Friday, June 18, 2010

Java

I'll be leaving PD soon, the exact date will be on the 2nd of August. I'll be reporting to GHKL, unsure of which department. To be frank, I'm in dilemma. I haven't make up my mind for my specialty training. Is it going to be Medical or perhaps Oncology?I really don't know.

I spent about ten days last month visiting Java, Indonesia. Jakarta-Bandung-Jogjakarta-Borobudur-Surabaya. The early part of the travel was traumatic. There were 4 of us but we were reduced to 3 when one of our friend lost his passport and wallet in LCCT, Nilai. Not a very pleasant start indeed, having to fly without the person that planned the whole trip. At the end, it's onlyme, Jhaznarul and Syahir.(We are so sorry, Acap!)

It's an eye-opener trip. Even though we share the same roots (Malays), the same region (Malay Archipelago), I hardly know about Indonesia or Indonesians. When I was young, I always thought Indonesians are all poor and they are wandering across the globe to earn money. Some of them, especially in Malaysia turn up to be bandits, robbers etc for the sake of getting money to send back home.Sitting and having meals in posh Grand Indonesia in the heart of Jakarta, I think otherwise now. Indonesia is not a poor country.But she is poorly managed. When I was boarding train from Jakarta to Bandung, I can see how urbanization had ruin the charm of Java. Squatters with densely packed houses are common alongside the railway. If you compare it with areas downtown Jakarta, you must feel the tremendous social distant between the rich and poor.

I regretted that we missed the trip to Gerisik, Demak and Solo. I got a friend studying medicine in Solo. And in Gerisik, the burial place for 2 of the famous saints of Java including Maulana Malik Ibrahim and Sunan Giri. But we did manage to visit the tomb of Sunan Ampel in Surabaya.


Visitors in Masjid Sunan Ampel
Makam Sunan Ampel, Surabaya
The entrance

Masjid Istiqlal, Jakarta



House of Soemporna, Surabaya
The workers preparing the 'kretek'
Masjid Cheng Ho, Surabaya
Kraton Palace, Jogjakarta
The volcanic crater of Tangkuban Perahu

Tangkuban Perahu, near Bandung


Gedung Sate, Dutch administration building in Bandung


Borobudur, Mataram empire greatest candi




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