Tag: adventurenotes

AdventureNotes #9: Como

Published on by Izza Dinillah2 Comments
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Como? Where is it? Coming from an Asian country, I’m not familiar with the non mainstream tourist attractions in Europe. Como is one of them. It is actually a small city located near Lake Como, where it got its name, in Italy. The city borders the country and Switzerland.

Why did I go to Como? I actually went there to visit a friend. I needed a place to star near Milan, too. My friend was a student there and she lived in a student accommodation, just enough for two people to sleep. Her accommodation was not too far from the city center.

To get to Como, people can use trains. There are many trains passing this city. As it is a quite ‘famous’ place for people to come to spend their day off, it is not too difficult to get there. I think it is around an hour train ride from Milan.

Como is such a small city, anyway. The city is beautiful with its lakeside scenery. There are lots of hotels and cafes because people come to enjoy the city. Like other Italian cities, there is also a famous Gelato shop there. Despite the cold weather, I bought and ate Gelato when I was there.

There are not too many tourist attractions in Como, but people can certainly enjoy Lake Como by hiring a boat. Besides that, the hilly contour of the city makes people able to hike to the hill to enjoy the scenery. I think a memorial of Volta was built up there because of his relation to the city.

I quite like the atmosphere there because it was not too crowded and it has its own charm with its little shops, outdoor market, and gardens.  I think it is an appropriate place when someone seeks serenity.

I will be happily recommend this place if you need sanctuary for your holiday. It is also close to Milan, and considering the condition, maybe this city is a better place to stay.

Jan 08, 2016

AdventureNotes #8: Lost in Rome

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This article is way long overdue. So sorry! but since I’m an active traveler again now, it seems that I have to continue this AdventureNotes series.

Anyway, for this session, I’ll write about Rome! Who doesn’t know and doesn’t want to visit this city? It has its own unique charm and to be honest, you’d want to visit this city again and again, strolling at its small alleys. So, I’ve been in Rome twice now. The first one was when I did my solo Euro trip and the second was when I did a Euro tour with my family. This article will be based on the recollection of my memory from both trips.

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People coming to Rome by plane will most probably arrive in Leonardo Da Vinci Airport. I took a train from the airport to get to the city center, Roma Termini Station. The journey was short and pleasant. However, when I stepped my foot on Roma Termini, it was very crowded; lots of travelers, lots of beggars, lots of officers, and lots of sellers. I was shocked and therefore tried to find a quiet place to think. I needed to adapt before finding my way around.

I had a quite interesting experience in Rome because I was lost for a while! It was kind of funny actually because I tried to find my hotel at that time. The hotel was supposedly not too far from the station. I walked around and around, asked people but still couldn’t manage to find it. It was difficult to find it because there was not too many people who can speak English in that area. After a long 2-hours search, finally I could enter my room! The owner responded to my email and came get me. It turns out that there was no sign of the hotel and actually I walked pass that hotel several times without noticing.

The first time around, I tried to use the Hop On Hop Off (HOHO) bus to get around Rome. I purchased the ticket online for a 24 hour pass. During my time there, I found out that the HOHO bus was not that available. One time I had to wait for 30 minutes until the bus arrive. Additionally, the traffic in Rome was just not good. I thought that it might be faster to walk! Seriously.

I think the better option to get around Rome is by public transportation. Almost all of the attractions in Rome are reachable by many different means of public transportation, such as bus and metro. It was much quicker and cheaper. On my second visit to Rome, I bought a one-day travel card that I can use to get on all public transportation in Rome. It costed like a quarter of what I paid for the HOHO bus and I managed to see more Rome tourist attractions!

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From both visits to Rome, I managed to enter some places, such as Colloseum, Roman Forum, and St. Peter’s Basilica. I had to buy tickets for the Colloseum and Roman Forum, but the entrance was free for the St. Peter’s Basilica. Rome is such a popular tourist destination so that to enter the attractions, we would be most likely have to queue, sometimes for a long time. Therefore, actually during the online ticket purchase, there is an exact time allocation for us to visit. However, it seems that the system did not work because I could enter Colloseum and the Roman Forum one day later than the appointed schedule on my ticket. All attractions mentioned above were worth to visit, besides they are legendary!

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Besides those attractions, Rome is also famous for its outdoor attractions, such as Piazza and the Trevi Fountain. I went to Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, Spanish Steps, and Piazza Venezia on both of my trips. I love the environment in those neighborhoods. Some of those places are quite close to each other so that I could just walk. It was really nice actually comparing to taking a bus or metro because I could explore the small and charming alleys near those places. I even passed the Pantheon on my way from the Trevi Fountain to Piazza Navona.

