Phuket Revisited

This story began last year, when Eday said let's celebrate the work he did for the past few years. Since I helped ghostwriting the books, he thought it'd be great for the two old friends to hangout together again, just like what happened in Tokyo. The flights and hotel were on him, so it was a free trip for me!

The potential destinations included Ipoh and Phnom Penh. I was reluctant to go back to Phuket, especially because that's where I spent my honeymoon. Going with a dude, even though it was 13 years after my first and only visit with my wife, didn't feel right. I was worried that it would tarnish our memories there, haha.

But it was decided that it'd be Phuket. The craziest part had to be the departure date that happened to be two weeks after my trip to Chiang Mai. This was the first time I ever went to Thailand twice within the same month! That's a lot of Thailand for the first 25 days of the year. Too much, too soon!

Quick lunch at Blossom, Terminal 4. 

So off we went, not knowing what to expect. Jetstar made it even more memorable by delaying both legs of the flights at the same time, causing me to think that we still had so much time since our departure time was 10.45pm. We already planned to watch the Goldfinger by Andy Lau. Luckily we crosschecked with the ground staff and he pointed out to that it was the return flight that was delayed until close to midnight.

We arrived late in the afternoon. The Phuket Airport is much more modern looking than the one in Chiang Mai, but the location is about 50 minutes ride away from the city. When we checked in to Dara Hotel, it was already time for dinner, so we went to Sabainang Cafe which was located next door. Apparently it served only halal food. Still good, though. First time trying tempe omelette.

Tempe omelette. 

After a scoop ice cream, we bagan exploring the town of Phuket. We passed by Chinatown and the traditional market, then we reached the drinking places. Prior to that, we bumped into a foreigner with a bleeding head. I was lucky that I didn't wear glasses. According to Eday, he had quite a gash, therefore the blood kept dripping!

Anyway, onto a happier part of the story, we entered Churchills, a cigar and wine store. It immediately reminded me of Titanic, though the rich folks drank brandy in the movie. Eday bought one cigar and started puffing. A bottle of wine was shared between us. 

At Churchills.

Now this is where it got interesting. We had a glimpse of such an experience when we drank sake in Asakusa, but it was here that we have enough time for Eday to tell his story. He's a complex man shaped by his upbringing and hardened by his experiences. Our characters couldn't be more different, but yet we are best friends since 1996. I admired him, but never envied him. For the love of God, one had to go through what he did to be like him and I certainly didn't need that. The cross he had to bear! 

From Churchills, we went to the Library. It looked like Harry Potter's Hogwarts. Nice ambience, good drinks, happening place! As the alcohol kicked in and the world was literally on fire when the bartender poured oil on the table and burnt it, the glimmering world looked beautiful. While wearing my beer goggles, we moved on to next bar, Sippin, as we were attracted by Don't Look Back in Anger played by the live band.

While waiting for best burger in town.

I can't remember how much we drank, but by the time we were done, I just couldn't stop smiling. Eday said he was hungry, so we walked around and stopped at the first roadside stall we found: a bald man selling burgers. Man, it was good to sit down for a while. And of course we must take a picture or two to preserve this moment of our lives! 

We woke up the next day, surprisingly without any hangover feeling. Eday hit the gym and I dipped into the swimming pool. Once done, we had our lunch at Phuket Central. Eday went for a hair cut, so I took a nap. Before we knew it, it was time for dinner again. Based on Google recommendation, we went to Baan 109. The eatery was like a house in Pontianak back in the 80s and the Thai food felt homey.

Tomfunk Collins.

The second night of bar-hopping started right after that. We went to this place called Zimplex Mixology. What the bartender did here is quite interesting. After taking our orders, they laid the liquid down layer by layer into a tiny glass of shooter right in front of us. Mine was bubbly and this caused the colourful drops swimming up and down. 

The night was still young and we didn't want to ruin it with too much hard liquor, so we walked back to town after one shot. As we still had time, we return to Churchills for cigar and wine. After a bottle of wine, we explored Briq, a cocktail bar. It was all right for a glass of Mai Tai, then we switched to the Column, a bar packed by locals thanks to its loud Thai band on stage. We stayed there until we finished a small bottle of Chang, then we went to the next one. 

Enjoying a song called Hero at Bebop.

The Jazz club was called Bebop. The band played mostly oldies, music that I understood or could relate with. As a matter of fact, I spontaneously joined the band when they played Wonderful Tonight. It's good to be back on stage again! I remember as we were finishing our bottle of wine, the band played My Way. It was brilliant!

We hit our sixth bar for the night by returning to the Library. After saying hello to our Dubai acquaintance, Eday called for one round of shooters as we enjoyed the night. They were sweet, as if they were harmless, but when we relocated to Sippin, we were barely able to touch our Budweiser anymore. Seven bars a night was the limit, apparently!

The shooters that killed the night.

The next day, or I should say the next afternoon, we made our way to Patong. This part of town was crowded and chaotic. After lunch, we walked a bit, but we couldn't stand the heat, so we went to Let's Relax Spa for Thai massage. It was a time well-spent. Not only we could rest and recuperate from the night before, but the weather was also chill and the sun had set when we emerged again from the spa. 

Eday was craving for snacks, so we had a plate of künefe at Mangal, a Jordanian restaurant on Soi Sansabai. After a short break, we continued walking to Hard Rock Cafe and went to the beach. As we weren't much of beach people, we had seafood for dinner instead. Not exactly good, but it did tick off an item on our to-do list.

What's for dinner?

Next on our itinerary was the ping pong show at the Wake Up Club. Let's just say it was... as advertised. Once the show started over, we decided that we had seen enough and made our exit. We headed to this night club called Illuzion. But DJ music wasn't our scene, so we left after we finished a bottle of Corona and headed back to the beloved Bebop Jazz Club. Much to my delight, the local Thai band played Come Together!

