Hello, Cambodia..

Yeay, so this year i haven't been to anywhere. After several times postponing my trip to Cambodia, finally i took several days off to go there in last May 2015. Well, the more i'm travelling, i just realize i'm the typical who needs to take a break for myself, like twice or several times in a year maybe. Times where i could wandering alone without thinking anything about jobs, money, or listening some people who just love to criticize and much complaining ^^ i should make it routine, really. 

Since i arrived at Phnom Penh in late evening, and the city is in public holiday straight to the weekend, lots of public places were closed down. The traffic was good because it's holiday, most people in the city went back to their hometown at the small provinces. This time i learned a lot, when you go into a city, and it's public holiday, make sure you do some research before. Just in case, some places are closed.

I asked to the receptionist if there is local good food restaurant, and she told me about Romdeng. It's a restaurant where all the staff (waiters, chefs, cashiers, etc) were former street children. It's part of the Friends-International programs for marginalized children and youth. Whoa, i was surprised to find about the program where they train all the street children so the children will be able to support themselves and family, and not just roaming on the road and begging for money to the tourists. 

The location itself was quite tricky, you won't find it unless you ask people around. Located in a small alley and it's among common houses with a small signage "ROMDENG". When i came inside, i was like "WHOA". The interior did surprise me 

Interior of Romdeng. cr. streetfriends.org.

 

The pool. cr. tripadvisor.de

Someone who designed this restaurant made sure that all stuff here was vintage and gave some homey feeling. I didn't get the time to take photos. I was too surprised and spent some time to look around :) As for the taste itself, i tried their favorite, Lotus Root and Chicken Salad with Galangal Dressing. That's long ^^ It didn't taste well on my tongue because i prefer tasty and savory rather than sweet and sour, but i think it's still tasted good for some other tongues :) For the drink, i chose Mango Shake. The thing i really love from Cambodia is their shakes drink. Those all are damn superb delicious!! :) 

I tried to look some local attractions around but nothing except the pubs. Well, I'm not into pubs so i just went back to hostel and put my body on rest :)

I stayed in Phnom Penh only for one day, so for the day after, i just decided just to go into certain "touristy" places :) In one day, i actually managed to go The Killing Fields, Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, Royal Palace, Central Market, and National Museum of Cambodia. Pheww, quite a day. But still, i loved it too much when i could spend all the times only for myself :)

Will update you on the next post :)

When you have an illness patient in your family..

Yesterday was the first day my mother started her radiation in Singapore. She was diagnosed anus cancer since 2012. We've been going back and forth between Guangzhou, Jakarta, and Singapore for 2,5 years. Two weeks ago, my mother got colostomy done around her stomach, and she's still adjusting. The doctor didn't remove her cancer since the risks were much way bigger and not worth it.

 

My mother is a very clean person and it's difficult for her to accept that she no longer able to pass the stool from behind. Well, i cannot blame her. Who would not lose their appetite when you see your feces everyday and bring the pouch attached to the stomach everywhere? 

Actually my mother's case was not a difficult one to handle at first. Surgery was the first option suggested by most doctors we visited, since it's still in early stage. But my mother listened too many people, became afraid and said she wouldn't feel complete as a human being. 

My friend who's working as a nurse, once told me that eventually my mother would still get the surgery done. It's only about how long the time she took. If the surgery done 2,5 years ago, the purpose was recovery and a lot of preventative measures could be done. But now, she had to get the surgery, otherwise the stool wouldn't come out and it will lead to another infection. The latter purpose was not for recovery, but to avoid further complications and reduce the pain.

Based on the last CT and MRI, the cancer around her vagina and anus is getting bigger. It's slowly closing her anus and vagina. I don't remember how much money and treatments we spent. Because my mother didn't want surgery, so at the first 2,5 years we spent more into chemotherapy, cryosurgery, photo dynamic therapy, radio ablation, etc. Another treatment going into another treatment and more money wasted. 

Yesterday's radiation was the first day. Today is the second day. The doctor is planning 14 times radiation for 14 days. If not enough, then maybe it will extend to 16 times. I often think if my mother did surgery since the beginning, will things better now? No money wasted so much, the cancer wouldn't get any bigger, well maybe not as bad as her current condition.

