Attending A Seminar

Today I attended a seminar which talked about finance and BUMN issues with Pak Dahlan Iskan as the keynote speaker. For me, the biggest attraction for this seminar is about seeing Pak Dahlan Iskan in real. I have been familiar with him far before he became media darling; that was around 2006 through his articles in my local newspaper which belongs to his Jawa Pos News Network (JPNN). I was in high school that time and I really liked reading his articles which talked about everything from his own perspectives. My favorite topic is about his experience undergoing liver-replacing surgery.

I have never read his article in newspaper anymore since he left his chair as CEO of JPNN to serve the head of PLN, followed by leading Kementerian BUMN afterwards. All news about him came from TV and online media which I don't really like (the last time I watched him was on Kipas Princess talkshow hosted by Syahrini). Well, I personally prefer to know about someone's life from his/her own words coz it feels like he/she talks to you in person.

Pak Dahlan came to this seminar using public commuter train, something very uncommon for minister like him. As he stepped inside the room, every eyes were instantly pointing at him: to his white shirt with the rolled up sleeves, black trousers, very casual sport shoes, and no bodyguard nor assistant in front and behind. He started his speech without any lips service, straight to the point with full of smile and enthusiast. I wish more of personalities like him would come to lead this nation; less formality, more action, yet very humble.

Hope can meet him again and take a personal photograph saying cheers, hihihi...

Btw, I saw a girl infront me wearing shirt with houndstooth pattern. I don't know why but I find this pattern leaves some curiosity in me: whether it's line of black bats over the white base or vice versa?

The Cat's Story

Once upon a time in a very peaceful house, a beautiful creature came in and joined the family.

He immediately became the most lovable member coz he never disturbed anyone in the house, but... he suddenly disappeared. Left the family with confused and deep sadness.

Not long after... a reincarnation of him appeared with very identical physical looks, but with opposite gender.

She carried joyful to the family with her spoiled behavior and beautiful meeeeooww voice.

One day she came home very late after a midnight date with neighbor's male cat. That night she carried... her bumpy pregnant belly... OMG!!! Couple months later, she gave birth for 4 cutie kitten.

As the kids grown up, their mom suddenly disappeared without leaving any tracks, notes, or even heritage. The family members took over responsibility to raise the kitten with full of love, compassion, tears, and leftover foods.

Too sad, from the fantastic cutie-four, only 2 that still survived in the house: the 2 hugging kitten at bottom. The another 2 have ran away from house :'(

Story continues with the 2 surviving actors. As they became adult, they were getting so close each other. They roamed, ate, played, and fought together.

The house member sensed something unusual from their closeness... We often caught them having action like husband and wife.

Without any rain, wind, thunder, and hurricane, the female got pregnant! Undoubtedly, we know who made her pregnant.

Yaa, case closed.

They are officially a madly-in love-romantic couple.

Epilogue:
They have 4 children with very identical appearance like them as they were kids. Due to the babies' noises and stink of their pee and poo, the family members become soo annoyed but still, love them and feed them a lot.

Mars and Venus

I went to book store some days ago and stumbled upon this book. Pretty interesting actually coz I have read some of books that discuss about the same issue: differences between men and woman from the uniquely-true perspective. So...due the lack of money I could only read the front and back cover of this book, hehehe....

My question is: who actually occupy the earth?
Perhaps animals, plants, or... the in between gender?
*just kidding :p*

When Your Name Isn't There

I just applied for a freelance job in collage and joined a writing competition that the prize is a summer school ticket to Netherlands. When the freelance job's announcement was released, I immediately checked the college website but my name wasn't there. Last night the writing competition announced it's finalists and again, my name wasn't on the list :'(

Rasanya sedih, kecewes, galau... (tapi sambil senyum-senyum sendiri juga)

Tapi come on! Life goes on Siti!

