Monday, January 1, 2024

2023: Year of Losing and Finding

Wah, WAAAAAAAAAH. 2023 was crazy. 2023: Year of Losing and Finding indeed. It has been a rollercoaster of emotions. I lost some people, and I found others. I lost some of my bad habits and found new ones. I lost my past self and found the new me. I genuinely thought 2023 was an end for me, I hadn't seen where I would go at the beginning of this year, I almost fell to my past self, yet, I survived. So let’s go.

Sejujurnya, aku baru nyelesain postingan yang ‘2022: Growing Old, Growing Up’ itu beberapa jam yang lalu, karena aku masih belum bisa kembali ke tahun-tahun memeras keringat itu wkwk (lebay). Aku nulis yang 2022 itu baru sampe Maret, aku nggak lanjut karena…aku nggak kuat lanjutin aja, gatau kenapa ya. Tapi aku merasa, kalo nggak aku lanjutin, bakalan ada burden juga di aku buat moving on. Anyways, mari kita ke tahun 2023!

Januari,

Mengawali tahun dengan perasaan yang campur aduk banget. Aku baru wisuda, aku belum langsung dapet kerjaan, dan aku harus ketemu sama keluarga besar di Jakarta, ngerti nggak sih rasanya? Meskipun waktu itu aku sendiri lagi ikut seleksi bersama BUMN (but I failed, lol). Gimana ya rasanya mendeskripsikan bulan Januari aku? Aku sebenernya belum selesai sama diriku di tahun 2022 lalu, masih ada sisa-sisa aku yang masih pingin hidup di 2022. Desember-Januari rasanya dragging banget, aku bingung, hilang arah, nggak tau mau ngadu ke siapa (manusia ya, kalo ngadu ke Tuhan mah tiap hari). Thankfully, di Jakarta, aku sempet jalan-jalan sendiri dan ketemu sama temenku disana, lumayan lah, ada waktu sendiri buat shutting down these voices in my head. Tapi kembali lagi ke Jogja aftermath dari kumpul keluarga besar, aku kembali hilang arah.

Unfortunately, it got worse, ketika aku putus. Yep, I broke up with my boyfriend of 7 years, my highschool sweetheart. It was hell, proses sebelum, saat dan sesudahnya itu bikin aku nangis 2 weeks straight. I got my first job too, cool, Alhamdulillah, malem harinya aku nangis lagi. I honestly don’t want to go back to December 2022-February 2023. Moving on!

Februari, Oh by the way, sejak Januari aku mulai nge-gym di Health and Sports Centre (HSC) UNY. Thanks to Devi dan Dinda yang udah merekomendasikan aku buat nge-gym di kampus sendiri, sekarang aku ketagihan nge-gym. Aku menggunakan gym sebagai sarana pelarianku, terutama pas treadmill. Aku emang biasanya jogging, in my free time, weekends biasanya, tapi aku mulai off pas skripsian, dan aku menemukan kehidupan lagi jogging di treadmill, cool. Aku juga udah mulai kerja, aku kerja di Dinas Perpustakaan dan Arsip Daerah (DPAD) DIY, dinas lagi wkwk, kayak udah takdirnya aku selalu berafiliasi sama dinas. February was like a transition phase, masih sakit sih dengerin December, Wish you Were Here sama Torn-nya Neck Deep, but I slowly healed.

