Grey November

Pisang goreng is shortened to pisgor here.

Couple that with a rather strong but nice local teh halia.

According to the locals, the specially brewed teh halia will increase kesuburan.

It was another long bus trip to our next destination but the scenery was jaw dropping.

A few hours of dozing off in the seat, we were on foot for around 500m to one of Toba’s streams.

They call it the Sipiso Piso Waterfalls. Time constraints again halted my intended hike to the bottom.

Spent another few back breaking hours in the bus due to jam heading to Medan.

The final day we managed to visit a Istana in Medan before flying back to Malaysia.

Next up : Gambar-gambar aneh.

Short update :

I hate pills.

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We started off the second day, full of excitement, heading off for boating on Toba Lake.

Makes you wonder of the magnificent creations of God, doesn’t it?


Panoramic shot of the “jetty” area at Parapat.


1st stop was at Tomok or Ambarita Village. I honestly can’t recall which village is which village. Ended up visit some old king’s tomb.


Right behind these tombs was this auspicious hut which bore the sign “Joro Habonaran Sacrificial Place”.


A bouquet shot of the tomb. Quite surprised most of the tombs we went to, bore the cross.


Then there was this local cultural dance some of us took part in. Notice that kerbau? According to folklore, the kerbau represents good/evil. So happens that when we arrive, the stupid kerbau crapped right in front of us. Seems that we aren’t that good huh?


Nonetheless, it was a great show by the team. Well, except for parts where I swear the local was blabbering curses in hokkien.


Randy decided to curse him back and he got pancung-ed.

Nah, it was part of a exhibition on how the locals punished criminals in their time.


Next was Tao Island (Honeymoon Island).


Yea its pretty, but I still don’t see the correlation to the usage of honeymoon.


Some took the golden oppurtunity to dip in Toba Lake.


I, on the other hand, took the oppurtunity to get some shots of the area.

More shots in the next posting. =)

Short update :

The hour long flight to Medan does make one think; Sabah/S’wak around 2-3 hours away and require immigration check.  Sah depa negara lain,cam Penang.

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Jumped on Air Asia for our annual company trip mid last week, to Indon!  Upon clearing arrival, we departed via bus to Toba Lake around 130km away via B roads.

Only to be greeted by this.  They are famous snacks found in Pulau Siantar that is similar to those biscuit kacang in Malaysia.

Indon was preparing for there presidential elections when we were in. Imagining PKR being “Peduli Kut pasal Rakyat”.

Gratis means free btw. SimPATI is their prepaid service.

The journey took us around 3-4 hours as there was heavy traffic en route to Niagara Hotel. Weather was somewhat similar to Camerons, slightly windier.

Hotel mereka pun sama cam di Camerons. Aircon tarak, kipas tarak, air panas pun tarak. But it was a small matter nonetheless.

It was free and easy till dinner time, so we decided to take a quick walk down to Toba Lake.

007 uses TelKom Indon?

One of my fav shots of this trip.

Around 1.6 km downhill, we arrived at the shores of  Toba Lake.

The locals here actually use the freshwater lake to bath. Heard mentions of water recreational sports but didn’t manage to see any during the trip.

Hopes of catching a sunset pic on the 1st day quickly diminished with the coming of nightfall.

Oh, by the way, the town is called Parapat.

Wished I had more time to travel around the town and squeeze in more shots but I guess following on tours restricts that.

Dinner came up next. With Bintang beer. =)

Better pics of Toba Lake in the next post.

The city of Bangkok refuses to sleep I guess.

The traffic here just never ends. Morning, afternoon, night, there’s not much difference.

Patpong night market is very much alike our own version of Petaling Street. They have countless imitation products here ranging from handbags to watches and clothes.

They even have these funny pillow covers.
Walking along Patpong night market is similar to Petaling Street. Why?

They just have it more OPENLY.

Along the Chao Phraya River is a tourist attraction called Wat Pho.

Inside beholds one of the largest reclining Buddha statues on earth but alas, the rude Jaga fella at the temple spoilt my intentions to behold the shear size of the statue.

Tourists and locals flood this place, seeking prayers and blessings alike.

Random lotus shot in Wat Pho after illegally discovering a back entrance without paying the required entrance fee.  Jaga-lou, NAH!

Not too far along the other side of Chao Phraya River is another foreign-magnet is the form of Wat Arun.

I found it hard to compose most of my pictures except this one but Grace had a field day taking beautiful shots.

Most of the shots here really didn’t turn out the way I intended them to.