Tour of Culinary

Here’s several of my culinary tours with my friends around Bandung couple weeks ago, we were touring for food and seeking passionate places for food while refreshing our exhausted days and having fun. But actually there are plenty of special and unique culinary places in Bandung that we’ve never been before. I guess we’ll keep looking for and dine.

Maxi’s Resto

Starbucks Coffee – Paris Van Java

Fashion Pasta

Sushigroove – Paris Van Java

Newspaper – Paris Van Java

Café Terminus

Shin Men – Paris Van Java

Congo

Black Canyon – Paris Van Java

Gianni’s Tjihampelas

Waiting for the stars

Hari ini sedang malam

Matahari pergi tidur

Kemana ya ia pergi tidurnya?

Kurasa disana dibawah kita.

Kubah langit yang gelap ini, luas dan tinggi

Angkasa yang sunyi

Hanya ada nyanyian jangkrik dikejauhan

Seolah mengajak aku dan kunang-kunang

Untuk berdansa kecil

Terima kasih kunang-kunang

Cahayamu menemaniku

Kau seperti ikan kecil bercahaya

Yang berenang di samudera malam

Mengapa kau terjaga seperti aku?

Apakah kau juga menanti?

Menanti nyala bintang-bintang diatas sana

Apakah kau juga membawa pesan?

Pesan untuk disampaikan kepada bintang-bintang.

Goes to the historical Museums

Yesterday I went to the historical museums, I went together with my community ( Bandung’s Devotee Community = Komunitas Pencinta Bandung ).It was more like a tour of knowing the histories, because we were visiting 4 museums and 1 residence of the governor ( Gedung Sate ). The museums that we were visited : Museum of the Asian-African Conference ( Museum Konferensi Asia Afrika ), Museum Mandala Wangsit, Museum of Geology, and Museum Post of Indonesia ( Museum Pos ). These museums were storing amazing histories that so influential to the country and preserving the historical documents that could be the substances of extracurricular educations for the students. And at the end of the tour we went to the top (uppermost) building of Gedung Sate. It could be gratified us because not everybody permitted to entering that uppermost building.

We were starting our tour to the museums by gathering on the spot of 0 kilometer at 08:30am when the weather was bright and clear.

My community has already settled and put everything in order about this visiting with the manager of the museums. In each museum they will prepare a guide for each group of us. We were divided into 5 groups, each group consist of around 20 peoples, and each group leave in every 15-20 minutes. We were walking in a march to the museums, passing by hilariously the streets.

Museum of the Asian-African Conference

The Asian-African conference which held in Bandung on April 18-24 1955, has attained a great success. As well in unify the attitude and arrange the important orientations of co-operation between the nations of Asia-Africa, as well as involved actively to support creating the orderliness and peace in the world. This conference has giving birth to an agreement which called “Dasa Sila Bandung” that become a compass for the colonized nations in the world struggling to obtaining their liberty, and then also become the basic principles for the nations to improve the peacefulness and co-operations in the world. The success of this conference wasn’t only appeared on that time period, but also visible on the time afterwards. Until the spirit and enthusiasm of this conference becoming one of important elements that determine the history ways of the world.

In a frame of conserving the event and moment of this conference, it is very important and appropriate if the Asian-African conference within its events, problems and the influences that covered on it being eternalize into a museum in a place where the conference has taken place, in “Gedung Merdeka” in the city of Bandung. The city that being trusted as a capital and source of inspiration for the nations in Asia and Africa.

Museum of the Asian-African conference was legitimately establish by Soeharto the president of Indonesia on April 24^th 1980, as a summit commemoration of 25 years the Asian-African conference.

Museum Mandala Wangsit Siliwangi

This museum is a historical museum. About the Army and the struggling of West Java society opposing the colonizer. In this museum stored all sorts of things and weapons that used in battles and struggles in the past. The collections of this museum consist of many things and equipments which used by the troops of Siliwangi. From the primitive weapons such as spears, arrows, keris, kujang, Molotov bombs until the modern weapons such as panzer, artillery pieces, cannon, riffles, guns and many more.

The name of Siliwangi was taken from a King and founder figure of Pajajaran’s Kingdom, He was wise, prudent and heroic in command. He also had a huge authority. While the meaning of Mandala Wangsit means a place to preserve the trusteeship, mandate, or advices from the warriors and heroes in the past to the upcoming generations through the things that they were left.