Maret, I reunited with my junior high school friend in December. Berawal dari aku liat lowongan kerja, terus aku dm instagram dia, tanya dia jurusan arsitek atau teknik sipil, karena di lowongan kerja nya itu jurusannya arsitek, tapi ternyata dia jurusan teknik sipil. From that, kita move ke Line dan nge-gym bareng! funny how life’s going. Kita biasanya randomly kirim post/reels lucu-lucu di dm instagram/twitter. He has been on my dm for so long, as an old friend, tapi yaudah wkwk, dia seru aja. And now, I’m on my way to the most beautiful museum in Yogyakarta, far north, with him, repeating ‘Mirror’ by Justin Timberlake on his car’s stereo. Jehan, hi there, who would’ve thought? Ramadhan di tahun ini juga cukup berwarna, nggak banyak yang ngajakin buka bersama, dan karenanya aku merasa waktuku cukup buat buka di rumah sama keluarga. Meskipun aku merasa ibadahku masih kurang banget di Ramadhan tahun ini,aku harap, insyaallah tahun depan bisa ketemu lagi sama Ramadhan, aamiin. Sejujurnya aku pingin kembali ke masa spiritualku di SMA, aku sholat Dhuha hampir setiap hari, tadarus hampir setiap selesai maghrib dan bisa tahajud. Mungkin karena lingkungan juga aku bisa melakukan semua itu, tapi ya nggak ada alesan juga. I really need to work on that. April, Bulan April mulai kerasa sibuk di kantor, mulai banyak project dan kerjaan yang ditambah-tambah terus. Keadaan rumah juga kayaknya selalu ‘memburuk’ setiap masa akhir-akhir puasa, nggak tau perasaanku doang apa gimana. Mood-ku juga selalu buruk di hari lebaran, hari dimana harusnya bisa seneng-seneng ketemu banyak orang, salam-salaman, makan bersama, but no, masih sama kayak tahun-tahun sebelumnya. Tapi alhamdulillah, seminggu sebelum lebaran, aku sama Jehan bisa berdonasi ke Pesantren Yayasan Madania. Seneng banget rasanya bisa donasi lagi, it really brightens up my mood. Aku juga diajak ke banyak tempat makan baru sama Jehan, buat buka puasa dan makan malem. Di bulan April juga aku seakan diperlihatkan sama Tuhan mana orang-orang yang baik dan mana orang-orang yang buruk buat aku. Aku banyak nangis lagi di bulan April ini, karena sebenernya patah hati yang lebih menyakitkan selain putus sama pacar adalah somehow lost contact sama temen. I've been through this my whole life, masalah pertemanan adalah masalah yang aku sendiri juga nggak bisa handle, most of the time. But oftentimes, they just left and uninvited me again, that’s just, hurt.

Mei, I WENT TO DIENG FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA Nggak tau udah berapa kali wacana, sama siapa aja pokoknya cuma wacana. Tapi akhirnya aku bisa nonton milky way dan matahari terbit di Dieng, it was so breathtaking! Pas banget lagi cerah bisa liat gunung Prau dengan jelas, it was indigo and then it was orange, mashallah, so beautiful. Masih belom bisa move on sampe sekarang, pasti bakalan balik lagi ke Dieng. Karena cuma dikasih waktu sehari di Dieng, kita nggak pergi ke banyak tempat: Sunrise di Watu Angkruk, lanjut ke Batu Ratapan, Candi Arjuna dan makan mie Ongklok. But I’m so happy, I can relive my travel plans again, and with Jehan it all seems possible.

Juni, Juni ternyata lebih berat dari April-Mei, kebetulan juga ada acara dari ANRI di Jogja dan perwakilan dari kantorku jadi panitia di acara itu (termasuk aku). Tapi gapapa, jalan-jalan lagi, walau ke Kraton, at least bisa nonton pameran Kraton Narawandira gratis, and met with my old gallery-sitter friend as well! Bulan ini juga aku beli mesin cuci, akhirnya, setelah bertahun-tahun cuci pake tangan. Harusnya ini aku beli di bulan Mei, jadi kado ulang tahun buat kedua orang tuaku, tapi ternyata Mei ke Dieng, jadi mesin cuci harus ditunda dulu. Seeing my mom’s reaction when it was delivered to my home was funny yet touching. Untungnya dikirim pas libur, kalo nggak salah hari Sabtu, jadi aku bisa liat reaksi bunda. Mom’s happy, I’m happy.

