hello! i know you missed us! (and mom, i'm the one who writes in lowercase, Joe uses proper Capitalization). i think joe's updating our trip to northern sumatra - bukit lawang. i'll chronicle our journey to western sumatra.
first off. yay obama! yay! yay! yay! oh. my. so happy! wheeee!!!!!!!!
on wednesay, november 5th, we took a car with a couple new friends from sweden (hi louisa and oscar! hope you found a flight to jakarta okay!) to the medan (http://redirx.com/?0iuz) airport. our flight was sort of delayed. there was no announcement or update on the boards saying so, but we boarded about an hour after we were supposed to. oh well! the flight was fine and we made it to padang (http://redirx.com/?0iut) just fine. we had another adventure taking a bus to what we thought was another terminal, but wasn't, so took a really expensive taxi ride for like 3 minutes to the next terminal. once there we found the right bus, but had to wait until it was full.
in the meantime, we enjoyed our first real padang meal at a typical roadside restaurant (well, it's on the road, and they set up the temporary restaurant each night. it's quite amazing what they can do with a generator and some plastic tables and chairs). it was the first time we've had to eat with our hands in indonesia and luckily we both read the guide book and had a clue what to do. we had a tasty combo of rice, tempeh and tofu. by the way, the tempeh in this country is amazing. i've been getting it every chance i can get. it puts our packaged/plastic/preserved version to shame! so fresh and so completely tasty totally on its own.
anyways, the bus finally left and we made it to bukittinggi (http://redirx.com/?0iu5). we opted to skip padang on the way up (we'll hit it on saturday). we took this awesome, totally tricked out opelet (minibus the size of a vw van), full with huge speakers and a subwoofer, blue neon lights. it was blaring techno so loud that it took us a while to understand the driver was asking us for a $1 bill. funny! we made it to our hotel and were a little sad the raging party was over.
so, yesterday (11/6/08) started off with a tasty indonesian breakfast of fried rice, noodles with all sorts of tasty spices and super sweet tea. we headed off to explore the city - the market, the clocktower (the clock was made around the same time as big ben and a gift from the queen of holland), the panoramic view over ngarai sianok (a beautiful canyon). we met a parlimentary official from a town south of jakarta (the capital city on the island of java). we've been noticing that a lot of people are not afraid to strike up conversation. we've never had so many random conversation. well, i should say joe, not so much me. this is a very muslim country and the men usually begin talking with joe. i do chime in and they are totally cool with that, so it's been fun!
the best part about the panoramic overlook was the monkeys. tons of macaques, all ages and sizes, being their mischevious little selves. if an unknowing passerby walked by with a plastic bag and wasn't paying attention, the monkeys would try to steal it! it was crazy. we saw a couple kids get scared at almost being attacked by animals about half their size. no one got hurt, though. we had a fantastic vantage point from the tower overlook we were sitting in (about 2 stories high). we sat there for a good long while watching people feed the monkeys peanuts as well as watching the juvenile monkeys horse around with each other.
it was a pretty awesome day. we finished it up with some dinner at another street shop and played on the super slow internet for a short while.
today (11/7/08) was another fun day of relaxing and exploring. we opted not to take a super packed crazy all day tour (120 km) of many sights and villages outside the town. instead we found our way towards the bottom of the canyon, walked across a rickety bridge to the other side to koto gadang. it was a sleepy mountain town that i'm sure at one time had been a great tourist destination to watch fine silver jewlery made. a nice elderly gentleman came up to us and began chatting. we just happened to be walking in the same direction, and he told us the names of his english teachers from the 50's! great memory! i hope i'm that sharp when i'm his age. we enjoyed some tea and snacks (not really sure what we were eating, but they were tasty!) at a cute little shop. i ended up buying earrings from the man who both ran the shop and made the jewlery. the stuff was so intricate, so beautiful!
we wandered around town a little more, bought some gifts and had the best time hanging out with the elementary school kids who just finished up school. they loved talking to us and we got a great picture with them. we were sad that we didn't bring anything with us to give out - they were asking for pens. we had no idea we'd get such an opportunity and will try to be more prepared next time. it was so awesome hearing their giggles and laughter as well as seeing their smiles and shocked faces when we spoke to them in indonesian (thanks to our trusty lonely planet phrasebook!). it was such a special afternoon.
