Sirap Bandung? Mee Bandung?

I've been wanting to visit Bandung like forever. The story about factory outlets and cheap kain2 doesn't really help to fight my temptation. There are few friends of mine who visit Bandung frequently each year to shop. Gile kan?

So one day, when I was browsing Air Asia website out of boredom, I found a very interesting package. It is their "last minute deal" package. Flight ticket (KUL - BDO - KUL) + Hotel (4Star) + tax = RM450/ pax (for 3D2N). Isn't that amazing?!

So Bandung it is! It was, like the package suggest, a last minute deal. So we booked the package and left for Bandung in less then 1 month!

I was told not to visit Bandung as the traffic (vehicle traffic as well as human traffic) can be really mad. People from Jakarta will drive up to Bandung for their weekly shopping too. So we decided to go on Thursday, Friday & Saturday.

This is Bandung Airport. Bandara Husein Sastranegara Bandung. I was surprise that the Airport is so small. Lebih kurang macam airport Kuantan. And unlike any other Airports in Malaysia, this airport located just by the road side. Macam Bus stand je.. comel kan.

The outside view of our Hotel; Arion Swiss belhotel, Bandung. (Tak amik pulak the front view, cacat). Ada terjadi sedikit drama when we first arrived Bandung. See, few days before leaving for Bandung, I e-mailed the hotel asking them to arrange for pick-up from Airport to the hotel. The hotel replied saying that they will provide free pick-up, and I was really pleased. Se asked me my flight details and the next day we left for Bandung. Sampai Bandung, I saw a few guys holding the placard with names of guest that they want to pick-up. I walk front and back few times trying to locate our names, tapi takde. aaahh.. sudah! Luckily our phone is on roaming so we called the hotel. The receptionist told me that she replied my email (which I did not read) saying that our booking is not in the system. How is that possible since the payment went through and we have the confirmation slip. So the receptionist cleared out the matter with Go-Holiday AirAsia, and apperently go-holiday mis-communicated the info. Crap!

Sebab dah malas nak tunggu, I decided to just take a cab straight to the hotel.

Nasib la this hotel is very nice. So is the staff. The check in is smooth, and the best part is our room were upgraded, for free!

The room is really huge. Rasanya those traveling with kids will fit this room comfortably. I like the fact that the room is fully carpeted (I prefer room with carpet or if no carpet, wooden flooring would do :D)

The bed is really comfy, and our room comes with free wi-fi and a Personal Computer, yes, your read right, a PC! HEAVEN... hehehe

This is th bathroom. Takde bathtub, but most importantly is the fact that it is sparkling clean! (I did read a few reviews for hotels in Bandung that has crappy toilet, yuck).

The roof top swimming pool. The challet that you can see at the far-end, is the spa..

It was already late by the time we settle down in the room (Kat Bandung gelap awal, by the time 7pm, it was already pitch black, like 9pm Malaysia!). So we decided to just check out Pasar Baru (which is just 10mins walking distance from our hotel), and later go for dinner.

We had to cross this railway in order to get to Pasar Baru. Tangga dia sangat la tinggi dan curam. Kat hujung tu you can see Bandung Train Station. This is one of the mode of transport if you want to go to Jakarta. Tapi keretapi dia agak horror.. macam dalam cerita Tamil.. huhu
]Our dinner on the first night @ Bumbu Desa. We were quite worried of the price since this restaurant is quite expensive in Malaysia. But to our surprise, it only cost us RP75,000! (+-RM25). murah gile kan! sedap gile pulak tu... yummy!

The second day was spent for what else? Shopping!!!!

As you know, kat sana memang banyak Factory Outlet. But I think you need to be choosy. Ada few outlets yang totally rubbish. Jual baju yang ntah apa2.. tau2 dia tampal je well known brand like Zara, Top Shop, etc. (We can know as shops like Zara and Top Shop have their signature design, and we know for fact they dont design that kind of range).

But there are few that I really2 like. To name a few are Rumah Mode and Secret. We spent most of our time and err... money at these two place. The items that they sold are high in quality and most importantly cheap! The price might be slightly higher then any other factory outlet, but you know for sure they sell authentic products.

Owh, and I got Victoria Secret lace nighties for RM50! lawa gile ok!

This is the ice-blended that we had at Rumah Mode. And it is really2 good!

This is what we purchased after 2 days!

This is the famous Kartika Sari that sells brownies and few other items. Frankly I think this shop is over rated. I managed to buy another best selling brownies in Bandung which is Amanda ). I eat a small slice in the hotel room, and the next day when I woke up, the brownies is full of ants! sakit nye hati!

If to compare between Amanda (RP30,000) and Kartika Sari (RP35,000), I prefer Amanda. You can find a lot of people selling Amanda Brownies along major roadside, however Kartika Sari is only available at their outlets (which are only a few). And the kedai sangat la ramai orang.

Kartika Sari Cheese Brownies (I like this one better compared to the chocolate one) - RP35,000

Kartika Sari Chocolate Brownies (I prefer Amanda's!) - RP35,000

Roti pisang (Banana Bread). I saw many of the customer who came to Kartika Sari shop bought this. It is their best seller. And it smelled nice too. So I bought one. But unfortunately, I dont like it. Inside the bun, you can literally find banana which was not crushed. Seketul2. And some of banana are not ripe enough. Disgusting. But like I said, it was their best seller. Feel free to try it when you are in Bandung :)

Our breakfast on the last day in Bandung. The hotel served nice breakfast. Ok la for the price that we paid.

Lunch that we had on the last day. It was in the Food Court of Pasar Baru. It was recommended by our friends. Bawal bakar tu sangat sedap. Nama kedainye, Gala Karunia. Cari la ye..

So Bandung, till we meet again (we will meet again!)