travel

Virus yang Mengikatkan Takdir Kita Semua

Beberapa tahun sebelum Covid-19 menjadi momok yang merajalela di seluruh penjuru dunia seperti sekarang ini, saya sudah pernah mengalami getirnya hidup bersama virus corona. Di musim semi tahun 2003 itu, kota Beijing yang saya tinggali menjadi episentrum wabah penyakit SARS. Ada virus misterius berbentuk seperti mahkota yang konon menyebar di udara, menyebabkan radang paru-paru aneh yang sangat menular dan sangat mematikan. Menghadapi situasi yang tidak biasa ini, pemerintah Beijing menerapkan kebijakan “isolasi kota”. Perpindahan antar-kota dan antar-provinsi dihentikan total, dan para pendatang dari kota lain harus terlebih dahulu dikarantina selama dua minggu. Penduduk juga dilarang meninggalkan kompleks perumahan masing-masing. Sekolah dan universitas ditutup, transportasi publik ditiadakan, kantor dan toko berhenti beroperasi, kendaraan tidak boleh berlalu-lalang di jalanan. Beijing mendadak menjadi kota mati. Hidup dalam karantina selama berminggu-minggu tentu sangat menyiksa, sangat sulit untuk tetap menjaga kewarasan di tengah belenggu yang memenjara kebebasan kita. Namun isolasi yang sangat ketat yang diterapkan oleh pemerintah Cina itu—metode yang kini populer dengan istilah lockdown—terbukti paling efektif untuk menghentikan wabah penyakit baru yang sangat mengerikan itu. Pada musim panas 2003, hanya beberapa bulan sejak merebaknya wabah, pemerintah Cina sudah bisa mengumumkan kemenangan umat manusia atas virus yang menewaskan tujuh ratusan [...]

April 11, 2020 // 13 Comments

[Destinasian] Lima Travel Writer Bicara tentang Dunia Tanpa Travel

Juga tentang pariwisata pasca-pandemi dan destinasi yang ingin didatangi. Searah jarum jam, dari kiri atas: Kenny Santana, Trinity, Fatris MF, Agustinus Wibowo, Ayos Purwoaji 10 April, 2020 Wawancara oleh Cristian Rahadiansyah Destinasian.co.id AGUSTINUS WIBOWO Mantan jurnalis di Afghanistan ini sudah menulis tiga buku: Selimut Debu: Impian dan Kebanggaan dari Negeri Perang Afghanistan (2010), Garis Batas: Perjalanan di Negeri-Negeri Asia Tengah (2011), dan Titik Nol: Sebuah Makna Perjalanan (2013). Dia kini menggarap buku tentang nasionalisme Nusantara. agustinuswibowo.com Selain sulit bepergian, dampak terbesar pandemi?Kesulitan berkomunikasi dengan orang, dan hidup menjadi penuh kecurigaan. Saya pernah menghadapi epidemi SARS di Beijing pada 2003, dan harus hidup dalam karantina kota selama berbulan-bulan. Pandemi Covid-19 seperti membangkitkan memori itu: hidup dibayangi kecemasan. Kita dicurigai sebagai pembawa virus, sekaligus waspada terhadap orang yang kita jumpai. Dampak psikologis ini cukup besar dalam memengaruhi pola interaksi. Aktivitas favorit selama isolasi?Membaca buku, menulis, meditasi, menikmati koleksi prangko, berkontak kembali secara virtual dengan kawan-kawan lama di berbagai penjuru dunia. Jika ada, sisi positif dari bencana virus?Punya lebih banyak waktu untuk mengenali diri sendiri, mendekatkan diri dengan orang-orang terdekat di rumah, serta merenungkan makna hidup. Pandemi ini juga membuat orang jadi lebih sadar akan pentingnya menjaga [...]

April 11, 2020 // 13 Comments

Indonesia is the Country Focus of Singapore Writers Festival 2015

https://www.singaporewritersfestival.com/nacswf/nacswf/Country-Focus.html Country Focus 17,000 Islands Dreaming A literary focus on Indonesia Curated by The Arts House, with the programming support of Goenawan Mohamad The Indonesian archipelago spans the Equator and South-east Asian region, an eighth of the world’s circumference. A nation of 17,000-odd islands that began its journey as a modern state 70 years ago, Indonesia carries millennia of historical weight, contradictions and resolution. What are Indonesia’s aspirations for the world? How do 252 million Indonesians think and dream? Can we see continuities from ancient Srivijaya and Majapahit at work in the up-to-the-minute literature of contemporary Indonesia? If Singapore knew Indonesian literature better, would it change the way we see ourselves and our region? We turn our focus to Indonesia this year by exploring her long traditions of the word in the same ways Indonesians celebrate it – recited to the background of theatre and movements, sung against rich tonal texture and spoken in different tongues. Dreams are, after all, facets of reality. Lecture WHEN MEANING IS MANAGED: THE FATE OF LITERATURE FEATURING Goenawan Mohamad MODERATED BY Peter Schoppert DATE 31 October TIME 4pm – 5pm VENUE TAH, Chamber An Indonesian poet and man of [...]

