SHORT ESCAPE

WEEKEND IS COMING! and you have no idea where to go, mall or movie theater just too mainstream, I'll suggest you short trip that gonna make you feel like u having long holiday.

Past few weeks ago, my friend and I went to TJ. LESUNG. Maybe it sounds strainge in your ear but it is a lil piece of heaven in Banten Province. Located "almost" the westest part of java island, Tj. Lesung is very famous with their secret beach. Maybe we more familiar with Marbella hotel at carita beach anyer, Tj.Lesung is about 1 hour far from there to the west.

How to get there?

Take a car and turn on your gps! LOL well you have to pass Jakarta-Merak toll way and take Cilegon gate exit. After that, just follow the route to carita, anyar and then go though after carita to Labuan and taa-daa you reach it! It will take about 3 hours from jakarta - tj. Lesung ( > 600KM)

Where to stay?

KALICAA RESORT! yess this is where i was stayed with my friends. Perfect resort with private beach and many activities to do. You can check rate and location here. I used to stay in Fiji 2 Villa ( Rate about IDR 4,000,000 / USD 376 / night ). Fiji 2 means it has 2 bed rooms. It kinda very spacy. It has a living room where you can enjoy watching movie with ur family, a small pool where you can have morning dip , outdoor kitchen with stove and refrigerator. You very recommanded to do BBQ here! But prepare all your ingridients from jakarta because around resort there's no market or even bank or mini market so hard to be found too bad!  HAHAHA but its totally OK and worth it.

What To Do?

1. BEACH-ING yesss! Just take a lil walk from your villa, you will find beautiful private beach with some benches around. Enjoying noon wind breeze and swashing waves. But becarefull, there's much coral here so dont swimming at the beach

2.WATERSPORT! here from your villa, you can use car (maybe? because it quite far about 5 minutes by car) to the beach club! Or you exercise lover, you can take a walk around 15 minutes from your villa- beach coast- and beach club. There are alotof water activities to do. Parasailing, flying donuts, jetski, diving,canoing, snorkling or even by boat go to Ujung Kulon National Park! Price starting IDR 60000/ USD 5 ~ IDR 360,000/ USD 30 per person depens on activity.Actually, I loved to take boat to national park, but because its too crowded, I just did snorkling around beach club for IDR 80,000 .

3. CYCLING around is one of my favorite! You can rent bicycle here and enjoy spots if you too lazy to take a walk HAHA

4. SWIMMING, kalicaa also has quite big swimming pool with basketball basket haha dont forget to bring your swimming suit!

5. SUNSET HUNTER, you can enjoy it in some huts on the edge of beach with someone you love

6. SUNBATHING? with bikinis? I dont think so haha but maybe you can do this in your villa

7. BBQ! yesssss seafood!!!!

8. I have no idea...... 
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" I prefer beach then mount, because feel so holiday! Blue sky, white sand, and warm water "

- anonymous 

KOREA TRIP PART2 : NAMI ISLAND, MT SORAK, EAST COAST & SKI RESORT

Left Jeju Island by morning flight and Went back to Incheon yipyip! Continued my trip by bus to Nami Island for about 3 hours. Crowds everywhere! Welcome to Naminara republic. The first sign that I saw there. My local guide gave me the ticket, cute! it's looked like a visa. Passing by the entrance gate, giving your visa (ticket), feels like you entering different country. After that we used like a hmm ship? to cross like a big lake to reach Nami Island. So beautiful,greeny, and romantic, you can see many korean couple using couple-tee from head to toe -_- so sad for being a single *super envy* . As a fan of korean drama, I was so happy! I could see every Winter Sonata scene details here, first kiss scene when Bae yong Joon and Choi Ji Woo are making 2 little snow man and then kissing wuuuu and riding a bike around the island ( you can see bikes that used for shooting ) huhu So sweet :(

  1st destination :

NAMI ISLAND

CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM ₩3,500

behind Chicken BBQ restaurant, there's a toilet and a way out to the cafe beside the restaurant. The best way to enjoy super hot weather is eating ice cream :9 in Korea, ice cream is unique. It's not a scoop but it already measure in a cup then the cup is being put in a machine and voila see the texture above HAHA

 1st restaurant : Som Hyan Gi

CHICKEN BBQ 

if you go to nami island you have to have lunch here! the yummiest chicken BBQ in entire world :p Maybe before you entered nami island parking lot, you can see many restaurant that also served chicken BBQ but inside nami is the best! Because this restaurant always full by group, you have to reserve it first :) Yummy grill chicken ribs with secret seasoning. The chicken is so tender. Eat it with lettuce or sesame leaves, kimchi, grill garlic, and ddoenjang :9 heavenly! The price is about

₩20,000 / portion.