The entrance or access to the museum located on the building’s rear. The building of this museum is possessing an architecture style of late romanticism, was built in the year 1910-1915 on the period of Dutch colonization as a residence of Dutch officers. After the liberty has taken over by the troops of Siliwangi, this building was used as a headquarter of Siliwangi military in the year 1949-1950.

On May 23^rd 1966 this building within its history witness was legitimately settled as “Museum Mandala Wangsit Siliwangi” by Panglima Divisi Siliwangi the 8^th Kolonel Ibrahim Adjie.

Museum of Geology

This museum is located on Diponegoro street 57, Bandung 40122. Officially opened on 16 May 1929, this museum which was once a laboratory stores various stones, minerals, meteorites, fossils, and other artifacts collected since the 1850.

Its prominent collection includes a Homo Erectus fossil, the ancient elephant ( mammoth ) Stegodon Trigonocephalus, and a replica of the largest and fiercest carnivorous dinosaur “Tyrannosaurus Rex”. Visitors can also learn how the earth was formed, how life developed, as well as Indonesia’s geological phenomena and their relations to human life. Furthermore, the museum also performs various exhibitions, trainings, and researches.

Along with the progress of technologies this museum has hand over many contribution, benefit and function as :

- An educational place outside of school which informing many things about earth and its preservation effort.

- A place where peoples can make early studies before arranging a direct research to the field. Where this museum as the information center of geological science and geodesy.

- An interesting object of geological-tour.

Tree House

When I was little I had a tree house

A simple place above the ground

On the leafy arms of a loner tree

On the backyard of family’s old house

Loaded with wild plants, flowers and weeds

That was natural landscape in harmoniously

I’ve been playing in a tree house

A freedom playhouse

A place to curing my sadness

A place to concealing my secrets

A place where fantasies come to life

A place where I can see the sky and clouds more closer

Felt so much joy, restoring my bliss

I’ve been playing in a tree house

The sun beam beautify my tree house

I can listen to the birds singing to the winds

And everything apparently looks different

up in the tree house.

I was remember,

In my childhood escapade

Once I had a tree house

And I would rather play outside

Swinging and climbing up my tree house

All day long,

until the sunshine that enraging all day disappeared.

This is it! …moment to change

I’m concern for changes. Change to discover my hopes, to expand my life, to indicate that I am not an accidentally, but I am a potency. When I’m pursuing of my dream, I would never afraid losing something that important for me. Taking risks and learn to discern the failure only as a step not a defeat. Changes are necessary to life.

Ssstt… Secrets

Sshhttt ….sssttt….sshhh…

Secrets locked underneath my soul

Together with me and my soul

Like my own shadow

Sshhttt ….sssttt…sshhh …

Secrets the ones that reside deep in our soul

The ones that we were bring since the first day of our life

Everybody got their own secrets

We might share them or not

Secrets, they are lurking in the corner of our thought

Secrets, they are embroider our life stories

Secrets, they are special companion

Secrets, they are wedged in our soul

Secrets, they are keeping up

Secrets, they are undamaged

Plenty of my secrets

You don’t have to know

And you’ll never know

Because I’ll preserve them

and keep them definitely safe with me.

Grandma ( an Ode to you )

1901 was your year, you open your eyes

You were my living history book

Adoration of family, my blood related

I saw the old times panorama through your eyes

Through your hand writings

Through your conservative opinions and your old fashioned stuffs

You were always keeping up with me when I was grown up

You were watched me …through the whole years

Carry me into your arms when I was cry

I miss your warm embrace

You were my first teacher in any occasion

Teaching me everything I need to know

I memorized your wisdom words string

You were truly best friend of mine

You were full of love and kindness

You were there when I was awaken from my fever sleep

You were wealthy with stories, fairy tales and nursery rhymes

It was lulled me and sometimes decorating my dreams

You were the sacred one with ten magic fingers

The fingers that used to hugging my face, curing me, and tidy up my curly hair

When electricity going off,

we used to play shadows using our fingers in candlelit

You were storing previous old time stories,

About your young age and youthfully habit of your time

About Saladine versus Lion heart,

About the battles period,

About the period of Dutch colonial domination, Japan occupancy, and Pacific war

I was knowing from you about Titanic’s catastrophe,

far away before the movie was released in 1997,

that you said you were hearing the news from the old fashioned radio box with broken off signal on the living room when you were young

Your stories heard to me like the sound of music box with a dancing ballerina on top, like the rhythm of Glósóli or Frosti, beautiful rhapsody.

