the chronicles of an extraordinary woman

Yogyakarta, it’s a special region with many awesome places to be visited. From cultural, historical to natural tourism can be found here, so it’s a must to visit this City at least once in a life time. This time I want to share about southern part of Yogyakarta or well known as Gunung Kidul. This place is famous for its beautiful beaches, I had reviewed my great experience with some beaches there. Other than beach, do you know that Gunung Kidul has a great ancient mountain? Here is my story visiting the famous ancient mountain in Gunung Kidul three years ago (pardon my late update).

The gorgeous view from Nglanggeran Mountain

People call it Nglanggeran. I knew it from my cousin, he hiked Nglanggeran and shared his story to me. I was so interested to hike it too. I browsed the internet and found the map, I made the itinerary, submitted holiday proposal to my hubby (LOL) and poof!! We were there, yay!

It was Friday when we left for Yogyakarta from Semarang. We were lucky cause my good friend (he is an adventurer too) offered a shelter for us to spend the night. It was near Adi Sucipto Airport in Maguwoharjo area. We arrived at his place at 7pm, then we had our dinner not far from there (we had delicious “Penyet” – it can be fried chicken, catfish, etc complete with spicy sambal – with very reasonable price).

Found this eye catching sticker on my friend's cupboard. So inspiring :D

On Saturday morning we started our adventure, our destination was Nglanggeran Mountain. The road to get it was very easy to find, we passed the road to Gunung Kidul and turned left in Pathuk (in front of Pathuk police office) went straight and just followed the sign to Nglanggeran. It was about 45 minutes from Yogyakarta. We paid IDR 5000/ person for the admission and parking fee. And we started our hiking, hurraaa!!

These giant rocks welcomed us as we started to hike

There were so many wooden planks containing directions to the top, wise words and motivational words

Nglanggeran absolutely has great view, the track is easy, and there are many signs and directions guiding the hikers so they will not get lost. And the most important part is: many good spots to take a picture and you can show it off on your socmed :D When I and my hubby hiked the mountain, there were many people there since it was weekend but not all of them hike to the top. We even met a foreigner from Australia who came with his Indonesian friend (or girlfriend maybe?). To reach the top of the mountain we only needed 2 hours, but I remembered we took more than 2 hours because we stopped too many times just to take a break or take picture (Thank God we brought 2 cameras, even though we were not good in taking pictures).

An AustAustra man and Indonesian woman

I said the track was easy, but still challenging

Well, maybe this was the most difficult.

Chilling on a high place is always good idea

In every journey everyone needs to take a break

The right time, the right place and the right person. What a perfect combination

Can you see the downpour?

LOL. Somebody under that heavy rain must be wet and cold

We were lucky because when we arrived at the top it was just about to rain and so cloudy but we didn’t get wet at all. We even had opportunity to see the heavy rain somewhere from above and it was an awesome view to be enjoyed with my hubby. Soon it was too windy and foggy, so we decided to go back. We just needed 1 hour to reach the parking lot since we didn’t take a break often. But still, we took many pictures on the way down.

Be careful, it was slippery

Another part of the top of the mountain

My man <3

Stay hydrated guys!

That was great, but we totally hungry after the hiking. So don’t forget to bring foods, snack and water so you won’t be starving like we did. One thing we have to remember wherever we go: do not litter!

Nglanggeran, February 1st 2015


Note: because it has been 3 years, many things must have changed including the ticket, route, condition and many more. My apology if there are many things I shared here that are different from the current condition of the mountain. 

Setelah sharing cerita perjalanan menyapih Nduk Kecil kali ini mau sedikit sharing nih buat para mommies yang pengen menyapih anaknya dengan cinta yang mana bahasa populernya adalah WWL (Weaning with Love). Menyapih dengan meminimalisir drama (tantrum berlebih), hoax (pake bohong nenen mama sakit) ato gimmick (nenen dikasih kopi, jeruk nipis, brotowali ato lipstik biar dikira lagi kenapa-kenapa dan anak gamau nen lagi). Semoga bermanfaat yak.

