Travel can be one of the most rewarding forms of introspection.

-Lawrence Durell, Bitter Lemons

 

The more we travel, the more we learn about both the world and ourselves. And as I’ve noted before, the more places we visit the more we learn about our travel preferences. One thing that becomes easier and easier is identifying the aspects of a place that we enjoy. For instance, on this trip, I knew I liked India and Nepal more than Thailand, Lao, or Cambodia. But I couldn’t put my finger on why. I theorized maybe I liked South Asia more because it is more familiar to me, maybe because its crazier a place, perhaps because its more different, or even because of food or cultural reasons. But Lao was really different and Cambodia was pretty crazy, I like Thai food and I’ve become pretty familiar with all three countries. But coming to Indonesia has helped me to identify what I like most about a place and travel in general. Its not crazy or totally different places like I thought, although I do enjoy those qualities in a destination.

What I love is adventure. There is so much adventure to be had in India, Nepal, and Indonesia. Being in Flores gave me the same euphoric feeling as when I’m in the Himalayas. An overwhelming sense of contentment and happiness, stemming from the knowledge and experience of being in a truly awesome place. Its tough not to be content while taking in the beauty of Flores, just as its difficult to not be awed by the grandeur of the Annapurnas. Also there’s something about being on the edge of the world, or the fringes of civilization at the least, that I enjoy. The edges of the world are seldom confortable, but usually extraordinary. I’ve made no secret of the fact that I like being away, and where is more away than some far-flung place. Unlike Joylani, I kind of enjoy the times when we’re out of phone and/or internet land. Remoteness appeals to me, although I’m still learning the reasons for that. I guess I’m just an adventurer.

Our last couple days in Indonesia were spent in Sanur, a beach town in southern Bali. I didn’t particularly care for the place, as the beach was unremarkable (except that it had huge waves) and the town was mainly a tourist trap catering to upmarket holidaymakers. But we found a nice little homestay, with an eclectic mix of guests. On one side, our neighbor was an old Belgian guy and on the other a Indian Hare-Krishna for London, with some Indonesian couples filling the other rooms. We took some walks along the beach, going north and south of town. But otherwise, I did what I usually do in places that don’t particularly appeal to me. I caught up on some writing and blog-related work, spent some time at an internet café, and read The Economist and a Newsweek.

            I reflected a little on our time in Indonesia as well. Its been a great month, which I think has exceeded both Joylani and my expectations. Its more difficult travel than we’ve had lately, especially following Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, and Thailand (which would rank as the four easiest Asian countries to travel), but we did okay. We only saw a fraction of all the cool places that Indonesia has to offer, so I cannot say that I’m quite ready to leave. But since Indonesia only offers short visas, we’ll have to be on our way. But that’s not to say that I’m sad to leave, for our upcoming destinations have me salivating, literally. A few days in Kuala Lumpur, where I’m gonna totally stuff myself with roti canais, satays, cendols, and teh tarik. Then on to Ho Chi Minh City, to begin our month in Vietnam where I’ll subsist on a strict diet of pho and bo bun. But back to Indonesia, its not a perfect place, but I like it. A lot people knock it, but I’ve found not many people have actually gone there either. I’d say that the majority of people I’ve spoken to that have actually visited Indonesia have liked it. Many countries are easier to travel and nicer in general, but there’s something exceedingly appealing about Indonesia and in the past month, its become one of my favorite countries.

 

Countries, like people, are loved for their failings.

-Yeats, Bengal Lancer

 

Exactly two weeks ago we took the 70 minute flight from Denpassar, Bali to Ende, Flores. Just to illustrate how long it takes to get around in Indonesia, I’ve listed the rote and times of our return journey. Note that I’ve omitted Moni (roundtrip from Ende) and Gili Air (roundtrip from Mataram), so the following is actually the most direct overland/sea route between Ende and Denpassar:

 

Ende to Ruteng (10 hour bus)

Ruteng to LBJ (6 hour bus)

Labuanbajo to Sape (8 hour ferry)

Sape to Bima (1.5 hour bemo)

Bima to Mataram (12 hour bus)

Mataram to Lembar (.5 hour bemo)

Lembar to Padangbai (4 hour ferry)

Padangbai to Sanur (1.5 hour bemo)

 

In case you weren’t counting, that’s 42.5 hours in-transit (not including waiting times, walking, or intracity transport). Again, that’s taking the most direct land-sea route between the two cities. On one hand, we saw some of the most scenic and beautiful landscapes, mountainscapes, and seascapes that we’ve ever seen. On the other hand, it is a 70 minute flight.  

