Tuesday, December 29, 2015

India: Petualangan si Neng di India

Jujur aja ya Aa dan Teteh sekalian, Neng mah sudah suka sama film India teh dari zaman heubeul, dari zaman si Neng masih sakola TK sampai sekarang oge masih suka pisan.

Film India yang pertama Neng tonton teh film yang ada gajah na. Lupa judulna apa, tapi Neng inget sediiiiiiih pisan nontonnya. Kalau gak salah yang mainnya teh Mithun Chakraborthi. Dia teh yang terkenal di film Disco Dancer. Mungkin ada yang pernah dengar lagu "Jimmy Aaja Aaja" hits dari film Disco Dancer?

Tak disangka tak dinyana, si Akang nawarin buat jalan-jalan ke India sekalian nemuin temen-temen kerjana. Oh girang tiada tara hati si Neng ini. Segera kami teh cari tiket murah. Ternyata tiket Jakarta - India lumayan murah. Berangkat dari Jakarta - KL - Goa cuman kisaran 800ribu dan pulangnya 900ribu per orang.
sering-sering si Neng joget Bollywood di India
Kata si Akang mending jangan bawa banyak barang biar gampang jalan-jalannya. Jadi berbekal tas ransel kecil dan tas slempang, si Neng berangkat ke India. Kebetulan si Neng penggemar film India dari kecil dan suka tuturutan (belajar) bahasana dari film. Tujuan si Neng cuman satu, ketemu Aa Shahrukh. Semenjak nonton film Bazigar si Neng sudah jadi penggemar Aa Shahrukh.
Yang Biru punya Neng, item punya Akang
Sayangnya begitu si Neng sampai Mumbai dari Goa, ternyata Aa Shahrukh berangkat dari Mumbai ke Goa untuk merayakan ulang tahunnya di Goa. Atuhlah kan Neng jauh-jauh buat nemuin Aa. Kirain teh bisa tiup lilin bareng-bareng.
Si Neng di Mumbai dgn dandanan ala India
Di Mumbai, Neng sama Akang numpang hidup di rumah temennya si Aa. Alhamdulilah ya Allah, Neng sama Akang bisa berhemat. Mumbai teh ternyata tidak sekotor yang selalu digambarkan di berita. Kalau liat Mumbai berasa liat Bandung area Kiara Condong atau Jakarta area Pasar Baru. Rame dan sibuk, tapi gak terlalu kotor. Tapi duh gusti panasnya seperti Cirebon atau area pantai utara.
Si Neng joget Bollywood di Hawa Mahal, Jaipur
Dari Mumbai, Neng sama Akang pindah ke Jaipur. Di Hawa Mahal (Istana Jendela), Neng mah nangis da. Bukan kenapa-kenapa, cuman terharu dengan betapa megahnya. Di kampung Neng mah gak ada yang begituan teh. Istana yang berwarna pink tua dihiasi banyak jendela dan kaca berwarna. Indah sekali. Jendelanya banyak sengaja biar selir-selir dan putri-putri raja bisa melihat keluar tanpa terlihat dari luar. Iya menurut Eneng mah rajanya teh meni pelit. Tapi da Istananya mah indah pisan.
Hawa Mahal
Di Jaipur juga Neng kena tipu. Di Mumbai Neng kecolongan. Tapi ya ikhlas da. Namanya juga pengalaman. Di Mumbai mah emang salah Neng sendiri. Buat yang mau tau ceritanya, mangga baca post sebelumnya. Sepulangnya dari India, kenangan paling berkesan justru malah Jaipur sama Mumbai.
Neng sama Akang pose di Agra Fort
Dari Jaipur kita berangkat ke Agra dengan kereta gejes yang lucu. Lucu karena ada kasurnya di kereta teh. Seneng bisa selonjoran kaki sambil baca buku atau kalau Neng mah bobo sepanjang perjalanan mumpung ada kasur.

Di Agra, Neng dan Akang lihat Taj Mahal yang memang indah dan pantas jadi Situs keajaiban dunia. Tapi neng gak seterharu pas pertama liat Hawa Mahal. Gak tau kenapa. Rasanya Hawa Mahal itu dekat sekali di hati. Neng sama Akang datang pagi-pagi pun antrian masuk Taj Mahal sudah memanjang seperti ular. Saran Neng, habis dari sini segera liat situs Baby Taj mumpung masih sepi. Lumayan dapat pemandangan bagus cuman buat berdua.
Baby Taj 
Sikandar, Makamnya Akbar yang di Jodha Akhbar tea
Selama di India, Neng belajar praktek bahasa India sama mamang bajaj, mamang/bibi yang jualan. Ternyata Bahasa India Neng lumayan banyak vocabulary-na. Yeuh ku Neng bagi-bagi siapa tahu mau dipake nanti kalau Aa sama Teteh mau main ke India.

