I hope you all had a great holiday and New Year's Eve celebration! 

Mine was pretty great. Actually the month December were pretty great for me. I had a lot of outdoor activities during the last weeks of December, and then on the day before New Year's eve me and hubby K went to the mall to redeem our Gramedia bookstore voucher which was due on Dec 31 ;p 

And then although I didn't plan to buy anything except for redeeming the vouchers at the bookstore, we ended up shopping, ha! We were trapped and so distracted by all the SALE signs that we see all over the mall so one thing led to another and I ended up buying a watch from a new store at the mall's skywalk, and a couple of things from Mango. Hubby K also ended up with a nice-looking shirt for the office and we also bought a polo shirt for my dad since it was on discount too ^o^ So much for not planning on shopping, we both are so impulsive buyer, LOL. That explains where our money went missing mysteriously hehehe ;p

So anyway, we spent our new year's eve with our family. We had dinner at K's parents house with his sister and husband (& my nephew), we barbecued some corns smeared with butter, garlic salt, and a little bit of hot sauce. We also had some barbecued chicken, barbecued mini sausages, and cooling ice tea. K's mom also made some special dinner as addition to the barbecue menu, there were Tom Yum Soup, Spaghetti with Meat sauce, and beef tongue stew on the dinner table.

And then later at night me and K went to my parents house where my big family are having a get-together for new year's eve. We're lucky our parents house are only 15 minutes from each other ;p

At my house there were seafood menu on the table. There were some fish soup, various grilled fish, grilled chicken, and then some little cakes, martabak, oranges, etc.

When the clock hits closer to 12.00 we went out and headed to Summarecon Mall at BSD area to watch the giant fireworks, but we never made it to Summarecon Mall because the street were already jam packed with cars and motorcycles, it's like everybody are on the street and heading at the same direction. We then decided to just parked our car and just get out of the car to join everybody else in the street that were already got out of their car too. We made it just in time to see the fireworks! There were lots of people there and it felt so festive and the fireworks  were beautiful and there were so many of them lighting up the sky! 

After the firework ended we walked across the street to the nearby Oh La La Cafe that were still open for the new year. I had a Mocha Latte and we all share the "sampler dish" and just chatted along for a while. And then when the traffic looked a little milder we headed back to my parents house. Me and K still have to help our parents cleaned the house after everybody went home, and then we had a little family gossip time before me and K went back to K's parents house, LOL. And we finally hit the bed at 4 am no less, phew ^o^

It was a nice way of spending New Year with our family, and we both are lucky enough to be able to spend it with both of our families! We were very thankful for what 2011 had brought us, it was a great year for both of us and we were grateful for that. I hope 2012 will bring us even more joyous moments and great experiences. I'd wish for more fun adventures and great success in 2012. Maybe in 2012 we would finally move to our new space (the finishing process of our new pad has taken much longer time than we expected), and although we still have another year to paid off the credits of our car we would still hope for a new car because this one has gone to the service quite too often now.

I also would surely hope for more opportunities for both of my blogs. 2011 has bring many unexpected great accomplishments for my two blogs so I'd hope to develop them even more in 2012. These blogs are my babies, I took great measures with them and tried my best to work professionally as a professional blogger (although I still have much to learn). Surely there are more opportunities from local companies now compared to 2010 where I only get offers from companies abroad.
So I really have high hopes in Indonesia's brand marketing system, bloggers are now considered as a "semi-journalist" as well as "an influencer" so it's time for the bloggers to shine :)

Alright now, tomorrow I will hopefully write about my best of 2011 highlights on my next post. And if you're interested you can read my 2011 outfit review in my fashion blog here: Two Thousand Things.

And so how bout your New Year's eve? Any fun stories to share? ^o^

Source: All pics are from my Instagram (add me: yurikristia)

Daily Journal: Busy Weekends!

I've been having a busy weekend for these past two weeks, pfiuh!
Two weekends ago we spent our Saturday doing our own schedules and plans for that day. Hubby K went to the car service station to fix our car, it has something to do with the brakes but I'm not sure what. While K spent the entire noon at the service station, I spent my Saturday doing some household tasks that I never get the time to do it in weekdays, and I also spent the rest of the afternoon updating my blogs and Facebook games ;p - And then late in the afternoon we went to K's parents house (nobody there!) so we went out to find ourselves some dinner (Nasi uduk Betawi) instead.

