The Glittering Carnivale di Venezia...

Carnivale di Venezia...

What do you have in mind when you hear the world "carnival"...
The crowd? the music? the costumes? the parade?

For me....carnival means incredible masks, phenomenal costumes, jam-packed crowds and angels...

That's what I have in mind when you say Carnaval in Venice :)

This Carnival is indeed world-wide famous.
And every February, the City of Venezia becoming one of the most visited spots on earth. Well, I guess everybody wants to be part of this glittering annual feast...at least that's what we felt at that time :D...

As I saw that the next carnivale is being scheduled on the 31st January to 17th of February this year, my memory was thrown back to our very own trip to this incredible place.

it was back in 2009 (don't blame me for taking such a loooong time to write about this now, 5 years after :D). I know, I know...it might sound cliche but I do miss my European adventure :).

So, determined to witness this 5-star event, My hubby, Udi, I, Bo * we haven't had Obi at that time :)) and Foto Kuliner Club (my dear family and friends in Geneve...how I missed them sooo much...) planned this trip. We hired 2 big vans and traveled with 13 people all together...We booked one 3-storey apartment for ourselves and prepared all the logistics, including Indonesian food like rendang or beef in spicy coconut milk, semur or beef stew in sweet soy soy and many more (of course, never missed that :D....).

And bang...after almost 8-hour drive from Geneve, we arrived in Venezia...

Venice

Its unabated beauty has long captured the hearts of many. Dubbed as the city of the bridge, the floating city truly is a beautiful sight. 

It was not the first time for as I went there for the first time there in 2004. 

But our visit in 2009 was the first time for Udi et Bo.. and most of our friends, too :D. 
So from day-1, we were super excited!

When we first arrived at Venezia, we took al vaporetto no.2, the water taxi,  from Tronchetto Car park, to the main island of Venezia....

Yuuup, to the famous main island...

It was early in the morning...
Stand-up breakfast and mind-blowing expensive tickets were the perfect combination for a beautiful start of the day, in Venezia :)..

But that definitely didn't stop us from having fun ....which means = stop at every corner, pose and take pictures :D..

So, here's where the story begins..

the blinding sun at the market

arriving at the island...

the view along the way...

As the freezing February wind blew, we were soaked in the morning sun watching the busy market in the morning, people enjoying their gondola rides, and the whole city was waking up...

Love it!


Although this city was fully packed with photographers and people during the Carnivale, including our group :D, Venezia will never, never fail to wow its visitors. 

As we arrived a day before the D-Day, we manage to browse around the city and again enjoy its timeless charms. 

The beautiful, mysterious bridges...connecting people and their secrets :)

We strolled around Rialto Bridge...

smileee...

the fascinating bridge...

Enjoying the breathtaking view from there...

Having a quick breakfast there, then heading to San Marco ... 

Basilica San Marco..

Catching the birds in this famous pebbled square...

back in 2004 :)

enjoying our morning in the square...

having fun with the birds...

stay awaay from meee :)

Playing hide and seek (and pose) in front of the Doge's Palace :)

cheers...

And of course...not to forget enjoying the gondola ride..

a lot to choose...

Going to Venice will never be complete if you don't experience the one-of-a-kind gondola ride...

So, 'though it costs us 80 Euro per gondola (I guess it stays the same now..)and some are afraid of it (as they simply can't swim if something wrong happens :D), we finally go around the canals in a-30-minute-gondola-ride (which proves to be quite short a time!)..

Floating around the corners while listening to never-ending-high-pitch-melodious chat between Remi and Fabio, our gondoliers, is certainly an experience..

Fabio, our gondolier...

Not to mention the race in Grand Canal ...

the other gondola...with which we were racing :)

et passing the Casanova's house ( I hope they tell us the truth :D)..

The casanova love nest...

From the other corner...

I was hoping someone will open that window :)...

As enjoyable as it can be, we can't ignore the rather unpleasant smell coming from the water while we pass the small canals..well, what are you expecting anyway, the whole water is the giant septic-tank at some point :D. And sometimes it chokes me out...

still smiling though...

But all in all, we love it...and we don't mind doing it again (just like Mak Su, my aunty who was firstly afraid to take the gondola ride,  did :D, once is never enough)...as you can see here, happy faces are all you can find, while riding the Gondola..

O Solemio.....

ooh...And we were watching other enjoying their rides as well...

And shopping is certainly high in our agenda :)

Bo seemed to be busy shopping...

some of our mementos from Venice...

My purple mask..

