Jawa Timur Trip - Highlights of Batu

We started our second day with a soto breakfast. Another soto? Yes. And this time it was Soto Ayam Bang Joe (Bang Joe's Chicken Soto). It was not a disappointment: the soup was thick and the taste was just nice, the chicken was tender and skinless, there were also vermicelli, bean sprout, and eggs. We had a happy breakfast.

The small eating hut is located by the side of the road

Soto with kerupuk aci (flour cracker)

We then continued to the first destination, The Bagong Adventure Museum Tubuh (The Body Museum). This is a very interesting place whereby the museum showcases the body parts of human and the visitors are made to enter from the mouth of Bagong. In the world of wayang (Indonesian traditional puppet show), Bagong is one of the character with round body shape, big eyes and thick lips and has funny behaviour.

This museum is owned by the same company who owns Museum Angkut and other main attractions in Batu. Museum Tubuh is located by the side of Jawa Timur Park I. However, we only decided to visit Museum Tubuh since we did not have intention to play with theme park attractions in Jawa Timur Park I.

Museum Tubuh consists of 6-storey building with different zones for the visitors to walk through. This museum is also the first and the largest in Southeast Asia thus far. Another interesting thing in this museum is the section that showcases cadavers, the  preserved corpses. Visitors are not allowed to take pictures and videos, kids are not allowed to enter. The attendant in this section explained to us clearly about the process and the origin of the cadavers.

Entering from the mouth of Bagong

Besides Museum Tubuh, there is Jawa Timur Park I

Non-smoker's vs Smoker's Lung

Kidneys

Zone of Reproduction System with Displays of Pregnancy Stages and Screening of Sperm vs Ovum

This is a place for kids to learn for sure, but I think there are too much informations being pasted on the wall in each zone so in the end I am not sure which of the information that I really absorb. Everything is so-called forced to enter this tiny brain. I read until I reached a point when I could not read anymore I just stopped. I enjoyed to see the cadavers the most as it was something new and exceptional.

We continued to our next destination, Jawa Timur Park II. Jawa Timur Park II is the recent addition of the attractions in Batu that focuses on education of fauna. It started operation back in 2010 and the complex consist of Museum Satwa (Fauna Museum), Batu Secret Zoo, a small theme park, Pohon Inn Hotel, and eateries.

We purchased our tickets online for Museum Tubuh and Jawa Timur Park II for IDR 125,000 (~SGD 13). However, we were still held back by the terrible system when we claimed our pass. The purchase confirmation did not show any QR code or bar code or any code of that kind. When we reached the customer service officer, she still needed to flip and flip and flip a lot of things to search our booking and she still wrote us a receipt BY HAND. So what's the point of online system?

We got our pass around 11 a.m. and we proceeded to Museum Satwa. I could see from the facade that its inspiration came from 'Night in the Museum'. We walked in and enjoy many displays of animals from different parts of the world.

Outer Look of Museum Satwa

Snacking before entering

Dinosaurs in the atrium

Insectarium

What are we doing LOL

Bison

A little bit of 3D display in the museum

Aquarium 

Ice Exhibits

There was a small incident that we witnessed inside. It was in front of a display of penguin. My friend is a huge fan of penguin and she wanted to take picture with it. She stood there to pose already and she found water dropped from the ceiling. She quickly moved away and lucky enough for her, a vast amount of water was pouring from the ceiling shortly afterwards. The cleaners quickly cleared the area.

We took around 1 hour to enjoy the exhibits and we walked out when it was lunch time. There were two places whereby visitors can have their lunch, an open aired food court and an indoor food court. We intended to eat indoor but the whole place is reserved for a tour group, so we moved to the outdoor eateries.

There are a few choices here: bakso (meatball soup), bakmie (noodle), tahu telor (rice with fried tofu-egg in peanut sauce), gorengan (fritters), nasi pecel (rice with steamed vegetables in peanut sauce), fast food chain, ice cream, beverages, etc. The taste and the price were not bad for foods in theme parks.

Food Colony, the open aired food court

Tahu telor

Tahu Isi Goreng (tofu fritters with vegetables filling)

After lunch, we continued with Batu Secret Zoo. This zoo is huge as in HUUUUUUGE! Be prepared to walk A LOT up and down before you can be out. It's a one-way thing and I have warned you!

The collections in the zoo were a lot but the zoning was not so clear and straightforward. I could not really see why monkeys keep appearing in different places even though the neighbouring cage showing for legged mammals. I am not an animal person, so whatever I saw here I forgot shortly after.

Cheers!

