dora the explorer • from up my Studio Ghibli dream

TOTORO WAS IN TOWN!!

I was a little bummed when they announced about the ~World of Ghibli Exhibition in Jakarta~ because hot damn, the ticket price is not as affordable as I, a college student, can wish for. Also, I do not have too much Ghibli friends (or so I thought) and I do not want to be that awkward solo weirdo that's lurking around alone with huge overexcited smile and a camera. Thankfully, Kevin and Alvin, my school friends, came as my saving grace after an impromptu late night convo about buy one get one Kamikaze on Instagram.

Long story short, I sort of third-wheel them on their ~not date but death~ endeavor (´ε｀ )♡

(I'm kidding. Kevin asked me if I want to go.)

I do not really remember my first encounter with Studio Ghibli goodness, but I remember that となりのトトロ/My Neighbor Totoro is the one that got me in.

I think I watch it in grade school once? It was quite hazy but I am one of the younger kids in my big family and my brother and cousins are like... Old. And they taught me a lot about pop culture earlier than most of my same-aged friends, I guess? I mean, they let me play World of Warcraft on their computer and read their copies of Harry Potter. It also helped that my father is an IT guy so we have our own PC and internet earlier than most households. And any kids my age can testify that the telly used to broadcast a plethora of anime during our prime time television hours.

So yeah, pretty exposed to foreign popular culture there.

(Still can't get me hooked up into American comic books, though. That's for Jason. The most American entertainment I did enjoy growing up is probably Disney.)

Anyway, back to Ghibli.

I then encountered My Neighbor Totoro again in middle school, during an English test. I forgot what the test was about but the teacher lets us watch the film while waiting for our turn. I remember thinking, "Hey, I've seen this!" and then proceed to get sucked into the story of Kusakabe family and their fluffy neighbor. I like them a lot. The pictures are so pretty. Hence, praise the internet for the huge help, I delved into the awe-inspiring, beautiful, lovable world of Ghibli.

My favorite is of course My Neighbor Totoro. My family know, my friends know, even my bosses at my internship place know. The rest of the TOP 5 is probably Spirited Away, Kiki's Delivery Service, Howl's Moving Castle, and From Up On Poppy Hills. No Grave of the Fireflies because it makes me sad, although it got a special mention because it made everyone cry.

Alrighty! With all those boring recap of my history with Studio Ghibli and popular culture in general, let's now talk about the event! The whole ~World of Ghibli Exhibition in Jakarta~ thing actually started with monthly screening of Studio Ghibli films, which I was super excited about because I never saw any of these films on a big screen. I only managed to watch them once because it's on selected cinemas only and all of them are so far away from my house, but yeah, I saw Spirited Away with my friend sitting on my right and A FAMOUS INDONESIAN FILM DIRECTOR ON MY LEFT and I think she's a bit weirded out because I am too excited and smiley and fidgety.

But it's okay because it's dark.

She doesn't even know me.

Then the exhibition opened last month and the review was bad at first it made me worried and skeptical. But I am glad that we went to this exhibition because IT MADE MY DAY SO SO SO MUCH. I think it is the best day of my life. I mean, did you guys see that big and fluffy Totoro??? Well, they also have Nekobus (Eng: Cat Bus, also from My Neighbor Totoro franchise) that is as fluffy as Totoro and we can get in them! I feel like I completed an unknown, deep down from my heart bucket list item as soon as I stepped inside of them.

To explain it briefly: I was so happy that my chin can't lie about it. Also my eyes are just two lines from smiling too hard.

Contrary to the review by the masses, the exhibition is well-managed. There are a lot of staffs milling around ready to help you take photos or explain about stuffs. They can explain about Ghibli films too, for those people who tag along because their beau is going and do not actually know what's happening. It is a good decision to go on a weekday, because from what I saw on the internet (and this one Saturday when I visited Pacific Place Mall, the venue of the event) the crowd are quite crazy on the weekends. So, we happily zipped everywhere, took photos here and there, with little to no queue.

There's this one moment when I just can't get enough of the Totoro floofiness that Kevin teased me that I held the line so I just went, "I am sorry but I love Totoro too much, I apologize but I have to take selfies with them!" to a mom with her child (which were next in line) and she just went, "It's okay I understand we are the same! I want to take lots of photos with Totoro too!" and we low-key fangirl together and I helped them took photos.

