Thank God we got weekends!

The only time I can remember where I had a total break (after more than a year of bone-breaking-brain-squeezing of work) was the 36-hour in Malaysia, it was a true blessing, I had a blast definitely.

Yesterday was another idyllic time to spend – Surabaya gateway!

Ke Surabaya aja lah yang kita mampu… Apparently because I don't have that much time to travel any further than Surabaya. Second, because I didn't have any big budgets to spend, especially for a weekends break like this. Yet, it's way much better than just being stuck at home and sleeping the whole of weekends, right? After all, Monday awaits… *stress!*

I'm glad that Frente is on her Bangil outstation during the time I am still in Lawang. We planned for a few more outings where we can spend our weekends exploring Jawa Timur better (particularly the nearby attractions). Yesterday wasn't really an exploration of Jawa Timur, but we did something different in Surabaya than what we usually did (selalu pergi utk makan, lepak, shopping2).

Frente got her Lonely Planet Indonesia along, and I got my Google Map to GPS us around the town. DSLR and tripod are included in this what we called 'Surabaya Study Trip'. First stop was at Tugu Pahlawan. Actually we were heading to the China Town where we passed by this place and decided to stop. Managed to learn nothing, just to snap lotsa crazy photos on her DSLR.

Tugu Pahlawan of Surabaya

The China Town was somehow a disappointment. I was expecting a strident hectic market where red lanterns are hanging everywhere and people speaks Mandarin – just like how it is in Petaling Street or China Town in KL. It was much a disappointment after a long attempt to get there, the market is closed, left us only garbage and foul smells. So, the chinese in Surabaya don't stay for night markets I reckon. However, it was a success for us – to get to that middle of nowehere without any local guide but only Google Map. Congratulations Bil and Frente!

Next stop is to the Galaxy Mall for one specific reason – is to get our essential drugs where it is nowhere to be found in Malang. Next stop is… *drumroll* Starbucks! *euphoric mode*

Since it's Christmas season, they've got this minty taste Peppermint Mocha Frap *heart*

Move to Surabaya Town Square @ Sutos for a movie, first we had dinner at the Kafe Betawi. Jakarta food to our yummylicious! Tron in 3D is ok. But since we went for the midnight show, I was kinda sleepy somewhere in the middle of it. It's cool, though I'm not a big fan of sci-fi.

Back to the hotel at almost dawn. The road is clear! Maybe we can roll around on the asphalt for few minutes without being hit by a car! About the hotel that we stayed in, it's Majapahit Hotel – another thing to count in in our 'Surabaya Study Trip'. At the age of over a century, the hotel looks cool still. Something different than staying in business class modern hotel, it's antique, old-fashioned, homey, cozy and well preserved… It is one of the historical places in Surabaya.

Checking in one of the historical places

We're planning to get back to the hotel, majorly for the exoticness feeling of it and therefore we're going back for a spa! Martha Tilaar spa to be exact! One day… I'll blog about it! *loveeee spa!*

Another must-have!

The next morning we woke up, to Frente's dream come to reality. Particularly, she was so much aspired to stay in this hotel especially because the restaurant is uniquely situated facing the main road of Surabaya. Therefore, we opt for the window table during the breakfast. Yay, tercapai cita-cita untuk makan di 'tepi jalan'. And to my latest addict to Sour Sally came true too! We got froyo for three, together with Mbak Ninin whom we planned to meet at Pakuwon, thank you for the treat!!

Spectacular opening act of the circus stars

Another thing we've done during the 'Surabaya Study Trip' was to the circus! Yes, you heard me right – the circus, the acrobats, clowns and well-trained animals! The last time I've been to a circus was around the age of 10. I can vividly remember how spectacular it was at the Royal London Circus that time. Though this time at the Soviet Circus Stars was halved the size of Royal London and halved the excitement, I am still amazed that 80% of the performers were Indonesian. They are really that well trained and even the animals came from the Taman Safari Indonesia! Isn't that a wow?

To add to that, we finally managed to get to the Pakuwon area. Sebab dulu kita pernah nak pergi G-Walk, tiba-tibe tersasar masuk highway, terus balik Malang (dengan perasaan hampa dan perut yang lapar)! Haha!

Perhaps, that's something about it. Though I might not have holiday throughout this 20 months of Dokter Muda life, but I'm glad I have a bestfriend to go around and have fun with!