Central-East Java: The Bubbling Sikidang Crater

I've told you I had enough of temple visiting but when in Indonesia, they are just everywhere, part of its history, they are either small or big, Buddha or Hindu, ruptured or restored.

So, when Pak Mur (my driver to Dieng) asked where is the next destination after Candi Arjuna Complex, I quickly told him I had enough of temple visiting and need to go to other places besides temple. Other temple like Candi Bima around Dieng I just looked from inside the moving car.

When you have too much of some thing, it doesn't thrills you anymore and you get bored easily. Or is it just me? I need some other thing to make this trip worth the Rp 250,000 car rental!

And this next destination was exactly the place worth the Rp 250,000 I paid for car rental (with driver), the waking up at 4am and driving all the way from Jogja for 5hours. It's Kawah Sikidang!

Trip to Dieng was a spontaneous decision I made, it didn't even in my list, so I had so little info about places I'd be going and clueless how they would look like. 

Named 'kawah' (crater), I imagined Kawah Sikidang to look like crater of Tangkuban Perahu or Mt Bromo at least, but instead, nothing resembles those craters. It's totally different and I was blown away by its sight!


Does this looks like crater to you?

No?!
You don't think so?
Yeah, me too.


Ok, let's go a little closer.

More closer.

No, I guess it's best to zoom out the photo.

Can you see?

Maybe more zoom out.

Yes, that it is.

Guys, it's bubbling!
Should I run?
NOTTTTTT YETTTTT





My jaw dropped and I was astounded by the view. Subhanallah was the only word I could uttered.

People are free to roam around this crater. Yeah, I know, it doesn't look like crater you and I imagined it is. Since it has no rim, it looks just like a barren land. But trust me, the land that those people and I was stepping on was a crater and there's still volcano activity underneath it. At its peak pressure, it will erupt and form another crater. That's why you could see the smoke around (or I would rather call it fume).

Kawah Sikidang is the largest crater in Dieng and most popular than others for its easy access and facilities. It is known for always on the move releasing its gas at various points and hence it is named after 'kidang' - a deer in Javanese language. 


Across the fence is the former crater before it 'jump' to other place



This place might be the next crater hole, it was smoking at my feet!

The similarities of volcanoes is the gas smell. I must tell you the sulphur smell here was very distinct. The moment I opened the car door, the pungent gas rushed into my nose (and straight to my lungs).

The Safety & Health person in me wondered how much is the PEL (Permissible Exposure Limit) Indonesian government set before alarming visitors to avoid this area.

People here didn't seem to border about the smell. Me?! I didn't hesitate to take when a man handed me a dust mask that he sells for Rp 2,500 although it didn't help much. Because afterall, it was a dust mask, not a gas mask! 

For many of us, we concern about the sulphur to our health, but for some people here that is their source of income to stay living. Risking their health just to make ends meet. 

  
The lady was selling sulphur chunk and brimstone from the mine, that is believed can beautify skin. A perfect souvenir from Kawah Sikidang.


Apart from volcano products, you could also buy local product especially crop from farmers here outside of Kawah Sikidang main entrance.



I was tempted to buy these potatoes. It's the main product from Dieng. 



So whenever things don't go your way, don't regret because you might be surprise to what it would lead you to. I might miss all these if I follow my itinerary. Sometimes it worth doing thing spontaneously. The least is you expect, the most it gives to you. So, don't forget to stretch your journey to Dieng Plateau when you in Jogja and witness this spectacular creation of the universe, Kawah Sikidang.
   


P/S: According to Taufik, my CS friend in Jogja whom I met in KL recently, it's not advisable to go to Dieng now as CO2 gas emission from Kawah Timbang is at alert level.

