On The Train Around Indonesia 1, Feb 2 -11, 2018

The train trip around Indonesia was not in my calendar this year. Well, at least not early in the year. The opportunity came when I joined the NGO that I am active with for a bench learning visit to both Jakarta and Bandung. Not that I did not have anything to do within the weeks but since I would be already in Indonesia I decided to do ‘Around Indonesia By Train’. I chose major cities such as Bandung, Yogjakarta, and Surabaya as my pit stops. The first thing I did was to suggest and persuade the team to take the train to Bandung from Jakarta. Knowing that I am a seasoned train traveller the team agreed with me. Well, not after their reservation thinking they would be travelling with chickens and goats to Bandung. Ha ha ha I may be exaggerating but at least they thought we would be travelling on a packed train and jostling with the Indonesians. I assured them the Indonesian train is the best in South East Asia. I informed them that the new service is not what it used to be years ago. The clincher that the journey or route would be a scenic one. With that my train brain worked overtime planning the trip. Once I got the dates I had to decide how many days for the whole adventure. Bandung, Yogjakarta and Surabaya are renowned cities with their own histories and culture. Since I have not been to Yogjakarta and Surabaya I decided to stay for 2 days each in both cities. Thus, cumulatively, making it an eleven-day Indonesian adventure from Jan 31 to Feb 11. 

I started with the flight tickets first. With the fare for the Red Bird already at the high end and wanting a better luggage capacity, I opted for my current favourite airline, Malindo Air, to fly in and out of Jakarta. Once done I did research on how to book Indonesian train tickets online. My first stopped was, of course, the Kereta Api Indonesia official site https://kai.id/  where I can get to search all the train fares and their schedules. However, when I tried to purchase using my plastics, credit card, their payment gateway refused me. I tried several times to no avail. Another search and I found tiket.com and I flew with it buying our tickets as shared below. The one mistake I made was booking in haste the Argo Bromo Anggerek night express instead of day. I wanted to do a day trip around Indonesia to see the country. Well, Allah prevails as always as it was a blessing for us. Always look on the bright side Ghaz he he he. I also helped to purchase the train tickets for the rest of the team members.

With the tickets in the bag, I started to research and book our accommodations in Yogjakarta and Surabaya. The accommodations in Jakarta and Bandung were done and handled by my NGO. My criteria for accommodation were firstly those near the train station, conducive for tourists with the intention to walk the cities, and the centre of the town. 

Busy with other things that I needed to get done before the trip I asked Mar to plan for our excursion in Yogjakarta and Surabaya.

Date Travel	From	Destination	Train/Class	Seat
TRAIN
Feb 2, 2018	Jakarta Gambir (1030)	Bandung (1339)	Argo Parahyangan (24)/Ex	EKS-1 / 7A 7B 7C
Feb 4, 2018	Bandung (0830)	Yogyakarta Tugu (1552)	Argo Wilis/Ex	EKS-1 / 6C 6D 7A
Feb 7, 2018	Yogyakarta Tugu (0645)	Surabaya Gubeng (1137)	Sancaka/Ex	EKS-1 / 2C 2D 3A
Feb 10, 2018	Surabaya Pasar Turi (2000)	Jakarta Gambir (11/2 0500)	Argo Bromo Anggrek/Ex	EKS-1 / 5A 5B 6A

Since this is about my experience on the Indonesian train and not our bench learning visits I will start on the first train ride from Jakarta Gambir to Bandung.

Feb 2, 2018, Jakarta Gambir (1030) - Bandung (1339), Agro Parahyangan,  EKS-1 / 7A 7B 7C

Quite frankly this route had been very much anticipated as so many people told me it is going to be one of the best routes going through high terrain passing gorges with bridges with no siding. Scary and beautiful at the same time. 

We arrived at Jakarta Gambir station with ample time for us to have breakfast before the scheduled departure at 10.30 am. Before that, we printed our tickets first. When you buy and book your tickets through whatever channels are available you will be given a ticket voucher with the barcode and number. The first thing you need to do once you arrive at the station is to go to one of the kiosks available to scan the barcode and print your tickets. 