1. Salam : Namaste / Namskar
2. Nama saya...: Mere naam hai Neng
3. Apa nama anda? : Aapka naam kya hai?
4. Berapa harganya?: Kitna paisa hai?
5. Mahal: Mehenga hai.
6. Minta air : Pani chahiye.
7. Minta makan: Khana chahiye
8. Saya suka ini : Mujhe yeh pasand hai.
9. Saya mau ini: Mujhe yeh chahiye.
10. Tidak mau: Nahin (Nehi) chahiye.

Semoga berguna buat Aa dan Teteh yang mau joget/main ke India nanti.

Monday, November 30, 2015

India: 10 Tips for Traveling in India


India was definitely a land of beauty. But certainly it was not easy traveling in India. I heard someone once says 'If you can travel and survive in India, you can travel and survive anywhere else.'

With these words carved in my heart, my husband and I decided it is the right time to travel India. So, we did travel in India for 2 weeks and it was experience like none other. It was not luxurious trip nor an easy trip like we used to do in Korea, Singapore, and Bali. We thoroughly enjoy our experience in India despite the ups and downs. Everything happens for a reason and it gives us a chance to learn and be wiser.
Taj Mahal, Agra
But if I could share my/our wisdom and experience with you guys, I hope this 10 tips will help you for your upcoming adventure in India.

1. Triposo India

I am truly grateful for this app. Not only you can use map and gps when it is offline. You can also check recommended places to see, foods to eat, things to do while offline. But of course if you are on online mode, you will get more of it; like you would be able to see pictures of places to see, booked hotel and see the reviews first, etc. This app helped us booked 4 hotels on our journey, one in each cities; Jaipur, Agra, Delhi, and Goa. Our favorite hotel were the one in Jaipur (H.R Palace) and the ultimate one in Delhi (Hotel Holiday Inn, Airport City). Also it helps to navigate offline with the offline gps and map every time you need to walk around the area or looking to find the hotel's address.  *Hotel Review on the next post
Front side of Hawa Mahal 

2. Learn the basic Language

Sure, there are a lot of people that speak English in Mumbai and Delhi. So did in Jaipur too. But it is always nice to be able to say thank you, hi, etc in local language. On our case, I can speak a little bit of Hindi since I have been watching Bollywood movies since I was small. I picked up some words that I used a lot on the trip. I find it a lot easier to haggle and people tend to be nicer and more willing to help when I speak the local language.

3. Polite but Firm

There will be plenty and believe me when I said plenty..because it will be plenty of scams and people trying to offer you things to sell. They always act super nice and tend to be helpful. But then they will ask you to visit their store and buy something. I bought 2 overly expensive pashminas for 1000 rupees when I can get it for even cheaper price. I also bought several clothes and other fabrics for quite expensive price when I can always get it cheaper somewhere else. Sigh. It will happen more often in Jaipur and Agra. Not so much in Mumbai. Lesson learned, be polite yet firm when it comes to say NO.

4. Dress Modestly and Comfortably

Whether you are a man or a woman, dress modestly in India is always more appreciated. Don't forget to pack a scarf or you can buy some in India as they have so many of those beautiful scarfs. Jaipur offers a satin/sutra made scarf, I bought mine for 500 rupees. But I think you can still get it cheaper. It won't hurt to bring your own scarf too. In case you won't have any time for shopping. On hot humid India, we prefer to wear sandals. As it is a lot easier to take it off if you want to visit temples.


5. Best Season

Best season to go to India especially North India is October-November. As it will be lest hot. Train journey will also be faster before December for a trip from Agra to Delhi or Jaipur to Agra as there might be sand storm on December which we will make the train goes super slow and the journey will be longer twice than usual.
Akbar's Tomb in Agra