How the day passed so swiftly when you were having fun ...

Then the next day, we got ourselves ready for the Carnivale...

And what would the Carnivale be without those glittering masks and glamorous costumes? 

As we, the Genevoises (in times of writing), were a bit low on costumes department, masks are our only option. And here are some new vocabularies regarding the masks.
Gatto (=cat),  Colombina, Jester (=joker), Volto, Butterfly, Denosso, and Cassanova seem to the favorite ones.

Rushed we went to those mask shops that scattered everywhere, picked our fave and joined the crowd....

mini family portrait :)

Obviously, wherever you set your eyes, those with grandeur costumes have started mingling around thousands spectators, including us, wishing to take pictures with them. And the crowd was so packed...

And how we haaad sooo much fun :D..

my half-face  purple jester :)

Especially My hubby and I :D...narcissm was definitely in the air...

Taking a break to take our own pictures..yes, lots of pictures :D...

Il Volto e La Farvalla :D....

no comments on this :)

These are some of the incredible masks and costumes that we saw during our visit on Carnivale di Venezia...

Now you see why it's so fascinating to be here...
To feel the vibe, to be part of the commotion..
To simply admire the creativity and the artistic energies around you...

We stayed until the end of the parade, when we saw the "angel" coming down from Campanile, the tower, to the middle of San Marco square. Fascinating...to bad I couldn't find the photos :). Speaking of which, most of the photos were taken by my hubby, Udi, while his photos and Bo were taken by me. 

To those who are interested to visit Venice during this grandeur moment, get more information here. And feel the vibe...

Have you been to a carnival before?

Miss Rendang memang nendaaang :)

Hai haiiii...

It's Indonesian culinary time :)

As I have previously shared on my Wordless Wednesday, recently I was beyond happy to receive a special delivery from home. It's Miss Rendang :). Wuhuuuu...

Why is it special? Because it's Miss Rendang, Not only rendang.

Buat yang suka rendang, pasti familiar dengan makanan khas Indonesia ini. Walaupun aslinya rendang adalah resep tradisional masyarakat Minang, tapi rendang kini sudah menjadi kuliner kebanggaan Indonesia. Tidak heran kalau rendang gampang dijumpai di banyak tempat di Indonesia. Tidak jarang ada beberapa penyesuaian rasa juga. Saya pernah makan rendang yang rasanya pedas gurih tapi agak manis, terus rendang yang dicampur dengan kacang merah atau kentang kecil-kecil, plus rendang yang ampas kelapanya masih terasa. Semuanya enak ..mungkin karena saya selalu berprinsip semua makanan itu enak atau enak bangeeet :).

Tapiiiii kalau mau mencoba rendang dengan resep tradisional, ada jagonya niiiih...
Miss Rendang...
Beneraaan lhooo...

Mau liat penampakannya? Nih diaaa...

dan saudara-saudaraa...sekarang saya hanya bisa menikmati fotonyaaa...

Gurihnya terasa, pedasnya pas, dan potongan dagingnya pun tidak terlalu besar or terlalu kecil. Dan senangnya lagi, karena makanan rumahan, saya yakin Miss Rendang tidak menggunakan bahan pengawet. Jadi sangat aman untuk dikonsumsi.

Packagingnya pun oke untuk pengiriman jarak jauh seperti saya karena kemasan plastik di dalamnya sudah divacuum. Ini penting untuk menghindari kebocoran, apalagi bumbu rendang tea yang berbalur minyak hehehe. Well, saya menitipkan Miss Rendang ke teman yang kebetulan memang sedang kembali ke tanah air, jadi 
kira-kira diperlukan waktu 5 hari sebelum Miss Rendang bisa tiba di pangkuan sayaaa..

Miss Rendang masih di dalam packaging plastiknya :)

Lambang Miss Rendang juga lucuuu lho...so cuteeee...seperti kita ibu-ibu muda imut :)

Bahan-bahan serta saran penyajian juga tertulis lengkap di packaging...

jadi kita ngga perlu khawatir deh makannya :)

Psst, ada fanpagenya juga lhooo...komplit dengan account twitter et instagramnya..pokoknya easy breezy for you who like to order Miss Rendang or write your testimony there, like I diiid :)

ini testimoni sayaaaa :)

All in all....I'm super duper happy with Miss Rendang yang asli rasanya bikin lidah bergoyang...

Go check its Facebook fanpage or add its instagram and twitter @missrendang . Dijamiiiin ngg bakal nyeeeseeel...

