Wednesday, August 19, 2009

#757 - Mid Year Holiday : Singapore & Penang (Part 3)

ENGLISH

Previously on
Mid Year Holiday : Singapore & Penang : Zilko and fam were already back in Singapore from Penang Island, Malaysia. Now they were in day six, where they were still in Singapore.

Day 6 (27 July 2009)

Before we went to Singapore, a friend told me to watch a beautiful fountain show in Sentosa Island, called "Songs of the Sea". Of course we put that show in our must-watch list. Since it was in Sentosa Island, so our main destination was around Sentosa Island.

After leaving our hotel in the morning, we took MRT and got off at Harbour Front Station at VivoCity. Since it was still pretty early in the morning, so we spent our morning there before going to Sentosa Island. Well, in there, there was a National Geographic Store, which was really unique for me, haha. I had never found that kind of store in Indonesia. Feeling interested, of course I came in. Yea, it was really interesting, tho I didn't buy anything, hehe :D

Anyway, finally it was lunch time and so we went to the foodcourt in the third floor. At that time, I wasn't feeling really good which concerned me a bit since the issue of swine flu was still pretty 'hot'. Therefore I consumed more vitamin-C for my stamina and apparently it worked, phiuhh... .

Then, we went to the Sentosa Express Station at the third floor of VivoCity to take monorail ride to Sentosa Island. I guess the ride was pretty new since it hadn't been there the last time I went there five and a hlaf years ago, haha. We apparently could also buy the "Songs of the Sea" tickets there so we did it. Not long after that, we took the queue for the Sentosa Express and rode it. Not long after, we got out at Imbiah Station, not far from the Merlion Statue in Sentosa.

All we did that afternoon was exploring the island. Probably the most exciting one was the "LUGE" ride. This ride has been used in some tasks of The Amazing Race or TARA. Apparently, yea, it was SUPER fun!! In the ride, we rode an engineless vehicle to get down the hill on a circuit. I paid S$ 16 for two rides (two LUGE rides and two SKYRIDE rides). Apparently, fun always makes time passes so fast. We spent almost one hour just in that ride while I felt we only spent like 20 minutes, LOL. Then, we watched the 4D show which was really expensive. The show was about 25 minutes and yea, it was good and entertaining. Well, the weather was really "nice" to us as it was cloudy, therefore it wasn't hot. Then, we went to the Dolphin's Bay taking a bus. Once there, it was really windy, damnit. We checked the ticket booth of dolphin show and decided not to watch it since it was kinda expensive and there are many dolphin shows in Indonesia. Anyway, when we left the booth, there was an incident: Because of the wind, one branch of a palm tree fell off to me and my brother!! Well, we were fine since it was such a small branch, but it was kinda shocking, haha.

We then went to the Beach Station and took a rest there and ate some breads from a coffee house there. It was still windy and we still had like 3 hours to kill (the show was at 7.40 PM). We couldn't get off Sentosa Island since we would have to pay again to get in. Therefore, we chose to kill time by getting around the island taking free tour-bus rides and walked at the "Merlion Walk".

At about 7 PM, we went in the "Songs of the Sea" amphitheatre and chose front-row seat. We had to wait pretty long before the show started, and finally at 7.40 PM, it started. Lucky it wasn't raining since if it had been (and we wouldn't be able to watch the show, of course, unless we were willing to watch in under the rain), we wouldn't have got any refund! They said it was the rule and I think it was kinda suck!! The show was beautiful, but honestly, I think I have watched more beautiful show in China, hehe.

After the show, we directly walked to the monorail station to get back to VivoCity. Apparently, most people also had the same plan as us, and we had to wait for the second monorail to come to get boarded, haha. Then, after arriving at VivoCity, we had dinner at Kopitiam, in the B2 floor. I ordered an onion lamb chop for S$ 7, but I was really satisfied by its taste and size!! haha... . Then, we went back to our hotel.

Day 7 (28 July 2009)

We got up pretty early since our plan this day was to go to Chinese Garden, in Jurong. Apparently, this garden was not favorite destination for tourists to visit. Well, I know this garden from the season finale of TARA 2, haha. So, after taking FORTY minutes of MRT ride in rush-hour time (yea the MRT was SO full), we arrived at Chinese Garden MRT Station.

We had to walk about 500 meters from the station to reach the back gate of the garden. There, we of course took photos, haha, that's all what we could do there. The garden was beautiful, even though not so many people visited it. After spending one hour there (kinda tired since the weather was really clear that day), we left the garden and got back to the city of Singapore.