Once we have our tickets printed we decided to find a good place to wait before we check into the platform area. We chose Dunkin Donuts as the place to ‘lepak' as it was the only one that familiar to us as well as there was a Wifi connection for us social media animals. I could not remember how many thousands rupiah I had to pay for coffees and doughnuts but enough to root us there for hours. Dishing out thousands of rupiah became a norm for me then. We decided to stay there a bit longer and to check in at around 9.45am. The check-in counter was manned by uniform guards. Besides our ticket, we had to show our ID and in our case our passport. Once we entered the departure and arrival areas we found a location where we took the customary group photograph. Once satisfied we took the elevator up to level 2 where the platforms were.

Once on the platform, I was transformed into a train fan. After making sure everyone knew where to sit and wait I walked the length of the platform to capture at will. Gambir Station is a commuter train station as well there were a bit of morning activities at the station. Most of the commuter trains arrived and departed on the opposite platforms so my attention was focused more on the right side of the platform. Their commuter trains were locally assembled and they look like any commuter train in other countries. 

A few minutes later our train came in from Bandung and knowing the drill I quickly moved towards the locomotive to take few shots. Before, I had taken a few of the stations. The train duly shunted and the locomotive was reconnected at the other end to pull us out towards Bandung. So we were ready to board and started the confusion for me. We were to be in Executive 1 coach, logic and normal convention say our’s should be at the front so I walked to the front and indeed the cleaner told me it should be Executive 1. Mar and I were already inside with our luggage stowed when we were informed that the coach was not Executive 1 as they had rearranged it. Now, since I was busied taking pictures, Sam boarded separately and join the rest of the team thinking she was inside the right coach. After moving into the right coach which was in the middle next to the buffet car, a blessing actually, I walked to the front looking for Sam. 

After I made certain everyone was at their right places I became my train lover self again. I walked the platform taking photos. While doing so I noticed the attendant and station supervisor standing nearby and I started a conversation about the train and being a train traveller in general. They were glad to learn what I was about to do in the next ten days. When I was capturing the locomotive before there I noticed a premier, like our SK coach in Malaysia, coach was attached as well. I enquired from the supervisor about it. Later I found out it was carrying CIMB Niaga executives. For a few million rupiah everyone can rent the coach. Well, not like KTMB. JNK can make plans to rent one in the future ha ha ha. Well, I found out later actually we could buy individual seats to board the Priority Coach. Actually, I missed this information when I did my online booking.

Inside the Executive coach, I started to explore the available facilities. It was a nice complete carriage built locally. Having had the experience our being in the Inka coach of our Express Rakyat I expected this carriage to be even better. I was not wrong, with a set of power sockets for each seating pair. A small side table for each seat is complemented with wide legroom that allows you to be comfortable for a long journey. The location of the seats that I booked was perfect. In this case, the view from where we were sitting had a 360 degrees view. As a recommendation, the best seats to book are rows 5,6,7 and 8. As for the coach, it would be the one in the middle or further far back. The reason being you can capture the locomotive and most part of the train at corners or bends. This would be the best for this sector as later I found out not only the scenery was breathtaking from the back. Also, the train manoeuvred around high plains that you could see the length of the train going around corners and bends. Since our Executive 1 that supposed to be just behind the loco was rearranged to be in the middle was a blessing from Allah.

The train, Argo Parahyangan to Bandung departed the station on schedule. After a preliminary video shot, I walked towards my team two coaches in front of me. We were separated because I bought my tickets earlier and I did for the team a week later. They were excited and I anticipated an enjoyable journey experience for them. 

The first station the train stopped was Bekasi (1055), one of the other major train commuter stations. As usual, I jumped out to take photos. Dr Edzan and Has joined me and we had a photoshoot with Bekasi as the background. When the train blew it horns we jumped back on the train. 

Finding that there were doing fine I walked back towards the buffet car and as my practice, I stayed there for a while taking photos of the outside. The cafe was small with part of it an engine room or sometimes that has the ticket conductors (TC’s) room. The counter was in the middle and two cubicles for customers to sit and it. One of them was occupied by my team already. I did not join them as I would not want to miss a good scenery. They were having fun with coffee chatting away conformably. Knowing we were Malaysians the passing TC would stop to say hi and chatted with them a bit.

