Oops I did it (not) again....a new Trek into the mountains!

As the landscape of Northern Laos was so great, we organized a two day trek. Due to the experiences of Myanmar Shelly was so smart not to join, so only me, Andreas, Loic and Melina signed for it, while Shelly was doing the cave tour. We started early in the morning and hopped all in a boat upstream to the next village. Shelly also got a ride and accompanied us, and returned later. As usual in this region it was freezing cold in the morning and misty, so we all were crotched down in the boat:

Remark: yes it is Nothern Laos, not Scotland!

Slowly the mist was disappearing and we could see the wonderful landscape, which reminded me on this scene in “Apocalypse Now”, where the US Boat is slowly going through the jungle on the Mekong, seeking for Marlon Brando. Loic and me studied the sophisticated ruder and gas control of the boat. As the captain sits always in the front, he controls the ruder (which is in the back) with a bamboo stick (going from the front to the back) and the accelerator cable to the engine with a little string. Loic tried it to speed up and it really works! I think in Laos you should not waste your time to think what happens, if this little bamboo stick breaks in the middle of some strong rapids here....

After arriving in a little fishermen town we started our trek, while Shelly was staying at the village (which is another story...). We went up and down the hills and crossed streams in the jungle…

… and finally approached a tiny village, where only one family was living under very poor conditions. Strangely enough we saw with several local men with really odd self-made rifles (similar to Pirates of the Caribbean) . Our guide told us, that they were hunters and they mainly hunt for squirrels and birds (!). As a matter of fact we indeed could not see any bird in the jungle (!), nor did we see any animal, except one poisonous snake.

Again we hiked down the hill and at an altitude of 350m we started our climb to the summit of 1000m, where our final destination – the Hmong village – laid. It was more or less a hike straight up through the jungle and I really started sweating with each meter of altitude, we gained. Only Andreas seemed to be fine, but he is member of the Alpenverein… Boy, we were so happy, when we saw the summit and the little village. My T-Shirt was completely wet and I was very exhausted.

Later we walked around this little village and found harsh conditions: no water (“half an hour walk to the stream”), no restrooms (“Just go into the bushes.”), no electricity, except two houses (so everybody makes a fire) and very basic bamboo house on the dirt. No paths, no flowers, no trees, just around 20-25 houses plus the attached pig and chicken cages. WOW! This is like the middle age or even worse…

As it was winter nobody was working in the fields. Instead they were building new bamboo walls for their houses, beetle nut from the bark of a tree (?), cutting bamboo and building brushes from plants:

PIC

We had the pleasure staying in their private homes. I and Andreas stayed in the hut of our local guide with his family, while Luic and Melina were hosted by the local grocery, where they also prepared our dinner. You can’t say it was not fresh:

They just killed a chicken and threw it into boiling water:

Except Andreas we did not eat much, as a matter of fact Melina got really sick and she did not eat anything and went to bed early. So what do you do in town, where you really cannot do anything, except watching pigs walking around and roosters chasing hens, while the rest of villagers sit either inside their hut or in front of little fire? Well, we bought some beer (At the “Grocery” they had 4 bottles of beer, 2 cans of Coke and 2 bottles of water) and started a bone fire and talked about the meanings of life. While Luic was feeding the fire from an old bamboo wall, the stars came hesitant to see. Surprisingly it was not so cold and we had a good time!

Our fire was the last one and it was already very quiet in the village. Understandable, it was very late (21:00) and we decided to go to bed. When Andreas and me went up the ladder to our host hut, opened the bamboo door and saw a little candle burning for the late-arrivers, as already everybody else was in bed. So we got in our sleeping beds, got under the mosquito nets (not required, as it was too cold, but they all use it, probably to separate the mattresses and give little bit of privacy), and got in line with the other family members and the dog, while the chicken and the pigs were sleeping outside. It was surprisingly not freezing cold night, so we could sleep well, until the roosters started their duties between 5-6am. Unfortunately I felt also a little bit shaky like Melina and my stomach started make some trouble. Fortunately we had a nice view and could see again the village’s life, before we started our ascend to the rice plains:

In the afternoon we arrived finally in Muang Ngoi Neua, where I enjoyed a cold drink with Loic in front of the river! We were really shocked that we have seen such poor conditions in the villages. The people even do not have access to water, so they also have not WCs. The overall living conditions were extreme and I did not expect to see something like this. On the other side it was good to see “real” Laos, as Vientane is the capital, Vang Ving a popular place for young tourists and Luang Prabang seems to be the Laotion Disney World version, far from any Laos reality (despite the fact, that it is charming beautiful). So we were glad to have made this experience, otherwise our Laos picture would be incomplete.