1. Berdoa 
Ini paling penting, at least Bismillah niat dalam hati. Mengikuti perintah Alloh SWT soal pemberian asi ke anak. Niat Lillahita'ala. Mohon bantuan sama Alloh semoga dalam menyapih dikasih kemudahan dan gak ada drama. Anak tenang ibu juga ayem. Kalopun ternyata banyak drama, ingat lagi tujuan sama niat kita dan kenapa kita memulainya. Minta bantuan Alloh lewat doa, insyaalloh hati lebih bisa bersabar ngadepin rewelnya si kecil. Buat yang non muslim tetap berdoa ya menurut kepercayaan, biar lebih mantep dan yakin ^_^

2. Siap lahir batin
Ini juga penting banget. As we know, menyapih itu berat. Buatku breastfeeding itu momen paling romantis sama Nduk Kecil. Dan buat dia juga aku yakin nen adalah hal favoritnya, secara ya dari jebrol nenen adalah kegiatan pertama yang ia kenal, yg bikin dia bertahan hidup dan ngasih dia ketenangan sama kenyamanan, jadi nenen adalah segalanya. Dan tiba-tiba dilarang nen, pastilah nyesek kemana-mana (halah). Jadi memang harus bener-bener siap lahir batin. Siap mental kalo ternyata banyak drama, banyak air mata dan menguras emosi. Siap tahan banting kalo jam tidurnya jadi terganggu, dan malem-malem harus ngeladenin si kecil yg minta susu. Jadi sudah siap? Yuk lanjut.

3. Sounding
Menurut banyak artikel dan saran dari para senior di dunia persapihan, sounding ini paling sering dijadikan advice. Dan beneran aku lakukan jauh hari sebelum kegiatan menyapih dieksekusi. Gak boleh males ya. Jadi sebelum tidur gitu aku sounding ke anak kalo udah dua tahun udah gak nenen lagi, soalnya udah besar. Ato cari variasi lain asal gak mengada-ada apalagi pake bohong. It's a big NO! Dan selama ini tiap dibilangin anakku selalu jawab "ya". Ah jadi optimis kan.

4. Yakin anak kita tu pinter dan ngerti kalo kita bicara baik-baik
Kalo yg ini ada hubungannya sama poin nomer 3. Kadang absurd kan ngomongin gak boleh nenen ke anak yg belum genap dua tahun. Kaya ngerti aja wong kosakata aja belum genep enam ratus enam puluh enam biji. Eits, jangan salah moms! Anak kita tu pinter loh, dari sejak lahir bayi itu ngerti. Jangan beranggapan mentang-mentang toddler trus diremehin gak bakal ngerti apa yang kita bilang ke dia. Kenyataannya si kecil ngerti kok, tiap dibilangin pelan-pelan face to face and heart to heart. And finally we did it! Mulai sekarang jangan nganggep anak gak ngerti apa-apa lho ya, oke mungkin dia belum paham tapi diam-diam dia menyerap info dari kita loh. Be wise, karena setiap kata dan tindakan kita selalu diawasi sama buah hati yg mana nantinya akan ia tiru.

5. Sering-sering perhatiin si kecil dengan memeluk, mencium atau menggendong 
Tindakan ini jadi semacam kegiatan substitusi atau pengganti karena si anak udah gak bisa lagi nen sambil ndusel atau bobok di pelukan mamahnya (sambil nen). Kasian kan kalo gara-gara sapih dia sampai merasa gak disayang lagi. Maka dari itu moms, jangan lupa sering-sering peluk atau gendong anak ya, kalo perlu saat bobo pun kita kasih belaian sama pelukan. Jangan jauh-jauhan apalagi ditinggal mainan hape #plak. Kasih pujian juga setiap dia berhasil melakukan sesuatu, dan berhasil disapih tanpa drama adalah pencapaian yg luar biasa banget lho dari si anak.

6. Siapkan "amunisi" buat mengalihkan anak dari nen
Substitusi aja buat gantiin asi. Nduk Kecil suka banget minum susu uht (dia sih apa aja doyan ding), biasanya cuma dikasih yang plain ato full cream gitu tapi kali ini dikasih yang ada rasanya. Dan dia suka banget. Sampe papanya beliin susu uht satu dus khusus buat jaga-jaga kalo Nduk Kecil ngeyel minta nen. Pas awal disapih emang rada semrawut, sehari bisa habis 5 kotak. Tapi sekarang cukup satu kotak tiap sebelum tidur (sujud syukur gajadi bokek). Gak harus susu uht kok moms, bisa diganti teh atau minuman lain yang si kecil suka, dengan catatan bukan minuman kemasan yang gak baik ya (mudeng kan ya maksud saya). Nduk Kecil ini juga gak melulu uht kok, makin ke sini bisa diganti air putih aja udah bisa bobo lagi.