After a while, my team left the cafe and I followed suit a few minutes later. Back at my seat, I felt tired and very sleepy. I woke up for suboh at 4.30 am, took my bath and stayed awake in my room. So I decided to doze off for a while and reminded Mar who sat next to me to wake me up when the journey got interesting. She knew what I meant. I could not remember how long was I asleep but as soon as Mar woke me up I was in action and the train just starting to manoeuvre through the high plain. It was around noon, began one of the most beautiful train journeys for me. Glued to the window my camera clicking away at will and at times I captured videos using my iPhone. I was as excited as I was when I was five years old taking my first train ride from Kuala Lipis to Palekbang. The train snaked through the mountain where at times up and down the valley. Both sides of the track were beautiful and if I wanted to choose which one is better it is on the right of the train moving towards Bandung. I had the good fortune of having a wide clean glass window and it was a wide-angle view for me. Unfortunately, Sam got the worse of the glass similar to the like we had on Malaysian trains. The journey lasted for a few hours where you would be looking down a valley with green paddy fields across the plain with high mountains as the background. A river valley with terracing paddy fields on each side creating a green and beautiful feeling. Like you are walking up a natural green step. As the train turned you will be expecting an even better view than before and you will not be disappointed. Especially when you have a view of a beautiful kampung down the valley that would want to make you break your journey to spend a day or two among the kampung folks. Worse still when you are feeling envious of the folks to have a place like that for a home.

The paddy fields were other things to admire and be amazed about. The terraces were beautifully crafted as art on earth with the ingenuity of their water systems going down the fields. Some could be seen close to the track. All this while I thought the terraced paddy fields were done like the paddy fields in Malaysia. On closer look, I discovered they were dug in making natural dividers (batas) for each terrace and field. Not like in Malaysia where we create the batas by piling up mud or earth. Thus, the terraces were really beautifully crafted. Although the train just flew away passing small stations these stations are worth the attention as most of them are high on the mountain, small and cute. 

At 6 minutes to 1 pm, the train entered the only tunnel along the route. Not a long one but enough to give you a sense of how high was the place. 

One of the longest open bridges appeared at around 1.06 pm. Another exhilarating view for you and to add to the excitement you will be looking directly down. No siding like The Guillemard in Kelantan, Malaysia. Looking down was both scary and exciting. 

At 1.19 pm we came down into Cimahi. We were informed later the reason the name of the places in Bandung or even Indonesia starts with Ci. Ci means water, not necessary a river but any body of flowing water signifying the place is around or has water flowing into it. Cimahi was the last station before Bandung.

We arrived at Bandung on schedule something that I truly appreciate. Not like the train company that I know that always late making their slogan ON TIME EVERY TIME a big fat joke. 

So far it was the best ever 3-hour train journey for me and I was pretty sure then it was not going to be my last.

Feb 4, 2018, Bandung (0830) - Yogjakarta (1552), Agro Willis,  EKS-1 / 6C 6D 7A

I am not sure about Sam and Mar but the morning of Feb 4 was one of my most exciting moments in life as a train lover and traveller. Right after suboh and around 5 am I was ready for breakfast and pickup to go to the Bandung railway station. Initially, I planned to walk there on my own and did my research on the location. I summed up it will take us about ten minutes to reach the station. However, the night before Oktri, our guide, informed us that we will go together and they will drop us first at the station before proceeding to the Kartika Sari and eventually the airport. If you are not aware of what Kartika Sari is all about for once it is not batik but Indonesian pastries. I would say quite famous among Malaysians. Kartika Sari is not the only brand as I bought two boxes at Bandung train station later for our snack on the train. In fact, they lasted for the next three days. 

We agreed to have an early breakfast and to leave the hotel for the railway station at 7.30 am sharp. That’s, almost. what really happened in the morning where all of us came down for breakfast as early as 6 am. In fact, we were early by 7 minutes and had to wait for the restaurant to open. While waiting Mar and I went outside to take photos. By now we were very familiar with Indonesian breakfast already and mostly Sam and I went for the bread.