we made our back back across the canyon and back up to the tower overlook for some more monkey gazing. it was a slow afternoon for the furry cuties, but still fun to watch. we grabbed some dinner and then back to the overlook to watch the sunset. believe it or not, i was cold! we're about 980 meters above sea level, so it gets nice and cool at night. last night we were walking around with our fleeces on. yay! a little taste of fall in indonesia. phew!
we tried to find the local dance performance, but only came upon a run-down theater. we managed to find the movie theater we were looking for yesterday, but the movie was in indonesian only, so we opted to wander the market instead. joe tried on a couple nice looking fez hats. we'll probably head back tomorrow to see if the price can come down a bit. joe's become quite the good bargainer! i need to take a few more lessons...
and here we are on the internets! hope all of you are well - please make comments or send us email. we love hearing from home!
tomorrow we'll spend the morning/early afternoon here and then head to padang. we fly out early sunday morning to kuala lumpur, malaysia and then another flight to siem reap, cambodia, on monday morning. i'm sad to leave indonesia, as we've had such an amazing time here. on the other hand, i'm really excited for what cambodia has to offer! whee!
Friday, November 7, 2008
orangutans
My penchant for primates reared its ugly head again, and we decided to visit our simian friends in northern Sumatra. We pre-arranged our 5 modes of transportation, including 2 flights, a taxi ride, 5 hour jeep ride on unmaintained roads, and a 20 minute hike with all our gear. It made for an extremely long day of travel (~14 hours), but we eventually arrived at Bukit Lawang (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bukit_Lawang) which is adjacent to Gunung Leuser National Park (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunung_Leuser_National_Park) where the hairy red guys live.
To have a more intimate experience, you need to trek into the jungle for a few days and see them in their natural habitat. The second you arrive in Bukit Lawang, you are greeted by prospective guides attempting to sell their services. They carry around albums with pictures and testimonials (in various languages) that are endearing. The guides fit the mold of twenty something stoners who are in good physical shape (unusual combination), know the trails, locations where the orangutans hang out, are good salespeople, etc. We arranged a two day, ~15 km excursion on which the majority of the camping gear is hauled for you, meals are cooked for you, and you even get to raft back to Bukit Lawang down a quick flowing river! How bad could it be? I'm honing my bargaining skills, but it still took ~1 hr to arrange the excursion in a combintion of broken english and my extremely limited bahasa Indonesian. The extremely confusing bargaining was fun in a twisted way because the guide and I both said yes to each other when we clearly had no idea what the other person was trying to convey. BTW, Amy is a timid bargainer, but getting better each day. We eventually packed our bags, and tried to get a good night of sleep which was a lost cause because there were maggots on our bed sheets. Eek!
On the first day, I saddled up our pack and we headed for the jungle, stopping by Wawan's house for some rambutan fruit, and passing some women hacking rubber plants with machetes along the way. The hills seemed lush, but manageable. After about an hour of hiking, we stumbled upon a group of 3 females and their young about 30' above the trail. I guess this group was conditioned to humans because they just lounged around the treetops occasionally glancing at us. Amy's hair is a strikingly similar color to to their fur, and I found myself wondering whether they were pondering if Amy was part of their family. The infants and juveniles were really cute, showing their skills off and giving their mothers good reason to reprimand them. The mothers constantly watched our backpacks. I presume they are probably illegally fed by some guides and the food of course comes from their packs. In their presence, I was repeatedly struck by how similar human and great ape behavior is. I've never seriously entertained creationism as an explanation of the emergence of humans, but after spending a short period of time with other simians in the wild, our close relationship is crystal clear. But I digress :)
After saying goodbye, we hiked to a spot to eat some lunch (nasi goreng and fresh pineapple) and then the fun began! Jungles are really, really densely lush with trees, bushes, water and animals everywhere. Trails in this jungle were unlike any I'd seen in my ~15 yrs of hiking in America. Instead of the 1-2' maintained paths that I expected, these were hardly discernible, partially trodden connections of slightly less dense jungle. It is one of the most intense sensory experiences I've ever had, managing my footing along the treacherous path while also trying to look, listen and smell the plethora of inhabitants that would be happy to eat us! To take my mind off the hike, I kept thinking of the etymology of the expression "It's a jungle out there." During his sales pitch, the guide failed to mention how physically gruelling the hike would be. The structure of the hills consisted of extremely steep rocks with a veneer of dirt loosely fastened by the roots of large trees. The torrential downpours of the previous night only exacerbated the situation, transforming the already loose dirt into slippery, clayish mud. In order to go uphill you had to strategically plan each step so that you attained the most solid footing and, if lucky, had a root to balance and pull yourself up with. Downhill was even worse. We had to turn backwards (facing the hill) and repel down the muddy rocks, again using the roots and hoping they would bear your weight. Some gradations of the rock were manageable, but others were over two few feet, so you just had to hold on to the root tightly and hope that your foot not only landed where you intended but that notch would hold your weight. I know this account sounds hyperbolized, but I sincerely considered the likelihood of Amy or I breaking a limb, then being attacked by a gang of macaques who would slowly pick us off one by one. Rangers don't routinely patrol the jungle and they seemed more like nepotistically appointed hikers than well trained rangers, so first aid and evacuation procedures were probably meaningless English terms to them. I've always hoped that I die of a sudden, massive heart attack during an orgasm, but that seemed unlikely at the moment! Luckily the hike required all my concentration, so my wandering mind was quickly refocused.
