Lia Golledge's Blog, page 22

Info: Ajang Kepedulian Netizen Indonesia bersama Network

''Memulai sesuatu dalam hidup, harus didasari dengan niat yang kuat !'' sudah jadi pernyataan yang pastinya keluar saat kita berniat melakukan sebuah perubahan dalam hidup. Tapi pernah nggak kita sadar untuk melakukkan sebuah perubahan untuk masalah-masalah yang terjadi di Indonesia? Sulit buat di pastikan sih, apa memang benar-benar sudah kita lakukan atau belum.
Hal terkecil yang bisa kita lakukan adalah menunjunjukkan kepedulian kita terhadap lingkungan kita sendiri tentunya. Butuh rasa kepedulian yang kuat untuk mampu membuat sebuah perubahan dari hal yang sepele manjadi wujud yang bermakna.
Untuk mendorong kepedulian netizen Indonesia terhadap masalah-masalah strategis Indonesia, VHRmedia menggelar rangkaian kegiatan yang diberi nama Network. Network adalah singkatan dari Netizen, Writing Contest, Offline Gathering, Report from The Field dan Key-Worth. Writing Contest diberi tajuk Beatblog Contest. Sebuah kontes dalam bentuk tulisan untuk para netizen, terutama blogger. Sedangkan Offline Gathering adalah ajang kopidarat para netizen dan pengumuman pemenang kontes penulisan. Report From The Field adalah acara jalan-jalan sambil menulis dengan melibatkan netizen dan jurnalis. Key-worth merupakan acara penyerahan penghargaan tahunan untuk netizen yang memberi kontribusi positif untuk Indonesia.



Event Tahun ini, Network mengangkat tema lingkungan hidup, dengan tagline "Green Your Mind". Tujuan mengambil tema ini adalah untuk mengajak para netizen lebih memperhatikan masalah lingkungan. Saat ini, kita sedang mengadapi masalah lingkungan hidup yang akut, mulai dari pemanasan global, polusi, sampah, dan sebagainya. Lingkungan hidup merupakan masalah strategis karena menyangkut hidup orang banyak, sehingga untuk menjaganya kita harus lebih peduli dan mencoba menunjukkan kepedulian kita terhadap lingkungan.

Event ini dibuka dengan kontes Beatblog Writing Contest. Jadi buat yang hobi nulis, punya blog, dan mau membuat perubahan dengan menunjukkan kepeduliannya terhadap Indonesia, jangan ragu-ragu buat mulai berpartisipasi diajang ini. Pastinya akan ada hadiah menarik untuk pemenang kontes ini, *bisik-bisik sampai Rp 30 juta dan masih banyak hadiah-hadiah lainnya yang akan dibagikan pada saat rangkaian acara NET.WORK berlangsung lho
Buat yang penasaran dengan hadianya, berikut penjelasannya :


Juara Pertama akan mendapat uang tunai Rp 5 juta dan sebuah smartphone Blackberry.
Juara Kedua mendapatkan uang tunai Rp 3 juta dan Blackberry.
Juara Ketiga akan mendapat uang tunai Rp 1,5 juta dan Blacberry.


Bukan hanya itu, bagi 17 nominator akan mendapat hadiah hiburan masing-masing Rp 500 ribu dan tulisannya diterbitkan dalam buku "Blogger Bicara Lingkungan".
Panitia telah menunjuk tiga orang juri dalam kontes ini, yaitu:


Happy Salma,
IGG Maha Adhi
FX Rudy Gunawan.


Sekilas mengenai juri-juri yang dipilih, Happy Salma adalah seorang artis-cum-penulis. Happy juga dikenal memiliki kepedulian pada masalah politik, sosial dan lingkungan hidup. IGG Maha Adhi adalah jurnalis lingkungan hidup yang bekerja pada majalah National Geographic Indonesia yang juga ketua Society of Environmental Journalists (SIEJ). Sedangkan, FX Rudy Gunawan adalah novelis dan pemimpin redaksi VHRmedia.com.

Bagi kalian yang ikut berpartisipasi, pendaftaran tulisan dibuka tanggal 5 Januari 2011 dan ditutup tanggal 15 Februari 2011. Pendaftaran dilakukan secara online di URL http://network.VHRmedia.com

Acara ini diselenggarakan oleh VHRmedia, sebuah lembaga yang mengembangkan media komunitas di tanah air. VHRmedia menyediakan konten dan pelatihan bagi radio komunitas dan mengelola situs www.VHRmedia.com
Mulailah berbuat sesuatu bagi lingkungan kita ya!
Untuk informasi lebih lanjut silakan hubungi panitia Network di Jl. Melati No. 10 Ragunan Jakarta Selatan 12550, Telp: 021-7812758, Faksimili: 021-788838267, Email: network@VHRmedia.com. Contact person: Wiwik, email wiwik@VHRmedia.com
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Pursuit of Green Living

Beberapa minggu yang lalu saya ikut rombongan teman-teman saya untuk Birdwatching di Pulau Rambut, kawasan Kepulauan Seribu. Buat yang belum paham, birdwatching adalah… ngeliatin burung dengan teropong (bahasa awamnya aja ya hehe) saat pulang dan pergi 'ngantor' trus ngitungin jumlah burung, ngeliatin aktivitas-nya dari jauh, dan pokoknya all about burung! Seru banget loh… soalnya masuk ke hutan dan manjat ke menara demi pemandangan yang lebih bagus dan jelas.

Tapi saya bukan mau nyeritain tentang birdwatching. Tapi sampah-sampah plastik yang ada di sekitar pelabuhan tempat kami berangkat naik kapal menuju Pulau Rambut. Sampah plastik yang melewati sungai & rawa yang ditumbuhi bakau di sekitar tempat itu per 4 hari konon kalau ditumpuk bisa sama volume-nya dengan Candi Borobudur! Itu gila banget.

Belum lagi ternyata sampah, yang kebanyakan plastik sulit terurai ini, bisa merubah behavior-nya ekosistem burung dan monyet di sekitar tempat itu. Burung-burung sekarang malas terbang karena mereka bisa dengan mudah nemplok di sampah yang mengalir ke laut. Monyet-monyet juga sekarang mencari makan dari kantong-kantong plastik berwarna hitam yang biasanya berisi sisa makanan. Mengerikan sekali. Kualitas air-nya juga nggak usah ditanya deh. Dijamin ke dokter kulit setiap minggu-nya karena air yang sangat bermasalah dan nggak layak pakai. Duh kasihan yang tinggal di sekitar sungai!

