Serviam, to serve, to love with all our heart!

Hi guys!!
I'd like to share my experience on International Ursuline Youth Day (IUYD) 2015.

This event was held in Regina Pacis Surakarta in the first week of September. And I wasn't alone, I was with my friends and teachers. There were 29 other students from my school joining this event.

So we arrived at Balapan Solo station after a long tiring 8 hours journey. We were greeted by the service team from Regina Pacis Surakarta. And what makes me really happy was.......to my surprise, there was a Japanese school joining this event! My weeaboo heart activated right away lol.

So other than that Japanese school, there was also school from Taiwan, Thailand, and Ursuline schools from all over Indonesia.

On the first day, my friends encouraged me to talk to the Japanese students. And so I just introduced myself and my friends in front of them and I just went on with my mechakucha Japanese skills and they looked....really confused. And they were really silent. It seemed like they didn't want to talk to us T^T Okay maybe in their mind, it was like "who in the world are these freaks" lol.

In this event, all the participants were divided to some groups. I was in one group with 2 students from St. Maria Jakarta, a student from St. Ursula BSD and a student from St. Ursula Ende. And luckily they were quite talkative so we got along at that moment we met lol. And to my surprise (again), one of them loves anime, one of them loves J-dramas and one of them just....loves Japan? And they were planning to get that Monbu scholarships just like me. Wow I was so lucky to meet such (weeaboo) friends in my group lol ^_^

On the second day, my group and some other groups were visited by Thalassemia patients. Thalassemia is a blood disorder and the bearers of Thalassemia should go to the hospitals and get some blood like every 2 or 3 months. It's a very sad situation but they manage to live their lives normally.

On the third day, we went to visit a village where there are a family that works as brick maker. We were explained about how to make the bricks and some of us try to make the bricks. Their lifestyle is so simple but they are living happily.

After those visits, we were asked to do a presentation in front of all the participants in English (in my case, it's broken Engrish not English TT--TT). Sorry to say but the presentation session was getting very boring. I sat in front of the Japanese students. My schoolmate who were sitting beside me actually had took a liking to one of the students and he told me to try talking to her and asked her if she liked anime or not.

I hesitated at first but........to my surprise (again and again), she likes anime lol. Her name is Yuka. And then my schoolmate and I started to tell the titles of animes we had watched and we sang some anisongs. And guess what, she likes Love Live just like my schoolmate. I was surprised that she was surprised when my schoolmate and I knew so many things about Japan and anime. Like...she was surprised when I told her I knew Morning Musume (they are quite famous worldwide, aren't they?) and Ore Monogatari. Maybe she thought that we foreigners only knew Naruto and Dragon Ball and Doraemon and so on.....

On the fourth day, there was another presentation session again and once again, we talked to Yuka about anime. It was really exciting and I was quite happy to have got a Japanese friend and practiced my broken Japanese.

And on the last night of IUYD, there was a cultural night event. And the Japanese students were really cute dressing in yukata.... And Yuka asked me to take a photo together with her. Of course I took a photo too! I was wearing kebaya. My school performed Betawi dance since we're from Jakarta.

And so, on the last day of IUYD, Yuka gave me a clear file holder and a very cute letter and asked me for a hug. Luckily I also got her e-mail address (and we are still exchanging e-mail by now ^_^) Like I knew, Japanese girls are so so so cute but I didn't know that things like this would happen in my real life. I felt like I could die from cuteness that day lol. And in the evening before I went back, my schoolmate and I spent our time talking to Yuka and her schoolmate a lot. And as we were going to the station by the bus, Yuka sent us off by waving her hands and standing on a higher place(?) --- cuteness overload again.

Overall, IUYD was a memorable experience for me and sorry for turning this post into such a weeaboo post lol.

Excuse my broken English ^_^

Taking the JLPT Exam

Soo JLPT is the abbreviation of Japanese Language Proficiency Test, or in Japanese, JLPT is called Nihongo Nouryoku Shiken (Nouken). In Indonesia, it is held 2 times in a year, usually on July and December. There are 5 levels, from N5 to N1 (N5 is the lowest level while N1 is the highest).

I have been studying Japanese since 1,5 years ago and have passed the Chuukyuu level (like..middle level?) in the Japanese course where I studied at. I decided to take N4 which I thought was okay for people who can speak Japanese in Chuukyuu level. 

I studied from an N4 book (which I think is officially released by the JLPT team) and from the books in the Japan Foundation's library--sadly I couldn't borrow those books because I'm not a member of the library, and to save time, I only read the vocabulary section :(

Finally the day of the exam had arrived! The exam was held in a school. A lot of people was taking the exam.

