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  • Tasting Mixed Fried Rice in Incheon International Airport

    <—-Previous Story

    On 12:15 am I arrived at Yeongjong Island, an island in west coast of South Korea where Incheon International Airport was magnificently built.

    I unsteadily walked out from Seoul Metro Line I carriage, as if didn’t willing to leaving Seoul, which I had just enjoyed five days ago. But still, I was still self-conscious about my budget which couldn’t be helped anymore. Without a credit or debit card I wouldn’t be able to go anywhere with Won left. Even a few Won sheets tucked away in my curly wallet might just be enough to buy a modest breakfast at airport later.

    Coming out of Airport Station, I intently stared at Flight Information Display System (FIDS) to track down check-in desk I had to go to. Of course, it was very easy to find flight information at largest and most sophisticated airport, the pride of South Korea. The instructions directed me to go to check-in desk D as a counter to exchange my e-ticket for a boarding pass to Kuala Lumpur.

    In galloping steps, I had to go to 3rd floor to find the whereabouts of check-in desk D where Air Asia flight D7 505 would be opened. Maybe because I didn’t focus on reading the information posted in FIDS, I arrived in front of check-in desk which was still quiet. “Hoo yeah, the flight status isn’t open yet,” I thought with a smile, fooling my lack of accuracy. “I’ll better find breakfast first”, another self-expression that was wrong because actually I arrived in the airport on noon.

    I rushed to Basement 1 Level to look for breakfast as well as lunch. With Won left, I finally got a portion of stir fried rice which became my most luxurious menu while traveling in South Korea….Ooops. As for drinking, I still rely on the existence of a free water station.

    I deliberately bought time while enjoying food at one of food court seats. After all, I easily could see my flight status from a medium size FIDS displayed in its side.

    For almost an hour I controlled that seat, relaxing eating a serving of stir fried rice, sucking in the exposure to delicious aroma which wafted in every corner of room, enjoying the hubbub of travelers from various nationalities in their culinary hunt and always keeping an eye on FIDS screen which continued to displace the array of flight information to the top of page.

    I gasped when I last saw Air Asia flight number D7 505 appeared in bottom row of FIDS. After approaching to make sure, I finally left my seat and headed back to 3rd floor to go to check-in desk D.

    Check-in Desk D.

    Considering that that was a return ticket towards the starting point of trip, the female staff at check-in desk didn’t ask too many complicated questions. Likewise with the male officer at immigration counter, he didn’t take long to put a departure stamp on my green passport. That process wasn’t certainly as complicated as my story when entering South Korea through immigration counter at Gimhae International Airport in Busan city.

    After immigration area, I thought it would be easy to find the gate where Air Asia plane I would be riding would load. It turned out not to be so. To found gate 112, I had to go to Satellite Concourse Building which could only be reached by Incheon International Airport shuttle train via underground line.

    Following a signboard, I was directed to shuttle train platform which would take all passengers to Satellite Concourse Building towards west of Terminal 1. The Satellite Concourse Building itself was a longitudinal building in the middle of Terminals 1 and 2 of Incheon International Airport. It had 30 gates, 6 lounges and was almost 1 km from Terminal 1.

    The two-seatless shuttle train spent seven minutes cruising the double-track subway at Incheon International Airport and then transferred me to Satellite Concourse Building. Arriving at the building, of course it wasn’t difficult for me to find Gate 112, which was the gate where I would be flown to Kuala Lumpur International Airport for a nine-hour transit before heading back to my homeland.

    Next Story—->

  • Check-in Desk Dubai International Airport: Gingsul Manis dari Colombo

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Beruntung check-in desk yang kucari sejak beberapa waktu sebelumnya belum dibuka ketika aku tiba di depannya. Sehingga waktu yang terbuang sia-sia di antian yang salah tak mempengaruhi waktuku dalam mengurusi boarding pass.

    Usai menunggu beberapa saat, check-in desk yang akan melayani proses administrasi penerbangan Swiss Air LX 242 akhirnya dibuka. Sontak aku mengambil posisi di antrian, bukan yang terdepan karena sedari sebelumnya banyak calon penumpang yang sudah mempersiapkan diri di sekitar check-in desk tersebut.

    Aku sudah tenang berada di antrian yang benar, LCD di atas check-in desk juga sudah dengan jelas mengafirmasi nomor penerbangan yang telah kupesan tujuh bulan sebelum penerbangan.

    Ketika sedang nyaman-nyamannya mengantri….

    Tetiba sebuah travel bag terjatuh dari trolley dan menimpa kaki kiriku. Aku pun terperanjat dan seketika menoleh ke belakang.

    “Sorry….Sorry, Sir. My trolley is too full“, dia terus membungkukkan badan di depanku.

    Demi mencairkan suasana, kulemparkan senyuman sembari berucap kepadanya, “No matter, Sir“.

