contact".

so that's me and my roomate Nurul at MONAS. the peak was said to be made of Gold. 

afterwards the tour guide brought us around Jakarta, some stopped at the Church and some stopped at the Mosque. i was more intrigued to see the crowded city with slums and skyscrapers next to one another.

didn't get to catch a glimpse of their train. pfft. but here's a view from the Bus as we trudge along slowly on the highway. the traffic jam was crazy i don't know how we managed to get to our destinations. Last stop before we head to Bandung was the shopping place ITC MANGGA DUA. it's one MASSIVE shopping centre housing anything you can think about, from baju to luggage. the inside is crazy shit packed. my first try at haggling in Indonesia. Managed to get a LV red handbag Knock-off for Syanaz for RM 60 and a top for myself. as we were only given 1 hour (SIAPA LA BOLEH SEMPAT SHOPPING 1 JAMMM???) i didnt get the chance to buy much pun.   

and then..we're off to BANDUNG!