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  • OYO 117 Majestic Hotel: Terlengkapi dengan Kedai Langganan

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Aku telah tiba….

    Berdiri di hadapan hotel berlantai tujuh. Memastikan sejenak nama hotel yang tertera di name board besarnya, maka aku memasuki pintu lobby setelah mengetahui bahwa aku berada di hotel yang tepat.

    “It’s no matter, Sir….I will give your room now”, resepsionis pria berkebangsaan Bangladesh menurut perkiraanku telah berbaik hati memberikan kunci kamar lebih cepat walaupun waktu check-in ku masih enam jam lagi.

    Padahal tadinya aku hanya berniat untuk menitipkan backpack saja sebelum melakukan eksplorasi di daerah Mutrah.

    Mengucapkan terimakasih maka aku segera meluncur di dalam lift menuju lantai empat untuk mencari kamar bernomor 409. Aku menemukannya dengan mudah. Menaruh backpack,  membersihkan muka dan menggosok gigi sejenak, maka untuk kemudian aku siap untuk melakukan eksplorasi.

    Aku meninggalkan kamar dengan satu hal yang tak kusadari. Kecerobohan itu adalah tidak menutup kran wastafel dengan sempurna, sehingga air di kamarku terbuang percuma hingga sore hari karena kucuran kecil yang tak kusadari….Dasar tidak disiplin kamu, Donny.

    OYO 117 Majestic Hotel tampak muka.
    Meja resepsionis.
    Lobby.
    Kamar seharga 11 Rial.

    Pikiran utamaku ketika meninggalkan hotel hanya satu, yaitu bersarapan. Aku yang telah menandai sebuah kedai makan khas Asia Selatan, menjadikanku lebih mudah untuk menujunya. Kedai itu hanya berjarak dua ratus meter dari hotel.

    Kedai itu berada di lantai terbawah sebuah gedung, berukuran kecil dan hanya menempati sisi pojok bawah gedung. Aku memasukinya dengan penuh rasa lapar dan sang pemilik yang berusia setengah baya serta berbadan tambun tersenyum menyapaku.

    “Come….”, ujarnya singkat.

    Usai membalas senyumnya, aku pun duduk di pojok kedai dan menatap deretan menu yang dipajang di salah satu sisi dinding kedai.

    “Sir, give me white rice with chicken fry, also a cup of milk tea”, aku mulai memesan hidangan yang kupilih

    “Ok, Sir….Wait for a minute”, pemilik kedai itu pun beranjak pergi menuju dapur.

    Sembari menunggu, aku memperhatikan keramaian kedai oleh wajah-wajah Asia Selatan yang khusyu’ menyantap makanannya masing-masing. Mereka adalah sebagian dari sekian banyak para pekerja kasar yang menghidupkan sektor informal perekonomian Kota Muscat.

    Tak sampai lima menit, hidanganku telah tiba….

    Pemilik kedai itu menaruh hidangan yang kupesan. Kini tersaji sepiring penuh nasi putih, dua potong paha ayam goreng dengan aroma kari berukuran besar dan satu cangkir kertas milk tea.

    “Where are you come from?”, tanyanya singkat kepadaku.

    “Indonesia….And you, Sir?”, aku melemparkan tanya balik.

    “Bangladesh….We all here from Bangladesh”, dia tersenyum sembari menunjuk ke semua pengunjung kedainya. Sontak semua pengunjung tertawa mendengar percakapan singkat kami.

    “Wowww….Wonderful”, aku ikut tertawa menyambut kemeriahan di kedai makan itu.

    Kedai makan khas Bangladesh yang menjadi kedai langganan.
    Para pekerja asal Bangladesh.
    Yuk makan…!

    Sebelum pemilik kedai itu meninggalkan mejaku, aku memintanya untuk mengambil sepotong paha ayam goreng dari hidangan yang dia sajikan.

    “I can’t eat to much, Sir….Look this my small body !”, aku menunjukkan jari telunjuk ke diri sendiri sembari tersenyum.

    Keramahan sang pemilik kedai beserta segenap langganannya yang bersahaja telah membuat tempat makan itu menjadi kedai langgananku selama mengeksplorasi Muscat.

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->

  • Malaysia Airlines MH 724 from Jakarta (CGK) to Kuala Lumpur (KUL)

    <—-Previous Story

    MH 724 flight path (source: flightaware.com).

    After checking at immigration counter, I went down one floor and then walked west along travelator at Departure Hall Terminal 3 Ultimate.

    Within fifteen minutes I arrived at Terminal 3 Existing. Meanwhile, a dark hue began to appear from the airport window. Only one thing which crossed my mind…..Doing a Maghrib and Isha’ Jama’ prayers. I have memorized Terminal 3 Existing since 2013, so I know where the prayer room was, which wasn’t far from the final bend of Terminal 3 Ultimate in west side.

    After praying, I sat down to enjoy oatmeal which I poured in mini foldable lunch box, fortunately there was a free water station which provided warm water to brew that powdered food. That was the first dinner in my adventure to explore Kuala Terengganu, India and Middle East.

    After eating a simple dinner, I rushed to gate 4 to prepare myself for boarding. Just a few minutes sitting in waiting room, announcements filled the airport ceiling….. Yup, delayed.