We sat at one long table and chatted about our present and next train excursion. We have done Thailand a couple of times and we were about to do a complete loop of Indonesia. The next one we thought would be all the way to Bali. After breakfast, we waited for Oktri and the minibus to arrive and while waiting, the ladies and Ali helped me by redistributing my extra luggage for them to take home for me. The extras were actually souvenirs given to us by our hosts. Since I was going around Indonesia we could not take them along.

Oktri and the minivan arrived on time and we straightaway loaded our luggage. Not much hassle as we were really organised. We pulled out of Favehotel Hyper Square at around 7.00 am and we arrived at the station 7 minutes after. As soon as we arrived we said goodbye to the rest of the team going home while Oktri helped to print our tickets. I must say Oktri was a good guide for us and took care of us well.

As usual, I went outside of the station before we checked in to take a few shots of the facade. It was not an imposing building but small and nice Indonesian architecture. With that in the bag, we checked into the waiting area inside the station. When I said checked in, yes for the Indonesian train station there will be a proper check-in where you show both your ID and tickets. With that, they ushered you in with information about where to wait, the status of your train and the platform where your train going to be. Once in as usual after making sure Sam and Mar were comfortable in the waiting area, with my camera, I explored the station. You know for us when we say explore means going all the way as close as possible to the locomotives, tracks and the engine room or depot. I saw our train KA Agro Wilis was at the platform already minus the locomotive. This is a norm for Kereta Api Indonesia, the locomotive will only be shunted half an hour before departure. I did not see it then but we can actually already boarded our train as the Power Generator Car/Coach (PGC) was already switched on. Nevertheless, I really explored the place taking photos to the extent the security guard came walking quickly towards me to advise me not to go too far along the track. I know I could be too engrossed and excited to forget about security. I must say in general the train stations in Indonesia are quite different from ours. For one, the platforms were built to the height of the train on certain areas only making them like banks of vegetable patches. The passengers crossing to another platform would do so at the same level as the track and you cross carefully making sure there would be no train passing. At certain stations, the platform would be too short and portable steps were pushed to the doors of the train for passengers to get on or disembark. Whatever it is all the stations I observed we very clean. The other thing that is really different with us is the presence of porters at the stations. I am not sure how was the charge but I presumed by the number of luggage they helped to carry. My observation, their existence is cultural heritage. As for us that are used to pull our own luggage, we did not use their services. Not because we did not want to pay but we are really used to pull our own and not a problem for us. So every time they asked I just smile politely to decline.

After a while when taking photos I brought Mar into the experience to be both my model as well as my photographer to capture my experiences for the album. Mar with the P900 just preferred to sit far far away and capture whatever she likes.

At 7.50 am we boarded Agro Willis to occupy seats 6C, 6D and 7A of Executive 1 coach. Once Sam and Mar were at their seats and the luggage stove I was on the platform once again taking photos. As expected the locomotive came to be shunted at 8.00 am. At 8.30 am sharp we departed Bandung moving slowly out of the city. As we move slowly we were accompanied by all too familiar announcements and information from the taped announcer. The announcement, albeit the English in need of editing, was very clear and easy to understand. 

I kept looking out seeing the changing of the scene slowly from cityscape to suburb and villages. However, since I was up very early for Suboh I could not prevent myself from taking a few winks. I dozed off.

I woke up just at the right time, at 9.21 am, when the train was climbing the high terrain. Immediately the scene outside was beautifully green among the high mountain. What I saw outside also was a big mountain and we seemed to be passing along below it. I was transfixed and do not want to move my eyes. My camera was always ready with me and I clicked endlessly. Every moment and scenery is worth capturing and as if I did not want to miss anything. For Malaysian it is like you are on the train that is travelling going up to Cameron Highland navigating around high terrains with paddy and cornfields, and farmhouses within the valley of the high grounds. It was so beautiful and engaging. After every corner, you are expecting another wonderful view and you are not disappointed.  We moved around corners quite a bit and then came the bridges short and long with no sidings. From the edge of your seat if you really lean against the window you will be looking down, way further down. It was scary initially but when you start to admire either the sculptured terraced paddy fields down below or the villages and houses they built against the high terrains you will forget about the height and love what you see immediately. And you will be asking for more. For me, I just wish it would not stop. I enjoyed it so much that I got really sucked in the experience. Something I would not be able to explain in writing. At such time I would not mind if I have forgotten about my camera.