    “Call me, Xu…..Do you want to go to Muscat?“, nama yang dia sebutkan memperjelas wajahnya yang khas Tiongkok.

    “Me…Donny from Indonesia“, aku mengajaknya berjabat tangan.

    “Do you work in Muscat, Donny?“, Xu melempar sebuah tanya.

    “No, Xu….I’m a tourist“, singkat balasku, “Do you work there?“.

    “Yeaa, Donny….I work in oil company“, dia menjelaskan singkat saja.

    Tak berapa lama kemudian giliranku menghadap petugas di check-in desk.

    “Any luggage, Sir“, staff perempuan berparas khas Asia Selatan menanyaiku.

    “Nup, Ms Dilupa“, aku menjawab sembari menatap nametag yang tersemat di blazer hitam miliknya.

    “Oh, you know my name“, dia tak tertawa melainkan hanya tersenyum tipis.

    “That’s …“, Aku menunjuk nametag yg dia kenakan.

    “Just bag in your back?“, dia tak kuasa menahan senyum hingga gingsul manisnya terlihat.

    “Yeaaa …just backpacker, Ms Dilupa“, aku terus tersenyum kepadanya.

    “Ya….ya….ya…. Backpacker….Always like you now“, kini dia bersiap mencetak boarding pass.

    “Where are you come from?“, sidikku ketika dia menyerahkan bording pass berwarna putih polos.

    “Colombo …..“, dia menjawab dengan tatapan ramah, “Next…..“, dia mulai berseru memanggil Xu yang menunggu di belakang.

    “Sri Lanka….Nice country“, aku merapikan dokumen dan bersiap meninggalkan meja.

    Dilupa hanya mengacungkan jempolnya kepadaku sembari tersenyum mengangguk.

    Check-in desk Swis Air LX 242.
    Dia adalah Xu, teman baru di Dubai International Airport.
    Menuju platform kereta.
    Kereta menuju Concourse D sebentar lagi tiba.

    Usai mendapatkan boarding pass, aku segera menuju screening gate untuk memeriksa backpack demi keamanan penerbangan. Dengan mudah melewatinya, aku segera menuju konter imigrasi untuk mendapatkan izin keluar dari Dubai. Meninggalkan sebuah negara menjadi bagian termudah di setiap perjalanan yang kutempuh.

    Di akhir proses administratif, aku sudah siap meninggalkan bangunan Terminal 1. Aku segera beranjak menuju platform kereta demi menuju Concourse D-Dubai International Airport. Di bangunan itulah Swiss LX 242 akan diterbangkan.

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->

  • Seoul Metro from Downtown to Incheon International Airport

    <—-Previous Story

    The atmosphere inside Seoul Metro to Incheon International Airport.

    After Fajr prayer, my eyes no longer closed. It was my nature to always stay awake when faced with a flight schedule. Meanwhile in the corner of dormitory, my blue backpack with a capacity of 45 liters had been neatly packed since last night, after returning from Gangnam District to be exact. Last night, I decided to do some packing after taking a shower.

    Around half past seven in the morning, amid light snoring of Kimchee Guesthouse Sinchon guests, I slowly tiptoed to shared-bathroom to soak myself under warm shower. So, an hour later I was tidy and sat in shared lobby downstairs to just socialize.

    In a chair, I slowly drank mineral water left over from last night while opening Seoul Metro map. I have to find the best route to Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 that afternoon.

    About fifteen minutes later, a girl with a blue veil with a beautiful Malay face came sitting in front of me. From her appearance, she was preparing herself for exploration.

    “From Malaysia?”, the question was definitely directed to me.

    I looked up and answered, “Jakarta, Indonesia”.

    “Oh, Indonesia. How long have you been in Seoul, Brother?”

    “Three days. I’m Donny, may I know your name?”, I answered briefly.

    “Mariya, I’m from Kuala Terengganu”.

    “You’re ready this early, where are you going, Mariya? “, I kept asking curiously.

    “Oh, I want to visit Itaewon, take a look at Seoul Central Mosque. Where are you going brother?”

    “I will go home this afternoon, tomorrow I will stop in KL first”.

    “Can Indonesian people get a free visa to Korea, brother?”

    “Oh no Mariya. I had to pay 150 Ringgit to get a Korean visa. What about Malaysians?”

    “Malaysians have free visas to Korea, brother”.

    Mariya is a solo-traveler from my neighboring country who is armed with high self-confidence. She even talked about her trip around Asia alone without showing the slightest bit of fear. A hour I had a very interesting conversation with him.

    Mariya herself is very interested in several cities in Indonesia which she wants to visit in the future. He asked a lot of questions about Bandung, Malang, Labuan Bajo and Ambon. To compensate for her enthusiasm, I was interested in seeking information from her about several cities in Malaysia which I would also like to visit, such as Kuching, Ipoh, Penang, Kuantan and Kuala Terengganu.