Sekarang saya yang nyesel, kenapa cuma pesen 2 paket hiiiks...
Selamat menikmati Miss Rendang yaaaa..... 

Tangkil Island, Lampung

I clearly long for a clean sandy beach, sunny day, turquoise water and majestic sky...

Tangkil Island, Lampung, Indonesia

Join us on Skywatch Friday and enjoy the sky from every corner of the world :)

WW: Yummy Miss Rendang...

Rendang is indeed one of Indonesian well-known cuisine...

Have you heard or tasted Rendang before?

Its exquisite taste of bold, spicy, and savory flavor resulting from perfect mixture of fresh meat, coconut milk, chili, and many Indonesian traditional spices, has captured the hearts of many,  including me for sure..

And I was over the moon when I finally got this special delivery from my beloved homeland...

Introducing, Miss Rendang...

Wanna know more about rendang and Miss Rendang? Will be back with more details :)

Miss Rendang...rasanya bikin lidah bergoyang ...

Join me on (almost) Wordless Wednesday and have fun bloghopping :)

Serunya #K3BSauyunan

Huaaaaa...

Happy, happy birthdaaaay one more time, KEB :)..

Again, joining this community has certainly made my life more colorful!

Rasanya, gegap gempita #K3BSauyunan, yang merupakan peringatan hari ulang tahun ke tiga Kumpulan emak Blogger, masih terasa di hati hingga kini :).

Padahal saya tidak bisa hadir lho, karena sedang berada jauh dari tanah air.

Untungnya, walaupun tidak bisa ikut serta seru-seruan kopdar, ketemuan emak-emak keren, ikut lomba dance dan acara heboh lainnya di ajang #K3BSauyunan (pokoknya iriiii berat hehehe :)), Alhamdulillah kami diberi kesempatan oleh Makpan cantik yang super hits, untuk bisa berkontribusi alias meramaikan acara seru pake bingits iniiii...

Dan mulailah komunikasi kami dengan Makkandi 2013, Mak Alaika Abdullah, via facebook. Kami-kami yang tidak bisa hadir, baik karena sedang tidak di tanah air atau jauh dari tempat perhelatan #K3BSauyunan di Bandung, diminta mengumpulkan video. Isi videonya pada intinya ucapan selamat ulang tahun untuk KEB dengan gaya kita masing-masing :). Seruuuu dan semangaaat ikutan nih karena kangen. 

Berhubung NYC lagi dingiiin banget waktu itu walaupun salju sudah tidak turun lagi, saya sempat menunggu sampai cuaca menghangat atau paling tidak agak cerah sedikit. Makluuum...supaya background videonya keyeeen hehehehe. Alhasil, hingga menjelang deadline pengiriman video, NYC masih greyish gerimis dingin kinyis-kinyis ngga jelas hehehe. Akhirnya, berbekal semangat baja dan baju hangat, kami pun memutuskan untuk syuting di UN Headquarter, markas besar PBB di NY, tempat saya banyak menghabiskan waktu. Minus 6 tidak menghalangi niat dan semangat kami hehehe. Dibantu Nona, teman di Indonesian Mission, mulailah kita bergaya buat video. Dengan latar belakang Queensboro Bridge dan East River, video kita rekam di Rose Garden, UN Headquarter, di tengah rintik hujan dan cuaca beku. Tiga kali take, akhirnya happy dengan hasil terakhir dan langsung mencari kehangatan alias masuk gedung hehehe. 

But as I said in my recording, I felt warm while doing it because that's exactly what I feel about being in KEB. Warm..comfortable. 

Seperti berada di tengah keluarga (yang isinya perempuan semuaaaa..wuhuuuu, how cool is that :). Dengan segala keseruan dan kelucuannya, saya sangat beruntung bisa sering berinteraksi dengan beberapa Makmin dan anggota KEB lainnya sebelum saya berangkat, baik di acara KEB maupun non-KEB. Dan semua itu asli bikin kangen lhooo hehehe...

Mau lihat video komplit yang dikompilasi Makkandi 2014 imut kita dari Purwokerto, Mak Pungky Prayitno? Tinggal diklik ajaa niiih..

Sekali lagi, selamat ulang tahun ya KEB..... 

Ada begitu banyak harapan, cita-cita, doa dan cinta untuk keberlangsungan komunitas keren ini. Yang pasti, saya merasa mendapat banyak ilmu, teman, dan berkah sejak bergabung. Mudah-mudahan, apa yang kita share di komunitas ini bisa membawa banyak kebaikan dan manfaat untuk semua. Pokoknya bravoooo emak-emak kece, selalu semangat and terus berkarya yaaaa...