And the night ended when we drank our last bottle of white wine for this trip. We passed by the Library and bade farewell to our Dubai acquaintance who stood on the pavement for a smoke. We walked towards the burger stall and smiled as the veggie vendor recognized and pointed at us. Then we sat on the roadside and had our last burgers, just like what we did on the first night.

Last night in Phuket.

And as we sat there, I remember a scene from Get Back vividly, when Paul said, "and then there were two." Out of so many friends, only two of us were there. If life was an adventure, then the short time in Phuket would be moments I treasured the most. No, it didn't ruin my honeymoon. If anything, Phuket now gave something else to remember: friendship. I seem to recall Eday saying this that night, "years ago, our younger selves would have never thought we'd be hanging out in Phuket like this..."

He was right, of course.

Epilogue:

The last day in Phuket could be described like this: laundry day, breakfast, check out, lunch, snack time, sending postcard, foot massage, green curry chicken rice bowl from KFC for dinner, airport lounge and the talk about next trip to Mongolia, the chaotic gate change and, finally, the flight back to Singapore.

Checking out.

Kembali ke Phuket

Cerita ini bermula dari sejak tahun lalu, waktu Eday mengajak saya untuk merayakan buku-buku karyanya dalam beberapa tahun terakhir ini. Karena saya terlibat dalam penulisan buku, dia merasa akan seru kiranya bila dua sahabat berkumpul lagi seperti apa yang terjadi di Tokyo tahun lalu. Tiket dan hotel ditanggung, jadi liburan ini gratis bagi saya! 

Destinasi yang sempat diperbincangkan mencakup Ipoh dan Phnom Penh. Saya enggan kembali ke Phuket, sebab saya pernah berbulan madu di sana. Pergi bersama teman pria, meski sudah 13 tahun lamanya sejak kunjungan yang pertama dan sekali-kalinya bersama istri, rasanya tidak baik. Saya khawatir kenangan indah itu akan ternoda, haha. 

Akan tetapi keputusan finalnya adalah Phuket. Yang lebih dahsyat lagi adalah hari keberangkatan yang hanya berkisar dua minggu setelah liburan ke Chiang Mai. Ini adalah pertama kalinya saya bolak-balik ke Thailand dalam tempo sebulan. Rasanya terlalu banyak nuansa Thai dalam 25 hari pertama di tahun yang baru ini. Terlalu dekat jedahnya! 

Makan siang di Blossom, Terminal 4. 

Namun berangkatlah kita tanpa bayangan yang jelas tentang liburan kali ini. Jetstar membuat perjalanan kali ini lebih berkesan lagi dengan penundaan jadwal pesawat pergi dan pulang, sampai-sampai saya salah lihat dan menyangka bahwa jam keberangkatan kita ditunda hingga jam 10.45 malam. Kita bahkan sempat berencana untuk menonton Goldfinger-nya Andy Lau di Jewel. Untung saja kita bertanya pada petugas bandara dan dia mengabarkan bahwa yang ditunda hingga hampir tengah malam itu adalah pesawat dari Phuket ke Singapura.

Kita tiba di Thailand saat hari sudah menjelang senja. Bandara Phuket lebih modern dari Chiang Mai, tapi lokasinya lebih jauh pula, sekitar 50 menit dari kota. Saat kita sampai di Dara Hotel, sudah tiba waktunya untuk makan malam, jadi kita mampir ke Sabainang Cafe yang berada di sebelah hotel. Makanannya halal, tapi tetap lezat. Yang unik adalah telur dadar tempe. 

Telur dadar tempe. 

Setelah menikmati es krim, kita mulai menjelajahi kota Phuket. Kita melewati Pecinan dan pasar tradisional, lalu tiba di kawasan minum. Sebelum itu, kita juga sempat berpapasan dengan orang bule yang kepalanya berlumuran darah. Saya merasa beruntung karena tidak memakai kacamata. Menurut Eday, kepalanya bocor, makanya terus mengucurkan darah. 

Kembali ke kawasan minum, kita memasuki Churchills, kedai cerutu dan anggur. Saya jadi ingat dengan Titanic, walau orang-orang kaya yang menghisap cerutu itu menenggak brandy di film. Eday membeli cerutu dan mulai mengepul. Sebotol anggur putih pun kita bagi berdua. 

Di Churchills.

Dalam suasana santai ini kita bertukar cerita. Pengalaman serupa ini pertama kali terjadi saat kita menikmati sake di Asakusa, namun kali ini kita punya banyak waktu bagi Eday untuk bercerita. Dia ini cukup rumit orangnya dan kepribadiannya terbentuk dari masa kecil yang keras dan kemudian ditempa lagi oleh pengalaman hidupnya. Secara karakter, kita jelas bertolak-belakang, jadi fakta bahwa kita bisa berteman akrab sejak 1996 memanglah menarik. Saya mengaguminya, tapi tidak iri dengan apa yang dicapainya. Demi Tuhan, jalan yang dilaluinya sungguh berliku. Pengorbanan dan beban yang ditanggungnya tidaklah ringan pula. Tidak heran dia bisa menjadi seorang Eday yang kita kenal hari ini. 

Dari Churchills, kita beranjak ke Library yang mirip seperti perpustakaan Hogwarts, sekolah Harry Potter. Bagus tempatnya, sedap untuk minum dan riuh suasananya. Ketika alkohol mulai bekerja dan meja bar menyala saat disirami minyak dan disulut dengan api, dunia tampak berkilau indah dalam cahaya. Setelah itu, kita pindah ke Sippin, bar di sebelah, karena terpanggil oleh lagu Don't Look Back in Anger yang sedang dimainkan di panggung. 

Menanti burger terlezat di Phuket.

Entah berapa banyak minuman yang sudah kita tenggak, tapi di saat kita berhenti, saya senantiasa tersenyum. Eday merasa lapar, jadi kita berjalan sampai ke kedai burger di kaki lima. Saya lantas duduk, lebih condong ke posisi bersandar, dan tentu saja kita harus mengabadikan momen bersejarah ini! 

