Sketchbook to Buy: XL Aquarelle from Canson

When I studied architecture in college, I used some types of papers: Padalarang paper for pencil sketches (it's called Padalarang paper because the paper factory is located in Padalarang), Manila paper for ink sketches, and Concord or Canson paper for watercolor drawings. I love Canson the most but it's more expensive than the rest. We used to bought a pack consists of 4 sheets of A3. 

Some time ago I spotted an art supplies store "Artemedia" at Festival Citylink, Bandung. They sell some kinds of sketchbooks so I decided to buy one of the most expensive sketchbooks I've ever bought in my life, XL AQUARELLE from Canson. 

The sketchbook costs Rp 102.000 (A4) and Rp 172.000 (A3). Each has 30 sheets of 140 lb paper, so it's thick enough to make watercolor drawings.

I love the texture of the paper and it's also nice for pencil & colored pencil drawings.

So, I love it. Even it's more expensive than my previous ones, it makes drawing more fun because I can try various art medium without damaging the paper.

Where to get it: http://www.artemedia-hidayat.com/seller.shtml

Place to Visit: Sukha Delights and Blue Doors Coffee, Bandung

Looking for pretty and yummy cakes and pastry for dessert or tea time?
If you live in Bandung (or if you plan to visit Bandung soon), you can go to this new little cake shop named Sukha Delights!

perfect mood booster

You can order and eat there while having tea, coffee, or juice. You can also bring those cakes home.

Urgent birthday cake. Aren't they cute?

I also spotted their cheesecake when I went to Blue Doors Coffee. Attention to coffee lovers: their coffee is great!

Coffee and cake. I need nothing else.

Blue Doors Coffee. Surprise surprise, they have blue doors.

Sukha Delights
Paskal Hypersquare D-11, Bandung

Ph: +62 86061094

Blue Doors Coffee
Gandapura no. 61, Bandung
(beside Privilege; it's kinda hard to find)

Let's Eat: Pannacotta from Something Sweet, Jakarta

Last week my sister bought home colorful pannacotta in cute jars. She got it from Something Sweet, an online bakeshop in Jakarta.

Put in fridge for an hour before gulping down the whole jar enjoying the pannacotta

From upper left, clockwise: Green tea - Oreo - Vanilla with Strawberry Sauce - Chocolate Hazelnut

I kind of hope every flavor comes with sauce. But then I won't be able to stop eating.

You can visit their instagram to get more information.

Place to Visit: Fuku Ramen, Bandung

Fuku Ramen is a small Japanese ramen shop located on Jalan Pasirkaliki 71A, Bandung.

Small but nice and comfy~

Fuku Chicken Chashu Ramen Rp 37000

Hot ocha (refill) Rp 3000 (or even free if you tweet something about them!)

This is what I ordered. Fuku Chicken Chashu Ramen. There are some slices of chicken chashu, soft boiled egg, cloud ear fungus, nori (I wish they would put more because I love nori), scallion, and, of course, ramen, in delicious chicken stock. Good news, the chicken stock is not too greasy!

I also ordered Chicken Karaage Mayonnaise (Rp 17000), didn't take pic because it arrived when I was too busy eating. You have to agree that fried food is a nice company when eating a bowl of soft ramen.

I had a nice lunch, the weather was pretty cold that day, so going there was a perfect decision. But after eating something hot, I always crave for something cold. Talk about balance. And also we always that empty space for dessert in our tummies, right? Right?

So, of course I had to order ogura ice cream. I had a happy smile on my face when leaving the place.

Note: There isn't a lot of parking space, so... get in one car and visit the place right now!

Place to Visit: Myeong Ga

If there's something better than k-drama and k-pop, it's definitely k-food. Korean food. Aka heaven on earth.

Unfortunately there aren't many Korean restaurants in Bandung. But don't worry, there are still some places you can visit to try all the food you usually see in those k-dramas.

One recommended Korean restaurant you should visit is Myeongga, located at Jl. Dr. Sutami No.52A Setra Sari, Bandung. A while ago I went there with my friends and ordered a lot of food. They also give free korean side dish (banchan), of course, including kimchi. Ah, and free ice cream or coffee! 