The first section of the exam was vocabulary and kanji. I felt that it was really easy. That time, I thought that if I knew the exam was this easy, I wouldn't study at all. The vocabulary and kanji was really easy compared to what I was trying hard to memorize. I was confident that I would definitely pass this exam with a great score.

The second section was grammar and reading comprehension. Well, I didn't study grammar at all because I thought that it wouldn't be too different from what I studied at the course. But when I looked at those question...God, I didn't even know what I was answering. My mind went crazy. Even though it was actually simple particles, but somehow I just couldn't find the right answers. Gahh! Finally I moved on to the reading comprehension questions. Then I was like....akskdjdhdjdkahsh y the passages r fckin long????!! N the questions r all traps!! Y the passages on the book I studied isnt this long and isnt this difficult to understand?!!.. And then suddenly the observer of our exam said that only 15 minutes left to do the exam. All of my confidence broke down.... I didn't have enough time to read all those long passages so I just picked one of the choices randomly. I really regrets that I only focused on studying vocabulary. I should have study the grammar and reading comprehension part from the books in Japan Foundation's library too, really ;;--;;

The last section was listening. The questions were only played once and luckily, they were quite easy.. But my mind had went mad from earlier, so I didn't really concentrate answering those listening questions. I hope that I choosed the right answers though..

That was my somehow-sad-experience on taking JLPT exam, please excuse my engrish :3

UPDATE--

On Aug 27, the results of JLPT were announced..........thank God, I passed the exam!!

My total score is 136 out of 180 XD

Froreo!

So today, I was craving for something sweet and luckily, I found this pancake mix at home. But.. I'm bored of pancakes already so I decided to make froreo (deep-fried oreo). The first time I saw froreo was on the Pizz* H*t's ad in a Transjakarta bus. Since I didn't have the time to eat at Pizza Hut, so I looked for the recipe on the internet.

It's really simple actually. We just need to make the pancake batter according to the instructions, then add some oreos into the batter and deep-fry it and it's done! Don't forget to chill the oreos first in the refrigerator before making those froreos.

Simple ingredients, easy to make, really addicting and the best thing is it's oreo! Things never go wrong with oreo XD

Have fun at making froreos! :3

Pengalaman Unik (dan tidak) di Korsel!

Hai hai! Jadi setelah sekian lama kunjungan saya ke Korsel, akhirnya saya memutuskan untuk menulis pengalaman-pengalaman yang saya alami selama berada di sana. Karena saya pergi ke sana sekitar 2 tahun yang lalu, tentu saya tidak ingat benar apa yang saya alami, dan itinerary yang saya buat pun menghilang, jadi......ya sudahlah, saya akan menulis apa yang saya ingat saja T^T

Jadi, sekitar tahun 2011-2013, itu benar-benar masa saya gila dengan Korean pop alias K-pop. Saya suka sekali dengan boyband Korea yang bernama 2PM. Pada tahun 2012, saya sudah amat teramat ngebet untuk pergi ke Korea. Saya pun mencari tiket ke Korea dan saya mengecek di website Garuda, tiket untuk Juni 2013............CUMA USD375!! Saya pikir, kapan lagi tiket ke Korea semurah ini. Jadi langsung lah saya menangis dan merengek ke mama saya untuk pergi ke Korea. Akhirnya mama pun terbuai dengan air mata buaya saya dan jadilah saya, papa saya, dan mama saya berangkat ke Korea. Yeyy! (Adik kembar saya tidak ikut karena mereka lebih memilih untuk main game di rumah...)

Beberapa minggu sebelum pergi ke Korea pun saya mengadakan persiapan. Browsing objek-objek wisata terkenal di tripadvisor <- bener-bener website penyelamat, mencari letak-letak tempat yang berhubungan dengan K-pop, booking hostel murah di agoda, sampai mendatangi kantor KTO di dekat Semanggi untuk minta brosur wisata Korea. Buku yang diberi KTO ini sangat berguna loh, ada peta subwaynya juga yang sangat membantu selama perjalanan di Korea.

