Short Getaway: Singapore (January 19th - 22nd, 2017)

Merlion Park

I went to Singapore last week. Actually, it was an unplanned trip. I just wanted to use my passport once before it expired. I have never been travelling overseas, so when I want to go somewhere without visa, I immediately think I should go to the nearest country from Indonesia, Singapore. The plane ticket to Singapore isn't as expensive as the other countries and sometimes if you're lucky enough, you can get promo ticket. I planned this trip in December and decided to invite my friend, Gitta, to come with me since she went there for few times. Luckily, she said she'd like to go. So... yeah... we finally bought the airplane tickets and booked the hostel.

We decided to book the ticket for January 19th and January 22nd. We booked our ticket from Traveloka and got promo price (I think) from Tiger Air. After thinking about where to stay, Gitta suggested a hostel in Chinatown called Adler Hostel, we read the information in Agoda website and it turned out we picked the right hostel. I definitely recommend this hostel to others who wants to stay in Singapore, especially to those who likes to go on backpacking. We booked the female-only room and we've got internet connection also breakfast during our stay :)

So, on January 19th, Gitta and I met at Soekarno-Hatta Airport in the morning even though our flight took time in 11.30 A.M. We've got chit-chatting for hours and again planned where to go. When it's time to board on, the sky turned a bit cloudy and it rained for a bit. I was worried for a little while since I've got headache the last time I rode on an airplane in a not-so-good weather.

Taken before flight

Thanks God, the rain stopped and the weather was good up there. Got a nice flight and safely arrived in Changi Airport! :)

Too bad, I couldn't snap moments in Changi because we were hungry and all that we want was finding our hostel as soon as possible. So, we went straight to the MRT Ticket Machine to reload our transportation card but things happened and I ended up buying a new card for SGD 12 (around IDR 113.000). Well, actually my friend suggested me to buy Singapore Tourist Pass (STP) but we didn't buy it. Hm, I can't really say if STP is cheaper for me because I didn't travel a lot here, and we didn't manage to get on the bus. But if you plan to go here and there, STP is cheaper.

After reloading our transportation card, we rode the MRT and went straight to Chinatown. This was my first time riding on subway so, it was such an interesting experience for me :D

I'll tell more in the next post about the places we've visited, the food, and maybe our expense. See you around :)

Updated!

First day in Singapore
Second day in Singapore [PART 1]
Second day in Singapore [PART 2]
Third day in Singapore [PART 1]
Third day in Singapore [PART 2]

Independence Day of Indonesia

"66 tahun, usia yang sudah tidak muda lagi. Merdeka setelah sekian lama, apakah negara kita benar-benar merdeka?"

Sebagai seorang warga negara yang baik, saya mau mengucapkan Selamat Hari Kemerdekaan Indonesia yang ke-66 di tanggal 17 Agustus tahun 2011 ini. Kalimat pembuka yang sudah saya tuliskan di atas, hendaknya menjadi tema renungan untuk warga negara Indonesia sekalian, termasuk untuk para pemudi/pemuda (termasuk saya tentunya).

Di malam menuju fajar ini, saya menyempatkan diri untuk melongok sejenak arti kata "Merdeka" dalam Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia (melalui internet untuk mempermudah saja).

Merdeka didefinisikan sebagai berikut:
- bebas dari perhambaan atau penjajahan; berdiri sendiri
- tidak terikat, tidak bergantung kepada pihak tertentu

Sementara KEMERDEKAAN didefinisikan sebagai keadaan (hal) berdiri sendiri (bebas, lepas, tidak terjajah lagi, dsb.); kebebasan.

...apakah negeri ini sudah benar-benar bebas? Berdiri sendiri? Tidak bergantung pada pihak tertentu? Apakah benar kita sudah tidak terjajah?