6. Careful with Auto rickshaw or Tuk-tuk Driver

I was really upset when I first dealing with Tuk-tuk driver in Jaipur and then Agra. They appeared to be nice. The one in Jaipur offer a cheap trip of 200 rupees to 4 different places that was currently free of charge. He said there is some event for the elephant. He would take us to Elephant house, water temple, Maharani's pool, etc and we don't have to pay a dime for the ticket. Turned out those places were Elephant's cage where they will guilty trip you to get an elephant ride for the benefit of the elephant (yeah damn right it is for the elephant!?), Jal Mahal and a small pool which cannot be entered to begin with..obviously there won't be any ticket selling there. The worse, he said he will take us to Mughal's village to see local people's home business; like printing and stuff. But he took us to a store where the owner explained how the printing was made from a handmade block print. I had to bought 2 overly pricey pashminas there. Fortunately I can give it to my mom who loves pashmina. The driver's name is Ali and he is a tuk-tuk driver in Jaipur. He drives like a mad guy in small alleys or cramped road. Make sure if you get a tuk-tuk driver, said No if he offers all the think like I mentioned above. Stick to your plan and to do list.
beautiful Jal Mahal or Water Palace

7. Pack Lightly

India is hot and humid. It won't be fun to walk around with suitcases every time you move city to city. It is always better to pack lightly in India as it will be easier for you to pay attention to all your stuffs and less chance of it getting stolen. Don't forget to pack sunblock and lotion too. Sunblock is the best protection against the sun. And despite of its humidity, it is always best to put on lotion right before sleeping to keep the moisture inside. Because it is also very dusty in some parts of India. Scarf will also help you breath when it is really dusty. Bring sling bag too, it is easier to walk around with sling bag instead of backpack since we won't be able to see if pickpocket try to steal something on the crowd.

8. List to Do and Places to Go

It is better to have a list to do and places to go before going to India. It will give us brief information on our plan and will help you to navigate from places to places avoiding wasting time in between places thinking where else to go. However, let live decide the next plan. Don't get too upset if it is not exactly as you plan it. Because you will never know what will you encounter there. You might like a certain place a lot more and decided to stay there longer. That could works too. But having a list to do and places to go/see definitely help the decision making. My advice, no need to stay longer in Agra and Jaipur as you might finished all the sightseeing in the major tour destinations within 2 days. You can even do one day trip to Agra and coming back to Jaipur. We regret not spending more time in other part of Rajasthan like Jaisalmer which I heard even more beautiful.
Our list

9. Be Alarmed but Don't be Paranoid

Yes, there are a lot of bad publications about India. You are entitled to be more cautious but no need to be paranoid. I found Mumbai pretty save even at night. Jaipur especially, we would just randomly sitting some where at night while waiting for the night entertainment to start. Just use your common sense. Don't go out too late at night and better if you have company.

10. Have sense of Humor and Enjoy the Ride

Yes, India is super beautiful. They have rich culture and beautiful palaces. But there are also parts where people peeing on the street, lousy traffic, scammer tuk-tuk driver, etc. I let myself becoming to engross in the feeling of being upset and mad that it almost ruin our journey. I almost cried in Fatehpur Sikri, a palace outside of Agra, because people keep swarming us and offering to sell things or to guide us. I have said No to this one but the next one coming. I could not event count it. They are super persistent. I yelled and cried. All they did was amused and confused. But after I look very upset. They stop bothering us. However, it almost ruin the experience. Actually it is pretty ruined. Because of all the things that happened to us in India including getting stolen in Mumbai, Fatehpur Sikri was really awful experience. I almost think it was not worth it to go 1 hour tuk-tuk drive from Agra. Lesson learned. Enjoy the ride and the rest is history or exciting story for the future.

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Challenge: Spicy Food

Who loves spicy food? I do I do I do
I loooove spicy food. I am pretty proud with my spicy food endurance level. Most Asians have a better endurance level. However, my husband who is half Asian and half white has weak endurance level against spicy food. 

So I have been force feeding him with spicy food little by little to increase his endurance level. I am proud to say he is a lot better than he used to be. 

Once in a while, I would challenge myself to a new spicy dish. Either Ramen with various level of spiciness, cassava chips from certain brand that also comes in levels, fire ramyeon, etc.

Fire Ramyeon

cup Fire Ramyeon
Our recent challenge was Fire Ramyeon from Korea. There are 2 types of packages; cup and the usual one. The cup one is slightly spicier than the usual one. So make sure to try the cup one if you wanna see how much you can endure the spiciness. 


I am sorry for the bad quality of our video. I am not a professional vlogger. I put this on video so my friends can see it, especially my co-workers who have asked me to do this.

Nasi Goreng Mafia

Our second challenge was spicy Nasi Goreng Mafia's food. I ordered Nasgor Berandal level 1 for him and Nasgor Preman level 2 for me. This time I didn't take video of it. As none has requested yet. 