Ketika kita bangun di keesokan harinya, tidak ada rasa sakit kepala karena kebanyakan minum. Eday ke gym sedangkan saya menceburkan diri ke kolam renang. Lantas kita makan siang di Phuket Central. Saat Eday memutuskan untuk potong rambut, saya main Nintendo dan tidur siang di hotel. Saat malam tiba, kita pun pergi ke Baan 109 yang bagus rekomendasinya di Google. Tempat makannya seperti ruko Pontianak di tahun 80an dan makanannya seperti masakan Thai rumahan. 

Tomfunk Collins.

Malam kedua pun mulai setelah santap malam. Pertama-tama kita ke bar bernama Zimplex Mixology. Apa yang dilakukan bartender di tempat ini sangat unik. Minuman kita diracik selapis demi selapis, entah itu dituangkan atau ditetes ke dalam gelas mungil. Pesanan saya memiliki banyak gelembung gas, sehingga tetesan warna-warni terlihat seperti berenang naik-turun. 

Malam masih panjang dan kita tidak ingin merusaknya dengan terlalu banyak minuman keras, jadi kita kembali ke pusat kota setelah satu gelas. Karena masih ada banyak waktu, kita mampir lagi ke Churchills untuk cerutu dan anggur putih. Setelah kelar sebotol, kita menjajal Briq, bar cocktail. Satu gelas Mai Tai kemudian, kita pindah ke Column, bar yang dipenuhi oleh kalangan lokal karena hingar-bingar musik Thai. Kita menyeruput sebotol bir Chang di sana sebelum hijrah ke sebelah.

Menikmati lagu Hero di Bebop.

Yang kita singgahi berikutnya adalah Bebop, sebuah klub Jazz. Grup musik di sini memainkan banyak tembang lawas yang lebih saya mengerti. Ketika Wonderful Tonight dilantunkan, saya tergerak untuk tampil dan menyanyi. Grup tersebut bahkan membawakan lagu My Way selagi kita meneguk anggur putih. Memang sedap! 

Bar ke-6 pada malam itu adalah Library. Kita menyapa orang Dubai yang duduk di sebelah kita di malam pertama, lalu berjalan ke meja kosong dan Eday pun memesan sepaket shooters. Minuman ini manis dan hanya sekali teguk sehingga tampaknya enteng tapi dampaknya terasa saat kita lanjut ke Sippin. Saat Budweiser datang, kita tak lagi sanggup menyentuhnya. Ternyata limit kita adalah tujuh bar per malam. 

Shooters yang membuat kita pulang tidur.

Keesokan harinya, atau seharusnya saya katakan keesokan siangnya, kita menuju Patong. Bagian kota ini ramai dan hiruk-pikuk. Sesudah makan siang, kita berjalan-jalan sejenak, tapi panasnya sinar matahari di daerah pantai membuat kita berteduh di Let's Relax Spa. Waktu santai ini bermanfaat dan tepat guna. Bukan saja kita bisa beristirahat sambil menikmati pijatan ala Thai, tapi matahari pun sudah mulai terbenam saat kita selesai. Cocok untuk jalan-jalan lagi. 

Eday ingin jajan sebelum makan malam, jadi kita menyantap künefe di Mangal, sebuah restoran Yordania. Setelah icip-icip, kita berjalan ke arah Hard Rock Cafe, lalu belok ke pantai. Karena kita dasarnya memang bukan anak pantai, kita akhirnya makan udang galah dan cumi-cumi. Tidak terlalu enak, tapi minimal kita sudah mencentang makan seafood dari daftar keinginan. 

Makan seafood di Patong.

Tempat tujuan berikutnya adalah ping pong show di Wake Up Club. Pertunjukan ini... persis seperti yang diiklankan. Ketika pertunjukan kembali lagi ke acara pertama, kita pun keluar karena sudah menyaksikan semua rangkaian acara. Kita menyusuri keramaian dan menuju Illuzion, klub malam di Patong. Akan tetapi musik DJ tidaklah cocok, maka kita memutuskan untuk kembali ke Bebop setelah menuntaskan sebotol bir Corona. Memang keputusan yang bijak, sebab malam itu ada lagu Come Together dari the Beatles! 

Dan sebotol anggur putih menutup malam tersebut sekaligus menjadi minuman alkohol terakhir di trip ini. Kita berjalan melewati Library dan pamit dengan orang Dubai yang sedang berdiri dan merokok di luar. Kita lanjut lagi ke kedai burger dan tersenyum saat tukang sayur di jalan mengenali kita. Untuk kali terakhirnya kita duduk di trotoar dan menyantap burger, persis seperti yang kita lakukan di malam pertama di Phuket. 

Malam terakhir di Phuket.

Sewaktu duduk di sana, saya teringat dengan adegan di film Get Back, saat Paul berkata, "dan pada akhirnya hanya tersisa dua orang." Dari begitu banyak teman, hanya kita berdua yang ada di sana pada malam itu. Jika hidup adalah sebuah petualangan, maka waktu singkat di Phuket ini akan menjadi kenangan abadi bagi saya. Tidak, kenangan bulan madu saya tidak ternoda. Justru Phuket kembali menawarkan suatu kenangan yang baru: persahabatan. Dan saya ingat Eday sepertinya berkata, "berpuluh-puluh tahun silam, mana pernah kita berpikir akan nongkrong bersama di Phuket seperti ini..." 

Dan tentu saja dia benar.

Epilog:

Hari terakhir di Phuket bisa dideskripsikan seperti ini: cuci baju, sarapan, keluar hotel, makan siang, jajan donat, mengirim kartu pos, pijat kaki, KFC ayam kari hijau, menanti pesawat di lounge sambil membicarakan liburan ke Mongolia, perpindahan gerbang keberangkatan yang semrawut dan, akhirnya, kembali ke Singapura... 

Captain Thailand In Chiang Rai

The adventure of Captain Thailand and team continued! After two nights in Chiang Mai, we commenced our day trip to Chiang Rai. The sky was still dark when we left Novotel and headed to McDonald's right on front of Tha Phae Gate. We had our breakfast there, then waited to be picked up.