October 11, 2015 // 0 Comments

[Outdoor Exploration户外探险]：旅行就是回家

Interview with a Chinese Magazine, “Outdoor Exploration” (户外探险） on traveling and travel philosophy. 旅行就是回家 Agustinus Wibowo 印尼华人，旅行作家，2002年开始背包旅行，曾三次进入阿富汗，在那里生活了将近三年，并曾深入阿富汗最人迹罕至的瓦罕走廊地带，寻找电视新闻以外的阿富汗；也曾游历中亚五国所有的边境地区。每次的旅行，他都选择最艰苦的方式，搭车、住最廉价的旅馆。在旅行中，他全部的兴趣都在人的身上，已经出版两本旅行文学畅销书《A Blanket of Dust: Dreams and Pride from the War-torn Afghanistan》《Borderlands: A Journey to Central Asia》《Ground Zero: When the Journey Takes You Home》，最近还将余华的小说《活着》首次翻译成印尼文版本。只有在旅行中才没有身份 [...]

July 27, 2015 // 0 Comments

行李︱Agustinus：在阿富汗的3年里……

2015-05-15 行李他是堪比奈保尔的著名作家，曾以最艰苦的方式在阿富汗生活3年，深入人迹罕至的瓦罕走廊，并游历中亚5国所有边界地区，现正采访印尼数百个岛屿的神秘故事。（Augustin Wibowo在帕米尔高原）行李&Augustin Wibowo 行李：你最近刚参加完伦敦书展? Augustin ：是，印尼是今年法兰克福书展的主题国，所以印尼出版界推荐了很多本国作家到世界各地参加书展。伦敦书展是世界第二大书展，我是作为印尼游记文学的作家代表去伦敦演讲，介绍印尼游记文学的情况。行李：在国外，游记文学已经单独作为一个门类了吗？ Augustin ：在英国是这样。英国在游记文学方面是全世界最发达的，已经有几百年历史，英国人很早就开始到世界各地游历，游记文学在英国已经变成一个门类，这个是他们文化的一部分。在美国，travelwriting这个词并不流行，但你在英国的书店里，所有在travel门类下的书基本都是旅行文学类的，甚至历史、地理、传记类的书籍都包含在里面。但在其他国家，travelwriting一般只有导游书。行李：中国现在也出现了大量游记文学，但感觉真正好的作品并不多，你在读游记文学方面有什么经验？ Augustin [...]

May 17, 2015 // 1 Comment

#1Pic1Day: Beratnya Perjalanan | Arduous Journey (Mongolia, 2009)

Arduous Journey (Mongolia, 2009) Journeys in Mongolia are more than often arduous, requiring perfect physical condition. Most of the roads are unpaved, just a small track in the wilderness. You also have to consider the distance between destinations which are usually extremely far away, plus unforgiving weather and nature, plus hungry wolves and foxes from the forested hills. Bon voyage! Beratnya Perjalanan (Mongolia, 2009) Perjalanan di Mongolia selalu berat dan membutuhkan fisik yang prima. Hampir tidak ada jalan beraspal, mayoritas berupa jalan track seperti ini. Ditambah lagi jarak yang sangat berjauhan, cuaca yang tidak bersahabat, dan hewan liar seperti serigala yang mengincar di hutan-hutan. Selamat jalan! [...]

February 4, 2014 // 2 Comments

Jakarta Globe (2013): Learning By Traveling

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/blogs/agustinus-wibowo-learning-by-traveling/ Agustinus Wibowo: Learning By Traveling By Annisa Dewi Yustita on 1:36 pm November 28, 2013. Category Blogs, Cultural Musings Tags: Indonesia author, travel Villagers traveling on the truck in Afghanistan western provinces. The central route of Afghanistan connecting Herat to Kabul is unpaved for about 900 km. (Agency Photo) Traveling is more than just spending time in a particular place. On a deeper level it enables us to learn many things from our destination, such as the language, culture and its people. Agustinus Wibowo is an Indonesian travel writer whose travel experiences have taken him through Asia and the Middle East. He said that he was fascinated by the world’s cultures and traditions and was curious about how the world works despite its historical and cultural divisions. Agustinus started his journey going around Asia with just US$2,000 from his savings during his study at Tshinghua University in Beijing, China. When he ran out of money, he stayed for a while with local people and worked with them to collect money and continued his journey again. “I loved traveling from when I was a student in China. I used to be a homeboy and scared of going around [...]

