TRAVEL DIARY + VISIT INDONESIA: YOGYAKARTA GIRLS TRIP

Actually, it’s almost 2 years ago since I went for this trip, but I just got a chance to share it with you all. In conjunction of International Women’s Day this month, I’m sharing my first girls only trip to Yogyakarta. For my readers and subscribers outside Indonesia probably are not familiar with this city. Actually, this city is pretty popular with Western tourists. Usually, they came to Yogyakarta to see the famous Prambanan Temple as well as Borobudur Temple. Yogyakarta is also famous for its’ Batik and their distinctive Kingdom culture. There is two cities in Indonesia that are given a special administration authority by the government of Republic Indonesia which is Yogyakarta and Aceh. Yogyakarta still uphold to Sultan (King) authority. Beside that, Yogyakarta also known for its friendliness to both locals and foreigners. Like Bali, Yogyakarta is also popular for foreigners, so most of them could speak English too.

Anyways, for the last 20 years of my life as an Indonesian, it was my first time visiting Yogyakarta. Unlike my friends, they had their school trips to Yogyakarta before. I went to Yogyakarta with my university friends as our refreshing trip before all the madness for graduation ahead of us. As usual, I made the video type for this series, so check it out here. The video has many missing footage because I didn’t took all the footage with my phone, but I tried my best to complete the whole story in this blog post. So, here it is our girls adventure to Yogyakarta!

DAY ONE

Instead riding an overnight train, we took an early flight to Yogyakarta. We wanted to be adventurous and have a semi-backpacking trip, but the price isn’t that cheap and took much more time. Arrived at Adi Sucipto International Airport 1,5 hours later. We rented car for transporting during the trip. At the time we went there, Uber were not existed yet, but Uber is operating in Yogyakarta now. We stayed at Novotel Yogyakarta near the airport. After checking-in and few rest we head out for lunch at Gudeng Yu Djum.

Gudeg is the representative food from Yogyakarta. Not all people liked this food, but for the locals it is a popular and their favourite food. Honestly, neither of us liked Gudeg because it taste too sweet for us. We are looking for a saltier option and we found two. It is not as popular as Yu Djum’s one, but my friends prefer that one. Yu Djum’s Gudeg is very popular both in and outside Yogyakarta. 

The Royal Pool

After a little disappointed lunch, we headed to Taman Sari Water Castle few minutes away from our lunch spot. Visitor need to buy entrance ticket which cost for Rp 5,000 for locals and Rp 15,000 for foreigners (2016). Taman Sari Water Castle was a place for the Sultan (King) watches his concubines take bath. The king chooses a women from that pool to be his queen. It used to have a lot of water, but nowadays the water are not as much as it used to be. The place is a famous spot for both tourist and locals to take photos. We got some good photos thanks to Pak Yadi, our local guide that we met unintentionally. If you happened to go there, find Pak Yadi to guide you around the Taman Sari plus Cyber Village. 

At the entrance gate

Pak Yadi's photography work

Best moment with the best peeps

An artsy wall at Cyber Village

While going around all the corners of Taman Sari, we happened to visit Cyber Village. For some people it might not so special to be a tourist site. But, the fact is Mark Zuckerberg visit this village during his honeymoon, I guess because it is a special village. This village is the first village in Yogyakarta that utilize internet in their daily activities. There are not much villages like that in Indonesia, that’s why it makes the village unique. 

Ratu Boko Temple entrance side

 We spent around 3 hours there, then we headed to Ratu Boko Temple. This temple is not as famous as Prambanan Temple but, it is a good spot to see sunset. Also, this temple has became famous because of “Ada Apa Dengan Cinta? 2” movie was shot there. If you want to see the sunset here, you have to be there before 3PM because, they apply different price for sunset viewing. 

 

Taking dorky photo at an ancient spot

Details I couldn't miss at this temple

Almost sunset at Ratu Boko Temple

Before heading back to the hotel, we had an early dinner at the famous street food stall, named Special Bakmi dan Nasi Goreng Pak Pele. We ordered various of food like, fried rice, Javanese noodles, and much more. The one that left us with great impression is the Javanese noodles and the fried rice. Later at night, we ordered McDonald’s and some local delicacies via Gojek. We tried the salty Gudeg, Pak Yadi recommended. As you can see in the video, my friend said it was so delicious. Just so you know, we are always hungry whenever we travel. So, pardon our continuous eating. LOL.

