The Point Of View

Before we get into the story, allow me to open with this unrelated topic: I had been writing for so long that, throughout the years, I wondered if I had repeated something I did before. This one was such a case. Turned out that I did a piece called the Perspective in 2018! But after checking it, I can assure you the one you'll be reading isn't the same thing.

Now, the story here started like many others. It was just another unassuming morning that began with good-natured banter in our group chat. It was pretty normal, until it wasn't and the interaction hit me with an idea. This time it had to do with Taty's comment about not recognizing the Tuas Link MRT Station that she had been before.

And just like that, it sparked an idea. A few years ago, I wrote about why people are different. This one here, it felt like the sequel. A story to be told. That's when the brain started drafting all this. I couldn't help it, really!

Anyway, in Taty's case, she was at the said MRT station once, but she couldn't remember it anymore. She saw it, but subconsciously decided that it wasn't important and therefore it was forgotten. In my case, I immediately thought of the platform at the train station in China as I alighted at Tuas Link. The resemblance was uncanny. It was memorable, hence I remembered it. 

My friend Taty and I couldn't be more different. Eday and I, however, were artistic in our own rights. To put it simply, we were somewhat similar in the way we were wired. Due to this, we could see the same thing and appreciate it at the same time and pace. Case in point, the time when Hendra chose vanilla ice cream in Sentosa. We couldn't help laughing in unison while Surianto failed to notice the joke. 

While the statistics might be lacking here, it was interesting to note that the habits you had and the things you did regularly, they seemed to shape how you saw something and prioritized it differently. In my case, I had long decided that I wanted to live my life to the fullest. That probably explained why my brain stored memories in the most accessible part of it...

From left: Eday, Surianto, Hendra and Taty.

Tentang Sudut Pandang

Sebelum kita masuk ke cerita kali ini, saya ingin membuka tulisan ini dengan topik yang tidak berhubungan: saya sudah menulis blog ini delapan tahun lamanya, sampai-sampai kadang saya membayangkan apakah saya sudah mengulang apa yang saya tulis sebelumnya. Tulisan kali ini terasa seperti itu. Setelah saya cek, ternyata ada tulisan dengan judul serupa di tahun 2018! Tapi isinya berbeda, jadi saya bisa meyakinkan anda bahwa yang berikut ini bukanlah sesuatu yang pernah anda baca. 

Cerita kali ini bermula sama seperti kebanyakan cerita lainnya. Pagi yang normal, yang dibuka dengan obrolan ringan di grup SMA, sampai interaksi yang terjadi tiba-tiba membuahkan ide. Kali ini inspirasi dicetuskan oleh komentar Taty tentang Stasiun MRT yang pernah ia kunjungi, namun tak lagi dikenalinya. 

Dan hanya sesederhana itu, ide pun terpantik. Beberapa tahun silam, saya menulis tentang kenapa setiap orang itu berbeda. Yang satu ini terasa seperti lanjutannya. Cerita yang perlu dituangkan. Lalu kerangka cerita pun terbentuk. Semua itu spontan terjadi begitu saja di benak saya. 

Kembali ke komentar Taty, dia pernah turun di Stasiun MRT tersebut, tapi dia tidak mengenali foto yang saya tunjukkan. Mungkin karena kesannya hanya sepintas lalu. Dia mampir, tapi alam bawah sadarnya memutuskan bahwa itu tidak penting dan akhirnya terlupakan. Bagi saya yang juga pernah turun sekali di Tuas Link, saya langsung teringat dengan stasiun kereta di Cina begitu melihat disain stasiun tersebut. Begitu mengesankan, sehingga saya ingat selalu. 

Teman saya Taty berbeda karakternya dengan saya. Akan halnya saya dan Eday, kita sama-sama memiliki naluri seni, meski berbeda penerapannya. Dengan kata lain, ada kemiripan dalam karakter kita. Karena itu, kita bisa melihat dan mengapresiasi sesuatu secara spontan pada saat bersamaan. Contoh yang saya ingat adalah ketika Hendra memilih es krim vanila di Sentosa. Kita langsung tertawa geli sementara Surianto tidak menyadari apa yang lucu. 

Walau statistiknya mungkin tidak memadai, menarik untuk dicatat bahwa kebiasaan dan hobi yang sering kita lakukan sepertinya membentuk pola kita dalam melihat dan memprioritaskan sesuatu. Bagi saya sendiri, saya sudah sejak lama mempraktekkan hidup sepenuhnya selagi bisa. Mungkin ini alasannya kenapa otak saya menyimpan kenangan di bagian yang paling mudah diakses... 

Parno And Friends

It's another Jakarta trip with Parno! The last time we did that together was probably right after my college graduation, when we were young adults trying our luck in Jakarta. 23 years had passed since then! So we left Soekarno-Hatta with the same excitement we had. It was always fun traveling with Parno. He was like our Ringo, minus the talents, wahaha.

Landed in Jakarta!

First stop, Pamulang. We went there to meet BL at his computer shop. What we saw when we arrived was the offloading of computers. Stocking up, a sign of good business, I reckon. As we said it in our group, biggest orders in Indonesia! That's how he made it to Europe. And BL was kind enough to buy us a Sundanese breakfast.

Brunch with BL.