    Our conversation ended when Mariya said goodbye to go to Itaewon. After that conversation, I went to my room and got ready to check-out.

    At half past ten, I started to carry my backpack, went to receptionist to hand over my locker key and took my deposit money. Then I steadily stepped from Kimchee Guesthouse Sinchon towards Hongik University Station.

    As usual in the morning in Seoul, I stopped by for a moment at CU minimarket which wasn’t far from the station to have breakfast. After breakfast, I immediately hunted for Seoul Metro Line 2 carriage to Sindorim Station, which was only 4 stations away from Hongik University Station.

    From Sindorim Station I changed to using Seoul Metro Line 1 to Bupyeong Station. Standing in the center near carriage door, I enjoyed the speed of Seoul Metro passing through eleven stations before arriving.

    From Bupyeong Station I still had to change to Seoul Metro Line I to my final destination, Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 Station, which was fifteen stations away.

    Crossing the bridge over sea.
    Yellow Sea View.

    Overall, within an hour and a half, I arrived at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 Station, which was 60 kilometers from downtown. I arrived at the airport a few minutes before noon. Now I was waiting for Air Asia flight D7 505 from Seoul to Kuala Lumpur which would fly on 15:55 hours.

    Actually I was still very interested in enjoying Incheon downtown before heading to airport. But because I realized that the money in my wallet was only a few notes left, then instead of playing the risk and prone to miss the flight, I ended up choosing to spend hours at the airport instead. The most important thing was that my return trip to my homeland was safe and smooth.

    Next Story—->

  • Salah Antrian di Departure Hall Dubai International Airport Terminal 1

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Tentu aku tak gentar untuk melewati terowongan yang menembus bagian bawah jalan reguler yang mengalirkan kendaraan keluar-masuk Terminal 1 Dubai International Airport. Langkah cepat akhirnya mengantarkanku ke sebuah area parkir yang merupakan fasilitas bagi para pengunjung bandara.

    Sayangnya area parkir tersebut terhadang oleh keberadaan Airport Road yang membelah area Terminal 1 menjadi dua sisi terpisah. Aku berusaha mencari cara untuk mencapai area di utara jalan besar itu.

    Berhenti sejenak mengamati situasi, aku mencoba lebih tenang.

    “Ya….Itu….Pasti itu”, aku menatap sebuah skybridge yang mengangkangi Airport Road. Tak mau kehilangan banyak waktu maka aku bergegas menujunya.

    Benar adanya, terdapat tangga untuk mulai menelusuri skybridge itu. Dalam beberapa detik kemudian aku pun sudah melangkah di dalam lorongnya.

    Jembatan sepanjang 150 meter itu kulalui dengan cepat hingga aku benar-benar tiba di bangunan Terminal 1. Aku tiba tepat dua jam sebelum penerbangan. Kini mataku awas mencari keberadaan check-in zone yang bisa menerbitkan boarding pass untukku.

    Maka mataku mulai awas mencari keberadaan FIDS (Flight Information Display Siystem). Aku menemukannya di sebuah koridor. Mataku mulai menyapu daftar penerbangan yang disajikan dalam dua kolom memanjang.

    “Yess….Itu dia….Swiss Air LX 242….Check-in desk di Area 5”, aku telah menemukan informasi valid yang kubutuhkan.

    Aku mulai mencari tahu maksud dari Area 5. Setelah berusaha memahami beberapa signboard yang ada di ruangan terminal, akhirnya aku faham. Check-in desk itu terletak di setiap persimpangan di sepanjang koridor utama ruangan.   

    Angka-angka yang merupakan nomor check-in zone tersebut tertampil jelas di pilar-pilar bangunan terminal dan aku menemukan area check-in zone nomor 5 di pertengahan koridor.

    “Hmmhh….Check-in desk belum dibuka”, aku menghela nafas pelan.

    Maskapai penerbangan yang akan kutunggangi beserta nomor penerbangannya belum tertampil di layar-layar LCD di atas deretan check-in desk. Meja-meja itu masih sibuk mengurusi penerbangan Aeroflot SU 527 menuju Moscow.

    Aku menepi ke sisi utara ruangan, menunggu di sebuah tempat duduk. Sesekali aku berdiri menghadap ke dinding kaca berukuran lebar, jauh di seberang sana adalah Concourse D, sebuah bangunan dimana setiap gate penerbangan ditempatkan. Hal ini memberikan arti bahwa bangunan Terminal 1 dimana aku berada hanyalah berfungi sebagai bangunan administratif bagi setiap penumpang sebelum dinyatakan siap untuk terbang.

    Sesekali aku melangkah mendekati layar FIDS untuk memastikan apakah proses check-in untuk nomor penerbanganku telah dibuka. Aku terus melakukannya berulang-ulang. Setelah sekian kali mengecek, akhirnya check-in desk yang dimaksud benar-benar telah bestatus “Open”.