The train moved at a constant speed that was perfect for you to experience the whole journey environment. By this time I realised we were as if circumambulating the huge mountain I saw at the beginning of the climb. We skirted around it at the high ground looking through my window it was far away as a backdrop for the landscape before me. I was transfixed and did want it to end. It was the same feeling as when I was standing on top of the Boh’s Tea Plantation Hill looking down onto the valley. The cool breeze blowing against my face and the valley below shine by the morning sunlight brought out a very nice feeling that I cannot describe. That was how I felt when I looked down on the valley from the train.

After a while, the train moved slowly up a small incline and came to a small beautiful station (10.19 am) snugged up on the edge of a mountain. I thought it was a normal short stop but when I saw the train attendants and a few locals jumped out and almost running towards the smoking area at the edge of the station I knew it would be a longer stop. Maybe we were going to cross with another train I thought. I did not get down but captured the station from the train door. Cipuendeuy is really beautiful to me. It is beautiful not mainly because of the structure but the whole thing. The combination of the limited space within the mountain overseeing the valley makes it unique and beautiful. Indeed we crossed with a local train at the station and 8 minutes after we arrived we departed the station at 10.27 am. 

After Cipuendeuy Station we seemed to be travelling down to the valley. It was enjoyable scenery again outside. The land is really fertile where every inch of the available land is being cultivated. Paddy, corns and vegetables making the land a healthy green sight for those passing by on the train. Eventually, we were travelling on a flat plain with paddy and cornfields on both sides of the track.

At noon we arrived at Banjar Station. With that kind of name I just concluded the main ethnic group of the population there. I could be totally wrong but I just wanted to have fun with it ha ha ha. Wikipedia (retrieved Jan 2020) told me I am indeed wrong as it is a Sundanese small independent city (not located in any regency) in the east of West Java, Indonesia, on the border between West Java and Central Java. This city is also known as Banjar Patroman or Pataruman. Banjar station has four tracks if I can remember correctly, signifying its importance and the size of the population. Should be fun to once visit Banjar properly as by the look of the place it is a place where nature prevails.

One and a half hours later we arrived at Kroya. The train waited for few minutes until at 1.37 pm at we crossed with the East Bound Agro Willis. Eventually, we started to travel on flat land and through villages and paddy fields. It was more beautiful and meaningful to us because we were experiencing it the first time and through foreign eyes. 

We arrived at Yogjarkarta Tugu Station at 3.48 pm and started to disembark at 3.51 pm. As I expected it was a very busy station. Our train stopped at the track next to the side exit which was good for us as our hotel was just across the road. A very short walk for us through a busy city. Once we were out of the exit, a throng of taxi and trishaw drivers started to sell their services. We just walked passed through them and out on the street. We crossed the street and walked into the small reception area of Sofyan Inn Hotel Unisi Yogyakarta, Malioboro Street. The hotel is syariah compliance hotel and pretty new. There are several new boutique hotel chains along the street as well and you would not be wrong in choosing anyone of them. I actually booked the cheapest among them. As always when travelling like this hotels are just places for us to sleep and keep our luggage.

It was at 4.00 pm when we checked in. The plan was to clean a bit and hit Malioboro Street for the first time immediately. After 1 hour of checking in we were on Malioboro Street being tourists. At the hotel entrance, we turned right, walked about 100 metres we were on Malioboro already. The first turn to the right was already the famous signature signpost of Malioboro Street where tourists were waiting in line to pose for a photoshoot or selfie.

Feb 7, 2018, Yogyakarta Tugu (0645) - Surabaya Gubeng (1137), Sancaka,  EKS-1 / 2C 2D 3A

Suboh was at around 5.30 am and as normally anxious with my next travel I woke up very early to take my bath and waited for suboh. I made sure Sam and Mar were up and ready as well. While waiting I was already running our journey mentally. Every step that we would be taking, what would we be doing and the specific time at each place. I especially would want to spend a bit more time exploring the station.

At 5.48 am we were at the Lobby to check out and ready to catch our early train to Surabaya.