Juli, What’s the funniest way to meet your partner’s parents? Mine was diajak ke Malang semalem. Yap, aku ketemu sama orang tuanya Jehan (dan tetangga-tetangganya) langsung ke Blitar-Malang semalem, aku juga masih nggak percaya. Anyways! akhirnya ke Jawa Timur lagi, woohoo! Kali ini lebih banyak wisata kulinernya: Warung Wader Mak Ti Blitar, Kampung Coklat Blitar, Selecta Malang, Alun-alun Malang (Bakso Cak Toha) dan balik ke Jogja tengah malem wkwk. Juli ini juga banyak deep talk-nya sama Jehan. Aku seneng banget dia bisa diajak ngobrol hal-hal kayak gini. He has a clear picture of what he wants to do in the future, he’s very hardworking and consistent, I adore him so much. Kita bisa deep talk di tempat-tempat yang random, kayak di warung entog Turi, di cafe, random aja gitu.

Agustus, Oke, Agustus ini kocak banget. Dimulai dari deep talk lagi sama Jehan di cafe yang aku temukan di tiktok, CAFE INI JUGA TERNYATA DEKET BANGET (di tirtonirmolo, lol). Terus Ramayana Prambanan, Jehan and Sesil came to watch me. Aku seneng banget, this is the first time people that I actually care watched me perform on such a stage. Aku juga seneng liat mereka merasakan pengalaman tersebut, terutama Sesil sih, sebagai anak perantauan yang nggak rantau-rantau banget wkwk. Dilanjutkan dengan kurang dari 12 jam di Solo sama temen-temen lagi. Catching afternoon KRL ke Solo, berdesak-desakan (ril) and catching another one early buat upacara 17an di kantor. Diakhiri dengan MENANG JUARA 3 PAMERAN VIRTUAL ARSIP SE-JAWA, yang bahkan aku udah nggak ngarep apa-apa sama sekali. Agustus kocak banget.

September, Early September aku dapet kesempatan buat ke Bandung, bareng 6 LKD Simpul Jaringan Terbaik Nasional dan ANRI. Aku belum pernah naik kereta dari Jogja ke Bandung langsung, di pagi hari, dan ternyata pemandangannya mashallah indah banget. Bakalan naik kereta ke Bandung lagi sih. September juga adalah bulan ulang tahun Jehan. I’ve been keeping the name of the restaurant that we will have lunch at for sooooo long. Aku sendiri juga pingin banget ke restoran ini, tidak lain tidak bukan adalah Jiwa Jawi. Ternyata emang bagus banget, terutama buat yang suka foto-foto for the gram, makanannya secara harga average restoran, enak sih, will come back. Akhir bulan September malah diajak ke Solo lagi sama mama-nya Jehan dan temen-temen (mama)nya. Tapi kali ini kami cuma ke Mall Paragon, Selat Viens sama ke Pasar Wedi, Klaten, but we were having fun anyway. Sayangnya akhir bulan September jadi penutup yang cukup pahit buat kita berdua.

Oktober, Oktober bulan tercapek sih, aku ngurusin pameran lagi dan kegiatanlainnya. Tapi bulan Oktober ini aku beli BANYAK BANGET buku, dari dua pameran buku terbesar yang diadakan waktu itu, yaitu Gramedia Wholesale di Tajem dan FKY x Bookfair di….depan halaman kantorku sendiri wkwk. Aku juga berkesempatan buat ikut Jogja Heritage Track, nonton pagelaran Bedhaya Mintaraga sebagai pembukaan Pameran Lenggahing Harjuna, dan ikut flashmob perayaan ditetapkannya Sumbu Filosofi Yogyakarta sebagai Warisan Budaya Dunia di depan Kepatihan. Seru sih bulan ini, tapi capek banget juga.