My mother always listens too much to many people and always hesitates with her own family because she thought we couldn't taking care of her properly. I'm lying if I said I'm not pissed off.  

 

It's just me, my father and my sister are families around her. And now, everyone is tired...

"Have a safe trip"

"Have a safe flight"

Lately, kalimat ini sedang sering diucapkan banyak orang. Saya sendiri lebih suka menyebut "have a safe trip" daripada "have a safe flight". Musibah kan bisa terjadi dimana saja, bukan hanya di atas langit sana ^^

2014 was bad for aviation. Belakangan saya mencoba mengingat sejak kapan saya mulai mengikuti berita tentang kecelakaan pesawat. Mungkin sejak kasus Air France. Dulu tiap kali dengar berita kecelakaan pesawat, rasanya seperti mendengar berita dari belahan dunia yang jauh, yang rasanya hanya terjadi di negara yang letaknya nun jauh di sana, penerbangan dengan rute jarak jauh belasan atau puluhan jam.

Setelah Air France, lalu saya ingat kecelakaan Sukhoi di tahun 2012 juga menyedot perhatian media di Indonesia waktu itu. Lalu yang masih cukup segar di ingatan, hilangnya pesawat Malaysian Airlines MH370 yang terjadi di awal tahun 2014 dengan rute Kuala Lumpur - Beijing. Saya sendiri waktu itu kaget baca beritanya. Rute KL-Beijing terasa sangat umum, negaranya juga bukan negara yang jauh-jauh amat. Masih negara tetangga lah dengan Indonesia. Pelan-pelan, rasanya berita kecelakaan pesawat menjadi hal yang terasa dekat buat saya. Like it could happen to anyone and anywhere.

Di saat orang-orang baru hendak "lupa" terhadap MH370, dunia kembali dikejutkan dengan jatuhnya pesawat MH17 karena ditembak rudal. Waktu baca beritanya, saya bengong. Heran kok ya pesawat bisa sengaja ditembak. Kecelakaan yang sifatnya accidental dan disaster saja rasanya sudah bikin hati sedih. Ini pesawatnya sengaja ditembak. What the...?? Ya katanya sih karena salah sasaran pesawat dan berbagai teori konspirasi lainnya. 

Lalu yang paling baru, AirAsiaQZ8501. Ini lebih bikin syok lagi. Rutenya Surabaya - Singapura, negara favorit orang Indonesia. Beberapa hari sambil mengikuti perkembangan di TV dan social media, saya merenung sendiri. Baru sadar bahwa kematian itu memang tidak ada yang tahu kapan datangnya. Membuat saya jadi berpikir dan memperhatikan orang-orang di sekitar saya. Hari ini saya sibuk mengerjakan ini dan itu, apa besok saya masih bisa melakukan hal yang sama? Bahkan saya jadi berpikir untuk mulai merapikan file-file data proyek yang sedang dikerjakan, in case something happened to me, setidaknya orang yang akan melanjutkan pekerjaan saya nggak bingung-bingung amat. *let's pray that's not gonna happen to me... too fast :)*

Saya mencoba membayangkan untuk menjalani hidup as if today was your last day on earth. Kira-kira apa yang akan dilakukan? Sambil ketik tulisan ini, saya teringat bukunya Mitch Albom yang judulnya "The Five People You Meet in Heaven". Well, maafkan judulnya yang terdengar seperti buku para motivator sukses yang beredar di pasaran ^^ Saya nggak akan lupa buku tipis ini sukses bikin saya menangis sesenggukan waktu pertama kali baca. Menceritakan tentang seorang mekanik biasa yang menghabiskan hari tuanya sebagai maintenance crew di taman hiburan. Di awal buku, langsung diceritakan kalau mekanik ini akan meninggal di taman hiburan tempat dia bekerja. Detik-detik menjelang dia meninggal, mekanik ini bertemu dengan 5 roh dari orang-orang yang pernah menjadi bagian penting dalam hidupnya, namun terlupakan begitu saja.. and everything was not always what it seemed :)

Saya jadi berpikir kalau hari ini adalah hari terakhir saya hidup, saya mau ngapain yah dengan orang-orang di sekitar saya? Nope, saya juga belum tahu saya mau ngapain jadi jangan tunggu jawaban saya ^^ Well, I'm not the typical one who love to shower with sugary words and roses. I do what i have to do. But still.. if I have to die, i don't want to die with any regrets :) 

Mengutip dari meme yang lagi ramai dipost di social media,

"Have a safe flight", "I love you", "Take care"

It may sounds not so important, not necessarily to say..