Next came a small creek that we needed to traverse, which seemed manageable at first blush. What I failed to realize was that another group had snatched our intended campground and that we would need to continue on to the next one. We hiked along the muddy, steep banks of the creek for a little bit and eventually arrived at a small waterfall. I assumed there was a trail that I had failed to see that would lead us perpendicular to the creek, but no, oh no. We climbed down the mossy, notchless rock of the waterfall feet first with our bare hands, hoping we wouldn't fall to the shallow rock creek bed below. Exhausted, we arrived at the swampy base of the waterfall. The mud had such a foul stench, and we had to wade right through it. My shoes still smell. We hiked through some grasslands then on to the dried out portion of a large river bed. We stopped at the bank of a rushing river and everyone took a breather.
During his sales pitch, the guide told us that we'd be crossing a river by raft. You can imagine my shock when we collectively realized that we would have to form a human chain and cross the chest high, fast flowing river (with loose rocks) by foot. A fitting continuation of our hike. I had packed light with limited clothing, so I decided that stripping down in front of my travel companions was better than hiking later in sopping wet clothes. In retrospect, my clothes were already completely drenched with my sweat, so it was unnecessary. We locked hands and attacked the river diagonally. Eroded, smooth rocks look relatively comfortable to walk on, but trust me, they are not. The current was pretty strong and I could feel the grip of both of my hands loosening from my neighbors, my muscles straining and my footing slip. My mind drifted again, pondering my fate if the chain broke and I was sucked downstream. Was I a strong enough swimmer to make my way to shore? Even if I was, I would be separated from the others with no idea how to navigate through a primate packed jungle back to town. The strength of the river bent the otherwise straight chain we had formed, and my attention was refocused. Luckily, the river was only ~50' wide, so we reformed the line at a sharper angle and through some hard work (as well as luck) made it to the other side. Fear and concentration turned into gratitude that Amy and I had made it to camp alive and without any major injuries.
When I have a little more time on my hands, I'll update this post with the rest of the evening's activities.
To have a more intimate experience, you need to trek into the jungle for a few days and see them in their natural habitat. The second you arrive in Bukit Lawang, you are greeted by prospective guides attempting to sell their services. They carry around albums with pictures and testimonials (in various languages) that are endearing. The guides fit the mold of twenty something stoners who are in good physical shape (unusual combination), know the trails, locations where the orangutans hang out, are good salespeople, etc. We arranged a two day, ~15 km excursion on which the majority of the camping gear is hauled for you, meals are cooked for you, and you even get to raft back to Bukit Lawang down a quick flowing river! How bad could it be? I'm honing my bargaining skills, but it still took ~1 hr to arrange the excursion in a combintion of broken english and my extremely limited bahasa Indonesian. The extremely confusing bargaining was fun in a twisted way because the guide and I both said yes to each other when we clearly had no idea what the other person was trying to convey. BTW, Amy is a timid bargainer, but getting better each day. We eventually packed our bags, and tried to get a good night of sleep which was a lost cause because there were maggots on our bed sheets. Eek!