There are still many attractions in Rome that I haven’t visited. I wished I could visit the city again, longer the next time around. Surely one or two days are not enough to explore this city.

Now, for the tips of visiting Rome!

1. Be ready with your Google Maps to find your way around because not too many people can speak English.

2. Buy the daily or weekly travel tickets. The attractions are easily reachable by public transportation. It is safe, even if you travel alone.

3. Beware of the weather. Rome can get very hot during the summer. The weather gap between this city and other cities in Europe during spring is also noticeable. Get hydrated!

4. Stay alert, especially in crowded place because there are quite a lot of beggars and strangers who may try to steal. Moreover, the city is packed during the summer months, it can get super crowded.

5. Try the gelatto and icy drinks! They are good. Regarding the foods, for Muslims who have to eat halal food, there is this restaurant really near to the Roma Termini station that sells halal and very yummy and delicious foods.

6. Purchase your tickets online. Sometimes they offer discounted price tickets or Rome pass that could get you into many different attractions in cheaper cost.

Let’s go and travel to Rome!

Jan 01, 2016

Black Country Living Museum

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Last Saturday I went for a trip to Black Country Living Museum. Since I was still in Jakarta, I already know this place and had wanted to go there. Yes, I am such a sucker for this travelling this. Sometimes it seems that I can’t wait to go out again, to travel again, and to have another adventure. Anyway, finally I got to go to the Black Country Living Museum.

I was interested to go there because of its unique concept. It’s not a regular museum, not the one where we come in and see the collections inside glass boxes. It is literally a living museum. The complex consists of buildings, transportation tools, workshops, shops, restaurants – just like a town. There are also people acting like they are living there. They wear the old fashioned clothes, speak in the ‘Black Country accent’, and do like different kind of jobs. It was a very distinct experience.

I went there with my husband, his friends, and a big group from the university. The first thing we did was watch an introductory video about Black Country. So it actually was an area that produces tools. Its natural resource had something to do with mining (pardon my lack of knowledge). So the whole area worked as people who are producing different kinds of tools, such as glass, chain, and anchor. It was said in the video that the anchor in Titanic was made in Black Country. As industrial area, Black Country also had quite advance modes of transportation at that time, such as trams, boats in canals, and buses.

As we walked into the area, there was this massive open area. We could see buses, cars, and motorcycle come and goes. We went to the mine office building, got prepared, and actually went into the mine. We went underground with limited light and it was quite an interesting and unusual experience for me. It was the first time I went into a mine – well, I don’t know when I will do that again basically. There was this kind of diorama showing what happened in the mine. What amazing was that we had to stop in several points and there will be narration of the ‘mine worker’ who is presented in the diorama. I don’t know but it was kind of amazing that they can build something like that – very educating and full of knowledge and history but not boring.

There are many buildings in the area of Black Country Living Museum. We go into some buildings and heard stories from the people there – you know the people who dress up like they really are living in the Black Country in the 1800-1900. The area actually divided into 2 parts, the first one is the kind of industrial space which is the mining with its machines (which is still working, amazingly!) and the other one is the town. We had to be careful walking there because there are buses, cars, and motorcycles. Those are the transportation which is a part of museum collection. They are all working very well and the museum people drive it for show.

We went to some shops and listened to the explanation from the shopkeeper about how people used to live in the past. We also learned about the money – which was different with the money system nowadays. We came into two very different houses, one is the house of a quite well-off family and one house is called Back to Back house because the houses were attached to each other and despite of its size tens of people lived there. The stories told were interesting. It was enjoyable and I could really imagine living at that time.

Oh! And we also saw this chain-making attraction. Basically it just a person playing as a chain maker and he showed us how to make chain. He also explained about how people get paid at that time and how women get paid lower than men. That’s maybe why the women in the museum wear this pin stating ‘Vote for Women’ on their clothes.

At the end of our visit we watched a black and white silent movie in the cinema. Yes, there is a cinema in Black Country Living Museum. Just like the old days (who am I talking like I know the old days), there are just benches in the cinema and the movie was funny. It is amazing how people in the movie can really act up to the point that the audiences understand what they mean although they are not speaking at all. Oh, but there was some kind of subtitle explaining briefly about the setting of the movie – but that’s just it. We looked at the school – there was really a class going on at that time – and finally we hopped on the tram to go back to the main reception building.

It was a very nice and memorable visit, I think. I don’t know if there is any other museum that offers this kind of experience, but it sure is my first one. I’m glad that I decided to go and let’s plan the next visit!

