I never though that I’m gonna use this word, “paradise”. I even on some level don’t believe the existence of it until several days ago I saw it by my own eyes. I’ve written this journey and everything that I could think of when I was there in my book. every word, every sentence and every story are based on what I feel and they were genuinely true coming from my deepest heart. no censored attached! If you were interested in seeing or reading it I guess you’d have to wait until I die.

Since my experience in this paradise was quite short for human life and quite long to be told by writing them, I guess I’m gonna point out certain things that really excited me the most. So here we go..

Mate, I was in the paradise!!! I’ve seen PARADISE!! WOOHOO!!!!

Last week, when some people celebrating valentine’s day I was alone, yep yep yep, not having a girlfriend sometimes really frustrating. So, I took a trip to a place called Bodalla in south coast. It was hundredth of km from Sydney and a little bit closer to Melbourne comparing to Sydney. My intention to go there was to see Kangaroo in wild after my super-kind project officer, Liz, recommended me to experiencing the beautiful australia by having a trip to outside the city. She offered me to stay at her parents house/farm. And apparently, her parents is the member of couchsurfing community. It’s a community that let people (stranger) stay at their place without have to pay some cost. that’s a brilliant concept and a nobel community, I guess.

So I was stayed there for 3 days and 2 nights. Liz’s parents picked me up at bodalla, it was so sweet to do that because their place was like 20 km from my bus stop. after we met an acquaintance we were directly heading to a place where we could see Kangaroo and wallabies. On the way there, we passed through a place called Black-fellow beach.

Ok, so we arrived in a place where Kangaroo and Wallabies were all over the place. definitely not a zoo! I played with them. try so hard to be able to touch them, because they pretty shy I guess, everytime I got close to them, they hopping away. So, I might have to try attracted them. I moved my hand up and down hopefully they’d be interesting of what I was doing. Well, evidently they did! some of them started to approach me. The curiosity of the lovely animal was unstoppable. They were sniffing my hand before then they realize that my hand wasn’t food to eat and they begin to hopping away from me.

Once we got to see the Kangaroo, we went to John and Pam’s farm. the place was so lovely. They have garden with lots of veggies planted there. The inside of the house was not like what I had in mind. All furnitures were futuristic. I felt like being in the hotel room. And definitely not spooky like in Indonesia, though.

John cooked me Laksa. And we shared lots of stories. my favourite one was when we were talking about Liz ^^. that girl apparently has a interesting past when she was a kid. John and Pam told me that she loves to read so badly. In fact when she was a kid, she tried to read in the shower. She attempted to stick the book in a glass/mirror so she could read while she was showering. hahaahhaha! everytime I remember this and try to imagine it, I couldn’t stop laughing! And John said that lucky enough the book always fall down. So, reading in the shower had never been successful mission for little Lizzie.

The next morning we went to the birdland. It was a zoo. Pam and John took me there so I could see Koala. Yes I did see koala there, even though they were sleeping (because that’s what they do, sleeping for 20 hour every day). And I also saw any other animals. Wombat was the one that made me amused. The wombat’s name was Connie. she was a baby. she was extremely cute! when we were standing outside her cage, she was slowly approaching us. I think she wanted to play. I guess she was alone, though. Poor little creature!

Koala was another cute creature that we saw. *ups, I’ve already told you before* I don’t know why but somehow they remind me of my fatso sister, hahaha!

Before we went to the zoo, Pam took me to a place called Moruya (sound like Meruya Ilir, aye?) and from there we had a bushwalk for about 30 minutes. Quite fast for bush walk actually. But Pam was successfully amazed me when we arrived in some sort of hill where we could look down and saw a beach and ocean from above. It was amazingly beautiful! I couldn’t describe how beautiful it was, but it did look like I was in a paradise. The ocean, the hill, the green colour from the plants, the light blue sky, a little bit raining. That short moment was really fabulous!

