Life to the Fullest! 😘

My mom told me that I did everything that I love and I think that will be right and my mom also worried after I told her that I don't have enough time to traveling. For 25 years of my life I always do whatever that I want and I always break the rules and I really hate when I need to stay at the cage. But, my world is going upside-down now ~ What I define as PERFECT life is really hard to achieve when everything is in control everything well organized. My friend said that I am totally freak with that routine and everything in place. No No, I am not that kind of FREAK people who want everything in the right place. I also love to be messy but I think that depend on with someone that I think that closed enough with me. hahaha.

Now, I would like to write about what I think to life to the fullest if they said YOLO (You Only Live Once) I'll say just stayed to be yourself. I just read Jessica Hagy's book How to be INTERESTING and I think that I found someone who have the same idea with me about how to have an interesting life. It's not only about how much you have, how many friend that you have, and how your life in the other people eyes. No No No. It's more than that because your self satisfaction is determine by you and only you. No one will know what kind of things that will satisfied you.

This is how I tried to life to the fullest with my own version of happiness !! It's will be vary to everyone. It's only what I want to write (before China block the VPN and I can't write this blog anymore). 

1. Be yourself! YES YOU!

You'll never WRONG to be YOU. You have your own preference, your own standard and your own style. Why you need to be someone else when you are more than enough when you become yourself. I think when you brand yourself as what you want people think about you and brainwash the other what you want them to see you. It doesn't matter what people think and what people say behind your back, no one will be that perfect until no one talk about them. Everyone has their own mistakes and you can't make everyone like you, just make sure that you have more friend than enemy. hahaha

2. Never say ENOUGH

After I watched the greatest showman, it's a big mistake to always say never enough but that the truth. That a human being to say that I am not ENOUGH. hahaha. From the other point of view I think its a really great way to achieve something big and bigger than you think. It's okay to be greedy for something and have a really BIG DREAM. For me, if I say enough to something means that I will stop doing that or I never do that again. I will STOP and not getting what I want and sometime I am regret about that. I have a lot of regret but I also couldn't turn back time. The only thing than I need to set is never say enough to whatever that I want the most.

3.Everything is POSSIBLE, you just need to TRY

I remember about "What Faith Can Do" song,  -Impossible is not a word it's just a reason for someone not to try- that's what the lyrics said. You will never know what will happen if you never try. You need to try, and sometimes you need to fall down and then struggling and then want to die but you need to wake up and try again. TRY and TRY again. Everything is POSSIBLE at the right time with right people, so you need to find the right partner to be crazy with you and to accomplish that with you and has a same vision with you. I told to myself that if I don't want to fail just never try but I also never know what will be happen next if I accomplish that. Dream will always be a dream until you wake up and make it happen.

4. It's okay to be ALONE, but you won't feel LONELY

Several days ago, I talked with my friend and he said that I need to have more ME time ~ I tried this before I went out ALONE, but I look around and I felt that I am not lonely. That will be the golden time for you to realized what good and to be grateful with you have. Trust me that will be the greatest way to healing your exhausted day.

5. TRAVELING MORE, it's not about how far you go
I am not telling you to spend all of your money for traveling, you need to get some sunlight ~ Traveling is about getting something new at new place with new people (stranger maybe).

6. EAT. PRAY. LOVE
I never think before that I will think this movie title will be really good way to describe how you have a fullest life. First think that you need to remember is FOOD, and then you need to keep praying to your GOD because that will be a HOPE and the last is LOVE from the others, your family, your friends, your dogs, just anyone around you. hahaha.

China's Starter Kit

Hi, I am back and now I write using my laptop, it is more comfortable for me ~ hahaha. It's really hard to write from my phone and there is a lot of Google verification step that required a lot of time because I need to use the VPN ~

So, after I moved to Chongqing (China), that's really a whole new world for me. I need to connected to VPN before I opened my daily apps on my phone and then if I want to use the China apps I need to turn off that VPN, there are a lot of changes that I need to adapt here.

So, here are some of tips and trick that you need to know before you move to China and there is a rumor that the VPNs will be banded (officially) at the end of February, OMG that will be make me crazy for a while but I am sure that I can adapt with that for sure after several months. hahaha. Let's back to the point. 