Salam kangeeeen pake banget dari NYC  :)

Fun at Big Apple Circus

Do you like watching circus?
I do...
I remember my colorful childhood watching this amazing group of talented people as well as amazing animals. What a great show!

Dulu, waktu kecil, saya ingat pertama kali nonton sirkus waktu SD di Lapangan Enggal, Lampung. Lupa nama persisnya, tapi yang pasti rasanya seruuu banget nonton sirkus waktu itu. Ya deg-degan, semangat, pengen tau, penasaran dan seneeeng liat semua. Apalagi waktu itu banyak parade keterampilan binatang yang memang menakjubkan. Mulai dari anjing yang pintar berhitung, gajah yang pandai berbaris, plus macan yang gagah. Serem-serem asyik nontonnya...Pakai melongo dan banyak aaah, ooooh...karena takjub :) 

Last week, we gotta a chance to watch the Big Apple Circus. 
Wuhuuuu...Big Apple Circus :p..

It was the last week of their performance in NYC, before heading to New Jersey and some other cities. When I asked around the office who wanted to watch the same show, it turned out that many were interested, so off the 11 of us went to the circus :). It was 4 adults and 7 kids in total, or rather all 11 kids watching the show together :).

What a cold night at that time! Bundled up with all our jackets, shawl, and gloves, we went to Lincoln Center where the tent was erected. It was a full day indeed. Perhaps because at at that time was the buy 1 get 1 ticket day :). Yuuup...we were enjoying the discount pretty much :).

Even before the show, we had so much fun already...
Taking pictures here and there...

cheers..

mama et Bo..

We got in through Door 1 and were escorted to our seats. Kids were so excited already! Bo and Obi were asking questions like where's the clown...would we see the lion..and where's my popcorn :). Just remind me of my old days as a kid :).

When we arrived, the show was just started...

And let the show begin...

the ring master

The show was opened by the parade of all the talents, coming out from the tent with their glorious costumes and merry music. Lovely...
Then we watched a series of performance, including The 1.5-hour show was packed with lots of interesting performance. We saw Fransesco the Clown with his musical instruments and we watched two girls contortion in a small cube (such a super flexible body indeed). We also enjoyed the trapeze troupe, Aniskin Troupe, and a jolly down on the farm dogs, ponies, porcupine and more animals. We also amazed by one performance where one lady was quickly changing her beautiful costumes just in a blink of an eye. We also have some classic-yet-still-entertaining magic tricks from the Ring Master. And I love all the merry music performed live by the Big Apple Circus Band!

The kids, and the adults, truly enjoyed it.

I was hoping we would see some wild animal performances like lions and elephants but we were happy to see the cute dogs, ponies, and even porcupine adorning the show.

I was taking several pictures with my smartphone before realizing that we were not supposed to do so. I thought it was only flash photography that was not allowed.
So, here were some of photos of the show that I managed to get...

the trapeze...

the band from afar...

cheers from the butterfly girls :)

We paid USD 25 per person for that performance and I believe if you reserve the ticket earlier, for sure you will get better price :). You can also donate and apply for membership starting from USD 40 for more benefits and discount while supporting the circus for all program they have. 

Go check their website for more details and I guess they will be performing in New Jersey this February and come back to NYC this May.

So, have you watched a circus performance before? Do you like it :)?

circus for all..

Shine bright...

Hello, sunshine...

Still a freezing day (minus 4C or 28F only :)), but the sun has decided to greet us today. 
Love the clear blue sky and the seagulls lining up on the fence enjoying the sun ..

Bon weekend a tous..

Join me on Sky Watch Friday...

Indonesiaku: swimming with the clown fish..

Being away from home will always intensify my longing to my gracious homeland, Indonesia

No doubt everyone will fall in love with its endless beauty..

Like they way I miss swimming with the clown fish :)

Tegal Island, Lampung, May 2014...

KEBku tercinta...aku kangeeeen :)

Yuhuuuuu....
Ada yang ulang tahun lhooo :)

picture is taken from here

First thing first, happy happy birthdaaaaay KEB :)....

Wishing you nothing but the beeeest...for always!

picture is taken from here

Sejak awal, saya begitu merasakan kehangatan keluarga saat bersama Kumpulan Emak Blogger (KEB). 

Truly....