Since our hotel was just across the road to the station it is so easy for us and took away some of them would be stressful moments getting to the station on time. The hotel is a perfect launching pad for someone that is crazy about the train and shopping ha ha ha.  It was the reason why I booked a very early train to Surabaya Gubeng Station. KA Sancaka would depart at 6.45am. Thus, after checking out we quickly crossed the street to the station. Less than 100 steps away we were at the side entrance of the station. We printed out tickets at the many kiosks there and checked into the station. 

We were, as usual purposely very early as I would like to be comfortable and to explore the grand station a bit. It was 5.57 am when we were inside the station. Our train would depart from track 5 so we crossed via the station walking path over few tracks to the middle waiting area.

Yogjakarta Station, popularly known as Tugu Station, is located in the heart of the city. It is adjacent to the famous Malioboro Street of Yogjakarta. The State Railway Company of the Dutch East Indies (Staatsspoorwegen, SS) built the railway line from Cilacap towards Yogjakarta as a part of developing the Javanese southern line. This station was opened along with the opening of the line on 20 July 1887. Historically, the southern platform was owned by the Dutch East Indies Railway Company (Nederlandsch-Indische Spoorweg Maatschappij, NIS) and the northern part was owned by SS. Currently, it is owned and operated by PT Kereta Api Indonesia serving arrivals and departures for trains to and from Jakarta, Bandung, and Surabaya. (Wikipedia, 2020)

Immediately, once my wife seated and the luggage properly placed I walked the length of the station. The station is split into two main waiting areas where the main waiting area is the one in the middle. As I walked I took several shots and observed things around me. Of course, there were a lot of activities in the morning with arrivals and departures. When I was walking around I could feel that this station would be a good third place for me. I just could imagine sitting in one of the cafes reading and writing. Maybe this will be my future adventure.

At 6.10 am our train was shunted in at Jalur (Track) 5 and subsequently connected with the locomotive at 6.26 am. Just like any other railway fan I witnessed and captured the whole process. As I was watching and capturing the Captain came over acknowledging me as a professional photographer. I smiled at him and that was how I met Captain Toto. A friendly person and I told him I was a train fan and that I was going around Indonesia by train. He was glad and mentioned to me that some of the locomotives that they have are GE’s solar-powered. He obliged with a selfie. After a while, he gave me a queue that we were departing.

I boarded and sat comfortably at our seats EKS-1 / 2C 2D 3A. At 6.45 am we departed for Surabaya Gubeng. It was a five-hour journey for us. 

Our train journey so far from Gambir, Jakarta to Bandung and eventually from Bandung to Jogjakarta had been wonderful with a beautiful experience. I was expecting the same or better for this one. We were travelling on a level track passing villages intermittent with paddy fields. They were beautiful villages to me. We really got to witness the true village life of Indonesia in this part of the world. 

The first major station that we stopped at was Klaten at 7.08 am. We stopped more for new passengers to board rather than disembarked as it was not even an hour after we left Jogjakarta. The next major station that we stopped was Solobalapan at 7.36 am. Solobalapan is the main station for those going to Solo by train. A number disembarked and boarded at this station. When looking at the map later I deduced a major station that one day we would stop and stay a few nights to explore. 

We were relaxed enjoying the journey. Everyone with their own thoughts. I was for sure enjoying the experience of looking out at the new countryside. So much going through in my mind. The seriousness of one day breaking my journey to stay among the locals was really strong. Sam beside me probably was doing the same thing while Mar was across one seat behind us probably watching Korean movie that she had downloaded. At 9.56 am we arrived at Nganjuk. It is a first-class station servicing major trains services. Slowly we were moving closer to our destination. At that point, we were about one and a half-hour away.

There was a young couple opposite in front of us with a young son and I was observing trying to understand why they were making the journey as it was not a holiday season. In the end, from the little conversation that I overheard, I concluded that were moving to Surabaya due to the husband’s new posting.  

At 10.13 am we arrived at Kertosono. The station is a large class B type train station located in Banaran, Kertosono, Nganjuk. It is bigger than Nganjuk Station. Historically, the station was a bit disorganised with hawkers and buskers lingering around. Between 2013-14 the PT KAI in their effort to clean up the station decided that all trains should just pass through the station. In April 2015 once the station was completely rejuvenated it began to board and disembark passengers. Now. all trains travelling to Madiun, Kediri, and Surabaya via the southern route stop at Kertosono station.