Yaa, I hope this kind of unaccepted event will carry me to one step ahead of mental maturity (ciee... keren bahasa gw) and make myself always doing the best level of preparation for coming applications.

Yo wis lah kalo gitu...

Gud Morning everyone...

Some News of This Week

It's been a week since my last post. Have no much time and idea to write coz I am now so focused on my thesis. It takes my whole concentration but I can sense some fun though. Maybe that's kind of fun that makes scientist become soo crazy into research, leaving some tickle feeling inside your tummy.

Some of the news of this week are...

• Corruption scandal of a middle-aged man which spread out his money to some 20 pretty women, whew....
• Angelina Jolie underwent preventive double masectomy. She decided to take this preventive action after realizing that she carried gene that made her vulnerable to breast cancer. OMG. Such a very bold and brave decision she has made. As I am so concern about this issue, I really appreciate her action spreading this story to the world by writing it herself in here. I hope her experience can encourage many women to be more aware and take immediate action about health.
• Lately, I really like reading news in THE TIMES OF INDIA. This is the largest English newspaper and news-website in India which I used to read when I was in my India Trip. Unlike in Indonesia, it's very easy to find English newspaper in India with very affordable price, but I personally think that this is the best one. On its website, I can read international news, India local news, health tips, and Bollywood gossip also. The words are good to practice my English reading yet so understandable. What I like the most in this website is the part of readers comment. They make facility in which readers can become member, put their identity, write articles, leave comments, reply another comments, make friends and also become provocateur. If on Indonesia's news website I used to read racist and insulting comments, it also happens on this website but it's written in English and way louder (just imagine how it looks when Indian people arguing in a debate). They also make voting system to vote the comment with cute and funny badges. Beside that, there are also many wise, eye-opening, and joking comments which make this part become so fun and never bored to read (unlike in here where the comments often leave some tepok jidat rather than some laugh on my sweet face ^_^). I don't mean to generalize, but I personally think that the comment box of a news website can depict the character of people in the nation. And I can sense it from what I read on THE TIMES OF INDIA.

Bad Mood

I am on a bad mood now... Ghhahhh.....

Dunno what to do so that I decided to open my blog. I've been doing some changing in my blog design from past few days, and I now feel more comfortable with this simple template.

Oh ya, I just attended my cousin's wedding yesterday. He is a lecturer in a university and he weds his ex-students from the college with the same subject specificity: physics.

Here is my favorite pix from that wedding party. I kidnapped this cute little boy from his mom's leap just to strike a pose with me, mihihihi...

          

after doing some trial with photoshop :')

Philips: Dari Belanda, Menerangi Dunia

"Terus terang Philips terang terus"

Siapa yang tidak familiar dengan jingle iklan lampu Philips yang sering wara-wiri di televisi ini? Rasanya hampir semua orang pernah mendengarnya. Tapi sayangnya tidak semua orang tahu kalau Philips ini berasal dari Belanda dan masih banyak yang mengidentikkannya sebagai pabrik lampu semata. Inilah sedikit ulasannya.

Gerard Philips

The Philips Company didirikan pada tahun 1891 oleh Gerard Philips. Didanai oleh ayahnya, Frederik—yang berprofesi sebagai seorang banker, Gerard memulai pembangunan pabrik kecilnya di kota Eindhoven dan memproduksi lampu karbon serta berbagai perangkat elektronik. Setelah melalui tahun-tahun pertama yang sulit, Gerard mengajak adiknya Anton untuk bergabung menyelamatkan Philips yang saat itu berada di jurang kebangkrutan. Walaupun berlatar pendidikan insinyur, Anton bekerja sebagai sales representative. Ia kemudian sukses menghasilkan ide-ide inovatif bagi perkembangan Philips hingga menjadi perusahaan elektronik multinasional paling disegani di Belanda.

