After leaving my friend’s house, we headed to Wlingi Dam—a place I had once explored during a field study with my classmates. This time, though, we lingered at the casual hangout spot. Back then, it was all about the office and the hydroelectric station.
When we arrived, we found a small café and several cozy hangout spots along the edge of the dam. The view was stunning—lush nature all around, with a soft breeze that felt almost coastal. Many of the spots were already taken, but luckily, we found a shaded corner under a tree, safe from the afternoon sun.
To secure a spot, we had to order food and drinks from the café. In return, they gave us a mat and a small table to place our meals. Once we finished setting up, we unpacked our provisions. Our host brought out some of the food she sells—pizza, cheesecake, brownies, and donuts. I only brought six homemade donuts, haha. After arranging everything on the table, we started taking photos of the food. We tried to make them look as aesthetic as possible, but it turned out to be harder than we thought.
We began by reviewing the food my friend had prepared—and it was truly delicious. But we quickly noticed a price gap between Malang and Wlingi. In Wlingi, the prices she set were considered quite high, while in Malang, they would be seen as affordable. For example, a medium-sized pizza from her menu was priced at 50,000 rupiah, whereas in Malang, the minimum would be around 80,000 rupiah.
The cheesecake was the one I had been looking forward to the most—I absolutely love cheesecake. Unfortunately, it had melted quite a bit after sitting in the car for too long, and we didn’t have any container to keep it cool. So, we ended up eating a very soft, almost liquid version of it. It was a cheesecake-brownie hybrid, a blend of salty cream cheese and sweet, dense brownie—soft and flavorful. The only downside was the texture, which had become so runny it felt more like eating cream than cake. But it tastes very good.
While eating, we talked about many things—current life updates and nostalgic memories from our university days. We studied Water Resources Engineering at University of Brawijaya, and one of the stories that came up was KKM (Kemah Kerja Mahasiswa), which was hilarious to remember but definitely not something we’d want to repeat. Imagine this: our entire freshman from the Faculty of Engineering had to join the program, sleeping in military tents—each one packed with around 50 people. It was raining at the time, the air was damp, and many of the tents were leaking. It was chaotic, uncomfortable, and oddly unforgettable.
The program was a form of community service—an effort to apply what we had learned in class to real-life situations, helping local residents through road repairs, electrical installations, and public outreach. It lasted four days. On the first day, we arrived in the rain. The roads were muddy and slippery, making it hard to walk, and our clothes were quickly soaked and stained. Inside the tents, there were no proper facilities to dry anything, so we ended up sleeping in those wet, dirty clothes. For food and drinks, we had to cook everything ourselves. Imagine boiling water for drinking using a cloth filter that barely worked—we ended up drinking cloudy water with bits of sand still floating in it. The worst part, undeniably, was the toilet situation. It was simply a hole dug into the ground, with bamboo laid across the top as makeshift footing. The “walls” were made from old banners, barely reaching thigh level—so if you stood up, you could easily see the person in the stall next to you.
There were so many more stories from our KKM days, but they’re far too long to tell here. Before we knew it, we had been chatting for three hours, and it was time to get ready to leave—we hadn’t performed the Asr prayer yet. The trip from Wlingi Dam to Wlingi Station took about 15 minutes. Once we arrived, we had to part ways with our friend. Sadly, the goodbye was rushed—she had parked on the roadside and was blocking traffic behind her. After saying goodbye, my friend and I quickly performed the Asr prayer, followed by Maghrib, since time was tight. We boarded the commuter line train from Wlingi to Malang at 18:05. Unfortunately, we didn’t get any seats. I was asked to move several times because I had unknowingly sat in seats that were already reserved. Eventually, I got separated from my friend because of all the seat shuffling. On the train, I felt incredibly sleepy and exhausted—probably because I had been awake since 2 a.m. to make those donuts. Time passed quickly, and we arrived in Malang Station at 19:30. Finally, we made it. We rode back to my friend’s house together on her motorbike. Parking at the station cost us 6,000 rupiah.
This trip was incredibly spontaneous—no prior planning, no itinerary. It all happened so suddenly, yet it turned out far better than expected. I’m deeply grateful to my friends for making this experience so meaningful. To my friend in Wlingi, thank you for the warm hospitality, the car ride, the delicious food, and for being our tour guide. To the friend who traveled with me from Malang, thank you for the company and for giving me a ride on motorbike. And to my friend in Blitar, who is currently expecting—thank you for welcoming us so kindly and for the wonderful meals you prepared.
Honestly, at this age, it’s not easy to maintain friendships like these. As I look back on this short trip, I can’t help but feel a little emotional and teary-eyed—grateful that I still have friends I can meet in person. The older we get, the busier life becomes. People have more responsibilities, especially once they start families. That’s why moments like these feel so rare and precious.
I truly hope I’ll still have the chance to take trips like this again with my friends—maybe even ones that are a little more adrenaline-filled.
A short trip, a long memory. Thank you for walking through it with me.
Thanks to Copilot for helping me translate and shape these words into something soft and clear.
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