Taman Ayun, Ulun Danu Beratan, Munduk Melanting, Jatiluwih and Tanah Lot

13 May 2014 (Tuesday)

Tuban
I could not sleep last night. Andy said neither could he but he said I was sleeping like a log, snoring the night away.

After having failed to get a response from Ketut Indra last night, I resent the message to inform him that I would be waiting for him at Harris Hotel lobby at 8:00 a.m. His reply was immediate. I was relieved.

We were soon out on the street in Tuban by 6:30 a.m. to hunt for breakfast. Stalls after stalls were selling similar kuih-muih. At other stalls, rice and cooked noodle with side dishes were offered. These were too heavy for breakfast. I was looking for some noodle soup but we did not find any around the area. In the end, we settled for whatever was available in a shop, noodle to go with some side dishes.

We returned to the hotel at about 7:45 a.m. I finished my packing and went down to the lobby just before 8:00 a.m. Waiting there for me was Ketut Indra. After a quick exchange of pleasantries, he went to get his car. I then gave him my itinerary, which included Goa Gajah. He told me that Pura Goa Gajah was on another circuit and should be left out. I also told him that I needed to find a hostel for the night and I would like to get a room to put my baggage.

On the way to Kuta to look for a hostel, I told him the place I wanted ought to have local food nearby, a place to shop the next morning and a beach.

He told me Kuta is a touristy place with no local food stalls/ warung. If I wanted to have local food, I have to stay further away but it would be far away from the beach. In the end, we decided to visit the spots in my itinerary first before deciding on where to stay, since it was still early in the morning and guests were unlikely to have checked out from their hotels.

Taman Ayun

Our first spot was Taman Ayun ... Ayun is Ayu in Malay. I read it is the most beautiful temple in Bali but I found it average only. It was just a small place, walled up and visitors can only look inside from outside the temple perimeter.

Pura Ulun Danu Beratan

The second spot we visited was Ulun Danu Beratan, which I considered a 'must visit'. The pictures I saw of this place were really beautiful. It appears in the Indonesian currency too, the IDR50,000 note. Indeed, it was beautiful but it could have been more beautiful if the water has been calmed without ripples. Perfectly calm water with the reflection of the temple and blue sky would make it perfect for photography. Besides, at 1,255 meters high (elevation is indicated in my Garmin waypoint), the air was very cool and I really loved it.

We ended the morning at 11:30 a.m. and headed for lunch. I wanted to have Babi Guling and Ketut Indra obliged. The Babi Guling lunch for two pax with separately ordered one hot and one iced tea was only IDR39,000. Cheap!

Munduk Melanting Waterfall

Earlier, I told Ketut we may have too much time left after dropping Goa Gajah. I asked him to make a suggestion and he recommended Munduk Melanting Waterfall, which lied ahead of the same road we were heading to have Babi Guling. The elevation at the start of the trek is 959 m and at the waterfall downhill, the elevation is at 906 m. I was sweating and panting out of breath walking back to the parking lot in a 53 meters ascent. This only confirmed that I do not have the fitness to climb the 28 bends at Yunnan's Tiger Leaping Gorge, an ascent of 450 meters.

On the way to Munduk Melanting Waterfall, we passed by Danau Buyan and Danau Tamblingan. Danau Buyan sits in a beautiful valley. On the way back from the waterfall, I asked Ketut Indra to stop along the way to allow me to take the photograph of the valley.

Jatiluwih Rice Terraces

From the waterfall, we went to Jatiluwih rice terraces. We came at the right time of the year (13 May 2014) and the rice was just ripening. Beautiful indeed!

Tanah Lot

The fifth and last spot was Tanah Lot. There were two other temples at the Tanah Lot temple zone. We entered the Tanah Lot area close to Pura Batu Bolong. A short distant from Pura Batu Bolong is Pura Enjung Galuh and further away is the main temple Pura Tanah Lot.

Sanur

We ended the visit at 4:30 p.m. and from there, we went to Sanur for look for the hostel. Ketut Indra's cousin told him over the phone that there were many budget hostels here. Sanur has local food and is close to the beach and has places to shop, meeting all my requirements for a place to stay for a night.