Ini penampakan e-ticketnya, sekarang mana dapet harga segini? Waktu itu dollar juga belum setinggi sekarang ^-^

Ini dia hal-hal yang saya tidak bisa lupakan selama di Korea, tidak semuanya diceritakan secara kronologis karena saya lupa :"v

1. Hampir Ditipu di Bandara

Begitu sampai di Bandara Internasional Incheon, kesialan sudah hampir menimpa saya. Jadi, waktu saya dan papa mama saya keluar dari bandara, saya ditawari taxi oleh seorang pria. Saya pikir kita memang perlu taxi, maka saya meng-iyakan dan kemudian kita mengikuti pria itu. Pria itu sangat ramah, ia bertanya-tanya tentang dari mana kita berasal, kita mau ke mana (kita mau ke hostel kita di daerah Dongmyo), lalu ia juga bercerita kalau di Korea sekarang sedang panas dan sebagainya. Bahasa Inggrisnya memang tidak terlalu bagus. Saya dan papa mama saya mengira kalau kita akan berjalan keluar dari Bandara. Loh, kok kita malah turun ke basement naik lift? Gak salah? Lalu pria itu meminta kita menunggu sebentar, dan kemudian ia datang dengan membawa sebuah mobil....mobil apa saya tidak tahu karena memang saya buta mobil. Ia meminta kami masuk. Karena firasat tidak enak, saya bertanya, "to Dongmyo how much?" Dia malah mengira saya bertanya berapa lama sampai ke sana. Saya bilang, "how much is the price?" Dia kembali berpura-pura tidak mengerti. Akhirnya saya tanya, "eolmayeyo?" - berapa harganya. Baru lah dia jawab.. "sib man won". 100,000 WON??! Saya shock seketika dan kemudian langsung bilang ke dia, "too expensive!!" Saya dan papa mama saya pun langsung kabur naik lift lagi ke atas lalu keluar bandara. Ternyata di luar bandara ada bus. Sebelumnya, saya sudah browsing juga transportasi menuju hostel tempat kita menginap dan memang bisa naik bus 6002. Jadi lah kami naik bus dan turun di halte Dongmyo. Saya lupa harganya berapa, kalau tidak salah sih 10,000 Won. Bedanya jauh banget kan??

2. Ditolong orang Korea

Masih nyambung dengan cerita tadi, sampai-sampai di Dongmyo, saya bingung jalannya ke mana! Kalau menurut info di web hostelnya sih, dari exit 12 Sinseoldong station tinggal lurus terus. Nah, mulai lah kita cari-cari exitnya. Exit subwaynya memang banyak, cuma KOK GA ADA NOMOR 12?? Pusing 7 keliling, akhirnya saya menelpon hostel tersebut Blackberry papa saya roaming di sana hohoho. Saya tanya, "I'm at Dongmyo station, where is Mi House?" Oh iyaa, Mi House itu nama hostel tempat kita menginap. Orang hostelnya jawab, "you go straight from Sinseoldong exit 12." Lahhh?! Justru itu kan saya tidak ketemu exitnya makanya nelpon. Saya tanya-tanya lagi tetapi tetap saja tidak menemukan jawaban. Akhirnya saya tutup teleponnya. Orang asing bertiga di tengah kota Seoul nyasar bawa-bawa koper. Mungkin orang Korea bingung melihat kita. Kita pun memutuskan untuk bertanya ke orang. Tapi kan orang Korea ga bisa Bahasa Inggris??, kita berpikir begitu. Lalu ada 2 orang businessman yang terlihat ganteng dan mapan lewat, langsung saja kita tanya, "Excuse me. Do you know where is Mi House?" Mereka pun bingung, tetapi mereka tetap membantu kita dengan ramah. Salah 1 buka peta di HP Samsungnya dan kemudian ia menunjuk ke gedung bertuliskan Mi House. Waktu itu saya dan papa mama saya masih memakai blackberry hiks. Ternyata memang Mi-House ini letaknya dekat dan sebenarnya ada tulisan di gedungnya, namun kita tidak melihatnya. Kita berterima kasih kepada mereka lalu berjalan menuju Mi House. Di jalan, kami bertemu seorang pria. "Do you want to go to Mi House?", tanyanya. Saya mengiyakan. Tiba-tiba dia membawa koper saya dan mengantar kami ke sana. Ya bagaimana tidak, ternyata dia memang staff hostelnya.. 

Ini bukan hanya pengalaman saya satu-satunya ditolong orang Korea. Pada waktu saya di Hongdae, saya pun dibantu. Saya kebingungan saat ingin menuju Trick Eye Museum. Karena di Hongdae anak muda semua, jadi kita bertanya ke 2 perempuan muda yang cantik dan gahoels dan mereka tidak bisa berbahasa Inggris. "Excuse me, do you know where is Trick Eye Museum?", tanya saya. Mereka tampak kebingungan, saya tanya lagi, "Trick Eye Museum eodiyeyo?" - di mana, baru mereka ngeh dan salah satu membuka GPS di Samsung mereka, lalu berkata " Ttarajuseyo!" - Ayo ikuti! Kita pun diantar ke depan Trick Eye Museum dan langsung berterima kasih.

Seperti ini lah Trick Eye Museum di Hongdae. Koleksinya banyak dan unik-unik.