We had a lunch at Fish & Chips in Batesmans Bay before we went back home. And we made a stop couple of times so John and Pam could show me the beautiful side of australia. Couple of km from the house, John took me to bushwalk heading to the farm while Pam took the car to get back to the farm. While we bushwalking we kind a hope we are able to see Liar Bird. John told me that this bird have an ability to imitate the sound or singing other birds. They could even make a sound of electric saw or even the sound of truck when it’s going to move backward. Kind amazing bird with such a talented gift, if I may say so. It’s too bad we couldn’t get a chance to see one. However we did see a black bird called Glossy-Black Cockatoo, when you see they fly, you could see that they have red strips on their tails. Special bird and rare species, if I’m not mistaken.

And finally we arrived home and it’s time for me to cook the dinner. I made Pecel, traditional vegetarian omelet eggs ala Warteg, the bitternut cracker and the most famous food in indonesia, Indomie fried noodles, hehe! the Indomie, I introduce them as a “poison”, and I guess they’d remember it as a poison because once we finished the dinner John called Lizzie and told her that I made them a poison, hahaha! I was a little bit scared when I started to cook because John told me during the cooking time, “thio, everyone that cook in here if the food wasn’t good then they had to sleep with the chicken.” Oh Dear GOD! I just hope I didn’t screw the omelet.

So, not long after that the meal were ready in the table and it was a judgment time!! they tasted it and…. they liked it! ^^ Pam said she love the texture of the meal which I wasn’t so sure what was that mean. And John like the Pecel sauce. Well, my opinion, the sauce was really great. Taste like what my mum used to make at home. When I tried that sauce with Pecel, “ooohhh… it feels like home.” I said that and they laughed. And we managed to finish everything on the plate. well, except for veggies, mainly because I didn’t make enough sauce that night. “So John, do I still need to sleep with the chicken?” and he said no. YAY!!! Also I remember we had a toast, “to the cook!”, said John. John and Pam had a wine for their drink and since they know that I don’t drink wine everytime the photos were taken, they hid the wine so it wouldn’t apprear in the photos. They said they did that so that my mum and dad would not see the wine. hahahaha… 

Finished eating, before we went to bed, Pam and I had to struggle to find out how to print out a postcard using HP printer. Yep, Pam offered me whether I’d like to make a postcard to be sent to my mum and dad. We had to deal with three mal print out before we finally nailed it. I had made 2 postcards, one for mum and dad and the other one for “my mum” in Bandung. 

Before I had to stay underneath the blanket I had to made one last task. I made something for liz. I hid it somewhere in the room where I slept. Well, I guess they’re never gonna find it anyway. So it’s not a big deal. hehe! And even if they managed to find it, they’d never know that it was coming from me.

I felt tired and next thing you know I fell asleep and woke up at 5, which when my alaram had been set off. I felt really strange that morning. I felt so light, it was so quite. no sound of cars or the like. only the sound of nature accompany me in the dawn. I was still in my bed and not long after that, my brain was picturing the city, with lots of people and less natural green. I swear to God that at that time there were tears coming out my eyes. Yes, I was crying and I kept saying to my self that “I don’t wanna leave this place“. On some level, this journey was giving me not only experience but also fullfiled my dream. Call me sentil-mentil, girly, or whatever you like, but I can’t lie to my own heart. I felt so peaceful!

In the morning when we were about to have a breakfast, it was raining and I said to John and Pam, “ow, it’s raining“. then they told me that last night was harder than that morning. “didn’t you hear it?“, John asked me. “No..” I shook my head. “hahaha…“, John laughed, “then you must be sleeping very well, though.” I guess I did sleep well that night after couple of days I couldn’t sleep well, including my first night in the farm. But I’m glad I could get a nice sleep in the house. ^^

Alrighty, it was time to say goodbye. John had to do his routinity on that morning. so Pam was the one that drove me to the bus stop. Just before John leaving, I said thank you to him. I hugged him and she hugged me back so hard and he said, “give this to Lizzie“, which on the next day I did hug Liz so hard just what her dad wanted to, hahaha!

John, Pam, and me

Nothing left to be told, that was my story in a place that I refer to as “My Paradise”. Yes, apparently it is really difficult to confince people that the place was really a paradise. I think people have to feel it for themselves so that people will know what it was an amazing exerience and fabulous feeling I had. I guess I really lucky join the volunteer and meet Liz. She’s the best! No body proud of my work as an environmental volunteer, but having this job has led me to a place that I called…

The Paradise!

*Thank you John, Pam, and Lizzie…*