Next destination was Bakso Ikan Telur Asin Ahan. Parno had to make his cuttlefish delivery, but once done, it was a couple of old friends hanging out. Junaidi, a former bandmate and a travel buddy to Bandung, came to join us, too. We had a bowl of fishballs and chit-chatted until it was time for me to do what I came to Jakarta for: the meetup with my ex-colleagues from Kalbe.

With Hardy, Henny and Junaidi.

Once I was done with the lunch (my third meal in my first four hours in Jakarta), Jun and Parno picked me up. Hardy and wife, the owners of Bakso Ikan, had already made their way to Bogor for the half marathon. As for us, we headed to Alvin's place for some chiropractic. All three of us needed it and it felt good afterwards. And it got better with home-cooked fried rice from Alvin's wife! A perfect end for the rainy day!

Alvin in action.

Our next day began with donuts and coffee at Dunkin' that was within walking distance from Yello Hotel. When we returned to our room, we made a video call to Ardian. Endrico joined us not long after that. Just four old friends talking nonsense. Probably what we needed!

Breakfast at Dunkin'.

Then came the time for us to make our way to Alu for some hometown flavours. Oh yes, Alu's chicken rice is an authentic Pontianak cuisine. Best eaten while it's hot, we ate it fast and furiously the moment it was served. The food that made me, so delicious and nostalgic. For about 10 minutes, I was once again that little boy from my dear hometown.

At Alu.

Friends started coming after we finished our meal. In no time, there were 12 of us. Someone suggested that we have taken up the seats meant for business, so we moved to somewhere meant to be occupied for a long period of time: Starbucks. And long we did stay, from about 1 PM till dinner time. 

At Starbucks.

That was close to five hours of hanging out. What did we do, you might ask? Well, we were bunch of old friends. The chemistry just worked. And we hadn't seen each other for a long time. There were a lot of things to talk about. Anything. And I enjoyed being there, either getting engaged in a conversation or simply as a bystander watching the togetherness unfold. The atmosphere, the laughter, the happy faces, it was just beautiful.

Waiting in front of Tio Ciu 78.

While we were at Starbucks, Yardi, Muliady The and Yoviana came while Cicilia and Hendra returned home. As day turned into night, we made our way to Tio Ciu 78, an eatery opened by my primary school friend. The place was packed and patrons had to queue. As BL said it correctly, the food had a taste of hometown flavours, too. 

Dinner time.

Eventually, there was just a few of us left. We had our dessert at Happy Day before calling it a night. When we were back to Yello Hotel, I asked Parno, "do you realize that we spent the whole day just around our hotel?" It was a time well spent. 

McD with Parno.

The next morning, Parno and I walked to McDonald's. The outlets in Indonesia have Paket Panas, a menu consisting of rice, scrambled egg and fried chicken that I like. We also made a couple of short video calls with Lui Hong in Brunei, Hendri Muliadi who happened to be in Singkawang and Hartono in Jogja. When all things were said and done, all good things must come to an end. Parno and I headed to the airport, parted ways to return to where we came from...

Heading back!

Parno Dan Teman-Teman

Saatnya untuk petualangan di Jakarta bersama Parno lagi! Terakhir kali kita bersama ke Jakarta mungkin terjadi setelah wisuda, ketika kita mulai merantau dan mengadu nasib. Jadi kita pun keluar dari Soekarno-Hatta dengan berseri. Perjalanan bersama Parno selalu menyenangkan. Dia seperti Ringo generasi kita, tapi tanpa bakat serupa, wahaha.

Mendarat di Jakarta!

Pemberhentian pertama, Pamulang. Kita mengunjungi toko komputer BL. Sesampainya di sana, kita melihat barang-barang yang sedang diturunkan dari mobil. Bisnis bagus, stok baru. Seperti yang sering kita bahas di grup SMA, order terbesar di Indonesia. Makanya bisa ke Eropa. Dan BL dengan senang hati mengajak kita sarapan makanan Sunda.

Ditraktir BL.

Tujuan berikutnya adalah Bakso Ikan Telur Asin Ahan. Parno datang mengantarkan pesanan Hardy dan begitu tugasnya selesai, kita nongkrong di situ sebagai teman lama. Junaidi, mantan pemain bas di grup saya dan juga teman seperjalanan ke Bandung dulu, datang dan turut bergabung. Kita makan bakso dan mengobrol sampai tiba waktunya bagi saya untuk bertemu dengan teman-teman Kalbe. 

Bersama Hardy, Henny dan Junaidi.

Setelah kelar makan siang (porsi ketiga saya dalam empat jam pertama di Jakarta), Jun dan Parno datang menjemput. Hardy dan istri, pemilik Kedai Bakso Ikan, sudah dalam perjalanan ke Bogor untuk perlombaan setengah maraton. Kita akhirnya melaju ke tempat Alvin untuk pijat. Sedap rasanya setelah diurut. Dan makin sedap lagi karena kita ditraktir makan nasi goreng buatan istri Alvin. Makan malam yang pas di senja mendung menjelang hujan. 

Alvin beraksi!

Keesokan paginya dimulai dengan donat dan kopi di Dunkin' yang terletak tak jauh dari Yello Hotel. Ketika kita kembali ke kamar, kita menelepon Ardian. Tak lama kemudian, Endrico pun turut bergabung. Empat teman lama berbincang santai. Sesuatu yang sungguh kita butuhkan, saya rasa. 

