Desa Atas Awan

Bali itu memang selalu jadi pilihan yang tepat untuk berlibur. Kalo pulau Bali di ibaratin seorang cowok, sosok ini gak hanya ganteng dan charming, tapi selau bikin cewek kayak gw selalu penasaran.. Kayaknya ada aja hal dari pulau ini yang harus di explore.

Beberapa bulan lalu, gw dan teman2 harus decide itinary buat trip kita ke Bali. Since kita cuman punya waktu seminggu di pulau ini, kita harus decide baik2 kemana kita harus pergi.. biar maximal liburannya..

Akhirnya kita menjatuhkan keputusan untuk spent 3 hari terakir kita di Bali untuk menginap di ‘Desa Atas Awan’. Villa yang berada di ketinggian 1000m di atas permukaan laut ini bener2 pilihan yg memuaskan buat kita semua. Di kelilingi oleh indahnya perkebunan dan sawah yg terbentang seperti tanpa batas, dan udara yang segar tanpa polusi udara, bikin gw dan 16 temen gw jatuh cinta sama desa ini.

gw selalu berpikir kalo gw ini anak kota yg ga begitu suka dengan alam. tapi ternyata gw sendiri pun belum mengenal diri gw sepenuhnya.. setelah gw sampe di tempat yg ‘tranquil’ ini, jiwa gw serasa di segarkan kembali. ternyata gw suka memanjakan mata gw dengan hijaunya alam, biru.nya langit, dan segarnya udara yg gw hirup. ternyata, gw suka sama ketenangan yg alam tawarkan. well, ga tau emang gw suka alam, atau emang villa ini bagus bngt yahh.. hahaha.

Untuk sampai ke ‘Village above the clouds’ ini, kita harus menempuh perjalanan selama kurang lebih 2 jam dari seminyak (tergantung macet). Lokasi villa ini beneran ‘secluded’, supir kita sampe wanti2 untuk berangkat pagian karena mereka takut nyasar, dan karena jalan yg di tempuh cukup challenging, mereka pun ga berani bawa mobil kalau sudah lewat dari jam 6 sore.. soalnya udah gelap dan ga ada penerangan di atas bukit sana.

Kita sampai di ‘Desa atas awan’ sekitar jam 5 sore. sesampainya kita disana, kita langsung di sambut dngn porter yg membawakan barang2 kita, dan langsung di suguhkan jus sehat dan enak sebagai welcome drink.

**The Receptionist Area**

Indah banget ga sih pemandangannya? hahaha.. ini pas lagi gloomy gt abis gerimis.. dan di voto-in pake HP temen yg pake apps gt, jadi warna-nya contrast bngt.. Nahh, di bawah ini adalah pemandangan asli, suer tanpa edit di tempat yg sama di ke-esokan pagi,nyaa.. hehe.. Breathtaking banget kann??

Bungalows

Salah satu hal yg bikin betah lagi adalah akomodasinya.. gw suka bngt sama bungalow.nyaa.. super cozy untuk di tinggalin sama temen2.. Mereka hanya punya 3 bungalow (bisa di isi 5-6 orng) dan 2 suite room (bisa di isi 3 orng) yang ranging from Rp1,5 juta – 1,6 juta per kamar.nya.. Jadi kemarin gt, kita kyk berasa book 1 desa.. bungalownya cuman di tempatin sama temen2 sendiri aja.. hehe..

Ini bungalow lantai dasar, masih rapih pas kita baru check-in.. hehe.. Lupa voto lantai atasnyaa.. Dan ini pemandangan pas di pagi hari.. Duhh.. pengen bngt wake up to this amazing view everyday of my life.. hahaha.. seger bngt ga sih? kyk im ready to seize the day gt kesannya yaa.. haha..

1 Bungalow ada meja makan kecil, 1 fridge, 1 electric jug, 2 sofa, 1 meja kecil.. di siapin 6 towel kecil dan besar, 2 kamar mandi, 1 toilet, dan 1 tempat cuci tangan, jadi lumayand ga berebut untuk mandi pagi.. cuman sedikit berebut kalo ada yg kebelet buat poo poo.. hahaha..

Nah, buat ciwik2 yg harus bngt pake hair-dryer kyk gw, kalian harus bawa sendiri, karena mrk ga siapin buat kita.. ceritanya mrk eco-friendly gt.. kyk handuk aja, mrk hanya akan cuci-in 3 hari sekali aja..