But you'll never know it could be your last good bye..

I guess that's probably true. You'll never know what's your last words for your loved ones.

My heart goes out for #AirAsiaQZ8501

May the souls rest in peace

 

Ketika sudah bosan menjadi orang Kristen...

Natal. Yah, sudah tidak ingat rasanya berapa kali perayaan Natal yang saya lewati setiap tahun. Sejak TK, SD, SMP, SMA saya bersekolah di sekolah Kristen. Saya masih ingat saya mengambil keputusan untuk percaya Tuhan saat duduk di bangku SMP. Sebuah KKR.

Waktu bergulir. Ketika SMA, aktivitas saya padat luar biasa. Senin sampai Sabtu sibuk jadi pengurus OSIS. Seksi Kerohanian. Terdengar berat ya namanya? :) Hari Minggu pun saya sibuk dengan aktivitas di gereja. Sibuk menjadi pengurus gereja dengan segala macam rapatnya itu. Sibuk jadi panitia retreat, sibuk jadi panitia Natal, sibuk jadi ketua majalah gereja, sibuk jadi panitia Paskah, dan lain lain.

Mungkin sejak SMA, mungkin hampir seluruh teman-teman saya mempunyai kesan bahwa saya orang yang sangat "rohani" ya. Di sekolah pun saya ingat saya sangat menjaga tingkah laku. Tidak mencontek ketika ulangan. PR pun rasanya saya tidak mencontek hasil pekerjaan teman. 

 

Begitu masuk kuliah, secara perlahan ada regenerasi pengurus di gereja. Para pengurus lama pun pelan-pelan naik ke Komisi Pemuda sambil sesekali masih membantu teman-teman di Komisi Remaja. Pelan dan pelan, saya pun lepas dari segala kepengurusan dan kepanitiaan. Hingga sudah sekitar 5 tahun terakhir ini, saya sudah tidak pernah lagi terlibat dalam kepanitiaan apapun. Total hanya menjadi jemaat biasa yang duduk dan pulang. Tidak banyak bersosialisasi. Ngobrol pun hanya dengan teman-teman yang memang sudah kenal lama dan cukup dekat. Ditawari untuk pelayanan kembali pun saya malas. Rasanya sudah lelah. Seperti merasa bahwa zamannya sudah lewat.

Kalau kata beberapa orang, saya mengalami kekeringan rohani akut. Ya, kondisi dimana saya sudah seperti tanah tandus. Kering. Awalnya saya berusaha memperbaiki kekeringan tersebut. Memaksakan diri saya rutin bersaat teduh kembali, berdoa dengan sepenuh hati, dll. Tapi tetap saja pada akhirnya toh saya kembali malas.

Natal tahun ini sedikit berbeda. Karena saya menimbang-nimbang apakah saya masih bisa disebut beragama Kristen? Rasanya agama Kristen itu hanya sebuah tempelan saja. Label karena saya masih datang gereja setiap Sabtu dan Minggu. Namun hati saya sudah tidak berada di dalamnya. Datang ke gereja hanya karena rutinitas, daripada saya harus menghabiskan waktu 24 jam hanya hidup dengan kedua orang tua saya.

Kepada beberapa teman dekat, saya pernah bercerita bahwa saya sering berpikir saya bisa beragama Kristen sangat mungkin karena saya bersekolah di sekolah Kristen sejak TK sampai SMA. Coba seandainya saya bersekolah di sekolah Buddha atau Katolik, ya mungkin saat ini saya beragama Buddha atau Katolik. Saya mempertanyakan mengapa saya tidak "keluar dari gereja" lalu saya "jalan-jalan" di luar sana, mencicipi satu per satu agama lalu baru memutuskan agama mana yang ingin saya peluk. Ketika saya cerita seperti itu, seorang teman dekat tersenyum dan menjawab,"Bukan kamu yang memilih, tetapi Aku yang memilih." 