Now the box has closed, as your time was done

1995 was your year, you closed your eyes

Thank you for being there beside me since the first day of my life

Your memories will always remain as well as my gratitude and prays to you

Miss you with all of my heart.

In loving memory of Hj Fathimah Hamidin Moesthafa Malik ( 1901-1995 ), my beloved Grandma.

Something haunt on my mind

It was perplexed me how to start wrote this thoughts. Something haunt on my mind. Something spotted over my head. Something that having shape like an interactive icon on my interactive cosmic interface of my mind, that I would love to click and fix this curiosity. Something was transcoding …bip…bip…bip…bip waiting to accomplish. Something lurking and echoing out there through the time, gravitation and space, and said “How are you?, where you’ve been?”. You probably think I'm kidding, but actually…No, it was happen on my mind.

And here the days creeping up in the year that still new. Everything is as can be depicted from stars, sky, times, seasons or the constellation. And …hey, I can feel you afar. We’ll be met someday. And you’ll be my best friend, together with Bellu my stars reader we gonna unveiling the secrets that connecting us. But I’m afraid, we can’t be enjoy and act playfully for little bit longer. Because someone has come and would take you away. Or I could be afraid when we met and it’s happen on the day you are taken away…actually not excessively afraid, it’s more like a late. But however although it would be late or not that’s won’t be cutting back my grateful. It is much more valuable than word of late, it is much more like someone has passing this legacy from the past. And we don’t understand or even know any guidance. Everything is still vague. But one thing that I could be sure that we were blessed by this incident ( macchiato caramel incident …ha..ha..hhaa ). Ah …how splendid life was, and bizarre all at once. But because of its bizarre that make life much more meaningful.

Firefly in the palm of my hand

…crickers humming to the night, lulled the stars and moon in the dark firmament!
But there are no crickers (jangkrik) in Hopelandia and Gracelandia, there are only fireflies glowing in the meadow, gardens, above the rooftops, in the streets, outside the windows, and sometimes they’re staying motionless in the palm of my hand, only just to showing me up their glaring light. They were gleam in the night reassuring my sleep until the first light arise in the east horizon. So beautiful!

Old Wanderer

Down here from my white ceiling, suddenly my mind describing and giving me a vision about an old tired wanderer went on a thousands miles trip and found a shady tree. He sat under the tree, rest for his exhausting, the winds blow softly and his eye was shut grateful for the deeply comfort that he has taste. But it won’t lasting, because he had to go to carry on and complete his journey. And with a single breath blowing from his mouth he gave one last look then walk away.

Lilywhites in the sky and I was so small in the width of the sky

In a certain amazing moment … I’ve been pulled surprise as I was in thousands feet altitude. I was so so so small, I was so nerveless in the width of the sky. Subhanallah …it was the most beautiful scenery. I was gazing behind the airplane’s window to the mighty sky and the clumps of cloud beside the window. I don’t know why each time traveling by the airplane I always want to see through the window. One thing is because the sky and cloud are amazing. They are saving countless mesmerizing secrets and restoring my bliss each time when I saw them.
Take a look, the sky horizon is limitless and the cloud is unnumbered like white densely heap foams. I could be lost if I was ignored and left alone in there. And the humans are not suitable to act arrogantly. Because you, me and others … are so small.

Heidelberg, Where you lose your heart

“I have loved you long already, and would like, to please myself, to call you mother and give you an artless song, you, of the fatherland’s towns the most country-beautiful, many as I have seen”.
When the poet Friedrich Hölderlin ( 1770-1843 ) wrote this “Ode to Heidelberg” he was perhaps strolling along the philosophers’ walk on the banks of the River Neckar. From here one gets the best view of the romantic Heidelberg panorama. The famous ruined castle, the old nooks and alleyways, the picturesque houses and courtyards and the lovely Neckar valley inspired poets and painters at the beginning of the 19th century. In their search for closeness to nature, the past and a national identity, they regarded Heidelberg as the ideal romantic city. It was here that Achim von Arnim ( 1781-1831 ) and Clemens Brentano ( 1778-1842 ) gathered the fairy tales, folk songs, legends and ballads which they published in their important collection “Des Knaben Wunderhorn” ( “The Boy’s magic horn” ).