I enjoy how well-made the exhibitions are. The Kiki's bakery is very detailed with real breads coated in resin, bottles of jams and sodas, and authentic props like old telephone, cashier, and scale. What got Kevin fascinated though, is the standing broom that he can't comprehend just because it is standing. He repeatedly asked why and how and stare at that broom questionably. He is weird sometimes, heheh. Same details was applied to The Kusakabe's house. I am awed by the way they created the beautifully designed organized mess of the father's office. Kevin's cousin, who's an architecture student, is a part of the team that work on this display, so shoutout to her! (≧∇≦)/

THE HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE IS AMAZING TOO! Super astonished by the details of this display. The intricate design was recreated nicely. It is one of the top notch display in the exhibitions, but I think the lack of background and additional knick-knacks sort of bring down the mood for this one. But I guess making the castle alone is a hard enough job, haha.

But I think their best and most well-made part of the exhibition is the Laputa: Castle in the Sky? It is at the very front part of the venue and they have so many things to display, from the flower robot to floating ships. A very grand welcome indeed, after I made my friends stay in the dark auditorium waiting for My Neighbor Totoro's trailer (which never come, although Kevin has already hummed through a lot of Joe Hisaishi's music). Just next to it is the Spirited Away display, which was almost as grand, but I think lack something. Or probably it is just me feeling salty because I didn't met Kaonashi.

There's more exhibition, like Princess Mononoke, Porco Rosso, Nausicaä, and what I think is Arriety? I didn't took too many pictures but Alvin did. I think she covered all of them, hahaha.

All in all, due to me liking Studio Ghibli works, I rate this exhibition 10/10!!

Me and my friends discussed a bit about this (mostly due to the ticket price versus us feeling really happy leaving the venue) and we thought that it is not for someone who doesn't like or familiar with Studio Ghibli. Like, there's no point in visiting if you're clueless. A bit different than like, in example, going to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studio Japan, which you can still enjoy even though you are not into Harry Potter (like my friend's sister who just tag along because she didn't want to explore alone but ended up enjoying the Harry Potter Experience anyway).

Our happiness level was off the chart, tho. And we did have fun catching up, so the day is a win for me!

---

Most pictures taken with Kevin's cellphone.

I think it was Samsung Galaxy S7.

production diary • is this the real life?

Holaaa, I'm back to civilization! But I broke my cellphone so I can only be contacted in that medieval way called Short Message Service. Or you can always call me number but I proli won't answer because I lost all my Contacts and I never answer anonymous number. BTW I'm so glad that I'm still fluent in old school way of texting; old Nokia is so fun to use! (Also, it's so tinyyy!)

Just got back from a mini vacay-job, which was a pretty fun (but hella tiring) time-out from the real world. A tiny island smack dab in the middle of the sea, with a beach so wonky you might casually walk ankle-deep first and plunged all the way into the water next. The sea is very ferocious at night, because we went there on the full moon. The time feels very slow there, it's like we have 48H a day. Except for the ruined fort and a family of Varanus, there's nothing much to see in the island.

On the weekend, a wave of tourists came from the land and I can only look at them strangely; I feel like a local that can't comprehend why tourists want to see this place I live in. (The same feeling I got every time anyone ever went on a vacay to Puncak, Bogor.) Like seriously there's nothing to see. (Although I think some people noticed us there producing a short film and took a picture or three.)

A confession: I spent more time playing on the beach, looking for seashells and crabs, rather than working. (It's not my fault really, I mean, after the set is ready, I'm basically useless there, more or less.) Also, trashing mini-yachts is a fun activity. Restoring it back to its white pristine condition, not so much.

End note: I have lots more appreciation for groundwater now. Bathing with saltwater is bullshit, man.

Title from Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.

dora the explorer • i felt young, never change my crooked heart.

There is something fascinating about getting lost in an uncharted area around your hometown. Almost as thrilling as traveling somewhere new, or going to the uni for the first time. It's adventure! We don't know what will happen, even though it's proli only a kilometer or so from your house. My hometown has a lot of small roads that leads to weird places. The small town itself is about 30 minutes to an hour from the city by car depends on what route you took. There's this one route that I considered 'scenic' because you'll encounter lakes and bamboo forest (sort of) and stuffs.

Anyway, last Wednesday is a combination of getting lost and walking down the memory lane at the same time. On April 2015, PT. KAI (the train manager company thing in Indonesia, lol) reopened an old route that's supposed to be operated in the 90s but stopped because of the monetary crisis in 1998. This railway is literally next door to the school I used to go to as a child, so I'm quite familiar with it. We even followed the railway to an abandoned train station once when I was in the fifth grade. Anyway, because the trains got popular (so popular that it is packed and scary most of time), the route is now on again, but only two stations are reactivated. The one on the very end of the line, called Nambo (NMO), and the one I visited in fifth grade, called Cibinong (CBN). There are two other train stations in this route but one has gone terribly ruined, and I didn't see the other one in our trip.

