Yeah, I haven't been to Raja Ampat Island in Irian Jaya although I've heard much about it. Far in the "corner" east of Indonesia, a nature in its virginity, a beauty still untouched.. ahh, just forget awhile about those list of luxury hotels, new cafes and hip bars that must be visited... maybe even forget Hawaii and Maldives... beauty, can be so far and close at the same time... mmhhh.... I feel like smooching an ice cream... mmhh... I wish and dream to fulfil this desire someday....

The Raja Ampat island group spreads out over a huge area and consists of over 610 islands! A recent Rapid assessment project (RAP) by Conservation International (an American based conservation group), suggests that "due to it's location near the heart of the coral triangle coupled with an amazing diversity of marine habitats, the area is potentially the worlds richest in terms of marine biodiversity" - Mc Kenna, Allen and Suryadi (April 2002). Even dolphin, whales and turtles are frequent sights!

The travelling cost is high, tho' ... check out the following prices offered by a tour company:

PRICE :
12 day cruises on live aboard "Shakti" in the Raja Ampat Islands in Irian Jaya, Indonesia. The rates for cruises are :
US$ 2365 per person, which includes all food, accommodation, transportation to/from airport and three to four dives a day. Excluded are beer/soft drinks and dive equipment which is available for rental.

One package of accommodation, full board, and Sundays transfers and 12 dives from € 841 to € 1339. Not to mention the diving packages:
Raja Ampat
2006 DIVE RATES - All prices are quoted in Euro (€)

DIVING PRICE
Dive package 15 dives *** € 450
Dive package 10 dives *** € 325
Dive package 5 dives *** € 175
Single dive € 37,50
Fuel surcharge day trip "Fam. Islands" (per person - 4 divers minimum) € 60
Fuel surcharge day trip "Passage" (per person - 4 divers minimum) € 50
Fuel surcharge day trip "Pef Island & Hidden Bay" (per person - 4 divers minimum) € 50
Fuel surcharge day trip "Gam Bay" (per person - 4 divers minimum) € 25
Fuel surcharge day trip "Jeben Island" (per person - 4 divers minimum) € 55
Fuel surcharge day trip "Dajang Island" (per person - 4 divers minimum) € 55
All dive packages are non refundable and non transferable!

EXCURSIONS

Birds of paradise (half day trip, per person, 2 persons minimum)** € 25
Fam island trip (full day trip,per person, 4 persons minimum) € 100
Batanta waterfall trip (full day trip,per person, 4 persons minimum) € 75
Kaboei Bay excursion (full day trip,per person, 4 persons minimum) € 100
Gem Bay excursion (full day trip,per person, 4 persons minimum) € 75

So, check out the pic... d'u think it's worth it? I think so ... :D

I rarely go check-out this area 'cept to watch movies at '21'. To my surprise, I found an interesting place. Last Saturday, we had this movie-time of watching 'Click' and then we got off to find a resto around the area coz it was just about a couple of minutes to break our fasting time. And we found this Japanese resto - quite small - located rite in front of the 21.

I ordered Rice Bowl with Chicken, an Oolong Tea, somekind of a juice namely Kalpis-thing (can't really remember d name), and a green tea ice cream. My partner had a Rice Bowl with Tuna and a mixture of Yogurt + Orange Juice. Both d Kalpis and Orange drinks were very refreshing! I definitely recommend the Kalpis... its sour taste mixed perfectly with a light sense of sweet and fruity concentrate in it.

The prices there are quite reasonable. And I don't think it's only me who thought that this resto is a blast in terms of taste. I met lots of original Japanese coming in, sit and ate at the place. So I'm convinced that this resto has successfully preserved an original and natural taste ...of how a Japanese food should be.

Yeah, one should forget about the trendy fussion-sushi-bar thingy for awhile. You'll LOVE the original taste better! :)

The fasting month ... ! So by 4PM somethin', colleagues at office already buzzing on ideas of where to break the fasting. Yesterday afternoon we decided to go to Ayam Ganthari at Ahmad Dahlan street, Jakarta

The place is strategically located in the corner. The street itself is bustling with restos of all kind, packed and interesting! Anyway, you have to 'book' in advance if u wanna come here, esp. in the afternoon... otherwise it's quite difficult to claim your table and sit. No phone bookings tho'.. u just need to come early!!