On Sunday, we woke up pretty early in the morning. We went to have breakfast with K's parents at Fatmawati area (hot chicken porridge), and then we went to Pasar Pagi Blok M (note to my international readers: "pasar pagi" is similar to Sunday morning market). There are lots of cakes, cookies and finger foods (traditional and western-inspired food are both available there). There were also in-season's fresh fruits and a few other stands that sell miscellaneous things such as childrens clothes and toys.

Mom in law bought some traditional cakes (onde-onde, risol, etc) and fruits (rambutan and bananas), and I asked her to buy some fruit pies too ( I love fruit pies!). Below is a pic of me (who has not taken a bath yet that morning ;p) and my MIL:

And then we went home to have lunch and took some needed nap (^o^). At night we went to Hotel Sultan to see a local fundraising music show featuring Indonesia's top singer Harvey Malaiholo, and some other performances such as one of the Molucca's singer: Pita Loppies (who has great vocal and performance by the way!) and a newcomer Mika Tambayong who is apparently Harvey's god daughter.

Harvey Malaiholo

Pita Loppies

Harvey and Mika Tambayong

The music was so-so at first, but then it went great right after Pita took the stage, and then Harvey's turn is right after Pita's so everyone clapped even harder and danced around like there's no tomorrow. But we didn't dance though, we're just happily people-watching that night ^o^

And that was two weekends ago.

Last weekend we were also quite busy. On Saturday, we went to Pondok Indah Mall to go to Gramedia bookstore to use our vouchers which K received from his office. He got two vouchers @IDR100.000 and both are valid until this December so it was time for us to use it before it expires! (receiving these bookstore vouchers for free were like a joyful gift to both of us since we both love to read! ^__^)

After the book hunting at Gramedia we then had dinner at one of our favorite Japanese restaurant Kin-No-Taki (using another "buy 1 get 1" voucher which we got from a booklet that we received after we did a donation for Sampoerna foundation a few months back). And then after the delicious Japanese meal (Ishiyaki Bibimba or Japanese Bibimbap, spicy cuttlefish, Tori Momo or grilled chicken thigh, Agedashi tofu, Chawan Mushi, and Ocha for drinks), we finished the day with some delicious yoghurt dessert (with peach, lychee, and mixed fruit jelly toppings) at Sour Sally.

And then on Sunday we started early and went to Snowbay (watertainment park) at TMII, using my vouchers and member card which I got from Snowbay Management Team! We went there with the whole big family and had lots of really fun time doing all the rides and the wave pool, and relaxing in the long stream pool.

We spent many hours at Snowbay as usual, we went in at 10 am and went out at around 5 o'clock in the afternoon ;p Then we all went all the way to the other part of Jakarta: Bandar Djakarta in Ancol to have a big family dinner since one of my niece turned 17 a few days ago and her parents invited us to celebrate it with a big dinner at one of the most popular seafood restaurant in Jakarta. Bandar Djakarta is a seaside restaurant but we can't really see the sea from our table because we booked a private room upstairs which has windows that faced the parking lot and the inside of the restaurant. Well at least we can see the humongous green sparkly christmas tree from our windows though..

The green huge tree right in the middle of the restaurant. This is the view from our room at 2nd floor.

The waiters bring this sparkly thing to our room along with the birthday cake to celebrate the birthday girl

We arrived home late at night, exhausted, but happy ^___^

What did you do last weekend?

There's A Circus in Town !

Just a quick post here !

Last week I had an invitation to attend a media launching event for "Tarzan, D'Mighty Circus", it's a circus & musical show from the World Circus and TSI Production. I was anxious to go to the media launch event at Parkir Timur Senayan because I LOVE CIRCUS ! So when I learned that there's gonna be a world circus in our town, hell yeah I would wanna go! ^o^

But unfortunately I was sick that day so I could not attend the media launch therefore I don't have any detailed information about the circus. All I know is that the circus is a collaboration between the renowned World Circus and TSI Production (Taman Safari Indonesia), and that it will be held in Parkir Timur Senayan from this month until 8 January 2012. The title of the show is "Tarzan, D'Mighty Circus". You can click below picture to zoom in and see the detailed dates, etc.

click to zoom

I've watched circus a few times when I was still a child, my parents always took me and my brother to see the circus whenever there's one in town. Hubby K apparently never been to a circus before, he only watched it on tv. So when I learned that there will be a renowned world circus playing here I get excited and immediately asked K to go! 

