Batam, Indonesia: Rejuvenated

Summer of this year, we (my best friend, her husband and me) decided to take a break from our stressful workloads and savour a relaxing moment in Batam. We got a package deal that included a day tour on the island, buffet lunch and an overnight stay at Harmoni One Hotel with buffet breakfast.

Pre-Departure

The ferry terminal is located at the Vivo City Mall, and we were scheduled to depart at around 11 AM. After an hour, we finally reached Batam Island. The weather going to the island was fine, the water was calm and we just had fun inside the ferry. When we stepped foot on the island, however, the rain suddenly poured and flooded the road. But it didn't stop us from pursuing our itinerary.

Batam Itinerary

Since it was past noon when we arrived, we headed straight to our buffet lunch to re-energised for the rest of the afternoon's schedule. We had our lunch at Sari Bumbu and I swear, the Indonesian dishes that were served were oh-so yummy. The food was absolutely good that we didn't wanna go out. ;-) No diet! Oh wait.. I don't do diet. :D

Massage

After our uber delicious lunch, we headed to First Choice Spa, Massage & Reflexology for our 1-hour full body massage.. Aw!. Though at first I though it was weird, having a massage after our super heavy lunch. Anyway, we were able to rest for a few minutes before our session started.

One of the reasons why we wanted to go to Batam was to get a massage. lol. We were so excited about this part of our trip. The massage was so relaxing that I almost...., very close to falling asleep, which isn't a good idea 'cuz I might be left behind. After the massage, we were given hot lemon grass tea.

Seriously, the massage revitalised our whole body and mind that we wanted to go directly to the hotel and sleep. But of course we needed to finish our tour package itinerary. Besides, we paid for it so it would be a waste of money if we won't finish it.

Our next destination was at the town proper to shop for souvenir items, such as key chains, shirts, etc. We only shop for a few stuff then headed back to our bus.

Chocolate House

After shopping for souvenir items, our guide took us to the Chocolate House - a store of wide variety of chocolates. Location wise, I think the chocolate shop along with other stores in the building don't get much customers. It was along the road but not too accessible. It's a good thing that it was included in most Batam itineraries to help promote local shops.

I just checked the types of chocolates available inside the shop but didn't bought one. Actually I was too lazy to carry more stuff in going home. ;-)

Go Kart

When I heard that our itinerary included Go Kart race, I admit I was truly curious about it and was hoping to experience it in Batam. First glimpse of the track, I was disappointed. It wasn't what I expected it to look like. Yeah, I did get my hopes up high and I was broke-hearted.. wait what? .. lol

Seriously, my heart sank when I saw the race track. It was a small parking area wherein the staff just added used tires to form the track. It didn't get my adrenaline rush pumping so we went back to the bus and just watched our fellow tourists enjoyed their Go Kart ride. After a few minutes, we were off to our next destination - actually we just walked since the Chocolate House, Go Kart, Ling Star and Shooting range were in same location.

Ling Star Bird's Nest

We visited another local store that sells cakes and other types of pastries. The cake was yummy but not enough to lure me to buy. ;-)

For a minute, I wondered if the stores in this area were earning. It seemed like they solely rely on tourism to bring profit into their businesses.

Shooting

Another activity I was dying to try was the target shooting. Unlike in Cu Chi Tunnel where they used real guns and bullets, we only fired air guns loaded with pellets. Our targets were the glass bottles aligned few meters from us. I did hit one bottle but it didn't break or fell. Arg! :-(  Need more practice!

My best friend's husband did broke a bottle once. *applause*  The air gun was heavy. I even thought it was a shut gun 'til I realised it was loaded with pellets.  It was fun but I still wanna fire a real gun.... I need to search for nearby shooting range. :D

Maha Vihara Duta Maitreya Temple

The final destination of our Batam tour package was the Maha Vihara Duta Maitreya Temple. And I bet, this was the only destination that all guests were so excited to see. Wonder why? The temple has two lion statues sitting on the opposite side of it's main door or entrance. It is believed that these lion statues grant any sort of wish you have in mind. The rule was to touch or rub the lion that represents the same gender as the wisher - women should touch the female lion and men to male lion. Generally, they said if you make a wish while inside the temple, the Buddha will grant the wish. Oh boy..... he kinda granted my wish.. ;-)

The temple was well-maintained which was truly apparent by how it looks.

What caught our attention were the life-sized statues of the 12 Chinese animals signs outside the temple. Of course, we didn't missed the opportunity to pose with our respective animal sign... I was born under the dog sign and I saw a puppy inside a basket carried by the Buddha. ;-) It was really fun touching, hugging, errr.. climbing on.. shhh.. and simply staring at these statues.. haha

After our itinerary, we were taken to our hotel.. We culminated the night by playing the piano in the lobby of the hotel. lol.. The next day, we went to the hotel's gym to sweat out before hitting the buffet table for our breakfast. :D There was a pool at the roof deck but we didn't have our swimming attire so we just took some photos.

Rejuvenated! Yes were were revitalised when we departed the island. All the stress and worries were gone.. From the massage to the food, everything was fantastic.


Thank you Batam! See you next time Indonesia...




May '15