Day 6 and 7: Jakarta, Indonesia

After the safari adventures at the Taman Safari Park in Puncak, we braced for the commute back to Jakarta. It's a two-hour travel from Puncak to Rambutan, and from the terminal there we took a cab to the hotel. We rode an ordinary bus and we've been seated separately. Bus travels here are almost like in the Philippines, bu gosh, cigarette smoking in public vehicles is not prohibited so by the time we get off the bus, we're fumed with nicotine all over! And as usual, the traffic is worse.

We'll surely miss these lovable elephants of the Taman Safari!

Our hotel for the remaining two days in Jakarta is called Hotel 55, Hotel Lima-Lima as the locals called it. It's not a luxurious room but could pass the three-star standard. It's clean, complete with the complimentary toiletries, slippers, and the coffee and tea making facilities is a-okay, enough for the four of us and more. 

Good thing that the hotel atmosphere is homey because it rained for the next two days of our Jakarta stay but it did not stop us from going out. We hailed a cab ( more of like the receptionist called for a cab for us, one of the perks). One of the places we checked out was the Taman Mini Indonesia in East Jakarta. It's a park with life-sized replicas of houses and buildings the shows the Indonesian way of living. Since it's raining nonstop, we took the shuttle van around the park for RP5000. Disappointed we could not get to see each one of the house models up close.

Back at the hotel, since it's raining, we'd busied ourselves with all the food and snacks we bought at the nearest Carrefour. No 7-eleven around but there's Carrefour in every corner. 

Alas, it's our last day in Jakarta! It's pasalubong shopping! But first, we checked out a J.Co cafe. Of course, we brought the flavors we want and Jen also tried their sandwiches. J.Co is from Indonesia so what better thing to do than try it in its origin country.

Checking out of Hotel 55 is bittersweet, yet there's a satisfied smile in all of us. 

While waiting for the cab that will take us to the airport

We've completed our one-week, three-country tour and our itinerary was checked, although not 100 percent. For me, it's always an 80/20 chance because we can't expect perfection when there's too many things to factor in.

Checking in at the airport, we bid our goodbye to Indonesia, with a thought in each of us that we may come back for more. Remember, there's Borobudur and Bali waiting...

Happy travels!

Day 5: Roar at Taman Safari Indonesia

It's Day 5 and I'm super excited. Today, we'll get to check out the safari park. But first, we have to ready ourselves, which is super hard, because it's super cold. Took a shower (thank God for the hot water) and got ready for breakfast before everything else.

After a heavy brekkie, we strolled first within the lodge premises and checked out the pool. It's a foggy morning with morning drizzle that made the surrounding a bit gloomy. Taman Safari, by the way, is at the top of a mountain.

Foggy morning at 7 a.m.

The pool area.

We then went to the safari park ticket booth to buy safari tickets. A ticket costs 200,000 Indonesian rupiah. It includes free entrance and a safari bus will take us around the park. We envied those with private cars because they've got their chance of feeding the roaming animals.

Our tickets to safari... and we don't understand a word!

Private vehicles get to feed the roaming animals!

Feeling safari with the river and mud.

We also got a chance to watch the elephant show even though we don't understand what the characters are saying. But we enjoyed it nonetheless.
I also got a chance to take some photos with a baby tiger, so cute!!!! There's an adult tiger for photo op but then I got scared, long claws and big teeth, scary!

Cute baby tiger

The house of the tigers

We enjoyed our day so much that even though it rained, we didn't mind. It's the awesomeness of feeling connected to nature that made our day. 

Happy travels!

Day 4: Jungle Fever, Taman Safari Indonesia

After 24 hours in Singapore, having a blast even though we've only had a day, which is so short, the last destination awaits. We're going to Bogor, Indonesia. 

Before anything and everything else, we made sure we know how to count their currency!

From Changi Airport, we flew for one hour to Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Jakarta, Indonesia. From here, it's a four-hour travel by car to Puncak ( pronounced Pun-jak) in Bogor-Cianjur-Sukabumi regencies in the province of West Java. One thing I can say, the traffic here is worse!

This is what we're most excited about because we're gonna be staying in a caravan in the middle of the jungle. Awesome, isn't it?

Taman Safari Indonesia. The word "safari" is a given. It's a park full of animals roaming around. But we will be staying at Taman Safari Lodge in the middle of the jungle where you will just hear crickets at night. And occasionally, elephant sounds.

The caravan

What's great about the caravan is that they also have the amenities of a normal accommodation, with free tea and coffee making facilities, toiletries and linens. We don't need the air conditioner since we're up in the mountain and it's freezing cold!

Safari Lodge toiletries

It is a little compact and crowded for us four but it will do. Besides who needs a big space if you're on below zero degree temp. It really super cold!

After checking in and settling ourselves in the caravan, we went to the nearby Restoran Caravan for dinner. We're starving! 

Lamb satay

I ordered teh susu halia/milk ginger tea because it's freezing cold!

After dinner and feeling the day's toll on our fragile bodies, it's time to sleep and rest. It's another long day ahead. 

Experiencing the Indonesian traffic, the long ride up the mountain of Bogor sitting a long time in the car, the darkness along the road while our driver tried to locate the safari lodge, and the notorious language barrier strikes again (since we're so deep in the West Java provinces where mostly no one knows English). 

Welcome to the jungle... really!

Tomorrow, the animals will roar, literally!

Day 2: The Brekkie, The Japanese Garden and The Animal Park at Colmar Tropicale

After our first well-rested night at Colmar, I prepared myself for a long day ahead. I woke up early, excited, not of the activities of the day but because of the breakfast. 

We were guided by the staff to the buffet breakfast and I can say, for the hungry, it's a food haven. So many choices that I could not decide what to eat first. 

Needless to say, I stood for my second serving! I'm full already but I can't seem to stop eating!

Pasimple lang getting my second serving.... 

After that well-deserved brekkie, we strolled the village again while waiting for the van that will take us to the Japanese Garden. 

The view from the lobby while waiting for the shuttle van

The shuttle van

For RM12, you get to enter the French village, Japanese Garden and Botanical Garden. It's build to mimic how a garden will look like in Japan, nice for photos and you can rent a kimono for RM20. Other than that, nothing much. It's just a garden on top of a hill. Oh, and there's a lot of uphill walking.

After we check out of the resort, since the check-out time is 11 a.m., we left our bags at the safety of the lobby staff before we went to see the Animal Park. It's almost noon but we've managed to take time to go see it. Well, the brochure said "animal park" so we expect to see animals, as in lots of them and in numbers. But imagine our disappointment, Steph, Jen Mitch and myself, that there's only a couple of deer and rabbits on the site! OMG, I should have just rented Bambi and watch it in my room, or I should have just buy a rabbit's foot for luck! In which case, well, photo op is a must since we're already there!

Disappointed in the the animal park but I enjoyed the swing like a kid!

But overall, our two days in Colmar is amazing. It's normal to be disappointed sometimes because that's life. No travel is ever perfect and there will always be bumps along the way. 

See you soon, Colmar! Now it's time for us to go down Kuala Lumpur.

Happy travels!