November 28, 2013 // 1 Comment

National Geographic (2013): Literary Magic in Bali

http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2013/11/12/literary-magic-in-bali/ Literary Magic in Bali Posted by Don George of National Geographic Traveler in Travel with Heart on November 12, 2013 Last month I had the opportunity to participate for the second year in a row in the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival on the Indonesian island of Bali. At the six-day festival, I taught two travel writing workshops, spoke on a panel about the evolution of the genre, and hosted a luncheon conversation with the co-founders of Lonely Planet, Maureen and Tony Wheeler. Celebrating its tenth anniversary, this year’s fest was the biggest gathering yet, with more than 200 authors, musicians, and performers from more than 20 countries participating, and many hundreds of literature-lovers from around the Pacific Rim, Southeast Asia, and beyond attending. As with last year, I was exhilarated to encounter in panels and dinners and performances acclaimed and groundbreaking journalists, novelists, poets, and nonfiction writers from Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Egypt, Syria, Germany, France, Ireland, and England, as well as bright-eyed, book-hugging readers inspired by what these writers create. One of the festival’s highlights was the aforementioned travel writing panel, facilitated by Lisa Dempster, director of the Melbourne Writers Festival. [...]

November 12, 2013 // 0 Comments

DetikTravel (2013): Tentang Etika Fotografi Perjalanan

Penting! Ini Etika Berfoto Saat Traveling • Oleh: Afif Farhan – detikTravel • Rabu, 19/06/2013 16:29 WIB Jakarta – Kurang lengkap rasanya, jika Anda tidak foto-foto atau narsis saat traveling ke suatu destinasi. Meski begitu, ada beberapa etika yang harus Anda tahu sebelum menjepretkan kamera. Jangan sampai kasus Borobudur terulang! Berfoto sudah menjadi kegiatan wajib para wisatawan. Objek-objek wisata seperti pantai, gunung, atau atraksi wisata berupa tari-tarian, dapat Anda abadikan sebagai kenang-kenangan di dalam kamera. Tapi ingat, ada etika-etika berfoto saat tarveling yang harus Anda perhatikan. Penulis buku Garis Batas yang sudah berkeliling Asia Tengah, Agustinus Wibowo berbincang dengan detikTravel mengenai etika berfoto saat traveling. Dia pun memberikan banyak petuah dan pengalaman-pengalaman uniknya saat berfoto-foto di suatu destinasi: 1. Cari tahu soal aturan berfoto “Pertama, cari dulu tanda larangan memotret. Kalau tidak ada tandanya, berarti Anda bebas foto-foto di situ,” tutur pria yang biasa disapa Agus ini, Rabu (19/6/2013). Agus menambahkan, hal tersebut baiknya dilakukan di tempat-tempat wisata berupa candi, masjid, atau bangunan bersejarah. Sebabnya, bisa-bisa kena denda atau malah ditangkap. “Pernah saya di Turkmenistan ditangkap karena dianggap mata-mata. Sebab, saya memotret patung-patung emas yang ada di sana. Sampai mau keluar negaranya, kamera saya diperiksa lagi apakah ada foto tersebut [...]

June 19, 2013 // 0 Comments

ChinaNews 中国新闻网 (2013): 印尼华裔青年作家出版新著讲述游历多国经历

4月20日晚，印尼华裔青年作家翁鸿鸣(Agustinus Wibowo)在泗水敦绒望商厦Gramedia书店举行《零点》(Titik Nol)新书发布会。来自泗水市和外埠的读者，及泗水华社代表郑菊花、何婉芸、吴萌暄和陈新来出席了活动。

发布会上，翁鸿鸣介绍《零点》是他的新作。之前，他已经出版两本书《灰尘毯子》(Selimut Debu)和《界线》(Garis Batas)。《零点》讲述当年他当背包族(Backpacker)游览中国西藏、尼泊尔、印度和阿富汗的经历。

April 25, 2013 // 0 Comments

Surabaya Highlight (2013): How Much Are You Willing to Let Go?