    Aku melangkah menuju antrian dan mulai bergabung di dalamnya. Satu per satu calon penumpang selesai melapor ke check-in desk dan pergi dengan menggenggam lembar boarding pass.

    Semakin tertelan di tengah antrian, aku baru menyadari satu hal. Aku tetiba melotot melihat sebuah e-ticket bertuliskan Oman Air. Layar LCD di atas check-in desk memang hanya menunjukkan nama kota….”Muscat”. Tetapi aku tak menyadari ada sebuah papan dengan informasi berukuran tak terlalu besar. “Oman Air WY 614”, aku jelas membacanya.

    Astaga aku berada di antrian penerbangan yang salah.

    Area parkir Terminal 1.
    Skybridge menuju ke bangunan Terminal 1.
    Airport Road terlihat dari skybridge.
    Tiba di bangunan utama Terminal 1.
    Koridor utama ruangan Terminal 1.
    Check-in zone.
    Menunggu nomor penerbangan muncul.
    Bangunan nan jauh di sana adalah Concourse D.

    “Is this Swiss Air LX 242 to Oman, Mam?”, aku bertanya kepada seorang calon penumpang yang berdiri tepat di depanku.

    “Oh No, This is Oman Air…”, dia menjawab sembari menggelengkan kepalanya heran.

    “Thanks, Mam….I’m in wrong queue”, aku mulai beranjak pergi meninggalkan antrian.

    Aku kembali berada di koridor antara dua deret check-in desk , berdiri dan fokus menyebarkan pandangan ke layar-layar LCD di kedua sisi.

    Tak kunjung menemukannya, akhirnya aku bertanya kepada seorang staff bandara.

    “Sir, where is the check-in desk for Swiss Air LX 242 towards Muscat?”, aku menunjukkan e-ticketku.

    “Oh, yaaa…..the desk will be open in five minutes, Sir….Just wait for a moment”, dia menjelaskan kepadaku

    “You will be better to wait in the last desk of this check-in desk row….Over there, Sir”, dia menunjuk ke sebaris check-in desk yang terletak di ujung Area 5. Di sanalah penerbanganku akan diproses.

    Tanpa pikir panjang aku segera menujunya.

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->

  • Gangnam District’s Luxury

    <—-Previous Story

    The edge of Gangnam-daero Avenue.

    I stepped out of the courtyard of Gyeongbok Palace just before the sun set in the west of city. In the late afternoon, I stepped more casually towards Gyeongbokgung Station which was only 300 meters from the palace. “After all, my exploration is over,” I thought to calm myself in the midst of air temperature which starting to drop colder.

    Inside the station, I was constantly confused between going straight to the inn or going to a destination once more. “This is my last night, should I spend time in the inn?”, I thought to myself, defending myself.

    I, who was impatiently waiting for the arrival of Seoul Metro Line 3 in the side of platform, now I prefered to sit down and opened the city map in search of an additional destination to spend the night.

    The whoosh of train sounded loud in front bend. I smilingly prepared myself at the queue line to entering carriage. “Yes, I know where to go”, my decision appeared.

    —-****—-

    Oh, yeah….You know Park Jae-sang, right?

    That’s it… a songwriter from South Korea who is better known by his stage name PSY. The main character in the music video for “Gangnam Style” which went worldwide in 2012.

    Yes, that time I wanted to visit his birthplace, which was Gangnam District. Gangnam District is a luxurious district in South Korea, home to top millionaires, politicians and artists.

    —-****—-

    I understood that it was already dark outside, even though the bright light was shrouding Seoul Metro carriages creeping down Seoul underground lines. The Gangnam district was still ten kilometers away when I a moment ago sat at the end of carriage.

    One by one stations were combed quickly and led me to get off at Seoul National University of Education Station. From that station I changed to Seoul Metro Line 2 to Gangnam Station.

    In this Seoul Metro Line 2 carriage, I met five tourists from California who had just landed from Tokyo that afternoon. Even that five tourists had already explored Taipei before reaching Tokyo.

    Their story, which was almost similar to my journey before reaching Seoul, also through Kaohsiung (Taiwan), Tokyo and Osaka (Japan) and Busan (South Korea) made our introductions and conversations were very familiar.

    I only remember a name among them so far which was Brendan. Brendan does tend to be more outgoing and appeares to be the spokesperson for their travel group. What was clear that Brendan was a person who didn’t like alcohol, I could tell from his words that he didn’t want to touch Soju when his other friends actually enjoyed it since arriving in Seoul.

    I arrived at Gangnam Station within 10 minutes of changing to other Seoul Metro line. Tracing the long corridor within Gangnam Station, led me to exit to the ground level right at the edge of Gangnam-daero Avenue which was decorated with a large name box “Gangnam Square” and the stage “Gangnam Style Horse Dance” which was very crowded with tourists.

