BAS KITē ….Kuala Terengganu’s Mainstay City Bus

<—-Previous Story

After washing jeans, t-shirts and socks, I took a bath. Made my body fresh and repel shabby. “It’s still too early to sleep, I’d better hang out in the shared-kitchen to fill my water bottles which are starting to recede”, my idea suddenly appeared.

I started downstairs to the second floor where the reception desk and shared-kitchen were located. Arriving there, looked the presence of Mr. Okamoto who slowly brewed the coffee.

“Where was you going today, Mr. Okamoto?” I asked before he smiled as I poured tap water into my drink bottles.

“Hi Donny, I didn’t go everywhere today. I was tired. I decided to take a rest all day in my room”, he chuckled while sipping his own brewed coffee.

“Ohhhhh…..I think you have found a nice destination today….Hahahaha. I see you are very fresh now”, I hasten to sit in front of him and continue the conversation.

Somehow in the beginning, Mr. Okamoto told many things that night….From the charming story of Okinawan culture, memories of drinking coffee with local Acehnese, the behavior of Japanese girls in modern times, the cuteness of a student from Yogyakarta, as well as the ups and downs of being an English teacher at his capital city.

Meanwhile, I added a little story about my adventure to visit Japan three years ago, exploring Terengganu on the first day that afternoon until my plan to explore Middle East a few days ahead.

The specialty of the conversation was a cup of coffee brew made by Mr. Okamoto for me.

Wow…. Arabica coffee was still imagined to be enjoyed until now.

—-****—-

That Monday morning, I accidentally woke up a little late. After the Fajr prayer, I went back to sleep and just woke up at exactly nine in the morning. After bathing, I have breakfast by sipping oat powder that I brought from home, I served the powder in hot water and mixed it with a spoonful of sugar in the inn’s kitchen.

Twenty minutes later I finished breakfast, I started to go downstairs to the first floor and got ready to continue exploring. Looking at the sky, it looked like my second day in Kuala Terengganu would be as hot as yesterday. I stepped through Engku Pengiran Anom 2 Street to reach Air Jernih Street which if pulled straight north would take me to Hentian Bas Majlis Bandaraya Kuala Terengganu.

The bus terminal was still my ally in dissecting the beauty of Kuala Terengganu. At least I knew where to go all Monday.

Oh yes, back to the story a day before, when I arrived at the bus terminal after being escorted by myBAS from Sultan Mahmud Airport, I took a moment to get closer to the BAS KITē stop. I deliberately documented the bus route which is the transportation mode of Kuala Terengganu residents’ mainstay. I had monitored the existence of BAS KITē itself from Jakarta two months before departure.

I got in the BAS KITē
Tasting the BAS KITē…
This was the first route I took.
I couldn’t go up this route, I’m sorry….
Well, Route C02 was the last route I took.

Well, if you went to Kuala Terengganu and wanted to save on costs in exploring the city, then BAS KITē was the best solution. After all, instead of taking a taxi everywhere…. It was expensive.

Let’s see what was a BAS KITē.

According to the results of my conversation with the BAS KITē driver when going to the Crystal Mosque, there were only five buses in Kuala Terengganu, and the drivers were only five people. But on the route board which I managed to photograph, BAS KITē turned out to only have four routes….Hmmm, maybe one unit was a spare bus….Ah, I didn’t know, what were you thinking anyways?

The uniqueness of this city bus lies in its design. When viewed from the outside, the body of this city bus resembles the architecture of a typical Terengganu house. The bus’ glass is designed like an arched window, while the bus’ roof is given a distinctive touch of Terangganu’s carved. While at bus inside, seats and dividing area between driver and passengers are dominated by iron and wood combination, full of Terengganu carvings.

This city bus with a capacity of 36 passengers is operated by Cas Ligas SDN. BHD whose office is in PERMINT Tower, the tower I passed by many times every day when I explored Kuala Terengganu. Cas Ligas SDN. BHD itself is a land and water transportation business in Kuala Terengganu.

To be able to take this city bus to various tourist destinations, you have to prepare a fare ranging from 1 to 5 Ringgit depending on the distance. Cheap right?…..