At 10.30 am we passed Jombang and started to travel within more paddy country until we reached Mojokerto at 10.53 am. More paddy fields and as we moved closer to Surabaya houses very close to the track started to be our view.

We docked safely at Surabaya Gubeng at 11.40 am and we duly disembarked with a lot of expectation. We disembarked on the left side of the train and to buy the time I said to my Sam and Mar to hang on a bit and I carried on taking photos until everyone left and the train pulled out of the station. I was actually trying to find my bearing as the station has two exits and I was not sure which one to take. The crowd used both in equal numbers. 

After much thoughts, I gambled for the one on our immediate left. It was the wrong one for us. I found this out much later and we had a bit of difficulty in trying to get a Grab car to our hotel. In the end, we flagged down a taxi on the man street of the station.

We check-in at Hotel 88 at Jalan Embong Malang around 2.30 pm and settled down in our room before we went out in the evening.

Feb 10-11, 2018, Surabaya Pasar Turi (2000) - Jakarta Gambir, Agro Bromo Anggerek,  EKS-1 / 5A, 5B, 6A

After 3 days and 2 nights, we were ready to leave Surabaya for Jakarta and eventually home. Actually, I made a mistake in my booking. My intention was to travel by train around Indonesia during the day and I made the mistake of booking a night train for our final leg. Agro Bromo Angerek runs twice daily in between Gambir, Jakarta and Pasar Turi, Surubaya. The first one will leave both stations simultaneously at 8.00 am and the second one at 8.00 pm. Hence, my mistake in booking without properly checking before I pushed the pay button. We were to board the 8.00 pm train from Pasar Turi, Surabaya station. So by now, you know that Surabaya has two main stations - Gubeng and Pasar Turi. 

We woke up, as usual, that morning and went up to the dining area for Surabaya breakfast. We were used to it already by now and we stayed a bit longer for breakfast. Our plan for the day was for me in the morning to do my last Photowalk of the old Dutch buildings in downtown Surubaya. I planned to do it alone while Sam and Mar would wait in the room. We would check out once I got back and then store our luggage at the hotel to go and kill our time at the Tunjangan Plaza shopping complex nearby. 

At 9.10 am I was already out walking with my camera ready. From the hotel lobby, I turned right along Jalan Bluaran until the junction of BG Junction shopping complex. From there I turned right walking towards the river via Jalan Praban. I took Jalan Genblogan and walked almost along the river all the way to Jambatan Merah Plaza and back. The entire walk alone took me about one and half hours. I did not feel it as I was shooting at will. The day was a bit hot and I hasten my pace. However, the old buildings intrigued me and made me observed a bit longer. Knowing their bloodied history I was tracing their history as I walked. Imagining how it was with their love for the nation to fight for their rights.

I arrived at the Red Bridge at 10.18 am crossed it to take a few photos. I walked ahead a bit and was in front of Pusat Grosir Jambatan Merah or Jembatan Merah Plaza at 10.20 am. I went in for a while and bought a shopping bag for our trip home. With that, I traced my steps back to the hotel. 

Once I was back in the hotel room we finalised our packing. As usual, we bought more than we planned to ha ha ha. Since Zohor was slightly after noon I requested and allowed to check out after we said our prayers. 

We checked out and stored luggage at the hotel. We walked to Tunjangan Plaza to lepak. Once we were there we just walked around and at 1.57 pm we were at the food court of TP. We were not sure whether to have lunch or not. We were not that hungry but thinking about we may not get a proper meal before boarding our train we just ordered something.

Slightly after 4 we walked back to the hotel, made our final packing and took the taxi at the hotel to Pasar Turi Station. We arrived at Pasar Turi Station at 5.21 pm. Mar straight away printed our tickets at the kiosk. We walked to the entrance but was told by the guard we were not allowed in yet. It was still very early so waited at the waiting area outside. I took the opportunity to go around taking photos of the surrounding. 

There was a masjid next to the station and there was a surau in the station as well. However, we had to check in to sue the surau. Not wanting to be rushed we made a decision to solat first at the mosque. We took turns to do it. The good thing about mosques in Indonesia is that they will start to pry immediately after the azan. So no waiting time, the newcomers just joined in.