Ada lagi pengalaman papa mama saya ditolong orang Korea. Jadi, ketika kita berada di Busan, saya tidur sedangkan papa dan mama saya keluar malam-malam. Mereka menyasar dan bertanya kepada orang lokal. Mereka pun diantar ke hotel.

Orang Korea sungguh sangat ramah dalam menyambut turis. Tiga kali bertanya kepada orang lokal, tiga kali kita dibantu orang lokal. Meskipun mereka kurang bisa berbahasa Inggris, mereka tetap mau membantu para turis dengan ramah, sampai-sampai mengantar kita untuk sampai ke tempat tujuan kita.

3. K-pop!

Ini dia tujuan utama saya pergi ke Korea. K-pop. Sejujurnya saya paling nge-hype dengan K-pop pada tahun 2012 karena awal 2013, saya mulai berpindah haluan ke anime.. Sewaktu saya ke Korea, 2PM baru saja merilis album "Grown" dan sedang mengadakan konser. Saya tidak menonton konsernya karena tidak mengetahui bagaimana cara membeli tiketnya..hiks. Tetapi tentu saja, di Korea, saya tetap mengunjungi tempat-tempat yang berhubungan dengan 2PM ^-^

- JYP Entertainment Office

Ini dia tempat yang wajib dikunjungi oleh para penggemar artis JYP, seperti 2PM, 2AM, miss A, JJ Project waktu itu belum ada GOT7 :p , dll dll. Untuk menuju ke tempat ini, turun di Apgujeong Rodeo Station, lalu saya berjalan mengikuti orang di depan yang membawa pernak pernik 2PM hehehe. Saya mengunjungi gedung JYPE ini sewaktu Nichkhun dari 2PM berulang tahun, pada 24 Juni 2013. Di depan gedung JYPE sangat banyak fans menunggu di depan, sambil membawa koper yang berisi hadiah untuk Nichkhun. Di sebrang gedung ini, terdapat Dunkin Donuts. Dunkin Donutsnya pun berbeda karena dihiasi dengan tanda tangan dan foto-foto dari artis JYPE dan Cube Entertainment. Hoki punya hoki, ketika saya menunggu di depan gedung JYPE, Jia dari miss A lewat!! Wooo, fans-fans yang menunggu langsung berteriak. Beberapa saat kemudian, lewat lah Junior dari JJ Project (sekarang GOT7). Para fans langsung menyerbunya dan meminta tanda tangan, Junior pun sambil berjalan sambil tanda tangan. Karena Jia dan Junior masuknya sangat cepat, saya tidak sempat mengambil foto. Karena sampai kira-kira jam 12 Nichkhun masih belum kunjung datang, saya pun meninggalkan gedung JYPE karena kasihan dengan papa mama saya.. Sialnya, pada malam itu, Nichkhun ternyata datang ke gedung JYPE lalu mem-post foto di Twitternya :")

Di depan gedung JYPE

- Apgujeong Rodeo Station

Sewaktu saya berada di Korea, di Apgujeong Rodeo Station ini sedang ada pameran G Star Zone yang bertema 2PM. Pameran ini bertujuan untuk mencari dana untuk.......untuk apa saya lupa. Jadi saya sekalian berfoto di sini sebelum menuju ke gedung JYPE.

Selain patung-patung(?) di atas, terdapat juga komputer interaktif. Ada juga bintang-bintang di mana tercetak telapak tangan anggota 2PM. Sayangnya foto-foto telapak tangan tersebut terdapat di HP saya yang lama, yang mana data fotonya sudah hilang semua :")

- Myeongdong Underground Shopping Mall

Nah, di sini adalah tempat untuk berbelanja barang K-pop! Album dan goodies K-pop sangat banyak tersedia di sini. Di sini saya membeli album 2PM - Grown versi B dan B1A4 - What's Going On titipan teman saya. Tentu saja harganya lumayan murah dibandingkan album yang dijual oleh online shop di Indonesia. Saya juga membeli clear file bergambar member JYJ.

- Nami Island & Petite France

Dua tempat ini berada di daerah yang sama, yaitu Gapyeong (dari Seoul naik subway lalu lanjut naik shuttle bus menuju dermaga Nami Island lalu naik ferry). Seperti yang semua orang sudah tahu, Nami Island adalah tempat shooting drama Korea yang sudah mendunia, Winter Sonata. Nami Island diibaratkan seperti negara sendiri. Jadi untuk masuk ke Nami Island, kita harus melewati "imigrasi" diberi "visa".