Sarapan di Dunkin'.

Selanjutnya kita pergi ke Nasi Campur Alu. Oh ya, ini menu otentik Pontianak. Paling baik disantap selagi hangat, kita langsung makan dengan lahap begitu disajikan. Lezat dan juga penuh nostalgia makanannya. Selama 10 menit itu, sekali lagi saya merasa seperti bocah dari Pontianak. 

Makan di Alu.

Teman-teman mulai berdatangan setelah kita menghabiskan sepiring nasi. Tak lama kemudian, ada 12 orang memenuhi tempat makan. Karena tidak baik bagi kita untuk menempati kursi yang seharusnya dipakai untuk berbisnis, kita lalu pindah ke tempat yang lebih cocok untuk nongkrong jangka panjang: Starbucks. Dan kita berada lama di sana, dari sekitar jam satu siang sampai waktu makan malam. 

Di Starbucks.

Jadi kira-kira lima jam lamanya kita berkumpul. Apa yang saja kita lakukan? Jadi kita ini sekumpulan teman lama. Pokoknya ada kebersamaan. Dan kita sudah lama tidak berjumpa, jadi ada banyak yang bisa dibicarakan. Dan saya suka berada di sana, melibatkan diri dalam percakapan ataupun menyaksikan indahnya kebersamaan. Suasananya, tawanya, wajah-wajah yang gembira, memang indah. 

Menanti giliran di Tio Ciu 78.

Sewaktu kita berada di Starbucks, Yardi, Muliady The dan Yoviana datang sementara Cicilia dan Hendra pulang ke Karawang. Ketika malam tiba, kita pergi ke Tio Ciu 78, sebuah tempat makan yang dibuka oleh seorang teman SD. Tempatnya ramai dan pengunjung mesti antri. Seperti yang dikatakan BL, makanannya memiliki cita rasa Pontianak. 

Makan malam.

Pada akhirnya, hanya beberapa di antara kita yang tersisa. Kita lanjut ke Happy Day untuk minum sejenak sebelum bubaran. Dalam perjalanan pulang ke Yello Hotel, saya bertanya pada Parno, apakah dia sadar bahwa kita baru saja menghabiskan waktu seharian di sekitar hotel. Memang tidak terasa kalau waktu tepat guna. 

McD bersama Parno.

Di pagi berikutnya, Parno dan saya berjalan ke McDonald's. Ada Paket Panas di McD Indonesia yang menunya adalah nasi, telur goreng dan ayam goreng. Saya suka ini. Seusai makan, kita kembali ke hotel dan menelepon Lui Hong di Brunei, Hendri Muliadi yang kebetulan ke Singkawang dan Hartono yang berada di Jogja. Setelah tiba waktunya, kita pun berangkat ke bandara dan pulang ke tempat masing-masing... 

Pulang ke tempat masing-masing!

Priorities And Effort

This story began last year, when I visited my ex-colleagues at Kalbe Farma in last November. Out of the blue, Yerry video-called Pak Chandra. Upon seeing the wrinkles on his face, I recalled my younger days, too, when he was kind enough to include me in the trip to Bali. At that time, Pak Chandra was roughly about my age now. Two decades had passed since then. 

Visiting Kalbe in November 2024.

Pak Chandra said he'd like to meet me again and I politely said okay. When the conversation ended, his words lingered for a couple of months like an unfulfilled promised. Then came the last push I needed: the death of a doctor that worked together with us before at Kalbe. This got me thinking that if any moment could be our one last time, I might as well take it while I could. As we exited the Pink City in Jaipur, I finally texted Pak Chandra and confirmed that, yes, we should meet in May. 

And since we were going to meet, I thought it'd be fun to throw a few more people in, too. The IT colleagues that used to hang out with Pak Chandra and I. We had good times then, so why didn't we meet again? It had been a long while since the last time we did that, so I formed a group and added the core members in on the same day.

The meet up in 2010. Patno was the one with his face covered.

Thus began the planning. Looking back, it was kinda awkward and typical, though. First reaction was, we were in January and May was still a long way to go. As we headed to May, I asked for meeting places. Only Pak Chandra and Patno responded. It was consistently like that until the day we actually met at Pagi Sore. Only the two of them turned up. 

As we sat down, Pak Chandra mumbled it was too much that none had a courtesy to call and inform their whereabouts. As the only one who suggested where to eat, he said he simply responded to my questions. If the rest thought it was too far for them, they should have said something. And I smiled. That's the GA Manager I knew. Age clearly didn't diminish his outspokenness. 

Probably the only picture of Pak Chandra and I. 

When I stole a glance at my phone, I saw my ex-colleagues texted me. One said he was in office, the other said he was in Bekasi and the restaurant was too far for him. To think that that this was not a last minute plan, so one had easily more than four months to make a necessary arrangement. And I came from another country, if we wanted to talk about the distance.

Anyway, I did achieve what I set out to do. It was nice to listen to the quirky humor of Patno again. Most importantly, I got to meet Pak Chandra. We talked about the past and things that happened after I left. It gave me perspective of how far I had come. It felt good. 

Unexpectedly, I also learned a new lesson: priorities and effort. The experience was an eyeopener that to some who thinks you are a priority, they will make an effort. The same logic is also true for the exact opposite. You know where you stand in term of their priorities.