On the first day, I saddled up our pack and we headed for the jungle, stopping by Wawan's house for some rambutan fruit, and passing some women hacking rubber plants with machetes along the way. The hills seemed lush, but manageable. After about an hour of hiking, we stumbled upon a group of 3 females and their young about 30' above the trail. I guess this group was conditioned to humans because they just lounged around the treetops occasionally glancing at us. Amy's hair is a strikingly similar color to to their fur, and I found myself wondering whether they were pondering if Amy was part of their family. The infants and juveniles were really cute, showing their skills off and giving their mothers good reason to reprimand them. The mothers constantly watched our backpacks. I presume they are probably illegally fed by some guides and the food of course comes from their packs. In their presence, I was repeatedly struck by how similar human and great ape behavior is. I've never seriously entertained creationism as an explanation of the emergence of humans, but after spending a short period of time with other simians in the wild, our close relationship is crystal clear. But I digress :)
After saying goodbye, we hiked to a spot to eat some lunch (nasi goreng and fresh pineapple) and then the fun began! Jungles are really, really densely lush with trees, bushes, water and animals everywhere. Trails in this jungle were unlike any I'd seen in my ~15 yrs of hiking in America. Instead of the 1-2' maintained paths that I expected, these were hardly discernible, partially trodden connections of slightly less dense jungle. It is one of the most intense sensory experiences I've ever had, managing my footing along the treacherous path while also trying to look, listen and smell the plethora of inhabitants that would be happy to eat us! To take my mind off the hike, I kept thinking of the etymology of the expression "It's a jungle out there." During his sales pitch, the guide failed to mention how physically gruelling the hike would be. The structure of the hills consisted of extremely steep rocks with a veneer of dirt loosely fastened by the roots of large trees. The torrential downpours of the previous night only exacerbated the situation, transforming the already loose dirt into slippery, clayish mud. In order to go uphill you had to strategically plan each step so that you attained the most solid footing and, if lucky, had a root to balance and pull yourself up with. Downhill was even worse. We had to turn backwards (facing the hill) and repel down the muddy rocks, again using the roots and hoping they would bear your weight. Some gradations of the rock were manageable, but others were over two few feet, so you just had to hold on to the root tightly and hope that your foot not only landed where you intended but that notch would hold your weight. I know this account sounds hyperbolized, but I sincerely considered the likelihood of Amy or I breaking a limb, then being attacked by a gang of macaques who would slowly pick us off one by one. Rangers don't routinely patrol the jungle and they seemed more like nepotistically appointed hikers than well trained rangers, so first aid and evacuation procedures were probably meaningless English terms to them. I've always hoped that I die of a sudden, massive heart attack during an orgasm, but that seemed unlikely at the moment! Luckily the hike required all my concentration, so my wandering mind was quickly refocused.
Next came a small creek that we needed to traverse, which seemed manageable at first blush. What I failed to realize was that another group had snatched our intended campground and that we would need to continue on to the next one. We hiked along the muddy, steep banks of the creek for a little bit and eventually arrived at a small waterfall. I assumed there was a trail that I had failed to see that would lead us perpendicular to the creek, but no, oh no. We climbed down the mossy, notchless rock of the waterfall feet first with our bare hands, hoping we wouldn't fall to the shallow rock creek bed below. Exhausted, we arrived at the swampy base of the waterfall. The mud had such a foul stench, and we had to wade right through it. My shoes still smell. We hiked through some grasslands then on to the dried out portion of a large river bed. We stopped at the bank of a rushing river and everyone took a breather.
During his sales pitch, the guide told us that we'd be crossing a river by raft. You can imagine my shock when we collectively realized that we would have to form a human chain and cross the chest high, fast flowing river (with loose rocks) by foot. A fitting continuation of our hike. I had packed light with limited clothing, so I decided that stripping down in front of my travel companions was better than hiking later in sopping wet clothes. In retrospect, my clothes were already completely drenched with my sweat, so it was unnecessary. We locked hands and attacked the river diagonally. Eroded, smooth rocks look relatively comfortable to walk on, but trust me, they are not. The current was pretty strong and I could feel the grip of both of my hands loosening from my neighbors, my muscles straining and my footing slip. My mind drifted again, pondering my fate if the chain broke and I was sucked downstream. Was I a strong enough swimmer to make my way to shore? Even if I was, I would be separated from the others with no idea how to navigate through a primate packed jungle back to town. The strength of the river bent the otherwise straight chain we had formed, and my attention was refocused. Luckily, the river was only ~50' wide, so we reformed the line at a sharper angle and through some hard work (as well as luck) made it to the other side. Fear and concentration turned into gratitude that Amy and I had made it to camp alive and without any major injuries.
When I have a little more time on my hands, I'll update this post with the rest of the evening's activities.
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