More info about BCLM: http://www.bclm.co.uk/

Photos: personal collection and https://instagram.com/ryantoanugroho/

Oct 10, 2015

AdventureNotes #7: Malacca

Published on by Izza Dinillah2 Comments

The decision to go to Malacca was made a few weeks before we actually departed. We decided to go there because we both haven’t been there before. It was a UNESCO World Heritage place and we were curious on the attractions. We both love photography and exploring new places – especially with cultural highlights.

Day 1

As we went through Batam, we took ferry to Johor Bahru before going to Malacca by bus. The ferry ride was around 90 minutes and it costs around IDR 800k for return ticket per person. We went quite early in the morning, noting that there is an hour time difference between Indonesia and Malaysia. After we arrived in Johor Bahru, we took a taxi to Larkin Bus Terminal to continue our journey by bus. The terminal was quite far from the port but fortunately we got the meter taxi. Note that the taxis in Malaysia sometimes do not follow the regulation so that passenger needs to bargain for the fare. We already bought the bus ticket online (RM 42 return / person) and we just needed to exchange the online receipt before we could get on the bus. We arrived in the bus terminal just in time and a few minutes after we got on the bus, it departed. Malacca, here we come!

3 hours and a tube of Pringles later, we finally arrived in Malacca. We embarked in Melaka Sentral, a bus terminal there. We were hungry and it was already 2 pm. We decided to eat in the terminal. I could say that it was carbohydrate party for our lunch. As usual, the meal in Malaysia does not cost a diamond. It was less than RM 20 for both of us.

As it was still bright after we had our meal, we asked the information desk for a trip to Portuguese Settlement. Apparently, bus number 17 to Ujong Pasir passes the Portuguese Settlement. We found the bus and waited for a while before the bus started its journey. Downtown Malacca is a touristy place. The whole bunch of attraction condensed in that one place and it caused traffic. It was Christmas holiday and it was no wonder that there were lots of tourists there. We skipped the whole attraction because we planned to go there on the next day. Around 45 minutes later, we got off the bus in front of the Portuguese Settlement gate. We walked for around 10 minutes before we reached the place. Sadly, there was nothing. Well, one or two restaurants were opened, but the rest was quiet. The whole neighborhood seemed to celebrate Christmas and it was kind of similar to Eid in Indonesia. People went around the neighborhood, visiting the houses. The Christmas decoration was cheerful and it may be better to be seen during the night. We took picture and in less than 30 minutes we were back to the main road to catch a bus back to the terminal.

We were tired so we went to our hotel. It was a shame that the hotel was located far from the central. However for the service and the room, as well as the Melaka River Cruise ticket, the price was quite good (IDR 900k for 2 nights). It seemed that we were so tired that we dozed off straight away. At around 9 pm we woke up. Unsure whether there is anything that is still open, we tried our luck and went out. It turned out that near our hotel, there was a kind of small restaurant that still opened. In Indonesia, it was like ‘tukang nasi goreng’ or ‘warteg’. We ordered roti canai and fried noodle. Ryan loved the roti canai. The fried noodle was okay for me. As usual, it only costs less than RM 15 for the whole meal. We were full and went back to the hotel, continuing our rest.

Day 2

It was raining in the morning on our second day in Malacca. We tried to wait but when it hit 9.30 am, we thought that we may be stuck in our room if we don’t try to get out. We ordered a taxi from the hotel and went to Malacca River Cruise. It was quiet and there were not too many people there. We had our cruise along the Malacca River. It was nice and worth the ticket. We could see Kampung Morten and other attractions we haven’t got a chance to go to. The cafes on the riverside were interesting. We didn’t have a chance to walk along the riverside, but I really recommend it if you go to Malacca.

After the river cruise, the rain got worse but we had no choice. We had to continue our trip. We decided to go to the tourist information center to get a map of downtown Malacca. Walking through the rain, we stopped by a few attractions, like Malacca Watermill and St. John Fort. After we got the map, we went to the ‘Red Brick’ area and took plenty of pictures. The good thing of walking around when it was raining was that we had the place for ourselves. We walked around the area and walked our way up to the St. Paul Church on the hill. We passed a few museums on our way up and on our way down.

As the rain got pretty bad and we were exhausted and so wet, we decided to go inside Dataran Pahlawan Shopping Mall. We walked around and did a little window shopping and tried to find a place to eat. We ate in the newly opened food court there, warming ourselves. During the time we visited Malacca, it was sale period. Fortunately (or unfortunately), we only brought our backpack and if we shop, we would have to bring the shopping bags and it was not efficient. Therefore we did not shop (or try to stop ourselves from shopping).