Penggunaan plastik sendiri kalau ditarik kembali ke belakang, kita akan menemukan diri kita sendiri, belanja groceries di pusat perbelanjaan dan bisa menggunakan lebih dari 5 kantong plastik sekali belanja (terutama kalau pas belanja bulanan). Kemudian kemanakah kantong plastik itu akan pergi? Biasanya sih langsung terbuang, apalagi yang digunakan untuk membungkus makanan segar seperti daging, ikan, sayur dan lainnya (karena plastik-nya udah langsung kotor).

Di luar negeri, sudah marak usaha untuk membawa kantong belanja sendiri ke pusat perbelanjaan. Kemarin, saya lihat sudah ada upaya untuk mengganti kantong plastik dengan kardus boks, kasir supermarket-nya menawarkan kepada saya untuk menggunakan kardus untuk menampung belanjaan. Good effort. Tapi makanan segar tetap tidak bisa langsung masuk ke dalam boks. Yang perlu dilakukan adalah menyiapkan sendiri tempat untuk makanan segar tersebut dari rumah. Usahakan jangan menggunakan styrofoam, soalnya dia cuma wujud lain dari plastik! (Baru tau kan?!)

Ada lagi nggak yang mau share cara green living bebas plastik terutama untuk menampung belanjaan kita?
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Resolusi 2011

Hey… it's that time of the year again, where I have to review my life and create a new year's resolution.

Tahun 2010 adalah tahun yang penuh kejutan buat saya. Keren lah pokoknya.

The rise of Indonesian digital Startups dengan #StartupLokal community (yang mana saya menjadi salah satu inisiator bersama @NataliArdianto, @Nuniek dan @SaGad). Event #StartupLokal meetup yang rutin diadakan setiap hari kamis minggu pertama tiap bulannya, membuat pertumbuhan startup bergerak lebih cepat dari yang dibayangkan. Kenapa? Karena efek dari networking yang berhasil dilakukan saat meetup menghasilkan kolaborasi yang kekuatannya seperti bom atom. Semangat startups ini juga diperkuat oleh Sparxup award yang membawa one of my startups, Nulisbuku.com, menjadi pemenang dalam kategori Best e-Commerce padahal usianya baru 1 bulan

Circle of Friends yang semakin luas dan beragam juga menjadi blessing tersendiri buat saya. The introvert me now capable of meeting a lot of people, belajar terus untuk menyempurnakan social skill. Buku-buku favorite saya tentang social skill ini adalah dari Nicholas Boothman. Teman-teman baru saya ini semua high quality people. Highly successful, positive and passionate with what they're doing. I'm so very grateful to know them.

Tahun ini juga adalah tahun di mana setiap orang yang ketemu saya selalu punya ide bisnis baru untuk dilakukan bersama. Well,  happy problem buat saya, because at one point, I have to know my goals priorities. Tahun ini sebenarnya saya punya kesempatan untuk mewujudkan satu mimpi: minum kopi sambil ngeliatin Menara Eiffel dari jauh. But then I thought, kalau saya wujudkan sekarang, terus apa lagi dong tujuan hidup saya hehe. Akhirnya saya memutuskan untuk menunda mimpi itu. Karena ini bukan saat yang tepat. Saya ingin menikmati prosesnya. It's the journey, not the destination, they said.

Tentang writing, saya mengeluarkan buku motivasi yang disadur dari kumpulan blog post yang sudah dipilih dan artikel-artikel baru yang saya tulis. Ini genre baru buat saya. Saya menikmatinya. Saya juga baru saja menyelesaikan menulis buku bisnis. Hal baru juga untuk saya. Ber-eksperimen dengan tulisan sekarang semakin mudah dan menyenangkan karena ada sarana untuk menerbitkan buku yang gratis dan mudah, yaitu my own company, Nulisbuku.com  Saya menerbitkan buku how-to yang niche untuk para penulis pemula dan kumpulan short stories saya, yang saya tulis dalam keisengan rasa, di NulisBuku.com. It feels good to know that karya kita dibaca oleh orang lain dan diapresiasi. Make you wanting to write and share your thoughts more. I missed writing fiction though.

iPad has change my reading habit. I can switch and change my reading in a snap without feeling guilty. I can skip pages. I can search on what I really need, fast! And I can highlight and copy then share to twitter, what I've just read. I like reading Paulo Coelho books on iPad, so many inspirations I can share with friends on twitter. With Scoop, it's not too long that I'd start buying local magazine on softcopy.

iPhone has change my life. Change the way I do photography (see my iPhoneography blog). Add my productivity (Sync notes & mobile mind maps). More things can be done and more cool apps available on the store. Talk about revolution!

I love twitter (follow me @salsabeela). Tahun ini sepertinya tahun terkuat twitter di Indonesia. I can meet a lot of great people hanya dari mention di twitter. I can inspire and drive people with twitter. I can be part of something good, with twitter. For us, twitter is so powerful, it can even change life!

In terms of fashion & beauty, I lost 10 kgs and successfully dropped few sizes (LangsingMulus.com for more info :p). At first, I still use my old baggy clothes, and then I realized, I really need to refresh my look. I start shopping new outfits. What I find amusing is that fashion is simple. All you need is to be different, and you're chic already. Pick one fashion statement that will shout out loud when you're walking. Accessories, matters. Layering always boost your look. And by looking good, you already have 50% chance to be heard. So, better dress well. The truth indeed hurts: you're judged by your cover!

In 2011…

Expect myself to grow my book empire with new plans for Kutukutubuku.com, growing Nulisbuku.com to the next level (we have some coolest plan) and working on my new startup about books with the smartest CTOs @tista and @sagad also building my  writing startups, this time I partnered with the phenomenon @RadityaDika. This will be exciting!

I want to pursue my passion in life experiment with joining Mbak @AlberthieneE  in her upcoming project. Looking forward to it!