    The predicted delay time for a hour made me have to do other activities to avoid boredom. I decided to recharge my smartphone which had run out of power. Meanwhile, I threw my eyes out of the airport building to watch busy loading activities carried out at the feet of giant Boeing 747 belonging to Japan Airlines, Airbus 330 belonging to Turkish Airlines and Korean Air in the east side of Terminal 3 Existing.

    Another fun thing I did to get rid of the boredom was eavesdropping on the conversation of a beautiful Indonesian woman who was solemnly making a video call with her lover who was in Europe….Hhmmhhh, I was naughty.

    I also took the time to talk to a native Chinese who opened a restaurant in Cikarang Industrial area. According to him, he would temporarily return to China after almost a year of not going home. The difficulty in speaking Indonesian and English made us struggle to converse with the addition of sign language and our own body language….Hmmmmhhh, he was a Chinese businessman.

    Yuhuu….That was my plane.
    Look at that sweet Malay face……Hmmmhh.

    Finally, on 20:15 hours, boarding time arrived……

    I immediately entered the queue column in right side for passport and boarding pass checking by ground staffs. After the inspection, I walked down the aerobridge to enter the cabin of Malaysia Airlines plane which was a member of the world’s largest aviation alliance “Oneworld”….Yes, I found my seat in the middle cabin, right on the left side window seat numbered 26F.

    Malaysian Airline MH 724 was a 1 hour 34 minute flight using a Boeing 737-800 aircraft and covered a distance of 1,216 km. And that was the second time I enjoyed to flying with Malaysia Airlines. One and a half years earlier I had tried the morning flight Malaysia Airlines MH 726 with same destination.

    I was very lucky to be able to catch this premium flight from my neighboring country in a promo which lasted ten months before the flight. And the main destination wasn’t Kuala Lumpur, but Kuala Terengganu.

    After carrying out the boarding process and a demonstration of flight safety procedures by cabin crew, the plane was prepared at the end of runway to take-off. Not long after, after getting permission from Air Traffic Controller (ATC), the plane took off and nearing nine o’clock in the evening, the plane was airborne.

    When the plane had entered the cruising stage, flight attendants began to distribute in-flight meals. The Low Lactose Meal (NLML) which I ordered long time before the flight arrived.

    Low Lactose Meal (NLML) which contained potatoes, carrots and boiled chicken….nyammmm.
    Let’s read the magazine…

    Since it was a short flight, after dinner I tried to take advantage of the time by exploring the neighboring country through Malaysia Airlines’ inflight magazine, “Going Places” and occasionally flipping through Temptations e-cataloque for a little peek at the prices of souvenirs belonging to Malaysia Airlines….Hmmh, of course I wouldn’t buy it.

    I ran out of ideas so in the rest of flight I tried to close my eyes for a moment because tonight I definitely won’t be sleeping well at Kuala Lumpur International Airport to wait for the morning. I didn’t really sleep well for the rest of flight, until finally the pilot announced that the plane would be landing soon while informing me that the weather was good in Kuala Lumpur.

    Malaysia Airlines MH 724 was preparing to land, took a straight position towards the runway and slowly lowered its big wheels to tread the runway and helped the pilot to stop the plane.

    The beauty of Kuala Lumpur.

    Welcome to KLIA….Welcome Malaysia.

    To get flight tickets from Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur, you can search for them at 12go Asia with the following link:  https://12go.asia/?z=3283832

    Next Story—->

  • Menuju OYO 117 Majestic Hotel: Jalan Tenang nan Menentramkan

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Pukul setengah tujuh pagi aku sudah menginjakkan kaki di daerah Ruwi setelah dihantarkan oleh Mwasalat Bus bernomor 1B dari Muscat International Airport.

    Menuruni bus, aku tetiba terperangah….

    Bagaimana tidak, terminal bus berukuran kecil itu tampak indah karena dikelilingi oleh bukit berbatu yang membentang dengan warna coklat kemerahan di segenap pandangan. “Ini sungguh pesona yang luar biasa”, batinku berujar sesaat.

    Usai mengabadikan beberapa sudut terminal dalam jepretan Canon EOS M10 kesayangan, maka tatapanku berpindah ke arah selatan.

    Jalanan masih sepi, sementara OYO 117 Majestic Hotel yang kupesan tersembunyi di sebuah sisi jalan yang berjarak dua setengah kilometer jauhnya. Aku memesan salah satu kamarnya seharga 11 Rial per malam tepat sebulan sebelum keberangkatan.

    Untuk beberapa saat aku menatap bentangan lurus panjang Al Fursan Street yang sangat lengang. Jalan itu lurus bersisian dengan Alkbir Wadi yang kering kerontang, menampakkan tanah permukaannya yang pecah merekah dimana-mana karena konsitensi terpaan panas surya dalam beberapa bulan musim kering.

    Wadi sendiri adalah sebutan untuk hamparan sungai yang kering karena pada umumnya sungai tersebut hanya mengalirkan air saat musim penghujan tiba.

    “Tak ada waktu lagi…..”, aku meyakinkan diri untuk mantab saja melangkah memasuki Al Fursan Street.