At 3 pm, finally the rain stopped. Excitedly we went out, feeling warmth of the sunlight. We walked back to the central area, stopping by some museums to take pictures. Now that it was almost evening, we went to Jonker area. Jonker Street area was a night attraction. However, nearby that street, there are many tourist attractions. We strolled along the street, moving ourselves to some historical places, like Kampung Kling Mosque and Cheng Hoon Teng Temple. On our way, we stopped by a café called Mods Café. It was a unique small café with a VW inside their small place. It was opened just until 6 pm so we were forced to come in although we were still full. It was truly a hidden gem in Malacca.

We walked around, passing by some other temples, other unique buildings and such until it was kind of crowded in Jonker area. It was 5.30 and the atmosphere was getting hotter. Lots of food stalls opened up on the sidewalks. There were other kinds of things sold there, too. We walked our way in and out the area, gave up waiting the well-known Jonker 88 restaurant and walked our way to an area near Dataran Pahlawan Shopping Mall. In front of the mall, there was a place called Pahlawan Walk, and there was a halal food court there. We ordered seafood set meal. It was the most luxurious meal we had during our trip to Malacca. After we finished our dinner, we went back to the hotel to rest.

Day 3

There was not much going on during our third day. We went back to Melaka Sentral to take the bus back to Johor Bahru. At first, we wanted to go to Doraemon Expo in JB Sentral. However, looking at the ferry schedule, there was one just around the time we arrived in Johor Bahru. We decided to take the earlier ferry back to Batam.

To summarize, the whole trip only costs us about IDR 3500k for the whole trip, including transportation, hotel, and meal. We had fun and Malacca was a worth place to visit.

 Dec 29, 2014

Adventure Notes #6: Kaiserslautern – Heidelberg – Milan

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This AdventureNotes is the second part of my first Eurotrip journey, which is the story of my third day of the whole trip. One day, three cities to visit. When I think about that now, well that’s quite impressive. I travelled across three countries in a day.

Kaiserslautern. Well, the reason why I went to the city was because there was my friend there and I needed a place to sleep. Haha. I was a backpacker back then and budgeting was very important! I needed to save my money (I need to save my money as well now!). The city is very small. I remember that fish is the icon of that city so you can see fish sculpture everywhere. I get to see the student’s life in Kaiserslautern. It was quite different with student’s life in the UK, I guess. As education is totally free in Germany, yes for foreigner too, what international students and students in general need to be concerned about is their living cost. There were Indonesian students who do not have any financial support and have to work to fulfil their needs. How can they manage that? I have no idea. But they work here and there to get enough money to survive.

A night in Kaiserslautern and I had to go early in the morning to Heidelberg. Why Heidelberg, because I wanted to visit another friend of mine. It is funny that when you live far from your hometown you seem to have more friends than ever. Moreover, the relationship between you and the people you leave back home gets better. I don’t know why but that’s what I feel based on my experience. Anyway, I went to Heidelberg from Kaiserslautern by train again. I really love the transportation system in Germany. The train is punctual, the information is provided well, and the physical appearance of the train is very nice. All seem to be modern. The journey from Kaiserslautern to Heidelberg was about 1.5 hours. Not too far and I arrived quite early in Heidelberg.

I met my friend and took the tram to old town area of Heidelberg. Well, I think it is the most beautiful old town area. Seriously – I mean with all the buildings and the paints plus the scenery around. I love it! The old town area in Heidelberg is not too big. I walked across the old town and walked up through the Philosophenweg to see Heidelberg from above. I could see a kind of castle across the Philosophenweg. I didn’t go up there but my friend told me that it is beautiful. Well, hope there’ll be next time! I visited the Heidelberg University library which is gorgeous. Haha. Oh! And the university is the oldest university in Germany. I think it is worth to visit.

I only spent a few hours in Heidelberg and then I had to catch another train to bring me back to Milan. It was a very long journey; 6-7 hours if I am not mistaken. On my way to Milan, I had to transit in Basel. Basel is a city in Swiss. I went out from the station as I had around 45 minutes before my next train. I walked around the station area. What I forgot was that the currency they use in Switzerland is not euro! Most shops will accept euro but you’ll get CHF as the change.

After a very long journey I finally arrived in Milan at around 9 pm and had to go to my hotel for the night. It wasn’t a big, nice hotel but it was okay for me to rest as I had to go very early the next morning for my flight to Rome.

Lessons from the first part of my first Eurotrip:

– Traveling around Europe by train is very nice! Solo travelers – well, small group traveler as well – need to try this! As all of the transportation systems between countries are connected and the information is provided well, it is very safe. You get to see beautiful scenery and cities along your train ride. You also get to see local people’s daily life. Priceless experience!