Welcomed by the largest rat in the world. I am shivering now.

The first zone

Hello! 

Gloria???

Peacock

Alpaca

Reptile Zone

Pinky flamingo!

Homo sapiens

Savannah, animals are out in the open, humans are caged

Moving out of Batu Secret Zoo

Moving into Fantasy Land, the theme park

One of the attractions

The place emerged to zoo-like again after a while. We saw giraffes, deers, tigers and lions. I really pity the tigers and lions. They look really sad and their body is flabby. I think it's not the way they want to live, inside a cage and become some kind of show for humans.

River

Giraffe has the longest tounge!

Deers

Sumatra White Tiger. Look at his flabby skin :(

The King of the Jungle is missing his jungle I guess

The lion exhibit was the nearest to the exit. We finished our touring inside this monstrous size zoo and our legs turned quite jelly already. We phoned our driver and get him to pick us up.

Love is in the air,
Little Feet

Next - Batu Night Spectacular

Jawa Timur Trip - Late Night Foodies in Batu

After all the fun at Museum Angkut, it was a matter of tummy again. We felt so hungry we might even eat a giraffe. We asked the driver to drop us at Alun-Alun Batu (Batu Town Hall) so that we could hunt for foods all night long.

I remembered I had come to this exact place 14 years before and it was so different. It was so quite and dark back then with only one or two restaurants in operation. The alun-alun and the buildings have not changed but it had been decorated with lights and people, it's so merry!

It says 'Batu Tourism Town'

The street foods!

And many more

Happy faces surrounded by foods

We walked around the small circle and bought ice cream, fritters, and stuffs. We then walked across the road to find restaurant to eat. The first restaurant across the road that we approached, called Watu Lontar Restaurant, declined us without clear reason. It looked empty but the waitress told us they had full reservation and could not have us. So we walked further to a place called 'Cafe Batu'.

Cafe Batu

We were brought to the upper floor where we could enjoy the scenery of Alun Alun from bird eye view. It's quite cosy to sit and relax there even though we waited for our food for very long and some of our order was not delivered. We were only informed last minute that the food was not available anymore and when we ordered the substitute, it never came too. I guess the restaurant should mend the management and the system for better service. The foods were actually quite tasty although some a bit too salty.

Quite impressive, huh?

Still waiting for the food

We finished our dinner around 10 p.m. and we walked towards the most recommended late night snack in Batu. It is sticky rice with many variants of topping in a small kiosk called Pos Ketan Legenda. The queue was quite legendary.

The late night queue

After we reached the front, we were to order what we wanted as fast as possible by mentioning the code in the menu. There are sticky rice with peanut, with soya powder, with chocolate rice, with chocolate rice and cheese, with durian, with chicken floss, etc. etc. We ordered 2 durian, 1 peanut, and 1 chocolate rice and cheese. We then waited for a while inside the kiosk. I don't recommend to sit inside for people who are claustrophobic.

Finally!

We were glad we were wise enough not to over-order. None of us thought that the taste of the sticky rice more than so-so. Our moms could do better.
Either:
1. This place was really over-rated and many people were curious like us
2. Our taste buds were disoriented due to tiredness
3. The taste does not suit our liking
4. Food in our hometown is way better

It was almost 11 p.m. when we decided it's time to find our hotel and give ourselves some beauty sleep. Another day tomorrow!

Love is in the air,
Little Feet

Next Post - Highlights of Batu

Jawa Timur Trip - First Day Spent on the Road

We chose a long weekend in Indonesia to have our trip. It was such a no brainer at first: no need to take leave, everybody could join. However, after we bought our air ticket, we got some difficulties in booking the accommodation and transportation.

And the real difficulty was on the D-day. It was Thursday, the first day of the long weekend and we scheduled to travel straight to Batu from Juanda International Airport in Surabaya. It should have taken only 2 hours but apparently, it took us more than 5 hours to reach our first destination.

Wefie before getting trapped in the long weekend traffic

It was around 3pm and we could no more bear with the hunger, we asked the driver to recommend a lunch place and he brought us to Depot Soto Ayam Lombok. Soto is a traditional Indonesian spiced soup and usually has meat/chicken with cabbage/bean sprout in it. Maybe we were there quite late, we got mostly chicken skin in the soup. It was quite yucky even though the taste of the soup was quite okay.

The humble Soto hut

The men behind the scene

Finally we beat the hunger

We reached Museum Angkut (Transportation Museum) at 5 p.m. and we quickly collected our tickets that we had purchased online beforehand for IDR 80,000 (~SGD 8.5). The museum would be open until 8 p.m. only.