    Aku melangkah cepat sembari terus memperhatikan posisiku terhadap hotel di aplikasi peta pada gawai pintar yang terus kugenggam selama melangkah. Semaikin jauh menelusuri Al Fursan Street, bukan perasaan gentar yang kudapatkan, justru rasa tenang nan damai yang menyelimuti setiap langkah demi langkah. Aku merasa berada di jalanan paling aman yang membuatku berani melambatkan langkah demi menikmati suasana pagi yang sejuk hingga kemudian langkahku terhenti di sebuah perempatan.

    Aku berdiam di sisi barat persimpangan dua jalan itu. Aku mencoba mencari papan petunjuk untuk memahami nama jalan pemotong Al Fursan Street yang sedari sebelumnya aku lewati.

    “Al Baladiya Street….Oh itu nama jalannya”, aku mendapatkan papan nama jalan dengan cepat.

    Aku memutuskan untuk menyeberangi perempatan itu, karena letak hotel yang sedang kucari berada di sisi timur Alkbir Wadi. Aku pun menyeberangi jembatan yang gagah mengangkangi wadi yang memiliki lebar tak kurang dari lima puluh meter.

    Aku memasuki daerah Al Walja.
    Suasana AL Fursan Street yang tenang dan menentramkan.
    Perempatan jalan yang dibentuk oleh Al Fursan Street dan Al Baladiya Street.
    Alkbir Wadi yang kering kerontang.
    Ruas jalan terakhir menuju ke OYO 117 Majestic Hotel.

    Kini langkahku berpindah di jalan yang menyejajari Alkbir Wadi di sisi timurnya. Sepanjang jalan itu, tampak ruko-ruko lima lantai yang masih tertutup rapat di sisi kiriku melangkah. Sedangkan di sisi kanan lebih didominasi oleh keberadaan truk-truk besar yang bagian depannya ditundukkan sebagai pertanda bahwa mesin-mesin pengangkut itu sedang mendapatkan reparasi.

    Tampak wajah-wajah khas Asia Selatan mendominasi kegiatan reparasi itu, nantinya aku akan mengetahui bahwa mayoritas mereka berasal dari Bangladesh.

    Semakin mendekati hotel, suasana jalanan mulai ramai. Nadi kehidupan ekonomi Kota Muscat tampak sedang menggeliat dari bangun malamya.

    Sebelum benar-benar tiba di hotel, aku mulai memfokuskan pandangan untuk mencari keberadaan kedai makan di sekitar aku melangkah. Naluriku mengatakan bahwa di daerah tersebut pasti ada kedai makan murah khas Bangladesh yang memfasilitasi kebutuhan perut para pekerja Bangladesh yang sibuk bekerja di sekitarnya.

    Benar saja, di sebuah gang dan sedikit tersembunyi aku melihat sebuah kedai makan mungil.

    “Baiklah….Di situlah aku akan menikmati sarapan pertamaku di Oman”, bibirku tersenyum tipis ketika mengambil keputusan.

    Demi segera bersarapan, maka aku mempercepat langkah menuju hotel yang jaraknya tinggal beberapa meter lagi di depan.

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->

  • The Middle East Aroma in Terminal 3 Ultimate Soekarno Hatta International Airport

    DAMRI Bus Terminal Kampung Rambutan – Soekarno Hatta International Airport.

    Saturday afternoon was very sunny. The impatience that had enveloped my heart since morning had already collapsed. A faint smile continued to hang in the corners of my lips after I got off city transportation and stepped onto DAMRI shelter, which was part of JA Connexion’s mode of transportation.

    On 15:30 hours, after confirming that the fleet in front me was the fastest bus which would depart to Soekarno Hatta International Airport, I jumped into it through its front door and sat behind the driver in left seat coloumn.

    After all the passengers entered, an officer of Kampung Rambutan Terminal entered and withdrew a retribution of a thousand Rupiah to all passengers. “How come the retribution isn’t just included in the ticket price,” I asked myself.

    Shortly after, the bus departed….Slowly speeding out of terminal, briefly passing through a side of toll road and then entering the toll gate a few meters ahead.

    At the beginning of journey in toll road, the congestion began to be felt, but I wasn’t really worried about that situation because I was on 4 hours 20 minutes before my flight. I also enjoyed the 50 km journey very comfortably.

    An hour and a few minutes, I arrived at the drop off zone of Terminal 3 Ultimate Soekarno Hatta International Airport. Through Departure Hall Gate 3, I started looking for Malaysia Airline MH 724 flight status.

    The flight number which had not been listed in the Flight Information Display System (FIDS), made me dare to ask a female officer at the information center desk and finally I got information that check-in desk C would be used to process administration of Malaysia Airlines flight MH 724.

    Waiting seats at Departure Hall Terminal 3 Ultimate

    Knowing this information, I decided to wait in the nearest seat with check-in desk C. While waiting for the check-in desk to open, I was stunned by the busyness of a pair of tour guides who were busy organizing their group, which I didn’t know where would they go? The two of them gathered the group and loudly conducted a briefing so that their voices could be heard by anyone around the corner waiting for Terminal 3 Ultimate.

    An hour of waiting, finally the check-in desk opened and I immediately queued at C24 queue column to get my boarding pass to Kuala Lumpur. That time Kuala Lumpur would only be a stopover, because I would explore Kuala Terengganu, a city located 450 km north of Kuala Lumpur.

