Kyoto-city!

I've been dreaming about going to Japan, at least once in my life.

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And I didn't waste a chance when there was an open application for those who wants to visit Tokushima, it is Tokushima University to be exact. It was in the last August.
I did a really great time going on summer school  there, but, I was going to write about Kyoto here.

why Kyoto?

Well, I transited Kyoto before I heading to Tokushima. Even my friends who went with me doesn't really like Kyoto, because, well, in summer, Kyoto is super-hot like it has no cloud and no wind!
But for me, as the first city I went in Japan, which is my biggest dream, Kyoto is AWESOME!
I only went about 4 days and didn't take some sightseeing, but it was still interesting.
I stayed in Guest House, it's Kyoto Guest House, seven beds in one room, two bathrooms in use (maybe there are some in 3rd floor, as I stayed in 2nd floor, there was only 2 bathrooms for the people in 1st and 2nd floor), it was in the middle of city, so we could easily accessed the transportation such as buses, and even to walk.

I'm the true pedestrian.
And I find it was very convenient and pleasant to walking in the roadside. I really like walking and traveling around.

Me-Irma-Stella-Verisa in the roadside.

 

Fat me. In Kyoto night :) Blurred. Bad. *sigh*

We also went to the park, but didn't visit the aquarium. (I KNOW I KNOW, THERE ARE SOOOOOOOO MANY REGRETS LEFT IN MY HEART, MY BODY, AND MY SOUL THAT I DIDN'T VISIT MANY PLACES WHEN I WAS IN JAPAN) The guest house owner said it was the biggest park in Kyoto =D

I also visit the Kinkakuji, my friend got sick and almost all of them were collapsed due to very very very hot weather (41 degrees of Celcius was written in a building that time) such a beautiful temple >w<

Beautiful Kinkakuji under Kyoto's summer sky

Happy Bakabon Papa in the snack shop

Kyoto Tower - I don't know if we could going to the tower, we just bought the souvenirs in the lower  floor.

The big busy Kyoto Station

I did take a bite to the yummiest takoyaki in Kyoto! A recommendation from the nice Guest House owner :9 and it was though. A big pieces with big cut of tako, yum yum yum!

big-bites-of-tasty-tasty-takoyaki =9

The problem was: the translation. language. words. letters.

No, not Kyoto's problem, my problem.

I wasn't fluent in Japanese, so that was a VERY BIG problem. But, some Japanese people are also not fluent in English, no? Even though it is an international language *sigh*

My second problem is......... Money.

I'm still a student, and find the prices in Japan are high, feeling like my wallet have no soul again hahaha! Maybe when I finally an own income, I should go back there. Need to visit Fushimi Inari shrine!!!!! (it was closed when I was there)

As I told before, I also visited Tokushima (yeah, the main reason I went to Japan), I'd like to write some stories though, in another post maybe. About my summerschool, my homestay parents, the university, and a boys dance group called The Cell :p

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I've been dreaming about going to Japan, at least once in my life.

But it's not enough.

Japan gives me more than I've expected.

Taman Pelangi

Ummm, I went to this first, before the Ullen Sentalu trip, but didn't think to post this to blog........but let me share =D =D
Taman Pelangi (if I translate it into English, maybe it is become a Rainbow Park) is actually a park with hundreds lamps and a lot of lantern, in any shapes. From the cartoon creatures, animals, and so-on. I found the Donald Duck, Spongebob and Patrick, zebras, dragon, mushrooms, fishes, even the Angry Birds lantern.
As far as I know, Taman Pelangi opens on the night time, around 7 pm, maybe (I don't know the exact time, and I don't know the admission fee, as I went there by 9 pm, maybe it is too late to the gatekeeper to watch the entrance gate =D ) and in the day-time, Taman Pelangi is Monumen Jogja Kembali's park (but I also never been there -.-)
It is a nice park, but not too interesting (for me hehe) as the far you can do is to enjoy the park and take some photoshoots, the park arrangement itself is not too fine, maybe because it was new and still under construction.


the rainbow lantern

A Little Trip - Ullen Sentalu Museum

Finally, a little vacation!
I have a week-off-before-the-finals started from Dec 31st, and at that day, me and two others (Irnanda and Mentari) decided to go took a vacation. Can't go far away, because, yes, finals will come a week ahead. So, here we go: Ullen Sentalu, Javanese Culture and Art Museum!
It is located on Kaliurang, the upper part of Yogyakarta, Boyong Kaliurang Street, to be exact, Opening hours from 9am to 4pm, closed on Mondays. (as seen on its official website). We must pay an admission fee, each people 25000 rupiahs.
Sooooo, here it begins!
I don't know before, the museum tour is guided! I think it was like walking around and looking everything we like just like another museum I've ever been, but it's not. (I forgot the tour guide name -.-) and we took tour with 4 others people, 3 middle-aged women and an old man, we thought they were Sundanese accent :))
The tour itself told us about the Hamengkubuwono Families and the Story of Kesultanan Yogyakarta and Solo. (My bad! I don't remember the whole stories, lets take a peek on the website, and try to remember all hoho!)

1. Dance and Gamelan room
This room has a Gamelan sets, a grant from Kasultanan Yogyakarta Prince, and there were some beautiful painting about the traditional dances, the one I remember, there was a Tari Topeng painting (maybe it is Masked Dance in English) painted beautifully.

2. Tineke's Poem Room
This room showed the messages, letters, mails, to Tineke (her actual name was GRAj Koes Sapariyam (the daughter of Sunan PB XI, Surakarta)). As long as I can remember is, the tour guide said that the letters were from the cousins, best friends, aunties, and relations that cheering Tineke up because she wasn't allowed to marry the guy she liked, and they were cheering her up for almost 10 years. The letters were originally written in Dutch, but there were Indonesian and Japanese translation.

3. Putri Dambaan Room
This is a room, fully displayed about GRAy Siti Nurul Kusumawardhani (or known as Gusti Nurul). The room displayed the documented photos about her, from her childhood until she's 81 (she officially launched this room, she's still alive, now 90, and live in Bandung). This princess inspired the Mataram princes to not to do polygamy. She liked to ride the horse, which is not common in her era.

4. Batik Room Vorstendlanden
This room is displaying Sultan HB VII - Sultan HB VIII from Kraton Yogyakarta and Sunan PB X until Sunan PB XII from Surakarta (Solo) Batik collection. The things I learned is the difference about Yogyakarta and Solo batik pattern. While Solo's has a small, rigorous pattern, and having a darker color, like dark brown, brown, and Yogyakarta's has a bigger pattern, and lighter color, as white, yellowish. There were such a nice batiks, and they have own philosophy, as the 'Udan Liris' (if I'm not mistaken) told about the wealth, and the one I really can't remember that told about health, the older covered the sick people with batik in that pattern and believe it can heal the sicks.

That were some I can remember after seeing the official link
The sad truth is................we were not allowed to take a photograph inside the museum, we can only take it outside. But, well, we took a lot of. Hehehe.
Now, talking about the place.
It was SUCH A BEAUTIFULLY NATURAL! Tress are grown everywhere, make it quiet and calm, the building was built by the stones, and the cold sensation because the museum was built in the foot of Merapi mountain.

here are some pics!


unnamed statues before the exit



me, on gate haha