Prioritas Dan Upaya

Cerita kali ini dimulai tahun lalu, sewaktu saya mengunjungi para mantan kolega di Kalbe Farma pada bulan November. Tiba-tiba saja Yerry menelepon Pak Chandra lewat WhatsApp Video. Saat melihat rambut putih tipis dan kerutan di wajah beliau, saya terkenang masa saya di Kalbe, terutama saat Pak Chandra mengajak saya untuk turut berlibur ke Bali. Pada saat itu Pak Chandra mungkin seumuran dengan saya sekarang. Dua puluh tahun sudah berlalu semenjak itu. 

Mengunjungi Kalbe di bulan November 2024.

Pak Chandra berkata bahwa dia ingin bertemu lagi dengan saya dan permintaannya saya iyakan dengan sopan. Tatkala percakapan berakhir, kata-katanya terngiang tak ubahnya seperti janji yang belum ditepati. Tak berapa lama setelah itu, terjadi satu peristiwa yang mendorong saya untuk mewujudkan pertemuan kita: terdengar kabar bahwa seorang dokter kenalan kita di Kalbe telah meninggal. 

Kejadian ini membuat saya berpikir bahwa bila setiap saat bisa menjadi pertemuan terakhir, maka sudah sepatutnya saya melakukan sesuatu selagi saya bisa. Tatkala mobil yang saya tumpangi keluar dari kawasan Pink City di Jaipur, saya menghubungi Pak Chandra dan konfirmasi bahwa kita akan makan siang di bulan Mei. 

Dan mumpung kita akan bertemu, saya kira akan seru juga bila kita berkumpul lagi bersama para mantan rekan kerja lainnya. Ada banyak masa ceria yang dilalui bersama sewaktu di Kalbe dulu, jadi kenapa kita tidak bertemu lagi? Sudah lama sekali sejak kita berkumpul untuk terakhir kalinya, jadi saya pun lekas membentuk grup dan menambahkan beberapa anggota inti di hari itu juga. 

Pertemuan di tahun 2010. Patno agak ketutupan wajahnya. 

Jadi rencana pun mulai digarap. Namun bila dilihat lagi sekarang, polanya agak janggal dan sungkan. Reaksi pertama adalah, berhubung kita masih di bulan Januari dan Mei masih lama, jadi kenapa tergesa-gesa. Dan ketika bulan mulai silih berganti, saya bertanya lagi, di restoran mana kita akan berkumpul. Hanya Patno dan Pak Chandra yang merespon. Polanya konsisten seperti itu sampai di hari kita bertemu di Pagi Sore. Hanya mereka berdua yang datang. 

Saat kita duduk, Pak Chandra bergumam bahwa seharusnya yang lain memberikan kabar kalau tidak bisa hadir. Sewaktu Pak Chandra mengusulkan aneka restoran, seharusnya pula yang lain berkomentar apabila mereka keberatan. Dan saya tersenyum. Pensiunan manajer bagian Umum ini masih sama seperti dulu. Usia jelas tidak memudarkan gaya bicaranya yang blak-blakan. 

Saat saya mencuri pandang di WhatsApp saya, terlihat dua DM yang masuk. Satu berkata bahwa dia ada di kantor dan yang lain berujar bahwa dia ada di Bekasi dan lokasi restoran yang berada di Alam Sutera terlalu jauh baginya. Padahal kalau dipikirkan lagi, ini bukan rencana dadakan. Setiap orang punya waktu lebih dari empat bulan untuk melakukan persiapan yang diperlukan. Dan saya datang dari luar negeri kalau mau bicara soal jarak jauh yang perlu ditempuh. 

Mungkin satu-satunya foto yang ada Pak Chandra dan saya. 

Terlepas dari itu, saya sendiri mencapai apa yang saya rencanakan: sebuah janji yang terpenuhi. Saya senang mendengar humor Patno lagi. Dan tak kalah pentingnya pula, saya bisa bertemu Pak Chandra lagi. Kita berbicara tentang masa lalu dan apa yang terjadi setelah saya meninggalkan Kalbe. Semua ini memberikan perspektif, betapa jauh sudah saya melangkah dalam hidup. 

Secara tak sengaja, saya juga belajar satu pelajaran baru: tentang prioritas dan upaya. Pengalaman ini membuka wawasan saya bahwa bilamana anda adalah prioritas bagi seseorang, niscaya dia akan berupaya. Konsep yang sama juga berlaku sebaliknya. Anda jadi tahu, di mana sebenarnya posisi anda dalam prioritas orang lain... 

Vientiane Revisited

When I was visiting Glover Garden and admiring the late afternoon view of Nagasaki, I was reminded again of some places I had visited before. Yes, cities such as Liverpool, Hiroshima, Nanning and Vientiane. At that time, I couldn't help thinking that it could be the one and only time I saw them. Once in a lifetime should be enough. 

But yet from time to time, life did provide a reason for me to return. A year ago, my friend Eday gave me a free trip and I finally returned to Phuket after 13 years. This year turned out to be a time for Vientiane. 15 years after my first and only visit, I came back because of Hard Rock Cafe Vientiane.

In Vientiane. Again!

There are direct flights now (four seats per row, first time seeing this). Back then I had to fly via KL. When I landed, there was this déjà vu feeling that I walked this path at Wattay Airport before. It felt nostalgic, like it was done a lifetime ago. So Bernard and I took the picture there to commemorate the moment. 