Our next destination was Bugis area. Once we got off Bugis MRT Station, we entered the Bugis Junction Mall. After getting around for some time, we got off the mall and had lunch at Burger King, haha... . Of course, then we walked to the Bugis Street. After spending some time there, we went back to Orchard. Yea, again, we walked around Orchard now, but this time we explored a bit more. I finaly found a place (Cineleisure) which provided us free and password-free wi-fi connection!! haha, something which SUPER rare in Singapore since mostly, we had to register (password needed) to surf the net, or paying S$ 1 for 15 minutes of surfing!! Damn!!

Anyway, that evening, we had dinner at Newton Foodcourt as we met one of my friend there. To get there, we caught a bus, which was kinda exciting for me to ride another mode of transportation, haha. There, we ate seafood (again). O yea, the price of coconut really made me feel blessed for living in Indonesia. My dad said, he always felt a Rp 5,000.- coconut in Indonesia was super expensive, but in Singapore, it cost S$ 2.5 which equals to around Rp 17,500.-!! Then, we went back to our hotel.

Day 8 (29 July 2009)

Nothing much we did this day since it was the day we would go back to Indonesia. Our flight, Air Asia's QZ 7139 would depart at 11.10 AM from Singapore Changi Airport. We left the hotel pretty early and directly went to the airport. There, I found free internet counter and of course I surfed the net (yea, it was FREE but was limited only for 15 minutes usage (exceeding that, we needed to log in again), and we had to STAND!! haha...)

Anyway, at about 11 AM we boarded the plane and I got a really bad (for me) seat, the aisle seat. My favorite seat in a plan is always window seat, haha. We took off thru runway 20C and we left Singapore. During the flight, I went to the lavatory and I realized that apparently the flight wasn't really full and three rows at the rear of the plane were completely empty!! Therefore I decided to move to those seats and I could take some pictures, and of course, got window seatS! Yeah, seats since empty rows mean I could change seats from the left window seat to the right window seat, back to the left window seat, and so on, haha... .

Finally, at 12.15 PM we landed at Adisucipto International Airport Yogyakarta at runway 09, my favorite runway!! Well, the anti swineflu protection was apparently tighter in Indonesia as we had to stand in line to be sprayed with some anti-virus (maybe) spray, haha... .


Well, that's pretty much my latest vacation to Singapore and Penang this time :-)


L : minced meat noodle, my favorite meal as breakfast, it cost S$ 4.5
R : one spot of VivoCity


L : my lunch at Vivo City
R : Singapore Harbour as taken from the monorail


L : Merlion Statue at Sentosa Island
R : LUGE and SKYRIDE, the LUGE station


L : SKYRIDE station
R : Siloso Beach as taken from the SKYRIDE


L : "Songs of the Sea" sign
R : monorail and the beach station


L : "Songs of the Sea"'s stage
R : dusk at "Songs of the Sea"'s amphitheatre


L : one part of the show, you can see a laser projection of a fish (using spray of water as the screen) there.
R : Onion Lamb Chop


L : Jurong East Interconnection MRT Station.
R : Twin pagodas at the Chinese Garden


L : Me at the Rainbow Arch Bridge. This is the bridge where all eliminated racers on TARA 2 waiting and cheering for the top three teams in the season finale of TARA 2.
R : One Spot at Chinese Garden


L : the town of Jurong. An MRT train is seen approaching the Chinese Garden Station.
R : smalle water fountain at Bugis Junction


L : my meal at Burger King, Rendang Burger
R : Tang's Tower at Orchard Road


L : at Newton Foodcourt
R : some of our meals at Newton


L : my breakfast at Changi Airport
R : Indonesia AirAsia's Airbus A320-216 reg code PK-AXF flight no. QZ 7139 was ready for boarding at gate D38. Another AirAsia's Airbus A320-216 rec code 9M-AHO is seen taxiing to gate D37.


L : Inside Indonesia AirAsia's Airbus A320-216 reg code PK-AXF flight no. QZ 7139.
R : The view of Pangandaran Beach taken from 34,000 feet.


L : The city of Cilacap, island of Nusakambangan, and Tanjung Intan Harbor are within visible range.
R : The city of Kutoarjo. Kutoarjo Station is visible.


L : The city of Yogyakarta. Novotel Hotel and Galeria Mall are visible as we approached runway 09 of Adisucipto International Airport.
R : a Garuda Indonesia's brand new Boeing 737-800NG at Yogyakarta Airport was ready to take off.

BAHASA INDONESIA

Sebelumnya dalam
Mid Year Holiday : Singapore & Penang : Zilko dan keluarga sudah balik lagi ke Singapore dari Pulau Penang, Malaysia. Sekarang mereka ada di hari keenam, dimana mereka masih berada di Singapore.

Hari 6 (27 Juli 2009)

Sebelum ke Singapore, temenku bilang kalo aku mesti nonton pertunjukan air mancur yang bagus di Sentosa Island, namanya "Songs of the Sea". Tentu saja dong kemudian kami memasukkan pertunjukan itu di dalam daftar harus dikunjungi. Karena lokasinya ada di Sentosa Island, jadinya tujuan kami hari ini adalah Sentosa Island.