1. Use 4G smartphone

Make sure that your smartphone is 4G, I used my previous phone, Xiaomi Note 2, which said 4G phone, but not (but when my friend use this it shows as 4G *damn*). Actually, when I used the wi fi everything is okay but when I used the mobile data sometime that will be really really slow, especially when it showed as 2G signal (E), but if you don't really use that for facebook, instagram or any other apps that will be okay. But, the WeChat pay can't be use at several place because of that will be no signal if we didn't use 4G connection.

After that I decided to but a new smartphone, Mi 6, 4G+ connection but it's only sold in China so it must be connected with the Google first, if not BYE WORLD. hahaha. I have a friend who also used Mi 6 and couldn't use PlayStore. I really can't do that without any google apps. hahaha. There is also one of the minus point for China's phone is can't update your VPNs based apps perfectly, because some of instagram features can't be updated on my phone T.T

2. Download VPNs

If you are from abroad, like to update and stalking people by their SNS you really need to download VPNs. Like I said before that the VPNs will be block soon. We are still not sure about that because the news only mention registered apps and the public internet provider not the private internet provider but that only will works with the wi fi router. hahaha. What kind of VPNs that we can used and which one is the best. If you want to keep connected with the VPNs the paid ones will be better but if you only want to update and play around maybe the free one is okay. 

Nowadays, the free one is really hard to connect especially if you use the mobile data, maybe the effect of BAND THE VPNs project ~ and I used china mobile as my provider. For the paid VPNs, Astrill is really good, but it takes 180 yuan/year/id and you need to have a promotion and also that you need to buy 6 ID directly when you want to purchase with that price. The other option is VPN.AC it's cheaper than Astrill and my friend also said it's quite good and it's only 55 yuan/year :D :D it's 1/3 of Astrill price right? But, if you think that you don't really need that kind of VPNs, you can use the free one and you need to download that before you enter China. 

I used Monster VPN, Turbo VPN, and psiphon and I think they are quite good with 4G smartphone of course, when I use my old smartphone sometime they are not work really well with data service but okay with the wi fi ~

3. Download Dictionary

This is the most essential things that you need to download after VPNs!! If they said that Chinese People can speak english that a big LIE! Hufft, I took an english program here but the environment is Chinese so I need to adapt with that language barrier again. There are several apps that will be helpful, but I preferred to use Baidu Translate and Pleco. Most of my Chinese friends using google translate (translate.google.com.cn) and they didn't need VPNs for that features. I prefer Pleco but for a whole sentences Baidu Translate is better to identify what they want to say. 

For my first month in China, I prefer to use Baidu Translate because that easier to use and I really blind with that Chinese words so, Baidu help me a lot especially with the photo features and also talks features. But, after a while and I need to learn more Chinese, Baidu didn't help me a lot. hahha. Pleco help me to write and how to write with the stroke, that's really look like a big data dictionary but only for words not sentences.

4. Useful Apps

Last things that you need to know and learn is what kind of China Apps that you need to have.  I already mention several apps above but China has a lot of Apps and you need that if you stay for a long time because that will save your money and trust me nothing cheap in China. 

Social Media (that I used here):

• WeChat, we chat is widely use by people here because of their features but because WeChat don't really give all out for Chinese User, I think they only use that to communicated with foreigner and the features maybe will be not really fancy like QQ. Basically if I need to compare this apps with my normal apps, this will be a WhatsApp.
• QQ, it is more fancy that WeChat because it's more like for youngster with a lot of modification and it's also contained a really cute features and news. It's really look like LINE but because that features only applied for Chinese Apps not International QQ it's harder to use for foreigner and they don't have translation features on China QQ. 
• Weibo, if "world" has Facebook and Instagram, China has Weibo - It's totally look a like but because I don't understand what the features of this and that so I only find the update from my favorite idol (Kpop) and then translate that but if I have VPNs I prefer to see the update from my normal SNS platform. 

