Chilling in Bandung

It felt good to have a vacation, even if it was just a day trip, after a relocation. Bandung fitted perfectly well - it has a much cooler temperature than Jakarta, relatively near to Jakarta (about 3-4 hours drive from Jakarta) and less polluted.

Unlike other trips I have had with my hubby, we traveled with a huge group this time. Surprisingly, it was fun. You know, people said companies made a difference in travels. I assure you, it is very true!

The journey to Bandung took us more than twice the usual travel time needed. Thanks to the long weekend and a minor landslide at the highway due to the heavy downpour. I felt like a walking zombie by the time we reached the villa. We departed from Jakarta about 7pm and only reached Bandung in the wee hours of 4am!! Pffff....

Fortunately, the villa were staying for the night saved the day. It was located in a quiet place and it gave all the tranquility we needed - just so to get a piece of mind. I absolutely love the temperature of the city. It was a mere 19 degrees Celsius! Perfect!

View of our villa.

Indonesia has one of the most number of active volcanoes in the world. Hence, apart from food and shopping, Bandung is famous for craters. The one we went to was Tangkuban Parahu (it meant "Upturned Boat"). There is a local legend behind the name, which my hubby's colleagues attempted to narrate to me. Along the way, there were some discrepancies in the details of the narration. But, the gist of it remained identical.

It was back in  those days when magic, giants, and mythical creatures did exist. Here it goes...

About some centuries ago, there was a beauty in this West Java land who sent her son away (for some reason I couldn't remember from the narration) and she somehow was granted the power to remain youthful. One day, the son returned to the homeland and they couldn't recognise each other. That was when all things turned wrong - he fell in love with his mother and he wanted to marry her. It was later that the mother found out he was actually her very own son.

As an attempt to stop the marriage, she made a very ridiculous demand of him. He needed to build a boat (of some kind) before the sunrise. What she didn't expect was that, he made a very good progress and was about to complete it. Despaired, she ordered some mythical people to accelerate the sunrise. Upon seeing his failure to complete the boat, he kicked the boat in frustration and anger. The boat overturned and then formed Tangkuban Parahu of today....

Tadaaa...that's it. I am not such a good story teller, am I?

 If you are interested for a more wholesome story, feel free to find out from here.

As we drove our way uphill, a pungent smell of sulfur filled our nostrils.

The view, however was definitely spectacular. I love the calming blue of the liquid that filled the crater. 

Next, we headed to the floating market, one of the local touristic places you should not miss if you go to Bandung. It is a place where you could fill up your tummy with a variety of local delights and shop for souvenirs.

The floating market

We were lucky that the weather was excellent for outdoor.
If you love to shop, there are plenty of factory outlets in Bandung that sell merchandises at reasonable prices. Unfortunately, we didn't have much time for that as we needed to head back to Jakarta. We, however, did have a good culinary trip.

There is absolutely many things to try out in Bandung but you must try the tahu susu lembang (silky milky beancurd). I love the silky texture of the beancurd. I was too lazy to deep fry it at home (I have a no deep fry policy in my own private kitchen :p) so I bought the cooked one from the shop. For those who would like to try out this specialty delicacy of Bandung, please find the address below.

Jl. Raya Lembang No.177, Bandung.

All right, it is time for me to click the "Post" button! I had taken way to long to get this entry up.