A new writing challenge for me this year is to write a biography book! I really admire Mbak @AlberthieneE  for all her extraordinary biography books (and of course astonished by how much she earned from the books hehehe). I planned to learn more from her in 2011. Hopefully she would like to accept me as her student *bow* I also plan to write more philosophic novels. It's about time.

Indonesian Startups will kicking more and more in 2011. Me and #StartupLokal inisiators had some plan regarding investors relation and we're ready to launch a new variant of #StartupLokal events. Make sure you'll be part of it!

I'm having concern over women issues that I'm going to look more in 2011. I want to empower women, so they can be more creative, have options in life and eventually raise their children to be the best generation to build the world. This can be done by throwing events special for women. Been talk about it with @anantya and hopefully we could make it happen in 2011.

Community building will be compulsory. Have plan to create writers & readers community as well.

Everybody is coming back to true self and wanting to do good deeds. So that's why traveling will be more than just having fun. It should have a social impact. It should be meaningful. Eco-tourism and social-travel plans will be on everybody's list. I'm having some thoughts and plans about making my own travel business. Hopefully would found a good partner next year

Apps will be sexier. iPhone. Android. Your call. My game studio company, TempaLabs, will focus on making mobile games with a little taste of Indonesia's culture in it. Going regional or global is also a very widely open opportunity this time. I have plan to make some apps as well for my statups. Experience, for our members, means everything.

Freelancers unite, more some sort of hackerspace will be around. Interested to build one myself in Depok maybe

Thanks to Onrop, musical theatre will also growing big next year. Reminding me that I need to spare my time to watch art performance more often. GKJ. TIM. Somewhere at Kemayoran. Hm! Calling all my artsy buddies!

I could go on… and on… so I will have to finish the post now. For me, 2011 will be exciting, full of passion, glowing spiritually and surrounded with the love energy.

How about you? What's your plan?
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Behind The Scene: Komodo Trip

Setelah menulis kisah Komodo National Park dalam bahasa Inggris yang lebih serius, maka sekarang saya ingin cerita yang ringan dari perjalanan kemarin ^-^

Jadi perjalanan ke Pulau Komodo kemarin adalah salah satu upaya BudPar untuk menggalakkan campaign vote Komodo National Park as the New 7 Wonder of Nature pada website New7Wonders.com campaign ini juga ada di mana-mana termasuk di kursi pesawat yang membawa kami ke Labuan Bajo

My travel buddy, Mita, from IDBlogNetwork membawa 2 tas. Satu tas kecil warna cokelat kehijauan dan satu tas ransel besar warna hitam. Tebak yang mana tas untuk baju-baju-nya selama 4 hari? YAK… salah…! Bajunya ditaruh di tas kecil dan yang ada di tas ransel besar-nya itu adalah 2 kamera DSLR serta beberapa lensa dan kit lainnya -_-; I think I'm the only one who's always overpacked my clothes

Dilihat dari pesawat, buanyak banget Lagoon di sekitar Labuan Bajo *terharu*

Ada Britney Spears & Princess di Melo Village, desa kecil di Labuan Bajo

Having great time taking pictures of Melo Village kids

Saya sangat suka fotografi, tapi most of the time, kedodolan menggerogoti :p

Setelah menggunakan kamera 1,5 hari, saya baru menyadari ada setting-an yang salah sehingga warna foto-nya nggak keluar Untunglah dengan bantuan Mita, saya bisa menyadari dan memperbaiki kesalahan ini *utak-atik-white-balance* And then… foto pertama yang saya ambil, foto stick pawang Komodo. Kemudian pertanyaan dodol kembali saya lontarkan kepada salah satu teman, "Bikin stick kayak gitu gimana caranya ya?" Dijawab dengan bete, "Di-lem pake selotip!" -_-; Padahal #seriusnanya

Pak Agung adalah salah satu my travel buddy yang socially smart. Saya menganalisa cara-nya mendekati, mengajak ngobrol, hingga akrab  dengan seseorang dalam tempo yang sesingkat-singkatnya (termasuk dengan saya). Pintar sekali! Musti berguru lebih lanjut nih

Pas Komodo-nya muncul, kita langsung melakukan segala cara untuk mendapatkan foto dengan angle terbaik. Ya termasuk rebahan, guling-gulingan di pasir :P

By the way… Yoris keren banget ya, kayak di Baywatch

Meet @ardiyako Diko. He's a very passionate young man with vision! Everytime we talk, he always make sure that it's a useful conversation. Very kind, very positive and very narcisstic as well hehehe. I must learn on how he managed to speak and growing a subject very well, on a topic with a very little information.

Nelly is a very very cheerful person. She could light up a room, even burn it, make it on fire! Missed ya!

And the sunset in Komodo National Park is no joke! On the left side of the yacht, there are mix colors of twilight…

…and on the right side, it's all PINK!

And as you know… selama perjalanan di Pulau Komodo, we use a fancy yacht: Merry Makin'

And free flow of delicious food & orange juice are coming from the kitchen inside the yact…

And I thought it was okay to always eat and eat everything inside the yacht… just because it's THERE and we had a hard journey hiking up and down the hills #alesan

And nothing could prepare me from the fact that I gain 4 kgs within my Komodo Trip… and the worst was… that fact was available for everybody in the airport to see -_-; Yak… di bandara Komodo, badan kita ditimbang satu per satu sodara-sodara…

So right now… a week from #KomodoTrip… I'm still struggling to lose weight with my LangsingMulus breakfast plan… and plan to hit the gym soon… or maybe just login to my SixReps account, hoping it'll help :p

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Exploring Komodo National Park

It's 3 in the morning right now and I'm smiling. With the tan on my skin, I'm proudly announce that I just back from Komodo National Park

I wrote about Komodo National Park once, in a complete article for entering Bubu Awards 2009. And I won! I never been to Komodo National Park before. I wrote the blog post through research on the internet (you can learn more how I do that in my ebook Inspirasi.net :p). I never imagine that a year later, I get to experience Komodo National Park myself! Of course I had a plan to go there, but not this fast Thanks to ID Blog Network & Ministry of Culture and Tourism that has invited me

First of all, you must know where Komodo National Park is located in Indonesia Map That's basic. So, here's Indonesia Map, and Komodo is located in eastern part of Indonesia, around Timor & Flores.