November, A rollercoaster lagi, karena ada banyak banget kejadian yang aneh-aneh di bulan ini. Tapi aku seneng bulan November ini aku bisa banyak menyendiri, rutin nge gym, dan cukup rutin journaling. Aku kangen banget rasanya journaling, langsung mencurahkan isi hatiku saat itu juga. Kegiatan kantor bulan November malah banyak banget, selain persiapan akhir tahun, ternyata masih ada event lain yang harus diselesaiin.

Desember, PENGELUARAN YANG NGGAK TERKIRA. Mulai dari temen ulang tahun, temen nikah, hari ibu, dan SEMARANG AAAAAAAA. Seneng banget akhirnya bisa ke Semarang lagi, setelah….gatau berapa tahun yang lalu. Panas banget sih tapi Semarang, aku pulang-pulang malah demam sama diare, beneran, tapi cuman sehari aja sih wkwk. Seru banget pokoknya, i might make a post about it too later.


And here are the photodumps:

new friends i made this year, my coworkers!

congrats to my graduate friends
for finally finishing this chapter!

ketemunya setaun sekali updates-nya gapernah garing

ini ketemunya seabad sekali, udah beda-beda kota
updatesnya plot twist banget anjir.
taun ini aku ya yang plot twist wkwk
ini ketemunya sebulan sekali
plot twist mulu. tetap tenang di tengah
gempuran temen nikah

anak yang literally aku adopt setelah aku sama Jehan wkwk

malah jadi 24/7 sampe manamana

tahun depan enaknya beli rumah gasi?
fix ya? aku beliin rumah ya tahun depan ya?

thank you so much for this one junior high school friend
and yet become my everything and everyday now.
thank you for your accompany, you've been so lovely
towards me, you make my ashy forgotten travel lists alive again.
to more journey ahead of us!


appreciation for myself yang udah mulai nge-gym,
travelling, baca buku, journaling dan nggak relaps
setahun full. you are amazing!


2024 here we go


Saturday, December 30, 2023

samarangh the port city

      OH MY GOD, my ultimate wish finally came true! I've been wanting to go to Semarang for a LOOOOOONG time, maybe even since i graduated high school (it was on 2018, lol). I went to Semarang with my friends and Jehan, I couldn't asked for more, they are so amazing, and i'm cherishing every moment that we were there—except when the sun was BLAZING US in Kota Lama. We were there for 3 days and 2 nights. We stayed in THE FRICKIN' LOUIS KIENNE/THE PINNACLE, we got a very great deal with the best view ever!

     The first day, we departed from Jogja and went to Ambarawa Museum. The vibes was so breezy and cozy, i just wanna stay for sooooo long, no thought head empty. The history behind this station was crazy tho, this station was connecting the train from Vostenlanden (Yogyakarta—Solo Balapan) thru Magelang—Secang. Unfortunately, this line of service closed in 1970 after it was severely damaged by the earthquake and Merapi eruption on 1972. The 6.5% elevation contour on the surrounding area of this line was also making the development of this line more challenging.


     Then on the evening we went to Semawis, Semarang's Chinatown. There were many foods, but of course mostly pork, but there are many halal foods to choose too. After that we were just hanging out at Lapangan Pancasila Simpang Lima. We bought cold drinks, watching some basketball game, took cute pics and got rained a bit, but it was so fun tho. We also met the CUTEST superman ever!

     The second day, we went to Kota Lama Semarang, we went there around 9am but the sun were already blazing on us hard. We went around and took cute pics, but the heat was just too much for us to handle, so then we went to nearest Mixue and ordered some ice cream to cool off.

Then we went to Lawang Sewu, it was very crowded, we got a very hard parking spot, but whatever. Oh my—Lawang Sewu never disappoints me, I just love the vibes so much. The collection of train miniatures that were very interesting to me, I always love trains and the story behind it. Little did I know, Lawang Sewu is under KAI Wisata, instead of under the Education and Culture Office, since it was a museum. But it makes sense, since it was a NIS Samarang (Netherlandsch-Indische Spoorweg Maatschapij), then after the independence, KAI as the national railway operator in the country.


