I had a romantic getaway two Wednesdays ago with my husband to Bandung. Romantic ? Wa ha ha ha ha…. It was as romantic as watching paint dry because a day before we left, I was plagued with sickness. I started coughing and had a fever.
The plane ride was okay as I was not that sick at the time. When we arrived, we went straight to the hotel and were allowed to check in. When I laid down, I found it hard to get back up again. Dan was concerned but I dismissed it away as we were already there and I promised to take Dan around.
I forced myself to get up and took a cab to Pasar Baru. Dan hated the pasar. At that time I was already quite under the weather and didn’t know where to go. I remembered that I wanted a new telekung so I took Dan to the shop where Amelia and I bought ours last time. I was sick and disorientated. The pasar looked more crowded than it did last time. We went around and around, trying to find that particular shop when I spotted it by chance. What a bummer. There were not many telekungs around and the style was out-dated. All that for nothing.
I insisted for a new telekung and therefore visited about 3 shops before Dan pointed out that all the shops carried the same telekung. He was pressuring me to just pick one. O-kay….. Right then I was thinking Amelia was nicer to walk around the pasar with. I hastily picked one. I hate doing that because I know I will feel discontent ( and how right I was ) with my purchase.
It was already 12 and I suggested we sit down for lunch. I needed to take my medication anyway. Up we went to the 6th floor to the food court. I was raving to Dan about the food Amelia and I had there. However Amelia was the one who bought the food. I sat at the table and waited for her. So when I got there I was confused. Nothing looked like the food Amelia had cleverly bought. Aiseh. I was getting dizzier by the minute and Dan had a look of consternation on his face. I hate being a tour guide.
I finally decided to eat the safest thing that was offered there, Soto. At least there will be no surprises there and I do feel like having soup. We sat down and ordered 2 sotos. The alarm should have been raised when after 10 minutes of ordering the food failed to appear. It is just soto and in good ol’ Malaysia, it usually takes less than 5 minutes to put everything together. I was sick and was just relishing the comforts of the chair and was not thinking much.
The first to appear were 2 plates of rice. Aiik ? Nasi ? I thought we ordered soto ? Then came 2 steaming pots ( yup, pots ) and when we opened the lids, it revealed burbling beef soup ( or more appropriately broth ). Dan looked at me but hey, I gave a him a look that said don’t-look-at-me-mister-I-am-as-confused-as-you-are !
We dug in. It was nice enough but Dan hated it because it was littered with timun air. I had no appetite and Dan didn’t like his food ( he is fussy, that one ). The waiter raised his eyebrow when he saw the uneaten fare.
I took my husband to Rich and Famous next. Luckily he was happy there. Since I only have the clothes on my back and a pair of pyjamas in my bag, I had to choose an outfit. I was rather ill by then and couldn’t choose anything. Dan had to do my shopping for me and chose a long-sleeved t-shirt that is too short for me. The next day I had to walk around with my tudung covering my chests ( as it was just not too short, it was one size too small too ) while looking for a more appropriately sized baju ( thank you honey for thinking that I was that thin ).
We then went to Rumah Moda. Dan luckily loved it there too as the ambiance was calming and the décor was superb. He quickly found clothes for himself and we bought loads for our kids. None for me though. No baju ( semua long sleeves t-shirt yang Britney Spears nak lah pakai or short sleeves ) and not even bags. It was so much different from when Amelia and I went.
Then of course I went to got my feet reflexologied… he he… That is the best reason to go to Rumah Moda actually. I practically ran there as my was body aching and my head was throbbing. There was only 1 chair left and I quickly took it. Dan refused to be massaged and sat next to me. Boy was that a killjoy. I found out that day that it is very disconcerting and very unnerving being massaged while somebody watched in boredom.
We then trudged back to the hotel. Well, not exactly trudged as we did take a cab. Despite the massage, my body was killing me and I had a fever. I was alternating from being hot to cold at very regular intervals. Luckily I had my supply of ponstant with me and Dan thoughtfully packed some Panadol Actifast. Come 7 o’clock we were hungry again ( I barfed twice ) and decided to head to the shopping complex just down the road from our hotel.