The tour guide name was Gesara. In the van, she briefed us about our destinations and their origins. None of the main attractions is very old, apparently. 

Visting the hot spring.

The first stop was a short one. We were just there to admire the Mae Kachan hot spring. The big one was kind of cool, though. It kept spouting water to the sky, but I had no idea if it was natural or relying on a mechanical pump, hehe. 

About one hour and 40 minutes later, we reached Wat Rong Khun, better known as the White Temple. Like I said earlier, the temple isn't from bygone era. It is new and the toilet, according to Cicilia, was easily the most decorated toilet she had even seen. The main temple is all white and very much ornamental. We were told that we could only go straight and we shouldn't turn back because the only way in heaven was forward. Inside the temple was a mural depicting popular characters such as Superman, Pikachu, Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, etc. Ruling on top of them is, of course, the Buddha.

At the White Temple.

We had a buffet lunch before resuming our journey. Next stop was the Blue Temple or Wat Rong Suea Tan. The newest among the three destinations of the day, this temple has a lot of gigantic statues as well as the 12 animals of Chinese zodiac. Inside the temple was a statue of Buddha. While we were at this temple, we got the impression that Chiang Rai was bloody hot. 

After white and blue, the next color theme was black. It was a museum, though. The Black House, locally known as Baan Dam Museum, somehow reminded me of the traditional houses of Dayak or Minang ethnicity. The main building is filled with paintings and animal skins. There is a QR code next to each painting and scanning it would animate the object if you view it on your phone. There are also arts showing distorted male and female sex organs. It was a cultural thing. According to our tour guide, the northern part of Thailand used to be a kingdom called Lan Na and the people were naked then. 

Queuing at Aroy Dee.

That eventually concluded our tour. We headed back to the starting point: Tha Phae Gate in Chiang Mai. From there we walked to Aroy Dee. The Thai food here was cheap and good. I mean, we had stuff like omelette, green curry, tom yum, morning glory, chicken, coconut, smoothie and beer for five people and the bill was only THB 800! Highly recommended!

Then, as the day turned into our last night in Chiang Mai, we went to Rimping Supermarket at MAYA to buy some Thai flavored gift to bring back home. We saw some neon lights across the street when we first came here, so went to check it out this time. It was a happening place for beer and hangout, but after taking some pictures, we decided to go back to hotel instead. We still had one last agenda on the following day.

Visiting Doi Suthep.

And the last destination was Doi Suthep. We started early in the morning, we climbed 320 steps and, after doing a quick round of temple visit, we went to the viewing spot for sunrise. The city of Chiang Mai was right beneath us, but it was cloudy and foggy, so the rising sun wasn't visible.

We returned to the hotel area for breakfast. There's this place called Black Gooseberry. Must be a popular eatery in Chiang Mai, because it was fully packed and we had to queue. And it didn't disappoint. The four colored custard, the charcoal toast, the noodles, all good! After breakfast, we walked to a post office nearby because, you know, we had a postcard tradition.

Even the logo has panda!

It was still early in the morning when we were done with the errand, so we headed to Chiang Mai Zoo that was located near to our hotel. It has a panda on its logo and pretty every corner of it, so imagine our surprise the counter lady told us that the panda had died. She told us this right after I paid for the entrance tickets! It was so shocking and hilarious at the same time that we couldn't stop laughing for a while. 

So we went in to a panda-less zoo. It was big, but not well-maintained. We had to walk a lot and some path was an uphill climbing. After we saw the Indian rhino and the peacocks, we decided that we had enough, then jumped into the tram and made our way to the exit. 

Coffee break at Wawee Coffee.

We returned to hotel and checked out, had our lunch at MAYA and were on our way to the airport. As it was still too early to check in, we had a coffee break. About two hours later, we were in the plane to Singapore. The touch down in Changi officially ended the reign of Captain Thailand. We took the last picture together and parted ways. All good things must come to an end, but they left behind a couple of memories that made us richer than before...

Back to Singapore!

Kapten Thailand Di Chiang Rai

Petualangan Kapten Thailand dan tim berlanjut! Setelah dua malam di Chiang Mai, perjalanan pergi-pulang sehari ke Chiang Rai pun dimulai. Langit masih gelap ketika kita meninggalkan Novotel menuju ke McDonald's di depan Gerbang Tha Phae. Kita sarapan di sana sekaligus menunggu jemputan. 

Pemandu kita bernama Gesara. Di dalam minibus, dia bercerita tentang asal-usul tempat-tempat yang akan kita kunjungi. Ternyata tak ada satu pun yang sudah berusia ratusan tahun. Semuanya masih tergolong baru. 

Di sumber air panas Mae Kachan.

Pemberhentian pertama hanyalah sekedar persinggahan sejenak. Kita mampir untuk melihat sumber air panas Mae Kachan. Yang besar sumurnya lumayan menarik karena airnya terus menyembur ke atas. Entah itu alami atau dibantu dengan pompa air, hehe. 

Sekitar satu jam 40 menit kemudian, kita mencapai Wat Rong Khun yang juga dikenal dengan nama Kuil Putih. Seperti yang saya katakan tadi, kuil ini bukanlah peninggalan masa silam. Bangunan terlihat baru dan menurut Cicilia, ini toilet paling indah yang pernah ia lihat. Bangunan utamanya putih dan penuh ukiran. Menurut Gesara, kita hanya boleh berjalan lurus dan tidak boleh berbalik arah karena di surga hanya boleh terus berjalan ke depan. Di dalam kuil, lukisan di dinding menampilkan tokoh-tokoh seperti Superman, Pikachu, Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley dan lain-lain. Di atas semua karakter itu Budha duduk bertahta. 

Di Kuil Putih.

Makan siang kita adalah menu prasmanan di seberang kuil. Setelah kenyang, kita lanjut ke Kuil Biru alias Wat Rong Suea Tan. Kuil ini adalah yang terbaru dari tiga bangunan kontemporer yang kita tuju. Selain banyak patung raksasa, terlihat juga patung 12 zodiak Cina. Di dalam kuil ada patung Budha. Selagi berada di sinilah kita mendapat kesan bahwa Chiang Rai sungguh panas. 