While driving into Sanur, he spotted Ida Homestay and he asked me to check it out while he waited for me with my baggage in his car. I had not paid him yet. The price was IDR120,000 for a fan room and IDR200,000 for an air-conditioned room. After confirming an air-conditioned room, I went to pay Ketut Indra and picked up my baggage.

After taking my bath, I went to look for dinner. There was a night food court nearby and they were offering similar menu. I decided to go to the one with more patrons since that would indicate the food turnover was fast, hence no leftover food from the previous night. Mie Goreng (fried noodle), with an egg, was only IDR10,000 at the stall/ warung.

Arrival at Bali - A Corrupted Custom Officer and His Scam

12 May 2014 (Monday)

The plane landed at about 9:45 p.m. Things didn't go smoothly at Bali (DPS) Airport. I cleared Indonesian immigration without hassle. It was the Customs Department which gave me troubles. My luggage went in and out of the Customs baggage scanner without problem. I was picking them up when another Custom Officer approached the scanner and decided to pull me aside for questioning. Yes, pulling me to a quiet corner and questioning me there.

I suspected that it was a ruse to solicit some extra cash from innocent visitors like me. He asked me to show him my passport, to open my luggage and to remove all items in my pockets. He even went through my Hanoi itinerary which I had printed on a piece of paper. Now, what has a piece of paper with my Hanoi itinerary anything to do with Customs Department? After showing him the content of my wallet, I mentioned that there were some small USD notes in the wallet. He asked me to "bagi-bagi" the USD notes and I said I did not understand what he meant. He explained that he wanted me to give him the USD notes but I said I needed the USD notes during my stay here. Probably sensing that I was not an easy target, he returned me my passport and walked away.

After walking out of the Arrival Hall, I changed SGD150 for IDR1,342,500. Where I was able to walk to the front to the public area from the money exchange counter during my last visit, this time, it had been cordoned off. Passengers have to walk to the left and exit through the retail shops. Andy, a colleague was with me.

After exiting, we turned left to go to the taxi counter to purchase the taxi coupons. The counter selling the coupons had closed. We continued to the taxi parking area and saw a few taxi drivers standing around. I asked a driver the fares to Bali Duta Wisata Hotel. The price was IDR100,000. From my last visit to the airport, I had photographed the price list showing the taxi fares to various destinations in Bali and I knew that the price to Kuta II region should be IDR62,000 only. I rejected the offer and was referred to another driver. I asked him how much and he quoted an even higher price, I think he said IDR120,000. I got a shock. I did not answer back and walked away. A third driver tried to talk to me but I decided that there was nothing to talk. I told Andy we would look for the taxi coupon counter.

As we walked back, a waiting driver outside the Arrival exit called to us and inquired whether we needed a taxi. I asked him how much, and he replied IDR100,000. Without answering him, I asked him how much it would cost to go to Tuban to drop Andy and then to Bali Duta Wisata Hotel in Kuta to drop me. He said IDR160,000. We asked him to give us a discount as he has two passengers now. He agreed and offered us IDR150,000 - IDR100,000 to Kuta and IDR50,000 to Tuban. I said there was no discount for me and asked him for a further discount. He agreed to offer me IDR90,000 to Kuta.

After dropping Andy at Harris Hotel in Tuban, the driver asked me for the address of Bali Duta Wisata Hotel. He either didn't know or acted ignorant of the location. Anyway, I gave him the hotel confirmation slip which I had printed. He called the telephone number given in the slip but was "told" that the hotel was full. He gave me his phone to talk to the person on the other end of the line but this person seemed not to understand. It sounded fishy. Just a day earlier, I received a message from Booking.com asking me whether I wanted an upgrade at Bali Duta Wisata Hotel. Unfortunately, I could not confirm the actual status as a credit card number would usually be required to guarantee a booking. This did not happen with my booking.

Either the driver was lying and never actually called the hotel but acted this out with a friend on the other end of the line or he was telling the truth. I didn't know. After pausing for a long time, I decided to return to Harris Hotel to ask a receptionist to call Andy as I wanted to ask Andy whether he could share his room with me and split the cost. He has no problem and he came down. We asked the receptionists whether we could put another person in the room and how much additional cost it would be. A receptionist replied it was free. That was great.

