From Jakarta I headed to Bandung by rail.
Intercity travel in the massive Java island is made easy with the excellent rail network. The trains are modern but the prices are so much lower than the UK.
The 3 hour journey in Executive Class was just 135,000 rupiah ($8.84 USD). For that, you get nice cushioned leather seats that recline. There's plenty of leg space so even if you fully recline your seat you're not inconveniencing the person behind you.
Bandung is the capital city of the West Java province and the fourth largest city in Indonesia. My first impression of the city was that it was less chaotic than Jakarta. It was also apparent that the air was cooler and fresher.
My hotel, Hilton Bandung, was located near the train station. I specifically booked this hotel because if its location. It would be so easy to take the train to Bandung and just walk to the hotel. It wasn't as easy as I imagined though. As the pavement is all messed up, dragging a suitcase was a real pain.
When checking in to the Hilton I was told that I'd been upgraded. That never really means anything, because a lot of the time the upgrade is just the same room that you booked, but on a higher floor. Here, it meant that I got a corner room, which is actually pretty decent because you get a view from two sides, and only share a wall with one other room. The potential to be disturbed by loud neighbours is halved.
The room was very spacious and well furnished, with a proper working desk and chair. That's what I like about staying in a big chain hotel like a Hilton or Marriott, you rarely get a bad desk setup. A lot of the independent hotels, while they can be more unique and interesting than the brand name hotels, they somehow get the desk situation all wrong, with uncomfortable wooden chairs and desks that you can't fit your legs under.
I was settling in to my room when I found a surprise that the hotel staff had left for me. A full afternoon tea set, with sandwiches and cakes. Superb! A nice little treat to whet the appetite before going on an evening street food hunt, which you will see in the next vlog.
0:00 Gambir Train Station Jakarta
7:55 Executive Class Train Ride
15:32 Bandung Train Station
19:53 Hilton Bandung
29:50 Hilton Afternoon Tea
43:11 Hilton Swimming Pool
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