Sophia’s Travel Blog

There were no smiles at the airport immigration when I arrived at 1am. Maybe it was because it was early in the morning and the immigration lines were crazy long or maybe the officers had to keep a straight face because it is immigration and in most countries that I’ve been to – all immigration officers carried a strict face.

But anyway, I’m in Bangkok! Yay! I got in early AM yesterday and was in my hotel at 2:30am sound asleep. It’s a 40 minute drive to the city from the Suvarnabhumi Airport . I got a hotel for 450 baht a night ($13 USD). Being the big eater that I am – as soon as I woke up I went straight for a food cart off the streets of the oh so famous “Khao San Rd” aka “backpackers lane” and got some pad thai for 20 baht (.50). I headed off to see the Grand Palace (a must see when visiting Bangkok) and asked a tuk tuk driver to take me there. He offered to take me to a few smaller temples and then to the Grand Palace and only charge me 10 baht – the catch was – I had to stop by two gem stores and look around but I didn’t have to buy. I agreed – the tuk tuk in return gets a gas coupon from the store. So it was a win win for the both of us. The Grand Palace definitely lives up to its name – the decor and design are pretty extravagant! The Emerald Buddha is the main attraction for all visitors. The Buddha is regarded as the Palladium of the Kingdom, so no one is allowed to take a photo.

Finished the day off with minced pork, egg, rice w/ a spicy fish sauce for dinner and sampled one the local beers (Chang) – tasty! I leave to Chiang Mai tomorrow evening. Chiang Mai is in Northern Thailand – it will be a 10 hour bus ride up. I’ll be there for about a week and then make my way back south.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sdizon

Tomorrow morning I leave Indonesia for Thailand! I wish I had more time here – or maybe manage my time I had here better so I can see more of Indonesia; in particular to visit the other islands.

I spent most of my time in Bali. Bali is beautiful – the people are forever welcoming, the weather is nice, the culture and food is amazing – it’s no wonder why so many that visit Bali end up staying 🙂

With the help of some friends I’ve experienced Bali in its fullest. The food, culture, history and the people. I even took part of a Balinese Hindu ceremony and got a kebaya (traditional Indonesian dress) custom made for me – which was nice. The simple cuisines of Indo, which can be found on the streets and in restaurants – Nasi Goreng, Bakso, Mie Ayam, Gado Gado, Sate, Mie Goreng , Nasi Campur, etc… I can attest that all are very very good!

I’m definitely leaving with a bang – I had my night out in Kuta with some friends, watched a traditional Barong dance, had some good seafood right on the beach (literally) and hiked up Mt. Batur for a breathtaking sunrise!

Thank you all for following me through this journey of mine – thanks for all the comments and emails. Being on the road it’s definitely comforting to read them.

I’ll see you all in Bangkok! Cheers, Sophia

P.S. If you are planning a trip to Bali and need help with any arrangements – contact Marcel at marcelina_kopa@yahoo.com – She’s great and I highly recommend her!

To escape the hustle and bustle of Kuta, Seminyak and Denpasar – Ubud is definitely a place for just that. (An hour drive north of Denpasar). I’ll be here for 3 days to take in all that Ubud has to offer.

Marcel dropped me off at Ubud mid-day, before she left we ate at a restaurant called Bebek Bengil (Dirty Duck Dinner). We had the crispy duck of course – very scrumptious! The story behind the name is quite funny. Bebek Bengil is set among rice fields with a flock of ducks that feed on the insects and plants in the fields. Close to the grand opening of the restaurant a gang of ducks walked right into the restaurant leaving their muddy prints everywhere lol. Anyway, just found out that the duck I just had for dinner onced roamed around these same rice fields ha! 🙂

After dinner, I set off on foot in search for a hotel. There are many cheap bungalows and guest houses here in Ubud. So it didn’t take me long to find something I liked – I settled for a room at Pramesti Bungalows Rp 100,000 a night ($10). Made, the owner is very nice. I would recommend this hotel to anyone visiting Ubud. It’s very nice and green here – the ubud streets are filled with so much arts and crafts…. I’m so tempted to buy but because I’ll be on the road for another two months – I’ll have to stick to window shopping.