    From that big intersection I began to enter alley after alley in Gangnam to explore the district’s nightlife. The bustle of alleys in Gangnam District made me feel safe even though in front of my steps there were two men and a woman walking arm-in-arm because they were heavily drunk while raving uncontrollably. The show only made the streets busier with laughter because the trio’s behavior was very funny.

    Spent dinner with a piece of Kimbap and an energy drink.
    an alley in Gangnam District.

    While on the left and right of alley, local residents mingled with the newcomers to enjoy the atmosphere of bars with faint smell of alcohol wafting from sidewalk. Apart from that, some of them prefered to make atmosphere more relaxed by enjoying restaurant dishes while conversing to spend the atmosphere of night starting to get icy cold.

    My last night in Seoul was satisfied when I crossed alleys of Gangnam from end to end. But it was time that finally limited my visit, it was almost eleven o’clock at night. I decided to immediately return to Gangnam Station and return to Kimchee Guesthouse Sinchon.

    I have to prepare myself to return to my homeland tomorrow morning.

    Next Story—->

  • Dubai Airport Bus No 77: Jalan Pintas Menuju Terminal 1 Dubai International Airport

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Aku akhirnya berhasil mencapai Zain East Hotel sepuluh menit sebelum pukul enam sore. Aku terengah-engah di lobby penginapan untuk selanjutnya mengucapkan selamat tinggal kepada sang resepsionis dan seorang room boy yang kukenal dari sehari sebelumnya.

    Aku pun melangkah kembali menuju Baniyas Square dengan melintasi jalanan semula yang sebelumnya kutapaki ketika menuju penginapan dari alun-alun yang sekarang akan kembali kutuju.

    Aku sendiri menyempatkan membeli beberapa potong kue basah di sebuah warung khas India yang kutemui di jalan ketika tergegas melangkah menuju alun-alun. Setidaknya akan ada yang bisa kusantap saat makan malam di bandara beberapa waktu ke depan.

    Hampir dua puluh menit berjalan kaki….

    Aku pun bisa melempar senyum….Bukan senyum kebahagiaan karena tiba tepat waktu di Baniyas Square. Akan tetapi aku tersenyum heran karena polisi yang hampir satu jam sebelumnya menginterogasi diriku, ternyata pada saat kedatanganku di alun-alun, dia masih saja konsiten dengan tugasnya menilang banyak orang di tempat yang sama.

    Aku menunduk dan melewati polisi yang sedang menginterogasi seseorang itu dengan cepatnya. Menyeberang melalui zebra cross yang disediakan dan akhirnya benar-benar tiba di Baniyas Square.

    Pucuk dicinta ulam tiba. Airport bus bernomor 77, berwarna dominan merah, berukuran sedang, sudah melangsamkan mesinnya sebagai pertanda bahwa bus itu telah siap dimasuki oleh calon penumpangnya dan dalam beberapa menit lagi akan segera meluncur menuju bandara.

    Aku bergegas melompat di pintu depan, menempelkan Nol Card di automatic fare collection machine. Saldoku berkurang 3 Dirham demi menuju Dubai International Airport yang berjarak enam kilometer di sebelah timur.

    Tak perlu menunggu penumpang memenuhi bus, maka Airport Bus No. 77 akhirnya mulai merayap meninggalkan Baniyas Square karena harus menaati jadwal keberangkatan.

    Gedung Department of Economic Development.
    Melintasi Menara Jam Deira.
    Flora Park Apartment di Al Ittihad Road.
    Commercial Bank of Dubai di daerah Port Saeed.

    Separuh jarak perjalanan, bus itu membelah Al Maktoum Road. Setelah melintasi Sheikh Rashid Road melalui sebuah flyover maka bus itu mulai mendekati bandara melalui Airport Road.

    Aku mulai merasa kebingungan ketika bus itu semakin mendekati area bandara. Akhirnya aku memberanikan diri dengan bangkit dari tempat duduk, lalu berjalan menuju bangku pengemudi.

    “Hallo Sir, Can you drop me at Terminal 1?”, aku berharap tidak kehabisan waktu terlalu banyak demi menuju terminal yang dimaksud.

    “Where will you go, Sir?”, sang pengemudi meminta informasi tambahan untuk memastikan dia tidak menurunkanku di tempat yang salah.

    “Muscat, Sir….Swiss Air”, aku berharap itu bisa menjadi petunjuk terakhir baginya.

    Perlahan bus melewati 51st Street, melewati beberapa hotel seperti Le Meridien Accommodation dan Aloft Dubai Airport untuk kemudian aku diturunkan di Airport Staff Parking Area.

    “Just follow that small tunnel, Sir. You will reach Terminal 1 in about three hundred meters”, pengemudi baik hati itu menghentikan busnya dan telunjuknya lincah mengarahkanku ke jalur tercepat menuju Terminal 1-Dubai International Airport.

    Inilah jalan pintas menuju Terminal 1.

    Aku segera turun dan bergegas menuju Terminal 1.

