WW: the Great Mosque of Central Java

One of the gems and landmarks of Semarang, Central Java.
The Great Mosque of Central Java beautifully reflects the grand design of Islamic architectures with elegant traditional Javanese touch. 

Truly an amazing complex that you should see while visiting Semarang, Central Java...

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WW : NY Transit Museum at Grand Central

The latest exhibition at NY Transit Museum here at the Grand Central...

New York's Transportation Landmarks

Let see some interesting displays :)

Grand Central in the past..

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Welcome to the American Museum of Natural History in NYC #1

Did you watch the Night at the Museum movie with Ben Stiller and the late Robin Williams on it? 

Watching all those animals and exhibits in the museum came to life is quite an experience indeed. And we were lucky enough to get the opportunity to visit the real Museum being depicted as the site of this movie. :)

Welcome to the American Museum of the Natural History in New York City.

Museum will always be fascinating for me and my kids. So many interesting things to see, explore and learn.

And as summer break is here,  a lovely visit to the museum will be great.
We went there last May.

Located in Central Park West at 79th  Street, New York City, this museum is the perfect place to start exploring the amazing world of discoveries, cultures and science at the same time. In 1869, the museum was firstly created after the proposal from Albert Smith Bickmore, a zoologist, to establish a natural history museum in NYC, was fully supported by Theodore Roosevelt  (remember Teddy... brilliantly played by Robin Williams in the movie..the US President as well as an avid explorer), William Dodge, J.P. Morgan,  and Joseph Choate. Initially located in the Central Park Arsenal on the eastern part of the Park, the Museum's first building located in 77th  - 81st street  was erected in 1874. Long story short, this monumental building comprises 5-story square is now the house of enormous collection from many parts of the world in many forms and objects.


So, as we were ready to explore the museum, we decided to take the train here as driving and paring in Manhattan an drive you crazy :). It was very convenient for you who live in or visit NYC to come to this Museum because subway 1 or 2 take you directly to the 81st St, right underneath this museum. By the time you are stepping out of the subway, even the tiles along the way show you the path to the entrance. So cute...

Look at all those ceramic murals :)

When you arrived at the lobby, you will be welcomed by the gigantic fossil replica of Balosaurus and Allosaurus in a combating scene under the remarkable dome. 

say hi :)..

What an incredible sight...
No wonder this Theodore Roosevelt Rotunda, the name of the the Hall, is incredible famous. Bo et Obi surely devour the moment here :).

the Grand Entrance of the Museum...

As this museum is extremely popular, the line for the entrance ticket is long and packed. But the great thing is, I got one-year free membership from my NY ID and we have a special line for that. Yaaaay....with my free membership, I can take 4 kids with me and less than 5 minutes, we got our tickets.

the tickets...

As usual, the suggested ticket price for this museum is USD 22 for adults, USD 12.50 for kids (2 - 12 years old) and USD 17 for senior and students. You can pay extra for 1 admission to the special exhibition, including the 3D IMAX movie, by paying USD 27 for adults, USD 16 for kids (2 - 12 years old) and USD 22 for senior and students. For SuperSaver tickets, where you can see verything, it will be USD 35 for adults, USD 22 for kids (2 - 12 years old) and USD 28 for senior and students. For more updated information about the tickets, feel free to check the website. 

Sooooo there we were...getting ready to explore and sooo excited about it.

Well, I have to warn you though, this museum is hugeeeee.
A lot to see indeed.
There are 45 permanent halls and one visit certainly won't cover everything.

As an illustration, the 4 of us explored it for almost 4 hours (that's the maximum we got with the kids :)), but we only managed to see 14 permanent exhibitions :). 

Basically, the Museum has permanent and temporary exhibitions, classified in several themes including biodiversity and environmental halls, animals, fossils, human origins and cultures, earth and space and sooo much more.

We started our visit with the Akeley Hall of the African Mamals, warmly welcomed by real-size African Elephants. Bo et Obi were fascinated with all those indigenuous animals from African deserts, savanas, plains, rivers and more. 

Lions, giraffes, deer, gorillas and so much more, complete with the information about their natural environments. 

I can almost hear his growls :)

Really...looking at those exhibitions made feel like we were there in Africa. 