As we headed to our hotel, Vientiane felt like a city lost in time. 15 years of progress couldn't do much to change the laid-back image of the capital city of Laos. Yes, there was development done and city looked slightly better than before. It even had Loca and Loca Pay, the local equivalent of Grab and Alipay. But when I recorded the videos and shared them with my high school friends in our group chat, the general comments were how similar Vientiane was with my hometown Pontianak.

Hard Rock, as seen from our hotel.

Except it was quieter, I'd say. That whole mindset of even my hometown was much more crowded that I had since the first visit still remained. But at least the city was clean and safe. And we had a walk. First destination was Hard Rock Cafe, which was so unbelievably near to our hotel, Doubletree by Hilton. The t-shirts collections were much better than Rock Shops in Tianjin and New Delhi!

Based on our itinerary that was created by Perplexity AI, we didn't have anything to do that afternoon, so we walked towards Major Platinum Cineplex. As we headed there, I passed by Wat Sisaket that I visited with Benny 15 years ago. Right in front of us, I saw Patuxai, a monument that has a similar design as Arc de Triomphe in Paris. When we made our final turn, there was Talat Sao in the corner of the junction. The only plaza that existed during my first visit was still there, though it looked much more rundown than before. 

Bernard felt like having Koi in Laos.

We were supposed to watch Thunderbolt* at 16:20, but little did I know that it'd be a Hollywood movie with a local language. As I wasn't ready to see superheroes speaking Thai/Lao, we opted for a latter show at 18:30. We spent our time exploring Parkson and ate at Pizza Company instead. One thing stood out was the waiters/waitresses. Most, if not all, looked underage!

Now, excluding Malaysia and Indonesia, I had also watched movies in Phuket (Green Lantern, 2011) and Bangalore (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 2023). Each offered a unique experience and the one in Vientiane was no exception. The movie started 15 minutes earlier and it was rebooted again at 18:30 to cater for the rest of audience! Only in Laos, ladies and gentlemen!

Naem khao for supper. It felt like fried rice with something crispy.

The movie ended at around 9 PM and the mall was closed by the time we were out from the cinema. Called our ride using Loca and, before the night ended, we had our supper and two bottles of Beerlao at Muzaik Restaurant and Bar right across where we stayed. 

And since this was Laos, the next day began very late in the morning as there wasn't a need for the rush. After our breakfast, we returned to our rooms before we started sightseeing. Our first stop was the post office because I had this tradition of sending postcards. From there, we headed to Pha That Luang, a Buddhist stupa in the centre of the city. 

Visiting Pha That Luang.

Vientiane felt hotter than Singapore, so soon after that, we headed to Senses, a high end spa at Crowne Plaza. By the time we were done with relaxation, sun had started setting. We made our way to Kong View for early dinner and another round of Beerlao. There we stayed, busy chasing away the flies as we ate, until the night came and Thailand at the other side of Mekong River lighted up. The night ended with a quick stroll at the Night Market and cocktails at Hard Rock Cafe.

The next day was yet another slow morning. As a matter of fact, given the hot weather, we weren't sure if we wanted to go to the Buddha Park that was located 26 KM away from our hotel. When I showed the map to Bernard, he became convinced that we should go to Nong Khai because the First Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge in Thanaleng was nearer. 

Waiting for the shuttle bus to Thailand.

So we crossed the border and went to Thailand instead. Since Thailand had just implemented the digital arrival card in early May, it took us some time to enter because we had to queue for the computer and fill in the form. For some reasons, Airsim took a while to work, therefore we queued. Luckily it wasn't a busy border. 

Once we passed through the immigration, the atmosphere immediately felt different. Unlike the sleepy Vientiane, Nong Khai felt like a bustling bigger city. We headed to Tha Sadet Market as I'd like to have a glimpse of life on this side of Mekong River. 

At the Thai side of Mekong River.

We walked towards Tha Sadet Pier that used to be a Thai border in Nong Khai and had a tea break there. While we were sitting and enjoying the river view, people came to set up their stalls. Few hours later, the whole stretch turned into Nong Khai Walking Street. We explored the whole area and eventually called Grab to return to the Thai border. 

When we reached Laos, it turned out that I had insufficient fund due to the low balance on my Revolut card. As a result, not only I failed paying for the earlier trip, but I also breached my Loca limit and was unable to hail a ride now. I contacted Loca support via WhatsApp and within minutes, they completed the verification and solved my issue. Very impressive! Something that I didn't expect from Laos.

Back to Laos again.

The final night ended with us hanging out at Hard Rock Cafe yet again. I ordered November Rain for the band to play. The total cost for the night was LAK 842,960, which was equal to SGD 51.47. On average, the conversion rate was about LAK 16,500 per SGD 1. 

The next day, after breakfast, we flew back to Singapore. Looking back, 15 years later, Vientiane still didn't have much to do that we were basically done with it in two days. I'm glad that we made it to Nong Khai spontaneously on the third day! It was something new and exciting!

Crossing to Nong Khai.

Kembali Ke Vientiane

Beberapa tahun silam, ketika saya berada di Glover Garden dan mengagumi sore menjelang senja di Nagasaki, mendadak terpikirkan oleh saya bahwa pemandangan yang saya lihat itu mungkin untuk pertama dan terakhir kalinya. Ya, kota-kota seperti Liverpool, Hiroshima, Nanning and Vientiane, setelah dikunjungi sekali, sepertinya tak ada lagi alasan untuk kembali ke sana. 