    Check-in desk C Terminal 3 Ultimate

    Kuala Terengganu would be the fifth city in Malaysia which I would enjoy after Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, Ipoh and Penang….. Ahhhh, that afternoon I couldn’t wait to arrive in Kuala Terengganu.

    A visit to Kuala Terengganu was the intention which emerged after I met Mariya, a solo-traveler from Malaysia in Seoul. The charm of Kuala Terengganu told by Mariya had hypnotized my subconscious to visit it. It took three years to realize that dream.

    But again, Kuala Terengganu was also not the only destination in my trip that time, because my target points were certainly in places which were further away, i.e countries in the Middle East region.

    Back to Terminal 3 Ultimate…..

    Now I was heading to the immigration counter to hunt for a departure stamp. In front of immigration area, I tried to complete immigration check process through immigration autogate but there was an officer who held me back and forbade me to pass through that route. I was directed to the immigration counter with an officer ready to check. Facing an immigration officer, I handed over my passport and boarding pass.

    Immigration staff: “Return ticket, Sir?”

    Me: “Here, Sir”, I handed over a print out of Philippine Airlines flight ticket with Doha-Jakarta route and transit in Manila.

    Immigration staff: “Alone, Sir?. On what occasion?”

    Me: “Solo-Backpacking, Sir”

    The immigration staff was finally busy researching page by page details on my passport.

    Immigration staff: “Where will you go, Sir?”

    Me: “Kuala Terengganu-Kochi-Dubai-Oman-Bahrain-Qatar, Sir”

    Immigration staff: “May I see the visas, Sir?”, his face was still cold and serious.

    Me: “Just a minute, Sir”, I opened my zipper bag and took out India Visa, United Arab Emirates Visa, Oman Visa and Bahrain Visa, “Here, Sir”

    The immigration staff checked that visas I was given one by one.

    Immigration staff: “Ok. Be careful, Sir.”

    My ticket….Yuuuuuuu.

    I came out of the immigration counter with a sigh of relief and immediately put all my documents back in zipper bag. Now I would head to Terminal 3 Existing to prepare to fly with Malaysia Airlines.

    Next Story—->

  • Mwasalat Bus No. 1B: Menuju Ruwi di Pagi Perdana

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Aku yang tertidur ayam tetiba terperanjat bangun ketika suara berisik alat pel lantai yang digunakan oleh seorang cleaning service terdengar jelas dari bawah bangku tempatku tertidur. Aku membuka mata dan langsung melihat penunjuk waktu digital di sebuah layar FIDS yang terpampang di pojok ruangan.

    Masih saja pukul empat pagi ketika aku melihatnya.

    “Sorry if what I do had disturbed your sleep”, cleaning service berperawakan Asia Selatan itu dengan sopannya membungkuk di depanku.

    “Oh….No matter, brother”, aku memanggilnya demikian karena raut mukanya yang masih terlihat muda.

    “Are you working here?”

    “Nop….I’m just backpacking”

    “I’m from Indonesia….Where are you come from brother?”,

    “I’m from Blochistan….I had worked here since a year ago but the salary isn’t good here”, dia mulai bercerita tentang keadaannya bekerja di Muscat.

    Dari percakapan lanjutan setelah itu, aku sungguh merasa bersyukur karena bisa bekerja di negara sendiri dan sedikit sisa dari pendapatanku bisa kugunakan untuk menjelajah dunia.

    Setelah percakapan singkat itu, aku tak lagi bisa tidur. Aku hanya berkali-kali membuka itinerary dan brosur-brosur pariwisata yang kuambil saat pertama kali tiba di bandara. Aku berusaha memahami informasi dari setiap obyek wisata yang akan kukunjungi beberapa saat di depan.

    Tak terasa waktu Shalat Subuh pun akhirnya tiba….

    Aku tergopoh naik ke lantai atas untuk mencari keberadaan mushola. Dan aku mendapatkannya dengan mudah dan akhirnya bisa menjalankan ibadah dengan pandangan mata bergelayutan karena menahan kantuk.

    Sementara itu bekal makanan yang kubeli dari Dubai telah habis kusantap sebagai makan malam. Aku yang kelaparan terpaksa harus menahan protes perut hingga menemukan sarapan di tengah kota nanti.

    Usai menjalankan ibadah Shalat Subuh, aku mempersiapkan diri untuk bertolak ke pusat kota. Tujuanku kali ini adalah Daerah Ruwi yang berjarak tak kurang dari 30 kilometer di barat bandar udara. Sebuah kamar milik OYO 117 Majestic Hotel yang kupesan berada di daerah tersebut.

    Tak membuang waktu…..

    Aku bergegas menuju Level 0 bandara untuk mencari keberadaan bus umum bernomor 1B demi menuju ke Ruwi-Mwasalat Bus Station. Mwasalat sendiri adalah penyedia jasa transportasi publik di Muscat.

    “Just wait here….The bus will come in five minutes….I will show you the bus next”, begitulah ucap seorang lelaki berperawakan kurus tinggi yang mengatur pemberangkatan setiap bus Mwasalat di bandara.