Then we continued to browse the next hall, which is the African Peoples. 
Here we saw the interesting trails of civilizations in this continent. Stories about cultures, including their artifacts like masks, costumes and handicrafts were displayed.

what do you think :)

Next,we followed the path and saw the Birds of the world. 
Another fascinating part indeed...

fly high...

From here, we were heading to the Stout of Asian People Hall and Asian Mammals. Then of course we didn't want to miss dinosaurs part :).  As a matter of fact, Bo et Obi have been  been wanting to come to this spot in the first place.

sneak peak to the Fossils Hall..

Wanna know what we saw in the Fossils Hall ? And other parts of the American Museum of Natural History?
I'll be back with more stories and pictures on the next post.

Do you like museum, too? What is you favorite?


American Museum of Natural History  (AMNH)
Central Park West, 79th Street, New York City, New York, 10024-5192
Phone: +1 212 7695100
Open daily from 10 AM - 5.45 PM, except on Thanksgiving and Christmas

Reference:
American Museum of Natural History

Dolphins at Kiluan Bay, Tanggamus, Lampung

Wherever we may roam, His masterpiece will always be there..

Dolphins at Kiluan Bay, Tanggamus, Lampung, Indonesia

the wild dolphin...at Kiluan Bay

They are just amazing creatures..

                                      

Join us on Skywatch Friday and admire the endless beauty of the sky and nature all over the world

Flushing Meadows in summer

Summer is here...
Say cheeeseeeee :)

My daughter Obi just loves spending time outdoor. 

Well, who wouldn't? 
At least now, when the weather get warmer and 'friendlier' for our 35-degree-all-year-long-Indonesian-skin :).

Public parks and pools are her favorite...along with some scooter-time with her brother, Bo.

We are lucky that many parks are within the walking distance of our house, like Astoria Park, but one of our all-time favorite here is Corona Park, Flushing Meadows. 
We went here several times, in all seasons. 
Winter, spring, summer et fall :). 
The first time we came here is because we wanted to check the alien tower appeared in Men in Black movie. From that moment on, we keep coming back.

It's famous for its Unisphere and being the site for World's Fair back in 1940 and 1965. 
The last time we went here was before Ramadhan as they had the festival for the anniversary of the World's Fairs.

It was a great event, with many displays of antique cars, mementos from the Fairs, and fun activities for the kids. I should have probably put that story on another post. Yeaaah...will do :).

But for sure, we were having fun at that day.
And took a lot of pictures.
Really a lot of pictures :).

Obi in black-and-white 

Well, it was a great day..
Everyone was in good mood and we had our phones.
So..voilaaaa...
A photo session it was.

                Here are some of the shots we took on iPhone 6 and edited using Snapseed

Hope you like it :)

Say cheeers...

cheers..

                         

Obi and I :)

the 4 of us, under the Unisphere :)

Now that we are in the middle of Ramadhan, the holy month for moslems, we are fasting and trying to go a little easy on outdoor activities.

But I guess another trip to Flushing Meadows won't hurt :).

What's your favorite park near your house? Do you take lots of pictures in the park as well?

Wherever you may be...

And I know my Rabb will always be with me..

wherever you may be...

Wherever  I may be...

Bunaken, Manado

The clear blue sky at Bunaken, Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia

Join us on Skywatch Friday

On my way back home...

One of the beauties of living in New York City is good public transport.

Back home in Indonesia, I was an avid user of public transports, too, especially TransJakarta or Busway. Well, in fact, wherever I go, I always try to maximize the public transports.

Why do I love it?
Because of course, it's handy.
The routes have been carefully planned to ensure that they cover many places, those spots visited most by people. Especially those popular tourist spots here in NYC, including parks, museums and shopping centers (alriteee :) ). Most of the subway lines run every 3 to 5 minutes, depending on the hours. During rush hours we definitely have more.

And it's cheap. 

Here in NYC, one trip costs you USD 2.75 as of 2015. It used to be USD 2.50 per trip. It allows us to make some transits using other modes of transportation as well, for example from subways to buses, within a certain period of time. I never notice it but I guess within 1 to 1.5 hour will be fine. Well, I guess I will share more posts on commuting with MTA here in NYC later.

So, with crazy traffic, extremely difficult (or expensive... You choose!) parking spots, and constant honking here and there, taking subways is indeed heaven. Well, at least for me :). There are times when they are not working properly or when accident happens, but it doesn't happen most of the time, so we're good.