– Beware when you travel during the Easter – or the seasons in between like during spring or fall – as the weather can be tricky. It’s kind of difficult to decide what clothes to bring and to wear. But bear in mind that you have to prepare for the worst! If you bring too many warm jackets, you can just take it off when it’s too hot; as simple as that.

– Currency, currency. Not all countries in Europe are members of EU. And those who are not have different currency. Yeah, UK has different currency although it is a part of EU. It is not too difficult if you end up in Swiss and only have euros in your pocket. But it will be probably more difficult if you are in some Eastern Europe countries. Check again the facts about the countries that you are going to visit.

– Backpacking is very tiring. You have to be on top of your stamina and use all opportunities to rest. You need your focus and your brain to be always on. You need your body to be fit because you have to carry that heavy backpack and to walk long distance. However it is a very great experience! I’d love to go backpacking again!

– It’s great to have friends everywhere so you can go and visit them. You can have free accommodation and meal. Haha! They’ll be glad to see you and you’ll be happy to see them too.

Jan 01, 2014

Adventure Notes #5: Milan – Munich

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This is getting interesting! My first Eurotrip. My fifth journey was during the Easter break. My housemate actually asked me to go with her and her friends but I chose to go by myself. Yes, it was my first Eurotrip and I was alone! I was super excited planning for the trip and actually went for the trip. So here’s my next AdventureNotes.

First thing first; travelling to Europe for Indonesian people is not that easy. Visa stuffs made me dizzy. I sorted out my Schengen visa in Manchester. I applied through Italian embassy as it was my first and last destination. Before applying for the visa, I needed to plan my entire itinerary as I needed the proof for visa documents. At that time, I went from Leeds to Milan and back to Leeds. The trip was 8 days long and I planned to go to Germany as well.

Travelling inside Europe was not that expensive. Imagine you can travel from Jakarta to Singapore or Kuala Lumpur easily; it goes the same in Europe. It is even easier because it is a continent so that the transportation is not a problem. Catch a train and you can go somewhere. I went from Leeds to Milan by plane which was cost only around 40 pounds return – the train ticket from Hull to Leeds even more expensive at that time. LOL. In this first part of my Eurotrip AdventureNotes, I will write about the first two days of my trip which was Milan and Munich.

When I say Milan, it was not actually Milan as the plane landed in Bergamo, which was the low cost carrier airport, Milan’s neighbor city. My first impression when I saw Italy was that it is not too different from Jakarta. The landscape, almost the weather, the crowd… almost all reminded me of Jakarta. I arrived at around 6 pm in Bergamo and took an airport bus to Milan Central Station to take a train to Munich. The bus ticket was 5 Euro and it took around an hour to get to the Central Station. Milan’s Central Station was quite good. There were shops and restaurants in the station and the place was convenient. I could look around the shops and eat peacefully. Unlike the station in Rome which was very crowded and uncomfortable, Milan Central Station was generally nice for traveler.

My train to Munich was a sleeper train. It went from Milan at 9 pm and arrived in Munich at 6 am. That was the first time I went somewhere with sleeper train and it was a good first experience. The cabin was quite big, women only – well in my case myself only, with complimentary breakfast. Yeay! The train ride was nice and the steward (I don’t know what they call them if they work in trains) was very helpful. I felt like I arrived in Munich in no time. A little bit cold during the night but it was fine.

The thing when you travel during the Easter time is that the weather can be unstable. When I went from UK, the weather was horrible. There were snowstorms all around UK. I was lucky that my flight wasn’t cancelled. When I arrived in Italy, the weather was pleasant. It was not too cold and not too hot. It was around 15-18 degree Celsius, I guess. And when I arrived in Munich it was -6 degree Celsius. Oh no! I was lucky that I still put my winter clothes on.

As my train arrived quite early in Munich, I kind of had nowhere to go. I decided to walk slowly to the Altrathaus and Nueuerathaus which is in Marianzplatz (correct me if I’m wrong, I already forgot some of the details). I wanted to see the famous clock there. Unfortunately, at that time the clock which supposed to be moving around during the hour change did not work. I continued strolling around the area, walked pass the farmers market, saw the sausage shops – yes the Germans are famous for their wurst, and ended up in a coffee shop. It was very cold outside and being able to sit down and feel the warmth of a cup of hot chocolate was very nice. I was there until I felt like it was okay to go out and went to another destination. I wanted to go to this place which was used to be a palace. The place is called Munich Residenz. It costs around 8 Euro to go inside the place. Munich Residenz is huge. I went to all of the rooms and saw beautiful decorations and architecture. It took around an hour up to two hours to look around the place.

