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….