Another thing I love from commuting is that it keeps me healthy for walking a lot and happy for seeing great landscape of the city.

Like last night...

Crysler Building...

Heading to Grand Central Station, Crysler Building is standing tall, greeting everyone before going down to the underground tunnel.

And I took one quick snap before catching my 7 train...

As we emerged from the underwater tunnel connecting Manhattan and Queens, a lovely city landscape welcomes us. This time with a huge sign of Silvercup Studio (where they shot scenes of Sex and the City series, among others ;) ), and Empire State Building afar.

Manhattan from a far.. taken from my subway window, with Silvercup Studio billboard and Empire State Building as a background..

Then, getting off the train, RFK Bridge was elegantly posed under the setting sun and the blue sky.

Now you see why taking subway is always enjoyable for me :).

Getting closer to home...

Do you like taking public transport as well?

Join us on Skywatch Friday and enjoy blue sky from many parts of the world..

WW: Tugu Khatulistiwa at Pontianak, West Kalimantan, Indonesia

Equatorial Monument or Tugu Khatulistiwa at Pontianak, West Kalimantan...

Uniquely situatiated right on the equatorial line, this monument or tower is one of the landmarks in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, Indonesia.

Read the complete story here..

Join us on (almost) Wordless Wednesday and enjoy the bloghopping :)

United Nations International Bazaar 2015

Can you imagine if 193 members, or even just a half, of the United Nations gather in one international bazaar showcasing each traditional cultures and signature culinaries?

The UN SG at the Bazaar...

Sensational...that's what it is :)

And I was so privileged to attend one here at the UN Headquarters.

This annual gathering has been held for quite some rimes and this year's event has the full support from Mrs. Ban Soon-taek, the UN Secretary-General's wife.

Ms. Ban Soon-taek

Situated at the North Lawn Building of the Headquarters, the bazaar started at 10.30 with the official ribbon - cutting ceremony by Mrs. Ban. For 2015, there are more than countries and group of countries participating in this bazaar.

And what a festive bazaar indeed..

Your eyes will feast with all those colorful and unique displays of wonderful art crafts and handicrafts from different corners of the world. From Algeria to Zimbabwe..from Bhutan to Micronesia.

And wait until your sensory system sense the wonderful smell of cuisines from around the world. Something that you might be familiar with or, at the contrary, something new beyond your imagination :). My adventurous tummy has been growling since I step into the building.

special dishes from Pacific...

Cheers from the EU corner..

The proceedings from this bazaar will be donated to those who need the support and it will be organized by the UN Women's Guild.  So, while enjoying the bazaar, you will also participate and donate for good deeds.

For sure, Indonesia joins this event just like many years before. We reserved 2 tables, one for the food and one for the handicraft.

For the Indonesian food, we had mie bakso, or Indonesian meatball soup; sosis solo, or Indonesian munchies like spring rolls with sauted beef filling; es teler, literally translated as drunken ice, is the combination of beverage with fresh milk, avocado, young jackfruit, coconut meat, and jelly pudding; and rendang, the famous spicy beef stew with coconut milk and Indonesian traditional herbs and spices. With the price range of USD 3 - 10, many enjoyed these culinary delights.

And for the handicrafts, we had various kinds of traditional clutches, batik hats, shopping bags, clothes and more. Colorful faces of Indonesian handicrafts indeed :).

As you can see, we have batik clothes and skirts (most of them are gone ..sold at the end of the day :)) and some small yet handy artcrafts like fans, hats, small wallets and sooo many more :)

As for other tables, there were soooo many varities. I didn't manage to get the names of those food but love to see and devour them. And the smells...sooo alluring indeed :).

from China...

yummy snacks :)

I remember the similar bazaar that we had in Geneva at Palais  des Nations, the UN Office in Geneve. Annually conducted, the same festivities always successfully attracted many visitors.

Here are some more pics I got during the event  at the UN HQ in NYC:).

packed with visitors...

And I successfully grabbed food from our own table, that is Mie Bakso et Es Teler, Pakistani chicken Biryani, Cuban dessert, and Chinese vegetarian spring rolls. That's a lot hahaahha....but yuuuum yuuuum indeed...

I can't wait to see the same bazaar next year :)

So, do you like visiting international bazaar as well?