Remark: some of the shown picture are from Loic, as our camera had no energy anymore. Thanks Loic!

A Communist Hello

We left Pangalan bun with our famous Kalstar Jet towards Jakarta at 7^th of January. We arrived in rainy Jakarta (terminal 1) and switched to Air Asia Terminal 3, where we flew in the evening to Kuala Lumpur. Air Asia is just a great airline as they are very cheap, friendly and have modern aircrafts. You can easily buy the tickets online, as well as meals and even inflight purchases. We paid only 30EUR from Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur and 110 EUR to Vientiane, which is incredible cheap. The only disadvantage is, that we arrived late in KL and had to leave early to Vientiane. So we booked the Tune Hotel, close to LCC (Low Cost Carrier) Terminal in KL for 6 hours. You just have a bed, shower and you pay additionally for AC, but there is not much room else (maybe 6sqm). Even the luggage is difficult to place…but at the end it worked, as we got some sleep, instead of waiting at the crowded LCC.

We arrived in sunny Vientiane and immediately liked it very much. It is very, very laid back and time is not an issue, there is no rush in Laos…Combine this laid back feeling with a French colonial architecture and put some socialist elements (like a lot of Russian flags everywhere!) to it, voila that Vientiane, the capital of Laos (as big as Great Britain, but has only 6,8M inhabitants, first socialist country in Asia).

We enjoyed the bike ride in Vientiane with excellent sunny weather and were very glad, that we left rainy Borneo...So we visited the Mekong River, numerous coffee shops and the Laos version of the Arc de Triomphe, which was built in 1960.

As the town is not so big (population 300K), you can easily explore the town by bike or even by walking and enjoying the sunset at the Mekong River. The restaurants, street hawkers and coffee shops are great and eating is great in Vientiane. You can have a French breakfast in the morning, eat a spicy Laos’s lunch and have a great Hot Pot at one of the numerous street restaurants at the Mekong River.(FS)

Vientiane is a city that needed to grow on me. At first sight I was definitely not impressed.  The dry season had made the Mekong River seemed unspectacular as it winded away through the landscape and it lacked a certain flair that many other cities have. What made the city endearing to me was that I could easily access the main historical district by bike which including all the must-see sights.  When I return I plan to see the Museum of The People of Laos Military and the Museum of Security.

 One of the interesting aspects about Laos is that it is one of the few countries that has still reveals a communistic face despite its attempts to draw the tourist with French cafes and beautiful shops selling scarves, baskets  and other locally made items.  Like Beijing, it has on old market and a new market where the buildings are several stories tall and contain loads of stalls where one can bargain as much as you like.  Unfortunately, they are not as flexible with their prices as many other Asian countries. In fact their service has still this communist style where they are happy to take your money but aren’t really interested in your presences.  My favorite day there was renting a bike, tour the city, and then at night riding along the Mekong until we found a friendly Korean restaurant with an elderly gentleman who taught us how to eat their version of a hot pot. The trees where lit with colorful lights and the atmosphere was filled with a bustling aroma of foods from the different food stalls.

Meeting Andreas on our minibus on our way to Vang Vieng turn out to be a friendship that would last more than the normal couple of days.  He ended up not only staying in our Maylan Guesthouse where we would eat breakfast everyday together but would accompanied us not only to Laung prabang but further to the town of Muang Ngoi Neua.

How to Lose Your Husband!

In Vang Vieng Frank, Andreas and I set out on a bicycle loop which seemed simple when looking at the map , but half way into the trip we lost Frank. That is actually a relatively easy thing to do since he rides with the speed of the wind without ever looking back through the dust to see where we were.  He also made the mistake of not waiting at the corner of a junction where we were supposed to turn off.

