BANDUNG - THE BOYS DAY OFF (PART 1)

fBandung – The Boys Day Off (Part 1)

The Numero Uno of a traveller’s rule: “In a foreign land, remember you are the foreigner”, so we kept on reminding each other to keep our heads low as the locals here might not be of the same character as those we stumbled upon back home. Bandung they say, is full of surprises. And so we anticipated.  

It was decided about 4 months ago during one of our game at Bukit Unggul Golf Club to visit Bandung for golfing as a “reunion” of old buddies. Why Bandung you may asked. One can answer precisely if one is also a golfer.

We were all classmates back in Form 4 and Form 5 in KL. I only got to know Rashid, Reza and Manaf during that time after my family moved to KL while they in turn have been together since small. There was another buddy of ours that makes up the team of 5, unfortunately he was a non-golfer and he was left behind to take care of the children. I assume the friendship that stretches way back then was one of the reason for the "no-hassle" approvals from our Minister of Home Affairs to realize this dream trip.

THE YOUNGER YEARS

Rashid Taguchi, Me and Reza. In front was Man Hassan

Rashid, Manaf (still with his crown) and me
At Majestic Cinema Jln Pudu , now long gone
In the rear was the "Hungy Ghost" Chinese movie poster

In between my busy schedule in the office, I managed to spot AirAsia’s promotional fares flashed on my e-mail, costing a mere RM5 per pax (excluding airport tax). However, my procrastination taught me a good lesson upon which the Bandung-KL offer was soon closed and left only to book for the KL-Bandung promotional fares.

The excitement of enjoying 3 rounds of golf at 3 different courses in Bandung during the planned 4D3N trip kept on dancing in our mind. Yes, we tried to act as if this planned trip was no big deal in front of the family members since none of them were invited along,  But the SMS messages, phone calls and emails between us were proofs of the enthusiasm. After all, this would be the boys day-off!

We agreed to meet at the LCCT around 7:00 am for the 9:40 flight. Every effort was made to ensure the plane will not be flying without us on board. As for me, this would be my first trip to this Archipelago and hence, my excitement out-lived the rest. Reza had been there twice, Rashid once and Manaf was the regular visitor. Even my wife had made her shopping pilgrimages there twice!

Our Flight Schedule to Bandung

I caught the first glimpse of Bandung up from the plane’s window with impression that it is a high-density city. TV images of Indonesian crowded cities came flashing to me. Statistics has it that  Bandung's population stands at 2.4 million with a density ratio of 15,000 people for every km². Divided into 30 sub-districts, Bandung offers an invigorating climate of 23°C average nestled on elevation of 768m up to 2400m above sea level at towns near in the mountains. 

Part of Bandung Aerial View

Bandung's SasteraNegara Airport looked rather cramped for a city of such magnitude. At the immigration checkpoint, a Golden Labrador came sniffing for drugs on our hand-carries.  Such practice was common in Singapore's immigrations, but not in Indonesia, I was informed. Nevertheless, as this is the land called Bandung, even the K9 looks like a tame, family dog. If ever she can talk, you might hear her say,"... maaf ya pak, saya cium dulu bagasinya ya?"

Upon clearing immigration and customs, a slim local man with a slash of mustache introduced himself as Pak Wawan, our “supir” for the entire period here which we booked beforehand. He showed us to the Suzuki van that would be our mode of transport.  The van was heavily tinted, Mafia style. Manaf got the honour for the front passager seat while the rest of us crammed at the back. His was a natural choice due to his familiarity with the local culture and ability to converse fluently in Indonesian tongue. At one point, Rashid’s attempt to converse Indon style sounded more like a Bangladeshi speaking Malay.

Pak Wawan & Manaf  from Front Elevation

My first 10 minutes on the road was a nightmare which changed my entire perspective on the importance of defensive driving as we watched Pak Wawan’s manuevering techniques in the midst of Bandung traffic. No matter how congested or haphazard the traffic was, motorists always courteous and kept their attitude in check. Somehow, I concluded that I will never qualify to drive on Bandung streets.