Yes, we (as in, Yunita, Gung, and I; always the trio) took the train to Nambo because we are curious about it.

But first, let's talk about the train station.

(Cibinong Train Station.)

Somehow, it looks smaller than I remember. Almost downright tiny; with no proper platform and seats. The building is quite pretty, though; unlike the modern silver-colored train stations nowadays. Some people said that this building resembles a villa; well, I can see why. To go here, you can take any public transportation that goes to or through Cibinong Bus Station. There's a small road across the bus station, next to Indomaret. The train station is not too far, proli 5 minutes of walking? It's on the right side of the road and if you do not know where it is, you'll proli miss it (just me and my bad sense of direction, most likely). There's an Alfamart next to it, as a pointer.

The platform is bizarre. The yellow line area is so wide, probably because it's made around the 90s and the train is not as slim as it is now? You can stand there and proli still be so far away from the train, because the rail is also a little bit far, so the gap between the platform and the train is larger. It's really funny-looking for me.

Anyway, the route to Nambo is proli also one of those route that I'll call scenic. It is really really pretty, because there's a lot to see, from mini-forest, to huge river, to the highway, to a prison, and a cement industry, lots of industrial building that looks like it's from zombie apocalypse movies, and mountains. If you ever took a train to Bandung from Jakarta, this is like that in ten minutes trip, probably.

In the end, it's nothing really extravagant; of course it's not the same as traveling abroad. But I'm very very happy and impressed with it. There's a lot of beautiful place that you can see everyday, it's proli only around 15 minutes from your home, if you have the will to explore it.

End note: Like every time Berliners hang out, we ended up with a 1.5 liter of soda and various snacks in front of the computer or the telly. It's almost like a tradition, and it's heartwarming that we still do that after all these years. Last Wednesday, we ended up playing the Sims 3; Yunita and I recreated Gung and this one girl that used to adore and like and love Gung so much (sadly it is not reciprocated) and try to make them be a couple in the Sims. I was like, "YASSS" the whole time and we laugh until I cry. 'Twas a good day.

Photos by me, taken with Jess' Minox Leica camera.

{ Find Jess here! }
Title from Wild Heart by Bleachers.

dora the explorer • living life just like i should.

Someone left me in charge of the camera and these are the results. Ha.

Spent a day in Grand Indonesia just going around and watching some short films in Galeri Indonesia Kaya with KINOMOLOGY. Anyway, please be friends! From left to right: Alver, Xena, Jess, and yours truly. Pardon my ugly half-face, lol. I've been going around using a hella small 5mpx camera that I borrowed from Jess. It is really fun to use! It's so mobile, instant, and the outcome is quite random so I always look forward to it.

Photos by me, taken with Jess's Minox Leica camera.

{ Find Jess here! }
Title from I'm Good by The Mowgli's.

dora the explorer × nom nom nom • pantai indah kapuk, hong tang, hakata ikkousha

Hanging out with friends, enjoying decent summer sun, developing a tan, and getting some sore (in a good way) muscles. In short, I finally get a sliver of fun in my boring, all work no play summer break, all thanks to Thia and Michelle that practically pulled me out of my hermit nest. Yas!

Pantai Indah Kapuk has been popular for quite some time, and I always wonder what the hype is. There's a recreational pool. Cool. There's rows and rows of restaurants. Cheeky. And then there's a mangrove conservation. Interesting. But for the love of God why do they call it Pantai Indah Kapuk if there's no beach on site?!

Or maybe there's a beach somewhere. Meh.

The area as a whole itself is quite neat. You get off from the highway and rows of restaurants/cafes/shops are waiting for you to choose. The signs are easy to read, the roads are as smooth as a baby's bottom, and the traffic is hella crazy starting afternoon. Anyways, we went to a dessert shop, the infamous mangrove conservation, and a ramen/noodle house, in that particular order.

1. HONG TANG

I was hungry, okay? And dessert is the best appetizer you could ever have. And of course, Chinese dessert is so IN right now! I don't even remember the name of the order, but THE PORTION IS HELLA BIG! I shared this bowl with Thia and I still feel full after we finally reached the bottom. The green tea ice cream is really good, and I always love boba. And yas, even my gummi bear loves it!

The interior is decent, kinda plain, I guess, but it serves the purpose. And the air conditioner is a nice change from the hot humid weather outside, so there's that. The door girl is so nice too!

Service - 4/5

Ambience - 3/5

Food - 4/5

2. MANGROVE CONSERVATION

DAMN this place is very VERY PHOTOGENIC!