Sesaat saya terhenyak. Terdiam. Ya benar juga sih. Kok ya rasanya hebat betul saya yang cuma manusia biasa kok bisa main pilih tuhan mana yang saya mau :) Tapi itu tetap tidak membuat saya berhenti beranggapan bahwa saya bisa beragama Kristen hari ini itu karena saya bersekolah di sekolah Kristen dari TK sampai SMA. Saya ingin berada di satu kondisi dimana ketika saya memilih sebuah agama, itu karena saya yakin, mantap, dan sadar dengan apa yang menjadi pilihan saya. Bukan karena semata saya tumbuh besar di lingkungan sekolah Kristen.

Ada sebuah keinginan di dalam hati saya untuk melepas label agama Kristen ini. Saya juga merasa berat dengan label "seharusnya orang Kristen itu..." Entahlah, saya muak mendengar kalimat itu. Saya benci diatur. Yah, ini mungkin sedikit berkaitan dengan hubungan saya dengan ibu saya yang juga rusak. Tidak perlu dijelaskan di sini. Terlalu panjang. 

Yah, bukan berarti ketika saya bilang saya mau melepas label agama Kristen itu, saya lantas menjadi suka dugem, seks bebas, mencuri atau menipu, dll. Tidak sih, saya punya borderline sendiri dalam hal-hal yang bisa saya lakukan dan hal-hal yang saya memilih untuk tidak melakukan. Namun entahlah.. Masih ada keraguan untuk melepas label agama Kristen itu. Masih ada sesuatu yang mengganjal. Entah apa. 

Kadang saya juga bingung di hari Natal ini saya melihat banyak sekali teman-teman yang berfoto dengan caption Christmas Dinner. Apa artinya? Saya kenal dengan mereka dan saya juga tahu mereka bukan orang yang rutin datang ke gereja setiap minggu. Mereka juga mungkin tidak memiliki pengetahuan rohani yang cukup dalam seperti para aktivis di gereja. Lantas apa artinya Christmas Dinner tersebut? Lengkap dengan fashion yang lavish ala Natal disertai dengan acara tukar kado. 

Kalau dengan alasan keakraban dan kekeluargaan, bukankah sudah ada Thanksgiving Day? Memang sih di Indonesia tidak mengenal hari Thanksgiving, tapi ada yang namanya Hari Raya Lebaran atau Imlek. Rasanya lucu saja melihat foto-foto tersebut. Ah, saya tidak ingin menghakimi siapa pun. Tulisan ini hanya ungkapan kegalauan hati saja karena bingung mau melabeli diri sebagai apa? Kristen? Ateis? Liberal?

Saya sempat memiliki sebuah teori. Apa karena saya merasa saya sudah tahu hampir semua teori-teori menjadi orang Kristen yang baik? Namun akhirnya karena tidak pernah dipraktekkan dan berbagi pada lingkungan sekitar atau orang terdekat, akhirnya hanya mengendap menjadi batu bara yang dingin, yang pada akhirnya tidak berfungsi apa pun.

Tanggal 24 malam biasanya akan jadi malam Natal yang ramainya bukan main. Bertahun-tahun saya selalu datang di perayaan malam Natal tgl 24. Tahun ini tidak. Saya malas ikut. Saya hanya berpikir pasti ramai sekali di gereja. Well, mungkin karena saya juga tidak punya komunitas tetap di gereja, semakin menambah rasa malas saya juga. Aneh juga saya datang sendiri atau dengan ibu saya, tapi tetap saja saya merasakan kesendirian di tengah keramaian yang begitu padat.  