Life Lately: Doodling, Crocheting, Munching Food

It's been almost 2 months since I bought Samsung Galaxy Note II, and I've made some more drawings using Sketchbook Mobile X.

I posted this on my tumblr about Shinhwa because I talked too much about them on this blog.

Anyone recognize them?

Made this for SHCJ Indonesia's 3rd Anniversary tomorrow

Honestly I made a lot of drawings of Shinhwa...

Jay Chou, as requested by a friend who believes they'll somehow end up together

Cha Seung Won, my all-time-favorite Korean Actor

 

Addicted to this drama, The Master's Sun

I also participated in a drawing contest by Green Tea Graffiti and yesterday I received an email that I'm one of the winners. Yipeeeee! They'll send me the prize from Korea. I think they didn't know that I lived in Indonesia when they chose me, I'm crossing my fingers hoping they won't say, "You're too far come and get your own prize."

I also (finally) finished my second amigurumi.

The most difficult part is finding the suitable pot for the cactus. Accidentally saw this cute little bucket at Opus One and bought it without second thought. Anyone want the pattern for the cactus?

This bunny is my first amigurumi, you can find the pattern here.

And... food.

Full Monty & Thai Lemongrass Beef Salad

I went to Hummingbird Eatery, located at Jl. Progo no. 14, Bandung. It was actually not my first visit, but it was the first time I took some pics of what I ordered there, so as usual I'll share them on my blog.

I went there with my family to have brunch. The breakfast menus are served at 7-11am and we were there at 10.30am. We ordered Full Monty (a complete breakfast set) from the breakfast menus and some drink. Other dishes: crepes, salad, soup, grazing, main course, are served at 10.30am-10.30pm according to their website but the waitress told me that I have to wait until 10.40am to order, so we waited and then ordered Thai Lemongrass Beef Salad, Traditional Rendang Hitam, Tenderloin Steak, and Grilled Creamy Salmon. We left with full and happy stomach heart.

Bakery to Visit: Breadlife

I love bread. So everytime there's a new bakeryto check it out. And here it is, a new bakery at Paris van Java mall, Bandung. Breadlife.

Unlike most other bakeries, here we can also enjoy the breads and order some drinks because there's a seating area available.

I bought some breads and took them home. Got 2 free bottled drinks for 6 breads.

The breads are soft and quite delicious, however the price is pretty expensive...

There are so many flavors, and the breads all look so pretty!

Life Lately

Hello! It's been a while since my last post. There are a lot of things I've been doing:

First, I took a Japanese Cooking Class by Chef Makoto Miyamaguchi from (of course) Japan. There were about 100 participants, and the chef taught us how to make Dragon Roll Sushi, Tempura, Tuna Tataki, and Chicken Katsu. The recipes were printed out before and distributed when we arrived. Then, the chef starts cooking, telling us what to do and not to do in Japanese language, accompanied by a translator, MC, and another Indonesian chef. I was busy writing and scribbling and doodling~

After watching the demonstration, we were divided into smaller groups and we tried to make the dish.

Sorry for the mess. Haha. I need to make them again soon before I forgot what I've learned.

Second, I have a lot of puppy time.

The dog at my workplace got puppies! They're so adorable. Instead of working I spend so much time playing with them. Keke.

Any name ideas for the cute puppies? ^^

Third, I've been making more caricature paintings for my friends...

My desk is such a mess~

And, I've been watching Shinhwa Broadcast and their other videos all the time... I'm not actually into Kpop and boy bands (I love Kdrama and Running Man though), but... it's Shinhwa. Shinhwa is just different. They live up to their name, Shinhwa, meaning Legend. They're the longest running Korean boy band, and I'm pretty sure they will always be because they promised to be together as Shinhwa until for.e.ver. Yes, forever.

It's been 15 years since they debuted in 1998, they never disband and they never change members. You can see how much they value each others, how much they love their fans (Shinhwa Changjo), and moreover, they're hilarious. And the more you know them, the more you'll love them. I really can't wait for their 11th album, The Classic. It's coming SOON! (May 16th)

*update: the teaser is out: watch here!

And this is a random photo of Jco and bunny hanging out in my back yard~

Have a nice weekend!

Floating Market Lembang

Several days ago, my friends and I went to Floating Market Lembang. Have you been there?