Ferry menuju Nami Island

Dermaga Nami Island 

Patung Winter Sonata 

Dari dermaga Nami Island, kita kembali naik bus shuttle menuju Petite France. Sesampainya di Petite France...ternyata Petite France tutup pada sore hari. Sewaktu saya sampai, 15 menit lagi tempat tersebut akan ditutup namun untungnya saya diperbolehkan masuk. Saya sangat ingin ke tempat ini karena tempat ini merupakan lokasi shooting Running Man episode ke-sekian, saat Nichkhun dan Taecyeon dari 2PM menjadi tamunya. Memang sudah sangat sepi di dalam, walaupun masih ada beberapa orang. Saya sendiri jauh lebih suka Petite France daripada Nami Island. Petite France dipenuhi dengan gedung-gedung berarsitektur Eropa dan terlihat seperti negri dongeng, karena memang tema dari tempat ini adalah dongeng "The Little Prince". Oh ya, salah satu ruangan di Petite France juga digunakan sebagai tempat shooting drama Beethoven Virus.

- Busan

Mengapa saya ke Busan? Karena merupakan kampungnya Wooyoung dari 2PM! Tadinya saya juga ingin ke Daegu, kampugnnya Jun K. dari 2PM, namun karena pariwisata di sana tampaknya kurang maju, saya tidak jadi ke sana. Busan sendiri terkenal akan laut dan pelabuhannya. Dari Seoul ke Busan, saya naik bus dari Seoul Express Bus Terminal lalu turun di terminal Busan dan naik bus menuju halte Fish Market (Jalgachi Sijang).

Haeundae Beach, katanya Wooyoung suka ke sini dulu '-'

Taejongdae, mirip-mirip Uluwatu

// sebenarnya sih boleh dibilang, Bali lebih bagus //

4. Dakgalbi

Karena saya sangat cinta dengan ayam, maka makanan favorit saya selama di Korea adalah..Dakgalbi! Seriusan, saya suka banget sama Dakgalbi ini. Ayam dimasak dengan saus merah (gochujang), lalu dicampur nasi kalau mau. Ayam dan nasinya dimasak langsung di panci yang ada di atas meja kita. Yang saya paling suka itu Dakgalbi di Myeongdong, nama restorannya Yoogane. Selama di Korea, saya sampai dua kali makan di sana. Kabar baiknya, Yoogane ada cabangnya loh di Jakarta, di Citywalk Sudirman ^w^

Nasi goreng Dakgalbi di Yoogane, Myeongdong

Dakgalbi di dermaga Nami

Selain Dakgalbi, makanan yang saya sering makan selama di Korea adalah ramyeon keju merek Ottogi. Kalau yang dijual di Indonesia adalah Ottogi Cheese Ramen yang berkuah, yang saya selalu makan di Korea adalah Ottogi Cheese Ramen yang kering, yang bungkusnya seperti Pop Mie. Rasanya cukup enak menurut saya.

5. Dll

Tak lupa juga saya mengunjungi tempat-tempat terkenal ini..

Mall di depan Lotte World

Lotte World, wahana Atlantisnya paling oke, mainan indoor banyak untuk anak kecil

// kalau mau puas main di taman bermain, pergilah ke Everland //

Gwanghwamun Plaza

Cheonggyecheon Stream, enak untuk rendem kaki

Gyeongbok Palace

N Seoul Tower, gembok-gembok cinta~

// jadi keinget, di tempat ini pertama kalinya saya makan cold stone coba.. //

Teddy Bear Museum di N Seoul Tower, banyak teddy bear-teddy bear lucu ditata untuk menggambarkan peristiwa bersejarah dan berkostum seperti manusia *^* 

Sayangnya Teddy Bear Museum di N Seoul Tower ini sudah ditutup..

Insadong, shopping street yang menjual barang antik, terkenal karena es krimnya yang unik, banyak street musician pada sore dan malam hari

Dan tempat-tempat yang tidak saya foto..

Myeongdong, tempat belanja branded.

Itaewon, tempat berkumpulnya orang asing di Korea, terutama orang dari Timur Tengah.

Dongdaemun, kalau malam ada pasar malam, banyak mall-mall jual baju.

Terima kasih sudah membaca :D

Educational Trip to Bangkok and Pattaya

2.2.1 Day 1

            At 6.00 a.m., I went out of my house to go to Soekarno-Hatta Airport. I arrived at 2E terminal at 6.30 a.m. I said good bye to my mother who sent me to the airport and then I joined the tour group. There, I was given a name tag and a baggage tag by Emma. After all the students had arrived, Matthew told us our boarding gate and time. He gave us a little free time. After Jessica Claudia had given us back our own passport and boarding pass, Matthew asked us to go inside the security check point. We brought our own baggage ourselves because there was no porter. We were asked to queue in front of the check in counter to put our baggage. The check in counter staff placed a luggage tag on my bagagge and he gave me the baggage claim. But then, Yosua took the students’ entire baggage claim so that they could be collected in one place. Then, we walked together to the immigration area. I gave my passport and boarding pass to the immigration staff and he stamped my passport. After all the students had passed the immigration, we all walked to the boarding gate and waited there. Then, we went on board of the plane.