7. "Kuras" tenaga anak dengan aktivitas bermain
Ini tips dari saya biar Nduk Kecil gak kebangun tengah malem dan ngrengek minta nen. Jujur pasti males banget pas lagi enak-enak tidur tiba-tiba anak kebangun lalu nangis minta nen, sedangkan kita dalam keadaan ngantuk harus berusaha mengalihkan perhatian atau menenangkan kalo doi udah terlanjur nangis. Bayangin doang udah males hehe. Makanya siang atau sore selalu ajak anak berkegiatan, jadi bobo malem pules dan mamah pun bisa ikut pules deh. But, alhamdulillah Nduk Kecil kalo bangun malem masih mau dikasih air putih lalu bobo lagi dengan dielus-elus punggungnya. I love you full pokoknya neng!

8. Stok sabar sebanyak mungkin dan komunikasikan dengan suami
Ini sih buat jaga-jaga kalo terjadi hal-hal yang tidak diinginkan seperti anak tantrum karena gak dibolehin nenen. Dan jangan lupa libatkan suami dalam penyapihan ini ya. Jadi kalau kesabaran sudah diujung tanduk dan lelah tak tertahankan, bala bantuan dari suami harus setia dan sedia setiap saat.  Karena ada saatnya Nduk Kecil rewel tanpa sebab jelas, gini salah gitu salah dan beneran bikin emosi. Tapi coba deh kita ngertiin dikit, mungkin dia gitu semacas protes karena sudah diceraikan dengan kegiatan favoritnya: nen. Selamat Menyapih dengan Cinta Mommies!

Sebenernya gak sengaja juga sih, soalnya dari awal belum jelas mau kapan mulai nyapih, ato metode apa yg mau dipake buat nyapih (jelas semua ibu kayanya prefer WWL yaa). Dan dalam hati pun belum tega juga kalo inget tiap minta nen tapi gak dikasih pasti nangis. Dan cerita sapih menyapih dari para senior terdahulu kayanya banyak yang susah dan penuh dengan drama serta derai air mata. Makanya masih maju mundur, tapi pingin menyegerakan juga mengingat Nduk Kecil hampir dua tahun. Galo kan. Eh tapi alhamdulillah banget, mulai semalem sudah berjalan lancar sampe detik ini. Bahkan berhasil menerapkan metode WWL (Weaning with Love a.k.a Menyapih dengan Cinta a.k.a Nyapih Nganggo Tresna) dengan kecenya. No drama ber-lebay-an, no hoax and no gimmick. Dan paling penting no post trauma baik buat si anak maupun mamanya. Jadi gini ceritanya...

Day 1
The very first challenge: tidur malem. Jadi mulainya emang malem, siangnya pas bobo siang masih nen. Sebenernya udah pernah beberapa kali tidur malem sukses tanpa nen (mungkin udah terlalu ngantuk juga). Dan malem ini (1 Juli 2018) diniatin gitu aja buat mulai nyapih. Amunisi berupa stok susu UHT 4 biji udah siap sedia. Tapi syukur alhamdulillah cuma diajak mainan sama pijet pijet udah pules sendiri sampe pagi. Beberapa kali sih minta nen, tapi mamahnya sengaja pake masker agak basah gitu trus tiap mau nen dibilangin "muka mamah masih basah nak, jadi gak bisa tiduran, nanti bantalnya basah" gituu terus alesannya tiap minta nen. Tapi gak pake bohong kan ya... And she understood.

Day 2
The second challenge: bobo siang (the next day). Seumur-umur Nduk Kecil kalo bobo siang jaraaaaaaang banget gak pake nen. Apalagi kalo bobo di rumah. Kalo gak pake nen tu paling pas jalan-jalan trus tepar ato pernah sekali pas mamahnya udah lowbat banget trus tau-tau udah pules setelah dielus-elus papanya. Pernah kek gitu, sekali doang sih. Makanya bobo siang ini agak horor khawatir kalo doi bakal minta nen terus nangis dan drama. But alhamdulillah lagi nih, tadi cuma dialihin dengan bercerita pake dua boneka kesayangan dia. Ceritanya tetep seputar nen dan susu, jadi karena mamahnya bilang Kitty sama Pus (boneka Nduk Kecil) lebih suka mimik susu trus bobo siang, eh tau-tau dia minta susu juga. Iya sih proses bobonya jadi luama, dan setelah habis hampir 2 kotak susu baru deh tidur dengan belaian dipunggung. Good job mom and cutie!
Malam kedua... Alhamdulillah, bersyukur lagi masih berhasil bobo tanpa nen. Yeay, walopun waktu buat nidurin tambah lama tapi yg penting sukses.

