I'm Muslim and the So Called Backpacker Traveler

The year 2016 will be over, so does my work as video journalist at a national media at Jakarta. A lot of up and down memories for 5 year and 6 months, including a chance to travel, for a job assignment or for vacation has been happen through all the year 2016. A 2016 review? Come on, that's super ordinary. So this time I will make a wishlist instead for 2017.  Who knows those wishlist could push me ahead to spend more time for useful things for me and hopefully for peoples surrounds me. 1. Traveling overseas with my parents This is actually a wishlist since 2 years ago. When I just back from my Brunei – Malaysia roadtrip. I visit my parents at Pati town and telling my mother about my roadtrip on Brunei and Malaysia that been passed immigration check point 8 times. 

“Let’s go to Bedugul lake” my friend said to me “That’s lake named Beratan, Pit” I give an explanation. “But I wanna see Bedugu lake too”, She insisted “Yes, that’s laked named Beratan, placed on Bedugul area. People from outside Bali will called it Bedugul lake, but local people know this lake with the named Beratan, you know” “Ohh, so it’s a same lake” “Yes” I answered and then scratching my head. Bedugul or Beratan lake placed on Tabanan region, Bali province. This lake to be exactly was on Candi Kuning village, Baturiti regency, about 40 kilometers away from Denpasar city. Beratan lake was the second largest lake in Bali province, after Batur lake. Beratan lake was nearly 375,6 acres of  large and placed on 1240 meters above sea level. That is why the lake areas have a quite humid and cool air. 

“You’ve traveling a lot, Endah. Looks like you never run out of money” I heard that words so many time, every time I told them that I’m going to traveling somewhere. Some of my friends always said that I have countless money, I printed my own money to the point where they think I have tuyul (a tiny ghost or spirit who always stealing money from other people for his master/owner). *laughing out loud* *evil smirk* Who’s said I have a lot of money? Wanna prove? I’ll show my bank record book this month. If you still don’t believe that because you’ve said “That’s a few days ago record, you’ve probably has a huge amount of bank transfer for today”, I’ll give you my ATM and the pin code so you could check it for yourself and see how many money actually I have. *feeling meh*

August 2016, Lasiana beach, Kupang city, East Nusa Tenggara province. 

The most famous picture of Kalimantan floating market in Indonesia was on RCTI, lokal news television, TV commercial or ID station been broadcast around 1996 to 1998 and re broadcast at 2008 to 2009. So, when the first time I was arrive at Banjarmasin, the river city, my news sources take me and my team to the floating market. “You were not visiting Banjarmasin yet, unless you’ve seen the floating market” he said to us. So, I just followed the schedule that been arrange by my team leader. At 6am, 15 minute before the sun rising, we took a boat, which Banjar people called Jukung, for a harbor in front of Banjarmasin city hall. This boat was the main transportation system on Kalimantan River with a small machine in it. The floating market that we about to see were Lok Baintan floating market placed about 30-40 menit from Banjarmasin city hall.

My team and I have been stayed for 3 days in Kupang city to cover some stories about nature and health. Every day we were circling the city to meet some of our news sources and make us crossing the same path, over and over again. Every day I saw through my car window there is some dry forest at several area in Kupang city, Kupang regency and down to Timur Tengah Selatan regency that took placed about 4 hour car drive. Those forests withered, the leaves are falling one by one, leaving the trees consisting only of branches and twigs and the leaves bend over just to remain perched on the branches. " There’s no raining for a long time, even in the Timur Tengah Selatan regency there’s no heavy rainfall for almost 2 years ” said one of my sources.

I don’t get a chance to take one day off after my job assignment in Bali, and now another job assignment already in queue on my desk just one week after the Bali assignment. *Bos..Give me a break, please.  I’m seriously tired* I asked to get assignment for Jakarta area and had been refused with an explanation “ there’s a new guy on this project so he will covered for Jakarta area. For you I will give somewhere far ”. Well.. last year I asked for somewhere far, like Sulawesi or Papua island, has been refused and they sent me to somewhere close. *well, Sumatera island is close enough with Java island, right?!* lol. So here I go again to East Nusa Tenggara province, at Kupang city to be exactly. Actually this is not my first time visiting this province. I ever visiting this province through Sumba Island (read here ). But yeah, this is my first time visiting Kupang city at Timor Island so, let’s just enjoy that. With Aci, the team leader and Amin, the photographer, we were headin...

Bali. After more than 3 years never step on this Island of God, I finally had a chance to visit Bali again for another job assignment. Denpasar will be the city where I have to cover and I saw there’s a lot of change since the last time I’ve visited on 2012. One of the change was a gallery named Upside Down World. Upside down world was an art gallery placed on Bypass Ngurah Rai road no. 762, Pemogan area, Denpasar, Bali. The unique thing about this gallery was several rooms and furniture was placed upside down on the wall or in the ceiling. Even the signboard like ticket and free wifi was placed upside down.

June, 2014 After a hectic moment at Soekarno Hatta international airport this morning, I’ve finally arrived at Tjilik Riwut airport of Palangkaraya, Central  Kalimantan. I keep scratching my itchy nose because of the nasal flu that been effected me since three days ago. The man whom I will have to meet was Mr. Syaer Sua, Karungut artist originally from Central Kalimantan. Karungut was a traditional art from Dayak tribe including music, and or poet and poem that been sung. Karungut usually contains all the life messages for younger generation.

Lovina Beach, Singaraja city, Buleleng region, province of Bali, Indonesia I was only a moment, a blink of an eye looking through the orange thin air on the horizon. Until then, maybe later, when we could meet again somewhere in the near future When I could whisper to you,  "Good morning, Lovina, really nice to meet you again!"

2 years ago I had the opportunity to visit one of the islands in the province of Lampung, Pisang island. Pisang island was placed on the districts of Pesisir Barat , Lampung province On this island, I had a chance to stay and listen to the story one of the resident. Mr Tuzakki is a clove farmers and fisherman living on this island, with an area of ​​half a hectare orchard, he has 400 clove tree, aged between 5 and 10 years.

The capital of Indonesia, Jakarta city was famous as a big, modern and busiest city with more than 10 millions people lived in it. A lot of fast development creates Jakarta as a metropolitan with a lot of new skycrapper building being built every month, in every corner of Jakarta. Despite with all the modernity that happen in Jakarta, this 489 year city has one region when you could actually see some nature beauty you will never expected from big and modern Jakarta. That region was a Kepulauan Seribu (thousand island) region with 342 islands. This region was famous as a quick escape or weekend gateway for its citizen and tourist from the husttle buzzle of Jakarta. Here is some photos which you could go and see by yourself or with friends and admire some nature beauty that represent a little bit about Indonesian nature beauty.  Sunset at Semak Daun island