Foods

Mereka serve complimentary breakfast untuk kita.. dan seru.nya, there are plenty menus to choose from.. dari omelette, scramble egg ala desa di atas awan, granola yoghurt, pancake, nasi goreng / mie goreng, dll.. setiap dari kita bisa request 1 menu.. Susu, teh, kopi dan juice juga udah di sediain untuk pagi hari.. dan i have to say that masakan mereka not bad.. hehe..

And they have nice dining room as well. Mereka juga cukup thoughtful untuk arrange meja,nya supaya kita ber17 bisa duduk bersama saat makan..

Penampakan dining room saat pagi.. dan di bawah adalah penampakan dining room saat malam.. Setiap makan malem disana dan berdoa bersama, rasanya kayak christmas atau thanksgiving bngt dehh.. dingin2 gt dan menikmati santapan bersama the loved ones.. hehehe.. 

Meal yg complimentary hanyalah Breakfast, jadi untuk Lunch dan Dinner, kita harus pesen lagi. since Desa ini beneran jauh dari mana2, mau ga mau kita pesen makanan dr mrk juga.. Price range dari Rp 40,000 – 80,000 per meal. Taste wise is not bad.. Tapi mungkin agak bland aja untuk lidah2 orng indo kyk kita.. Mereka claim that mereka ga pake MSG dan too much salt di makanan kita, karena mrk support hidup sehat gt dehh.. jadi ada one of the night, gw ga berasa pengen makan makanan mereka, jadi gw seduh pop-mie yg udah gw siapin aja deh for my dinner. hehe..

What to do 

Amazingly, di sekitar desa ini ada banyak kegiatan.. jadi buat temen2 yg ga mau nyantai duduk di villa, jangan takut kalian bakal bosen..

Angsari Hot Spring

Dingin2 begini, enaknya berendam di permandian air panas.. Tapi untuk kesini, kita harus jalan kaki sekitar 1-1.5 jam dari bungalow kita.. Macam anak petualang gitu.. kita harus lewatin sawah, hutan, dan jalan2 yg mendaki untuk ke hot-spring..

Akhirnya sampe deh di Hot-Spring.nya.. ga sampe fantastic gimana sih.. karena kita pikir bakal besar.. ternyata nggak.. public hot-spring.nya cukup kecil.. huahua.. yg ini panasnya moderate aja.. kalo mau yg lebih panas lagi, mrk ada siapin cubicle2 kecil untuk kita berendam gt.. tapi tempatnya ga gt picturesque buat di voto.. hahaha.

Well. jujur kolamnya agak kotor sih menurut gw, banyak lumutnya gt, jadi agak licin juga tangga untuk kebawahnyaa.. tapi yahh, not bad sih buat berendam di suasana yg sejuk2 gituu.. again, yg bikin seru adalah companionnya! hahaha.

**Obsesi model ala-ala Vogue. muahahhaa*

Hot-spring ini adalah complimentary dari ‘Desa atas awan’, kalau kalian ga nginep disana, mrk akan pungut bayaran sebesar Rp 50,000 per orngnya.. Nah, buat yg males buat balik ke hotel dngn jalan kaki lagi, mrk bisa nawarin ojek atau mobil pick up sayur.. kalo ojek harganya sekitar Rp50,000 dan kalau mobil pick up sayur, mrk hitung Rp 30,000 per orng..

Freedom School

Buat kalian yg suka main sama anak2, disinilah tempat yg tepat! Mr. Josep, sang spanish owner ‘Village above the clouds’ ini adalah contributor besar untuk sekolah ini, jadi anak2 yg kurang mampu di desa ini bisa sekolah disana tanpa di pungut biaya apapun. Mereka belajar bnyk hal, dari bahasa inggris yg di ajar oleh Mr. Josep dan istri, kelas komputer, kelas memahat, kelas tari bali, dll. I was very surprised to know that the owner have a very fond heart for the surroundings. Well, soalnya kan bnyk yahh businessman yg cuman peduli omset aja.. nah ini tuh beda, hitung2 yahh biaya kita tinggal disana itu, untuk biaya-in anak2 yg sekolah disana..

gw belajar cara memahat kayu disana.. dan gilaa.. susah puol! 1 jam gw belajar mahat, dan pahatan gw jauh dari sempurna.. harusnya bongkahan kayu kecil ini di bikin bunga.. tapi untuk buat 1 lingkaran dasar.nya aja tuh susah bngt.. haha..