In total, Nasi Goreng Mafia has 5 different level of spiciness from level 1 the least spicy to level 5 the most spicy.
Nasi Goreng Mafia's Menu
Nasgor Berandal Level 1
 After trying a few spoons of this nasi goreng, husband had to run to nearby store to buy yoghurt and milk. As you know dairy product is the best one to soothe down the burnt from spicy food. When he got back, he brought 3 yoghurts and pack of cheese (fake cheese that he usually hates but he said it is crucial for this fight). 
Getting ready with 3 bottles of yoghurt
 To my amusement, he kept continue eating the nasi goreng until half of the portion. I thought he already gave up after the first couple of bites. I have counted every bite of nasi goreng, he would jug a couple swallow of yoghurt. He seems suffering from all the burnt. 
A gift for all his effort
To celebrate his own achievement on eating spicy food. He made himself egg sandwich with fake cheese, mayonnaise, and mustard. He ate it all with the remaining yoghurts. 

On a side note, Nasi Goreng Mafia is pretty spicy even if it was just level 1 or 2. I could not imagine those who would eat level 4 or 5. I have tried only until level 3. 

Tell us what should we try next for our next challenge?

Monday, October 19, 2015

Dream Wedding

Girls, how many of us has been dreaming about dream wedding ever since we were kids? Plenty, I bet. Tho some girls dreaming about changing the world instead or some others dreaming bit of both.

I had my dream wedding since I was really small. It keeps changing from time to time depends on what I was into that year. I dreamt of wedding on the beach..white canopy set on a beautiful white sand beach with blue and white flower for decorations, a Santorini feels set.Then I dreamt of wedding in a small backyard garden at night with dim lights decorating the setting and creamy white canopy for the wedding stage and decoration was mostly dominant green, light and dark brown, and off white color. A rustique and antique looking set. At other time, but this is a rare occasion and my least favorite dream, a wedding in big ballroom.

Andien and Ippe's Wedding

Andien, a famous singer in Indonesia has always been famous for her classy style on her outfit. Turned out it was not for her outfit only. She also has particular yet dreamy and classy style for her wedding too. She was one of few lucky people who get to experience and make their dream wedding come true.

Some of this pictures of their wedding is coming from thebridedept.com website. You can check the website for more pictures of wedding related theme.
Setting in Pine Forest Camp, Lembang
Wedding vow
The lucky bride and groom
After Party
These pictures bellow is from alodita.com Make sure to check her blog too. She is an aspiring Indonesian beauty and lifestyle blogger.
Snacks Station
Another snacks station

Andre and Stella's Wedding

Andre is my husband cousin. He just got married to a very bright beautiful Stella. Husband and I got invited to their wedding in Uluwatu, Bali. Pictures from this wedding are my own collection. Check my instagram id: Suci_park for more pictures on the wedding.

They had their wedding in a beautiful near cliff location in Uluwatu. A perfect spot to catch some sunset too. Everyone suddenly turned into sorta professional wannabe Instragramer including me. Can't help it, everything was just so perfect and beautiful.
preparing for the ceremony
celebrating the ceremony
Congratulating the bride and the groom
watching sunset while waiting for dinner to start
Rundown and Song lyric
Wedding Ceremony
menu and gift box
Dinner Party
Unfortunately our flight was for really early in the morning, so we could not join the after party. So there is no picture for the after party. I think it was probably in our hotel's bar.

Let me know what is your favorite one and what kind of dream wedding you want?

Thursday, October 8, 2015

Event Report: Anna Sui Romantica


A couple days ago, Anna Sui has launched its next perfume, Romantica. Was name Romantica inspired for Anna Sui's childhood which was never far from flowers. She said she has always been romantic at heart. Probably we can already see that from her trademark. Flower, butterfly, warm golden, fiery red, sweet purple, etc are a clear deterrent on how romantic she is that she carries it out on her products.


The launching was hosted in Central Department Store, Grand Indonesia. In their small yet cute private lounge accommodating 20-30 people. The Decoration for the event was neat and pretty. Everything looks romantic as it should be to perfectly capture the essence of this perfume.


Anna Sui once said 'If fairytales were made of flowers, they would smell like Romantica'.


It is said that in the ingredients, one of the spice they used to create the scent is Indonesian sandalwood. It is not the first time  Anna Sui's perfume has used Indonesian spices on their ingredients. Our country has always been rich in spices. For some reasons, I have that sense of proud when i smell the scent of this perfume. Call me romantic, but knowing that I might live this country to move to another country, this sort of things makes me going mellow. Maybe this perfume will remind me of home once I live outside of the country.

They sprayed the perfume on my flower corset, sooo romantic, reminds me of Prom Party

Scent Review;

cold fresh sweet instead of warm sweetAt first, i smell a hint of guava..but the more i pay close attention it is actually a scent of pomegranate blend nicely with the flowery scent. On my opinion the scent of pomegranate and other spices are over powering the scent of the flowers. 