A glimpse of Bandung's Sunday traffic

At light-stops, you can find hawkers began peddling their wares to the vehicles, from mineral waters to those hand-made souvenirs. Buskers on ukeleles provide impromptu entertainment for a small token. Child beggars were everywhere too and offering one your loose change would attract the rest come swarming over to you. Later, I caught a glimpse of cyclists on the other street with full gears riding in pelotons. I came to know that they were part of a cycling event participated by almost 2000 cyclists.

Colorful road cyclists on MTBs

Hungry on our journey to the hotel, we told Pak Wawan to,"...cari makannya di tempat yang sederhana saja ya Pak", and he drove us to a Padang outlet called Restoran Sederhana, literally. Back home we have Mee Bandung and Air Bandung which you could not find here, so we tried our luck by requesting, ‘Mee Seremban atau Ayer Ipoh ada nggak?” 

The FIELD FOOD (Masakan Padang)

We ordered some odd-looking Padang dishes. The meal was, well, edible, but I have to admit that I do not have the guts to try servings that were prepared with internal organs like Lemak Tunjang, Limpa, Perut and some other whatchamacallit delicacies… Reza’s remembers that once his Dutch boss, upon seeing similar meals, blurted out that, "...you Asians eat like cannibals!"

Tunjang, or Oxen's bone marrow, I think...

The van reached our hotel, Casa de Ladera at noon local time. The hotel building was a converted Art Deco colonial single storey mansion on a ¾ acre land adjacent to  Jalan Setia Budhi. The main building houses the reception, lobby and restaurant. The rooms would be located away from the main building. Guests can opt for either the elevated rooms with individual car park beneath them or the landed rooms. We chose the landed ones for easy access and to escape the stairs. We liked the rooms, the ambiance the location and the accessibility, but the service can be improved much better.

Casa de Ladera main building. That's our ride in the porch

The 4 Stooges; Me, Reza, Manaf & Rashid. Those are the elevated rooms

Upon checking in and a little rest, shopping was on the following agenda. We needed to at least complete some on the list today since the next three days will be dedicated with the main agenda, GOLFING! We were transported to the shopping vicinity of Sukajadi, which was supposed to be only about 15 minutes drive from the hotel if not for the congestion the local called macet (pronounced “Mar chet’) dragged the trip to almost double the time. As it was a Sunday, most major factory outlets were filled with bargain hunters from Jakarta, Surabaya and other nearby cities swarming by bus-loads. After all, Bandung has been famously known as a shopping haven.

The first stop was Rumah Mode (pronounced “model” without the “l), providing me the first experience of what you can expect from Bandung’s factory outlets. Merchandise here were a bargain comparing to those back home. I got my original, overrun Burberry jeans for Rp249,000, or less than RM100, which fits me comfortably.

Entrance to Rumah Mode's Shop

Later, the crowd purged us away to venture into other outlets nearby. Before the trip, when my wifey suggested for a bigger luggage in anticipation of my shopping spree, I casually dismissed the idea by stressing that the intention was mainly golf and shopping was a “by-the-way” thingy. How wrong I was…

Plentiful of branded merchandise at rock bottom prices at every factory outlets. We willingly surrendered our hundreds of thousands of Rupiahs in exchanged for the apparels.  At Fashion House outlet which was newly opened, I finally found a racing bicycle model I’ve been searching for in vain back home. the price may be a bit steep, but I concurred waddaheck. After all, it’s the Boys Day Off!

Next stop was Cihampelas district. Here, most of the merchandises were a bit inferior in terms of quality compared to those at Sukajadi. We checked into a sports outlet which claimed to offer the  best discount in town. Etonic golf shoes were as low as Rp 300,000 (or less than RM120). I thought of grabbing it until it dawned on me that my existing shoe is only 4 months old, plus additional weight to my baggage later may be hazardous to my wallet. Instead, I settled for an original Mizuno and a Jack Niklaus visors costing Rp70,000 each (or RM25). Back in KL, I have been shopping around for one and the cheapest was at double the price.  Reza got himself a light blue Ashworth polo shirt at a bargain as well. 