Pas mau pulang karena gw menyerah untuk memahat lagi.. ehh, gw sama temen gw malah di kasih pahatan yg udah jadi dari anak2 disana.. mrk bilang, mrk kerjain pahatan ini 1,5 hari.. dan mrk mau kasih kita ini sebagai kenang2an.. so sweet bngt yaaa.. Gw salut dan terharu sama mrk karena mrk bisa kasih hasil jerih payah mrk begitu aja sama orng yg hanya di kenal selama 1 jam aja.. Alhasil, pas kita lewat warung.. kita beliin mereka snack2 gt deh, sebagai tanda appresiasi kita ke mereka.. hoho..

**Makasih Dina dan Kadek.. =)) **

Sebenernya masih bnyk aktifitas lainnya, seperti outbound, berkunjung ke danau Bratan dan Tamblingan, tapi karena waktu yang sempit, kita cuman sempet melakukan 2 kegiatan itu dehh.. dan malem.nya, yah kita Quality time aja.. enjoying the dinner and the talk, and playing stupid games that made my stomach hurt real bad. haha..

Makasih temen2 kuu yang udah buat the stay in this pretty village more beautiful.. Thank you for the amazing memories that we created..

Untuk temen2 yg mau ke Bali dan mau cari suasana yg beda, boleh banget untuk consider ‘Desa Atas Awan’ ini.. mau pacaran / udah nikah / atau cuman mau spend quality time aja sama temen2.. gw yakin tempat ini akan jadi tempat yg memorable untuk kalian.. =)

Desa di Atas Awan (Village above the Clouds)

Munduk Andong Kelod,

Desa Bangli, Baturiti

Tabanan Bali, Indonesia

info@villageabovetheclouds.com

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The City of Zen – Kyoto : Day 6

i always thought that i wouldn’t like Kyoto as much as Tokyo. I’m quite a city girl that love the hustle and bustle. i like laid back city as well. but if you asked me to choose, i will definitely prefer to go to more crowded ones. not very sure why i feel that way tho. haha.

when i step my feet to the city of Kyoto.. its a whole different feeling. it feels good and much better than Tokyo and Osaka. it’s like im falling in love with Kyoto at the first sight. *lebay*. we arrived in Kyoto about lunch time, and just nice that the weather is perfectly nice.. a bit windy and cloudy but it diidnt rain.. well it did rain a while after we reached our hotel.. but after that the weather is so good to walk in.

since it was already passed lunch time. we quickly put our luggage in the hotel and asked the where to eat good okonomiyaki restaurants nearby the hotel. and they recommended this restaurant..

Chibo *inside the Avanti Mall, nearby Kyoto station*

Kyoto Minami-ku, Kyoto Higashikujonishisan’no-cho, address 31 Avanti B1

*Tonpei Grilled – Pork Omelette, this one is suppa deliciousoo*

*Beef Tongue – Teppanyaki style*

 

*Buttery Scallop with Asparagus, another lovely dish*

*The Main dish of the day, Mixed Grilled Okonomiyaki – Pork, Squid and Shrimp*

*Yakisoba – regret to order this =(.. i dont really like it. huuu*

After we feed the hungry bear inside of us. we quickly find our way to Kurama mountain to enjoy the hot-spring. Actually i didnt want to go for this Onsen (hot-spring), since i dont want to get naked with everyone! and could not imagine to bath with many random naked women. haha.. *ya aneh aja kan perasaannya.. bugil2an sama orng yg ga di kenal.. duhh.. big no no bngt dehh di pikiran gw.. tapi temen gw si Thirza bilang kalo itu tuh the best moment ever.. kayak bersatu dengan alam gt* haha..

well. after so much consideration and contemplation and all *bujuk rayu* from my travelmates, finally i give in and brave myself to get naked with the nature. hahaha.

i cant really remember on how we go to this place. haha.. we just rely on googlemaps on how to go from Kyoto station to Kurama station.

This Kurama mountain located at the northern part of Kyoto. if im not wrong, you must take the Demachi-Yanagi line to get here and change to the other train for Kurama st.. The travelling time is about 45-60 minutes. and they will provide you a shuttle bus just infront of the Kurama station.. how convenient ya! but be careful, they shuttle bus are not available all day long, so you must check because you dont want to stranded there.. unless you planned to stay at the Ryokan *traditional japanese hotel – room without bed*.

when we reached there, the shuttle bus just left the station. but we tried to wave to show that we want to take the shuttle as well. luckily the shuttle stops and we quickly ran to enter the minivan. how lucky. haha.. when we reached there, they show us 2 options. 1 is open-air Onsen and another one is the indoor Onsen. since we wanted to get naked with the nature, of course we chose the outdoor Onsen. haha.