Museum Angkut has been in operation since 2014 and is the first transportation museum in Southeast Asia. It consists of ten zones, both indoor and outdoor,  showing the mode of transportation from time to time.

Wefie before we got started

By paying extra, one can try airplane simulation up there 

Let's get started

The first zone that we visited was a huge hangar with antique cars and carts. We did not read the notice board one by one as there would not be enough time to cover everything if we did so. We glanced quickly and of course took photos with the cars that we liked. I lost concentration a while after I entered because there were too much to look at!

One of the car from 1926

And this is the cart from Surakarta

We then moved upstairs to another zone that showcased the traditional mass transportation like rickshaw, bajaj, tuk tuk, bicycle, etc. I think this would be my favourite zone if the place is not so congested.

Bajaj? No?

Rickshaw uncle is a bit scary yeah 

The first steam bicycle

We then moved outdoor to Pecinan (Chinatown). In this street, we found the weather greeted us so well after the lack of oxygen inside. We enjoyed the replica of the old town with bicycle, trishaw, and street hawker cart.

To cycle through the town!

Crowded Chinatown, as it is supposed to be

A little role play: Valen the Satay Hawker

We then took a break by eating siomay (traditional steamed fish cake or Indonesian style siew mai with peanut sauce) and continued the journey after to another indoor exhibits of antique Japanese cars and motorbikes. This zone is more spacious and airy.

Cars!

We need mechanic! Preferably one with six packs and cute smile

My favourite photo! Thanks for the nice lady who helped :)

Moving outdoor again to a street called gangster town. In this zone, we found replica of an American town with cinema, theatre, hotel, jail, bar, etc.

First look of Gangster Town

Someone was arrested

Data verification in progress

Finally behind the bar

The next zone was European Zone with replica of Eiffel Tower, Venice, England Telephone Box, and a lot more. I love the vespas, yay!

Touring around Venice in Vespa 

Tour Eiffel

This time Valen the Fruit Seller

It was getting late and we move faster to the next zone of  Buckingham Palace replica (is it Buckingham?). We tooked photo at both outside and inside the palace.

Family portraiture

Interior

London Bus

The last zone was the Hollywood and Movie Star Studio. Quite a small zone I should say and I am not so impressed with the overall exhibits as compared to the rest of the place. But there is this giant Hulk made from cars and bikes' parts. It's awesome!

This is it!

Lounging around 

Batman's car, woohoo!

We were out at 8 p.m. and we continued with our plan. No time for being tired when you are on holiday!

Love is in the air,
Little Feet

Next - Late Night Foodies in Batu

Jawa Timur Trip - Prologue

Indonesia has always been a country magnificent for travelling. The mountains, the hills, the beaches, the rivers, the cities, the villages, the people. Everything.

In recent years, Jawa Timur (East Java) has become one of the most popular tourist destinations with the followings as the highlights:
1. Gunung Bromo (Mount Bromo)
2. Kawah Ijen (Ijen Crater)

3. Surabaya
4. Malang & Batu

I have had my chance to visit Mount Bromo and watched the sun emerging from the horizon. However, I have yet to experience the other three,

So, this time round, we decided to have a city trip to Surabaya, Malang and Batu.

Surabaya, Malang and Batu

Surabaya is the capital of the province of Jawa Timur (East Java). It is located at the northern part of the province facing Madura Strait. Surabaya is the second largest city in Indonesia with population of approximately 3 million inhabitants.

Surabaya is known as the city of heroes due to the Battle of Surabaya on 10 November 1945. The battle was the biggest battle against the foreigners after the proclamation of the independence of Indonesia on 17 August 1945. It cost the lives of more than 6,000 Indonesian for fighting continuously for weeks until Surabaya was defeated by the British. Until now, 10 November is known as the day of heroes afterwards.

Malang is located approximately 100km south of Surabaya and can be reached with 2-hour drive from Surabaya. Malang was the capital of Singosari Empire in the past before it was transferred to the Dutch colony. Malang is well known for the mild climate and the production of green apples.

Batu is about 20km west of Malang and has similar climate and topography. Batu was previously a part of Malang before it became a town by itself in 2001. The Dutch called this town the little Switzerland in Java Island. Since long long time ago, Batu was a recreation and relaxation place for the royal and now Batu is one of the most visited tourist destination in Indonesia.

So we are following the hype. 9 girls from different cities finally gather for a fun trip in East Java.

Love is in the air,
Little Feet

Next - First Day Spent on the Road