Our total damage that very first day was around Rp4.0m combined, registering us as millionaire shoppers. However, I think the amount was considered diminutive as compared to what would be transacted if the wifeys were to join along. That day, I returned to the hotel satisfied upon buying a Burberry jeans, an Anne Taylor denim jacket for my 17 year old, a white Gap denim jacket for the 8 year old, two Guess jeans for both my 8 and 7 year olds, an Armani Exchange black body-hugging collared t shirt, the two golf visors, a Mont Blanc belt the locals called “ikat pinggang” and finally, the prized racing bike model, costing me a total of approx. Rp1.3m.

Dinner that night was at Rumah Makan Sari Sunda serving excellent Sundanese meal. Sitting on a bamboo carpeted floor around a square teak tabletop in a hut with the soothing sound of a man-made waterfall flow provided a relaxing ambiance that can even got us dozing off there. We established a favorite item amongst those delicious list on the menu; Pepes Telur Masin, which has the texture of otak-otak with salted egg yolk buried in the thick paste. By just dictating this makes me drool again.

The elegant Rumah Makan Sari Sunda

Makan hut by the waterfall

We split 4 ways the bill of Rp370,000. Of course, Pak Wawan eats for free. Saved for the banana leaves used to serve our dishes, the rest were practically wiped out clean. Our compliments to the chef.

Ethnic Food Cleansing

The new place forbade us to retire early for the day. After a short rest at our rooms, we continued with our chat at the lobby to catch up with each others progress, and reminiscing our younger years over coffee till the wee hours of 2:00 am, local time. The weather was again, simply superb at around 14°C. Sleep was easy after that but I was wide awake just after an hour dozing off thanks to the strong brewed black coffee. Reza on the other hand, was also kept blinking all night long due to the unanticipated ensemble of nasal orchestra, courtesy of his room mate. Later in the morning, the other buddy proudly claimed that the ensemble was only the side A of a two CD version!

BANDUNG - THE BOYS DAY OFF (PART 2)

The daylight that follows was a chilly one. I did not sleep much that night. After the dawn prayers, I wasted no time to begun strolling uphill along Jalan Setia Budhi to have a first hand look at the locals early activities. The smooth tarred road was a straight climb at about 8 to 10° steep, which would provide my RFC cycling buddies a perfect route for our regular weekend climb. Temp was still in the mid teens and the locals, mostly clad in jackets and sweaters for warmth, can be seen rushing to their  destinations, ignoring the familiar surroundings on speda moto(s), cars, minivans buses, cabs, bicycles and what-have-yous. I think our hotel, Casa de Ladera was an excellent as its distanced location from the hustle and bustle of the main city area provided us with the other side of Bandung. It took me a good one hour stroll to finally reached back the hotel and found my buddies all geared up for our golfing at Giri Gahana in Jatinangor, my first ever in Indonesia.

Giri Gahana's Majestic Clubhouse

Pak Wawan took us via a toll highway to escape the macet and we reached Giri Gahana Golf Resort early at 10:00 am. Universitas Padjajaran was a mere 300 meters away. As it was a Monday, tee off was only allowed at 11:30 am to give way for an early course maintenance work.  


Giri offers an outstanding picturesque course fit for a postcard shot. Well maintained turf fairways winding Hole 1 was complimented by the skyline of the city amidst a terrain of mountains as the backdrop. Rashid just could not wait to be at the fairways and proposed to play for higher stakes. Well, unlike back home where the bet were only in tens of RM, here we play for thousands and thousands … … of Rupiahs, much "higher" stakes.