Namun dari waktu ke waktu, hidup ini memberikan kesempatan kedua. Setahun silam, teman saya Eday memberikan liburan gratis dan saya akhirnya kembali ke Phuket setelah 13 tahun. Tahun ini ternyata giliran Vientiane. 15 tahun setelah kunjungan saya yang pertama, saya kembali lagi karena Hard Rock Cafe Vientiane. 

Kembali ke Vientiane lagi.

Ada penerbangan langsung sekarang (hanya empat kursi per baris, pertama kali saya lihat yang seperti ini). Dahulu kala, saya harus transit di KL. Ketika saya tiba, ada perasaan déjà vu bahwa saya sudah pernah menjejakkan kaki di Bandara Wattay. Ada rasa nostalgia seakan-akan semua ini terjadi di kehidupan sebelumnya. Lantas Bernard dan saya berfoto di tempat yang sama. 

Dalam perjalanan ke hotel, Vientiane terlihat seperti kota yang terperangkap oleh waktu. Pembangunan selama 15 tahun terakhir tidak mampu mengikis kesan terbelakang yang kentara di ibukota Laos ini. Ya, memang betul kotanya terlihat memiliki beberapa bangunan baru. Sekarang Laos bahkan memiliki Loca dan Loca Pay, teknologi yang serupa dengan Grab dan Alipay. Namun  ketika saya merekam video dan membagikannya pada teman-teman di grup SMA, mereka berpendapat bahwa kotanya mirip dengan Pontianak. 

Hard Rock, dilihat dari Doubletree by Hilton.

Tapi lebih sepi, menurut saya. Dan ide bahwa kampung halaman saya bahkan terasa lebih ramai, sebuah pemikiran yang muncul sejak saya pertama kali ke Laos, masih terasa. Kendati begitu, setidaknya Vientiane bersih dan aman. Dan kita berjalan kaki. Tujuan pertama adalah Hard Rock Cafe yang berada di seberang hotel kita, Doubletree by Hilton. Koleksi kaosnya lebih banyak dari Rock Shop di Tianjin dan New Delhi.

Berdasarkan rute yang dibuat dengan Perplexity AI, kita tidak memiliki acara apa-apa di sore itu, jadi kita pun berjalan ke Major Platinum Cineplex. Selama perjalanan, kita melewati Wat Sisaket yang pernah saya singgahi bersama Benny 15 tahun yang lalu. Di depan saya ada Patuxai, monumen yang menyerupai Arc de Triomphe di Paris. Kemudian ada pula Talat Sao di persimpangan jalan. Satu-satunya plaza saat saya pertama kali ke Vientiane, Talat Sao masih berdiri hari ini, walaupun sudah terlihat kian tidak terawat.  

Bernard kangen dengan Koi in Laos.

Tiba di bioskop, kita seharusnya menonton Thunderbolt* jam 16:20, tapi ternyata filmnya berbahasa lokal. Saya belum siap menyaksikan para pahlawan super berbincang dalam bahasa Thai/Lao, jadi kita memilih pertunjukan jam 18:30 yang berbahasa Inggris. Setelah membeli tiket, kita melihat-lihat di Parkson dan makan di Pizza Company. Satu yang janggal di sini, para pelayannya terlihat seperti masih di bawah umur! 

Selain di Malaysia dan Indonesia, saya juga pernah menonton film di Phuket (Green Lantern, 2011) dan Bangalore (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 2023). Setiap pengalaman ini unik adanya dan yang di Vientiane pun ada kesan tersendiri. Filmnya mulai 15 menit lebih awal, trus mendadak diulang lagi pada pukul 18:30 untuk para penonton yang baru saja masuk. Hanya di Laos yang ada seperti ini! 

Naem khao, semacam nasi goreng di Laos. Enak juga rasanya.

Film berakhir sekitar jam sembilan malam dan mal sudah tutup tatkala kita keluar dari bioskop. Setelah memanggil jemputan dengan Loca, kita kembali ke hotel dan makan malam plus Beerlao di Muzaik Restaurant and Bar yang terletak di seberang hotel. 

Dan karena ini adalah Laos, aktivitas di hari berikutnya baru dimulai setelah hari menjelang siang. Kita tidak tergesa-gesa di sini. Setelah sarapan, kita bahkan kembali ke kamar untuk bersantai sejenak. Setelah itu barulah kita menuju ke kantor pos. Dari sana, kita lanjut ke Pha That Luang, kuil Budha di tengah kota. 

Mengunjungi Pha That Luang.

Vientiane terasa lebih panas dari Singapura, jadi kita pun berteduh di Senses, spa di Crowne Plaza. Sesudah kita selesai dengan relaksasi, matahari mulai terbenam. Kita mampir ke Kong View untuk makan malam dan satu ronde Beerlao lagi. Sambil makan dan juga sibuk mengusir lalat, kita berada di sana sampai malam tiba dan Thailand yang berada di seberang sungai Mekong menyala terang. Kemudian kita beranjak ke Pasar Malam dan juga koktail di Hard Rock Cafe.