I was amazed by the variety of menu offered in this place. From traditional fried or grilled chicken (with soya sauce) to ribs and steak kindda things. I ordered something different, which was a plate of Nasi Tim Ayam... but ... the taste was really 'unrecommendable'. I was dissappointed. The ribs however, was quite good! Soft and chewable, with tasty sauce and cream. The highlight of course, on their trade-mark grilled chicken (traditional grilled chicken) served with rice and veggies.

For drinks, some friends ordered Coconut Ice, which looked (and tasted) good. They had quite a variety of drinks as well on the menu.

In this fasting month, however, they don't serve 'Kolak' or 'a plain tea' to the customers who conduct fasting But it's okay... I think they serve good food, plus it's a nice place with friendly atmosphere, and the service was good. Fast and quite reliable.

If you have a troubled relationship, troubled marriage, a trouble in love... well, you may want to give this book to your lover and let him/her understand what it's like to really love someone.

Don't get me wrong. The book is not weepy, it's not tear-jerky at all. I like the fact that it talks a lot about humanity and that we can relate to all the feelings described in the book.

I also like it since it described a lot about traveling, Paris, Spain, new people, exotic place such as Kazakhstan, and more. The ending is a bit dissappointing tho' ... it's hanging but it doesn't really hanging nicely. Yes, it's up to the readers to interprete....

It's deep, touching, very human, reflective, very good to read as we are now sooo busy to have time to review ourselves and our relationships with others :)

Well, Loca! is hip... it's a nice cafe owned by the owner of PISA Cafe. The difference is of course, the ambiance is far more relax, a lot of youngsters crowded the place at nite, lounge music beats to accompany you through the night and easy-laid-back interior design, sofas, chairs, wooden tables, nothing too fancy.

I definitely love the chocolate melt they serve there... the steak looks good as well, not so much in the drink list but the most pop ones are of course there (by the way, I had Bailey's that time so... ). The french fries are good! Plus they have this unique Menu writing friends/people opinion on the food listed, e.g. Anisa (yeah, I came with her ... :) though that this "Name-of-Menu" is her favourite ... bla.. bla.. bla..

Highly recommended to come here ... with bunch of friends ok! The parking space is ... well... almost none available the guests' cars just filled in the street. But hey, too much of good things to even complain of this kindda thing, which is ... er, so usual in Jakarta rite??

So... I'll see you when you step in LOCA !

This is a new album produced by SONY BMG & Radio One Jakarta. Well, this should be good since they compile all the popular and nice-to-hear chill and upbeat songs into one album!

It's savvy as well, I think. With normal CD price of IDR 75,000 you will get all the fave music to listen over and over again.

I think this is a very good effort by Radio One, to introduce chill & upbeat "jazzy" music into wider audience. You know that mostly, CDs for this kind of music are costly, since they're usually imported ....

Love it, very groovy, nice to hear in the morning or afternoon, after the rush hour of office work n traffic, when you're ready to stroll the night with friends ...

If you are a fan of fine-dining with an absolute breath-taking city view and windy breeze... you definitely will love this place! Up to the hills at Sersan Bajuri area, now we can find several restos and/or cafes with their own specialities... Rumah Strawberry, Warung Laksana, and of course, the famous Kampung Daun ... so, if on some cases, you cannot get a seat at Kampung Daun (true, it may get REALLY PACKED with people during weekends!!), go further up a hill for awhile and ... there you will find a modern-looking building that makes the restaurant itself, completed with balconies and all-angle views overlooking the city of Bandung down below. It's so cozy n refreshing!

The Peak offers its ground floor and terrace for the breakfast and lunch orders. Careful when sitting at the terrace, it may gets quite chilly! Later at night, you can go upstairs and enjoy an even more breathtaking views of the city lights. I really like the top floors... the interior is elegant and I love the way this place look with all the woodern structures. It just brings out the cozy ambiance... oh.... you would wanna seat still, quietly, silently... sipping your red wine and just looking through the window, the starlit sky, and the dimlit citylights from afar...