Fairway 18 

To kill time, we proceeded to the driving range instead. To Reza’s delight, there were even caddies here, eager to help you positioned the ball for your hit. Course maintenance were simply awesome, attributed to the abundance of cheap labors.

Me, Manaf, Reza & Rashid for the album

We registered our tee off at 11:35 after the announcement of each of our names over the loudspeaker, the kind like the major tournaments have on TV, albeit minus the applause. Each of us were provided with a caddy and mine was Angie (pronounced “angry” without the “r”). 

Me reading the putting line, not Angie's rear view please

A little Sundanese gal, at a glance Angie resembles rather like a Japanese. I would not discuss much here but only to say that she was an excellent ball liner at greens, and I got a lot of scolding from her for missing putts, and I loved my wife a lot.

As the first and 10th tee box was occupied, the caddies directed us to moved to 6^th hole instead, which was indeed a killer Par 3. The hole was a short 145m across a lake but your ball will be welcomed by an extremely steep green with no breaks in betweens, with only a 10 index. I spotted a wooden single storey kampung-style house well guarded by matured pine trees located near the 6^th Hole green, overlooking the clubhouse and a sleepy pond stretching from the 6^th hole to the front yard of the premise and was told that it is a chalet for the guests! How nice….

Rashid & Reza with loyal caddies

Rashid holed an eagle, I think at Hole 11. Immediately after that, you can hear his tone of voice turned coarse and deep with head held high as if he was about to do an albatross on the next hole. All-in-all, we played our normal handicaps that day, however the ultimate champion was Manaf, pocketing most of loot with a score of 84.

Rashid's follow through

At the front desk while waiting for our ride, we striked conversations with the staff  manning the reception desk. Manaf jokingly told them that one of us scored 68. Thinking that it was from a single handicapper, he revealed that, “… itu cuma untuk 9 lubang sahaja!!” Aaahhh…Bandung girls, even their giggling was like Keroncong Untuk Ana.  

After the game, Reza need constraining not to chase after the caddies

Snores filled the van on our way back from Giri Gahana. We reached Sukajadi sometime after sunset and went straight to another Sundanese joint, which name just slipped my mind but the food was again, exceptional. I think Sundanese uses minimal oil in their food preparation and that serves me just fine.

The plan to meet a long-time friend of mine, a local Bandung guy, was postponed as the day was getting late. Tjepy Hidayat was a colleague back from our university days in Minnesota, the type of person who would go the extra mile to lend a helping hand in whatever situation that may come. I remember back then, Tjepy was always the person to look for whenever we Asian students have some distance travelling to do, like groceries, makan or fetching newly arrived students from the airport as far as Minneapolis some 200 miles away from our place, as he owned the largest transport amongst all, a beat-up Chrysler Minivan.  I have not met him ever since he departed for home more than 13 years ago.

The cool breeze of Bandung's evening was to me a signature climate to be enjoyed while I can. We stayed up late again that night, doing what men usually do on a refreshing evening. Details? I cannot remember..... 

BANDUNG – THE BOYS DAY OFF (PART 3)

Mountain Dew,.. err View Golf Resort Par 5 Hole 18

The day started early for us the next morning for the following field to attempt, Mountain View Golf Resort. As it was only about 45 minutes away from city center, this course is amongst the favorites, particularly Malaysian golfers visiting Bandung. Reaching the clubhouse when the morning ray was beginning to emerge on the horizon, we decided for a quick bite at the club's terrace and were presented with another stunning panoramic view of the mountain range as the background.  The cooling weather was again very invigorating. I think this course's attractions lie not  only on its layout and view, but also on the politeness of the staff (read “waitresses”), receptionists as well as the caddies. Maybe golfers who have “been-there-done-that” can voluntarily testify to this claim and thus explains why Malaysian Bandung-bound golfers could not wait for the 2 hour flight to land soonest possible.

 

Viewing the caddies of Mountain View

Like Giri, we were again assigned each female caddies whom we found difficult to choose. Actually, you can opt for the Adam species as well, but that would beat the purpose, obviously.