DAY TWO

We went for a little adventure on the second day. We went for cave tubing at Kalisuci, Bantul. We hired a driver because we went outside the city to do that. Before that, we stopped by at Soto Kadipiro for brunch. It was also a popular food stall in Yogyakarta but, I was a bit skeptical about the food. It was challenge for me to try new food I never knew before. I do like Soto, but not all types of it. 

Soto is an Indonesian soup made of chicken or beef stock. Some types used herbs or coconut milk to add more flavour. I liked Soto with coconut milk, but not the other one. But actually, the one Soto Kadipiro served was a bit different. It was more like a chicken soup and actually it taste quite good. 

There are a lot of activities to do in Yogyakarta, especially in Bantul area. It has great sceneries, fun adventures, and much more. We tried cave tubing this time and It was our first time. Kalisuci is pretty famous to do cave tubing. The current was pretty nice and the cave is not as dangerous as I imagined. You can see bats inside the cave and also feel in peace at the same time. There will be a guide for you during the whole experience. So, you can feel at ease. The safety was pretty good. They will give you helmets, life jackets, and knee protector. At that time, I didn’t brought GoPro so, we rent it from the operator. No need to worry if you don’t have one. Even though the photos and the footage was not as good as you might expected it to be, but it is pretty decent to have a documentation of it. 

Kicking off the thrill

Finally we are out from the cave

My friends + My friends' friends

Let's appreciate this serenity

After a fun yet tiring adventure, we headed back to town. We decided to visit Malioboro Street. It was a main street of Yogyakarta City and a must visit. The street was full of shops selling Batik and other souvenirs. You can also ride Andong, Yogyakarta’s horse cart from this street. FYI, the price can be pretty expensive, so if you really want to ride it do negotiate with the driver or we called it Pak Kusir in Indonesian.

We couldn’t find a pretty good Batik or other souvenirs, so we went for dinner. We ate roadside food stall called Nasi Goreng Beringharjo Pak Tedjo. Beringharjo is a name of a market actually. So, this food stall is located in a market area but, it opens at the evening only. They sell fried rice, noodles, and other typical Indonesian food. The most popular menu is pork fried rice. We tried and it was pretty decent. Btw, the food price in Yogyakarta is unquestionably cheap. We even don’t know how to split bills because it is quite cheap! Well, compared to Jakarta or Bali. 

Pinocchio up in the air

Ciao! adoriamo il gelato 💕

Then we head for dessert. The most popular dessert shop in Yogyakarta is actually Tempo Gelato, but we found this dessert shop on Zomato with a pretty high rating too called, Ciao Gelato and decided to tried it out. They have a cute interior design and a live music. The singer have a pretty nice voice and good song lists. The audio system was pretty good, so it doesn’t hurt your ears. Then we went back to hotel for a rest. I remembered we watched “Descendant of the Sun” on local channel that day lol. random. I know.

DAY THREE

Finally, I got a chance to have a breakfast in the hotel that day. We took turn for having breakfast in the hotel because the free breakfast only valid for 2 person. We headed to Mangunan area in Bantul to visit pine forest and fruit garden there. The weather was pretty cold around that area and it was nice. We drive there by ourselves (without driver) and with the faith of Google Maps.

Before visiting the two places, we headed to Mbah Cemplung Fried Chicken for brunch. Because not all of us have breakfast every day, so we had an early lunch and late breakfast. Their menu specialty is Javanese fried chicken and it does taste good!

Pathway to happiness

Let's laugh out loud, girls!

Ticket price to the Pine Forest

Then we headed to Mangunan Pine Forest. We took a pretty instagramable photos at the pine forest. The pine forest is pretty famous in the internet world, but we found out the place is quite too crowded and nothing special. After the pine forest, we headed to the fruit garden near the pine forest. The fruit garden is also not so special because we didn’t see any fruits there. But, this place a have good scenery. I apologized for not taking picture of it, but you can see it in the video. My documentation for this trip is pretty bad because I think it is easier to have it with one phone and then we could share it. But in the end, I’m having a hard time to remember all the details and the sequence of this trip now.