Tidak hanya memproduksi lampu, Philips mulai memproduksi perangkat elektronik seperti alat cukur elektrik, radio, televisi tabung, tape, kaset, CD, dan sikat gigi elektrik. Karena derasnya kebutuhan akan perangkat rumah tangga elektronik dari seluruh dunia, pusat produksi dan head office Philips mulai berdiri di berbagai negara seperti di Amerika Serikat, Australia, China, India, Brazil, dan negara-negara lainnya termasuk Indonesia.

Seiring inovasi yang dilakukan terus menerus, Philips mengklasifikasikan produknya menjadi 3 kategori, yaitu peralatan rumah tangga, lampu, dan peralatan kesehatan.

Peralatan rumah tangga

Dimulai dari vacuum cleaner sederhana, Philips kemudian memperkenalkan produk-produk yang mempermudah pekerjaan rumah tangga lainnya seperti alat cukur elektrik, radio dengan built-in loudspeaker, tape, dan stirling engine. Peralatan-peralatan elektronik sederhana tersebut lalu menjadi perintis penemuan perangkat elektronik rumah tangga lainnya, baik yang dikembangkan sendiri oleh Philips maupun oleh perusahaan lain. 

Lampu 

Sebagai produk pertama yang membuat namanya mendunia, Philips terus melakukan inovasi terhadap produk andalannya ini. Jika dulu Philips menjadi pionir dalam mengembangkan bulb lamp atau lampu pijar, kini Philips menjadi pelopor dalam produksi lampu LED (light-emitting diode) atau lampu hemat energi. Pada tahun 2011, Philips meraih hadiah 10 juta USD pada L-Prize competition yang diselenggarakan oleh US Department of Energy. Philips berhasil memproduksi lampu hemat energi dengan efisiensi terbaik untuk lampu standar 60 watt.

Tugu Surabaya kini lebih terang

Pada April 2013, Philips bekerja sama dengan Pemerintah Kota Surabaya untuk menerangi Tugu Pahlawan Surabaya dengan warna-warni lampu LED yang hemat energi hingga 80%. Dalam penerangan Tugu Surabaya ini, Pemkot Surabaya cukup mengeluarkan anggaran Rp9 juta/tahun untuk pemakaian 2.400 watt/tahun, berbeda dengan penggunaan lampu biasa atau HID yang sebelumnya menghabiskan 8.000 hingga 10.000 watt/tahun sehingga Pemkot bisa menghabiskan anggaran Rp36 juta/tahun.

Pada acara yang bertemakan Kota Terang Hemat Energi (KTHE) ini, Philips juga memperkenalkan lampu LED yang tahan hingga 15 tahun dan hemat energi sampai 85% untuk konsumen rumah tangga sebagai pengganti bohlam lampu sebelumnya/lampu pijar. 

Peralatan Kesehatan

Perkembangan di bidang kesehatan memacu Philips untuk mengembangkan alat-alat kesehatan mutakhir, baik untuk deteksi maupun pengobatan penyakit seperti mammogram dengan radiasi dosis rendah, ultrasonografi (USG), MRI, PET/CT, hingga mengembangkan teknik operasi tanpa sayatan. Teknologi tersebut sudah banyak diadaptasi oleh berbagai negara, diantaranya Amerika Serikat dan Uni Emirat Arab. WHO pun memberi rekomendasi kepada Belanda untuk terus mengembangkan teknologi dan inovasinya dalam bidang kesehatan. 

Referensi

• Harian Sindo, 4 May 2013
• http://www.centroone.com/index.php/photo/2013/04/y-2/tugu-pahlawan-kini-lebih-bersinar/
• http://www.sywellledlighting.com/blog/
• http://www.dutchdailynews.com/leading-dutch-players-in-healthcare-and-technology-join-forces-in-healthcare-innovation/
• http://www.dutchdailynews.com/philips-simplifies-healthcare-for-care-providers-and-patients/
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philips 

Chai Time

Just watched program masak di Trans 7: Bara Supercook and the host, Bara Pattiradjawane, he practiced the way to make chai. OMG... Padahal pas lagi iklan sebelum segmen chai itu aku baruuu aja terbersit keinginan untuk membuat chai, lalu tiba-tiba acaranya mulai dan ternyata... It's chai time!!! 