 

Siti, a Sundanese girl was my caddie for the day. Fair "sawo mateng" skinned with sharp pair of eyes like those of Linda Onn’s, she dutifully carried out her tasks professionally. I tipped her extra that day. Manaf and I shared the same buggy, with Selphy (just like Nissan's) caddied for him. To her, we introduced ourselves as Cefiro and Wantu-oh-wai. She, on the other hand, was an extremely cheerful 20 year old lass, and a proud owner of a V-shaped, stoic upper profile. Having an athletic-looking lady as a caddie instigated our curiosity, to which she revealed that she’s a college swimmer and “… cuma ngumpul uang untuk biaya kuliah, jurusan Menegamen Akauntansi”. We tried to fish, “Kamu nggak mau sambung kuliahnya di Malaysia?” and she replied “Mau deh, tapi biayanya mahel. Lain deh kok jika ada yang sudi…”, and we decided to changed the topic before it ventured into some uncharted territories.

Reza's 'Tailored-Made" flexible 7 iron

All played well that day. Reza even birdied the 1^st Hole (with his flexible iron as pictured above) which fairway was located some 100 meters way below from the tee box. From up here, you can see ball searchers everywhere, waiting eagerly for your out-of-bound balls. Manaf, on the other hand, made the "shot-of-the-day" with a superb 30 footer chip that landed just about 2 feet away from the pin, and gradually reversed straight into the cup for a birdie. An awesome shot that we later have to lived with his @#*&^ bragging all the way home.

  

1st Hole honor Tee-off he..he..

Good times captured. Check out those two guys on the left, they slept in the same room

Somewhere on the 2^nd nine, after teeing off we noticed a small secluded wooden hut hidden between the bush at the back of the tee box hawking some local foodstuff. “Jom pekena kopi Kapal Api dulu!”, Manaf suggested.

1/2 way hut cheap..cheap...

The stall was manned by a petite lady in tudung with her small entourage running around the compound, which I believed were her off-springs. Among the cakes, buns  sweets and Bir Bintang (yes guys, warm beers!) being sold, there was this plate of salted eggs “Pindang”-style to be eaten on its own. Curious, I tried one and ended gobbling three, dismissing cholesterol-wary thoughts whaddaheck. We then ordered the bakso soup on the menu, served with pieces of meatballs the size of golf balls. Back home, bakso was never in our list of delicacies, but after a taste of the local version, it became an instant hit. My only hope later was that those meatballs were halal...

The boys with our "Mandrem"

Our game ended just after the call for Zohor prayers reverberating from afar. After cleaning up followed by Jama’ prayers lead by Kiyai Reza, we were about to board our ride when my eyes stumbled upon a stunning lass which initially I thought was an Indonesian TV soap opera actress. She introduced herself as Rina. With long silky hair bracing 
her straight broad shoulders, her  penetrating stares seemed to be telling us, "... i know what was on your mind..." Did I mentioned about the wet lips with a smile that never seems to fade? As she resembles my wifey in some ways (J), I took the opportunity to commemorate the occasion with our photo shot. My apology for not able to present the pic here for some obvious reasons...

The encounter lead to our joking around on what would be the best script to get the wifey’s approval if ever gals like Rina decided to follow us home, probably camouflaging her as a newfound bibik.

Reaching Sukajadi at 2:30 pm allowed us for last minute shopping. We decided to skip lunch as those in our bellies were still undergoing digestion. Rashid recommended visiting Donatello to look for his son’s leather shoes  and other outlets nearby to complete his long list of shopping items. There, I ended up with two pairs of shoes, one for regular office wear and another for dress, which I think at bargain prices as the quality, workmanship, design and feel are comparable with those of European ranges back in KL. The black pair was of light-weight material, the kind similar to Ecco footwears.