The scenery from above

Closer look of the scenery

Candid shot of me with beautiful background

On our way back, we were almost trapped there because we don’t have enough gasoline. We decided to turn off the air conditioner and rush to the nearest gas station. So, you should check your gasoline conditions whenever you are going outside the city, girls! It will be much trouble for you to find gasoline at the countryside, especially in Indonesia. Anyways, we headed back to the city after that. When we arrived, we had our dinner at Baso Ito. Baso is Indonesian meatball. Baso Ito specialty is their fried pork meatball. It is a must try menu. The other menus were also pretty good, so go ahead to try it.

Later that night, we went out for dessert at Tempo Gelato. It surely a popular place for a dessert shop. It was crowded and we barely get any seats! If we had to compare with Ciao Gelato, they have a better ambience and it was a nice place to sit and enjoy your gelato. But in Tempo Gelato, you can’t really enjoyed it there because there will be other people who is hunting your seats. If you really want to try it, better to take it away. Both the shop have a similar sum of gelato variants and the texture are pretty much the same. 

Then, we took a night city tour with Becak. It reminds me of my childhood days. When I slept over at my grandparents’ house, I used to ride Becak to go to the market. Basically, Becak is a traditional transportation in Indonesia and most of Southeast Asian countries had this kind of transportation too. The passenger were carried with a three-wheeled cycle. Btw, the becak in Yogyakarta is much bigger than the one I used to ride when I was a kid. 

DAY FOUR

I think the 4th day is the most fun one. We wore a coordinated outfit this day. We were going to take group photos at Kalibiru. Before we went there, we had a brunch at Jejamuran. 

 

All the food's main ingredient is mushroom

 It was the most delicious and fulfilling brunch of the entire trip. The uniqueness of this restaurant is their menu were made out of various of mushroom! My favourite food from Jejamuran is their mushroom satay. It was delicious! The place were pretty big because they are that popular. It is a must visit if you go to Yogyakarta. 

While waiting for our turn

May our friendship last to our old days!

I look good on this photo

Inspired by "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" movie

Arrived at Kalibiru, we had to wait for an hour to get our turn. Kalibiru is an amazing place to see scenery. The must do in here is to take a picture at a something like a tree house. IT WAS LIT! You could get your instagram shot here and we decided to do our group photo here. 

 
After the “photoshoot”, we went back to the city. Arrived at the city, we had our dinner at La Pergola. It is a lit Italian restaurant. This is the most expensive food we ate in Yogyakarta. But the food is amazing. Delicioso, I could say. Though I couldn’t eat as appetizing as I used to be, it was indeed a comfort food for me. Maybe pizza, pasta, and salad is my comfort food. LOL. 

Odong-Odong riding

Back at the hotel we took some rest. Then, we headed out (again) because it is our last night so we maximized our night. We surprised one of our friend at the nearest mall. After a quick celebration, we headed to Alun-Alun Yogyakarta again to eat at Pak Pele's stall, but it was too crowded and we were not in the mood to eat. Instead of eating, we ride Odong-Odong! You should try this once, whenever you came to Yogyakarta. Actually, in Jakarta and Tangerang also have this kind of riding, but the ambience is quite different. Odong-odong is a well decorated and lighted cycle car with a very loud sound system included. You can go around the Alun-Alun (Plaza) for 15 minutes and pay for around 20,000 rupiah for one car.

After a the night city tour, we experienced the locals’ hangout place at an Angkringan or road-side cafe. They sell finger foods till dessert as well as coffee, tea, and Indonesian traditional drinks. Instead of chair, they prepare a carpet for the customer to sit down. It is kinda dangerous actually and seems not so hygienic, so I don’t recommend foreigners to try it.

After having a hot tea there, we went back to the hotel. At the hotel, we prepared for sleep and we have a sheet mask party. I brought few funny masks for my friends and have our skin a little appreciation.

DAY FIVE

Last day in Yogyakarta! We flew back to Jakarta at noon, so we had a few hours to do some shopping. We had our brunch at Li Djiong, a Chinese restaurant. Their specialty is fried pigeon. I didn’t eat any other poultry besides chicken, so I didn’t fancy that special menu. But for you who like pigeon, go ahead an try it. My friend nagged us for few days to eat there.

Then we headed to buy some gifts before we left to the airport. We bought the famous pia in Yogyakarta, Bakpia Pathok Kurnia Sari. FYI, there are several brands selling Bakpia in Yogyakarta, but most of them are pretty the same, so you can choose whatever you prefer. Bakpia is a pastry widely known in Southeast Asia that similar to a moon cake. It has several fillings, like mung beans, red beans, cheese, chocolate, etc. I prefer the dry bakpia, but Bakpia Pathok serve a gooey bakpia instead. It’s pretty hard to describe the pastry, but it is pretty common in Indonesia. 