    Menunggu kedatangan Mwasalat Bus No. 1B di Muscat International Airport.
    Salah satu mushola di Muscat International Airport.
    Interior Mwasalat Bus No. 1B.
    Melalui kawasan Al Azaiba South.
    Melintas sekejap di daerah Al Khuwayr South.
    Akhirnya tiba di Ruwi-Mwasalat Bus Station.

    Bus itu benar-benar datang tepat lima menit seperti apa yang diucapkannya…..

    Aku menaiki Mwasalat Bus bernomor 1B melalui pintu depan dan menyerahkan ongkos senilai 1 Rial ke pengemudi berbadan tambun yang mengenakan gamis putih. Setelah pengemudi itu memberikan karcis maka aku mengambil tempat duduk di bagian tengah. Dalam kondisi yang masih setengah gelap, aku telah bersiap.

    Porsi besar perjalanan ini ditempuh melalui jalan tol utama kota Muscat yaitu Sultan Qaboos Street. Semakin jauh meninggalkan bandara menuju timur maka semburat fajar mulai melunturkan gelap yang sedari awal perjalanan masih angkuh berkuasa.

    Dalam setengah jam, Mwasalat Bus bernomor 1B yang kunaiki telah merapat di Ruwi-Mwasalat Bus Station.

    Kini aku bersiap menggeber langkah menuju selatan untuk menggapai penginapan.

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->

  • Arrival Hall Muscat International Airport

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Aku melangkah keluar dari kabin Swiss Air LX 242, menapak kembali di aerobridge dan berhenti sejenak di pertengahannya. Aku tertegun sejenak memperhatikan aktivitas tersisa di apron Muscat International Airport.  Tengah malam itu aku hanya melihat sebuah pesawat milik Salam Air yang berwarna dominan putih dengan kelir hijau sedang berhenti terparkir di salah satu sisi apron.

    Aku mulai melangkah melewati koridor demi koridor arrival hall. Sepanjang koridor menawarkan interior yang memikat mata. Setiap sisi travelator disulap menjadi taman bebatuan dengan padanan warna-warni pelita yang menarik mata.

    Sementara bangku-bangku diletakkan di setiap sisi ruangan dengan desain futuristik. Hingga dalam beberapa saat kemudian, tibalah aku di area konter imigrasi.

    Memasuki antrian yang jalurnya dibentuk oleh tape barrier, aku tak melepas antusias. Memasuki sebuah negara dengan e-Visa approval yang didapat dari tanah air adalah sesuatu hal yang  membuat hati menjadi tenang. Biasaya approval e-Visa ini adalah jaminan terampuh untuk bisa melewati konter imigrasi dengan mudah.

    “Halo, Sir, Can I see your e-Visa?”, seorang petugas jangkung berkemeja putih dengan celana bahan hitam menghentikan langkahku.

    “Oh, wait. Sir”, aku berhenti dan mulai menurunkan backpack untuk mengambil dokumen.

    Aku pun mulai sibuk mengaduk-aduk backpack demi menemukan berkas itu.

    “Oh yes…I had seen your document. You can go to the counter”, petugas itu tetiba memberikanku akses setelah dia sekilas melihat lembaran e-Visa di zipper file berbahan transparan yang kukeluarkan.

    “Oh, Okay Sir….I’m ready for that”, aku menyatakan telah siap menghadap ke petugas imigrasi.

    Tanpa kekhawatiran sedikitpun aku pun melangkah menuju konter imigrasi.

    “Assalamu’alaikum, Sir”, aku berinisiatif mengucapkan salam ke petugas imigrasi berkumis tipis.

    “ ‘alaikumussalam”, dia tak melihatku sedikitpun dan hanya berfokus pada passport, e-Visa, hotel booking confirmation dan e-ticket Air Arabia untuk meninggalkan Muscat yang beberapa detik lalu kusodorkan.

    “Do you visit Dubai before arrive here?”.

    “Absolutely, yes, Sir”.

    “Okay….Clear, welcome to Muscat”, petugas imigrasi itu memberikan kembali segenap berkas yang kuberikan.

    Aku bisa melewati petugas konter imigrasi itu dengan sangat mudah.

    Yuhuuuuuuu…….

    WELCOME MUSCAT…………………………….

    Waktu yang masih berkutat di dini hari membuatku memutuskan untuk menginap saja di bandara. Usai mengambil keputusan tersebut, langkah pertama yang kulakukan adalah mencari Sim Card untuk kebutuhan pemetaan destinasi ketika memasuki kota Muscat pada pagi harinya. Aku akhirnya memilih membeli Sim Card milik Renna Mobile.

    Koridor nan indah menuju Arrival Hall.
    Conveyor Belt Area.
    Arrival Hall lantai 2.
    Arrival Hall lantai 3.
    Drop off zone.
    Public bus service area.
    Halaman Muscat International Airport saat dini hari.
    Halaman Muscat International Airport saat dini hari.

    Tak lupa, aku berburu berbagai brosur pariwisata khusus kota Muscat di Tourism Information Center. Beberapa brosur tentang destinasi wisata yang memungkinkan untuk kukunjungi tak lepas dari incaran. Sedangkan menukar Dolar Amerika ke Rial di Travelex Currency Exchange untuk kebutuhan petualangan menjadi tahapan terakhir yang kulakukan di Muscat International Airport.