Setelah putih dan biru, tema berikutnya berwarna hitam. Rumah Hitam bukanlah kuil, melainkan museum. Nama lokalnya adalah Baan Dam Museum. Bangunan utamanya mirip rumah khas Dayak atau Minang dan penuh dengan lukisan dan kulit hewan liar. Ada kode QR di samping tiap lukisan. Bila dipindai, lukisan tersebut terlihat seperti bergerak di layar telepon genggam. Selain itu ada banyak ukiran alat kelamin pria dan wanita juga. Pemandu kita bercerita bahwa ini adalah budaya Lan Na. Sebelum Thailand menjadi negara, bagian utara dulunya adalah kerajaan Lan Na dan penduduknya tidak berbusana. 

Antri di Aroy Dee.

Rumah Hitam menjadi penutup tur singkat ke Chiang Rai. Kita lantas kembali ke Gerbang Tha Phae di Chiang Mai. Dari sana kita berjalan ke Aroy Dee. Makanan Thai di sini murah dan lezat. Kita memesan telur dadar, kari hijau, tom yum, kangkung, ayam goreng, kelapa, bir, smoothie dan lain-lain, namun total biaya makan malam cuma THB 800 (sekitar IDR 350 ribu). Sungguh layak untuk direkomendasikan! 

Seusai santap malam, kita belanja oleh-oleh di Supermarket Rimping yang berlokasi di dalam MAYA. Di malam pertama kita di Chiang Mai, kita sempat melihat cahaya neon di seberang jalan, jadi kita pun melihat ada apa gerangan di sana. Ternyata ini tempat minum dan kumpul. Setelah berfoto-foto, kita kembali ke hotel karena masih ada satu tempat tujuan lagi di keesokan harinya. 

Mengunjungi Doi Suthep.

Dan tempat yang hendak kita kunjungi di pagi hari adalah Doi Suthep. Setibanya di sana, kita mendaki 320 anak tangga. Setelah melihat kuil, kita pergi ke sudut bangunan dengan pemandangan mengarah ke lembah. Kota Chiang Mai tepat ada di bawah, tapi kondisinya berawan dan berkabut sehingga kita gagal menyaksikan matahari terbit. 

Kembali ke kawasan hotel untuk sarapan pagi, kita makan di Black Gooseberry. Tempat ini sepertinya memang populer, sebab padat pengunjungnya, bahkan sampai harus antri. Dan makanannya tidak mengecewakan. Kastar empat warna, roti bakar hitam dan mienya memang enak. Sesudah sarapan, kita berjalan ke kantor pos karena mengirim kartu pos adalah tradisi liburan.

Bahkan logonya pun ada panda!

Hari masih cukup pagi sewaktu urusan pos sudah beres. Karena masih ada waktu, kita putuskan untuk ke Kebun Binatang Chiang Mai yang terletak tidak jauh dari hotel. Kebun binatang ini memiliki panda di logo dan di hampir setiap sudutnya, jadi bayangkan betapa kagetnya kita saat penjual karcis mengabarkan bahwa pandanya sudah tiada. Yang lebih kocak lagi, kabar tersebut disampaikan pas uang dan karcis berpindah tangan. Semua kaget dan tergelitik di saat yang sama, sampai-sampai kita tergelak cukup lama.

Jadi kita pun masuk ke kebun binatang yang tidak berpanda. Tempatnya luas, tapi tidak begitu terawat. Kita berjalan mendaki karena tanjakan di sana-sini. Setelah melihat badak India dan merak, kita naik tram ke pintu keluar. 

Ngopi di Wawee Coffee.

Kita kembali ke Novotel untuk mengambil koper, makan siang di MAYA dan meluncur ke bandara. Karena masih ada waktu sejam, kita pun ngopi dulu. Dua jam kemudian, kita sudah mengudara menuju Singapura. Pendaratan di Changi pun mengakhiri liburan bersama Kapten Thailand. Kita berfoto untuk satu kali terakhir dan berpisah jalan. Hal yang baik memang harus ada akhirnya, namun semua ini menyisakan kenangan yang membuat kita sedikit lebih kaya dari sebelumnya... 

Captain Thailand In Chiang Mai

The story of Captain Thailand began back in last July, during lunch time. I stared at the trip to Pontianak that would happen in September. At that time, it was the only trip left in 2023, so I couldn't help wondering that it'd be a long while before I am going for another trip again in April 2024. It would certainly be nice to have a short trip in January, wouldn't it? 

While daydreaming, I was toying with the idea of Chiang Mai in our group chat as I hadn't been there before. I didn't expect much, so I was surprised that of all people, Hendra suddenly said he was keen to go!  

Hendra (left), with Surianto and Taty at Changi Airport.

An unlikely candidate, Hendra never went overseas with us before. The last trip he did with us was Tour de Java and he was the first to bow out from Japan trip last year. I was extremely intrigued that he wanted to see Chiang Mai. Thus the moniker Captain Thailand was born and Hendra became our captain. 

As usual, things happened rather quickly when it was another trip by Robinson Travel. Interested members were gathered and tickets were settled. Instagram links were shared in the group, giving me the rough ideas what the members would like to see. It was a good thing, as I couldn't for the life of me figure out what to do in Chiang Mai. 

Arriving at Chiang Mai Airport.
(Photo By Surianto)

Six months later, we arrived in our destination. Cicilia and Hendra had flown in earlier from Jakarta and we took the same flight from Singapore to Chiang Mai. The airport felt dated, but things were quite efficient there. We booked Grab, checked into Novotel, then began exploring the city on foot. 

We reached a local eatery not very far from our hotel. It was situated right next to MAYA Lifestyle Shopping Center. We stopped there and had our first Thai food in Chiang Mai. I personally find it interesting that our captain thought pad thai was too sweet when I normally eat it with sugar when in Thailand.