Day 3
Tidur siang kali diwarnai minta nen sampe hampir nangis but everything's under control. Makin lama nidurinnya, setelah habis sekotak susu uht, main, guling-guling, teriak-teriak, bercanda sama cerita ahirnya bobo nyempil mepet tembok dan pulesss... Yes!

Dan sore tadi iseng nanya ke Nduk Kecil:
Mom: “Tata masih nenen gak? “
Nduk Kecil: “Ndaaak”
Mom: “Kenapa ya ndak nenen lagi?”
Nduk Kecil: (diem sambil cengar cengir)
Mom: “Udah besar ya? “
Tata: “Iyaaa!” (lalu ketawa)
Alhamdulillah... Hati mamah berbunga-bunga, pengen salto saking girangnya. Dan lebih bahagia lagi karena gak ada yang namanya trauma pada si anak.

Nah itu dia cerita mamareta menyapih putri tercintanya dengan cinta. Semoga bermanfaat dan menginspirasi mama muda lain yang sedang galau mau menyapih anaknya ^_^ yang pengen tau tips nya bisa cek postingan selanjutnya.

Hello. It’s me again. Yeah, after a long time and I think it’s been more than three years since my last post on this blog. Wait, what the…? Well, actually I have my reason, I have another blog but recently I LOST ALL OF MY ARTICLES there! My precious writings about everything since I was young (T_T) it was banned in my country and...  Good Bye My Memories!

Enough with the drama! When I suddenly remembered I have another blog (this one), I decided to use it again to share everything I wanna share. It’s time to reactivate this blog. Three years have passed, many things happened and crystal clearly everything’s has also changed. I am no longer a college student who stays up all night to write article and post it to my blog, I am a wife now and I even have a cute little daughter. However I always find “peace” every time I have time to write something and share it. Some says writing is good for your mental health, well I dunno whether it is right or wrong but I like it. All I have to do is find some “me time” for it. I also decided to post the articles in Indonesian, I have many articles in Indonesian but I have no enough time to translate it to English, being a mom is really something. Haha… and I am no longer English Department Student, right?

So this is my comeback, this blog is REBORN ^o^/

Dringo Lake that morning

Trying to enjoy the foggy morning

It was totally cold and we could see more than 100 meters

Sunny or gloomy, just try to enjoy it together :)

Gloomy day won't last forever

We might not have good picts, but we have witnessed it by our own eyes. They captured much better than the camera.

Ewwww...

No pain no gain!

Hello again! :)

Got this picture from the internet, I had no chance to take the pict of this place my camera was off when I arrived here and it took too long to turn it on, fyuhh...

Say hello to the native inhabitants of Goa Kreo! The visitors will be accompanied by them all the time during the short trip in this place

These cute monkeys will eat whatever you give to them :D Luckily, they are pretty nice and will not grab anything from you unless you throw it to them

I guess they were sharing about the prettiest girl in this place

This man always knows how to pose in front of the camera!

I don't have any idea about what statue this is, there's no explanation about it.

This is Waduk Jatibarang I wished there would be some boats that could take me to explore the Lake

They saw some monkeys did this and they copied, LOL *This crazy thing couldn't be done if we weren't together :)

I thank God for these nice guys :)

Placed the camera, timer on, and give ur best smile & pose :D

I hear nothing, I see nothing and I speak nothing

My friend said, this place was desolate and lonely. Now, it has been upgraded and visited by too many people.

There were too many stairs, we couldn't stand them and this was what we do :p

Long time ago, I ever shared about the beautiful beaches in Gunung Kidul - Yogyakarta. This time I wanna show my experience off when I visited some of those beaches. Honestly, the real beach is better than I can see in the picture. Even though I visited them long time ago, but the good thing is not good if it is not shared, right?