Ah, Semarang, you will always be adored!

Saturday, November 11, 2023

picnic at plunyon kalikuning

it wasn't that impromptu, i actually cook for this picnic activity. one thing that i didnt prepared for was GODDAMN SUNSCREEN AND UMBRELLA, because it was hot as fuc—. Next time. the more proper activity maybe a hike, not a fancy dancy picnic (imo), because i was sweating like crazy for the heat and the humidity. I think you need to prepare a good pair of shoes or sandals too, because it was a lot of walking, but you know i love walking and hiking, so it's a very fun activity for me.


the sound of the water flowing was very relaxing, the water is very clean and refreshing. I think, with a certain tool, you can actually drink the water straightaway.


I had so much fun, not until the sun got above us real quick. Even tho it's cloudy, we can't see the main star of the show (The Merapi Mouintain), the heat got us, so we change place lol. I would do the hike again, not the picnic. This place is too beautiful to be missed out.

Saturday, October 28, 2023

jogja heritage track tour

 so, if you don't know, this is one of the MOST WANTED tourist activity in Yogyakarta, why? you ask, because you can go around the city with panoramic bus, FOR FREE. Here's the catch: good luck doing your reservation, because it'll always be booked. but thankfully, i worked in this—government office, so i (on behalf of the office) can join the trip. We were actually doing a study tour before our department held this exhibition for Yogyakarta Philosophical Axis to support The Philosophical Axis as World Heritage.

we started the tour at the meeting point, which the Dinas Kebudayaan DIY, our route was: Tugu Yogyakarta — 0 km — Sonobudoyo Museum (just to take pictures) — Alun-alun Lor — Alun-alun Kidul — Plengkung Gading — Panggung Krapyak. There are several route that you can choose on the website, but little did I know, the tour that I did was the 'Historical Heritage' tour.

We were lead by a guide, she explained all the philosophical thingy from Tugu Yogyakarta to Kraton and from Panggung Krapyak to Kraton. She also explained the trees and vegetation planted in the surrounding area, adding up to the philosophical terms. Since we also explored the main area of Kraton, she also explained the gedong (building) and bangsal (place) inside the Kraton.

We stopped at Sonobudoyo Museum to take pictures (idk why Sonobudoyo was added to the tour, maybe for promotional purposes) and Panggung Krapyak, to actually explored the building (and take pictures too, lol). It was fun and very educational, now I know why it's the most wanted tourist activity in my city. 



Sunday, September 17, 2023

jiwa jawi: good food, good view

Untuk merayakan ulang tahun Jehan yang ke-24, aku memutuskan untuk sedikit memberikan kejutan. Sebenarnya, kejutan ini lebih ditujukan kepadaku, karena aku yang pingin ke restoran ini sejak sekian tahun yang lalu. Berlokasi di Bangunjiwo, sekitar 20 menit dari pusat Kota Yogyakarta, dan akhirnya, aku bisa berkunjung ke Jiwa Jawi. Aku nggak research atau survei ke lokasi dulu, aku cuma research di sosial media mereka, dan liat-liat menu, aku langsung booking h-5 untuk dua orang. Nggak nyesel sama sekali sih, karena tempatnya bagus banget.

bday boi!

rindang sekali.

Menunya lokal, tapi yang paling menarik adalah pilihan mocktail, soda dan coffee nya, banyak banget! Aku pesen Amba (raspberry, mint, soda), ayam suwir kecombrang dan tahu cabai garam untuk appetizer. Jehan pesen Anjani (espresso, apple, mint) dan gecok ganem, dan es Laksamana Mengamuk untuk dessert. Flavourful is an understatement, rasanya pas, minumnya menyegarkan. Walaupun, es Laksamana Mengamuknya terlalu manis untuk kami.

kelaparan dan keenakan beda tipis.