            We were given Thailand’s arrival and departure card by the stewardess. I sat at the front row while most of the students sat at the middle and back row. During the flight, I played the interactive screen in front of me and filled the arrival card. We also had lunch on the airplane.

            About 3 hours later, we arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport. We got down from the plane and walked to the terminal. We walked to the immigration and showed us our passport and arrival card. After that, we took our baggage at the baggage claim and we walked to meet our local guide. There were two local guides, Mr. Peter and Mr. Bancong. They both can speak Indonesian quite well. Then, they led us to the bus.

            My class got Mr. Bancong as our local guide. He is a friendly person. While we’re our way to the restaurant, he told us some facts and daily life of Thai. Soon, we arrived at Chan Siaw Restaurant.

            Chan Siaw is a restaurant owned by a Moslem, so all the menus there are halal. I sat at a table with my friends. Since I don’t eat seafood, I only ate chicken and eggs there. Our table didn’t finish up all the dishes because the portion was quite big. The taste of the food was okay. Then, we continued our journey to Wat Pho.

            On the bus, Mr. Bancong asked us who wanted to buy SIM cards. Many of us bought the cards, including me. The brand of the SIM card is DTAC Happy Tourist. It costs 300 Baht and includes 7-day internet package.

            A few minutes later, we arrived at Wat Pho. Mr. Bancong gave us our entrance ticket which costs 100 Baht, and then he gave us free time to went inside to see the Reclining Buddha and to take photos. We should take off our shoes before entering the Reclining Buddha and put them on the plastics. Inside, we could see a giant gold reclining Buddha statue. There were some of my friends who took photos with the monks inside. There were also 108 alms bowls inside the temple. If we donate 20 Baht to the temple, then we will be given 108 coins to fill those alms bowls. It is said that if we did this activity, it would throw away our bad luck.

            After that, Mr. Bancong called us and brought us to the 99 temples area in Wat Pho. He gave us some information about the temples there, but I couldn’t hear him clearly. At the time of our visit, there was also an event held in Wat Pho. It was like a Thai traditional performance. We watched Thais dressed in Thai traditional clothing doing their traditional dance.

            We went back to our bus and continued our journey to MBK. We were all confused why MBK was placed on the first day. Mr. Bancong gave us information about MBK while we’re on our way. Before giving us shopping time, he asked us to gather first in front of Tokyu.

            In front of Tokyu, he handed out the SIM cards we bought before. Then he told us that 2 hours later, we should gather again at that place. I walked around MBK with some of my friends. We didn’t know what to buy so we only strolled around. I found a nice and cheap black wallet so I bought it. Then, we walked to the supermarket. I bought a green tea Kit Kat ice cream. It was cheap and delicious. Then, we walked to the souvenirs area but we only looked around because we didn’t want to spend too much money on the first day.

            At the appointed time, we gathered in front of Tokyu. We went inside the bus and went to Asia Hotel to have our dinner. We had our dinner at Tivoli Coffee Shop. It was a buffet. There were a lot of delicious food but I was quite full that time so I couldn’t eat too much. The singer at Tivoli was unique because he dressed up like Elvis Presley. He also treated us nicely. After having our dinner, we celebrated Mrs. Seneng’s birthday for a moment.

            Because the day night had got quite late, we didn’t continue our trip to Asiatique. We transferred to Ibis Sathorn Hotel and checked in there. Then I went to my room with my roommate, Helga.

2.2.2 Day 2

            In the morning, we packed our baggage and put them inside the bus. Then, we had our breakfast at the hotel. We checked out of the hotel and went to the bus.

            In the bus, we had a guiding session. Salita was the first person to guide because she was the tour leader that day. A few minutes later, we arrived at Grand Palace. The bus didn’t stop right in front of it, so we must walk a bit.

            Grand Palace is a really big place. It used to be the palace where Thailand’s kings lived. Now, it’s still used for official events. It is the most popular tourist attraction in Thailand. Actually, people are not allowed to bring flags and banners to Grand Palace, as I saw many other tourist groups brought a stick with dolls attached on them as the flag’s substitute.