It’s a new (about 2 months old) tourist attraction in Lembang, West Java, Indonesia. In this place you can enjoy beautiful nature, well, partly human-made, and various food. You can also ride a boat, feed rabbits, or just hang out with your friends and family.

You need to pay IDR10000 to enter this place, and they will give you a cup of free drink. Inside, you need to exchange your money with coins that will be needed to do all transactions (buy food, souvenirs, etc). But you need to know what you want to buy first, and then get the coins that you need, because the coins CAN’T be re exchanged to money. No need to worry, it’s easy to spot the stalls where you can get the coins, so you don’t have to do it at the entrance area.

When you get in, you will see this beautiful scene. The so called Floating Market itself is located across the lake. You don’t have to directly go there because you can also buy food in the traditional buildings surrounding the lake.

I bought this soto ayam with rice for IDR30000 at Soto Po (which is located near the entrance) after getting the exact amount of coins that I needed. After having our lunch, the rain started falling, so we had to just sit and waited for some time. The rain just wouldn’t stop, so we decided to just… walk through the shower rain. Haha.

To get to the Floating Market area, you can: 1. rent a boat and ride across the lake, or 2. walk around the lake. I prefer walking because I’m not a big fan of boat, and also there are a lot of things you can see while you’re taking the walk… like these cute ducks (?) and super cute Korean boy (??).

In the Floating Market area, there are a lot of people selling things on small boats. 

They mostly sell food, but I also spotted this ‘green’ boat selling potted plans. So cute. 

  

You can sit and enjoy the view and your food here, but it was so crowded when I was there... Also a good place for you who enjoy people-watching.

Tips: when you visit this place, don’t forget to bring your camera. It is also recommendable to bring umbrella and wear a jacket.

PS: When we were on our way home the sky was so beautiful ~~ I was like "wow!" so I took a pic :) 

Blackpepper Resto & Cafe, Es Campur Pa Oyen

Yesterday I went to this resto called Blackpepper, located at Jalan Maulana Yusuf 10. It has been there for quite a long time, and despite its close location to my high school, I have visited that place only once, about 3 years ago. So yesterday was the second time I went there, to hang out and celebrate my friend's birthday.

I was not sure what to order. They provide various kinds of food: Indonesian, Western, Japanese. I was in the mood for steak, so I order "Uncle Jack the Ripper", 2 slices of tenderloin steak, 100 gr each, with poached (?) egg, baked potato, vegetables, and sauce. 

I asked "medium well" cooking level, but the meat was not as tender as I expected, maybe next time I'll ask for "medium". The sauce tasted more like garlic than blackpepper, and for me it was a bad news. I hate garlic. The egg was like a poached egg, but then again it wasn't, so I'm not sure what to call it. However, I think I picked the wrong main course. 

My friend ordered this Prince Harry Prime Steak, 250 gr tenderloin steak with french fries and vegetables and sauce (which tasted similar to mine). It's bigger than mine, the price was also more expensive. I had a bite, the meat was more tender, I think it's because my friend asked "medium". Or maybe the meat quality was different?

My other friend ordered this Indonesian food: grilled oxtail on a hotplate with soup, rice, and melinjo crackers (emping), I forgot the name on the menu. My friend said it was delicious.

We also order beverages, most of us order mocktail drinks, but I didn't take pictures (again). My mocktail's name is Mineka, mango-blackberry-vanilla ice cream, and it tasted great and refreshing. 

Maybe the best thing about his place is that they give generous discount to certain credit cards holders, so you can eat steak at pretty low prices. Ha!

Blackpepper Resto & Cafe

Jalan Maulana Yusuf 10, Indonesia
Phone: +62 22 4206147

Then, we went to our high school (it's been a while, Aloy!), parked the car there and crossed the street. My school is now surrounded by a LOT of clothing stores, known as distro, one of Bandung's popular tourist attractions.

As usual, we have saved some space for dessert. We spotted a food court named "Kumpul Kumpul", we bought Es Campur Pa Oyen and kue ape (or you may call it kue tete if you like), my favorite traditional Indonesian street food ~ Yummm!

Es Campur Pa Oyen. I wonder what Pa Oyen looks like.

The famous kue ape