Map from tourism-and-travel-at.blogspot.com

To go there from Jakarta, we must first go to Denpasar, Bali, and then jumping to next plane to Labuan Bajo. At first I was afraid because they say the plane is small. Aviastar is not that big, but I think it's one of the best plane to go to Labuan Bajo. It's also steady. The journey is smooth. I just got a little nervous when the stewardess ask us to pray to God before take off. Not that it's wrong, it's just… no stewardess has been suggesting it in other flight before -_-;

Anyway… after 1 hour 45 minutes journey from Jakarta to Bali and approximately 1 hour journey from Bali to Labuan Bajo, we finally arrived at the exotic city. The airport is small, only four walls, with a lot of Komodo pictures hanging in each of the wall. Our group gathered and walking towards our bus that has been waiting. Welcome to Labuan Bajo!

The first impression of Labuan Bajo was its green landscape. It's very similar to Java island. When I think about eastern part of Indonesia, I always have this dry and yellowish image of dry grass of savannah. But what I saw is nothing like it. Great news! Rain really helps Labuan Bajo farmers.

Culture

We stop by at Melo village to watch traditional dance performance by the locals. The first dance was Caci Dance. The dance is basically about friendship and war. The performers would whipping each other and then doing some funny talk & walk. So it's basically combination of strength and sense of humor :p I really enjoy it. Very entertaining.

The other dance was Angkuk Alu. They said it's a dance to find soulmate! When I twit about it, one of my friend asked me to dance on behalf of him -_-; I guess that's not how it works. Angkuk Alu was usually performed at night, as a gathering connector for men & women. And that's where they usually meet their soulmate. Watch Angkuk Alu dance in this video.

We sealed the day by checking-in at Bintang Flores hotel. It's a 4 stars hotel in Labuan Bajo. Very nice one. Helps me get a high quality sleep before the journey to the dragon's island.

Komodo

Of course. All of us are curious of how Komodo looked like. We heard stories about them. How prehistoric they are. How unique and one of a kind (you can only find their habitat in Indonesia). How they can also be deadly. And now we can't wait to meet them.

At 4 in the morning, we gathered at Labuan Bajo harbor to get on a fancy yacht, Merry Makin'.

We planned to go to 2 islands where Komodo live. They're Komodo island & Rinca island. The journey from the harbor to Komodo island took around 2 hours. I take a nap after breakfast (and many more napping, I don't know, I get sleepy so fast :p), but after refreshed, managed to look outside to enjoy the breathtaking view. We cruise through the beautiful hills around the islands. So… beautiful…! I imagine myself sitting on the yacht and writing my next romance novel, and stay that way for couple of weeks. *daydream*

Entering Loh Liang, Komodo island is like entering a mystery castle :P Mysterious yet intriguing. I prepared my camera. This going to be an awesome photo hunting.

We walk along the beach line 'til we saw the 'Komodo National Park' sign and start happily took pictures of each other :P Mita, my travel buddy, ask me to pose like a Komodo. And this is the best that I can do *un-creative* -_-; By the way, the way I dress is recommended for Komodo trip. Everything must be covered (to prevent mosquito's bite)! And don't forget to use sunblock.

Komodo rangers welcome and guide us to track inside the forest. They use branched stick as weapon to control Komodo dragon. Before entering the pond, where Komodo usually wait for their prey, our ranger ask us to keep silent, because Komodo attracted to noise and easily distracted with fast moving thing (aside from his natural attraction: smell of blood & bad smell). So, if you want them to go after you, just talk loudly and swing your bag back and forth (not recommended though :p)

And finally, the moment of truth! We met our first Komodo! He looked calm while we took pictures of him.

The scariest Komodo was our second Komodo that we saw near the beach. He basically ran, and everybody start tumbling because they're not expecting how fast Komodo can ran after them (Rangers said Komodo could run up until 18 km per hour). While Komodo chasing my friends, I'm watching from afar in Ora Cafe chatting with Mr. Nobel from Ministry of Culture & Tourism haha :P (By the way, Ora is the local name for Komodo. They're actually getting along well with the locals).

We saw more Komodos at Loh Buaya, Rinca island. Maybe because the island is smaller, so the Komodo tend to gathers in one place. Here, Komodo blend real well with the nature. We can't see them coming! Everybody keep alert on the whole journey, but we trust our rangers and feel safe.

I came with many hardcore photographers (this is indeed a heaven for photographers). And they bring a loooot of lenses & tools. Don't worry, if you're like them, you can hire a porter. I even hire one of them to carry my urban fashionable bag *purely-out-of-my-uncured-laziness* :p

The Hills

Both in Komodo & Rinca island, we took the medium track. Yet, I still feel very exhausted. Maybe because it's almost 90 degree uphill and the sun was burning hot -_-; But all of it was paid off after we reach the hill top. It's amazingly beautiful. Jurrassic Park is how I'm going to describe 'em. Here are some of the best photos I took from the hills.

Diko, my travel buddy, help to report how it looks from Sulphurea hill, Komodo island.

Pink Beach

From the plane, I saw so many beautiful lagoons around Labuan Bajo. And one of the most beautiful beach I've been wanting to visit is in Komodo Island. It called: Pink Beach or Pantai Merah. I'm so ready to jump off the boat when I see the amazing layers of blue sea. And the extraordinary pink sand completes the perfect beach

I ask Yoris, Merry Makin' crew, what makes the sand red. He said it's the dead particles of red corals that create the red color.

My friends happily spend time snorkeling, watching the best & largest 'aquarium' they've ever seen in their whole life. Yoris said the biodiversity can be compared to Raja Ampat's. Wow!

Diko tried to drag me to snorkle several times. But too bad I didn' t bring extra clothes -_-; *lame-excuse-I-know*

Sunset

After a tired but fun journey, we're chilling outside the yacht.

Watching the magical sunset and the bats that coming out to 'work' from Kalong island…

Not far from us, there are 6 dolphins happily jump in and out the blue ocean…

…I really think, this is HEAVEN!

Vote Komodo National Park

So, I've heard from Mr. Nobel, Mrs. Esti, Ratna & Butet from Ministry of Culture & Tourism, the visitor to Komodo National Park has significantly increased since the start of New 7 Wonders voting. It helps build good reputation for Indonesia in global world, grow the local economy and motivate the local government to improve infrastructures to support tourism.