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->

  • Visiting Gyeongbok Palace

    <—-Previous Story

    I left Jung District with Seoul Metro Line 4 towars Hongik University Station which was ten kilometers away. I had to put a plastic bag at Kimchee Guesthouse Sinchon. Doing exploration by carrying black plastic would only make my face look more tacky.

    The beauty of Gyeongbok Palace (source: http://www.agoda.com)

    In thirty minutes I arrived.

    Without having time to sat down for a moment, I just left the inn. That time I was going to the biggest palace in Korea.

    —***—

    Now I was taken by Seoul Metro Line 2. I was standing again because the carriage was full of passengers, requiring my right hand to hold the hand strap above so as not to fall because the train often braked at every station which train stopped at.

    It was just, the situation got weird. A girl was whispering with a friend next to her and occasionally looking at me. I didn’t look at her but at least I could glance at her faintly. “Oh, someone is watching me,” I thought.

    I occasionally glanced at that girl who continued to softly laugh. That laugh made me introspect. “Is there something wrong with me?” I tried to pay attention to myself, but still didn’t immediately find the oddity.

    Until finally, I felt in shame when I found the source of my problem. It turned out that there was a large thread stitch at the base of the right hand. “Oh, why didn’t I check this used jacket when I bought it at Pasar Baru (the name of market in Jakarta)”, I slowly lowered my right hand, then checked the base of my left hand. Knowing the stitches were in good condition, I took turn holding the hand strap with my left hand. I slowly turned to that two girls and shyly nodded. It turned out that the two girls responded in the same way.

    “Damn, during ten days of traveling, I just found out that in the bottom of my used winter jacket’s right hand there was a large seam to cover the rip,” I grumbled while shaking my head.

    This incident made me feel embarrassed until I got off at Euljiro 3(sam)-ga Station to change to Seoul Metro Line 3. Now I was back following the pace of Seoul Metro to Gyeongbokgung Station in the north of city. This time I sat down until I arrived at the station.

    To reaching Gyeongbok Palace, it was only a three hundred meter walk from Gyeongbokgung Station. Entering the gate yard of Gyeongbok Palace, many tourists were wearing hanbok clothes. The clothes were indeed effective in creating an aura of nobility for anyone who weared them.

    Meanwhile, in every corner of courtyard was closely guarded by local police. It was clear that Gyeongbok Palace was closed that afternoon, no tourists were allowed in. I didn’t know what the moment would be held that afternoon?. Practically I could only enjoy my visitation by entering National Palace Museum of Korea which was located in the same courtyard as Gyeongbok Palace.

    National Palace Museum of Korea (source: http://www.theseoulguide.com)

    Visiting it was free, I was required to understand the story and ins and outs of Gyeongbok Palace from various relics in display at the museum. The 113-year-old museum looked clean and well-maintained. Although I didn’t fully understand it, at least I could enjoy historical objects such as some traditional clothes, ancient records, stamps and some paintings from Joseon Dynasty.

    With the completion of xploration in the historical repository of South Korea, nicknamed the Deoksugung Museum, my adventure that afternoon left only one more destination….Gangnam District

    Next Story—->

  • Mengejar Backpack Dibalik Interogasi Polisi Dubai

    <—-Kisah Sebelumnya

    Aku tak berpikir panjang lagi, waktuku sangatlah pendek kali ini. Sore semakin tergelincir menuju jam setengah enam di Baniyas Square Station. Sementara aku masih harus berjalan lagi sejauh satu kilometer menuju Zain East Hotel untuk mengambil backpack.

    Setelah itu, aku akan kembali lagi menuju Baniyas Square dimana aku berdiri saat itu. Itu karena halte Airport Bus No. 77 berada di salah satu titik alun-alun besar Distrik Deira tersebut.

    Kembali ke cerita sehari sebelumnya,

    Jika pada pagi sehari lalu, aku menyeberangi Al Musalla Road dengan tertib melewati 3 ruas zebra cross maka sore itu aku memakai cara lain. Entah kenapa tanpa berpikir panjang, aku mengikuti beberapa masyarakat lokal yang menyeberangi Jalan Al Maktoum Hospital Road yang jelas-jelas tak memiliki zebra cross. Kekonyolan itu juga didorong oleh keinginan diri untuk berhemat watu demi menuju ke penginapan.

    Aku pun dengan awas, mengengok ke kiri dan ke kanan, mencari sela kosong untuk menyeberang. Aksi itu berhasil dengan mulus hingga aku tiba di sisi jalan di seberangnya.

    Tetapi tiba-tiba langkahku terhadang oleh seorang lelaki muda yang mengenakan celana jeans dan t-shirt ber krah warna hijau…..

    “Hallo, Sir. Please prepare your ID Card!….I’m a policeman”, ternyata dia seorang opsir polisi yang menyamar.

    Aku yang kaget karena hadangan itu bisa merasakan perubahan kecepatan degup di jantung….Pasrah tanpa perlawanan.