Entertainment & Shopping:

• Taobao, I think most of people know Taobao so well, my cousin who stayed in Singapore also know about this apps. I never heard about that before I moved to China and I really don't know how to use that because everything in Chinese. Yes PRACTICE makes PERFECT. hahha After a month I can use this apps perfectly and buy a lot of things with this apps. hahaha. It's really fun to use this apps and it's also has a lot of official store, I need to pay for the shipment fee but it's okay then spent a whole day to go around the mall and the price is exactly the same and sometimes the goods also can't be found at the store.
• Taobao additional Apps - I also not sure what the name of this apps, but this apps can provide a lot of voucher for our "targeted" product from Taobao and it also has a special features to give you a list of 9.9  yuan products, I really love to scrolls that apps. hahaha
• Mini Apps from WeChat, this apps also has their own name but because I found it on WeChat and every payment is connected to WeChat so I said this apps as Mini Apps from WeChat. It's also has 9.9 yuan features and sometime a random cheap price like a lottery but I never get that. hahaha
• JD.com, if you want to buy an electronic products this apps or website is really worth to visit. The quality is better than Taobao for electronics only but I never use this apps because I am not really interested with electronics stuff.
• QQ Music, if you love music and really like to listen from JOOX or Spotify but don't want to use your VPNs this apps will be your favorite apps. But, if you use VPNs, this apps won't work and you need to pay for that.
• Alipay, this apps it the KEY for everything ~ you can buy everything with this apps, you don't need to bring your wallet, you only need ALIPAY. hahaha. It has a lot of features but it's only for transaction I think WeChat has more and the price sometimes WeChat features is cheaper so if you like to compare the price you can compare ALIPAY with WECHATPAY :D

Productivity:

• Baidu Maps, I think every country has their own apps for this apps. China also have a lot of maps apps but because Baidu is more understandable to foreigner I prefer to use this apps. Sometime it's wrong and they said from weibo there is a rumor about Baidu but I don't care about that. 
• QQ Mail, if you want to get the update form you gmail without VPNs use this QQ Mail and register your email. You'll get the update without using any VPN.

Chongqing Lyfe

I moved to Chongqing since last September (End of September exactly), leaving everything behind and come to nowhere! Have you ever heard Chongqing before? For me, that's the first time I heard Chongqing.

I decided to continuing my study and took the same degree with my undergraduate studies. After 1.5 years of work at biopharmaceutical field (without knowing how to do this and that because I only read and talked with the customer), I tried to take Biomedical Engineering. Actually, it's not totally new for me but I don't know why I felt like this is not my calling (again) after I spent 4 years of Biotechnology life and 1.5 years struggling to keep work at the same field.

How's life? Not Bad, but Not 50% Good. Haha. Standing in the crowd and taking a long time to adapt is not an easy task for me after I left everything that I love behind including my freedom to travel.

Am I HAPPY? Sure, if I am not happy I can't write it. Now, I already love some part of Chongqing life but still not adapt with the culture of "lies" and "okay". With "work hard" that literally "work hard" not "smart work". Have a small circle of friend when I expect that "International" life will be greater than my Kaset life but nothing! Maybe because I was too tired to go out from my room and there is no living room to meet up and also they didn't have too much "international activities" because they need to "work hard"

Maybe I'll realize the meaning of "work hard" after I spend all of my three years in here. Hahaha

That's all for now. This will be the start of my post about my Chongqing life and Happy New Year!!

KPOP CONCERT : STANDING VS SEATING

Recently, I went to CN Blue #BetweenUsinJKT & #MusicBankinSG, this time I would like to review about the seating plan, is it better to standing or sitting? When I watched CNBlue I prefer seating (that also because the cheapest one is seating) and I watched standing pen A at #MusicBankinSG.

I felt I enjoyed the stage when I sitting than standing because I can saw a whole stage and I can hear the song better because the sound might be better at the back. When your bias came you can saw them but you can't saw them face to face, so this time I decided to choose to stand for #MusicBankinSG because I want to saw Shinee and CN Blue closer than when I sat. Then my queuing number was 12xx which means that that will be really far from the stage. But, I think that might be okay because we can move anywhere during the show and you can saw your bias closer if they're off from the stage. Here are the differences between taking a video from standing area and seating area.

Intro #MusicBankinSG : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgOcoeZmGQA&t=32s

Ending #MusicBankinSG : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLzL6GvLKJE&t=4s

[#BetweenUsinJKT] still on progress

from that video, you can saw that the cheering is really awesome and sometimes someone can hit your camera or your head if you stand in front of them and they couldn't see anything because you're taller than them.