Beberapa teman yang satu angkatan dengan saya ketika menjadi pengurus pun satu per satu menghilang dari gereja. Ada yang sudah menikah dan ikut suami lalu rumahnya menjadi terlalu jauh untuk datang ke gereja. Ada yang karena merasa sudah tidak punya teman lalu mendadak menghilang dari gereja. Ada yang pindah ke luar kota karena harus meneruskan bisnis keluarga dan tidak punya waktu ke gereja lagi karena hari Minggu pun tetap bekerja. Ada yang sudah berkeluarga, masih datang ke gereja, namun sudah tidak pelayanan lagi, mendedikasikan seluruh waktunya untuk keluarga nampaknya. Ada yang sudah menikah, sesekali ke gereja, dan hidupnya dipersembahkan untuk membahagiakan sang istri.

Tentu masih ada beberapa teman dua tiga orang yang masih rutin ke gereja seperti saya dan mereka masih pelayanan. Terhadap mereka, saya harus angkat topi karena saya sendiri saja seperti merasakan kaki kanan saya sudah berada di luar gereja. Entah ada apa dengan kaki kiri saya yang masih enggan untuk melangkah maju. 

Yah, jika ada yang tidak sengaja membaca tulisan ini dan ingin berdoa untuk saya, tolonglah doakan saya. Saya sendiri tidak suka dengan keadaan galau seperti ini :)

Akhir kata, Merry Belated Christmas :)

A Contemplating Trip to Toraja and Makassar

Pheww, i decided to write a new blog after abandoning my previous 2 blogs ^^ well, i actually wanted to share about what’s happening in my life since few months ago. Well yeah, what happened back in August? My ex was married, soooo.. i decided not to brood myself. I mean come on, he’s moving on. What the hell with me? Still stuck here? :D nah, not so good answer.

I went all the way to Toraja, Makassar. Yeah, i did backpacking for the first time in my life.. and alone *finger crossed ^^V. Every time i’m thinking about it, it’s like WHOA, i’m jumping out to the jungle. To a place i’ve never been for the first time. And surprisingly, i’m feeling FREE! 

I took evening flight to Makassar and it was delayed for about 30 minutes. I arrived almost at 8PM and i had to rush into a bus called “Damri” which took me into another bus pool that will take me to Toraja. Since the Damri bus still waiting for passengers, i rushed to get dinner. At airport canteen, i kept asking people what time Damri usually departs. And thankfully, when i was eating, some of Damri officer were also eating at the canteen. I asked them and... they looked at my “coto” (a traditional meat soup in Makassar) and told me it’s okay to get dinner first. They really waited for me to finish my dinner ^^ I know that’s very small thing, but when you were a stranger in one place, and some people was doing good for you, that feels so blessed! ^^

I took the bus and paid the fare for Rp 25,000/person. Well, it was night and i didn’t know the direction so i had to keep my eyes opened so i wouldn’t miss the road. Since this was my first trip alone, i learned that being talkative was a must for backpacker. I called the bus agency to wait for me, and the way she answered my phone the bus was getting ready to go. Well, i almost missed the bus, and had to take “ojek” to bring me to the bus pool.  Phew.

When I finally got inside the bus, I took a deep and long breath. That was a long night. Exhausted, but exciting. The trip from Makassar to Toraja took about 8-9 hours so i slept in bus. I arrived at Toraja around 6-7 AM in the morning. I was like WHOA, i couldn’t believe i really arrived in Toraja. I walked around to see some hostels and found one named “Wisma Maria”. The room was clean and good. Since they had to prepare the room for me, i didn’t want to waste my time. Actually I didn’t have any plan which places should I go at first. Many people said Toraja is divided to North Toraja and South Toraja. If you wanted to see the ancient cemeteries and folklore, you probably want to explore the south, which I decided too. 

Torajanese were mostly Christian. I arrived at Sunday morning, and people mostly in the church. So I walked around killing the time, and asked some local people about the transportation. I decided to go to Kete Kesu, a traditional Toraja house or “tongkonan”.