It has totally turned me on to be craving for chai... chai... Indian chai...

Ini nih tersangka yg made me craving for Indian chai
Hayoo... tanggung jawab om... (source)

So...

As it's so simple to make, I cured my chai craving by making it with the simplest way.

Bahan:

• 1 kantung teh celup
• 3-4 butir kapulaga
• 1 ruas jahe digeprek
• 1 tangkai kayu manis
• merica butir secukupnya
• gula secukupnya
• susu atau krimer

Cara membuat:

• Rebus air, lalu tambahkan kapulaga, jahe, kayu manis, merica butir, dan gula 
• Setelah mendidih, celup-celupkan kantung teh sampai kekentalan yang diinginkan
• Tuang ke dalam gelas, tambahkan susu atau krimer sesuai selera
• Hot chai siap dihidangkan
• Dapat juga dihidangkan dingin atau ditambahkan es batu bila suka

Karena keterbatasan bahan, jadilah aku bikin chai ala kadarnya hanya dengan: teh, gula, susu bubuk, jahe, dan daun pandan.

Hasilnya... Hmmm... Sadaaap... *fish and chef mode on*

Teman yang pas buat makan biskuit sore-sore dan lumayan meredakan my craving for Indian chai. Rempahnya masih kurang nendang karena cuma pake jahe dan daun pandan, but it's more than ok lah... I am very happy to drink my hand-cooking hot chai *sluuurrp*

Left chai source

May Day

What I did today...?

Cara membuat:

1. Rendam kacang hijau selama 4-6 jam, sisihkan dalam wadah 
2. Rebus santan dan beri garam secukupnya, sisihkan
3. Rebus kacang hijau yang sudah direndam dengan takaran air 1 ruas jari lebih tinggi dari jumlah kacang hijau
4. Tambahkan jahe 1 ruas jari dan 1 lembar daun pandan
5. Masak hingga air menyusut dan kacang hijau merekah
6. Tambahkan 5-6 sdm gula dan 1 sachet susu kental manis
7. Lalu tambahkan santan hingga kekentalan yang diinginkan
8. Aduk sesekali hingga santan mendidih, lalu matikan api kompor
9. Sajikan bubur dengan ubi kukus yang dipotong kotak

Tips:

1. Takar kacang hijau yang akan dimasak secukupnya karena walaupun kelihatan sedikit, kacang hijau akan mengembang dan jadi banyak setelah dimasak
2. Jika memasak dengan panci bertekanan atau presto, kacang hijau tidak perlu direndam terlebih dahulu
3. Buang busa/buih yang keluar saat kacang hijau yang direbus mulai mendidih
4. Tambahkan gula saat kacang hijau sudah mulai merekah. Kacang akan butuh waktu lama untuk merekah jika sudah bercampur dengan gula
5. Gula putih dapat diganti dengan gula merah atau gula jawa sesuai selera
6. Santan juga dapat diganti dengan susu, atau dihilangkan sama sekali 
7. Penyajian dapat dilengkapi dengan variasi lain, seperti ditambahkan kacang merah yang sudah direbus atau disajikan dengan roti tawar

Selamat mencoba... :)

Panorama Panorama

I love traveling

I love visiting places far-far away to get new insight in life

I love boarding public transportation and having interaction with new people

I love capturing moments, pictures, and smiles

To be frank, aku lagi galau nich...
I am missing someone very special in my life
*tears drop*

Anyway... Happy birthday to my beloved Ibu

I love you, Ibu...
Mmuach... <3 <3 <3

Btw, here are picts of some places I have visited. Slightly edited with Photoshop CS3, arranged by date-taken :)