At 7.10 pm we entered the station and sat at the waiting lounge to be called to board later. We sat and were soon engrossed with our own thoughts. I was observing the rooms, our fellow passengers and took a few shots of them. As if I knew what was on their minds. The truth I had not a clue ha ha ha. But fun to observe their behaviours. 

At 7.22 pm we were allowed into the station and at the same train being pulled in. I witnessed the locomotives being attached once again. We were on platform1 just outside of the waiting area. At 7.40 pm we boarded and as usual, I lingered outside to take photos and all. This was how I met a group of college students from Ceribon that was going home from their holiday in Malang which is about two hours of train journey. We chatted and when I told him what we were doing they were gladly surprised and told me to stop at Ceribon next time to enjoy the place. I told them I will in sha Allah. I already had Solo in mind and now Ceribon also. They asked me where had we been in Surabaya and I told them the usual tourist sites. That was when they really recommended me to visit Malang. According to them apart from Mount Bromo, there were several tourists sites and parks we could visit. I made a mental note on that and I had three cities I should visit next to Indonesia.  

At 8 pm we departed for our 8 hours and 57 minutes journey to Gambir, Jakarta. Since it was a night journey I did not foresee I would be moving around that much. Furthermore, after the long walk in the morning, I was a bit tired. I reclined my seat to the maximum and in a few minutes I dozed off. 

I woke up when the train was slowly leaving Semarang Tawang. Initially, I did not know it was Semarang Tawang until I checked my Google Map and it was 12.32 am. After that, I just could not sleep properly dozing in and out until we reached Ceribon at 2.20 am. I predicted that many would disembark at the station and I was right. I got down with them just to be on the platform for a while. I saw smokers were among them and I deduced the train will be longer at the station. 

I breathe the morning air and felt refreshed. If I was still a smoker I would be blowing smoke into the cool morning air now. It used to be the best time to smoke. Instead, I just stood looking at them and Ceribon night.

After we left Ceribon I went back to sleep and was awaken when I felt the train had stopped at a station too long. I rose from my seat and walked out when I heard voices and a group of train personals were repairing something at the PGC in front of us. When I saw them I knew it was a failure in part of the PGC. Then I knew we were at  Cikampek (4.11 am) which was about slightly more than an hour to Gambir. 

True enough later the train main supervisor came into our coach to announce that the PGC failed and there would not be air-conditioned for the rest of the journey to Gambir, Jakarta. Lucky for us it was early morning and the non-existence of the air-con was not so much of an issue. The train supervisor also told us that if anybody would like to ask for a refund could do so at major stations where we disembarked. I did not think much about it until we were at Gambir Station. 

At 6.54 am we approached Gambir Station and immediately disembarked. We were still very early to go to the airport and we took our time at the station. Eventually, when it was opened we parked ourselves at Dunkin Donuts for coffee. While waiting came back the idea of whether we should ask for a refund due to the PGC failure? In the ned just for the heck of it, we decided to do that just to see what would happen. I walked to the ticket refund counter alone and asked the clerk whether I could make a refund. He said sure and I passed him our tickets. I asked him whether he would keep the tickets and he said in the affirmative as proof for his record. I snap a photo of the tickets and passed them to him. Honestly, I was expecting at least not more than a 20% refund but when he handed the cash I just pocketed them. Later when asked by my wife I pull them out and counted them and realised it was a full fare refund. Wow! it would never happen with KTMB I said to my wife. I ordered more food ha ha ha.

After an hour or so we decided to leave for the airport. I am not sure whether to call a blue cab or just take the cab at the station. As we pulled our bags out of the main entrance taxi drivers started to approach us. I sort of ignored them and after a while, another one came to me to explain the situation and assured me there is no hanky panky and I trusted him. He passed me on to another driver who was a rookie. Robbil Hidayah was really a rookie who just drove his taxi and came from Sumatera.

When we arrived at the airport at around 9.40 am we straight away walked into check-in. We wrapped our shopping bag at the wrapping centre and proceeded to the Malindoair counter. Once inside the airport, we walked around to pass the time.

We boarded at 1.55 pm and landed safely at KLIA at 4.53 pm Malaysia time.