 

Kete Kesu is like "show room" place for Tongkonan, a traditional house of Torajanese

The place was still quite empty since people still in the church. The interesting part of Kete Kesu is not at the front, but at the back of houses. Torajanese buried the coffin in a cave. That’s the “standard” procedure. For those richer, they could build their own “death house” and put the coffin inside. For rich people, they usually built a statue complete with their clothing, it’s called “tau-tau” as a personal photo of the dead. The grander the house, the more lavish the “taw-taw”, it’s considered as rich people.

hundred-years-dated coffins at Kete Kesu, Toraja

Up in Kete Kesu, you need to do a bit hiking to see the cemetery at the top. The stairs made from the stone were a bit rough, so you’ll need to hold on a rope. For this cemetery, I don’t recommend you to walk alone into the cave and there were some coffins inside *LOL* you’ll need lamp, and you’ll need guide to accompany because the cave was very dark and the pathway was very scattered.

After Kete Kesu,  I took minibus to go into Londa. Londa was a short visit into a “stone cave”. A bit different with Kete Kesu. In Kete Kesu, you could see traditional houses and mini museum. But Londa, the cave wass the tourism spot. You’ll also need a guide to go inside. At Londa, there were many ancient royalty burials and their “tau-tau”. These cemeteries were aged from hundred years ago, so I wondered these people must be freaking rich in the past. Many jewels put together with the corpse in the coffin. When I got inside the cave, the guide showed me dozens of coffins from ordinary citizen. Because they didn’t have enough money to dig up a cave, so they let the coffins stacked together :(

Londa, an ancient royalty burial

 

There was a small pathway to a mini valley to see Londa from afar. I walked and found a gazebo to take rest, and I met 2 men. His name was Mr. Lucas and the other one, a photographer from Malaysia. Mr. Lucas asked about me because I looked like from Chinese or Japanese *LOL* well I’m Chinese but I was born in Jakarta, Indonesia ^^ after chit-chatting for about 15 minutes, Mr. Lucas asked me to join the trip with them. Whoa, suddenly I felt a bit cautious. They looked kind, but then I was on low budget travel, and they’re driving :D I decided to trust my instinct, hoped everything was going okay.

Okay, boarding to the car meant I would go wherever Mr. Lucas driving. Apparently, his photographer friend would like to explore North Toraja, which included Batutumonga, Ne’Gandeng Museum, Bori, and Pallawa. Well, North Toraja was a trip you shouldn’t do by feet. The road was extremely bad, so you’ll actually need a road off vehicle or a car but strong enough to drive on gravel surface.

First place, we were just driving around and passing by Pasar Bolu, a traditional market where you can buy and sell cows, a sacrificial animal when one family doing death funeral. Later, Mr. Lucas and his friend asked me to have lunch together. Errr, the photographer paid my lunch ^^ I really wanted to pay my lunch, but that man refused my money and just smiled. Whoa, I felt really blessed.. After lunch, we’re driving through Batutumonga. It’s not a one place spot for historical tourism, but Batutumonga was one big area where you just driving through valleys and sightseeing. You could see all those yellowy fields, fresh air, see the whole Toraja from the top. Well, this place was actually heaven for photographers. If you visit this place, you should bring SLR or just take a snap from your smartphone! ^^

 

pardon the feet due to rush editing *LOL*

During the trip, I talked much with Mr. Lucas and he’s such a good man! He’s quite old but I don’t know to be exact because I didn’t ask his age ^^ and apparently I was the same age with his youngest daughter, so yeah I felt like talking with a fatherly figure ^^ Mr. Lucas also asked me to stay in his house with his family. Ouch, that’s very kind of him but I already paid my room for one night at hostel, so I refused his offer.

Well, we didn’t get much time to explore all North Toraja, later the photographer man was a bit dizzy because the road was very bad and there were a lot of bends between the valleys ^^ so we’re going back to Rantepao. Mr. Lucas asked me to stay at his house and  I was like “awww..” he’s really a kind man. Well, a journey has an end. They drove me back into hostel and I shook hands with them. I exchanged my number with Mr. Lucas and he told me to contact him if I’m going back to Toraja or Makassar ^^  I think I was lucky to meet Mr. Lucas and his friend. If I hadn’t met them, I wouldn’t have gone to North Toraja.