Keesokan paginya pun berjalan lamban. Berhubung cuaca yang panas, kita tidak yakin apakah Buddha Park yang terletak 26 KM jauhnya dari hotel adalah tujuan yang tepat. Ketika saya menunjukkan peta kepada Bernard, dia sepakat bahwa sebaiknya kita ke Nong Khai saja karena Jembatan Persahabatan Thai-Lao Pertama di Thanaleng lebih dekat jaraknya. 

Menunggu bis dari Laos ke Thailand.

Jadi kita pun menyeberang perbatasan dan pergi ke Thailand. Karena Thailand baru memberlakukan kartu kedatangan digital pada awal Mei, kita pun antri komputer untuk mengisi formulir. Airsim tak langsung berfungsi normal di Thailand sehingga saya tak bisa menggunakan ponsel. Untunglah perbatasan Nong Khai tidak tergolong ramai.  

Setelah melewati imigrasi, suasananya terasa berbeda. Berbeda dengan Vientiane yang lamban, Nong Khai lebih terasa seperti kota besar yang aktif. Kita menuju ke Pasar Tha Sadet karena saya ingin melihat bagaimana kehidupan di seberang Laos. 

Di sungai Mekong di bagian Thailand.

Kita berjalan sampai ke Tha Sadet Pier yang dulunya digunakan sebagai perbatasan Thai di Nong Khai dan minum teh sejenak di sana. Ketika kita duduk mengamati, warga setempat mulai berdatangan menyiapkan tempat dagangan mereka. Beberapa jam kemudian, deretan kios bermunculan memadati Nong Khai Walking Street. Kita mengeksplorasi kawasan tersebut dan akhirnya kembali ke perbatasan Thailand dengan Grab. 

Sewaktu tiba di Laos, ternyata saldo saya di kartu Revolut tidak cukup. Alhasil saya gagal membayar transaksi sebelumnya dan saldo saya yang negatif menembus limit Loca sehingga tak lagi bisa memanggil jemputan. Saya lantas hubungi Loca lewat WhatsApp dan dalam hitungan menit, verifikasi selesai dan masalah pun beres. Sungguh mengesankan! Efisiensi tak terduga di Laos. 

Kembali ke Laos again.

Di malam terakhir, kita kembali bersantai di Hard Rock Cafe lagi. Kali ini saya pesan lagu November Rain untuk dimainkan grup lokal yang bermusik di panggung. Total makan dan minum di malam itu adalah LAK 842.960, setara dengan SGD 51,47. Nilai tukar mata uang Laos LAK 16.500 per SGD 1. 

Keesokan paginya, setelah sarapan, kita pulang ke Singapura. Kalau dilihat kembali, tak banyak yang berubah di Vientiane dalam 15 tahun terakhir. Dalam tempo dua hari, kita bisa dikatakan selesai dengan Vientiane. Untung saja kita spontan ke Nong Khai di hari ketiga. Pengalaman ini baru dan seru! 

Menyeberang ke Nong Khai.

11 Hours In Tianjin

I had only one reason to visit Tianjin: Hard Rock Cafe. This had been the plan since the first time I went to Beijing, but timing was an issue then. Learning from the past failure, it was different this round. 

Together with my colleague Fulton, I landed in Beijing two days earlier. This gave me the ample time to enjoy one night in Beijing before heading to Tianjin on the following morning. Departing from Beijing South Railway Station, I arrived in Tianjin about 10 AM. As we had about an hour before Hard Rock opened, we had our breakfast at McDonald's: a bowl of porridge!

At Tianjin Station.

After that, we headed to the metro station, bought our one way ticket and headed to Tianta. The metro station was linked to Luneng CC Plaza and it turned out that Hard Rock Cafe Tianjin was part of the mall. The Rock Shop was tiny and it had only limited selection. It didn't take long for me to get what I came here for. 

As we were paying at the cashier, Fulton figured out that Alipay could be used for metro ticket payment. It is amazing how integrated China is these days! We went for a bit of supermarket browsing, then jumped into the metro to go to Wudadao, which was one of the highlights according to AI.

Visting Minyuan Stadium.

The nearest metro station was still about 15 minutes walk to Wudadao. When we reached there, we only saw Minyuan Stadium. And, well, it was a stadium. The appreciation lasted only for a few seconds before we started wondering what Wudadao actually was. After a quick ice cream waffle, we circled the stadium and saw the map. So Wudadao is apparently a large area encompassing five lanes and housing a lot of colonial buildings. 

It would have taken us the whole afternoon if we really did the sightseeing, so we opted for lunch and left Wudadao instead, haha. On our way out, I saw Post Coffee, a unique combination of coffee stall and post office, similar to the one I saw in Chongqing. I quickly dropped by for a decade old tradition. 

The view from Dagu Bridge.

From Wudadao, AI recommended us to walk along the riverbank. Fulton refined the suggestion by heading to the last subway station before Tianjin Station, then it wouldn't be a long walk and yet we could still explore the riverside a bit. We did a slight detour for Pop Mart at the Tee Mall, then we crossed Dagu Bridge and headed to the Century Clock.

Tianjin Station is next to the clock. It was around 3 PM when we got there and we thought we would reach Beijing in no time. Much to my surprise, the next available tickets were the ones departing at 8.38 PM! Well, either that slot or train rides at later timing. I immediately secured them, then we headed to McDonald's to let the reality sink in. Once we had a break and accepted that we'd be here for another four hours, we decided to make good use of our time and walked towards the Ancient Culture Street.