Now, Komodo National Park is one of the 28 finalists (out of 440 destinations) to compete for the final 7. If, after reading my story and seeing the pictures, you're agree that Komodo National Park got what it takes to be the New 7 Wonders, make sure to VOTE Komodo National Park as the New 7 Wonders of nature!

Check here to see how to vote

Click here to see more beautiful photos of Komodo National Park
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Bancakan dan Membuat Startup dalam 8 Jam

Dapat kesempatan yang sangat menyenangkan untuk hadir di acara Bancakan tgl 26 November 2010 kemarin. Bancakan adalah event startup di Yogyakarta. Kali ini diadakan di Universitas Atmajaya Yogyakarta.

Karena Geek on a Train (GOAT) sebelumnya sangat membekas di hati @SaGad maka kami bertiga (saya, @SaGaddan @tista) akhirnya berangkat naik kereta menuju Jogja. @SaGad & @tista chat the whole night, as geek as they can be, tentang server and everything in between. Saya tidur dengan nyaman karena memang topik-topik geeks membuat saya mengantuk :p

Di Jogja, kami menginap di sebuah paviliun di hotel Maharani daerah Jl. Parang Tritis, bersama tamu-tamu Bancakan lain yang legendaris seperti @valentmustamin @icreativelabs @agoes82 @fgaeg. Yak, saya officially menjadi perempuan di sarang geeks. Interesting geeks facts: tv di paviliun tidak pernah dinyalakan (nggak ada yang tertarik), everybody rebutan charger, kebutuhan online tingkat tinggi hingga segala cara ditempuh untuk mendapatkan koneksi, and some geeks just can't live without laptop & ipad 'I need to check my server…' -_-;

Bancakan 2.0

Bancakan dalam bahasa Jawa itu artinya perayaan. Dan dalam hal ini Bancakan 2.0 benar-benar jadi ajang untuk merayakan semangat entrepreneurship yang sedang ingin ditularkan, one event at a time.

Kesan pertama saat datang ke Bancakan, adalah audience-nya yang berbeda dari #StartupLokal di Jakarta. Audience di Bancakan a lot younger and have more passion in technical side. Acara kemarin juga diadakan dengan duduk lesehan. Di situ, saya duduk dan ngobrol panjang dengan the @antonnyliem from Semut Api Colony (yes, dia datang juga!). Nice to hear his insights mulai dari entrepreneurship (Ngobrol soal akuisisi dan lain-lain. Obrolan ini sangat bermanfaat sehingga saya mengundang Antonny untuk bicara & menjadi salah satu panelist di #StartupLokal January 2011. He said yes Stay tuned!), ngomongin buku (Diskusi tentang kenapa Paulo Coelho menulis The Zahir yang kelam), hingga hidup dan kehidupan (wise he is). I adore you, Antonny!! Mati lampu selama 45 menit di Bancakan sampai tidak terasa sama sekali

As I said, terjadi mati lampu sepanjang neighborhood and Bancakan juga ikut padam selama 45 menit. Tapi tidak ada yang beranjak dari ruangan dan panitia pun bertindak dengan sigap mencari solusi hingga akhirnya lampu nyala sendiri dan kita memulai acara seperti tidak ada yang terjadi

Pembicara Bancakan untuk tema WordpressPreneur ini killer semua. Mereka adalah the @valentmustamin from WordCampID updating the event, Anggi Krisna @icreativelabs from Tokooku share about theme business, the legendary @jauhari share his first experience with Wordpress, and @tista CIO Urbanesia.com introducing @LokalID platform single sign-on untuk #StartupLokal.

Congrats untuk initiators dan mereka yang terlibat di Bancakan 2.0 @fachrybafadal @lynxluna @tey_saja dan masih banyak lagi yang tidak bisa saya sebutkan satu demi satu. Acaranya sukses, rame, diikuti dengan antusias dan support untuk acara seperti dokumentasi benar-benar lengkap and professional *lirik @SaGad @nuniek @nataliardianto:p

Oh ya, di sini I have to say, many thanks untuk Mas @lantip yang udah nganter saya kesana kemari (termasuk ke Bancakan). Semoga next time bisa candle light meeting lagi

Geeks on Vacation

After the event, tentu saja kami para geeks (yeah, I'm one of geeks), memutuskan untuk exploring kota Jogja dengan jalan di sepanjang Malioboro (halah, Malioboro kok exploring LOL). Ditemani @fachrybafadaldan Didiet @lynxlunakami jajan di pinggir jalan, beli batik di Pasar Beringharjo (dimana @tista @icreativelabs dan @agoes82 yang awalnya menolak nemenin saya belanja malah belanja lebih banyak dari saya), mampir ke Mirota, ke Shopping tempat buku bekas, nonton performing art di pinggir jalan dan diakhiri dengan belanja oleh-oleh di tempat Bakpia Pathok 25 naik becak. Kami benar-benar turis sejati

Malamnya kami memutuskan untuk mencoba Sate Klathak, rekomendasi dari @antonnyliem. Perjalanan ke sana ternyata cukup jauh dan kami naik taksi yang argonya menguras harta kekayaan kami. Tapi it's all worthed it. Sate kambing-nya mantap banget dan membuat kami lepas kontrol serta  lupa diri hingga memesan hingga 14 porsi sate!

Dengan funny feeling plus keliyengan setelah makan sate kambing, kami pun mampir ke OneBit office markasnya Fachry & Didiet. Niat awalnya 'ngopi' tapi kurang sukses. Akhirnya malah mainan Itazura Kitten Coin Bank Check out the video we make using Nokia N8 #takberbayar

During our visit in Jogja, we had great laugh the whole time, thanks to unlimited unyu resources from Fachry like this image below LOL

…and of course, Didiet, with his own geeky way, never fail to entertain us with geeky words like 'Buffering' and 'Parsing' that he put in normal conversation

Thanks Jogja & Bancakan. We're totally coming back for the next Bancakan!