Setelah meninggalkan hotel di pagi hari, kami naik MRT dan turun di Stasiun Harbour Front di VivoCity. Karena masih agak pagi makanya deh kami jalan2 dulu di VivoCity pagi itu sebelum pergi ke Sentosa Island. Yah, disana, ada Toko National Geographic loh, yang menurutku sih unik tuh, haha. Aku soalnya tidak pernah melihat toko sejenis itu di Indonesia sih. Karena tertarik, tentu saja aku masuk. Yea, memang menarik tuh, walau aku tidak beli apa-apa, hehe :D

Ngomong2, akhirnya waktu makan siang tiba juga dan kami pergi ke foodcourt di lantai tiga. Waktu itu aku merasa agak gak enakan dan agak bikin khawatir sih karena kan berita flu babi lagi 'panas-panas'nya. Makanya aku kemudian mengonsumsi votamin C untuk staminaku dan untungnya bekerja dengan baik tuh, phiuhh... .

Trus, kami pergi ke Stasiun Sentosa Express di lantai tiga VivoCity untuk naik monorail ke Sentosa Island. Kayanya sih monorail ini baru yah karena terakhir aku kesana lima setengah tahun yang lalu belum ada tuh, haha. Kami ternyata bisa sekalian beli tiket "Songs of the Sea" disana makanya sekalian deh kami beli. Tidak lama, kami mengantri untuk naik monorail dan kemudian menaikinya. Perjalanannya singkat, kami turun di Stasiun Imbiah, tidak jauh dari patung Merlion di Sentosa.

Yang kami lakukan siang itu terutama ya menjelajahi pulaunya. Mungkin yang paling mengasyikkan adalah mainan "LUGE" yah. Permainan ini sudah digunakan beberapa kali lho di The Amazing Race atau TARA. Ternyata, yeah, memang asyik banget!! Permainannya adalah kami menaiki semacam kendaraan tanpa mesin untuk menuruni sirkuit yang menuruni bukit. Aku membayar S$ 16 untuk dua permainan (dua permainan LUGE dan dua SKYRIDE). Ternyata, kesenangan membuat waktu berlalu cepat yah. Kami menghabiskan hampir sejam loh naik permainannya padahal aku rasa aku cuma naik sekitar 20 menit, LOL. Trus, kami menonton pertunjukan 4D yang mahalnya minta ampun. Pertunjukannya cuma sepanjang 25 menit dan memang sih menghibur juga. O ya, cuaca juga lagi "baik" nih karena mendung seharian makanya tidak panas. Trus, kami pergi ke Dolphin Bay naik bus. Disana, tiba-tiba malah jadi berangin kencang, sialan. Kami kemudian ngecek loket penjualan tiket untuk pertunjukan lumba-lumba. Kemudian kami tidak jadi nonton karena mahal plus udah ada banyak kan pertunjukan lumba-lumba di Indonesia. Ngomong2, ketika kami meninggalkan loket, ada kecelakaan loh: Karena angin besar, satu ranting pohon palem jatuh ke aku dan adikku!! Yah, kami nggak papa sih karena cuma cabang kecil aja, cuma kan tetap aja mengagetkan, haha.

Kami kemudian pergi ke Beach Station dan istirahat disana sambil makan roti dari sebuah coffee house disana. Cuacanya masih berangin banget dan kami masih ada 3 jam untuk dilalui (pertunjukannya jam 7.40 malam). Kami tidak bisa keluar dari Sentosa Island karena jika kami keluar, kami harus bayar lagi untuk masuk. Makanya, kami memutuskan untuk membuang waktu dengan keliling pulau sambil naik bus-tur gratis dan jalan-jalan di "Merlion Walk".

Sekitar jam 7 malam, kami masuk ke arena pertunjukan "Songs of the Sea" dan memilih tempat duduk di depan. Kami mesti nunggu lumayan lama juga sebelum pertunjukan dimulai, dan akhirnya jam 7.40 malam, acaranya dimulai juga. Untungnya nggak hujan tuh karena andai hujan (dan kami tentu saja tidak bisa menonton acaranya kecuali mau nonton sambil hujan-hujanan), kami tidak akan mendapat refund! Mereka bilang itu aturannya dan menurutku itu aturan yang payah!! Acaranya menarik sih, cuma menurutku nih, aku pernah nonton acara sejenis yang lebih bagus di China, hehe.

Setelah pertunjukan selesai, kami langsung berjalan menuju stasiun monorail untuk balik ke VivoCity. Ternyata, kebanyakan orang juga memiliki rencana sama dengan kami, dan kami harus menunggu sampai kereta monorail kedua tiba untuk dapat naik, haha. Trus, setelah tiba di VivoCIty, kami makan malam di Kopitiam di lantai B2. Aku memesan lamb chop bawang bombai seharga S$ 7, tapi aku puas banget deh karena rasa dan ukuranya!! haha... . Trus, kami balik ke hotel.