Taty and Cicilia waiting for their first meal.

Once we were done dining, we had a glimpse of MAYA and continued walking to Old Town. Half way there, we passed by a roadside stall called ราชาบะหมี่ เกี๊ยว ปู หมูแดง. It was crowded and Google Translate said this is the King of Noodles, so we sat down and ordered. Turned out to be good!

We resumed walking towards Old Town after that. Some parts of the city felt like Pontianak. The stretch heading to Hard Rock Cafe reminded me of Legian in Bali. But two things stood out in Chiang Mai, though: the cleanliness and the pavement. The city was really clean and the pavement was so wide that it was nice for walking in a breezy night. 

Making our way to Old Town.

From Hard Rock Cafe (because it was a must-visit), we browsed the night market and had a drink at Kalare Night Bazaar, then we Grabbed back to Novotel. Since there were five of us, we soon learnt that we either took GrabVan or Grab RodDaeng. The normal Grab didn't have enough space for five. 

We returned to Old Town on the following day, this time by taking a songthaew. This is the one called Grab RodDaeng. Had our breakfast at Chiang Mai Breakfast World. The rice soup was delicious. Next stop was Tha Phae Gate, because Cicilia wanted to feed the pigeons.

Trying out Grab RodDaeng.

Mae Kampong was our next destination. It was on a mountaintop, so we booked a van to get there. The van window had a Rambo sticker and Tom was one helluva driver that made us hold on tight, so we nicknamed him Rambo. We reached Mae Kampong around 11:21 AM and we would stay there for three hours. 

Mae Kampong is basically a small village with only one main road. Shops are lining up on both sides of the road. Thanks to its nice weather, it offers a relaxed atmosphere that suits the leisure mood. We walked as far as we could before having a coffee break at ฮ่อมดอย Coffee. The place was secluded and we were the only customers!

At ฮ่อมดอย Coffee, Mae Kampong.

After Mae Kampong, we headed back to the city and went to the Big Bee Farm because Cicilia would like buy some honey. The salesman did the presentation and we ate all the honey products he offered to us, haha. Later that night, we returned to Old Town and had our dinner at Lanna Square. My turn to get my first plate of pad thai with sugar!

The night was ended with a cabaret show. We waited at Anusarn Market as the show only began at 9.30pm. Some of us had never seen a cabaret, so they were enjoying it. Memorable moments including a rose squeezed by butt cheeks! As for me, I was nervous because I stood the closest to the stage. True enough, one of them came to tickle my chin!

Waiting for the cabaret show to start.

Kapten Thailand Di Chiang Mai

Cerita tentang Kapten Thailand ini bermula di bulan Juli silam, di saat jam makan siang. Kala itu saya terpaku menatap liburan ke Pontianak di bulan September yang tertera di aplikasi TripIt saya. Itu adalah satu-satunya rencana liburan 2023 yang tersisa pada saat itu, jadi saya pun membayangkan betapa lamanya saya harus menunggu hingga liburan berikutnya di bulan April 2024. Tentunya lebih menyenangkan bila ada satu liburan singkat di bulan Januari, bukan?  

Sambil melamun, saya iseng bertanya di grup SMA, apakah ada yang berminat ke Chiang Mai karena saya belum pernah ke sana. Di luar dugaan, Hendra ternyata berminat! 

Hendra (kiri), bersama Surianto dan Taty di Changi. 

Perlu dijelaskan bahwa Hendra ini adalah kandidat yang mengejutkan. Dia tidak pernah bertualang bersama kita ke luar negeri. Hendra hanya ikut serta dalam Tour de Java di tahun 2019 dan dia juga calon peserta pertama yang mengundurkan diri dari liburan ke Jepang. Saya jadi tergelitik oleh keinginannya untuk ke Chiang Mai. Dari sinilah lahir gelar Kapten Thailand yang kemudian disandang oleh Hendra. 

Seperti biasa, proses persiapan berlangsung cepat bilamana liburannya diselenggarakan oleh Robinson Travel. Yang mau ikut serta segera dikumpulkan dan pembelian tiket pun dibereskan. Cuplikan Instagram dibagikan di grup dan memberikan gambaran pada saya, apa yang kira-kira ingin dilihat oleh para peserta. Ini masukan yang bagus, terutama karena saya kesulitan untuk menemukan daya tarik Chiang Mai, hehe. 

Mendarat di Chiang Mai Airport.
(Foto oleh Surianto)

Enam bulan kemudian, kita mendarat di tempat tujuan. Cicilia dan Hendra terbang dari Jakarta, lalu kita berangkat bersama dari Singapura ke Chiang Mai. Bandara di kota kedua terbesar di Thailand ini kelihatan tua, tapi proses imigrasinya cukup efisien. Kita lantas naik Grab menuju Novotel, lalu mulai berjalan kaki menyusuri kota. 

Persinggahan pertama adalah tempat makan yang berada tak jauh dari hotel. Lokasinya pas di samping mal MAYA. Hari sudah menjelang malam, jadi kita pun menyantap menu Thai pertama kita. Kapten kita berpendapat bahwa pad thai ini terlalu manis. Satu komentar yang menarik karena saya justru biasa menambahkan gula pasir di pad thai saya. 

Taty dan Cicilia menunggu makan malam.

Seusai makan, kita masuk sebentar ke MAYA, lalu meneruskan perjalanan ke Kota Tua. Di tengah perjalanan, kita melewati tempat makan di kaki lima yang bernama ราชาบะหมี่ เกี๊ยว ปู หมูแดง. Ramai tempatnya dan menurut Google Translate, tempat makan ini disebut Raja Mie, jadi kita pun duduk dan memesan tiga mangkok untuk berlima. Lezat nian!

Setelah itu, kita lanjut lagi ke Kota Tua. Beberapa sudut kota terasa mirip dengan Pontianak. Sepanjang jalan yang mengarah ke Hard Rock Cafe pun bernuansa seperti Legian di Bali. Akan tetapi ada dua hal yang sangat menarik perhatian saya: kebersihan dan trotoar di Chiang Mai. Kotanya sungguh bersih dan trotoarnya juga lebar, sangat nyaman untuk berjalan kaki menikmati udara malam yang sejuk. 