#GOATChallenge

Akhirnya setelah melepas kepergian @icreativelabs & @agoes82di Stasiun Tugu, it's me, @tista & @SaGadlagi in the end. Baru saja duduk di Taksaka yang akan membawa kami ke Jakarta, @tistalangsung bilang, "Man… perjalanan kita 8 jam… we have to do something… let's create a new startup in 8 hours!"

I looked @tista in the eyes and said, "Tista… get a life…!" Hahaha

Tapi Tista tidak gentar… dan of course, di-challenge seperti itu, passion saya di life experiment langsung menggelegak.

Create a startup in 8 hours? Sure. Let's do it.

Kami langsung brainstorm, startup apa yang mau kita bikin. Setelah berdiskusi, kita memutuskan untuk membuat sebuah startup yang sesuai dengan passion kita. 15 menit tek tok untuk konsep awal, Tista langsung memulai development. Saya & Sanny melipir untuk memperdalam konsep bisnis.

Kami memperdalam konsep bisnis dengan menggunakan Business Model Canvas dan Mind Map. Within 2 hours kami sudah selesai mengkonsep dan menemukan business model yang keren untuk startup kami. Totally awesome.

Karena mikir business plan cukup melelahkan, akhirnya saya memutuskan untuk tidur. Baru juga tidur bentar, sudah diobrak abrik sama @SaGad. "Li… bangun! Bikinin design, udah diminta Tista!" Setelah ngomong gitu dan menyerahkan laptop, dia sendiri langsung tidur dengan alasan pusing karena liat monitor dalam keadaan kereta yg bergoyang. Ini sewenang-wenang -_-;

Jadilah saya mulai men-design sesuai dengan konsep yang sudah kami bicarakan dan convert menjadi HTML + CSS dengan tool instan :P Sesekali saya berkonsultasi dengan Tista untuk materi design, dan confirming ide-ide yang tiba-tiba muncul saat men-design apakah do-able di sisi programming-nya. Dan Sanny masih terus tidur dan bangun hanya untuk live report progress kami di twitter -_-;

Setelah interface selesai, saya bisa duduk dengan tenang sambil menyemangati Tista yang koding seperti kesetanan

Sampai di stasiun Jatinegara, Tista berteriak, "Selesai!". Kami pun mengerubunginya. Versi Alpha dari startup kami benar-benar sudah selesai Sebenarnya sudah tergerak untuk register domain dan upload di tempat, tapi kami memutuskan kalau itu terlalu ambisius LOL.

Jadi kalau ada yang bertanya, apakah bisa membuat startup baru dalam 8 jam? Kami sudah membuktikan, dan jawabannya: BISA. Kuncinya adalah team work yang solid, right tools untuk mempercepat proses, konsistensi dan komitmen (no procrastination).

#GOATChallenge is sooooo FUN. Waktu 8 jam di kereta jadi nggak terbuang percuma. Sangat produktif.

Dan next time jika ada yang bilang kepada kami para #geeks to "Get a Life!" kami akan bisa menjawab: "Well, THIS is my life!"

Jadi tertarik nih bikin challenge kayak gini lagi. Tertarik ikutan?
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8 Years Blogging

8 years blogging. How could you explain such long commitment? Passion & purpose should be the answer.

I'm an introvert. I love speaking thru my writing. I also love life. I love people and their life. I love reality show. I love doing life experiment. I love biographies. I love life stories. It's all my passion. With blog, I can read other people stories. I can also write mine. Which double the fun. So, that's basically what make me start blogging.

But then, what keeps me blogging? It's the purpose. I want to inspire other people to take positive action after reading my blog. I want to empower more people doing what they love. I want the lesson in life that I get, can be learnt by other people, without they're having to learn the hard way.

It's very nice to hear other people's life is changing because of you. That you make a difference. Once post at a time.

So, it's been (almost) 8 years and counting. My blogging journey has taking me to places I've never imagine before. Brought me amazing  experiences and make me met interesting people along the way. I'm forever grateful.

And now, to celebrate my devotion to blog, I'm very glad to announce my latest book: Want a Better Life? Go For It! Published by Andromeda publishing. The book consist of selection of my blog post in Salsabeela.com about business, personal life, love, and everything in between. I also write some new articles that I'm sure will be worth reading ^-^ You can get the book from the nearest book store. We'll try to make it available on Kutukutubuku.com asap :p

Now, it's your turn.

What makes you start & keep blogging?
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Eat, Shop, Read & Startup @ Singapore

It's been a year since the last time I was in Singapore. That's why when Betty invited me to try Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel's menu from their new certified Halal kitchen, I immediately book my schedule. I contacted my friend @Alvin_Yap , asking if there's any Singapore startup event in November so I can join 'em during my stay. He said, there will be a Founder Institute event by @jpaine  on 8 & 9 November 2010, and I can sneaked in. So, off I go.

Eat.

After some concerns about Volcanic ash, I finally can landed safely at Changi airport. East Coast area still as comfortable as I remembered, so glad to be back to Singapore. After checking-in, I went straight to Feast@Eastrestaurant at the 3rd floor. And the beautiful Sales & Marketing Director of Grand Mercure Singapore, Jennifer Narcis, already there smiling at me. Now, I know instantly that we both starving

I really appreciate Grand Mercure effort to make more convenience eating environment for their Muslim customers with their certified HALAL kitchen. They have a full set of delicious dishes that can be ordered straight to their HALAL kitchen. After a while, my cousin Niken joining us for lunch. I had Grilled Grain Fed Lamb Rack Served with Roasted Garlic Mashed, Jennifer had Seafood Skewer, and Niken had Fish & Chips. All fantasticly delicious! To welcome us, Rossi, the restaurant supervisor, even adding the meal portion! -_-; Rossi… please deh ah… can't you see that we're all graceful ladies?? Hihihi. Thank you so much Rossi, you've been so kind ^-^

I asked Jennifer if I can see the kitchen, and she brought me there to take some pictures. So this is how HALAL kitchen looks like!

Thank you very much Grand Mercure Hotel for having me. Thanks Ibu Jenn, you're so funny, can't stop laughing Thanks David, I really enjoy our conversation during breakfast. Thanks Betty, hope to see you on my next visit. And last but not least, Kevin Bossino, Grand Mercure General Manager, thanks a lot for taking some of your busy time to say goodbye to me

Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel will always be my favorite place to stay in Singapore. It's affordable for all the amazing facilities & spacious room, located near my favorite East Coast beach, just across Parkway Parade where I can go to my fave bookstore Borders, and the certified Halal kitchen has completed the list. Kisses to all of you!