The tickets come in several price range depending on where you sit. If you want to buy cheaper tickets you can buy it from Groupon Disdus, they are currently offering a limited discount for the tickets ->> But the 50% discounts can only be redeemed for Tuesday - Friday shows only, so you can't use it for the Saturday/Sunday shows (semoga saya gak salah tangkap informasi dari yang saya baca di web page mereka ya). You can click here and read the details there yourself (but better be hurry, cos it's limited).

Aah, can't wait to watch this with K !

And I'll be reviewing / reporting it here in this blog for sure ^o^

A Perfect Glutton Day

In a perfect world, my perfect day full of gluttony would be like this:

 Waking up in the morning and have this breakfast:

Must-have morning coffee

followed with:

Home made pizza bread with tomato and cheese

and some fresh orange juice:

And then when it's noon time we'll have a lunch of:

Tomato Basil Soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwich

with cold fresh drink to satisfy the mid noon quench:

Iced Tangerine Green Tea

And then in the afternoon we'll lounge around while sipping on hot tea:

Chamomile Tea

and some light finger food:

Mozzarella Sticks in Egg roll Wrappers

And then late at night we'll have a nice dinner consisted of:

Asparagus Gratin

served with:

Chicken Picatta + a bowl of warm rice

And a glass of cold mineral water for the drink would be just fine.

Don't forget to save some space in your stomach for dessert:

Frozen White Hot Chocolate

And slices of Mint Oreo Brownies:

Super Yummo!

Are you hungry yet??
^o^

Bandung 1-Day Trip [RM Boemi Joglo, De Ranch, Warung Lela]

Where were you last weekend? My Saturday was actually quite busy. Me and K went to Bandung for a short day trip as a result of a spontaneous decision that we made with our friends on Thursday via our whatsapp group chat. 

And so that Saturday we met for breakfast at Starbucks Citos as our meeting point. I had a choco croissant with a tall cup of Peppermint Mocha Latte (my most favorite Starbucks drink so far! - which unfortunately it's one of Starbuck's christmas season drink >>> which means it only comes out once every year around christmas time !! Boo..).

So anyway after we enjoyed our little breakfast we then hopped into our cars and off we go in to the highway, up along the road to Bandung which is a small town about 2 hours away from Jakarta. Bandung is the capital city of West Java. I actually went to college in Bandung so it is basically my college city ^o^ 

...and it's always nice to go visit it every other time, especially when you're with a good company.

We stopped by at one of the highway's rest area ( I think it's around Km70...). I never stopped at this rest area before because we always stopped at the one with the Starbucks in it which is around Km23 or something...if i'm not mistaken). But this rest area in Km70... is actually quite nice, it's not too crowded, it has lots of trees and green bushes so it's easy for the eyes. And the little cafes looks really nice and inviting, I put a mental note on my head that next time I went to Bandung I will stopped at this rest area instead ^o^

From there we drove non stop to Bandung. About two hours later we finally arrived and went straight to Dago Pakar area which is the upper (hill area) part of North Bandung. There are many restaurants and places to visit in Dago Pakar which offer great panoramic views of the city below, I remember there were not these many restaurants back in my college days. One of our friend, Shilla suggested Boemi Joglo for our lunch that day. She said it serves Sate Maranggi which is one of West Java's culinary specialty. Sate Maranggi or Satay Maranggi is a typical satay served in skewers made of beef or sometimes goat meat. It also has a distinctive marinade sauce which is different from the common peanut sauce. Satay Maranggi usually use a marinade made from soy sauce, green chili sauce, and a little vinegar, and then served with sliced ​​red onions and fresh tomatoes sprinkled above it.

The satay were very yummy, and the other dishes we ordered (nasi liwet ikan asin, pecel, tumis kangkung, tempe mendoan were all delicious).

The Nasi Liwet Ikan Asin is rice cooked with milk, served with crushed salted fish and other various toppings.

Pecel according to wikipedia is an Indonesian sauce based on chillies, peanuts, tamarind and coconut sugar, commonly served over boiled fresh vegetables.