I headed straight to the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary the next day. I love monkeys so I was pretty excited! I was hesitant about holding my camera because I remember reading in a book somewhere that the monkeys loved shiny objects – so the sneaky ones wait till the right moment to snatch them from you. There were hundreds of monkeys running around eating bananas and potatoes that some of the tourists were throwing at them. I also ran into a gang of monkeys in the forest picking on a dog – poor thing 🙁

Spent my last day in Ubud, trekking up Gunung Batur (Mt. Batur) to catch the sunrise. Made the trek with a French couple, Matilde and JayB. We headed out with our driver at 2:30am. It takes an hour to get to Mt. Batur and two hours to trek up to the top. Met another couple from Holland and a girl from Arkansas on our way up. We definitely lucked out on this day – no fog at all. Check it out:

I’m such a sucker for sunrises and sunsets!!  Pretty amazing eh? ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!! (I’m standing on top of Mt. Batur taking this photo of the sun rising over Mt. Agung, the highest mountain in Bali – Mt. Agung is still active)

Me on top of Mt. Batur at sunrise! (I’ll trek up any mountain to catch a glimpse of this)

Distant view of Mt. Batur (huge crater at the very top)

Fellow Trekkers

I heard through the grapevine that one of the many places to see a Bali sunset is at Tanah Lot Temple (a 50 minute drive from Denpasar). Tanah Lot means “small island floating on the sea.” Tanah Lot is known for its Hindu Temple on the water.

At lowtide, visitors can ask for blessings right underneath the rocks that support the temple. First step, wash your face with the fresh water running underneath the temple. Afterwards, a hindu priest awaits to sprinkle you with holy water, places a few grains of rice on your forehead and finishes you off with a flower on your ear. (The wash of your face with the water symbolizes your mind being blessed and cleansed).

A few snakes roam around the temple. These snakes symbolize- protectors of the temple from bad influences.

Bail sunset over the Indian Ocean – breathtaking!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sdizon

Spent my last few hours roaming around Jogja. I started the day in search for a local favorite, “Gudeg” (jackfruit, brown sugar, red onions boiled in coconut milk for hours). The locals usually eat Gudeg in the late night sitting on the streets. I found a restaurant near by thanks to Latif, in the place it’s custom to take off your slippers and sit on the floor. Gudeg is on my list of favs – it’s absolutely delicious!

In my pic above, top left of the plate is Gudeg, top right is krecek (boiled cow skin), served with chicken (yes that’s a chicken leg) and rice.

I got to see the infamous bird market, the underground Mosque (muslim), water castle, and last but not least the Prambanan.

The Prambanan is the largest Hindu Temple compound in South East Asia. The three main temples are in the middle of the compound: Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the keeper) and Shiva (the destroyer). In addition, there are 224 temples surrounding the three main. The compound is still in major reconstruction as you will see in my photos.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sdizon

Gosh, all these temples are pumping me up for Angkor Wat in Cambodia!! (I’ll be in Cambodia in a few weeks)

I got in yesterday morning and have been exploring ever since. I’ll be here for 3 days and then fly back to Bali. The first day I saw the Sultan Palace, a traditional puppet show, and a few batiks. I paid a betcha cycler 5,000 Rp (.50) to take me around Jogja for a few hours.

Second day in Jogja, I went ahead and booked an English speaking guide to take me to Borobudur and Dieng Plateau. I hear that Borobudur is a must see at sunrise… So my guide and I headed out at 4am to catch it! Borobudur is an hour drive from Jogja and the Dieng Plateau is 4 hours away (they are both located in Central Java)

The Borobudur Temple is stunning! It is definitely a must see when visiting Jogja. Latif, my english speaking guide was worth every penny – he walked me through every level and talked about the history of this amazing wonder.