After that, I just went around Munich old town. I didn’t have time to explore more places as I had a train to catch to go to Kaiserslautern – a city in German near France border. I regret that I didn’t go to Allianz Arena. I don’t know why but I always have this thing with German football. Haha. That’s why I really want to go to Allianz Arena. The place is a little bit out of Munich so we have to take the S-Bahn to get there. There are so many interesting places in Munich and I think a day or two days more in Munich will be good.

Anyway, at 2 pm I had to take another train to Kaiserslautern – my friend’s place. It took 5 hours train ride from Munich to Kaiserslautern. I had to change the train 3 times but they weren’t confusing at all. I got all the information from my ticket. I got the platform number and the exact time of the train. It was very pleasant – except when one of my trains was delayed for 3 minutes and I had to run to catch my other train which was only 5 minutes apart. What an experience! The journey from Munich to Kaiserslautern was beautiful. It was very nice to see the scenery along the journey. I saw many small cities and one of them is called Frankenstein. I wonder if Frankenstein really comes from that small city.

Well, that’s about it, I guess. I have 6 more days to write about as parts of my first Eurotrip. It was a great trip and travel experience. I really recommend people to go and travel alone because it is fun! So much fun!

Jan 1, 2014

AdventureNotes #4: Manchester

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Haha. It’s been a very very very very long time since I wrote my last AdventureNotes. And yesterday I bragged to Ryan about my trip to Europe and then I realized… well, I need to continue my AdventureNotes! This is the fourth, and the fourth goes to Manchester; not because I particularly like Manchester, it’s just because the fourth city I went to during my stay in the UK.

Manchester, to be honest, I do not like this city. I don’t know why but it’s just a city for me. I went there with my housemate and we visited the so-called biggest Chinatown in the UK – which for me, not too big and not too Chinese. It was a day trip so when we arrived there at around 11 – thanks to the delayed train – we grabbed lunch and went straight to Old Trafford.

I am not a football fan. I am definitely not an MU fan. But going to Manchester without visiting Old Trafford is like.. what are you going to do?? Unless you have other business plan or meeting with friends. The museum and stadium tour were quite nice. I got a 2 for 1 ticket because I took the train from Hull to Manchester. You need to note this! If you’re going by train around UK, you may be able to get some promotion or something like that. Check the website so you won’t miss it.

The Old Trafford Stadium was a little bit outside of downtown Manchester. I took the tram to get there plus around 20 minutes walking. We arrived later than when we should be there but luckily they didn’t make a fuss about it and allowed us to take the next tour. The tour is probably once in an hour so we didn’t have to wait that long. It took around 2 hours to finish the whole thing. It was nice, full of information, and you get to come in to different places in the stadium. At the end of the tour, you can shop if you want – which I didn’t.

After that, we went back to the city and just strolled around. There was this big shopping mall and a nice park. I didn’t really pay attention around really. But if you want to shop, go to Manchester! Especially during the Christmas sale because you can get almost everything with cheap price. LOL.

There are many more museums and places you can visit if you are going to Manchester. Unfortunately I didn’t go to those places. I heard that there is this football museum, etc. Yeah.. Manchester is not too confusing as a city so you basically don’t have to go around and around to go to places. The city center is compact. Plus! Free city bus! If you are going to certain places you can just take the free city bus. Yeap… That’s about it. I went to Manchester twice but the second one is for visa thingy so… it doesn’t count. LOL.

If you’re an MU fan then go to Manchester. If you want to know Manchester, go to Manchester. Travel never a waste of time and money anyway. 🙂

Dec 21, 2013

AdventureNotes #3: London

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Baiklaaah.. Setelah cuti nulis (ciee) beberapa lama, saya maleees nulis dg bahasa Inggris. Hehe. Jadi, maaf2keun kalo notes kali ini berantakan yaa.. 🙂

London is a city that I like. Kalo liat London, mungkin sedikit2 inget Jakarta walaupun banyakan ga mirip nya siih tp yaa dibandingin Hull, masih lebih mirip lah. Hehe… Karena London adalah ibu kota dan pusat ekonomi juga, jadi London itu suasananya sibuk, it seems like everyone is on the go. Buat aku yang suka dengan ke-hectic-an dan kesibukan, menyenangkan banget sih jalan2 di London. Kenapa notes kali ini tentang London? Yaa.. karena setelah York, London adalah kota kedua diluar Hull yang aku datengin di UK.