The city bus which departed the earliest was BAS KITē for Kuala Nerus (direction to the airport but doesn’t stop at the airport if you want to go to the airport just use the myBAS service). That route departed at exactly half past eight in the morning and departs at an interval of 1.5 hours before noon and then departs at intervals of 2 hours when it is past noon. The last bus departs at half past five in the afternoon from Hentian Bas Majlis Kuala Terengganu Airport.

Meanwhile, the city bus which departs at noon is the KITē BAS towards Crystal Mosque. This BAS KITē route first departs at 9:30 am and only provides four trips a day. The last trip departs at five in the afternoon from Hentian Bas Majlis Kuala Terengganu Airport.

Cheap but limited.

With an average distance of two hours for each departure, at least I could visit at least three destinations in different routes. “Enjoy it, don’t be in a hurry….”, that’s how I thought about its limitations.

To keep the mood happy….Yes, right?

Next Story—->

BAS KITē ….Bus Kota Andalan Kuala Terengganu

<—-Kisah Sebelumnya

Usai mencuci celana jeans, t-shirt dan kaos kaki, aku pun berbasuh. Membuat badan segar dan mengusir lusuh. “Masih terlalu dini untuk tidur, lebih baik aku nongkrong di shared-kitchen saja untuk mengisi botol-botol air minumku yang mulai surut”, ideku tetiba muncul.

Mulai turunlah aku ke lantai dua dimana meja resepsionis dan shared-kitchen berada. Sesampainya di sana, tampak keberadaan Mr. Okamoto yang perlahan menyeduh kopi.

Where was you going today, Mr. Okamoto?”, aku mendahului bertanya ketika dia melempar senyum saat aku mengucurkan air kran ke dalam botol-botol minumanku.

Hi Donny, I didn’t go everywhere today. I was tired. I decided to take a rest all day in my room”, dia terkekeh sembari menyereput kopi seduhannya sendiri.

Ohhhhh…..I think you have found a nice day today….Hahahaha. I see you are very fresh now”, aku menyegerakan duduk di hadapannya dan melanjutkan percakapan.

Entah bagaimana mulanya, Mr. Okamoto mengisahkan banyak hal malam itu….Dari kisah menawannya  budaya Okinawa, kenangan minum kopi bersama warga lokal Aceh, perilaku gadis-gadis Jepang di zaman modern, kelucuan seorang muridnya yang berasal dari Yogyakarta, serta kisah suka dukanya berprofesi menjadi guru Bahasa Inggris di ibu kota.

Sedangkan aku menimpali sedikit cerita mengenai petualanganku mengunjungi Jepang tiga tahun silam, menjelajah Terengganu di hari pertama tadi siang hingga  rencanaku menjelajah Timur Tengah beberapa hari dihadapan.

Keistimewan dari percakapan itu adalah teraciknya secangkir kopi oleh Mr. Okamoto untukku.

Beuh….Kopi Arabica itu masih terbayang nikmatinya hingga kini.

—-****—-

Senin pagi itu, aku sengaja bangun sedikit siang. Usai Shalat Subuh, aku kembali tidur dan baru bangun tepat pukul sembilan pagi. Usai berbasuh, aku bersarapan dengan menyesap bubuk oat yang kubawa dari rumah, kusajikan serbuk itu dalam tuangan air panas dan mencampurnya dengan sesendok gula pasir yang ada di dapur penginapan.

Dua puluh menit kemudian aku rampung bersarapan, aku mulai beranjak turun ke lantai satu dan bersiap melanjutkan eksplorasi. Melihat langit, sepertinya hari keduaku di Kuala Terengganu akan sepanas kemarin. Aku melangkah melewati Jalan Engku Pengiran Anom 2 untuk menggapai Jalan Air Jernih yang apabila ditarik lurus ke utara akan mengantarkanku kepada Hentian Bas Majlis Bandaraya Kuala Terengganu.

Terminal bus itu masih saja menjadi sekutuku dalam membedah keindahan Kuala Terengganu. Setidaknya aku sudah tahu harus kemana saja di sepanjang Senin itu.