    Lepas melakukan berbagai aktivitas dasar yang biasa kulalukan ketika tiba di sebuah negara baru tersebut, maka aku menyempatkan diri untuk melangkah keluar bangunan terminal untuk melihat penampakan asli arsitektur bandara dari pelataran depannya.

    Dan sungguh….

    Muscat International Airport terlihat begitu mempesona di malam hari dengan siraman lampu-lampu taman yang menghantam batang-batang pohon palem yang merupakan vegetasi utama yang dipajang halaman bandara.

    Tetapi aku harus segera mengakhiri eksplorasi bandara megah tersebut untuk segera mencari tempat terbaik untuk memejamkan mata. Akhirnya aku mengambil salah satu bangku di lantai dua arrival hall untuk beristirahat barang sejenak.

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->

  • Air Asia AK 382 from Kuala Lumpur to Jakarta

    <—-Previous Story

    Flight Information Display System (FIDS) in front of sleep place.

    Entering Friday, around half past five, when the dawn of Malaysia arrived, I sat down to awake from sleep in one of seat row in Transportation Hub located at Gateway@klia2 mall level 1. I was still rubbing my eyes when several other travelers were still snoring around .

    I forced my feet to step into the 1st floor mosque which was located outside the terminal building in order to fulfill my obligations to “The Creator” who had given time and funds for an adventure through East Asia….Thank you, God.

    My scheduled flight time at seven in the morning made me not dare to budget for breakfast time. I only bought two packaged chocolate buns at a convenience store located next to NZ Curry House as lunch in the plane.

    At five o’clock, I went to the check-in desk in 3rd floor of Main Terminal Building to get a boarding pass to Soekarno Hatta International Airport. Shortly after, I headed to the immigration counter to get permission to leave Malaysia. As predicted, everything happened easily and quickly.

    Half an hour before boarding, I arrived at the gate and found an Air Asia AK 382 nicely parked in front of it. Shortly after my arrival, the gate was actually opened. I started entering the waiting room after reporting my boarding pass and passport to the ground staff who checked every passenger.

    A few minutes later….The pilot, co-pilot and several flight attendants entered the plane to preparing. The bustle of loading in the fuselage, filling avtur and loading inflight meal became a sight that caught my attention at every stage until everything ended well.

    The boarding announcement filled the airport ceiling, I immediately queued, then entered the cabin through the aerobridge full of joy because soon my adventure would be over. I found a seat right at the tail of plane. Understandably, this was a cheap ticket which was purchased nine months before the flight.

    Since the boarding process, demonstration of flight safety procedures, taxiing, take-off, airborne to cruising, I hadn’t even touched the Travel 360 magazine which was Air Asia’s inflight magazine. Of course I was bored, I had read it many times since the QZ 200 (Jakarta-Kuala Lumpur), AK 170 (Kuala Lumpur-Kaohsiung) and D7 505 (Seoul-Kuala Lumpur) flights. For more than twelve hours during those three flights, I had finished reading the inflight magazine.

    After enjoying the packaged chocolate bread, I quickly felt asleep. A sleepless night on last night made my eyes no longer helpless to stay awake while in the air. I was sleeping….and hopefully not snoring……????

    I was really asleep until the announcement of plane that would soon land at Soekarno Hatta International Airport woke my eyes. Leaving behind a bit of a headache and taking a little time to clear the eyes, I could see the streaks moving fast out there and watching from the window. The plane was landing…

    Spoilers on the wings of plane seemed to stand to help contain the wind speed to stop the fuselage speeding down the runway. Shortly after, the plane started taxiing and stopped in the apron.

    Ohh… It was over.

    With a faint smile, I left the fuselage via aerobridge and entered the airport building. I immediately went to the immigration counter to certify my passport with an arrival stamp.

    After that I immediately went to DAMRI Bus counter to go to the Kampung Rambutan Terminal and went home….

    To get flight tickets from Kuala Lumpur to Jakarta, you can search for them 12go Asia with the following link:  https://12go.asia/?z=3283832

    THE END

  • Nine Hours Stopover in Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 2

    <—-Previous Story

    Landing at KLIA2.

    For most travelers, Kuala Lumpur International Airport becomes the most fantastic point to jump into other Asian countries. Of course, the existence of Air Asia’s Low Cost Carrier (LCC) makes it so. Since 2001, Air Asia has been providing travelers with low-cost access to travel around Asia. Thanks to Air Asia, I have stopped at KLIA for 21 times when exploring Asia.

    But in this story. it was eighth stopover….Yup, this was the eighth time I set foot in Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

    After ten o’clock at night, the giant wheel of Air Asia D7 505 gently touched against KLIA2’s runway. The 5 hour 50 minute journey from Seoul was over. My first impression of tasting the wide body Airbus A330 was really pleasant. Flying across Yellow Sea and East China Sea took place with virtually non-existent turbulence, calm and smooth without a hitch. That was probably one of the advantages of riding a large plane when exploring sky.

    After taxiing for a few minutes, Air Asia D7 505 was stopped in apron and as soon as the plane door opened, I entered KLIA2 building via aerobridge. I returned to KLIA2 after ten days before stopping by at it before jump to Kaohsiung, Taiwan. It was such a happy feeling that night because I was already close to home, only 2 hours 15 minutes away by air.