Pertama kali visit London, saya pergi dg housemate saya. Pas banget waktunya lagi Christmas holiday. Tentunya di waktu winter dan suasananya Christmas banget. Yang harus diwaspadai ketika liburan di musim Christmas seperti saya adalah melangitnya harga2, mulai dari kereta dan akomodasi. Tips-nya, booking semua di awal. Bulan Oktober kalo bisa udah booking semuanya supaya dapat best deal. Untuk transportasi, selain kereta kita juga bisa naik bus dari Hull. Hanya saja perjalanannya 5 jam. Tergantung lagi, apakah beda harganya signifikan. Plus, kalau punya tiket kereta, kita bisa masuk ke certain attractions dan makan di certain resto with 2 for 1 price. Promo ini sangat2 menarik karena yaa sama aja dapet diskon 50%. Syaratnya, ke London harus bersama teman2 dan berjumlah genap. Hee. Lalu, untuk akomodasi ada banyak pilihan. Ada wisma KBRI yang katanya sangat terjangkau (saya sih belum pernah nih jangankan ke wisma KBRI, ke KBRI nya aja blm pernah, heheheh), ada juga hostel yang terjangkau. Sarannya sih, kalau bisa pergilah ke London bersama teman2 yang banyak karena bisa ngirit ongkos akomodasi.

Lanjut, what did I do? Pertama kali ke London, 4 hari dan betul2 niat. Semua itinerary nya dibuat dg oke. Beli2 tiket masuk attraction dari internet karena biasanya lebih murah. Ada juga deal2 tertentu yang memungkinkan kita masuk ke beberapa attraction dengan harga combined. Kalo nggak salah, pertama kali ke London, aku pergi ke Madame Tussaud, Sherlock Holmes Museum, nonton Wicked, ke British Museum, Portobello Market, Harry Potter Studio, Oxford Street, Parliament House, liat changing guards di Buckingham Palace, naik London Eye, dan ke Hyde Park. Yah, kira2 begitulah yaa.. Menurut saya sih semua attraction nya menarik dan recommended kecuali Sherlock Holmes Museum yang ngantri nya panjang banget dan cukup mahal tapi tidak sesuai dengan ekspektasi.

Untuk aku, it’s a must-nya London ada beberapa. Kalo nggak ke tempat2 itu yaa rugi lah (menurutku yaa..). Pertama, nonton musical di London. Teater tempat musical2 ini ada di daerah West End biasanya. And I love West End area. Nggak tau kenapa tapi rasanya festive aja. Hehe. I also love strolling around in South Bank. Again, lebih karena alasan environment. Entah kenapa suka aja atmosphere disana. Lalu, ke Harry Potter Studi. Dimana lagi bisa ke Harry Potter Studio? Agak mahal tiketnya tapi for someone who grew up with Harry Potter like me, sungguh2 nggak nyesel.

Menurut aku sih, pertama kali ke London itu harus dipuas2in. Bener2 harus mengunjungi apa yang ingin dikunjungi. Karena kita bisa jadi turis benerannya hanya pas pertama kali ke London. Kesempatan berikutnya ke London… well, pastinya karena udah pernah jadi kurang exciting walaupun kalo buat aku sih, pengen balik2 terus ke London. The city has a charm.

What can you do besides the normal touristy activities? Coba buka website nya visit London dan cari2 event apa yang sedang berlangsung. Menyenangkan sih, dateng ke event2 yang diselenggarain di London karena pasti niat. Saya pribadi sih pernah dateng ke Winter Wonderland yang recommended banget, HARUS dikunjungi klo lagi ke London saat winter dan ke Canada Day. Menarik! Coba juga jalan2 ke taman yang ada di London, dateng ke pasar2 yang banyak banget juga di London. Atau, kalo yang mau ngeceng silahkan beredar di jalanan kota London pas jam orang bubaran kantor. Lots of cute guys with suit. Hehehe…

That’s about it. I didn’t give anymore details about the website, etc but you can ask me anytime. If you wanna go to London, I’ll be happy to make an itinerary for you. Hehehe.. Okay then, London is a city with charm which makes me want to go there again and again.

Oct 18, 2013

AdventureNotes #2: York

Published on by Izza DinillahLeave a comment

So, this is my second notes about my adventure while I was studying in the UK. Why York? Well, there are two reasons for that. First, my trip to York is the first out of city trip that I did after I came to UK. Second of all, because I love York. Seriously, York is my most favorite city in the UK. I don’t know why and you may not agree, but the city is very gorgeous.