Shop.

I always wanted to visit Little India, and since they're celebrating Deepavali, I thought this is a perfect time to see the place. What I notice the first time was the cheerful decoration of Deepavali. And because I was walking around alone (Niken has been busy doing her final assignment), I must find someone to take picture of me. God, it was so difficult. Everybody's walking so fast minding their own business. The tourists got very  skeptical, I guess they're just being careful. And I ended up asking the police to take picture of me -_-; And she's ready to fine me because I was walking cross the street when the not-so-look-like-pedestrian-light still glowing red (I swear I didn't see it and it was a very small path in Little India). But of course I can get away, with my sweet smile and my Indonesian passport (I'm not local, mind you :p). "Next time can not lai this lah," she said. "Okay, Ma'am. I promise. And now, please tell me, what more can I do in Little India?" I asked her. She started giggling. The scary face melted away. "Nothing. Just walk around. Maybe shopping also can."

My face was glowing. Shop! So between the smell of sandalwood, the Indian songs from the accessories store, the yellow-red-ish flowers and vegetable sellers, I finally found a market for Sari (Indian traditional dress). They're all looked so colorful and beautiful. I didn't buy the dress, I'll be back for them one day, but I bought several pairs of chic edgy pants. Love 'em!

While walking back to hotel, my memory strongly went to my Amitabh-Bachchan-fan bestfriend, Eel. If she were with me, we'd be dancing thru the Indian songs like mad

Read.

I've been preparing a new startup company about writing and my business partner asking me to research more about writing at bookstores or library. This is probably one of the best tasks I've ever received in my whole life. Love it so much

I spent couple of hours at Borders, sitting religiously in front of the writing section, taking notes, and felt stupid when paying bunch of books (I bought 6 books) when I carry my new iPad in the same time (why I didn't get ebooks instead -_-;). Speaking about the new iPad, yeah, I bought it in Singapore (heard it's cheaper, and it is cheaper indeed). Bought iPad WiFi + 3G 16GB for 928 SGD.

Anyway… to complete the resources I needed, Niken took me to Singapore National Library @ 8th floor. The library is awesome. Looked a lot like Senayan City Mall :p The books collection is SUPER. I can live there. Build a tent or something. The library is not playing games. They took books seriously. I have a dream that someday Jakarta (or maybe Depok) can be a travel destination for book lovers & writers. Amin, amin.

At this point I have to thank Niken SO MUCH for being there for me and my crazy requests such as Starhub's MaxMobile prepaid card in the middle of the night :P Good luck with your final assignment ya… *hug*

Startup.

I've been actively taking parts in Indonesian startup events in the past few months. Me & friends (@NataliArdianto, @Nuniek, @SaGad) are initiating #StartupLokal monthly event that has been running for almost 8 months now. I also have been taking role as a judge for Sparxup Awards 2010 with a lot of great people in the industry. That's why I've been curious with how everything's going with  Singapore startups.

I'm so lucky I could sit in Founder Institute class to absorbs precious knowledge about startups and gain insights from fellow founders. For you who've just heard about Founder Institute, Silicon Valley-based Founder Institute is a four-month training and mentoring programme for technology entrepreneurs. You can also read about it in Mobile Monday.

The event was held at Microsoft Singapore. I spent time brainstorming with Eugene, from Microsoft SG, about things he wanted to do with Indonesian startups & Phillipines startups (he's originally from there). Hope could execute something out of our conversation.

When I enter the classroom, there are around 20 creative people inside,  all look tense. I found out from Jeffrey Paine, from Founder Institute, that day they have to pitch their ideas and someone could be cut off from the class. Ow… that explained.

So while I sat there silently, a young man walked in with his wide smile. "Hey… are you new?" He immediately recognized my presence. His name is Bastian Döhling @uum from interesting.org. Other students gazing over their shoulders and start introducing themselves to me. I make some new friends ^-^

I was so curious about the closed-pitching-process, Jeff finally let me in to the board room with the mentors, as an observer. But only for 1 group, he said. Bastian said I should watch their group. So, I was coming inside with his group, the first group. There are 4 of them (Bastian, Matthew, Daniel & Adrian) and they're pitching their ideas one by one. They all got interesting ideas. And I'm inviting Adrian Tan, to come to the next #StartupLokal event, December 2nd, at Microsoft Jakarta. He said yes You guys could meet and exchanging insights with him later.

On the second day of the class, there are 3 mentors speaking, they are Chak Kong Soon (Managing Partner venture catalyst Stream Global), Margaret Manning @margaretmanning (CEO Reading Room) & Roger Yee @rogery33 (serial entrepreneur). They're all speaking about Revenues, Costs and Profits. Very interesting and inspiring. One of the things I noted from Roger was there are only 2 simple business models: help a customer save money or help a customer make money. *put-thinking-cap*

At dinner break, Bastian give me this book titled, "The Developing World" – how an explosion of creativity from developing countries changing the world and why the developed world has to start paying attention. I haven't got chance to read the book yet, but from the video at The Developing World website, I know exactly that Indonesian startup is in the right place at the right exciting moment right now. It's time for us to shine!

When Bastian walked me to the taxi stand, he promised to visit Jakarta soon. Well, you really should, Bastian! We're the developing world… you and Fredrik should put us in your next book

I had an enlightening moment in Singapore. Thanks a lot Jeffrey Paine & Alvin Yap for letting me in :p *group-hug*

One of the FI students asked me, "After you see us, how would you compare this to what's happened in Jakarta?" And I said, "The excitement, ideas, and all that are pretty much the same. It's just we're pretty much walking on our own feet. Our government and local investors are not paying attention yet to Indonesian startups." But, it's all process.

All I can say now is… we're one step closer to get there. Stay creative, stay powerful, keep going! Let's startup!
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Petualangan menulis saya sebenarnya dimulai dari saat saya sekolah di bangku SMP. Saya mulai menggambar komik, dan menulis ceritanya. Waktu itu, masih benar-benar meniru komik terkenal Happy Mari Chan dengan rambut kriwil-nya yang menggemaskan Saat SMA, saya mulai lebih sering menulis. Ini karena saya mulai mengenal cinta. Tentu, bagi kebanyakan orang, cinta adalah salah satu penggerak utama untuk menulis. Baik saat jatuh cinta, maupun patah hati. Semua ampuh digunakan sebagai sarana untuk mengekspresikan diri.