Quick Facts on Borobudur (according to my guide):

Borobudur means “Temple on the Hill”. It was built 1,300 years ago. It is the biggest Buddhist Temple in Indonesia! It’s made up of 2 million block stones and there are 532 buddha statues placed throughout the temple.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sdizon

Met some fellow travelers from the Netherlands (Hector, Marcel and Marvin). They have been traveling for a few weeks now around Asia. We might meet up later tonight for a beer but we’ll see…. I have a full day ahead of me tomorrow – since it’s my last day in Jogja. I plan on visiting the Prambanan Temple and hopefully Mt. Merapi.

Tomorrow, Sept 1 – marks the first day of Ramadhan. Ramadhan is a month of fasting, Muslims don’t eat or drink anything from dawn until sunset. Jogja is 70% Muslim.

Hey folks! Sorry I’ve been out of touch for awhile. Let me give you a quick recap of what I’ve been doing in the last week.

Marcel and Jose are wonderful – since in Bali they have taken good care of me. They offered me their home as a homebase as I take my weekend/week long trips to explore Indo. Thanks guys! Did I mention they have the cutest baby ever! Her name is Noami (4 months) – future heartbreaker for sure (check out my pics and see for yourself). They also have three dogs – two goldens and one laborador. They remind me of my dog Koa – I miss her!

Thanks to Marcel – I experience my first Balinese massage. OMG! I didn’t know that my bones can be popped in so many places…lol. But it felt really good. The massage went for an hour and a half – full front and back, from head to toe. Total Price 50,000 Rp ($5)

Marcel and Jose took me out to several local eats. One was a “hole in the wall” spot with no name – definitely a local spot. The place was packed! We ordered up some chicken/lamb sate, sweet rice and lamb soup. All very good! (Josh you missed out on this one). One night, we ordered McDonalds. Yes, you heard me right – McDonalds. Let me explain (Aaron this is for you) : Marcel and I got home late and Noami was in such a deep sleep that it would have been a shame to wake her up. So we decided to order in – we choose McDonalds. The cheeseburger and fries don’t taste the same compared to back home. The cool thing was that they had delivery service! All the American chains (KFC, Burger King, etc…) will deliver!

I finally finished my “World Without End” book! Yay! I’m starting a new book called “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari”…

I got an email from my friend Camille a few days ago. Camille is the ultimate solo traveler – you name the country, she has probably been there. She emailed saying that she’ll be in Indo 9/21 – sucks because that’s the day I leave Indo for Thailand 🙁  We will both try to meet up in Cambodia or Vietnam next month. I’m crossing my fingers.

I’m currently in Yogyakarta (aka Jogja) – writting this blog. I left Bali yesterday and will be in Jogja for three days. I’ll give you the scoop on my next blog.

appearance wise that is 🙂 lol… Until I open my mouth to talk is when the locals realize that I’m not. “Oh your face is Indonesian” is the saying I get from many locals. I’m definitely going to fit in just fine 🙂

Two days in Bali and how do I feel?

Fantastic – I love it here! The people are extremely nice, the weather is gorgeous and the pace of life is very slow and chill…which i love!

This morning I made my way back to Kuta Beach and walked up to one of the many food carts on the beach and ordered another round of Nasi Goreng with a coffee. Total price: 12,000 rupiah ($1.20) It was cooked right in front of me – very authentic and absolutely delicious! Finally real food!! Hands down beats the Nasi Goreng at the airport by miles! For a little spice, they have what is called Sambul (red hot paste – can easily be compared to siracha back home) – good stuff!

I spent most of yesterday and today layin’ on the beach, caught up on some reading and watching the surf. An advantage of having the look of a “local” – Sellers on the beach bypass me and go straight for the light skinned blonde beside me – it’s pretty funny;)

Anyway, I finally got some pics up….Didn’t take much. It took forever to load on the flickr site so it’ll probably be awhile before I can post more….Enjoy!