Borobudur Temple, February 2012

Prambanan Temple, February 2012

Taj Mahal, January 2013

New Delhi Railway Station, January 2013

Monumen Nasional Jakarta, March 2013

English Vinglish

I've been so much into Bollywood movies since coming back from India. Aneh juga yah sebenarnya, karena biasanya orang-orang ingin ke India karena tergila-gila sama film Bollywood, aku malah sebaliknya. Tapi entah kenapa, setelah balik dari India aku jadi lebih mengerti alur filmnya dan lebih jeli memperhatikan background film seperti pemain figuran, pasar, kantor, taman, stasiun, dll.

(source)

Film yang akan direview kali ini berjudul English Vinglish, keluaran Oktober 2012. Film ini bercerita tentang seorang ibu rumah tangga bernama Shashi, yang pandai memasak dan punya bisnis kecil-kecilan membuat ladhoo (snack khas India). Namun sayangnya, bahasa Inggrisnya yang kacau sering menjadi ledekan oleh suaminya Satish dan anak perempuannya Sapna. Hanya anak lelakinya, Sagar, yang walaupun nakal namun tetap menyayangi Shashi apa adanya.

Suatu hari saudara perempuan Shashi yang tinggal di New York mengundang keluarga Shashi menghadiri pernikahan putrinya di New York. Shashi berangkat lebih dulu untuk membantu persiapan pernikahan keponakannya tersebut, sementara suami dan kedua anaknya akan menyusul saat mendekati tanggal pernikahan. Dengan Bahasa Inggris yang pas-pasan, Shashi akhirnya berhasil sampai di New York dan bertemu dengan keluarga kakaknya yang baik hati. Namun malang bagi Shashi, bahasa Inggrisnya yang masih kacau menyebabkan keributan besar saat ia memesan makanan di sebuah kafe. Ia kemudian secara sembunyi-sembunyi mendaftar kursus singkat Bahasa Inggris yang mengajarkan English speaking selama 4 minggu. Terdapat 7 orang murid dengan latar belakang yang beragam di kelas Bahasa Inggris tersebut: Eva si baby-sitter dari Meksiko, Salman Khan si supir taksi asal Pakistan, Euso si pekerja salon asal China, Rama si engineer dari India, Lourent si koki hotel dari Perancis, seorang pria Afrika pendiam, dan Shashi. Shashi kemudian menjadi murid paling menonjol dan disayangi di kelas. Tidak hanya meningkatkan kemampuannya berbahasa Inggris, di kelas ini Shashi juga mulai menemukan kepercayaan dirinya. Sementara itu, Lourent, si koki asal Perancis, diam-diam menyimpan perasaan kepada Shashi karena kecantikan dan kepolosannya.

Hubungan Shashi dan Lourent semakin hari semakin dekat, hingga Lourent mengungkapkan kalau ia menyukai Shashi di depan guru dan semua murid. Hal ini tentu membuat Shashi menjadi galau, terlebih saat suami dan kedua anaknya datang menyusul ke New York menjelang hari pernikahan.

Lalu...

...

...

...

...

Mau tau??

Mau tau...???

Tonton sendiri aja yaa... Terlalu seru untuk direview semua karena seperti kebanyakan film Bollywood lain, pesan dan konfliknya tidak hanya satu. Diantaranya, melalui film ini kita bisa melihat a glimpse of glamorous New York dari kaca mata orang Asia pendatang baru. Lalu kita bisa memetik nilai-nilai persahabatan, indahnya keberagaman, dan saling menghargai bahasa, budaya, warna kulit, hingga orientasi seksual seseorang.

Melihat kelas Bahasa Inggrisnya Shashi, jadi mengingatkanku akan kelas kursus Bahasa Inggrisku yang dulu.
Duh, jadi kangen...

Very highly recommended lah ini film!!!

So... Don't miss it yah :'D !!!

Today Is...

My parents 25th wedding anniversary... 
Congratulation...