Its always nice when you’re looking forward to a place and it far exceeds your expectations. Such is the case with Gili Air. One of the three Gili Islands off the coast of Lombok, Gili Air is like the other two in that it is a small island surrounded by a lagoon and reef and subsists on tourism and farming. There are no motor-vehicles on any of the islands and aside from the two bicycles I’ve seen, only horse-drawn carts ply Air’s sandy paths. We found a nice bungalow here, which in my opinion is one of the nicest sub-10 dollar rooms we’ve had on the entire trip (and under-10 bucks is where we stay 80-90% of the time). Nestled in a coconut grove with a few others and only 50 meters or so to the beautiful ocean, I’m pretty happy with our place. After ten days of roughing it across Flores, we came to the Gilis to do nothing; sleep in, lay around in hammocks, swim/snorkel, take a walk, eat well, etc. So far, we’re on task. Yesterday we did pretty much nothing after arriving, just a big lunch and even bigger seafood dinner split by a few hours of sitting at the beach and our bungalow. Today was: breakfast, relax for a couple hours, swim, lunch, swim, attempt to use the one internet place on the island (we gave up after ten-minutes, at which point Google’s homepage was half-loaded), relax some more, and finally an excellent fresh seafood dinner. On tap for tomorrow morning is either a walk around the island or some snorkeling. Decisions, decisions…Once it gets too hot, I think we’ll begin our afternoon of sitting around and talking at the beach or our bungalow. Nice room, beautiful beach, tons of seafood, cheap, what more could I ask for?

Clear blue waters, white-sand palm-fringed beaches, and undeveloped, Gili Air has all the qualities of a perfect island. It’s a good thing too, because stepping off the small wooden boat onto Gili Air’s beach was the last step of a 27-hour journey. We boarded a ferry at 7:30 am yesterday morning and of course it didn’t leave until 10:30. It wasn’t until seven hours later that we disembarked at the port of Sape on Sumbawa. From Sape, we took a hour and half bus ride to Bima, where we boarded an overnight bus which would cross Sumbawa, take a ferry across to Lombok, and then drive across Lombok and deposit us at Mataram. That whole part was not as bad as it sounds. Well, the ferry ride was pretty smoky and sweltering as we crossed a windless sea, but otherwise it was better than it sounds since we booked our travel from Labuanbajo to Mataram on one ticket. Although it costs a little more to book all the segments of our trip in advance, it lessened the headache of having to think during the journey and allowed us to avoid negotiating at every change of transportation. Plus, its what even the locals do, I figured it must be worth it. From Mataram, we took a 40 minute bemo ride to Bangsal harbor, where we walked the last 100 meters to the harborfront to buy a ticket and wait for the small boat to fill up. Twenty minutes later, we stepped off onto Gili Air. It’s a beautiful, undeveloped island and good place to relax for a few days after our recent jaunt across somewhat less comfortable parts of Indonesia.

I have discovered something delicious, and it is called a murtabak. I actually had one a month ago in Borneo, but didn’t know what it was. Essentially, it is just a pancake. But beware: if you order a pancake in Indonesia it will most likely be a flavorless gooey half-cooked bleh. Not so the murtabak. Tonight I saw it being made, so now I know how it all goes down. And it goes a little something like this:
1. Heat up a small frying pan to correct temperature (whatever that is).
2. Spread white colored batter evenly over pan (not as salty as Bisquick, nor as rubbery tasting as Krusteez, the consistency should be that to make a pancake of about half an inch).
3. Watch as bubbles appear.
4. Liberally sprinkle sugar and chopped peanuts over batter. Add some chocolate sprinkles if you’re feeling like a party.
5. Place lid over pan to aid in cooking. Note, do NOT flip.
6. When batter is done cooking, remove from pan, fold in half so that the golden brown sides are facing out and the peanut side faces in.
7. Butter the top if you’re feeling like clogged arteries.
8. Enjoy your murtabak. This is not just any old pancake.

 

Labuanbajo has been an interesting place to stay the past few days. Although my posts have focused on the spectacular diving and Komodo dragons, every day has begun and ended in Labuanbajo. It’s a small squalid little seaside town; dusty, dirty, and poor with a ramshackle little harbor. But at the same time, the view from the hills looking down into bay is amazing and the sunsets over the islands are a great too. I was going to write how everyone is really kind and friendly. But then we ran into this guy in town, Tony; short and stocky black guy with long dreadlocks. He recommended a hotel, which we ended up staying at. We saw him in town a few more times and our second to last night, he tried to sell us a boat tour to Rinca, which we said we’d think about. We ended up going through another middleman that offered a much better price. When he found out we bought it from someone else without consulting him, he was pissed and offered a few choice names and words for us, before he stomped off. So I couldn’t blog that everyone in Labuanbajo was kind. But then we saw him again and he came up to me, apologized, shook my hand, which turned into a hug before giving me a few pats on the back and reiterating he was sorry. So now, again, and in good conscience, I can say everyone in Labuanbajo has been very kind and friendly.

its a poor little town, like most on Flores and in Indonesia in general

but also like much of Flores and Indonesia in general, scenic