Here’s the link http://www.flickr.com/photos/sdizon/

is what my taxi driver Dedi said before he charged me 200,000 rupiah ($20 USD) for a ride to my hotel which was 10 minutes from the airport. I had just gotten to Jakarta and was too exhausted to argue.

Anyway, hello all! After 20 hours in the air, 6 movies, 2 layovers I’ve finally made it to Indo. Just wanted to write and say that I’m well and that I have arrived safely.

I met my first Indonesian friend on the plane to Jakarta. Her name is Eni and she’s 24 yrs old. Eni worked in Hong Kong for two years as a house maid. Her contract expired and so she’s heading back home to East Java. We talked for quite a bit and she taught me a few Bahasa words and conversational phrases. Which came in handy, because I just realized I had left my SE Asia Lonely Planet book back home. Josh and I must have missed it when we were repacking my backpack 🙁 Well it turns out that I was Eni’s first American friend so we swapped contact info, took a picture and headed our seperate ways.

Jakarta is the capital of Indo. It was crazy busy, traffic….I had to get out. So I caught an early flight out to Bali the next day. I had a three hour wait at the airport so I decided to grab my first taste of the local food. Does it count if its at the airport? 🙂 lol… Nasi Goreng is what I ordered. (Fried rice w/ chicken, veg, and spices) with a bottle of water. Total price: 25,000 rupiah ($2.50) Pretty cheap eh? And this is airport price – so It must be cheaper outside!

Quick Observation: The waiter hands you the menu and waits at your table until you are ready to order. What? Seriously… Luckily I already knew what I wanted so it didn’t take me that long. As for the man across the room it took him 15 minutes to order! Patience is key for these waiters:)

So I settled in Kuta – Poppies Lane II (southern bali) in a cozy room for $7 a night. Kuta is about 10  minutes from the airport and my taxi only cost me $5 which was definitely a big difference in Jakarta. I will probably stay here for a few days and then meet up with Marcelina (Josh’s good friend). Marcelina is a local so I’m sure she’ll show me the ropes! I’m excited!

I promise I’ll post some pics soon…

I’m off to explore Kuta… Hope all is well.

Cheers, Sophia

After countless demands/threats from family and friends, please find my itinerary at the bottom 🙂 lol…love you guys! 

Anyway, my final date is approaching – two more weeks! Yahoooo! Feeling a little bit nervous but more excited than anything. I got my important stuff done- Passport, Airfare, Vaccinations/shots (Yes, I’ll be making photo copies of all this, leaving a copy with my family and scanning a copy for myself) and of course, I’ve done my reading/research on the places I plan on visiting.

By the end of the week, I plan on boxing and storing my things away and hopefully get my backpack/supplies.  Given that I’m carrying one pack – I’ve put in a lot of thought in what I plan on bringing. I hear the rule of thumb is to pack everything you want to take. Then unpack it, take away half, and pack again – which makes a lot of sense. Besides, I can always buy whatever I need as I go…

I’ve done a fair bit of traveling… but this trip is evidently a much larger undertaking. I never travelled on my own before and I actually can’t stand eating alone but this will have to change won’t it?! Although with this length of a trip, I’m now even more determined to travel more. I’m starting to think that I might have developed some sort of addiction 🙂 which will possibly result in me being in debt, never owning a house and possibly never being in a long term relationship…lol…but you know what…. we all have to see the world. Trekking up mountains in Yosemite, fighting off mosquitoes in the jungles of Mexico, enjoying a glass of wine in Italy, eating balut in the Philippines…. to me it’s all worth it!

My next blog will probably be when I arrive in Jakarta – so stay tuned!

Thanks to all for your support and blessings. Much love going out to an extraordinary someone (you know who you are) thank you for opening my heart to traveling.

Cheers, Sophia

Itinerary (Tentative):

Aug 19 – Leave California

Aug 21-Sept 21 – Jakarta, Indonesia (fly to Bali)

Sept 21-Nov 1 – Bangkok, Thailand (overland to Cambodia & maybe Vietnam)

Nov 1-19 – Hong Kong (China)