So, here are the lists what is better when you sitting during the concert :

1. When you are too tired you can sit in awhile at proper chair

Standing for approx. 3 hours is quite long and when you already spent your energy to sing along with the artist and also when the place really crowd and space is limited that might be tiresome. 

If you are on standing area, you can sit at the back, but you couldn't see anything

2. You can bring your Tele lens for your mobile phone and you can get better photo than standing

These days, the technology is really helping a lot, with your phone's camera you can add Tele lens which can be zoom up to 12x and the result also good enough if you compare to your phone result and zoom. The resolution is good and you don't need to find any area which doesn't have any head which blocked your sight.

3. If the chair is ascending, choose the end of the row and you can stand

As I did during #BetweenUsinJKT, I moved to the end of the row and I stand for a whole time during the concert, sometimes I sat but I prefer to stand !! You also can felt the energy from your bias. lol

AND here are the lists what is better when you are standing during the concert :

1. No one cares when you shout and cheers for your bias!

I met with someone who just recorded a whole concert without singing or cheering, I don't know why she spent that much only for record and didn't enjoy anything. Someone I know (my new friend) sat beside her and she was screaming when Yonghwa did an aegyo, and she (the one who record) angry to my new friend. DAMN! I think I spent a lot to watch why I can't do as I want.

2. You can move as much as you want

You can move when you sit because the other chair might belong to anyone who still on their way to the venue.

3. Feel free to get closer!

When you stand in the front row everyone will scold you because you blocked the other view. When you stand when the other move to the back or move closer you also can move closer to the stage.

I'll give any update soon about this with #BetweenUsinJKT concert video footage from my seat !! :D

Chiang Mai Trip - Day 3

Our last day in Chiang Mai is really complicated, because our flight was cancelled and we didn't get any notification about that. We also never been to Chiang Mai, if we lost in Bangkok that might be safer for us because we have been stayed there for a long time and we also have several friends there.

Our morning is still good, but we couldn't face the reality that we need to go back to work again :')

The driver picked us in the morning and we went to Doi Suthep, we read that place is near with our hotel, but to reach that place we need to drive for approx. 30 minutes from our hotel. We stop to buy our breakfast because we couldn't find any Seven Eleven around our hotel. Doi Suthep has a really long stairs but we decided to paid more and use the elevator instead using that stairs. 

Here is the famous place aka the temple of Doi Suthep :

This temple is quite small if I compared with the other temple that I ever visited in Thailand, but I think this temple is quite famous, they also have a meditation area and the suit of the decreased king while he did the ritual as a monk there. 

Because we still have several time, we decided to go to another place, but the tiger kingdom is quite far and our driver suggested us to go to Bhubing Palace

This palace is one of Thailand's Royal Palace, so you need to use the proper clothes as you visited Grand Palace, the security was quite strict to let the visitor to came to this palace. We came with several China Tourist but they took a lot of beauty picture instead visiting every part of that palace. We did that, we come to every corner of that Palace and there are an army who following us, we think that they treat us so well or maybe they really think that we will do something bad, because no one go to that peak as we do. First, they took photo for theirselves, but after that they told us the way that we need to choose.

The flowers are really nice and there are armies who guard that area. I don't think that we look like a naive but we talked a lot and that Palace is quite big and we late to go back to the van to go to the airport :'(

When we arrived at the airport we couldn't find any announcement for the check in counter for Malindo Air, we asked the staff but they also don't know and they told us to asked Thai Lion Air. Their staff said that our flight was cancelled and we need to go to Bangkok first and then go to KL and Jakarta, but the other problem is we will arrived in Jakarta on the next morning. We didn't prepare anything to stayed in KL and we don't have any plan there.

That's the hectic day ever on our holiday, because there were a lot of trouble especially me and my friend need to do the check in again in Bangkok :( :( 

After we arrived at Kuala Lumpur we ask to the transit desk and they help us to get the hotel. We are the only passenger who flied from Chiang Mai to Jakarta that time, yeah only 4 people. So, they prepare the hotel for free but that already late and we couldn't sleep really well because our flight must be really early and we need to take the first shuttle to the airport.

The bus was broke, so we need to us the van. Yeah everything was going wrong that time. We came too early, and we waited at the airport. That's really the first time for me to sleep at the airport and I think I am okay with that. #lol

AND FINALLY, we were back to Jakarta. YEAH we arrived quite late. 