    And for me, stopping at KLIA2 would be more convenient if I left immigration counter, because I could find many culinary offerings at Gateway@klia2 mall instead of just sitting in transfer hall.

    “Transit, Sir. I want to find food for dinner”, I lightly greeted an immigration officer in front.

    “Where are you going?”, he asked while checking my green passport.

    “From Seoul, want to go back to Jakarta, Sir”

    “Oh…”, He briefly answered and then ordered me to face the camera and do fingerprints. By midnight that night, actually my stomach was already filled with wind because the dinner schedule had long passed. But to complete the schedule, I chose to hasten my steps towards a restaurant. It was NZ Curry House which was an Indian restaurant located at Transportation Hub level 1 Gateway@klia2 mall.

    Subscribed restaurant.

    (On my last visit at KLIA2 at the end 2019 when I was about to fly to Kochi-India, this restaurant area was undergoing renovations, either closed or just being repaired).

    The mainstay menu which I often order when I stopped at this restaurant was “Nasi Lemak” with boiled eggs and a cup of hot O tea. For that menu, I usually only spend 6.5 Ringgit.

    While tasting spoon by spoon of Nasi Lemak, I understood that after that I would only spend the night on the 1st floor while waiting for tomorrow to arrive. Therefore, I wasn’t in a hurry to eat my simple dish.

    After eating, I took the time to change into a t-shirt in the toilet near restaurant and then went up for a while to level 2 to look for souvenirs at Jaya Grocer. For me, KLIA2 was also a favorite place to look for souvenirs if I didn’t have time to stop by in downtown, the halalness of Malaysian products, which were 61% of its citizen was Muslim, was a guarantee in itself. My main shopping target was the packaging of “Teh Tarik Aik Cheong” so I could enjoy it in my working days in my homeland’s capital. A package of Teh Tarik Aik Cheong contained 15 sachets I redeemed for 13 Ringgit that night.

    After I got souvenirs, I immediately looked for a spot to lay down in 1st floor because that time had touched the dawn and my eyes had also turned red as if asking me to immediately close them.

    Shortly after choosing, there were rows of empty seat in 1st floor in a corner of hall. After acquiring it, I felt half asleep on it until dawn.

    However, I deserved to be grateful for KLIA2’s presence in my long history of traveling around Asia.

    Next Story—->

  • Air Asia D7 505 from Seoul to Kuala Lumpur

    <—-Previous Story

    D7 505 flight path (source: flightaware.com)

    I sat at one of seats near gate 112 belonging to Satellite Concourse Building Incheon International Airport after a few minutes before being transferred by shuttle train from Terminal 1. Boarding time was only half an hour away, so I couldn’t take the risk to explore the entire airport terminal building.

    I prefered to watch airplanes fly by. Some of them seemed to focus in landing their wheels at airport’s runway and others seemed to be queuing up to get permission from Air Traffic Controller (ATC) to fly. I often did this habit because of my interest in aircraft and aviation industry. From this habit of observing, it wasn’t uncommon for me to find the names of new airlines which in the future I usually targeted them to enjoy their services in traveling around world.

    For me, that day was very special in my travel history, because Air Asia D7 505 would be my first trip using a large aircraft. If in previous flights I had always ridden a small aircraft, such as an Airbus A320 or Boeing 737, but that time I would ride an Airbus A330 with 9 columns of seats…. That afternoon really created curiosity and impatience.

    Half an hour later, the gate actually opened. I started to take a position in the right column of queue.

    “Just give duty free shopping to mom, let mom hold it,” a male passenger shouted in Indonesian language to his son who was carrying two large bottles of alcoholic drinks. Hearing the language of my nation while in another country was indeed a special gift that could help raise the mood to always feel close to home. That time at my left was an Indonesian citizens of Chinese descent who also seemed to be on their way home.

    “Which city are you come from, Sir?”, I ventured to ask.

    “Oh, you’re from Indonesia too? I’m from Bekasi, Sir.”

    “Oh, I’m from East Jakarta, Sir”.

    “Oh, our home are close. What kind of business do you do, Sir in Jakarta?”

    “I just work in a company, sir, in Jakarta. Not doing business”

    “Oh, is that so, are you alone, Sir?”

    “Yes, Sir”

    “Wow cool….cool…”

    Our conversation didn’t last long because our meeting had to end when a ground staff checked our tickets and passports. After that we were separated in a long aerobridge.

    At the end of aerobridge, I was greeted by a Malay-looking flight attendant at plane door and I was directed to turn towards front cabin. According to my boarding pass, I looked for seat numbered 14K which turned out to be positioned in  right side of window seat. That was the seat which I had to enjoy during the long flight later.

    Oh yes, my flight number that time was D7 505. Do you want to know the meaning of code?….

    If QZ was the flight code operated by Indonesia Air Asia and AK was the flight code for Air Asia Malaysia, then D7 was the flight code belonging to Air Asia X specifically for long-haul flights.

    D7 505 itself was a flight of 5,000 kilometers with a travel time of 5 hours 50 minutes. The flight started from Incheon International Airport, South Korea and would end at Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2, Malaysia.

    Hmmm…..During the flight….

