Bintan Garden Resort

So yeah, I finally went out of my beloved city. The mad lady who usually writes here was having great time in every corner of Bintan Garden Resort with pair of neon flat shoes for putting ‘walk for fun’ in a sentence. Hear me out though, practically everything in this resort is drop dead gorgeous. When I sat by the pool early in the morning, ready to embrace the beauty of sunrise, I heard myself was talking to The Mad Lady(My self) saying“Damn, I wish it’s my private holiday, i want to jump off to the pool so bad”. Yeah…it’s not a holiday, it’s an errand, a duty. But I made the best of it for sure and it’s such a great opportunity for me since I was there for covering this MetaMan Iron Distance Triathlon 2012. One of the biggest Triathlon events in Southeast Asia. There were more then 250 professional Athletes from 35 countries that consist of 193 male and 37 female. This event combines swim, bike and run. MetaMan stands for the courage to attempt and the conviction that if the mind is willing the body will follow. I couldn’t agree more with the philosophy. Set your mind so that you can set your action.

Let me help by saying how feel fantastic it is to be here. To me, this is where my favorite things lies on (wonderful nature, beautiful resort, amazing weather, great sports and good looking athletes (should I tell that they have great muscles too).

How annoying it's when you on your duty with that name tag written (indonesia.travel) hanging on your neck screaming "Don't flirt, you are working under Indonesian Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry valued name".

Almost 80% the land of Bintan Island is forest and the rest is villages and resorts. The journey was one half an hour from Jakarta by daily flights. By the time I were out of the Tanjung Pinang airport, Bintan’s capital city, I craned forward determined not to miss a single thing in Bintan.

A massive thank you to Indonesia's Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry for the most generous invitation.

What a wonderful experience!!! 

Love

Rose  

YOGYAKARTA

YOGYAKARTA (often also called Jogja, Yogya or Jogja) is located in middle of Java Island - Indonesia, where everything is cheap ( yes, it's the perfect place for backpackers). It's enough with $ 20 per-day, you are able to stay over, eat famous authentic delicious foods, and Motorbike and Bicycle Rental to explore the pure beaches, the villages and thousand of years old ancient temples.

A thousand years ago, Yogyakarta was the center of ancient Mataram Kingdom which was prosperous and high civilized. This kingdom built Borobudur Temple which was the biggest Buddhist temple in the world, 300 years before Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Some other relics are Prambanan Temple, Ratu Boko Palace, and dozens of other temples scattered throughout Yogyakarta.

However, by some mysterious reason, Ancient Mataram Kingdom moved its central government to East Java in the 10th century. The magnificent temples were abandoned and partially buried by the eruption material of Merapi Volcano. Slowly, Yogyakarta region went back into the dense forest.

Six hundred years later, Panembahan Senopati established the Islamic Mataram Kingdom in the region. Once again, Yogyakarta became the witness of human history of a great Kingdom that ruled Java Island and its surrounding area. Islamic Mataram Kingdom was leaving a trail of ruins of fortress and royal tombs in Kotagede which recently is known as silver handicraft center in Yogyakarta. 

The thrill of conquering the most active volcano in Indonesia truly offers its own special sensation. Basically there are two routes leading to the summit, the Kaliurang track from the south and the Selo Village Track from the north. Although Kaliurang is only a short drive from the city of Yogyakarta, but hikers are banned from using this route since it is regarded too dangerous. Thus, Selo Village has become the new ‘basecamp’ for Merapi Mountain Hiking.

Situated 1,560 meters above sea level at the foot of Mount Merapi and Mount Merbabu, Selo village is administratively located within the Boyolali Regency, in the province of Central Java, aproximately 80 Kilometers from downtown Yogyakarta. For the fit and healthy, from Selo it’s a 3 hour hike to the summit of Mount Merapi, for others it will take 4 hours plus to climb, and nearly the same time for the descent. Most hikers start at midnight, or just after, in order to reach the summit before the first light of dawn. This is because Merapi generally emits more gases as the day goes on, so early morning is the safest time to visit.

Love

Rose