2nd destination : 

MT. SORAK

3rd highest mountain in Korea, after Mt Halla in Jeju Island and Taebaek. Beautiful national park where you can take a cable car to the top and enjoy the fresh air. After eating a lot in Jeju and Nami, you have to take exercise :p Take a walk to the highest point, Gwanggeunseum Fortress. For buddism, you also can pray at Shinheungsa temple or at Giant bronze buddha statue.

2nd restaurant : Bok Gol

SEAFOOD TOFU SOUP

Night at Mt Sorak area is like in puncak area. Wind blowing uuuuu even in Summer. Cold night + something hot = perfect! And here in Sokcho ( Mt Sorak area ) is famous with their home made tofu so there are many restaurants served it in many variaty menu. Seafood tofu soup is one of the most favorite menu. As you can see the picture below :9 Yummy soft home made tofu with crab, prawn, and slices of fish. The soup tasted hot and sour because of kimchi and gochujang. :9 SLRUPP my tummy is very happy because there are many side dishes, grill macarel, kimchi, red octopus ( octopus with gochujang), japchae ( saute rice noodle with vegetable), sweet fried tofu, fermented turnip, and salted fish.

3rd destination :

GYEONGPO BEACH

From Sokcho area, our next destination is Gangneung, Korea's east coast area. By lovely special travelling train that opened in 2013, East Coast Sea Themed Train, it was reached for about 45 minutes (Price is about ₩ 15,000 / pax ). Wiiih you know? it was almost 40'celcius outside so humid and no blowing wind. My main destination is Gyeongpo beach in Gangneung, the biggest beach in east coast area. Beautiful flat water beach with many free tends around :p And one more beside playing in the water and sun bathing in your beach-to-do-list, Rail Biking! it's like riding a bike with a rail around the beach coast, so tiring but exciting! A big bike is for 4 person ( price about ₩18,000/pax )and A small one is for 2 person ( price about ₩ 12,000 ) ** price depends on your track destination & how many person in a group. After a half hour riding, all of the bikes stopped for toilet rest and buying some snacks or drinks, I bought a corn dog and a bottle of mineral water :9 and then continued riding.

                             LOTTE WATERMELON ICE CREAM ₩2000

Uber cute refreshment in the super sunny day. Taste so watermelon :P weird

CORN DOG ₩3,000

fulfill my hungry tummy after riding the rail bike. Huge beef sausage wrapped in fried bread and topping with tomato sauce :9

3rd restaurant : Hwang Tem Yung Ga

KIMCHI JJIGAE

Kimchi, this korean traditional side dish is a mush in every dining table in Korea. Kimchi can be served in many ways. Kimchi itself, Kimchi pizza, Kimchi fried rice and my lunch menu, Kimchi Jjigae. Jjigae in Korean means soup. So hot and sour wihhhh yummy! Mine is pork kimchi jjigae :9 there are some pork belly slices, salty vegetable, and tofu :9

4th destination :

SKI RESORT

from Gangneung to Ski resort it takes about 1,5 hours by bus. Actually the name of the area is PyeongChang. It is famous as ski resort area in Korea. In PyeongChang there are some hotel that provides ski area, but the biggest one is Gangwonland. Not only Ski area, Gangwonland also has restaurants, private condo, hotels, and observatorium tower on the top of ski jump tower. But because I came here on Summer, so I just can enjoy the cable car ride to the top of the hill. You can enjoy beautiful scenery from the highness, sky lifts, or maybe not high enough you can dine at restaurant on the 4th floor of observatorium tower. Tired of outdoor activities, you can enjoy Dancing fountain show at the backyard of the hotel, shop at Hotel private store, or try a luck at Gangwonland Casino ;)

4th restaurant: Suk Tan Hwe Gan

SAMGYEOPSAL

My favorite food! BBQ yam yam yam this is the most famous bbq menu in Korea, SamGyeopSal. Sam = 3, Gyeop = Layer, Sal = Meat or shortly we usually called Samchan :p How to cook it, grill the pork to medium rare than cut it with a scissors and grill it till well crispy done :9 served it on a lettuce or sesame leaves with a pinch of rice, grill garlic, ddoenjang, then fold it and nom nom nom :9