    Aku merogoh bagian dalam folding bag, mengeluarkan paspor lalu menyerahkan kepadanya, “This is, Sir”.

    “Do you have local ID Card?”, polisi itu kembali menanyaiku, sementara warga sekitar banyak berdiri melihatku.

    “Sial, aku sudah mirip penjahat saja”, batinku berontak.

    “No, Sir. I’m tourist”, aku menjawab singkat.

    “Follow me !” dia membalik badan menuju ke sedan polisi warna putih polos yang terparkir di sisi selatan Al Musalla Road.

    Di samping pintu mobil sudah ada seorang lelaki warga lokal menunggu. Lelaki berbaju oranye itu berdebat dengan polisi tersebut. Untuk kemudian polisi itu mengeluarkan semacam mesin EDC lalu memberikan denda sebesar 260 Dirham untuk perilaku lelaki berbaju oranye itu yang menyeberang sembarangan.

    “Ah….Sial”, wajahku mulai pias.

    “Are you working in Dubai?”, pertanyaan polisi itu untukku

    “No Sir. I’m just tourist and for first time in Dubai”, jawabku singkat jelas.

    “Why don’t you cross in the right place”, dia memarahiku

    “Yesterday morning, I pass this area and I crossed it through that zebra cross. This afternoon, I apologize because I cross the road in the wrong place because I must go to hotel to take my backpack and I’m chasing airport bus for my flight to Muscat tonight. Very sorry, I’m in a hurry now, Sir”, aku menjelaskan lengkap bahwa aku sungguh sedang terburu-buru.

    Polisi itu pun diam sejenak memeriksa passporku lembar demi lembar.

    “Okay, I forgive you today. But for your fault, I still record your violation in our system….Be carefully”, dia menyerahkan passporku

    “Thank you very much, Sir. You are very kind”, aku membungkuk takzim kepadanya.

    Mobil warna putih itu adalah mobil polisi yang menangkapku.

    Aku pun melangkah pergi menuju ke hotel.

    “How much fine do you have to pay to him?”, seorang wanita lokal keturunan Afrika tiba-tiba melangkah menyejajari langkahku.

    “No fines at all. He forgives me”, aku menjawab penuh senyum bahagia

    “You are lucky. I once got fine 300 Dirham when a policeman caught carelessly crossing”, dia bercerita penuh semangat.

    “Oh ya…”, aku menjawab basa basi sambil mempercepat langkah dan mulai meninggalkannya jauh di belakang.

    Aku harus cepat menggapai penginapan.

    Kisah Selanjutnya—->

  • Giving up in Myeong-dong

    <—-Previous Story

    A side at Myeongdong 8-gil.

    Unlike before, now I was so frantic looking for a bus from Namdaemun Market to get to my next destination, Myeong-dong.

    Looking for all route boards at bus stops around Namdaemun Market, I still couldn’t find any clues. The cold wind finally brought me to underground. Yup, I was now stepping down the corridors of Hoehyeon Station, looking for a platform to get to Myeong-dong Station. I got it easily. At the edge of platform, my face continued to face left to look up the appearance of Seoul Metro Line 4.

    The increasingly bright light slowly approached the platform, a sign that the train was ready to arrive. In an instant I was crammed to stand holding the carriage pole so as not to be hit by the flow of passengers. Shortly after all passengers were carried away, the Seoul Metro began to creep away from platform.

    Not through for any station, I then got off at Myeong-dong Station, leaving all passengers who were still crowded in the carriage. I couldn’t wait to get away from the carriage when I got off because I wanted to see the bustle of Myeong-dong, a popular cosmetic shopping center in Seoul. Of course not to buy a lipstick, masks or face whiteners, but just wanted to see beautiful auras of Ginseng Country girl….Oops.

    Coming out of Myeong-dong Station I kept muttering, “Why is today colder today than usual”. a gloves I was wearing couldn’t contain the cold that penetrated to outermost layer of my skin. As a result, I walked around enjoying Myeong-dong by occasionally gritting my teeth because I couldn’t stand in the cold air any longer.

    It was true, tall, slender girls with white faces filled every alley in Myeong-dong. Cosmetic shops seemed full of shoppers. Meanwhile, some local culinary traders were starting to get busy setting up stalls at many points. Myeong-dong, which seemed to me already crowded, apparently hadn’t reached its peak point yet. Maybe in the night would be the culmination point.

    Since that area was a cosmetic shopping center, it didn’t interest me to enter cosmetic outlets lined up along Myeongdong 8-gil. I just stood on the edge of Myeong-dong shopping corridor, enjoying the traffic of Seoul youth and the busy culinary traders who were busy preparing their wares. Meanwhile, several well-known cosmetic outlets such as Holika Holika, Aritaum, Missha and The Saem seemed to be flooded with visitors.