It’s already late evening so I took bath.. after 2 days hahaha. I felt really clean :D I went out again to look for dinner and walked around to see the local markets. I pretty like the hostel where I stayed. It located in the downtown of Rantepao. There were also many food stalls so I actually had many options to eat. Rantepao was very quiet at night. I asked some people and looked around if there were local entertainments but nothing. I went back to the hostel and then… suddenly there’s this guy said hello to me :)

We talked for few minutes and got to know each other’s name. His name is Aron , a Hungarian guy, and he stayed in the next door beside my room. He asked me to have dinner together but I just went back from eating, so I suggested him to knock my door when he’s back J later that night, Aron knocked and we’re chatting for almost 2-3 hours. Well like I said from the beginning, this was my first solo trip. I felt blessed I could meet such good people like Mr. Lucas and the photographer guy. And I met another guy, this Aron. We talked, we shared, we laughed. I had million reasons why I did this backpacking trip alone. I wanted to get free from my parents. I wanted to get free from those workload, a job which I really hate working and living. I’m exhausted since I have to take care my mother who suffers cancer and she’s a total demanding patient. 

When I talked with this guy, Aron, I felt like I could stay relax from all those burdens. Well I guessed he’s a smooth talker :D ahahahaa well, we exchanged phone numbers and emails. We went our own way tomorrow afternoon, and said goodbye. He would continue his trip to Raja Ampat and I’m going back to Makassar :(

Baby graves. Each small doors consisted of one baby.

Scenery at Kambira, East Toraja

Too bad I couldn’t get to see the death funeral performed because that was actually a must-see-ritual! I visited on August and locals said most of the funeral performed on December. Well, I guess next time when I come back again, I have to see it! I took the bus to Makassar and arrived early morning. My flight to Jakarta was on 1PM if I’m not wrong, so I still got the time to visit Losari Beach and Fort Rotterdam.

Losari Beach

Fort Rotterdam

I walked around Losari Beach, just sitting and contemplating my mind. This was my first solo trip. I did this alone and I was glad I could go out into some places I’ve never been, going out of my comfort zone, recharged myself, and thinking about my future. I really thought I should put travelling into my new hobbies ^^V

Well, when you visit Makassar, it’d be weird if u didn’t try the famous Konro Bakar Makassar. It’s a famous food icon from Makassar, it’s a grilled beef ribs served with soup or dry. I went to the famous restaurant, Sop Konro Karebosi, but it still not opened yet. Since I had to catch up with the flight, I just ate dry konro from the stall in front of the “official” restaurant LOL. But….. OH MY GOODNESS!!!! This konro was zzzzuuuuuuppppeeerrrrrr deliciousssss!!!!

"Konro bakar" or grilled beef ribs. Super delicious!!

I’m not the type of person who like to do “culinary tourism” but that was the first time in my life I could really said about one food that was extremely delicious!!! Made me wonder, I meant I ate konro at the “non-offficial” stall and that was very good, so how delicious is the original one??? :D

Anyway, I took the plane back into Jakarta. Well, as I said from the early paragraph, I did this trip to move myself going forward. Glad I could go back to Jakarta with peace of mind, also glad to meet some good people :) As I was going back into my normal life, there was something strange in me. I started to see everything different. It's like i'm wearing new glasses, looking at old uniform. I'm not drastically saying I will pack up everything and leave my old life, but I started to learn to accept the things I cannot change and see everything with new perspective. Well, a good friend told me, "The reasons you went away? So that you could come back. So that you could see the place you came from with new eyes and colors. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving."

Well, actually I’m still thinking about Aron until now :) one month later, I texted him asked about his news and how’s he doing but he didn’t reply me :( I guessed he abandoned his Indonesian phone number. I just found him at Facebook few days ago, added him. But.. well he lives in Shanghai, where all social media are banned except at Shanghai Free Trade Zone *LOL* so I don’t keep my hopes high. 

Aron, if you read this blog and you still remember me, please make a shout.. because I would love to meet you again :)

 

Sculpted tomb at Lemo

Tomb houses at Lokomata, North Toraja

 

A labor digging up new "hole" for burial.It took 6 months for experienced labor. It cost 250 million rupiahs.