Hello, readers.. How are you today?
Here and now, I wanna share about my vacation to Medan.. Actually I went there in last February, but unfortunately due to my job and condition, I just had the chance to write this story in September.. 😆
Do you know about Medan? Medan is the capital city of North Sumatera province. It has an airport called “Polonia International Airport“, that’s why I titled this post with, “Touchdown, Polonia..!!!” It was my first time arrived at Polonia Airport.
Yeah, I went to Medan with my father. Just the two of us. He’s been retired for about 2 months in February. So we decided to visit Medan where my uncle and my best friend, Winda live there. I took 3-day off from my office. It was exactly in February, 18-22, from Saturday to Wednesday..
So here is my story..
Saturday, 18 Feb. 2012
Departed from Soekarno-Hatta, the Airport of Jakarta in the morning and after 2-hour flight, we arrived at Polonia, the Airport of Medan at about 12.50 WIT (Western Indonesian Time). My uncle picked us up at the airport, and we headed to his rented house *actually he is a government office employee placed in Medan, so he doesn’t have his own house there*.. We took a break before doing some activities for Saturday afternoon ’til night came. And also, I waited for Winda to come pick me and take me to look for a motel *didn’t have to be a hotel because of the limited budget :mrgreen:* for my dad and I to stay while in Medan.
I waited for about 2 hours there, then she came by. I rode a motorcycle with her, and she took me to a good-price hotel (if you don’t wanna call it cheap, compared to the facility) near her boarding house. *I’m sorry I forgot to say that she is a state-owned enterprise officer, also placed in Medan just like my uncle. So she stay in a boarding house..*
But the hotel is really in a good condition, a large 2-bed room, television, AC, water heater, and whatever you name it.. It was in “Wisma Hari Kota“, located on Jl. Lobak no. 14, Medan. Just Rp 150.000,-/night. I booked for 2 days until Monday morning.
Soon, I called my father to come to Wisma Hari Kota. In short time, he came with my uncle, rode on a motorcycle. Then, we had a rest for a moment, before we began our adventure in Medan..
Day 1 : Medan | Saturday Nite, 18 Feb. 2012
Yeah let’s go explore whatever it is in Medan.. I decided to go just with Winda, so we could enjoy the night in “a younger way”:)
First, we had dinner at “Titi Bobrok“, a restaurant that specializes in Aceh Noodle. Aceh is a neighbor province of North Sumatera. We ordered fried Aceh noodle..
After having dinner, we explored Medan streets and a couple of landmarks at nite. We went to “Masjid Raya” (The Great Mosque of Medan), “Istana Maimun” (Maimun Palace), Kesawan, Tjong Afie, Gwangju Street and don’t forget about “Merdeka Walk“, a place for Medan citizens gathering around. It was so… crowded… 😀
After that, we went home to Winda’s boarding house. Ya, I decided to spend the night in Winda’s place 🙂
Day 2 : Medan – Berastagi – Tongging | Sunday, 19 Feb. 2012
Tadaaa!!! We prepared for our departure to Berastagi and Tongging (towns outside Medan). In early morning, the driver (one of my uncle’s friend) came to pick us (me, my dad, and Winda) up. Short after that, we went on mission to explore areas surround Medan.
First, we visited “Taman Alam Lumbini“. But we didn’t forget to stop by at the “Green Hill“. It’s a theme park in Sibolangit area. But, we just took pictures in front of it. 😆 We were afraid that we could lose time, because it was still far from our main destination.
“Taman Alam Lumbini” has a pagoda. It looks like pagoda that can be seen in Thailand. Many visitors come here to pray to their God. And, don’t forget to bring your jacket with you. It’s cold there.
Then we went to Berastagi.. After 4-hour driving from Medan, we arrived at “Sipiso-Piso Waterfall” in Berastagi area. This was our first main destination. Yeiiy!! You can see a 120-meter waterfall with beautiful scenery around it. It’s quite tall, right? You can climb down the stairs to the bottom area of the waterfall. But, it’s so exhausting. We didn’t even make it. We just stopped at the first post
You can also watch the beauty of Lake Toba.. What a fascinating experience.. 🙂
You can buy souvenirs here, but don’t forget to bargain the price. I bought a shirt just for Rp 30.000,-..
Well then, we continued our journey. Next “pit stop” would be “Tongging“.. Yeah!! It’s not a town though, it’s just a village. But, you can directly get in touch with Lake Toba in here!!! 🙂 Because we were so hungry, we decided to have lunch in one of food stall here. They served grilled fish.. So fresh, just took it from the lake. Woow.. It was so yummy..
After having lunch, we looked for a boat that could bring us surround Lake Toba. We paid Rp 60.000,- for a 30-minute tour. But you can feel the cool breeze in Tongging plus the scenery in Lake Toba. It’s so refreshing..
Then we headed back to Medan. But short after we arrived again at Berastagi, we stopped by in “Sidebuk-debuk Hot Spring, Sibayak” area.
And the night came.. We went home to Medan.. 🙂
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