nateniale's travels

celebrate vesak day in borobudur it was an interesting and unforgettable experience the temple was impressive in the afternoon but amidst the bright full moon with 1000 paper lanterns released, it was magical

candi prambanan or candi rara jonggrang a 9th century hindu temple in central java

hopscotch spotted in yogyakarta did you play this when you were young?

Planning a trip to Borobudur on Vesak Day next year - yes 11 months in advance! It has been in our travel list for awhile, and will make it happen next year! Vesak Day is observed by Buddhist all around the world to celebrate the birth, enlightenment and death of Buddha. There are some photos taken on Vesak Day this year in Borobudur, plus many others all around the world in Vesak Day 2011 in The Boston . { Image is by Stuck in Customs , found here }

I was in Bali, Indonesia in 2009 , and my favourite place in the island was not the famous beaches - rather it was Ubud, a small town in the middle of the island (well, not really in the middle, but it was a town with no beaches in sight). One of the places to visit is the Ubud Monkey Forest . The area lived up to its name - it was a forest full of monkeys! There were times when I stood motionless due to the monkeys all around me - no, not in awe but rather in fear. But when I was sure that they would not bother me and were doing their own activities, I enjoyed watching them - caring for their babies, diving into a small little pond, eating nuts and bananas, "grooming" another monkey and even drinking from a water bottle! Keep monkeying! - nateniale -  { Click here for other posts on my Bali trip in 2009 and a list of my travelogues }

"Another suburb in Singapore" - That is what they call Bintan Resorts which is a section in Bintan Island in Indonesia. That was one of the reason why I had been reluctant to go to Bintan after more than 5 years in Singapore, although it was just a 45-minute ferry ride away. When we suddenly found ourselves free one of the weekends in between many hectic weeks, we decided to plan a 3-day getaway in Bintan. (Well, it was mainly because all the flights to elsewhere were expensive at such short notice!) There are various resorts to choose from in Bintan, but we decided to go for Nirwana Gardens and spent three days of doing nothing! We walked around the beach, had long coffee breaks in between, and lie down by the swimming pool reading under the sun. There were flowers and greenery throughout the resort, and even a small area with various exotic animals. Apparently, the animals were confiscated by the custom. For those looking for more things to do, there are sea sports, e...

I had two very different beach holiday over the past two months.  The first was a drive up from Singapore to Peninsular Malaysia's East Coast. We managed to cover quite a distance and visited a few small towns within three days. And last weekend, we went to Bintan Resort which was less than an hour ferry ride from Singapore. It is in the Indonesian Bintan Island but mainly targeted for Singapore tourist. We basically did nothing but walked around the beach and soaked in the sun.  Both had been interesting in its own ways, and I promise that I'll write about both soon! { Click here for a list of my travelogues }

{ July 2009 - Bali, Indonesia } We planned our Bali trip around spending times in 3 main cities - Sanur, Ubud and then Seminyak. We spent the first day in Sanur, drove up North to Ubud on the second day , spent our whole third day in Ubud and our last day in Seminyak. Day 4 (21 July) - Seminyak and back to Singapore We spent the night in Seminyak , after travelling from Ubud at night. After breakfast, we started walking along Jalan Raya Seminyak which is a congested and crowded road, with lots of pollution all around. There are rows of shophouses along the road, and it was definitely not probably at around the same price as Singapore. So, we just walked along the road window shopping, while trying to hold our breath when walking along the road. After awhile, we just couldn't stand the smell any longer, and escaped into a (very western looking) cafe for drinks and lunch. The menu were full of western food but we managed to order a relatively Indonesian looking dish. Af...

{ July 2009 - Bali, Indonesia } After enjoying the sun, sea and sand in Sanur, and the nature and culture around Ubud in the past two days , we were ready to enjoy more of Ubud . Day 3 (20 July) - Ubud We started the day, bright and early, and walked towards the Ubud Monkey Forest . It is a natural reserve, with temples and lots and lots of monkeys! The area was in a forest and so there were lots of trees all around. We spent some time in the sanctuary - watching and trying to avoid the monkeys, visiting Pura Dalem Agung (a Hindu temple), and enjoying the nature (amidst the people around us). After that we walked towards Penastanan, following the suggested walk in Lonely Planet. It was a great change walking along the roads and houses where the locals actually lived.   When we reached Penastanan, we were greeted with endless views of paddy fields. Too bad the paddy fields weren't on terraces - else the view would have been even better. We con...

{ July 2009 - Bali, Indonesia } We went to Bali, Indonesia for four days in July 2009. While we, or rather, I am not a "beach" person, we thought that a short trip to Bali would be great pick-me-up from the daily work life. After doing countless research , we decided to spend our time between Sanur (quiet "family" beach), Ubud (the cultural centre of Bali) and Seminyak (the party and shopping central - after Kuta, that is). Day 1 (18 July) - Singapore to Sanur, via Denpasar Our flight landed in Denpasar around noon, and we went straight to Sanur. After resting for a short while in our hotel, we walked out to search for lunch and the beach. Lunch was a simple Nasi Campur, which literally means mixed rice. It has rice, noodles, eggs, vegetables and satay sticks (grilled meat on satay). We saw some interesting Balinese architecture in the houses we passed in search of the beach. And here is a lone "leaf-less" coconut tree in someone's garden....