            It was really crowded inside Grand Palace even it was still early in the morning. I saw many tourist groups and many of them are tourists from China. We were led by Salita and Mr. Bancong inside the Grand Palace. First, we walked to Wat Phra Kaew. Mr. Bancong gave us some time to go inside to see the Emerald Buddha statue. Unfortunately, I was on my period that day so I couldn’t go in. I strolled around and took photos together with my friends.

            Mr. Bancong asked us to gather again and he led us to see the other buildings in Grand Palace. We went inside a building with a throne chair inside and another building with weapon collections inside. After that, we rest for a bit and then exited the Grand Palace.

            We walked to a pier. We took a boat at Chao Phraya River. We stopped at a point where we could feed catfish with bread. We can buy the bread for 20 Baht. It is believed that if we see a white catfish, then it will bring luck. After feeding the catfish, we visited Wat Arun.

            Wat Arun means the Temple of Dawn. We were given free time there. We could climb up the temples’ stairs, take photos and shop at the market. I took a photo then I went to the market. The market mostly sells Thai souvenirs like T-shirt, key chains or elephant miniatures. The price is really cheap. Some of the sellers can speak Indonesian. After buying T-shirts, I went to buy coconut. It costs 40 Baht. The coconut was sweet.

            After the free time ended, we went back to the pier and took the boat again to another pier. We got down from the boat and walked to our bus. Then, we transferred to Twin Tower Hotel to have our lunch.

            We had lunch at Golden Teak Restaurant at Twin Tower Hotel. It was a buffet. There were a lot of delicious foods. I ate quite a lot. After having our lunch, we celebrated the birthday of our friends, Chrisera and Maria.

            Next, we went back to the bus to continue our trip to Pattaya. On the way to Pattaya, we had another guiding session. Before we arrived, we stopped at Sriracha Tiger Zoo.

            When we arrived, we immediately walked to the crocodile show. We watched two tamers doing attractions with the crocodiles, like putting their heads on the crocodiles’ mouth. I didn’t really like the show as it was quiet boring. After watching the show, we were led by Mr. Bancong to see the crocodiles, tigers and pigs. In this zoo, there is a unique thing. The baby pigs are breastfed by a female tiger and the baby tigers are breastfed by a female pig. Unfortunately, we didn’t see that event, but I was happy because I saw the cute baby tigers.  Then, we went back to the bus.

            Soon after, we arrived at Big Bee Farm. There, we heard a presentation about the benefit of bee products. Other than honey, they also sold royal jelly and bee pollen. Because the price was quite expensive, I didn’t buy anything. They also sells soaps, foods and drinks.

            Finally, we arrived at Pattaya. We had our dinner at Savoy Seafood Restaurant. As usual, I only ate fried chicken and eggs. The fried chicken was really tasty. After dinner, we headed to Alcazar.

            Our bus stopped at the Alcazar’s parking area. No one in our group wanted to watch the show, so we all walked to Big C, a shopping mall near Alcazar. The shopping mall was small. After my friend and I bought shirts, we returned to Alcazar. We went inside Family Market and bought Pocky. There were green tea and cookies and cream Pocky which costs 18 Baht. Then, we waited until 9 p.m. At 9 p.m., the some of the Alcazar’s transgenders came out in their sexy outfits. They were really beautiful. We paid 40 Baht and we took a photo with them.

            We transferred to Mike Garden Hotel. Because my team would be on duty on the next day, so we should gather first for some briefing and evaluation. The team who was on duty that day shared their experiences and told us what we should do tomorrow. After the evaluation, I went to my room to sleep. My roommate was Celine.

2.2.3 Day 3

            It was a bad morning. The receptionists did the morning call at the wrong time. The morning call should be at 7 a.m. but they called at 6 a.m. My team and I was worried if all the students went back to sleep after they heard the morning call, so Osel and Egalia went to the receptionists and told them that the morning call should be at 7 a.m. At 7 a.m., the morning call didn’t ring, so my team approached the receptionists again but they didn't want to do the morning call again. So, my team did the morning call manually by phoning the rooms one by one.

            I had my breakfast first so I could stay at the lobby. Fortunately, all of the students and teachers were ready at the lobby on time. After putting their baggage, they had breakfast.

            After finishing breakfast, we put our baggage inside the bus and sat in the bus. Osel, as the tour leader on that day, was the first person to began the guiding session.

            About 30 minutes later, we arrived at an orchid garden near Nongnooch Village. We were given free time to take photos. There are a lot of clay works there. I also paid 100 Baht to take a photo with the tiger there.

            We went back to bus and finally arrived at Nongnooch Village. We walked to the garden and took a group photo there. Then, we walked to a stage to watch a show. The show was quite interesting. It was a show about Thai’s culture, like Thai’s traditional dance, music and Muay Thai (Thai Boxing).