Untuk harga, mungkin kamu harus merogoh kocek lumayan (sebagai warga UMR under 2.5 mio), kami makan berdua habis sekitar 200ribu an. Restoran ini cocok buat makan siang syantik sambil foto-foto, karena memang ambience yang ditawarkan syahdu sekali. Pilihan table-nya banyak, ada yang untuk berdua hingga berduapuluh, ada yang di dalam pendopo, atau di cakruk. Ada musholla yang cukup nyaman dan toilet yang bersih juga. 

Little did we know, ternyata Jiwa Jawi juga menyediakan jasa sewa tempat untuk acara. We were thinking....hm, mungkin lamaran disini?






Saturday, September 9, 2023

kawah putih

     Alhamdulillah, last September, i was given the chance to visit Bandung again, after 4 years! This time, we visited Kawah Putih. The view was amazing, tho, but the way to get there was HELL of a ride. So we departed from Ibis Trans Studio, it took about two hours. The thing was, we were SQUEEZED on a bus and the person in front of me threw up two times before we even got to the place. My coworker, he sat next to me, he was disgusted and covered his ears for few minutes after that incident, lol. We got to the place a bit dizzy, but alive.

     The crater was VERY SMELLY, but yeah, i mean, that's natural, but still very smelly. The weather was cold, but the sunshine was damn radiating my face. I wished i was equipped with a better phone camera or whatever, because the view was damn breathtaking (literally, because of the smell).




     Actually there were a sign that we should be leaving after 15 minutes because of the sulfuric acid or whatever, but i guess we spent around 30 minutes there, lol. Worth a visit, might come back soon!

Monday, July 31, 2023

blitar-malang

akhirnya, setelah sekian tahun, aku kembali menginjakkan kaki di tanah jawa timur. a weekend getaway bersama teman-teman dan ibu-ibu, pengalaman kali ini singkat tapi menarik banget.

blitar
mampir makan siang di warung mak uti, dengan spesialisasi sayur ndeso dan wadernya. karena aku suka-suka aja sama ikan (dan sayur), i would rate this a 7/10, enak, nggak begitu spesial, murah. destinasi utama kami adalah kampung coklat, sounds delicious. ini seru sih, karena kita naik caddy dengan kapasitas maksimal 5 orang, mbak-mbak supirnya sekaligus pemandu, membawa kita tur ke kebun coklat, sampe ke pengolahan dan ke lokasi utama kampung coklatnya ini. ternyata rasa buah coklat itu bikin nagih, kami bertiga habis satu buah coklat sendiri.

i don't have a proper picture

however, bukan anak muda namanya kalo nggak aneh-aneh. kami beli coklat 100%, just for fun. bahkan ketika aku bayar, aku diingatkan sama kasirnya, "ini pahit banget lho mbak", tapi tetep aja. AND IT WAS BITTER, NOT JUST BITTER, IT WAS ALSO SOUR, menyesal. you can actually watch our live reaction thru this video: three dumbasses eating 100% dark chocolate.

makan malam kami lezat sekali: bebek kremes.


batu, malang
sejujurnya aku lupa nama penginapan kita di batu, malang, itu apa, tapi deket banget sama selecta. pemandangannya bagus, and you can actually watch magnificent view while you poop.


selama di malang, kami cuma ke selecta dan ke alun-alun malang. selecta rame banget weekend ini, ada banyak bus dan elf rombongan. kami juga nggak eksplor begitu banyak wahana, cuma family coaster sama bianglala, sisanya foto-foto aja di taman bunga.



kota malang
di kota malang pun, kita cuma ke bakso cak toha. sebagai orang yang nggak gitu suka bakso, aku cukup menikmati bakso ini, sih. would recommend bagi kalian penyuka bakso, kalau lagi ada di malang (atau surabaya), boleh banget cobain bakso cak toha ini.

and that's all, lol. see you in another trip!

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