Menuju ke Kota Tua. 

Dari Hard Rock Cafe (karena ini tempat yang wajib untuk dikunjungi), kita melihat-lihat dagangan pasar malam dan beristirahat sejenak di Kalare Night Bazaar. Dari situ kita berjalan sampai ke ujung jalan dan pulang dengan Grab. Karena kita berlima, kita akhirnya menyadari bahwa pilihan yang lebih cocok adalah GrabVan atau Grab RodDaeng. Grab biasa tidak memiliki cukup tempat untuk berlima. 

Keesokan paginya, kita kembali lagi ke Kota Tua. Kali ini kita naik songthaew yang dipanggil lewat opsi Grab RodDaeng. Kita sarapan di Chiang Mai Breakfast World dan saya memesan sup nasi. Sesudah mengisi perut, kita mampir ke Gerbang Tha Phae karena Cicilia ingin memberi makan burung merpati. 

Naik songthaew. 

Mae Kampong menjadi tujuan berikutnya. Lokasinya di puncak gunung, jadi kita memesan mobil van untuk ke sana. Di jendela mobil ada stiker Rambo dan supirnya memang jagoan, jadi kita juluki Rambo. Kita tiba kira-kira pada pukul 11:21 pagi dan berjalan-jalan tiga jam lamanya di sana. 

Mae Kampong ini ternyata cuma sebuah desa kecil yang memiliki satu jalan dan deretan toko di kiri-kanannya. Enak cuacanya, jadi suasana pun terasa santai. Kita terus berjalan hingga ke ujung, lalu beristirahat di kedai ฮ่อมดอย Coffee. Tempat ini terpencil dan rombongan kita adalah satu-satunya pengunjung!

Di Mae Kampong.

Dari Mae Kampong, kita kembali ke kota dan singgah di Big Bee Farm sebab Cicilia ingin membeli madu. Di tempat ini, penjual menjelaskan produknya dan kita tinggal icip-icip, haha. Di malam harinya, kita pergi ke Kota Tua lagi, kali ini makan malam di Lanna Square. Sekarang giliran saya menyantap pad thai dengan gula!

Dan malam itu ditutup dengan pertunjukan kabaret. Kita menunggu di Anusarn Market karena kabaret baru mulai jam 21:30. Beberapa di antara kita belum pernah menonton kabaret, jadi mereka sangat menikmati hiburan ini. Salah satu kenangan lucu adalah mawar yang dijepit di pantat. Bagi saya sendiri, saya agak gugup karena posisi saya paling dekat dengan panggung. Dan benar saja, seorang banci akhirnya mendekat dan menggelitik dagu saya! 

Menunggu pertunjukan kabaret dimulai.

2023 In My Mind

I rarely write a year-in-review. The only time I did it was, perhaps, in 2020. The first year of COVID-19. Very unusual, a pandemic of an unprecedented scale, and it was bleak. The future was so uncertain that I just had to write about hope and survival. 

Considering how gloomy it was previously, the year 2023 felt liberating. It was also different than 2022, when the world was opening. All the travels done last year felt like trial runs. I remember a driver in Kolkata telling me that nobody wore mask there because COVID was no more. It sounded almost comical then, until it was proven to be true in 2023.

Hence the trips I had this year: Manila, Tokyo, Kawazu, Yuzawa, Niigata, Yokohama, Hakone, Doha, Geneva, Lyon, Interlaken, Lucerne, Zürich, Vaduz, Innsbruck, Salzburg, Bangalore, Pontianak, Jakarta and Batam. I went to places I hadn't been, I rediscovered the places I had seen. Talk about a freedom regained! It was good to be out and about again!

The 20 destinations mentioned above!

Dreams did come true in 2023, all right. But the best part of the travels was never something I planned. No, moments that happened once in a lifetime couldn't be engineered. They happened spontaneously, the way life should be. You had to be there at the right time. These moments couldn't be recreated and you could only be grateful knowing that you had been part of them.  

And I was blessed with not only one, but three moments like this while I was in Japan: the cold night at a tiny sake bar in Ueno; Parno at Hard Rock Cafe; the time Eday and I discovered Snow Drop in Asakusa. Those moments would forever be mine. Ones that I will cherish for the rest of my life. 

Travels. Dreams. Moments. These alone would have made it a great year, but 2023 still had more to offer. Even when the experience wasn't exactly pleasant, I still treasured and learnt from it. Yes, I was referring to the day I sprained my ankle. Ironic though it was, we made it all the more memorable by choosing to have some fun and laugh about it. At the same time, it also reminded me of what John Lennon had sung before: life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans. He was right. Life is fragile, so live to the fullest while you can. 

Once upon a time on a wheelchair.

And 2023 was also the year I conquered my fear. I was a nervous wreck whenever the water level reached my neck. I had a phobia that the water would go into my ears if I submerged. I felt like drowning when I was lying face down in the water. For the past 42 years in my life, I couldn't swim. 

Swimming felt impossible until one day in 2023, when I opened my eyes and found myself afloat. Just like that, the fear suddenly subsided. Unbelievable. But it didn't happen instantly for sure. I lost my balance and panicked many, many times. I choked on water and indeed it went into my ears. I even wondered why my progress was so slow that I might never succeed. But similar to learning how to ride a bike or drive a car, I paid my dues. Then for the first time ever, I swam. Not really good, but I guess it can only get better. 

And 2023 was equally great even when it wasn't about me. My wife, she had dreamt of going to Switzerland since God knows how long. There was also the Sound of Music in Austria, of course. For that few hours in her life, she was simply that little girl who finally fulfilled the dream that began years ago, when her father introduced Julie Andrews to her. I am just glad I was there to make it come true. 

Yani and the Sound of Music.