I decided to pay the driver the full amount for the Tuban ride by paying him the additional IDR10,000. He asked me whether I could pay him an additional IDR10,000 for the toll. Feeling sorry for him for waiting, I gave him the additional IDR10,000.

After having moved to Harris Hotel, I had to inform Ketut Indra to pick me up at Harris Hotel the following morning. The hotel provided free wifi but I had some problem sending out the message via Facebook due to my own ignorance. Finally, it went out but there was no response from him. I decided to call Ketut's phone using the hotel land line. I also could not get through to him. I felt bad because Ketut might waste his time waiting for me at Bali Duta Wisata Hotel tomorrow. It was already late in the night and I could not do anything but to retry again the next morning.

Internet in PNG

When I arrived on the shore of PNG in late 2009, the internet cost was prohibitively high. Since then, the cost has come down to a more acceptable level, but it is still much more expensive compared to Malaysia.

The two main internet service providers are Digicel and Telikom PNG.

Digicel concentrates its marketing push on smartphone internet usage

Reunion Day, 21st December 2013

Grand Margeritha Hotel, Kuching

This was reunion day. Friends involved in the Organising Committee were rushing to decorate the venue and putting in the last minute touches. Others like LCT and CPF were busy thinking about what to wear for the night.Sigh!

I was ready on WeChat, to catch the live broadcast from friends who were attending the function, among them LCT, LEL, CPF, TGE, FTY, LSE, CPC.

There was no live video, but streams of photos came in short spurts .... then siaran tergendala, before the photos came in again. I think they were too happy to see old faces again after 31 years. There was probably too much to say and talk during the short night so the siaran langsung had to tergendala now and then. Thanks to them, particularly LCT, I managed to get a good flow of the photos of the reunion night.

Anyway, many happy and smiling faces of the occasion were posted on WeChat, WhatsApp and Facebook.

5 Science 1 - Datu Putit Matzen, the ex-principal and Ms. Constance Chin, the class teacher with the ex-students

5 Science 2 - the form teacher, Ms Yang was not in attendance and Ms Chiew sat in as the "surrogate" teacher

5 Science 3 - Professor Madya Dr. Hasbi sitting in for Cikgu Cherida

5 Science 4 - Puan Lily and Mdm Kok sitting in for Puan Vincent Kong

5 Science 5 - Mr. Pan and Mdm Siaw sitting in for Puan Mordiah

Welcome Back

In memory of those who left before us. Sad! I could not believe it when I first heard that one of our classmates was gone. Later on, I learnt more had passed on to be with the good Lord. Rest in peace

Reunion door gift/ souvenir designed by our LEL

Tauke bird's nest CPC, tauke electronic HKS, tauke survey WTS, tauke consultant PHY, PhD LSE, etc. welcoming Datu Putit and the teachers

Watching the part of the video contributed by me

Happy and smiling mamas ... how time flies

Datu Putit with the teachers and two students on the right

Reunion of Class of 1982, Kolej DPAH Abdillah

I went to upper secondary school in Kuching from 1981 - 84. I was among the early batches of students studying at Kolej DPAH Abdillah across the river at Petra Jaya.

After our Form Five in 1982, the majority of us went our separate ways. Many gain entries into overseas universities, Matriculation class and Universiti Technologi Malaysia. Those unable to do so went to teachers training colleges, Institut Teknologi MARA, took up diploma programmes or continued to Form Six.

In a flash, three decades have passed. On 21st December 2013, there will be a reunion of Class of 1982. The majority of us have not met each other again since 1982 when we were mere teenagers. Thirty- one years on, a few have passed on and at least one has become a grandparent.

All thanks to Facebook, Whatsapp and the internet, a few hardworking souls from among us managed to track down almost all of over 200 students from five classes. About a hundred will be joining the reunion at Grand Margeritha. Unfortunately, I would not be able to join my Collegian friends, many who are now very successful people.

Looking at the photos on Facebook, we look so different now and then. Almost all of us have become rounder, with thinner hair and double chin.

All the following photos below were provided by friends, notably LCT.
 

 Science 1

 Science 2

 Science 3

 Science 4

 Science 5