It used to be a little pool, but there is no water anymore

An awesome artsy Musholla (an area for Moslem to pray)

Before heading to the airport, we came across Affandi Museum. Affandi is one of Indonesian painter. I came to learn about him in my art class while I’m in senior high school. He is famous for the expressionist arts and have a similarity with Van Gogh. I’m really excited to see the museum because I knew about his arts. Nowadays, people came to the museum just to take instagram pictures and don’t value the exhibition there. The museum was built on his house. His grave is located in the museum area alongside with his wife surrounded with his paintings. When I entered the gallery, I came across the painting I saw on the internet when I was researching for my art project. Seeing it in real life is something amazing and reminded me how much I liked my art class back then. If you are an art appreciator, go visit this museum. It is worth your time.

To kill the time, we visit the nearby mall which is Lippo Mall Yogyakarta. We looked around the mall and we stopped by at the food court and have a snack there. We ate Ayam Geprek and Kebab. FYI, Ayam Geprek, a fried chicken smashed with a tool and served with hot chilli and rice is the most popular food right now in Indonesia. It was actually pretty nice, but I don’t get it why everyone opened their own Ayam Geprek now.

Anyways, after the snack, we went to the airport. It was only 15 minutes drive from the mall we visited. We gave back the car keys to the rental car rep and have our flight check in. Though, our flight got delayed for 15 minutes, it was still a pleasant trip after all.

End of the travel diary! I hope you enjoyed this post despite the lack of few scenes and bad story telling. It’s almost 2 years since I had this trip, so there are few missing details and I’m sorry about it and despite of that, I’m still posting this experience because I hope my readers found the courage to go out the comfort zone. This month, we celebrate International Women’s Day and I hope more women is brave to travel the world. It is not always comfortable to travel, but I collect memorable experience that gives the value of living. So, have a courage girls! I knew we are created for something big and we are also a strong creature in our own ways. Happy International Women’s Day! See you on my next post :) 

MORE DETAILS:

Gudeg Yu Djum

Jalan Wijilan No. 167, Panembahan, Kraton, Kota Yogyakarta, 

Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55131

0821-3869-7888

Special Bakmi dan Nasi Goreng Pak Pele

Jl. Pojok Tenggara Alun-Alun Utara, Panembahan, Kraton, Yogyakarta,

Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta, 55131

Soto Kadipiro

Jl. Janti, Banguntapan, Kota Yogyakarta, 

Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55198

0812-2736-653

Nasi Goreng Beringharjo Pak Tedjo

Jl. Mayor Suryotomo, Ngupasan, Gondomanan, Kota Yogyakarta, 

Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55122

0878-3821-7458

Ciao Gelato

Jl. Doktor Sutomo No.46, Baciro, Danurejan, Kota Yogyakarta, 

Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55225

+62-274-551-488

Mbah Cemplung Fried Chicken

Sendang Semanggi RT.05, Sembungan, Bangunjiwo, Kasihan, Bantul,

 Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta

0857-4305-6292

Baso Ito

Jl. Mataram No.59, Suryatmajan, Danurejan, Kota Yogyakarta, 

Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55213

+62-274-566-590

Tempo Gelato

Jl. Prawirotaman No.43, Brontokusuman, Mergangsan, Kota Yogyakarta, 

Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55153

+62-274-373-272

Jejamuran

Jalan Pramuka No.53, Pandowoharjo, Kecamatan Sleman, Pandowoharjo, Kec. Sleman, 
Kabupaten Sleman, Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55512

+62-274-868-170

La Pergola

Jl. Suryodiningratan No.10, Suryodiningratan, Mantrijeron, Kota Yogyakarta,
 Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55141

+62-274-379-595

Lie Djiong

Jl. Brigjen Katamso No.21, Prawirodirjan, Gondomanan, Prawirodirjan, Gondomanan, 
Kota Yogyakarta, Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55121

+62-274-374-429

Bakpia Pathok Kurnia Sari

Jl. Glagahsari No.91C, Warungboto, Umbulharjo, Kota Yogyakarta, 
Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta 55164

+62-274-380-502