IBRAHIM AHMAD WORLD

Last January, 2009, I went to Padang, Indonesia. Went there for 4 days. 2 nights at Bukit Tinggi and 1 night at Padang, Indonesia. It was my first trip to Indonesia and it was a totally awesome trip. The air was so much nicer, relaxing and the environment are more eco-friendly. It kinda reminds me of  a place of much simpler life back when I was a kid. So much greenery and the people there are very hard working. Below is my report for the trip:

1. First Day

   Had to wake up 5am in the morning. Got out from Kulim area about 7am. Drove from Kulim to Kuala Lumpur for about 4 hours.  There is no flight from Penang to Padang, Indonesia if you all wondering why I hadn’t took the flight from there. I was car pooling at the same time. Save some money. We got to LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal) at about 1pm. My flight was 3.30pm, so no need to rush. Check in time is 1 hour before departure with your old friend Air Asia. Flight duration to Padang airport was about 1 hour. From Malaysia it was 3.30pm and the plane landed there at 3.30pm, Indonesia time. Time at Indonesia was 1 hour earlier. To know where Padang, Indonesia is, just type it in the word  in http://maps.google.com . You should get the location. My flight is from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Padang, Indonesia.
   
   Having touched down at Minangkabau International airport, we are greeted by the fellow from the Bukit Tinggi travel agency.  The adventure starts straight away from there. No time wasted. The bus first trip is to Lembah Anai Air Mancur waterfalls. About 1 hour from the airport. The waterfall is just besides the main road, cool. The bus stopped for a few minutes and I’ve taken a few snaps. There was some construction going on at the time. Great excuse to snap more pictures. Next stop, Bukit Tinggi town. Well, not yet. After an hour or so, we stopped at a Boutique near the  outskirt area of Bukit Tinggi town. This is the very first glimpse of what shopping heaven to come. Heaven to the girls and aunties. Heck I was also influenced and bought a few items. Finished half a million rupiah (RM150 or USD 50)  in 10 minutes time. There was a lot kind of wardrobes there and it was very cheap (considering for Malaysia status). There was “Baju Kebaya”, “Baju Batek”, “Kain Batek”, “Baju sulam” and lots more. High quality, hand made and cheap. I was skeptical at first because it our first shop. Well for the aunties, I think they want to sleep there.
   
   After an hour at the boutique, the bus continue its journey. There is no highway here in this part of Bukit Tinggi, Indonesia. All the roads here are just enough for two cars to go through. The Indonesia people are a lot here. I mean, there are houses along the road non stop. A lot of the buses here are short.  A lot of the path here requires only short vehicles due to steep corners.  We went up a hill for about an hour or so to a resort. It was dark and very steep road and corners. I saw light of houses below. We checked in and have our dinner at Bukit Tinggi resort. The weather up there was very windy and very cold. I think less than 15 Celsius. Very cold like it was at Mount Kinabalu, Sabah (I’ve been there). I went to sleep. End day 1.

2. Second Day

   After having breakfast, our next trip was to Buya Hamka, museum. Buya Hamka is a fellow considered to be a very important person in the Indonesia history. This time our trip is going down hill. There is 44 corners downhill to be exact. They have put numbers for every corner. Time taken was 30 minutes. The scenery was very beautifull. There are padi fields every where. No empty land was wasted. Also we can see the Lake Maninjau  a top from Bukit Tinggi resort. The lake was so huge .  About 10KM or so. Once at Buya Hamka museum, the environment was a little bit hot.  I took some pictures and there is a  fellow telling stories on Buya Hamka background.

   We went back to checkout from Bukit Tinggi resort. Going up hill and going down hill again to Bukit Tinggi town. It was a dizzy trip but the bus stop here and there for a sip of coffee. At Bukit Tinggi town the bus stops at a few more boutiques. Shopping time again for the girls and aunties. Heck, every one bags are full now. That night we have dinner and slept at Gran Malindo hotel, Bukit Tinggi town. It was a great day of full scenenary and shopping. End day 2.

   

3. Third Day

   Breakfast at hotel and follow the tour guide to a park just outside the hotel area. Holy cow..there is a Grand Canyon scenery here. There was two hills and a river flowing in between. How come I didn’t see it from the Hotel, even myself wonders. We were taken to historical area named “Lobang Japang” or “Japan Tunnels”. These tunnels were created by the Japanese in the World War 2 era. The tunnels were used as their base and to hid their operations from the Indonesian army. After 40 minutes tour of the tunnel we went out, and countinue shopping to the nearby stalls. After that went to Bukit Tinggi Town and shopping again. The whole day I think is almost a shopping day.

   At about 3pm it was trip to Padang, Indonesia. On the way we do stop here and there. We stopped at Silinduang  Bulan castle. A minangkabau designed house. We stopped at Malalo lake. The biggest lake in Padang, Indonesia. So big that you cannot see where this lake starts or ends. It is about 15-20km. 7.00pm like that we got to Padang and have dinner there. We stayed at Ambacang hotel that night. End day 3.

4. Fourth Day

   After breakfast, went out to the flee market nearby the Ambacang hotel. There is a lot of items are sold here. The quality of  items or apparrels are much more of high quality at Bukit Tinggi. The stuff here a much like the ones sold at Chow Kit Road in Kuala Lumpur. My advice here, shop till you dead at Bukit Tinggi.

   The travel agency bus took another round at Padang. Lunch at Lamun Ombak restaurant at 1pm. We took off from Minangkabau International Airport at 3pm to LCCT, Kuala Lumpur. Then another 4 hour drive to Kulim, Kedah, Malaysia. That night I slept at 2am and wake up at 4.30am. Going for Pulau Pangkor, Lumut, Perak, Malaysia  (Pangkor Island). Guess that one another story to tell (Coming soon).

   When going to Padang, Indonesia the place to be there is Bukit Tinggi. It is a shopping heaven and it is a nice place to visit.

Click here to view my web album for Bukit Tinggi, Padang, Indonesia.