Setelah saya dapat kesempatan untuk menerbitkan buku pertama, saya semakin ketagihan untuk menulis. Baik menulis buku baru maupun menulis blog. Saya merasakan kebahagiaan saat saya dapat mengamati lingkungan dan mengambil hikmah positif dari suatu kejadian untuk dibagikan kepada pembaca dalam bentuk tulisan.

Saya yakin, sangat banyak orang yang juga senang menulis untuk sharing pengetahuan, pikiran dan pengalaman mereka, namun karena keterbatasan, akhirnya tulisan tersebut tidak pernah bisa dibaca orang lain. Hanya tersimpan rapi di folder komputer masing-masing. Dan karena hasil tulisan yang sudah capek diselesaikan tersebut, tidak dapat diapresiasi oleh orang lain, akhirnya penulis akan merasa malas untuk berkarya. Buat apa menulis lagi, jika toh hanya akan kembali tersimpan di folder komputer, tidak bisa diterbitkan (karena berbagai hal, biasanya karena perbedaan idealisme dengan penerbit dan kesulitan untuk menerbitkan sendiri).

Melihat kenyataan itu, saya bersama Angeline Anthony, Brilliant Yotenega dan Oka Pratama membuat kampanye untuk mengumpulkan 99 buku dari 99 penulis dalam 9 hari untuk diterbitkan oleh Nulisbuku.com, online self publishing – print on demand pertama di Indonesia, secara serentak di Indonesia Book Fair 2010, Istora Senayan Jakarta. Kampanye ini kami namakan #99writers campaign yang kami jalankan melalui twitter.

Respond-nya luar biasa! Lebih dari 100 naskah masuk ke NulisBuku.com untuk #99writers! Kampanye ini telah merubah hidup banyak orang, karena ini bukan cuma masalah menerbitkan buku, ada komitmen yang terpenuhi, kebanggaan luar biasa, hasil ekspresi diri yang benar-benar bisa diapresiasi oleh orang lain, membuka pintu untuk kesempatan yang lebih luas lagi dan tentu saja kemungkinan mendapatkan uang tambahan dari royalti penjualan buku. Di malam launching #99writers itu, spirit-nya luar biasa! Mereka semakin terpacu untuk berkarya lebih banyak lagi, karena sudah ada saluran bagi mereka untuk mengekspresikan diri.

Saya selalu bilang bahwa menulis itu bukan bakat. Menulis bisa dilakukan oleh semua orang tanpa kecuali. Jika bisa berbicara, maka pasti bisa menulis. Tips dari saya untuk mengekspresikan diri lewat tulisan:

Know your passion and dreams. Saya selalu bersemangat saat menuliskan tentang sesuatu yang saya suka dan menuliskan tentang mimpi saya. Buku saya yang kedua, Je M'appelle Lintang, berisi luapan mimpi-mimpi saya untuk sekolah fashion design di Paris, dan buku itu adalah salah satu buku paling favorite bagi saya dan banyak pembaca.
Gali pengalaman di masa lalu. Bicaralah dengan keluarga atau teman lama, minta mereka menceritakan hal-hal mengenai Anda di masa lalu yang mungkin Anda sendiri sudah lupa. Pengalaman dan cerita menarik itu akan bisa menjadi bahan tulisan yang menarik.
Amati lingkungan sekitar dari sudut pandang yang berbeda. Belajar untuk lebih peka dan melihat cerita di balik setiap hal yang kita temui. Sesederhana memperhatikan kasir di supermarket. Apakah wajahnya terlihat lelah dan cemberut? Apa yang terjadi di rumahnya tadi malam? Apakah ia bertengkar dengan suaminya? Mungkinkah masalah ekonomi? Kira-kira apa solusinya? Dari sini Anda sudah bisa membuat tulisan yang menarik.
Banyak Membaca. Setiap orang memiliki ide atau gagasan sendiri, dan semakin banyak membaca ide dan pemikiran orang lain lewat buku, semakin kaya pula tulisan yang bisa kita hasilkan.
Last but not least, inti dari tips menulis itu akhirnya cuma satu: Anda harus mulai menulis. Sekarang juga. Saya selalu membawa laptop ke tempat favorite saya untuk menulis, yaitu di cafe yang tenang dengan sayup-sayup lantunan musik jazz. Tapi bukan berarti, di sela kemacetan lalu lintas Jakarta, saya tidak bisa menulis. Sudah ada smartphone yang memungkinkan kita menuliskan ide-ide di kepala, atau bahkan menuliskan satu artikel penuh, tanpa hambatan.

Jadi, sudah siap jadi penulis?

Tulisan ini juga tampil di AcerID.com
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Powerful Nokia N8

I've been always interested in making a short movie, dan saya sempat sangat naksir dengan kualitas video High Definition (HD)-nya sebuah kamera DSLR yang harganya selangit.

Ternyata, sekarang ada Nokia N8 yang juga menawarkan format MP4 berkualitas HD. Nokia sampai membuat kompetisi membuat skrip film pendek, Project Gener8, dimana pemenang bisa menjadi asisten Sutradara Joko Anwar dan kesempatan untuk berkunjung ke Universal Studio, Hollywood. Menarik banget Sayang waktu pendaftaran sudah berakhir tgl 17 Oktober kemarin *telat* -_-;

Dari dulu Nokia terkenal sama kamera-nya yang oke, dan di Nokia N8, ternyata kameranya tambah keren soalnya pake lensa Carl Zeiss, flash xenon dan resolusi 12 Megapiksel *pingsan* Ini mah udah bener-bener nggak perlu bawa apa-apa lagi kalo traveling cukup tenteng 1 gadget

Hasil foto-foto dengan Nokia N8 kayak gini

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Dikabarkan Nokia N8 bakal keluar awal November 2010 dengan harga Rp 4.950.000

Tambah satu lagi deh gadget yang harus dibeli haha *tertawa-gugup*
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