We were debating whether to go on foot or take a cab. I felt we should walk as it is so near but Dan said he doesn’t want us to walk where the pavements are housing various stalls and had to walk on the road instead. He apparently mistrusted Bandung drivers. As we were discussing ( more like bickering ) the hotel’s pak guard approached us. He advised us to take the Angkutan instead. We apologetically told him the smallest denomination we have on our person was Rp 100,000 and therefore will pose a problem when paying the Rp 1000 fare each. He then whipped out his wallet ad gave us Rp 2000. We were horrified and horribly embarrassed. He kept pushing the money to us and we kept pushing it back to him. I finally took the money when I saw how adamant he was and frankly I did not have the energy to play Rp. 2000 tug-of-war with him. He was so proud I felt guilty for refusing in the first place.
Where did we go ? First to find a Wartel. Dan was so homesick ( read missing Umar and Elsa ) his eyes went watery as he talked fondly of his children ( their monkey-like perangai mysteriously vanished from their father’s memory ). We found one but it couldn’t make calls to Malaysia. We tried at the hotel before we left and the receptionist said “ Belum biasa buat panggilan ka Malai-sia pak ”. O-kay.
We went inside the mall to look for a pharmacy. I bought a packet of Panadol for flu and fever and bought some cough drops. Then we went to search for food. My husband took me to McDonald’s. He said he doesn’t trust Indonesian food anymore. Yelah tu Rashdan. Just admit that you are a junk-food junkie.
Admittedly, my mouth watered looking at the Indonesians eating friend chicken with rice but luckily I remembered the frogs in my throat. I ordered Fillet-o-fish and some fries ( which oddly was okay for the frogs… he he ). The chilli sauce was hot I tell you. It was super hot but yummy….
Anyway, went to their supermarket and Dan bought more junks for his tummy. Then off we went back to the hotel. I slept fitfully amidst Dan’s channel search for something that he could understand. Finally he shut his mouth when an English movie appeared on the screen at 9pm, but with as much iklan as before ( there were so many iklans on their telly, we watched more iklan than real shows. All about keputihan baju and kulit muka, menghilangkan ketumbir and entah apa – apa entah ).
Bersambung esok kay sebab karangan ni dah melepasi 3 muka surat...
The plane ride was okay as I was not that sick at the time. When we arrived, we went straight to the hotel and were allowed to check in. When I laid down, I found it hard to get back up again. Dan was concerned but I dismissed it away as we were already there and I promised to take Dan around.
I forced myself to get up and took a cab to Pasar Baru. Dan hated the pasar. At that time I was already quite under the weather and didn’t know where to go. I remembered that I wanted a new telekung so I took Dan to the shop where Amelia and I bought ours last time. I was sick and disorientated. The pasar looked more crowded than it did last time. We went around and around, trying to find that particular shop when I spotted it by chance. What a bummer. There were not many telekungs around and the style was out-dated. All that for nothing.
I insisted for a new telekung and therefore visited about 3 shops before Dan pointed out that all the shops carried the same telekung. He was pressuring me to just pick one. O-kay….. Right then I was thinking Amelia was nicer to walk around the pasar with. I hastily picked one. I hate doing that because I know I will feel discontent ( and how right I was ) with my purchase.
It was already 12 and I suggested we sit down for lunch. I needed to take my medication anyway. Up we went to the 6th floor to the food court. I was raving to Dan about the food Amelia and I had there. However Amelia was the one who bought the food. I sat at the table and waited for her. So when I got there I was confused. Nothing looked like the food Amelia had cleverly bought. Aiseh. I was getting dizzier by the minute and Dan had a look of consternation on his face. I hate being a tour guide.
I finally decided to eat the safest thing that was offered there, Soto. At least there will be no surprises there and I do feel like having soup. We sat down and ordered 2 sotos. The alarm should have been raised when after 10 minutes of ordering the food failed to appear. It is just soto and in good ol’ Malaysia, it usually takes less than 5 minutes to put everything together. I was sick and was just relishing the comforts of the chair and was not thinking much.
The first to appear were 2 plates of rice. Aiik ? Nasi ? I thought we ordered soto ? Then came 2 steaming pots ( yup, pots ) and when we opened the lids, it revealed burbling beef soup ( or more appropriately broth ). Dan looked at me but hey, I gave a him a look that said don’t-look-at-me-mister-I-am-as-confused-as-you-are !