    Turns out, the window seat I was in was uncomfortable because the curve of airplane cabin limited my comfort during the flight. While flying in economy class, I could only pass the time by flipping through Travel 360, which was Air Asia’s inflight magazine. When my eyes get tired of reading, then I continued to spend time with closing my eyes. Luckily, the packaged almonds I bought at Namdaemun Market a day before made my flight a little less boring.

    Half of the flights in light conditions allowed me to freely enjoy the views of Yellow Sea and East China Sea, while the rest of the flights continued in complete darkness where I couldn’t do much. Until finally the plane arrived in Kuala Lumpur around ten at night.

    After the flight, I still had to go through the last leg of my journey to explore East Asia by staying for 9 hours at Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 before returning to my homeland on the next day using Air Asia AK 382 connecting flight.

    To get flight tickets from Seoul to Kuala Lumpur, you can search for them on 12go Asia with the following link:  https://12go.asia/?z=3283832

    Next Story—->

  • Swiss Air LX 242 dari Dubai (DXB) ke Muscat (MCT)

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Aku tak sabar menunggu kedatangan kereta. Beruntung kereta datang dengan cepat. Menaiki salah satu gerbongnya, meluncurlah aku di jalur panjang kereta dan tiba dalam beberapa menit di bangunan lain milik Dubai International Airport….Yupz, Concourse D.

    Concourse D sendiri adalah bangunan di tengah-tengah area bandara yang difungsikan sebagai gerbang pelepasan. Bangunan itu dikoneksikan dengan bangunan Terminal 1 melalui rel yang diletakkan di atas tiang-tiang pancang jalur kereta.

    Xu kembali datang menghampiriku ketika aku menduduki bangku di sebelah gate D 15. Ternyata Xu tak sendiri, dia memiliki satu teman lain yang kini diperkenalkan kepadaku.

    “Donny, this is Lin, my friend“, dia menunjuk ke temannya.

    “Hi, Lin….I’m Donny“, aku balik memperkenalkan diri.

    Selanjutnya kami bertiga menghabiskan waktu untuk berbincang ringan di ruangan Concourse.

    Sesekali Lin terlihat iseng menyembunyikan paspor milik Xu yang karena kecerobohannya ditinggalkannya di bangku ketika dia beranjak ke toilet. Lin memberikan kode dengan menaruh telunjuknya di hidung ketika aku mengetahui keisengannya itu. Sontak Xu dihantui kepanikan sekembalinya dari toilet mencari keberadaan paspornya. Aku sungguh menahan tawa atas keisengan itu. Nantinya Xu benar-benar menjitak jidat Lin atas kejahilannya itu. Kami bertiga pun tergelak ketawa berkepanjangan.

    Panggilan boarding terdengar di langit-langit bandara. Aku telah siap sejak beberapa waktu sebelumnya. Aku mengucapkan sampai jumpa di Muscat kepada mereka karena kami bertiga akan duduk terpisah di dalam kabin.

    Aku duduk di kabin tengah, di window seat sisi kiri, duduk dengan satu penumpang berkenegaraan Oman di sisi terkanan. Sedangkan bangku tengah dibiarkan kosong selama penerbangan.

    Saat yang benar-benar kutunggu adalah masa airborne pesawat yang akan berlangsung cepat. Aku hanya ingin melihat keindahan Burj Khalifa dari langit malam Dubai. Entah bagaimana perwujudan indahnya ketika dilihat dari atas.

    Food court di Cocourse D – Dubai International Airport.
    Airbus A 330-300 milik Swiss Air.
    Business Class.
    Economy Class.
    Hayo….Yang mana Burj Khalifa?….
    Nonton Jason Bourne yang diperankan Matt Damon.
    Kota Muscat tampak dari ketinggian saat pesawat hendak mendarat.
    Salam Air (LCC dari Oman) tampak terparkir di Muscat International Airport.

    Penerbangan malam itu berlangsung dalam kondisi kurang baik. Berkali-kali maskapai kebanggaan Swiss itu bergetar hebat menembus gumpalan-gumpalan awan di langit Timur Tengah. Membuat beberapa kali awak kabin mengurungkan diri untuk memberikan gelas-gelas minuman kepada penumpang.

    Aku langsung teringat dengan beberapa artikel yang pernah kubaca mengenai awak kabin Swiss Air yang kebanyakan berusia tak muda lagi. Benar adanya, aku membuktikan dengan pengalamanku sendiri. Pramugara-pramugari Swiss Air LX 242 yang kutunggangi memiliki awak kabin yang usianya sudah diatas 40 tahun seperkiraanku.

    Malam itu, aku hanya meminta disuguhkan segelas apple juice dan melakukan penerbangan singkat selama 1 jam 15 menit saja. Jarak antara Dubai-Muscat yang hanya tak lebih dari 500 kilometerlah yang membuatnya demikian.

    Aku tiba di Muscat International Airport tengah malam dan memutuskan untuk berada di bandara saja hingga pagi menjelang.

    Oh, ya…..Aku belum bercerita bagaimana Burj Khalifa dilihat dari langit malam Dubai?

    Luar biasa ….Itu indah sekali, kawan……

    Alternatif lain untuk mencari tiket pesawat dari Dubai ke Muscat bisa didapatkan di 12Go atau link berikut: https://12go.asia/?z=3283832

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->