With two friends, I visited this place on Wed night.... free entrance :)

The DJ played R&B but the live band, in my opinion, was rather awful. This place looked like a common place for the westerners. I don't really envy the atmosphere here..... doesn't look very 'healthy' :)

The interior is exactly why it's called beach club.... mostly wooden-made floor and stairs, with home-made coconut tree and all that.... but you have to beware with the restrooms, we saw man and woman using the same room despite the indication at the door.

Overall it's a packed place and quite fun to see this kind of things once in awhile, where they still play songs like YMCA and stuffs ....

Having a thyphus n bed-resting at home for 7 days made me feel the need to watch something on TV that relates me with the outside world.... and I always love to watch D-Channel's Travel & Living.... it's just there, travel, people & places, lifestyle, adventure. A complete package to freshen up your mind :)

Come see the channel once, you need to travel without making any move sometimes, rite? :)

Nu'China terletak di daerah Kemang. Dulu tempat ini sempat tutup karena ada "kasus" gitu deh.... but baru2 ini launching lagi. Great place, biasanya packed banget kalo lagi weekend..... progressive music n various crowds are here... ati2 nyenggol gelas krn tempatnya rada sempit.... Buka sampe jam 2-3 pagi.... parkirannya penuh sejak dari sore

One comment: nice! Located inside the botanical garden, Cafe De Daunan offers you a breath-taking view of the garden full of flowers and varieties of plant, water fountain, lotus pond... all adds to the already-cozy atmosphere.

The quality of food is okay and not too pricey. A cup of cafe latte costs you Rp. 15,000, same with the Poffertjes. Btw the poffertjets there were tasty!

Recommended and one of the must-see items if you think of coming to the city of rain, Bogor.

The Bar is a great place when you wanna listen to good jazz music, all days all week! ... walking to the entrance of this -well, cafe, I may say- is rather unique since it has no doors... it's just like a living room of a house... lots of chairs, sofas, tables, and... usually packed with people as well, especially on weekends.

The atmosphere is a bit homey so you will feel relax sitting n chatting together with friends... for couples, hm... when you really wanna spend time just between the two, it's better to come a bit early 'though... around 9-10 PM :)

I've been to this place twice and I especially love the interior so much! It's just sexy and exotic ... alongside the wall are tables for two or four with comfy cushion-sofa... in the middle are those bigger tables for groups, plus some private rooms. This is a semi-fine dining resto with mediterranean colour.

This resto is situated on sort of a second floor, since below is the place for Fez Lounge... you can hear the music beat when you go up to the Kinara's entrance...

The menus in Kinara are all Indian in nature. Can't remember names of the food one by one but since I came there with bunch of friends we ordered a ... lot ... !! So, to order a set menu would be fine also, I guess... but for those who don't really like Indian-food, menus such as Sesame Prawn Mayonnaise, Prawns in Garlic Sauce, Hakka Noodles, etc are ready to be ordered.

Every Thursday, Fridays, and Saturdays, live music that plays both classical and modern Indian songs are ready to light up the spice! Enjoy them from 18.30 - 20.30 ... !

Resemble of a French Cafe, posters (those standard Eiffels, old advertisements, etc...) on the red-walls, plus the small bar and tables.

It's also an ice-cream parlour in a way. You can choose tasty ice cream in scoops, or choose "Confetti" -- scoops of ice cream in different colours with waffers served in a really large glass, you just have to eat 'em together -- a romantic way in sharing a "large-cup" of ice-cream for two :)

They serve wine as well and the crepes are great (very French!) and they also have escargots in the Menu. The music is overall just okay.... but it's more to the ambiance and the feeling that somehow a small place could be "that romantic" ...

Circa is really a nice place to hang-out. It's cozy and I love how all the wall, floor and everything there seemed to be all in a deep-wine-coloured-red. Plus: good music!

You can choose a table with large arm-chairs or to sit by the bar. The best thing when you come here with bunch of friends is to sit (or sleep ? :) ... in bed. Yes, they provide beds on the lounge's cornerside overviewing the Jakarta's citylights, which you can see through the glass-wall.

A heavy rain was showering Jakarta when I came there. Beautiful combination of dimming citylights outside and warm conversation with friends over snacks and nice drinks..