By: Rini Susilawati (Malaysia Airlines, Jakarta)

Situ Patengan

Strawberry farm

BANDUNG, as I know is a fascinating city in West Java that has many attractive and interesting places to visit. Yet, there are several kinds of food, drink, fashionable trend, handicraft and other enjoyable things. It wouldn’t be satisfied to guide you around Bandung in a whole day. Going through the roads in the city would be a memorable moment when the weather is friendly. Its climate is relatively cold; about 18-20°C along the days as the area is surrounded by mountains and hills. This mountainous are obviously beautiful scenery to be seen especially at night. The light of houses and buildings on the hill brightened the slope.

Dago Waterfall near Bandung

Bandung consists of five areas. The North, West, Central, East and South. The most populated areas are in Northern and Central... Most populations are Moslems, specially the Sudanese, its native people. Moreover, there are many people settled in this city for such reasons. For instance, many students come from outside Bandung and living at places called “Kos-kosan” or rent house. We know that Bandung is famous as “a city of academic” besides Yogyakarta. Universities spread around the city.

Mount Tangkuban Perahu

Bandung is a historical city as well. Some old buildings and roads are maintained and kept originally. Like on Jalan Braga, Jalan Merdeka, Gedung Merdeka (Merdeka Building), Alun-alun (Central Market) and Masjid Agung (The Great Mosque). You can go around the city by some kind of public transportation. One of them is called “Angkot” a minibus which carries you to each parts of Bandung. There are more than twenty directions of “Angkot” starting from the bus stations. The center of bus stations is at Leuwi Panjang where you can take buses to Jakarta, Bogor and other city around Bandung. It takes about 2, 5 hours going to Bandung by bus through Padaleunyi Freeway. If you go to Bandung by train, it takes longer time but you will see beautiful sceneries along the trip. There are Mount Gede dan Mout Salak, padi field, rivers, and tea plant areas and so on.

Institut Teknologi Bandung & Denim Store, Cihampelas Street - Bandung is renowned for its large stock of Dutch colonial architecture

I have been a few days in Bandung and I have no difficulty communicating with the local people. They are very friendly to others even if you are a foreigner. Now the people are more heterogeneous because the amount of outsiders increased every year.

Fresh products at a market in Bandung

Bandung - Sudanese Food

I love living in Bandung as well as tasting its various food and drink. We may choose any kinds of foods, depends on our preference and economic conditions. The prices are various from cheap to expensive, in several kind of places such as “Warung Tenda” where you eat in a food stall on the road side or luxurious restaurant in a shopping mall. The most important is much Halal Food sold in each part of the city. Many traditional foods are various as well. If you’re crazy of fashionable trend and up to date fashion style, there are many factory outlets spread around the city that you can buy fashionable costumes with various prices. The most famous place is on Jalan Cihampelas which offers jeans and its accessories. Later, people knows “Cimol” or “Cibadak Mall” where you can buy new and old costumes imported from abroad with lower process. Since I go to Bandung, I know that young people here are very fashionable and unique. They wear up to date costumes especially to the campus.

Its famous handicraft is “Wayang Golek” a wooden doll handled by hand and the show directed by a man called “Dalang”. The Cibaduyut’s shoes are also worth to be your souvenirs.

Paskal Food Market Stalls

Night Scenery, Paskal Market

Bandung is a memorable city with its various lives…

Flight Frequency of Malaysia Airlines:

KUL-BDO MH 859  13.30 – 14.40 (7 Days a Week)
BDO-KUL MH 858  15.40 – 18.50 (7 Days a Week)

By: Hazairi Hussain (Golden Lounge - KLIA)

Bandung - Shopping haven

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s the one we have all been waiting for. The biggie is here. So roll out your suitcases (make sure its empty!), dust off your best walking (or shopping) shoes, make a beeline to the local money changers and change your Rupiahs (where it will make you instant millionaires!) because MAS will fly direct to Bandung from 16 July 2010!

I don’t remember in recent memory where an opening of a station is as much anticipated as this. Since our ‘friends from across the taxiway’ at KLIA started flying to Bandung, there have been many Malaysians who have visited Bandung, sometimes becoming repeat visitors. Hence it makes economic sense for MAS to heed the call of the nation to mount our own flights into Bandung.

Previously, MAS passengers’ who wants to go to Bandung have to fly down to Jakarta and travel by surface transportation to Bandung. This can be in the form of private car/van hires, express buses, or trains. The journey will take anything up to three to four hours, depending on the type of transport of your choice.

Now, by flying direct, the three to four hours saved can be spent on extra shopping hours instead!

I recently went to Bandung on an inspection visit with a delegation from MAS together with Encik Shahzan from Airport Operations, Encik Jamal from Engineering, Encik Zulkifly from MASKargo, Encik Ahmad from Security escorted by Jakarta Station Manager Encik Bala and ably lead by our Chef-De-Mission Miss Diara Daud from Ground Handling Management.

Airport Authorities Tarmac Vehicle

My job was to inspect, evaluate and appoint a lounge operator at Bandara (Bandar Udara or airport) Husein Sastranegara for MAS front-end Business Class passengers and our esteemed Enrich Platinum and Enrich Gold to enjoy before their departure.

Our programme was packed to the brim with meetings, discussions, presentations, airport walkabout, inspections and more meetings. However, with decent company e.g. the other guys (and girl) in the group who are a barrel of laughs, the trip was a successful one and I enjoyed it immensely.