Oh ya, kembali pada kisah sehari sebelumnya, setiba di terminal bus setelah diantar oleh myBAS dari Bandar Udara Sultan Mahmud, aku meluangkan waktu sekejap untuk merapat ke hentian BAS KITē. Aku sengaja mendokumentasikan rute bus kota andalan warga Kuala Terengganu itu. Keberadaan BAS KITē sendiri sudah kupantau dari Jakarta dua bulan sebelum keberangkatan.

Aku aja naik BAS KITē….Masak kamu engga?
Icip-icip BAS KITē lah….
Inilah rute pertama yang kunaiki.
Kagak naik di rute ini guwe mah….
Nah, Laluan C02 adalah rute terakhir yang kunaiki.

Nah, kalau kamu ke Kuala Terengganu dan ingin menghemat ongkos dalam mengeksplorasi kotanya, maka BAS KITē adalah solusi terbaik. Lha daripada naik taksi kemana-mana….Kan mahal….Ya toh.

Yuk kita intip apa itu BAS KITē?

Menurut hasil percakapanku dengan pengemudi BAS KITē ketika menuju Masjid Kristal, jumlah bus ini hanya ada lima unit di Kuala Terengganu, pengemudinya pun hanya lima orang. Tetapi pada papan rute yang berhasil aku foto, BAS KITē ternyata hanya memiliki empat rute….Hhmmmhh, mungkin satu unitnya berupa bus cadangan….Ah, aku mana tahu, lagian ngapain guwe pikirin yak.

Keunikan bus kota ini terletak pada desainnya. Jika dilihat dari luar maka badan bus kota ini menyerupai arsitektur rumah khas Terengganu. Kaca bus didesain bak jendela lengkung, sedangkan atap bus diberikan sentuhan lisplang berukiran khas. Sedangkan di bagian dalam bus, tempat duduk serta area pembatas antara pengemudi dan penumpang di dominasi oleh kombinasi bahan besi dan kayu penuh ukiran khas Terengganu….Ciamik deh pokoknya.

Bus kota berkapasitas 36 penumpang ini, usaha operasionalnya dimiliki oleh Cas Ligas SDN. BHD yang kantornya berada di Menara PERMINT, menara yang setiap hari berkali-kali aku lewati. Cas Ligas SDN. BHD sendiri adalah bisnis pengangkutan darat dan air di Kuala Terengganu. Kalau di Jakarta mungkin semacam PPD kali yak…..

Untuk bisa menaiki bus kota ini menuju berbagai destinasi wisata maka kamu harus mempersiapkan ongkos berkisar antara 1 hingga 5 Ringgit tergantung dengan jarak. Murah kan?…..

Bus kota yang berangkat paling pagi adalah BAS KITē jurusan Kuala Nerus (arah bandara tetapi tak mampir di bandara, jika kamu ingin menuju ke bandara gunakan saja jasa myBAS). BAS KITē jurusan ini berangkat tepat pukul setengah delapan pagi dan berangkat dengan interval waktu 1,5 sebelum tengah hari dan kemudian berangkat dalam interval 2 jam sekali ketika sudah lewat tengah hari. Bus terakhir berangkat jam setengah lima sore dari Hentian Bas Majlis Bandara Kuala Terengganu.

Sedangkan bus kota yang berangkatnya paling siang adalah BAS KITē jurusan Masjid Kristal. BAS KITē jurusan ini berangkat pertama kali pukul 9:30 pagi dan hanya menyediakan empat trip dalam sehari. Trip terakhir berangkat pukul lima sore dari Hentian Bas Majlis Bandara Kuala Terengganu.

Murah tapi terbatas……Tenang bisa di siasati kok.

Dengang jarak rerata dua jam untuk setiap keberangkatan maka setidaknya aku bisa mengunjungi minimal tiga destinasi dalam rute yang berbeda. “Nikmati saja, ga usah buru-buru…….”, begitulah fikirku menyikapi keterbatasan itu.

Supaya suasana hati tetap happy….Ya, kan?

Kisah Selanjutnya—->