Sebagai salah satu anggota baru di KEB yang bergabung di pertengahan bilangan 2013, saya benar-benar terhitung 'anak bawang.' Apalagi  mengingat teman-teman blogger yang lain sudah malang melintang di dunia perbloggeran sejak jauh - jauh hari. Sungguh blogger-blogger luar biasa yang penuh prestasi...

Saya pernah cerita kan, kalau semua ini bermula di Solo. 

Dalam keseruan ASEAN Blogger Festival tepatnya :). Ah, jadi senyum-senyum sendiri kalau inget masa itu. Ketemu 'kembaran' (iiih, ngaku-ngaku hehehe) mak Injul a.k.a Makpuh yang sama hebohnya (baca: rameeee : ) ) dengan saya. Melihat Mak Mira a.k.a makpon yang sibuk di sesi acara, terus ketemu Mak Al sang makkandi yang seru, plus teh Nchie Hanie yang imut-imut dan menggemaskan :), Teh NengNong IrmaSenja yang cantik dan manja, dan Teh Meti Mediya yang geulis et ngangeniiiin. Belum lagi semuaaa blogger-blogger kondang yang hadir di sana, termasuk Gigie, Mak Lusi Tris yang saya ngga sempet ketemu, mak Wylvera, dan masih banyak lagiiii.... Aaaaah, saya jadi asli kangeeen nih dengan semua :).

Di situlah saya kemudian membulatkan tekad untuk menjadi anggota KEB yang luar biasa ini. Saya inget banget...mak Al, sang makkandi yang memperkenalkan KEB dan cara mendaftar menjadi anggota KEB. 

Ngga pake ribet, ngg pake susah..saya pun mendaftar saat itu juga dan tak lama, makte Sary Melati pun melayangkan surat cinta yang mengkonfirmasikan keanggotaan saya di KEB. Yaaay :)

aku diterimaaaa :)

Inilah cikal bakal saya menjadi blogger yang (ngakunya) 'serius' dan menikmati dunia blogging yang bikin nyandu, plus ketemuan teman-teman baru, baik di dunia nyata dan dunia maya, yang super duper seruuuuu...

Meskipun jadi new kid on the block, namun demikian, saya tidak berkecil hati lho. Walaupun masih suka celingak-celinguk untuk menjadi blogger yang baik dan benar, saya merasa banyak dirangkul oleh teman-teman yang memang jago di bidangnya. Dari blogger 'perawan' yang hanya tau menulis dan posting, tidak tau mengubah template ini itu, let alone Adsense et CEO, kini pelan-pelan saya mulai belajar dan menimba ilmu dari teman-teman. Dan saya banyak berterima kasih dengan semua keluarga besar KEB. 

Saya bahkan mendapat banyak kesempatan untuk berinteraksi langsung dengan keluarga besar KEB di beberapa acara.

cheeers...

serunyaaaaa :)

muka lapaaar :)

cheeeers lagiiii :)...

Termasuk saat mendapat kehormatan untuk bisa memeriahkan acara Srikandi Blogger 

2014. Again, sungguh merupakan suatu kehormatan bisa menjadi salah satu finalisnya.  

keseruan di SB 2014 :)...

so proud to have this t-shirt :)

miss u all...

And that's the beauty of KEB... 

Sharing is caring!

What a great family...

Yang saling dukung di kala susah maupun senang, yang saling berbagi kebaikan dan membawa berkah bagi semua. Yang selalu bersinar dengan segala gebrakan dan inovasinya...

Rumah hangat penuh cinta :).
Semoga semua kebaikan dan kebahagiaan yang saya dapatkan dari komunitas penuh cinta ini bisa saya balas walaupun entah bagaimana caranya. yang penting selalu semangat berbagi kebaikan melalui tulisan, blog, and beyond :)

Kecup basaaah untuk makpon, makpuh,  semua jajaran makmin KEB dan keluarga besar KEB. Sumpah saya kangeeeeeen semuanyaaa...

kapan lagi kita bisa berboots ria bareng beginiiiii :)

Pokoknya, next time ada di tanah air, kita kopdaraaaaan ya :)..

Dan sukseees untuk KEB Sauyunannya..ditunggu live streamingnya pokoknyaaa ..

Love you, KEB...

Always.

Penuh cinta dari pojok midtown NYC yang dingin

WW: My new cozy corner :)

Introducing my new cozy corner at the office..

Adorned with my favorite hand woven tenun from Eastern and Western Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia, plus my cutey hooty pinky owl :)

Join me on (almost) Wordless Wednesday :)