To top it off, there was Now and Then, the last Beatles song ever. So poignant, sentimental, just the kind of closure I needed as this year headed to an end. Seriously, what else can a person ask for in this lifetime? I can only be thankful that 2023 had been brilliant. I don't know what 2024 will bring, but this year certainly taught me that one can't be too afraid to live!

2023 Di Benak Saya

Saya jarang menulis tentang ulasan tahun yang saya jalani. Sekali-sekalinya saya menulis topik ini mungkin di tahun 2020, tahun pertama COVID-19. Sungguh berbeda, sebuah pandemi dengan skala yang belum pernah saya lihat sebelumnya, dan tampak suram. Masa depan terlihat tidak pasti dan saya ingin bercerita tentang harapan dan bertahan hidup. 

Dibandingkan dengan kesuraman di zaman korona, 2023 terasa merdeka. Meski korona mulai berakhir di tahun 2022, dunia baru perlahan-lahan membuka diri dan semua perjalanan di tahun tersebut terasa seperti uji-coba. Saya ingat dengan perkataan supir saya di Kolkata bahwa COVID sudah tamat, makanya tidak ada yang memakai masker di sana. Ucapannya terasa kocak saat itu, namun akhirnya terbukti benar di tahun 2023. 

Karena itulah saya melanglang buana di tahun ini: Manila, Tokyo, Kawazu, Yuzawa, Niigata, Yokohama, Hakone, Doha, Jenewa, Lyon, Interlaken, Lucerne, Zürich, Vaduz, Innsbruck, Salzburg, Bangalore, Pontianak, Jakarta dan Batam. Saya pergi ke tempat yang belum pernah saya kunjungi dan saya menemukan kembali tempat-tempat yang sudah saya datangi. Sungguh sebuah kebebasan yang diperoleh kembali! Senang rasanya bisa seperti ini lagi. 

20 tujuan yang disebutkan di atas!

Banyak impian terwujud di tahun 2023, tapi hal-hal terbaik dalam perjalanan ini bukan sesuatu yang saya rencanakan. Oh, segala sesuatu yang berkesan itu tidak bisa direkayasa. Semua ini terjadi secara spontan seperti halnya hidup ini. Kita hanya bisa berharap ada di sana di saat yang tepat. Dan untuk semua yang tidak bisa dirancang ulang ini, kita hanya bisa bersyukur bahwa kita bisa menjadi bagian dari peristiwa tersebut. 

Dan saya diberkati tidak hanya satu, tapi tiga peristiwa menyentuh sewaktu berada di Jepang: di malam yang dingin, di sebuah kedai sake kecil di Ueno; Parno di Hard Rock Cafe; di kala Eday dan saya menemukan Snow Drop di Asakusa. Tiga kejadian ini akan selalu menjadi kenangan indah yang akan hidup sampai akhir hayat saya. 

Berkelana. Impian. Momen. Tiga hal ini sudah cukup untuk membuat tahun ini luar biasa, tapi 2023 masih memiliki banyak kejadian lainnya. Bahkan ketika pengalaman tersebut tidak menyenangkan pun saya masih bersyukur dan bisa belajar dari apa yang terjadi. Ya, yang saya maksudkan adalah ketika kaki saya terkilir. Meski ironis, kita masih bisa menyikapi kejadian itu dengan canda dan tawa. Di saat yang sama, musibah tersebut juga mengingatkan saya tentang apa yang pernah dinyanyikan oleh John Lennon: hidup adalah apa yang terjadi ketika engkau sedang sibuk merencanakan hal lain. John benar. Hidup itu rapuh, maka hiduplah sepenuhnya selagi bisa. 

Suatu ketika di kursi roda.

Dan di tahun 2023 juga saya menaklukkan rasa takut saya. Saya sangat gelisah bila ketinggian air sudah mencapai leher. Saya memiliki fobia bahwa air akan masuk ke telinga kalau saya menyelam. Saya merasa akan tenggelam bilamana posisi saya tengkurap dengan wajah terendam air. Dalam 42 tahun terakhir, saya tidak bisa berenang. 

Dan berenang terasa mustahil sampai suatu hari di tahun 2023, tatkala saya membuka mata di dalam air dan menyadari bahwa saya mengapung. Di saat itu pula, rasa takut itu sirna. Sulit dipercaya. Tapi tentu saja semua ini tidak terjadi dalam sekejap. Entah berapa kali sudah saya kehilangan keseimbangan dan panik. Saya tersedak air dan telinga pun kemasukan air. Saya bahkan berkecil hati, kenapa perkembangan saya pelan dan merasa mungkin saya tidak akan bisa. Namun seperti halnya kita belajar sepeda atau mengemudi mobil, jerih-payah saya terbayarkan. Kemudian, untuk pertama kalinya, saya bisa berenang. Masih perlu banyak latihan, tapi saya rasa perkembangannya akan semakin baik. 

Dan 2023 masih tetap terasa menakjubkan, bahkan ketika segala sesuatu itu bukanlah tentang saya. Istri saya sudah lama mendambakan untuk pergi ke Swiss. Dia juga sangat menyukai the Sound of Music yang berlatar Austria. Dan untuk beberapa jam dalam hidupnya, dia akhirnya mewujudkan impiannya sedari kecil yang bermula sewaktu ayahnya memperkenalkan Julie Andrews kepadanya. Saya senang bisa membantunya mewujudkan semua itu. 

Yani dan the Sound of Music.

Selain itu, ada pula Now and Then, lagu terakhir the Beatles. Ada perasaan senang bercampur sedih saat menyadari bahwa kisah terhebat di abad 20 itu pun akhirnya tuntas ditutup dengan lagu ini. Jadi apa lagi yang bisa diharapkan seseorang dalam hidup yang penuh berkah ini? Saya hanya bisa berterima kasih karena tahun ini sudah begitu dahsyat dan penuh kesan. Saya tidak tahu apa yang akan terjadi di 2024, tapi yang jelas tahun ini mengingatkan saya kembali untuk tidak terlalu khawatir dalam hidup ini!