19 April 2013 Surabaya Highlight http://surabayahighlight.com/highlights-of-the-week/newcomers-in-town/third-cultured/how-much-are-you-willing-to-let-go How Much Are You Willing to Let Go? Surabaya – “There’s no end to traveling, it is all about how well we understand places that we have visited,” an afternoon talk during lunch with Agustinus Wibowo is such an eye opener for lucky Surabaya Highlight. Agustinus Wibowo is a travel writer and freelance journalist that was born and raised in Lumajang, East Java. In his short visit to Surabaya, he agreed to meet us and share his inspiring life to Surabaya Highlight’s readers. Coming from a small town of Lumajang, Agus had a dream to someday see the world outside his hometown. “Children would run around screaming to a plane passing by. I always watch Dunia Dalam Berita, because that was the only chance I had to see the world since there was no internet or other programs,” his vivid explanation made us picturing how it was back then when Agus was a child. Such limitation did not conquer his passion on the outside world because at his fifth grade of elementary school, he started exchanging letters to pen pal around the world. Amazingly, in his early age he made friends with 70 [...]

April 19, 2013 // 0 Comments

Latitude.nu (2011): ‘Traveling is about Losing your Ego’

December 29, 2011 http://latitudes.nu/indonesian-travel-writer-photographer-agustinus-wibowo/ Indonesian Travel Writer & Photographer Agustinus Wibowo: ‘Traveling is about Losing your Ego’ By: Yvette Benningshof Passing borderlines is almost a daily routine for Agustinus Wibowo. The travel writer and photographer from Indonesia picked up his backpack at the age of 19 and started to travel throughout Central Asia. He has lived in Afghanistan for three years as a photojournalist and has written two bestsellers books about his borderless travels. Wibowo’s current latitude: Beijing, China. Agustinus Wibowo (30) left his village Lumajang in East-Java, Indonesia in 2000 to study Computer Science in Beijing. From there he started his travels to Mongolia where he got robbed on the first day. That didn’t hold him back to travel to even more ‘dangerous’ countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan in 2003. As a true budget backpacker he took off with only 300 US dollars. ‘I traveled by the cheapest train in China, 70 hours on a hard seat. Then by public transport and hitchhiking trucks in Pakistan. Crossing the border with Afghanistan I used horses and donkeys or just walked my way. I also stayed with local people, that’s why it’s so important to learn the local languages. The [...]

December 29, 2011 // 0 Comments

Traveler【旅行家】(2011):伊朗旅游的“后ADS时代”: 既小众，又高端

伊朗，一个国际政治里的高频词汇，一个美国眼中的高危国家，还是一个全球游客心目中的神秘国度。作为旅游目的地，伊朗还属于中东地区的新军：2010年全年，伊朗的外国游客入境人数为312.5万人次，而从伊朗驻中国大使馆办理赴伊签证的人数仅约1.8万人次；它的邻国土耳其在2003年就曾有过单月入境超过200万人次的记录，2010年更是吸引外国游客2860万人次。

October 23, 2011 // 0 Comments

[VIDEO] TVOne (2011): Selimut Debu dan Garis Batas

Talkshow buku Selimut Debu dan Garis Batas, Agustinus Wibowo, Apa Kabar Indonesia, TVOne, Jakarta, 22 Mei [...]

May 22, 2011 // 0 Comments

The Jakarta Globe (2011): An Indonesian’s Lust for Asian Travel

An Indonesian’s Lust for Asian Travel Lisa Siregar | May 26, 2011 http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/lifeandtimes/an-indonesians-lust-for-asian-travel/443364 For Agustinus Wibowo, a travel writer who has explored and lived in some of the most dangerous parts of Central Asia, traveling is all about gaining fresh perspectives — even if it means going unshowered for months or getting kicked out of an Afghan man’s house for refusing the generous offer of a male prostitute. “It’s not about the number of stamps in your passport. It’s the traveler’s point of view that matters,” he said last week during the launch of his new travel book, “Garis Batas” (“Borderlines”). He showed up to the launch proudly wearing a white flowing tunic known as a shalwar kameez from Afghanistan, where he had lived for several years. Agustinus, now a translator based in Beijing, is famed for his travel columns published in Kompas newspaper as well as his first book, “Selimut Debu” (“Blanket of Dust”), published in January last year. Most people like holidays in luxurious, or at the very least comfortable, spots. Agustinus is a bit more adventurous. His new book, for example, details his sometimes nightmarish experiences in Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Once, his things were [...]