Then, while bravely crossing the ever-flowing traffic, Rashid and Reza spotted a “Lost” notice on a light pole of a domestic piglet named “HaHa”, just like one of our friend’s nickname back home. A picture accompanying the notice makes them laugh as the pet really looked like.. a pig. Oink-oink! Should have ripped the poster as souvenir to our friend.

Adjacent buildings near Pasar Baru

We then proceeded to another shopping haven of Pasar Baru, popular especially amongst women-folks. At the parking lot, Pak Wawan again demonstrated his skill in squeezing between cars parked haphazardly in search of a suitable spot to continue our shopping spree. Parking helpers were always present to provide an extra eye for a tip of Rp2000, or 75 sen. They can even stop the oncoming traffic travelling like 100 km/hr heading straight towards you while Pak Wawan tried to inch his way back into the flow.    

Penat shopping....

Pasar Baru lived to its reputation, so I concluded. It resembles more like Pertama shopping complex in KL but crowded with rows and rows of textile shops like those at Jalan TAR. The main intention here was to grab some telekungs (women’s praying drape) for the wifeys and the mother-in-laws (as pacifiers since we left their daughters behind). We got for them each of Paris Cotton material, full-bodied motives with lace sewn at the ends, and I even found the children’s version for my kids, all at very-very affordable prices. We were also given crash courses from the shopkeepers on the different garments and motives used for the telekungs, which we later related back to our wifeys like a pro. Personally, I think Pasar Baru should not close shop at 5pm as there were still a huge crowd in the building even nearing closing hours. Ground floor would be where you can find all sorts of kerepeks (crackers), which we bought some for home and giveaways. Reza’s immediate favorite was keropok pisang fried with cheese. Manaf and I prefer the crunchy keropok tempe. Rashid goes for anything edible.

That night, dinner was again at a Sundanese joint. Maybe I decided that maybe I should google for Sundanese recipe upon returning home later. As usual, the food was simply exquisite and less oily. That should explained why Bandung men generally have flat tummies.

We were forbidden to retire early by ourselves that final evening in Bandung. And so we continue to search for some other actions to warm the chilling night, which, I cannot dictate here simply because what transpired had, again, slipped my mind….

BANDUNG - THE BOYS DAY OFF (PART 4)

A mixed feeling greeted us on the morning of Wednesday; sad that it would be our final day here and glad that we’ll be reuniting back with the families soon. Our 3:30 pm flight gave us free time in the morning. Shopping had been very much completed yesterday with all the goodies nicely wrapped and cramped into our bags. What was left in our pockets would be some remaining Rupiahs for a last round of golfing, at least a 9 holer.

Pak Madi, the boss of Pak Wawan earlier suggested that we try the Saesko Golf Club which is not far from Casa de Ladera. Taken into consideration of the time, the budget and the distance, we agreed to try it out.

The 20 minutes or so journey took us climbing Jalan Setia Budhi, passing winding roads and several kampong settlements. There was this one particular stretch with a number of roadside stalls selling live and cute little kelinci (rabbits), which, according to Pak Wawan, can be bought as pets or for their meats.

Before reaching the course, you will pass by a small town of Lembang. Here, alongside the heavy traffic, you can see quite a number of pony-carts transporting passengers sharing the road together with other modern transportations.

Cart Type YT (Yellow Top)

Cart Type AC (Airy Convertible)

Saesko Golf Club is actually an air force course, situated within the vicinity of an Indonesian Air Force training camp in Lembang. A walking course, the green fee is relatively cheap, at Rp70,000 you can play for as many rounds as you like, (if you can survive the walkings and climbings). The all male, single handicapped caddies told us that armed forces personnel from all over the world came here for training on helicopters, including Malaysians. That explains why I could not see any airstrip around the base.

Ni sapa punye design ni...

Like many other armed force courses I have played before (especially Lumut Naval Base course. urrgh!), Saesko offers a challenging layout in terms of tight greens sitting way high from the tee box, and undulating cow-grass narrow and steep fairways. Put it this way, imagine teeing-off to a green located more than 100 meters uphill from your tee-box at a mere dimension of 16 ft by 20 ft, protected by a bunker that is 4 feet deep. After doing some climbings, the only sound that came from Rashid was those short, whistling breathings. 