Tumis Kangkung is stir-fried water spinach, cooked with red chillies and chopped garlic.

Tempe Mendoan is according to wikipedia is a thinly sliced tempeh, dipped into spiced flour dressing and then deep fried in hot oil. You ate it with a special sauce.

Overall, the food were great, the place was also great (the overall decor and atmosphere of the restaurant makes me feel like I'm eating in a rustic small village in the middle of a thick jungle with all that shady green trees, stoned paths and stairways, and traditional wooden gazebos. It's a really nice family restaurant, worth to try incase you're in Bandung. The road to the area were not easy though, you might want to rely on a specific map or asked your friend to guide you.

Next stop is De'Ranch at Maribaya, Lembang. This is an outskirt area of Bandung, not that far from Dago Pakar. Lembang has always been the vacation and recreational place for people who lives in Bandung. Although Bandung is colder than Jakarta but Lembang is way more colder because it is in the upper hill.

picture from De'Ranch website

De' Ranch is a family recreational place where you could experience a cowboy's lifestyle. Although it's impossible to really experience a cowboy's life from just visiting De Ranch but the whole area was beautifully landscaped with green fields, horse track, horses stables, even with some wagons and wooden furniture that depicts rural cowboy's life. There are also cowshed and cow pastures where you could actually milk cows as an experience. The black and white cows are the second thing I see after the wide green landscape, and of course I was drawn straightly into the cowshed! I.LOVE.COWS! But only the black&white ones or the dairy cows!

If there's a dairy cow, no doubt I will take pictures with it ;)

Hello Mrs.Cow, can I take you home?

The purpose of De' Ranch is as simple as providing a place for families to play together through a safe and enjoyable activity out in the open. So there are many activities on site, especially for children alike. There are some fun activities such as archery game, cycling track for kids with Indian teepees in sight, horse riding (or pony riding for the younger kids), wagon ride (for family or parent + child), even professional horse riding class.

There is also fun boat:

And cookie making class:

...which I lately realized that the class was actually more intended for kids, but I didn't realized it and signed up anyway (and I'm wearing my friend's daughter's headband - so the cookie class staff must think that I'm overly immature so she teaches me how to make cookies like I'm a 4 year old ;p)

But my cookies turned out good ^o^ 

Me and my friends ate all of it in just 15 minutes ;p

So yeah we had a lot of fun in De'Ranch, and I enjoyed the view most importantly. We sat in one of the picnic table in the skirt of the open field. Some of my friends ordered roasted coconut drink and noodle glass meatball soup. I only ordered a cup of hot coffee with milk since I'm still quite full from the big lunch.

And then we all decided to be immature too and jumped up and down like crazy in the open green field:

Hubby K's frog jump pose!

From there we went to one of my friend's family rented villa in Lembang to take a little rest before we continue our culinary trip. We bought some fried tofu on our way to the villa. Bandung area is also known for their yellow soft tofu. The deep fried tofus that we bought had a special spicy sauce for dipping, but some of us prefer to eat it with green chillies that were also provided.

At around 18:00pm we drove back to Dago Pakar area to have dinner. This time we went to another restaurant called Warung Lela (or roughly translated as Lela's Little Stall). My last visit to Warung Lela was maybe 10 years ago during my college time. I remember I had one of the most delicious noodle there, and the place was really pretty too. And so I was ecstatic when we decided to have dinner here. The place was still the same although some minor things have changed a bit. We ordered their noodles variation, I had the Mie Yamien Manis (noodles with sweet soya sauce topped with chopped scallions, shredded marinated chicken, and served with a bowl of meatballs soup) and hot lemon tea. The noodles were as good as I remember, and the atmosphere were very very nice with rustic traditional wooden furniture, old vintage prints framed on the terracotta wall, soft warm lighting, and a traditional Javanese roof style called "joglo" (as you can see in the pic below):

And that nice dinner is where we ended our day trip!

Okay I've been blabbering a lot about this day trip, I'm sorry if I bored you or anything, I just thought I'd share some stories of the places we visited :) 

I hope you had a great weekend too! I won't mind if you tell me some stories too :D

See you on my next post!


To see my other trip/travel series click here and keep scrolling down once you're there.