DORA on the ROAD

Sipping on a cup of coffee N'yumba Lungo of Nescafe Dolce Gusto as I'm writing this post in my apartment. One word - It's MASARAP! Intense flavours and with a citrus kick at the end. Not a coffee lover but it's the only coffee drink I enjoy the most so far. Here comes the full - day guided Cirebon tour which I had been yearning for :D to unwind and had a taste of their local foods =p. First stop of our tour was in Keraton Kasepuhan located in the sub - district of Lemahwungkuk, Cirebon City. it was a great experience to be able to visit the facilities once utilized by the royal family in Cirebon, despite the blazing hot sun that cost us so much sweat and strength. Keraton Kasepuhan Entrance right behind me Hindu - styled split gate named Gapura Adi. Looks like I'm in Bali :D Pakungwati Palace, named after the daughter of Prince Cakrabuwana (the sultanate first ruler) built in 1446. Kereta Kencana Singa Barong. An old carriage influenced with artistic e...

Surely there is something in the unruffled calm of nature that overawes our little anxieties and doubts. Yes that was right! During our first trip to Bali, we decided to visit the famous and picturesque place, the Tanah Lot. Tanah Lot is a rock formation off the Indonesian island of Bali. It was part of our schedule on day 2 to visit here before exploring the long sandy beach of Kuta known as the surfing paradise. Ticketing office Me and my friend Adine basically took a slow walk around the compound, passing by a maze of street food stands and souvenir shops before we reach the place. The traditional entrance to most Balinese temple and sacred places - the split gate The impressive stoneworks A different angle We visited the temple the week of their celebration of Hari Raya Gulungan and Kuningan and spotted several devotees praying in the temple. Quiet moments of prayer in the inner courtyard Stunning blue skies crowned this fabulous visit and made us take more...

Today I was supposed to meet my travbuddy friend named Stephanie from USA and also to introduce her to my family. Unfortunately, due to inefficient communication signals, she received my email late. In short, we went on our separate ways. She spent the day in the Peak Tram and continued to Ngong Ping in the afternoon. While, we do the opposite of it :D We went to Ngong Ping first then Peak Tram at night. It went so funny but I know we'll meet some other times my friend....... Due to the proximity of our hotel to ferry terminal, we took the ferry going to Central via Ferry 7 and transferred to Ferry 6 going to Mui Wo on Lantau Island instead of taking the MTR Express. We prefer thrilling and unusual rides....yay! From the Mui Wo, we took the bus No. 2 bound to Ngong Ping. It was a zigzag road going up to the mountain where the Tian Tan Buddha Statue is. Quiet feel dizzy but it's a fun ride! A must try I think. It's all foggy up there when we arrived on the place. We can...

One of the significant religious shrine in Malaysia, done in magnificent natural limestone caves, is undoubtedly Batu Caves. This temple is situated 13 kilometres from the north of the capital city, Kuala Lumpur. It can already be reached by using the newest KMT commuter train running from Sentral Station to Batu Caves for only 1MYR. Around the vicinity was a flock of birds swarming around the place. We just took a quick detour in here using our hotel free shuttle bus. It's not as grandeur as anyone expected but it serves as a treat for us before heading to Twin Towers, also a nearby attraction. While waiting for my other colleagues who wished to go up the caves, me and my husband just managed to stroll and dined - in to different stalls/shops in the area.

On the second day trip from Yogyakarta, we visited the Prambanan Archaeological Park to view the Hindu inspired Roro Jonggrang complex. Candi Prambanan is the grandest temple in Java apart from Borobudur. Located on the Prambanan plain, this sprawling temple complex sits majestically in an open area about twenty kilometers south of Mount Merapi, which dominates the horizon.  The majestically Prambanan Temple  Sadly, due to recent earthquake damage you are no longer allowed to enter the main ruins, which are cordoned off with steel barriers. Therefore a walk around the perimeter with a flock of sheep was the next best option. Relics of the Ramayana Epics in the vicinity    To finish our Javanese adventure, we made our last stop on the temples at Boko which is 3 km from the south of the temple complex of Prambanan.  Entrance to the Ratu Boko Temple This temple is not well known compared to the two temples I've mentioned above. Only a thin crowd of tourists go to this pla...

Half way through June 2010 I had no thought of going home to Philippines  - or anywhere else - in July. I was too busy struggling with an absolutely impossible workload to be thinking of taking a holiday. However que sera sera as the song says - and which at that time, my husband, Dexter, unexpectedly visited me on my workplace. I was surprised of his visit anyway. It ocurred to me that, I should be able to look forward to a substantial break  before I returned to work and welcome a new School Year .Then I happened to see a flight advertised for Jogjakarta,  an Air Asia's holiday promo, that would have fit perfectly. At that time one of my colleagues, Mr Krisna, introduced me to his friend, Mas Oko, a native in Java Indonesia who recently opened his place as a transient for tourists. What a great prospect!I booked for our flight together with my other friends. So to Yogyakarta, house of Candi! Being one of the oldest cities in Indonesia, Yogyakarta has many heritage buil...