Wish we always be under God's blessing,
showered by love, peaceful, warmth,
and be healthy always.
Ameen.

Minangkabau Wedding

I just attended my uncle's wedding 2 weeks ago along with parents, aunts, cousins, and all family members. Wedding party always becomes an awaiting event here in Indonesia, as it often turns out to be the place for rendezvous or reunion for all friends and relatives which could't meet regularly on daily basis. Moreover, it also becomes the perfect time to show your best-fabulous looking, especially for women ;')

Since both of bride and groom sides are Minangs descendants, the wedding reception was held with full touch of Minangs custom. Minang, or referred as Minangkabau, is one of the traditional custom in Indonesia which base on West Sumatera. In past, Minangkabau dominion was known spread until Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Now wonder why we find lot of similarities between Malaysia and Indonesia especially in West Sumatera region: the language, matriarchy bloodline, arts, foods, including rendang of course.

Back to the wedding, here are some documentations I have taken, starting from the akad nikah (marriage vow) up to the reception. In akad nikah, groom declares an oath to take the bride as his life time partner. Just as what we used to see in the movie scene, here it goes in Islamic way. This would be the most thrilling part for Indonesian groom, as he must declare it firmly with one clear-breath taking. In case he gets stammering or speaks with any mistake, he has 2 more chances to go to complete the vow.

Look the nervous face of my uncle (left). Sitting from right to left: My uncle's big bro as a witness from groom's side, penghulu, and bride's guardian. Standing behind: MC and camera person from wedding documenter. Bride was still kept in room until the akad nikah completed and the witnesses said "sah... Alhamdulillah..."

After the groom's mission accomplished, the bride was allowed to come to receive dowry from her groom and meet the audience. 

The wedding couple happily showed the Buku Nikah, or the wedding certificate

The wedding couple take a pose with parents and the honored family members

Taking a pose with mom and siblings

The groom's cousins made a line to strike a pose

The wedding reception was held some 3 hours after the completion of akad nikah, then everybody changed their dress to the reception dress. As the groom's cousin, my mom and some aunties wore red-dress uniform that marked them as the close family members. The bride also changed their dress with the customized traditional Minang wedding dress.

Aunties and mom take a pose with the groom's brothers

Group of mom and aunties don't want to miss the moment of togetherness

Peeps... My cousin and I don't want to skip a cheers also

The wedding stage, where the couple will sit and receive congratulation from guests

Flowery ornaments along the path towards the wedding stage

Here comes the wedding couple walked towards the wedding stage receiving congratulation from guests. Groom wore peci head cap, bride wore sunting on head. All dominated by gold color.

Walking together under the ela... ela... ela... umbrella 

Family members followed behind the couple, also received congratulation from guests

Welcomed by tari piring (plate dancing) before sitting on the wedding chair

Finally... Sitting relax on their throne 

Congratulation for my uncle. May become keluarga yang sakinah, mawaddah, wa rahmah. Ameen... 

What I Learn From My India Trip

My 15-days India Trip on last January is actually my very first overseas trip. Without having any relatives, business, exchange program, or conferences to attend abroad, I challenge myself to step my feet across my homeland before I graduate from collage. And... backpacking becomes the only solution to beat this challenge. Adding up with my interest for India and its culture, voila... I have successfully landed my ass in India :)

Experiencing 15-life-days in the 2nd most populated country on earth with all its complexity is totally incredible!! Just like the nation's tagline Incredible India. Yes, I cannot deny that slums, poverty, street beggar, and homeless people around become the common view on the road. Completed with the never stop car honking and beeping just make it a perfect stressor for your day. What about handsome guys that welcome you by dancing around the tree, singing Kuch Kuch Hota Hai? Just forget it! Just keep that in mind as one of the Bollywood movie scenes. The real India is far more beautiful than what we used to see in the movie scenes. India is beautiful on its way, that becomes my life-learning field. To make it well-structured, let me list the points about what I learn from my India trip:

• Become more alert and watchful of surroundings. This is first thing I learned as I visited India when the Delhi gang-raped case was on fire. This case was actually killing India reputation in tourism, especially more cases coming up after the first case became international headlines. As Melayu-face women, I and my travel mate often accepted deep-staring from strangers on the road, train station, market, and everywhere. Little bit shocked and uncomfortable at first day, but then we got used to it. The key are: keep being cool, don't start giving any welcome smile, don't wear too much accessories and eye-catching outfit, store valuable things such as money and passport inside your bag, and keep yourself being around the crowd. Plus, having karate skills would be better :p
• Become more brave, confident, yet humble in life. India is my first ground for practicing my English. As I am not speaking English on daily basis, that was somehow scary yet challenging. Not only got the English-speaking practice, I also got influenced by Indian accent and it's left-right head gesture. Haggling in market, conversation with locals and fellow travelers, all were performed in English. At the same time, the more interactions I have, the more I realize about how small my knowledge and experience in life. A lot of things to learn in this land makes me more understand about what is essential of life, seriously.
• Be a "more flexible" woman. Traveling with public transportation never gave me chance to enjoy some couple seconds inside the toilet. I wouldn't give the details about how was the toilet that I have met in the sleeper couch train, but it has successfully given me some skills in holding my breath while running my business. I now become so cool to occupy the toilet that lack of water. Here is my style in case I trapped in that circumstances: I always carry napkin or tissue inside my bag. I use some 1-2 sheets to clean my ass then use that water to wash my stool away. To make my underwear clean and still wearable until the next day, I also wear pantyliner every time I go traveling.
• Become more open-minded, not self-judging. Being a guest in India gives me chance to observe the people: their feature, habit, and also their cities. Why many people perceive that Indian is aggressive, annoying, and smells like onion are because they don't understand how is live in India. The socio-demographic constructs play the significant rule that form Indian known for it's an aggressive and competitive attributes. With 1,2 billion of population, life is hard in India (even harder than in Indonesia, I can straightforwardly say this). That's why life is more competitive in India. 
• Value the diverse of culture, religion, art, and history. I really amazed about how come I just knew about the Sikh, Jainism, Mother Theresa, Diwali festival of light, Holi festival of colors, and maaany more when browsing right before coming to India. Those all are part of diversity of religion in India which I hardly find in Indonesia. That's why I never knew these things previously. Dominated by Hindu along with it's festival and the holy Ganges river, India also becomes home for Sikh, Jain, Muslim, Buddhist, and Christian. All religion lives in harmony, celebrating every festivals and big days together. 
• Value the money. Money is as priceless as petrol for backpackers. I always considered about what to buy, what to eat, and count every Rupee that comes in and out from wallet. Never in my life I have debate for paying toilet charge. In Kolkata, I broke the record for the first time to get my 5 Rupees back into the pocket. 
• Value the food. Just as the money, food is the main power source to stay fit during backpacking. Not really different than Indonesian food, I can easily find rice and halal foods in India. Besides, there is also roti (bread) as staple food in North India. But then, it's not really easy to adjust my taste bud with strongly spices foods. They all hit my tongue too hard at the beginning, that I couldn't finish my food. Then my travel mate told me to clean my eating plate, because in travelling we don't have much choices to fulfill our tummy. Just eat to restore your energy, that's the point. Since that, I tried my best level to finish all food I have ordered. Slowly but sure, I started enjoying my every biryani, roti, dhaal, curry, pickels, and the gank. Every time I could't reach the last bite because of the huge portion, my mate always helped me at last. 

And... credit goes to these inspiring books... Thank you... Terima kasih buat inspirasinya :') :') :')

Two Travel Tales: Menguak Eksotisme India dan Nepal, The Naked Traveler 3, Rp3 jutaan Keliling India dalam 8 Hari