We dug in. It was nice enough but Dan hated it because it was littered with timun air. I had no appetite and Dan didn’t like his food ( he is fussy, that one ). The waiter raised his eyebrow when he saw the uneaten fare.
I took my husband to Rich and Famous next. Luckily he was happy there. Since I only have the clothes on my back and a pair of pyjamas in my bag, I had to choose an outfit. I was rather ill by then and couldn’t choose anything. Dan had to do my shopping for me and chose a long-sleeved t-shirt that is too short for me. The next day I had to walk around with my tudung covering my chests ( as it was just not too short, it was one size too small too ) while looking for a more appropriately sized baju ( thank you honey for thinking that I was that thin ).
We then went to Rumah Moda. Dan luckily loved it there too as the ambiance was calming and the décor was superb. He quickly found clothes for himself and we bought loads for our kids. None for me though. No baju ( semua long sleeves t-shirt yang Britney Spears nak lah pakai or short sleeves ) and not even bags. It was so much different from when Amelia and I went.
Then of course I went to got my feet reflexologied… he he… That is the best reason to go to Rumah Moda actually. I practically ran there as my was body aching and my head was throbbing. There was only 1 chair left and I quickly took it. Dan refused to be massaged and sat next to me. Boy was that a killjoy. I found out that day that it is very disconcerting and very unnerving being massaged while somebody watched in boredom.
We then trudged back to the hotel. Well, not exactly trudged as we did take a cab. Despite the massage, my body was killing me and I had a fever. I was alternating from being hot to cold at very regular intervals. Luckily I had my supply of ponstant with me and Dan thoughtfully packed some Panadol Actifast. Come 7 o’clock we were hungry again ( I barfed twice ) and decided to head to the shopping complex just down the road from our hotel.
We were debating whether to go on foot or take a cab. I felt we should walk as it is so near but Dan said he doesn’t want us to walk where the pavements are housing various stalls and had to walk on the road instead. He apparently mistrusted Bandung drivers. As we were discussing ( more like bickering ) the hotel’s pak guard approached us. He advised us to take the Angkutan instead. We apologetically told him the smallest denomination we have on our person was Rp 100,000 and therefore will pose a problem when paying the Rp 1000 fare each. He then whipped out his wallet ad gave us Rp 2000. We were horrified and horribly embarrassed. He kept pushing the money to us and we kept pushing it back to him. I finally took the money when I saw how adamant he was and frankly I did not have the energy to play Rp. 2000 tug-of-war with him. He was so proud I felt guilty for refusing in the first place.
Where did we go ? First to find a Wartel. Dan was so homesick ( read missing Umar and Elsa ) his eyes went watery as he talked fondly of his children ( their monkey-like perangai mysteriously vanished from their father’s memory ). We found one but it couldn’t make calls to Malaysia. We tried at the hotel before we left and the receptionist said “ Belum biasa buat panggilan ka Malai-sia pak ”. O-kay.
We went inside the mall to look for a pharmacy. I bought a packet of Panadol for flu and fever and bought some cough drops. Then we went to search for food. My husband took me to McDonald’s. He said he doesn’t trust Indonesian food anymore. Yelah tu Rashdan. Just admit that you are a junk-food junkie.
Admittedly, my mouth watered looking at the Indonesians eating friend chicken with rice but luckily I remembered the frogs in my throat. I ordered Fillet-o-fish and some fries ( which oddly was okay for the frogs… he he ). The chilli sauce was hot I tell you. It was super hot but yummy….
Anyway, went to their supermarket and Dan bought more junks for his tummy. Then off we went back to the hotel. I slept fitfully amidst Dan’s channel search for something that he could understand. Finally he shut his mouth when an English movie appeared on the screen at 9pm, but with as much iklan as before ( there were so many iklans on their telly, we watched more iklan than real shows. All about keputihan baju and kulit muka, menghilangkan ketumbir and entah apa – apa entah ).
Bersambung esok kay sebab karangan ni dah melepasi 3 muka surat...
2 comments:
Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now. Keep it up!
And according to this article, I totally agree with your opinion, but only this time! :)
Err... thank you ?
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