A lot of studying also goes on in this tranquil, romantic city. With a tradition stretching back 623 years, Heidelberg university is not only the oldest, but also one of the best-regarded in Germany. Thousand of future graduates are attracted by its good reputation, its first-class professors and solid academic education. When the university was founded in 1386 studying was a privilege for a small number of men. But now with 30,000 students the university is bursting at the seams. Every fifth inhabitant of Heidelberg is a student.

If you study hard and shut yourself up in your room you could quickly become like a well-known Heidelberg plant – you will turn as pale as asparagus. In the months of May and June all culinary attention is focused on this vegetable, which owes its refined paleness to a special method of cultivation. In sandy soil and in a damp, warm climate it grows in earth mounds up to 60 cms high and never sees the light until it is harvested. Even back in the days of the ancient Greeks asparagus was prized as a healthy vegetable and also considered an aphrodisiac. And pharmacists have regarded it as an effective way of cleansing the kidneys. Deutsch mit spass – Bilder aus Deutschland.

Erlend Øye, his eye glass and Whitest Boys Alive

I should tell about Erlend and his band Whitest Boys Alive playing concert in this town a month ago. But I think I had forgetfulness to wrote this event on this blog. This concert was took place in auditorium hall RRI Bandung on Saturday night ( December 6th, 2008 ). With ticket price Rp. 90.000,- not exceedingly expensive for foreign musicians concert. Actually this wasn’t a huge concert, only a small relaxed concert on Saturday night.

Oh ya, I’m telling you …there was a queerness in this concert. Because Erlend and his band “Whitest Boys Alive” were actually a substitute band. Substitute for Jens Lekman ( a Swedish indie pop singer ). Jens concert committee informing about the cancellation through an official group on facebook several hours before show time, because Jens Lekman still detained on the airport in China. So I was already knew, and the official concert crews on the spot tells me that Erlend Øye and his band will perform as substitute. Well …that was quite make me felt relieved, because I’m gonna watch Erlend again. He was came and playing concert to this town couple years ago, of course with his previous band “Kings of Convenience”. And I was quite familiar with Kings of Convenience songs, but I never listening or knowing the songs of Whitest Boys Alive. So this concert make me understand about the band named Whitest Boys Alive. And Erlend who usually act calmly now he was quite enthusiastic that night. I really enjoy this concert even though not knowing the lyrics of their songs, and as usual I was making plenty pictures and videos of this concert.

To watch the videos of this concert please click :
http://www.youtube.com/gracelandia

Hyperesthesia’s message informing me about the stars in night sky

Last night was gratifying me. I was on my room doing my works. My mobile phone was ringing. It was a short message from my Hyperesthesia’s friend, she sent me her sms at 20:08 pm. She said “Gorky, look at the sky”. So I was stopping a while and hurrying unveil my window’s curtain. I looked to the night sky,…hhmm but I can’t see more wide because my view was blocked by the window’s frame. So I get off from my room and go to the balcony then I saw the whole night sky, it was darkest blue. That color seems like trying to covered the secrets behind it. My eyes gazed around the sky and I found a star! Yeah …I saw a star afar on my North-east side of the sky. Right above the high new building of Maranatha’s university. I saw it shine clearly. Then I wrote back a short message to her at 20:10 pm, I said “I saw a glowing star!”. I looked to the other side, to the north right above me, then surprise! …I found another one. I wrote again to her, and said “There are two now!”. Then she replied me at 20:12 pm she said “They are so rare, but so beautiful …beautiful as they come”. And followed by the next message at 20:13 pm “would be great if we could see a shooting star …we wish!”. Then I respond “yeah,… but we should holding on to our wish even there isn’t a shooting star, thanks for letting me know to look up the sky”. She replied back “I guess stars are hardly to found in this uncertain weather like nowadays. You and me were amazed for their wonderful glow. You need to know if stars were glowing right now. Enjoy! And keep wishing”. Then I gave her one last respond “Yeah,… it was miracle. Keeping up your wishes too!”.

Then I’m back to my room, while being constantly reminded to my star reader and I’m wondering. This moment I dedicated to her. If I see a moon one day, I’ll inform her definitely.

Good night stars!