It is actually quite generic and below my expectation of a nature conservation, since I've been expecting something TNGGP-like, but I guess you can't expect something that real smack in the middle of urban area. It is very photogenic, though. I love the lighting, I love the scenery, I hate the wood walkway because it's not neat and it hurts, but I guess they gave you a little experience of walking in the woods.

IMHO the ticket is way overpriced for something so... ordinary? But it do looks good though. Kinda small, I guess. But it's pretty popular for photoshoots, which leads to another minus for a poor uni art student like me: we have to pay like one mill rupiahs to have a professional camera with us. Thank God for high-tech cheap cellphones.

But I'll definitely come back if I got the company, twas fun.

Overall - 3.75/5

3. HAKATA IKKOUSHA

They sell pork. Figures I should get that warning out before reviewing the food.

Food's great! It may not looks like it, but it is really great. The noodles are A+, the broth is love, and overall the food is great. The portion is quite big too, for me, and they are quite generous with the toppings. I love the refillable ocha, because I drink a lot of liquid, so it's a perk I can't refuse, really.

Interior's okay, I don't really remember but I think they have that bar facing the kitchen for the Japanese ramen house authenticity. Nice touch on that side. Staffs are grumpy cats, but they do their job, I guess, and they are not outwardly rude, just looking grumpy and tense.

Service - 3.75/5

Ambience - 3.75/5

Food - 4/5

4. RATI RATI

Bonus review! Went here to get roll cakes to go for my parents. They got this cutesy cafe interior, nice display and all. In short, somewhere I'd definitely choose for a photo-session. Anyways, cake's great, soft and dreamy and everything happy. They also offer customization, I guess? Because Thia can have a happy birthday text with her roll cake, but I don't really know the details. Worth a visit! They also got quite an array of baked goods.

Overall - 3.75/5

THIS IS THE END OF THE REVIEW.

*tacky song playing in the background*

*TOEFL's listening section style!*

I'm sorry for the shitty quality photos, because I'm a shitty photographer, really. All photos are taken with my camera phone and post-processed with VSCO Cam + Giddylizer. And blargh, what is grammar, really? My English is rusty as hell. Thank you Thia & Michelle for being the coolest companies of the day! It's cool to finally meet you guys IRL, lotsa love.

Toodles! x

dora the explorer • 6:32 - Kelana

Hari ini aku merantau, sayang;

cari-cari hatiku yang hilang.

Namun yang kutemukan hanya kenangan.

*

(Today I'm wandering about, darling;

looking for a heart gone missing.

But memories are my only finding.)

* * *

Earliest flight to Singapore, the sun was just peeking from the horizon.

It was breathtaking.

dora the explorer • urban jungle

Bogor, my hometown, is superbly unique, like no others. There may be a lot of trees near your residence and it's not actually rare to have a national park or botanical garden in town, but I love Bogor like I love the rain. And the rain is a big part of Bogor, along with angkot and Kebun Raya Bogor!

Yes, I'm going to blog about Kebun Raya Bogor, Bogor's mini-forest. I often came here with friends, families, and I always find new things to photograph here. So many spots for photoshoot and photo-hunting, so many interesting places and trinkets, so many memories to be cherished.

So, basically, in my mind, Kebun Raya Bogor is the front yard of Istana Bogor, Sir Stamford Raffles' residence in those colonial days. The palace is so cool! My Ma said that there's a lot of artworks in there, but I never actually got the time to visit it personally. If you want to visit Istana Bogor, they always do Open House around the month June for Bogor's Anniversary on June 3rd.

Museum Zoologi! Been long since the last time I visited this place. This museum is kinda attached to Kebun Raya Bogor, the ticket is integrated. Look at those cute big cats! And the skeleton are from a Panthera tigris sumatrae (or was it javanica?)

There are a lot of preserved animals here, including the Dufan's mascot, Nasalis larvatus! I always thought that he was an alien... Oh well.

And this is the skeleton of a Balaenoptera musculus. SO BIG. And then my brother started to lecture me about his (or her) bones, and then told me that whales' ancestors used to live in the land, moved to the sea, and adapting, lost their back legs, hands turning into flipper... Then all I can think about is the fact that their nose moved into the top of their head.

IS ALL OF THAT TRUE?! Or is my brother lying to me?

A preserved butterfly in Museum Zoologi. Flightless, yet posed like it's flying.

SPIDERS, and not preserved. Found 'em lurking around in Kebun Raya Bogor. Cool, huh? I always has this fascination for spiders, but they scare me, haha. To think that I am that close with them, and the big ones too... *shivers*

For those who've seen Once Upon A Twist, 'twas in Kebun Raya Bogor too! This place is just absolutely wicked. Visit it sometimes! :D