Hari 7 (28 Juli 2009)

Kami bangun pagi karena rencana kami hari ini adalah pergi ke Chinese Garden, di Jurong. Ternyata, taman ini bukan tujuan favorit turis loh untuk dikunjungi. Aku sih tahu taman ini dari final TARA 2, haha. Kemudian, setelah naik MRT selama EMPAT PULUH menit di waktu rush-hour (jam sibuk) (iya, MRT-nya penuh banget), kami tiba di Stasiun MRT Chinese Garden.

Kami harus berjalan sekitar 500 meter dari stasiun untuk sampai di gerbang belakang taman. Disana, tentu saja kami foto2 saja, haha, karena memang itu sih yang bisa dilakukan. Tamannya indah juga lho sebenarnya, walau memang sepi pengunjung. Setelah melewatkan waktu sekitar sejam disana (dan lelah karena cuaca lagi cerah banget dan panas hari itu), kami meninggalkan taman dan balik ke kota Singapore.

Tujuan kami selanjutnya adalah area Bugis. Begitu kami turun di stasiun MRT Bugis, kami memasuki Bugis Junction Mall. Setelah keliling beberapa waktu, kami meninggalkan mall-nya dan makan siang di Burger King, haha... . Tentu saja dong kemudian kami jalan2 di Jalan Bugis-nya itu. Setelah beberapa waktu, kami balik ke Orchard. Yea, sekali lagi, kami balik ke Orchard, tapi kali ini kami lebih menjelajahinya. Aku akhirnya menemukan tempat (Cineleisure) yang menyediakan layanan wifi gratis dan tanpa password!! haha, Ini adalah sesuatu yang sangat langka di Singapore karena kebanyakan yang aku temui sih kita harus daftar dulu (membutuhkan password) untuk bisa mengakses internet, atau membayar S$ 1 untuk internet selama 15 menit!! Sial tuh!!

Ngomong2, malamnya kami makan malam di foodcourt Newton karena kami ketemu seorang teman disana. Untuk kesana, kami naik bus loh, yang agak mengasyikkan juga tuh naik mode transportasi lain, haha. Disana kami makan seafood (lagi). Oya, harga kelapa muda disana membuat aku merasa kaya beruntung lho tinggal di Indonesia. Soalnya papaku bilang dia selalu merasa harga kelapa muda Rp 5.000,- tuh mahal banget di Indonesia. Di Singapore, harganya tuh S$ 2.5 atau setara dengan Rp 17.500,-!! Trus kami balik ke hotel deh.

Hari 8 (29 Juli 2009)

Tak banyak sih yang dilakukan hari ini karena ini adalah hari kami pulang ke Indonesia. Pesawat kami, Air Asia QZ 7139 akan berangkat jam 11.10 pagi dari Bandara Changi Singapore. Kami meninggalkan hotel paginya dan langsung menuju bandara. Disana, aku menemukan pojok internet gratis tuh dan tentu saja aku internetan (ya, internetannya GRATIS tapi terbatas untuk penggunaan 15 menit (melebihi itu, kita harus log in lagi), dan kita juga harus BERDIRI!! haha...)

Kemudian, sekitar jam 11 pagi, kami menaiki pesawat dan aku mendapat kursi yang (bagi aku) jelek banget, kursi lorong, haha. Tentu saja dong kursi favoritku adalah kursi jendela, haha. Kami lepas landas di landasan 20C dan meninggalkan Singapore. Sewaktu penerbangan, aku pergi ke toilet dan waktu itu aku baru sadar kalo ternyata penerbangannya tidak penuh dan tiga baris di belakang pesawat kosong melompong!! Makanya aku memutuskan untuk pindah aja ke kursi kosong itu kan dan bisa ngambil foto2 tuh dari atas, dan tentu saja aku mendapat kursi-kursi kendela! Ya, kursi-kursi karena aku bebas pindah-pindah dari kursi jendela kiri, trus pindah ke kursi jendela kanan, trus ke kursi jendela kiri lagi, dan gitu terus, haha... .

AKhirnya, jam 12.15 siang, pesawatku mendarat di Bandara Internasional Adisucipto Yogyakarta di runway 09, landasan favoritku!! Eh, ternyata proteksi anti flu-babinya lebih ketat di bandara Indonesia lho karena waktu baru datang kami harus ngantri untuk disemprot pake semprotan (yang kayanya sih) anto-virus, haha... .


Yah, itu lah kurang lebih cerita perjalanan liburanku yang paling baru beberapa waktu lalu ke Singapore dan Penang :-)

No comments:

Post a Comment