But, because that still before lunch time, there weren't any traffic so we arrived early :")

We took almost 12 hours flight only from Chiang Mai to Jakarta :(

I think that I need to take some rest, because the next day I was going to Bromo using Bus and with the open trip "group" so that will be tough !! :")

Chiang Mai - Chiang Rai 2017 - Day 2

Day 2 - Full Day Chiang Rai

We decide to spent our only full day in Chiang Mai to visited Chiang Rai, this trip approx. 8 hours only for return way fron Chiang Mai - Chiang Rai - Chiang Mai, we left early that day. 

First,

We visited the hot spring - not really hot spring anyway. 

They have a hot fountain there and you can boil your own egg (you need to purchase from the lady there), I don't know how much but there were a lot of tourist did that, but not me. We only took a photo there and went to White Temple.

Here are the beautiful flower and the fountain : 

Then we force ourselves to move to White Temple, we tried to not so hungry that time. I need to give two thumb up for the design, the one who build that temple has his own museum on that area, you can get in and that museum is FREE OF CHARGE, to go inside the temple, you need to pay 50 bath/person.

Here are some photos from white temple :

I think it will be better if we ate near white temple, but because we need to go to singha park, we decide to ate there and the food were really expensive and the taste also not that good, I prefer to ate Seven Eleven again #lol

Singha Park was good, but we came too late :( 1 p.m was too hot to visited a park ! lol

lastly, we visited long neck village, the village is really small and I also not sure is it "REAL" or not, but the girls were really pretty and doing that stuff to their neck might be hurtful and gave them the pressured. But, I think that kind of tradition also need to be known by others. So, doesn't matter if they did that only for money or that's really real, as long as they let someone know that was something like that on that area.

Here are some of my photos :

Day 2 - DONE !!

We stopped at the old fortress there, and we walked to our hotel because we were afraid that we couldn't go back to our hotel like the first day :( 

We walked for almost 10 km, but that was  fine, because we found a really good food on our way.

:) :)

Chiang Mai - Chiang Rai Day 1 - April 2017

Finally, I came to Chiang Mai this year with N' Indo gang !! yeah they are the one who did an internship in Thailand with me on 2015. We went to Bangkok first and then flied to Chiang Mai, we decided to go back to Jakarta without transiting at Bangkok, so we decided to used Malindo Air and transit at Kuala Lumpur. All of this photo are taken by us during this trip.

I already booked car for our trip to Peung (Pornpimol Puntiya) - +66898549684, we arranged the trip before and asked for the prince. I think I got quite cheap for 3 days trip using a van. I texted Peung to confirm my trip, and she said the other driver will come and pick us (driver contact : +66954535221, P' Corn). He was really nice to us and he always came before our pick up time.

I went with my 3 friends, Peung said that she will provide a car with 7 seat, but P' Corn gave us a VAN !! yeah a van for 4 people :) :) I afraid that the price will be higher, but that price is the same as we ask Peung for the 7 car seat.

When we arrived at Chiang Mai International Airport, the rain started to fall and the rain was heavier on our trip to Doi Inthanon, we spent approx. 3 hours from the airport to Doi Inthanon. But, that's really a different scenery than Bangkok. I think I love Chiang Mai more than Bangkok, because Bangkok is too hot :(

For the entrance fee for foreigner we need to pay THB 300 for the peak and the temple.
It's really a new experience for us, the right place to watch the sun set must be in this spot :

But we moved and couldn't see anything T.T but we got a really nice photo spot at the next stop

After the sun went down, we back to the city and visited the Sunday Night Market. As the one who already stay in Bangkok for a long time, and we also already spent a lot in Bangkok, we only but some stuff and food there. yeah we still didn't meet with our favorite sausage >.<

I think for the price, that market is quite expensive but most of them are same with Bangkok stuff, maybe because that market use to be a tourist spot. That market is really big and we already too tired that day T.T 

After that we tried to go back with song thew, 

we asked them to our hotel, but they didn't know where is that place and we were lost T.T

The driver also can't speak English and they also spent a lot of time because they could reach that hotel with the gmaps, the receptionist of the hotel also can't speak English and can't explain to the driver. I think the driver also mad to us, because we only pay THB 30 for each person and we also don't know where is the hotel.