            Then, we walked to the place where the elephant show would be held. Before the elephant show started, some of my friends took photos with the elephants. The elephant show was really amusing. We watched the elephants doing soccer and basketball, painting, dancing, etc. After the show ended, we had lunch at a restaurant in Nongnooch. The restaurant was crowded. The food tasted okay, but a waiter here had a bad attitude.

            After that, we went to Gems Gallery by bus. In Gems Gallery, we took a ride and we were shown the way to process gems. Then, we were brought to the gems shop. Of course the gems cost really expensive. Other than gems, they also sell soaps, lotion, beauty products, etc.  I went out of the shop and asked for a glass of Thai tea. It tasted delicious and it was free.

            When our bus had arrived, we went inside the bus and continued headed back to Bangkok. On our way, we stopped at a dry food market. At the market, I bought a pack of Nestea Thai tea and Tom Yum spices. The market sells dried durian, but I didn’t buy it there because Mr. Bancong sold the dried durian in a cheaper price (300 Baht). The market also sells Pocky for 50 Baht, which is quite expensive as it is only 18 Baht at minimarkets. A few moment later, we continued our trip to Bangkok.

            At Bangkok, we had dinner at Royal Dragon Restaurant. They served a dish of chicken wrapped in leaves, which I considered as the best dish I tasted in Thailand. Other than eating, we also saw a unique performance at this restaurant. There was a performance of a ‘flying’ waiter.

            After having a dinner, we headed to Asiatique. Asiatique is a night market on the side of Chao Phraya River. We were given time to shop here. I walked around Asiatique with my friend. We saw varieties of products being sold there. We entered NaRaYa. The NaRaYa branch in Asiatique is bigger than the other branches. I bought a bag and a wallet there and we must queue for a moment. The queue line was quite long since a lot of Chinese tourists were buying up NaRaYa products. Then, we exited NaRaYa and continued to walk around. We saw stalls selling the same soaps and aromatherapies which are sold at Gems Gallery. The price is two times cheaper at Asiatique. Other than shopping stalls, there are also many restaurant and food stalls there. Actually, I really wanted to try all the delicious-looking foods there, but unluckily, I had a sore throat that day so I couldn’t try those foods. I regretted that I didn’t take care of my health before going to Thailand. I ended up buying another shirt in Asiatique.

            After finished shopping, we transferred to Indra Regent Hotel. Mr. Bancong checked us in and then my team and I handed out the key rooms. After another evaluation, I went to my room.

2.2.4 Day Four

            It was our last day in Thailand. We had breakfast at hotel. The breakfast was better than the breakfast in Ibis Sathorn and Mike Garden. After having breakfast, I packed my baggage and then walked to Platinum.

            Platinum is a fashion mall. Each shops in Platinum offers different products. I think that Platinum is the best place to buy clothes and its accessories. Since we didn’t get much time in Platinum, I only bought a hoodie there.  

            I went back to the hotel and brought my baggage to the lobby. After all the students had gather, we put our baggage inside the bus and sat inside the bus. We headed to Crystal Suites to have our lunch.

            The dishes served at Crystal Suites were okay. After having our lunch, we took a photo group. Then, we continued our journey to Suvarnabhumi Airport.

            While we’re on our way, we said thank you to Mr. Bancong for accompanying us during our trip in Thailand. Soon after, we arrived at the airport. We must check in by ourselves. We waited in front of the check in counter for about an hour.

            After checking in, we said good bye and thank you once again to Mr. Bancong and also to Mr. Peter, who was the local guide who accompany XIPAR2 class. Then, the tour leader that day, Leony, led us to pass the security check. Next, we walked to the immigration and showed us our passport and departure card. After passing the immigration, we were given a little free time before our boarding. After looking around, I walked to the boarding gate and waited there with the others.

            At about 5 to 6 p.m., we boarded on our plane. Inside the plane, I played the interactive screen again. We had our dinner on the plane. We were also given a custom declaration card by the stewardess.

            Finally, we arrived at Soekarno Hatta Airport. We got down from the plane by stair and we took a bus to the airport terminal. We walked to the immigration and then picked our baggage. Leony asked us to gather for a while. She led a prayer and say thank you to the teachers who were accompanying us during our trip, especially to Mr. Yakub. We were allowed to go home. But, at that moment, there was a problem. Anastasia’s baggage couldn’t be found. After waiting for quite a long time, she finally found her baggage. Maybe someone mistook taking her baggage before and returned it to the conveyer belt. Then, I passed the custom check and went outside. There, my mother was waiting for me. Finally, I went home.