     Busy in Myeong-dong

    Just standing still, made me an easy target for the cold air which blew in Myeong-dong. It was true, I could only endure the cold for half an hour. The rest I started shivering uncontrollably.

    I gave up….

    I started to move and was forced to enter one of outlets, as I remembered the outlet was called innisfree. Since most of the guests were women, I just pretended to be looking for cosmetic gifts so that I could freely enter the outlet. Of course I wouldn’t buy anything at the outlet. I just walked around while paying close attention to the various kinds of cosmetics sold at the outlet.

    In order not to arouse suspicion, fifteen minutes later I decided to leave the oulet. Now I continued down the corridors in Myeng-dong while slowly moving away from the cosmetic center to make my way to the station.

    Time to leaving Myeong-dong.

    Yup, that time I intended to go back to the hotel first, put the groceries which I bought from Namdaemun Market before visiting Myeong-dong. For then I would continue to explore again to Gyeongbok Palace.

    Next Story—->

  • Ginseng from Namdaemun Market

    <—-Previous Story

    Namdaemun Market, Seoul.

    Moments after the last sip of coffee in my paper cup, the sky blue bus number 402 arrived. Didn’t go straight to bus stop platform. It turned out that the driver got off and hunted for coffee at G-25 minimarket, where I had gotten black coffee moments before.

    I was already standing in front of the bus when he approached while holding his hot coffee.”*&^%$#@!()<>”, I didn’t know what he said while pointing at his coffee cup. But I understood what he means, “Wait a minute, bro, I’m drinking coffee for a while”. I smiled nodding and he held up his right thumb for me.

    I leaned against the front of bus as I waited for him to finish his coffee behind the wheel. A few moments later, the sound of bus’ front door scraping was heard. Indicated that bus doors have been opened and I was welcome. Of course it was better to sit inside a warmer bus than cold out there.

    A few moments after I sat in the middle seat, the bus moved to bus stop platform. Pick up passengers who have been waiting for a long time.

    All passengers had taken their seats as bus slowly started to descend Namsan Mountain and exposed the beauty of Seoul through glass windows. The metropolis which seemed to be shrouded in a layer of fog below. I endlessly widened my eyes to stare at it from above.

    Until not felt, the bus was speeding in city streets which were flat. Showing the busy streets of Seoul. Twenty minutes later I was dropped off at Toegye-ro Avenue right in front of Gate 5 of Namdaemun Market.

    Seen from across the street, the aura of that 75-year-old traditional market was really tempting. The many stalls of traders in very clean floor of market were decorated with puffs of smoke indicating that traditional cuisine would be easy to find inside. It was said that there were 9,000 stalls in this market.

    I started walking on the edge of market, taking a quick look at spice trade among local residents. Ginseng which was famous in that country was really tempting when it was displayed in every stretch of merchant stalls. And I didn’t know, how in an instant, I finally managed to have a pack of ginseng from a stall….. Wow, Hmmhhh.

    Yuhuu…I bought ginseng…
    Almond also.

    Not quite up there. Now my eyes were attracted by souvenir display at a side of market alley. I approached and automatically started bidding at some cute and quirky keychains. Oh my God, the trade ended with the purchase of a dozen key chains which I planned to give to my office mates after returning from Seoul.

    Wow, market aura really was really strong. Now I suddenly offered some almond snacks which in my mind, I would snack tomorrow during my long flight in the plane to Jakarta.

    It took me a long time to walk around market, making my stomach hungry. Coupled with the exposure of culinary smoke which wafted through market alleys. Never mind, I decided to enter a tavern that was owned by an old woman who still radiated the remnants of her beauty aura, dressed neatly clean and full of smiles.

    She just smiled and kept looking at me sitting at dining table. “Dangsin-eun eodieseo oneunga?”, she kept asking me who didn’t understand how to answer. Until a young man with a small laugh spoke to me. “She said, where are you coming from?”.

    “Oh, just say to her, I am from Indonesia….Jakarta….yes, Jakarta”, I answered with a light laugh. “Hooo. Indunesiaaaa…. yes yes yes”, the old woman nodded as she continued to smile. She approached me and handed me a menu.

    It didn’t take long, I immediately pointed to a menu. Not that I understoodd what the menu looked like. I just saw in right column of the menu that it was the cheapest food I could find. “Hoooo, sundubu-jjigae …OK”, the old woman gave a thumbs up and went to prepare the menu.

    After waiting a while. The food was served on the table. Wanted to know the shape of that food:

    Huh…. Hahahaha, that was what you pay for only rice and tofu… The rest of the menu was free.

    My trip at Namdaemun Market finally ended at that simple eatery. Now I have left the market from original gate and I was ready to leave that four-hectare market.

     
    Hahahaha, that was what you pay for only rice and tofu… The rest of the menu was free.

    My trip at Namdaemun Market finally ended at that simple eatery. Now I have left the market from original gate and I was ready to leave that four-hectare market.

    Next Story—->