We managed to complete our jobs, despite the distractions of the ‘aura of shopping’ hanging in the air of Bandung, and landed back safely in Kuala Lumpur without excess baggage! After all, it was a working trip.

This being my second trip to Bandung after an excursion with my wife and some friends last year, I felt compelled to write about this city that I am so fascinated about. There is so much more to explore, apart from the shopping, of course. So I have compiled some tips for you as a starting point if you are planning to visit Bandung in the near future, and also to share my enthusiasm about Bandung. I am, as you can quite clearly see, a self-confessed MALE shopaholic!

Travel Tips

Bandung, the capital city of West Java with a population of 2.7 million, is a bustling city well known for its shopping, with many factory outlets and ‘Distros’ (distribution outlets for local brands by up and coming designers) scattered all across the city. These factory outlets are mainly concentrated in the areas of Jalan Riau, Jalan Dago and Jalan Setiabudhi. There are too many to mention, but the more famous ones are Summit, Heritage, Oasis, Rumah Mode and others. There’s something for everybody there, tops and more tops for ladies, t-shirts, shirts and even branded suits for the men, and a whole lot for children. There’s also Pasar Baru, a seven-storey building packed to the brim with small retail shops selling everything under the sun. Pasar Baru is known for its cheap silk and clothing material, ‘telekung’ or female prayer robes, and Indonesian Batik. It’s simply a real haven for the shopaholics in us, and we Malaysians are well known for that, aren’t we? The super busy shopping malls in KL every weekend lay testament to that.

If you are wondering what exactly do they have there, to my observation it can be deduced that the clothing on sale can be categorized into three, i.e. original brands (overruns, rejects etc), original fakes or OF (draw your own conclusion, guys) and the generic brands. If you are persistent, and have strong walking legs, you might just find those international brands that are factory overruns, or have minor defects on them (which may not be visible to the naked eye). The original fakes are basically those clothing that you can find in the marketplaces of Bangkok, or Beijing maybe. These are of fairly good quality, cheap and can be found in abundance. So if you don’t mind wearing the OF clothes, Bandung is the place for you. As for the generic brands, you are best served giving them a miss.

The writer at Rumah Mode Factory Outlet in July 2009

Ok, so much for the shopping! Well, Bandung is also known for its Sundanese food, which is just scrumptious. If you are looking for “Sirap Bandung” or “Mee Bandung”, you are going to be disappointed, because they don’t exist in Bandung city! Ha-ha… But what’s the point of going to a foreign city and looking for Malaysian food right? Explore the many gastronomic offerings of the city, and the better eating places are Dapurku, Kampung Daun or if you wish to experience a nice meal in a wonderful setting with live music, go to the Atmosphere (reservations may be required). Do try the ‘Brownies Kukus’ available at Kartika Sari or Amanda, the two big names. They have a whole range of brownies, and I can say that the taste is just oh-so-yummy. A must to bring back home.

If you plan to hire a car and drive around Bandung yourself, I suggest that you better arrive in the city and take a look at the driving conditions in the city center. Chaotic would be an understatement, and the saying ‘seeing is believing’ is none more true in this case. The road system is a maze that zigzags across the city and the sheer amount of cars, motorbikes, vans and such on the roads would shame KL two times over! There is no traffic system to speak of, so it would seem that the driver in front of you has the right of way, or left, or whichever direction he fancies! It is a nightmare, and the amazing thing is all of them local drivers seem so patient and understanding, without so much as “PON!” or “TOOT!” can be heard for miles. The directional signages are hard to comprehend too, so if you are on the wheels, you will be at the same time fighting the traffic, caught in a perpetual jam, and trying to find your way. It is a living nightmare!

So, in conclusion, it is best that you hire a ‘supir’ (driver) with car/van to take you around. These are fairly cheap, and they will take you anywhere throughout the duration of your hire, which can be on a daily basis, or the whole length of your stay. The ‘Pak Supir’ will pick you up from you hotel, send you to your destinations, loyally wait for you there, and send you back. All you have to do is sit back, and enjoy the ride.

There are many hotels in the city of Bandung, ranging from 5 to 3 stars, even rest houses. It all depends on your budget, and your expectations of comfort levels. To me, since you will be spending most of your time outside shopping and sightseeing, it is sufficient that you book your stay in a mid-range 4-star establishment, which are clean and comfortable and most comes with basic amenities. This will set you back around RP400, 000-RP600, 000 per room per night, or about RM150-210. The international 5-star hotel chains cost a fair bit more than that. Do some research before you book, and the important thing to look out for when choosing a hotel is location, location, location.

Other attractions of Bandung is the nearby hill resort retreat of Puncak, or a short one-hour drive away is Tangkuban Parahu, a mystic, live volcanic mountain top that can be accessed by car or van. It is not to be missed if you can tear yourself away from the factory outlets!

The volcanic crater at Mount Tangkuban Parahu

Check out www.tripadvisor.com under Bandung Forum for a comprehensive discussion on anything Bandung. Or go to http://wikitravel.org/en/Bandung to read up on Bandung when planning your trip.

In closing, travel light, guys and girls. Bring an additional foldable bag with you as the number of baggage you bring with you will most definitely increase! So unless you plan to buy a new one, better come prepared.

The best thing about Bandung is not just merely the shopping, as you can shop anywhere else, really, but the sheer experience of it all. The shopping, the food, the people, the traffic, the sounds, sights and the smells, all jiving into one exhilarating experience.

Grab a ticket and go. You will end up planning a return trip to Bandung on your way to the airport to catch your flight back to KL!