@travelleranatomy.blogspot.com

Puisi Kitab Cinta

Ini adalah senaskhah kesedihan yang aku kirimkan melalui jiwaku yang dipenuhi dukacita kepada sebuah jiwa yang lain.
Sesungguhnya kau telah berhasil menghancurkan belengguku dan meraih kemerdekaan

Sudah bertahun aku mengikat tali cintaku tanpa makna
Sudah bertahun malamku berlalu menunggumu, Maha Pencipta di dalam persembunyianku yang ditemani keangkuhan dunia
Kau juga adalah penyembuh bagi semua yang salah pada diriku
Namun saat ini, Kau juga adalah penyakitku
Kau seperti mahkota yang dibuat untukku tetapi menghiasi insan lain

Kau adalah syurga, aku yakini itu namun aku tidak menemukan kunci untuk membuka gerbangnya
Kau ibarat seperti seorang pencuri yang sedang bergembira dengan apa yang dicurinya
Kau mencuri segala jiwa dan cinta yang ada
Jalan cinta sejati hanya dapat ditempuhi oleh mereka yang siap untuk melupakan diri mereka
Demi cinta, kesetiaan harus dibayar dengan darah dari jantung kita, dari ketenangan jiwa kita
Jikalau tidak, cinta kita tidak bererti apa-apa maka biarkanlah cinta kita menjadi pelindung rahsia-rahsia kita
Biarkan kesengsaraan yang dibawa oleh cinta membelah jiwa

Marilah kita berjalan menuju kepadaNya, mengadap dan bersujud
Memalingkan wajah kepadaNya, memberikan segala jiwa kepadaNya dengan membawa cinta sejati yang tidak akan pernah mati kerana cinta buatNya akan kekal abadi



Tak tertampung perasaan ini jika puisi seindah ini dikirim oleh orang yang diharapkan cintanya. Terlalu indah hingga bisa buat mata saya bergenang dan hati berombak kuat. Surutnya tidak tahu bila.

Ada satu perasaan yang tak boleh saya jelaskan bagaimana saya sangat terhubung dengan bicara Bahasa Indonesia, ada sesuatu yang menjadikan saya pegun tatkala mendengar ia dituturkan. Mungkin juga kerna usul saya di sana, mungkin itu menyumbang. Mungkin juga kerna ia kedengaran sangat klasik, sangat halus, sangat berirama, sangat tersirat, menjadikan saya selalu ingin mendengarnya. Atau mungkin kerna memang sudah terbit minat terhadap bahasa klasik, di umur 9 tahun saya sudah membaca Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa tanpa dipaksa. Teater dan wayang gambar Puteri Gunung Ledang saya tidak jemu menonton berulang kali. 

Tiada yang salah kata Lisa, jika masyarakat Indonesia ingin kedengaran puitis, bahasanya lebih mirip ke Bahasa Melayu cuma diselitkan sedikit Bahasa Indonesianya. Lihat saja lirik-lirik lagu Indonesia, banyak condong ke Bahasa Melayu, itulah antara sebab kita mudah menerimanya. Bahasa dalam lirik itu berbeza daripada bahasa di bahan bacaan atau percakapan harian. Cuba diamati semula, kurang Bahasa Indonesianya di dalam lirik.       

Puisi di atas adalah daripada Kitab Cinta, gabungan cerita antara Malaysia dan Indonesia. Tidak pasti milik siapa nukilan ini tapi sungguh dalam maksudnya, sampai tepat ke dalam hati, jika difahami. Tergiang-ngiang di kepala memaksa saya kongsinya disini sama seperti lagu Ungu yang saya dengar di Jogja ketika dulu. Kini, lagu itu sudah sampai ke Malaysia dan saya masih suka mendengarnya. Malaysia dan Indonesia mempunyai banyak persamaan membuatkan saya ingin kembali ke sana lagi, terutamanya ke Tanah Jawa.

The Love For Delicious

Delicious, a cafe with western and fusion food selection is place where I usually spend the afternoon or evening together with my girlfriends. The ambiance of the cafe is enough to make us stay for many hours eating their scrumptious meals, chatting up, people watching, drinking away, look at the menu again, order dessert, order more drinks and more chatting :) 

I fell in love with the place on the very first visit. The crave for somehing sweet aka dessert after heavy meal of Banana Leaf Rice at Nirwana Maju had lead me, Ayun and Sayra to come to the cafe that looked very cosy from the outside requesting table for 3.