One thing that I like the most about Anna Sui's launch event, they make us feel special and it feels more of a Soiree where they will teach you some neat tricks. Last Anna Sui's launching event, they taught us to create flower tiara. This time they taught us how to create flower decoration on a cupcake, just like it looks on the picture above.

These are some of the pictures from the event;






FYI;
Central is celebrating its birthday. There is promo 20% discount for Romantica if you buy it in Central GI only until 11 Oct 2015. Go grab the deal asap!!!

Friday, October 2, 2015

Songs That Inspire Me to Travel

Songs That Inspired Me to Travel

I have posted an article about Movies that inspired me to travel, Here.
Now, it is time for me to post about particular songs from some movies that also spark my interest for traveling. I would like to share these songs with you guys. Hopefully you will like it and get inspired from it.

1. Yunhi Chala Chal Rahi (Swades)

2. Khwabon Ke Parindey (Zindegi Na Milegi Dobara)

3. Hum Jo Chalne Laga (Jab We Meet)

4. Zindagi Ek Safar Hai Suhaana (Andaaz)

5. Ilahi (Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani)

6. Oh Gujariya (Queen)

7. Taake Jhanke (Queen)

8. Manhattan (English Vinglish)

9. Aahista Aahista (Bachna Ae Haseeno)

Thursday, October 1, 2015

Movies That Inspired Me to Travel

Movies That Inspired Me to Quit My Job and Travel

I recently and officially quit the job to travel. Nope, it was not to travel around the world. Tho it is what I would very much like to do. The reason is because I am moving to America to be with my husband and his family. In the mean time while waiting for Green card, I would like to travel as much as I can or as much as my money can afford it.

I have been craving to travel around the world since I was little. There are several countries I would really like to visit and there are other that I would visit but only if I have to. There are also other countries which is not even on my list to visit (mostly dangerous war zone country).

My thirst for traveling mostly inspired from movies, songs, and books that I encountered. These are the list of movies that inspired me to travels.

1. Queen

source: desiglobetrotter.com
IMDB Rating: 8.5
Queen is a story about a shy Indian girl from a well respected family who got left at the altar. This is about her story finding herself, her happiness, and courage to live on through a series of event she experienced during her backpack trip around Europe.

2. Zindegi Na Milegi Dobara

IMDB Rating: 8.1
This is a movie about friendship. 3 guys from different background who used to be best friend, but somehow life throw them apart. In a last effort to reconcile, one of the guy who is soon to be married invite the 2 other guys on a journey as his bachelor party trip. The only requirement is each one of them get to choose one activity and the rest should do it without complaining. A beautiful movie about friendship, traveling to Europe with beautiful scenery, and yes good looking man with yummy abs is present as eye candy.

3. English Vinglish

IMDB Rating: 7.9
English Vinglish is a great movie. I have watched more than twice now. A shy and conservative Indian lady who barely speak English has to go to US for a wedding of her niece by herself before her family to help with the preparation. Scared to go since she barely speak english, she nervously joined an English class for foreigner in New York. The trip that was originally scary get her to understand more about things surrounding her and help her get the respect she deserves.

4. Finding Fanny

IMDB Rating: 5.9
A group of misfit get together for their own purposes but mainly to help an old guy found his long lost love. A group that was not your ordinary group, get together in a long road trip in search of love while portraying the beauty of Goa and South India. What else do you need?

5. Swades

IMDB Rating: 8.3
Shahrukh Khan played as US based Rocket Scientist trying to get US Citizenship. While waiting for the process, he went back to India to bring his last remnant of India which is his old nanny. However, on his trip to his homeland that he barely recognize, he found love in a beautiful woman who teaches kids in the village. His journey to India, his road trip to the village areas, made him realize how beautiful India is. Portraying the beauty of North India's village, this movie will capture your heart and tickle your thirst for traveling.


6. Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge

IMDB Rating: 8.3 (should be rated 10/10)
I am sure you all know about this movie. If you haven't watched this movie. I seriously question your life choices. Seriously, defcon 5, need to watch this movie. Believe it or not, this movie has been running in the cinema since 1995-2014 (probably still up to now).
A romantic story about a young man (Shahrukh) went for a Euro Trip with a group of his friend and accidentally encounter a young girl (Kajol) who was also doing Euro Trip with her friends. The key of this movie is Euro Trip, Beautiful and magnificent India, Shahrukh Khan and Kajol. Really, do watch this movie!!!!