The reason I went to York is because my housemate asked me to join her and her friends to go. She actually wanted to shop – because there’s this big outlet in York. I agreed to come not because I wanted to shop but because I just got nothing to do at that time. LOL. Good way to spend money, Zaa.

York is not too far from Hull, only around an hour by train. As usual, I had to book my train ticket early so I could get better deal. However, I made a mistake. I misinterpreted my friend’s request and I bought too many train tickets. What should I do? Thank God I bought the open ticket or all day ticket which means that I can travel anytime during that day. It costs a little bit more expensive than the advanced ticket; so I can returned the extra tickets. It took a long time until my money was refunded into my bank account but yeah, at least I got my money back.

I did quite a lot of things when I went to York. I didn’t go to the outlet the first time I visited York but I went there later on. As my favorite city, I went to York several of times. I just love it there. Places that I’ve visited in York are the museums (Castle Museum, another museum that I cannot remember the name, and Railway Museum), the tower (which again, I cannot remember the name), the Shambles (which is a cute old street), the Minster, and the parks. As I went there for the first time during the Christmas period, there was also a Christmas market. I loved the ambiance of the market, especially during the night. I also tasted the famous English afternoon tea (which was very expensive and… well, not as I imagined).

As a short visit destination, York offers quite a lot of attractions. I really like York with all its attractions. There are more museums than what I mentioned above and more interesting places a little bit outside of it such as Castle Howard. I regret I haven’t had a chance to visit Castle Howard because people said that it is gorgeous.

Now, for the tips. If you want to go to York, there are many options of transportation. You can go by train, bus, or coach. It’s only an hour by train but the fare is slightly more expensive. Great deal on Megabus sometimes so you can travel by coach for one pound only. Bus may be a good choice if you want to get to know Yorkshire area better. Visiting York can be expensive. The museums are not free. It is quite expensive, honestly. So, get promotion deals and buy the one year tickets. Plus, always ask for student price. I think, shopping in York is fun. I like to go to the outlet and find good stuffs in cheap price. The price in the outlet is already cheap, but if you go during the sale time, it gets cheaper and cheaper.

I definitely recommend people to go to York. It is such a beautiful place with interesting attractions to visit.

 Oct 09, 2013

AdventureNotes #1: Introduction

Published on by Izza DinillahLeave a comment

I feel like I write things based on request. LOL. Please anyone motivate me to write something more challenging. Well, it’s not that writing this type of text not fun, but I think I need to write more serious stuffs. Well, anyway… It’s been more than a year since I came to UK and study AND travel. The last part may not be the focus but it’s definitely the most memorable (I think).

In my opinion, travelling is a must! When you’re half way around the world from your home country, do travel. You’ll gain so much experience and learn so many things. You’ll see the world you’ve never seen before and you’ll be more knowledgeable.

I am quite independent and therefore I am not scared traveling alone (is there any relation, anyway?). But I believe that as long as I can speak and I have brain, I will be okay. As a part time traveler, I used to plan my travel during holidays or weekends, depend on the place I want to go to. I also have to save my money so that I can spend it during my trips. Traveling is not cheap so you need to prepare financially. Try to find promotions or cheap trips from the university so you don’t have to spend as much money.

In this modern world, traveling is not too difficult as it was before. Even if you have to travel alone, you can plan your trip before hand, book your transportation and accommodation online, etc. You can also always try to look for people you know, who may be able to help you during your trip or kindly let you stay in their place.

Traveling inside the UK is very very easy. As long as you plan your trip far before the date, you can get cheap prices. As people in UK also speak English, language won’t be a problem. There are also loads of information about touristy places and you won’t get lost – well, you can get lost but you’ll always find someone to help you.

Unfortunately, traveling outside the UK is quite difficult for Indonesian citizen. To travel in European countries, you need to apply for schengen visa. The procedure may not be too difficult but there are many requirements and documents that you need to prepare. You also have to have quite a lot of money in your bank account. The cost for schengen visa, per July 2013 is around GBP 100. Therefore you need to prepare if you want to go to other European countries.

An easier way to travel if you want to go somewhere outside UK without any visas is going to countries with on arrival visa. For Indonesian citizens, this means Turkey and Morocco. Those two countries are not too far from Europe (yeah of course because Turkey is partly Europe) and you don’t need to apply for visa before hand. You can just buy your airline tickets and go! As they are a bit far (Turkey is half Asia and Morocco is in Africa), the airfare can be quite expensive. So, again, prepare your money.

I don’t have a lot of money but I try to save money as much as possible for travel. I think it is worth it. So, while you’re in the UK as a student please do travel! 🙂

 Oct 08, 2013