March 26, 2011 // 0 Comments

Bam – The Flattened Civilization

From what is left, you still can be amazed by the grandeur of an advanced ancient civilization 27 December 2003, the small town of Bam – located in southeastern Iran, about 300 kilometers from Kerman – was shocked by 6.8 Richter-scale earthquake. More than 40,000 were killed. Asides of the human casualty, Iran has another thing to grieve, as one of its civilization jewels was nothing but flattened. The ancient mud city of Bam used to be one of the strongest tourism magnets in Iran. People claimed it has 3,000 years of history, at least from the Sassanian period. Thousands of interesting old mud houses, sprawl under a giant mud citadel, giving exotic fairytale impression. I adore the old pictures of Bam, which are still hanged everywhere to remind how majestic the place used to be. But, the view of Arg-e-Bam (the ancient citadel surrounded by the mud city) today makes me weeping. The place is in severe desolation. The citadel which was appraised by Marco Polo and other ancient travelers now turned to be rubble. The old town become sad crumbling remains and debris. Workers are everywhere, hoping to restore the old town to its ancient glory, but not [...]

June 14, 2008 // 0 Comments

Weekender (2007): The Traveler’s Tale

August 2007 Jakarta Post Weekender The Traveler’s Tale What does travel really mean to us – is it about the adventure and discovery, or just being able to say that we have been there and done that? Yunetta Anggiamurni gives her perspective. “And at night I like to love to listen to the stars. It is like 500 hundred million little bells.” This was how Antoine de Saint-Exupéry expressed his adoration of a beautiful starlit night in his masterpiece, Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince). Although it was supposed to be a book for children, the work has become one that adults should read because the writer’s message is clear: Are you an open-minded person? Above all, de Saint-Exupéry tried to encourage readers to do one important thing: travel. Indeed, we view traveling as the quest for freedom, of choosing the place we want to go, of having the luxury of not worrying about daily work obligations, of satisfying our thirst for new experiences, in visiting places and meeting new people. But for most of us, traveling also requires time, money and delicate negotiations with friends, family, children, boyfriends, girlfriends and so forth. In short, no room for individual needs. [...]

August 23, 2007 // 0 Comments

Elite Traveler (携程自由行): 他的 Avgustin.Net

Avgustin.Net收藏了翁鸿鸣大量关于亚洲大陆旅行的照片和文字记载。这些照片的视角不同于普通风景图片，他们全部出自于一个摄影记者的眼睛。翁鸿鸣说，是旅行，教会了他如何尊重不同文化，不同的人，也教会他这个世界并不像我们梦想中那样美好，还有太多的事物等待我们去探索和注视。在我们的世界中，美丽与丑陋，快乐与悲伤，多彩语贫乏，它们始终并存。

August 19, 2007 // 0 Comments

Chisht-o-Sharif – The Journey through the Central Route

With s0 many locals with Mongoloid face, no wonder they also think I am part of them “Where in Afghanistan Indonesia is?” – a passenger from Obey My today had nothing to do with the remembrance of the September 11 accident. So was the life in this part of Afghanistan. Everything was just the same as it was in any other days. I started my journey to Kabul through the Central Route of Afghanistan, passing through the mountainous areas from Herat, Ghor, and Bamiyan provinces. I had heard that the bus to Obey, the first stop of the Central Route, departed from Darb-e-Khosh near the Friday Mosque. When I was there, there was no car at all. There was another old villager with big sack like that of Santa Claus, as confused as I was. After asking around, we found that we were waiting at the wrong place. The old man told me that we should take a rickshaw to the bus terminal. There was a mini bus going to Obey, 2 and half hours away from Herat. The ticket was 90 Af. The old man was still thinking I was a Hazara from Ghor province, as I told him [...]

September 11, 2006 // 0 Comments

Kabul – Travelling Again

Let’s hit the road again with our favorite Falang Coach After being halted in Kabul for quite a while waiting for my beloved Pakistani friend, at last I had the chance to meet him, after his prolonged stay as a BBC camera man in the conflicted Helmand province. And now I am ready to travel again. Starting from tomorrow, Inshallah, I will venture through the northern Afghanistan to the upnorth province of Badakshan, returned back to the northwest provinces of Kunduz, Balkh, and all the way to Herat. And I also wish to take a peek to Iran, and then back to Afghanistan and take the Central Route to Kabul. During the journey Internet might be difficult and very expensive, so the updating of this Blog might be delayed. But I will keep all of the notes manually and then update it online when I have access to computer and Internet. Thank you very much for your support [...]

July 21, 2006 // 8 Comments

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