 

huhh.. pheew...!@#$..%#*"... punye course!!
Mintak Nyawa.! Mintak Nyawa!

According to the caddies, not many Malaysian golfers play here, either because it is only a 9 holer or it was not popularly known as compared with the likes of Mountain View, Dago Indah or Giri. I think not because of the course, but most probably due to the fact that the caddies do not wear any bras!

Look Ma,. No Bra!!

Caddie #1 : Kiri OB nya Pak!
Caddie #2 : Kanan OBnya Pak!
Caddie #3: Tengah OB nya jugak Pak!

Reza's birdie putting  = a triple bogey.. value for money

The view from this course is outstanding. The caddies said that other courses are actually situated lower than Saesko. In fact, Tangkuban Perahu, an active volcanic mountain looks quite near from here.  

We adjourned back to the hotel right after the game ended at 10:30 am. Today’s exceptionally humid weather saw Rashid losing his breath and tempo for the game. Nevertheless, we had some lucky shots and an enjoyable time, poling fun at each other along the fairways. The single handicappers’ the male caddies provided some useful tips, and for that, we gave them our loose change on top of the fees.  

Final packing saw us stuffing our golf bags with stuffs from our luggages to minimize our hand-carries and trying to maximise the allowed 20kg weight for sports equipments check-ins. Our bloated golf bags almost did not fit into the back of the Suzuki van but we managed anyway. Pak Wawan got his little escort aged 7 to come along to see us off at the airport.

Peter Porn  II in the making

 We decided to stop for lunch at Restoran Ampera somewhere near the airport. It was a cozy setting and our dinings were entertained by some local boys belting out contemporary numbers unplugged. It was an excellent concept to engage young talents for performances that should be imitate by restaurants here in KL.

As for me, the sambal belacan was something out of this universe. Besides making me sweat under a whirling ceiling fan, I wish that I had tapau-ed some home. I was very glad that Tjepy Hidayat decided to join us for lunch. As good-looking and polite as before, the pleasure to meet a long-time buddy after all these while made me, well, lost my appetite. We do not have much time to catch up with things as there was a plane to catch. Anyway, I promised Tjepy another visit here with my family sometime soon as I would prefer to meet his too.

Pak Tjepy and Pak Helmi

The restaurant was in fact very near to the airport. It provides an excellent stop-over makan spot for air travelers. Reaching airport with our hefty loads, it was a relief to get rid of the bagggages as we check-in the golf bags. Even with the additional stuff inside, none of the bags reached the maximum weight! I was not sure when I will see Pak Wawan again but I would like to engage his services again if ever I return to this city.

The feeling of lethargic from the morning golfing added by the heavy lunch sets an excellent ambiance for an afternoon nap. Conversations were kept to a minimal, replaced by our observations on people’s behaviours, as we decided to reserve the rest during the flight home.

The plane took off at 3:40pm heading towards LCCT Sepang. After some final glimpse of Bandung and Java Island from the air, my eyes grew heavy. Manaf, Rashid and Reza were seated together and that leaves me the privacy of a well-deserved nap. Somehow rather, it was not long after a group of young travellers decided to be noisy that made my wide awake. But waddahell, everybody was having a good time that I do not consider it as a disturbance.

Touched down Sepang was approx. 6:00 pm. That was the “landing-of- reality” for me, but one thing for sure, I was glad and grateful that the four of us decided to just drop our commitment for a while to materialize this dream, at least this once in our lifetime. Thanks to our families for letting the boys to have a good time on our days off. I do hope that Bandung trip would not be our one and only getaway. Maybe the next trip would be other exciting places that offer comparable or better excitements for us, subject to the approvals from Ministry of Home Affairs.

Thanks dear wife, thanks guys, and thanks Bandung.