After the menu was handed to us by a more-than-average looking waiter *ahem, we were browsing each page guessing how they would taste. They have long list of drinks, starter, main dish and dessert. Undecided, we looked around to find inspiration from other table's foods. Every plate on the tables looked good and delicious. Still, neither of us succesfully made up our mind what to order and with the intention not to spoil the already good impresssion of Delicious by ordering something not nice, we called up the same waiter *on purpose, he's good looking!* for recommendation. 


The waiter helpfully explained each drink to us and only after few minutes he finally got something to scribble on his order pad :'). He was quick to recommend Chocolate Brownie (with chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream) as dessert to us, claiming it was the best dessert in the house. We trusted his words and agreed to share one serving together.   

The waiter was right! The brownie tasted perfectly, rich in flavour!
We went ohhh-ing, ahhh-ing when the warm brownie with its combo entered our mouths. Handsome waiter never lies :') 


The tasteful dessert we had was not enough to evaluate Delicious (although we already liked the place so much) so we made a deal to return for other dishes some day. And it was not too long before we returned to Delicious (Bangsar Village II branch particularly) for birthday celebration, treating visiting friends from out of town, Sunday evening hangout etc.

We even met the iron lady, Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz!

Delicious had clearly become our new favourite place for any occasion since then. And the same chocolate brownie had become the official dessert. I can't stop spreading words to everyone I met how wonderful the chocolate brownie tasted. So, if u haven't been to Delicious and feel like having to spend your time with love one, go and order yourselves the Chocolate Brownie and take your time indulging it. You'll understand what I meant :)


So last two weeks, when Dian asked whether I'd be available after work for Delicious Appreciation Dinner, I immediately said yes. Oh, how could I resist the invitation?! It's DELICIOUS!!!

Me & Dian

The dinner was held at their Marc Residency branch at Jalan Pinang. The place have slightly different interior than my usual Bangsar branch, but with the same concept - cosy and condusive for eating.   

That night, guests were treated with food other than what Delicious put in their menu but were prepared by the same chef. How did I know? I got the chance to talk to the chef :') It was a special occasion, so he prepared special food for everyone that night. 

The event got livelier after 7.30pm when every corner and nook was occupied by guests.

We were introduced to the new COE of Delicious Group, Michael Saxon.

He also presented an Illy's coffee maker to the lucky guest. Now, all coffee in Delicious are made from Illy coffee, a reputable brand of coffee from Italy. So, don't regret paying more for coffee here, they're the best one!


After that, the guests were entertained by Malaysian Dreamgirls. I like watching live performance let alone these powerful voice of the trio. Simply entertaining and stunning.

So now, in total Delicious has 5 outlets in KL (One Utama, Bangsar Village II, Dua Residency, Marc Residency and Mid Valley) and people in northern region can also get the taste of Delicious at their newly open branch at Strait Quay, Penang. 


The only branch that serve steak is the one at Dua Residency, Jalan Tun Razak. And since me, Sayra and Hana (and Ikhlas) managed to squeeze some time out from busy work schedule, last weekend saw us lunching at Dua Residency - to try their steak!

For starter, we had Red Velvet Cupcake that came with generous cheese frosting instead of soup or salad :') Sweet tooth we are!
My favourite drink here is Hot Honey Lemon.

Then only the Caesar Salad came with other dishes.

Wait! Weren't we came for their steak?!



It came a little bit later and this was what been presented to us - Delicious' Tenderloin Steak. Oh yummmm......

Ahhh, my mouth watering when I look at these picture. Do you?


The earlier Red Velvet Cupcake didn't count as a dessert, so we ordered Black Forest In a Glass to complete the course :)

When you're with great friends and great foods, time flies so swiftly. We didn't realize we spent 5 hours *I've told ya* just sitting there talking and eating :') It brings us more closer each day. Thanks Delicious for having such a wonderful place!
  


@travelleranatomy.blogspot.com