Fulton explored the Ancient Culture Street.

It took us about an hour of walking at the riverside before reaching our destination. The experience somehow reminded me of Shanghai. It might be the river, I reckon. And I suddenly had a fatigue. It's like, after visiting four China cities in one year, Tianjin as the fifth one somehow looked pretty similar. 

And exploring the Ancient Culture Street clearly didn't help. It only enhanced the impression that cities in China are basically having the same layout: high rises buildings, the long and winding river, ancient street or town for tourists. After one round, we hopped onto the subway and returned to the train station. The last meal I had was spicy! But my last memory of Tianjin? Our business class seats! 

Fulton grinning on his business class seat.

11 jam Di Tianjin

Saya cuma memiliki satu alasan untuk mengunjungi Tianjin: Hard Rock Cafe. Ini sudah menjadi rencana saya sejak kunjungan pertama ke Beijing, tapi ternyata ada kendala waktu. Belajar dari pengalaman tersebut, kali ini beda pengaturannya. 

Bersama kolega saya Fulton, saya mendarat di Beijing dua hari lebih awal. Dengan demikian saya memiliki banyak waktu sebelum berangkat ke Tianjin pada keesokan paginya. Dari Beijing South Railway Station, saya tiba di Tianjin kira-kira jam 10 pagi. Karena masih ada satu jam sebelum Hard Rock buka, kita makan pagi di McDonald's: semangkuk bubur dan kopi pahit!

Di Stasiun Tianjin.

Setelah itu, kita naik metro menuju Tianta. Stasiun metro ini tersambung ke Luneng CC Plaza. Hard Rock Cafe Tianjin ternyata merupakan bagian dari mal. Rock Shop-nya mungil dan terbatas koleksinya. Tak butuh waktu lama untuk mendapatkan apa yang saya mau. 

Selagi kita melakukan pembayaran di kasir, Fulton menemukan bahwa Alipay bisa digunakan untuk membayar metro. Integrasi sistem di Cina memang luar biasa! Setelah mampir sejenak ke supermarket, kita kembali menaiki metro menuju Wudadao, salah satu destinasi turis menurut AI. 

Mengunjungi Minyuan Stadium.

Stasiun metro terdekat masih berjarak sekitar 15 menit berjalan kaki ke Wudadao. Saat tiba di sana, yang kita lihat hanyalah Minyuan Stadium. Dan, berhubung ini cuma stadion, apresiasi kita luntur dalam beberapa detik. Jadi Wudadao itu sebenarnya apa? Saya beli es krim sejenak, lalu kita berjalan mengitari stadion dan menemukan peta. Di situ terlihat bahwa Wudadao adalah sebuah kawasan lima jalur yang memiliki banyak bangunan peninggalan zaman kolonial. 

Butuh setengah hari bila kita hendak melihat semuanya, jadi kita memilih makan siang dan pergi, haha. Dalam perjalanan keluar, saya melihat Post Coffee, kombinasi warung kopi dan kantor pos, mirip seperti yang saya lihat di Chongqing. Saya lekas mampir menunaikan tradisi. 

Pemandangan dari Dagu Bridge.

Dari Wudadao, AI menganjurkan agar kita berjalan di samping sungai. Fulton menyarankan bahwa sebaiknya kita naik metro dulu sampai ke pemberhentian terakhir sebelum Stasiun Tianjin, baru jalan dari situ sehingga tidak terlalu jauh. Menuruti usulnya, kita juga sempat singgah sebentar ke Pop Mart di Tee Mall, lalu berjalan melewati Dagu Bridge dan menuju ke Century Clock.

Tianjin Station berada tepat di samping Century Clock. Jam sudah menunjukkan pukul tiga sore saat kita sampai di sana. Berjalan santai menuju loket, saya sudah membayangkan bahwa kita akan segera tiba di Beijing. Siapa sangka tiket berikutnya adalah jam 8:38 malam? Pilihan kita cuma itu atau yang lebih malam lagi. Saya lekas membeli, kemudian kita duduk sejenak di McDonald's untuk meresapi kejutan yang baru saja terjadi. Setelah menerima kenyataan bahwa kita masih akan luntang-lantung di Tianjin selama empat jam, kita memanfaatkan waktu kita untuk mengunjungi Ancient Culture Street.

Di Ancient Culture Street.

Kita berjalan di samping sungai sekitar sejam lamanya sebelum mencapai destinasi. Pengalaman ini entah kenapa mengingatkan saya pada Shanghai. Mungkin karena sungainya. Dan mendadak saya merasa lelah dengan Cina. Rasanya seperti, setelah mengunjungi empat kota Cina dalam setahun, Tianjin sebagai kota ke-lima terlihat sama saja. 

Dan eksplorasi di Ancient Culture Street tidak membantu. Keberadaan kita di sana yang menguatkan kesan bahwa kota-kota di Cina memiliki tata kota yang sama: gedung-gedung tinggi, sungai yang panjang dan berkelok, kota lama atau jalan kuno untuk turis. Setelah satu putaran, kita naik metro dan kembali ke stasiun kereta. Makan malam saya terasa pedas nian. Tapi kenangan saya yang terakhir di Tianjin? Kursi kelas bisnis di kereta! 

Fulton tersenyum di kursi kelas bisnis.