Kurama Mountain / Onsen

*station.nya looks super jadul yaa.. so cutee.. hehe*

*Its the information centre, together withe indoor Onsen and the receptionist for the Ryokan hotels as well*

*ya emang negara vending machine yaa.. sampe tiket masuk Onsen aja harus beli di vending machine. haha* We need to purchase our tickets from the vending machine which just located infront of the outdoor Onsen. you can buy a towel as well if you forgot to bring one..

And here where we must go separate ways.. and Below are the place to put our sandals, the instructions to enjoy the Japanese bath and the changing room! and we can only took this picture, since no photography allowed over here.. which is makes sense.. you dont want to get captured when you are naked. haha

Basically we must bath first before we can go in to the hot-spring, because they want to make sure that we dont contaminate the water.. so, before me and Yana take off our shirt, we made an agreement on who goes first to enter the Onsen, since we dont want to see each other’s body, too awkward for us! haha. *pokok,nya gw bilang. Yana.. elo duluan yahh. kalo udah masuk kolamm. tereak ajaa.. nanti gw baru masuk abis itu.. kita ujung2an aja biar ga ngerasa aneh. hahaha.. yess.. gw segitu.nyaa.. kyknya klo elo telanjang di dpn cewek2 jepang ato tourist lainnya lebih mendingan drpd kliatan naked di dpn temen sendiri. ga enakk aja gt rasanyaa. hahaha*

for those of you who wants to see how the Outdoor Onsen looks like.. please enjoy the photo below.

*source : metropolis.co.jp*

So pretty, isnt it?? maybe it’s how Adam and Eve bathing when they were in Eden. haha..*apasii*

when i first enter the Onsen area, it was still very uncomfortable to see many naked woman that can just go in/out from the Onsen like a FHM model. haha. oh btw, you cannot stare over here. they if you happen to look, just look away immediately.. haha. but not so long after that.. the beautiful sceneries really helps to make me at ease.. and the hot-spring. omg, it was very very relaxing, the aroma, the warmness of the hot-spring in the middle of cold-windy weather, it was just perfect..

since the water contains sulphur, it can really relaxes our tired muscles, and repair your skin..it was our 6th days of the trip, our legs was terribly tired, and it was like a magic water.. just right after i went out from the Onsen, it feels like you have a brand new leg. hahaha. you cant feel the tiredness anymore.. and owh.. i pour some water on my face.. was just trying to see if it can cure my pimple. haha.. and you know whatt? when i see myself on the mirror, you just need to ‘pop’ the pimples. because it’s already dried up. hahaha. *sorry for being disgusting*

overall experience, it was awesome beyond words. as i mentioned on my Instagram before.. it was awesomely awkward! hahaha.

after that most memorable experience of the trip, we went to try Kichi Kichi. the Omurice was very happening in youtube.. so, since we are in Kyoto already.. of course we must give it a try. hehe..

it was very hard to find the restaurant, since it’s just a small (9-10 seaters bar) restaurant, and the location was very unpredictable.. you must go in to small alleys and in that small alleys, they have another small alleys. ~.~’. But thank god that we managed to find it. *ga nyasar2 amat lahh stelah di pikir2. hahaha*

Kichi-Kichi Kyoto 

185-4 Zaimokucho | Sanjo Pontocho-dori Kudaru, Nakagyo-ku,Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan +81 75-211-1484

 

 

 

i recorded one video for you to take a look. hehe..

to see the open-flap egg like that was like magic.. so interesting to see.. he made 4 of it one by one, and it never fails to entertain us.. haha. i wonder how to make that kind off eggs. *bisa pas bngt gt luar.nya mateng, trus dalemnya kyk setengah mateng gt.. dan telur.nya bisa meleleh gt pas di belahh.. aigooo..*

the Omurice itself is supernice.. the only thing that overpower it is the sauce.. if he never put that much, maybe i can enjoy it more. but well, i think it depends on the individual as well. 

Oka can understand Japanese, and they chit chat for a while. he said, he stayed in Jakarta before when he was younger, and that time he was still thinking on what to make.. and he thought of making this Omurice + sauce when he was in Jakarta! amazing story to listen. very heartwarming to know that Jakarta was the place where he got Inspired. way to go Mr. Chef ! *i did asked for his namecard, but i cant rmber where do i put it. i’ll let you know his name when i found it. hehe*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another good nite from a happy tummy.. ❤