  

Andreas and I made the mistake of turning off at the junction after that junction and we waited too long for him.  We then proceeded to pass one village and then finally took a break and tried to get a man to help us to figure out where we were. I stayed put while Andreas then continued to the next village to make sure we had done it wrong. As I sat there quite a while staring at the beautiful landscape, I was contemplating my stupidity; here I am in the middle of nowhere; I had no money, no water and lost my husband and am travelling with someone I barely knew. Andreas arrived back with a bottle of water which saved my life!  He also figured out that we had taken the wrong turn off and needed to return to where we were before.  We then proceeded to check out every village and cave looking for Frank.

Inside the Tham Phu Kham Cave with the blue lagoon, I met Loic, a 26 year old Belgian guy living in Paris.  He was accompanied by two Korean students and a Spanish couple named Gonzalo and Gemmam. I immediate like Loic. His sense of humor mixed with his caring sensitivity for those of us in the cave without a light showing a very friendly-caring spirit. When he asked if Andreas was my husband I laughed and commented that I lost my husband and was still looking for him.  He shook his head and said that isn’t normal to lose your husband. I signed and explained, well for me it is!

 Frank and I met him later at our favorite Korean restaurant and then again in Laung prabang.  He even followed us to Muang Ngoi Neua and Frank talked him into doing the two day trek even though he should be heading to Bangkok. How funny it is to lose your husband while making two new friends at the same time!

Our last day in Vang Vieng, Frank and I decided to do a half day kayaking.  We shared the tour with the Spanish couple from the cave.  They were light hearted and in good spirits and ready to conquer the river. As pairs we had double kayaks. Our tour guide began to sing songs and gave us tips while talking on his mobile phone.  He could see that Frank and I had experience but seemed to forget our Spanish friends Gonzalo and Gemmam managed to flip even though the river was fairly shallow losing their things in the water.  As we tried to recover their things we laughed realizing we only went for one and half hours and not three hours! 

 American’s Gift to the People of Laos

Luang Prabang is one of the main attractions in Laos.  The city where the former Royal Palace was built in 1904. The king resided there until 1959 and now it is a museum. It is a Unesco site which keeps this place from exploding and most of its architecture is dating around 1877 to 1930’s. One of the hardest things to deal with is the fact that my country bombed the heck out of Laos from 1964 to 1973 making it the country that was the most bombed countries in the world. At the same time our president Mr. Johnson gave their king an amusing gift for which I personally ashamed of its lack of taste. The gift is pieces of rock from the moon. A strange gift to give as we bomb the shit out of their country! Our first hotel was just on the outside of the town and was a bit strange. Here I felt like I was in a communistic hotel and after two nights they wanted to up the price so we decided to check out. The breakfast was so bad that I ended up vomiting in our new guest house but boy did I feel better.  Frank had our third argument of the trip since he was over sensitive about me asking him a question as he was downloading something in the blog and I was just trying to get my mind off of feeling sick. I decided to go for a walk and get fresh air but once again I forgot money so I had to return to our room. I think we are doing quite well three fights in three months isn’t too bad! 

During these days here I hung out with Cary and Miguel who we met on the bus. Cary is a gardener from Canada and it was refreshing to talk to someone who grew up in North America.  Miguel was from Holland and was now on a lifestyle travel that had taken him half way across the world and the last time we saw him, he was heading off the New Zealand to try his luck there.

We slowly began to wind down here and had taken bikes to see the sights and finally went to see the Pak Ou caves where you can see thousands of Buddhas hidden there and a village where they make whisky.  The packaging is quite unique since it includes a cobra snake or a scorpion.  The whisky itself doesn’t have much taste but the tourists love it. Here once again, I lost Frank but met a nice Korean arborist and his son.  The next day we headed up north with Andreas, Loic and a new friend Melina.

A Monk’s Walk to the Caves

After checking in at our various guesthouses, Loic and I decided to check out the village of Muang Ngoi Neua which basically consisted of guest houses and restaurants and two boats of tourist trying to check out an authentic Lao’s village.  The villagers themselves were used to this bizarre desires of the tourists and basically would ignored you unless they could sell you something. We finally ended up at the Buddhist temple where one very old monk lives with seven students.  The students range from seven to twenty years old and as we arrived four of them were huddles close to the small burning fire. We were looking for the way to the cave and the view point to see the sunset.  They pointed the way and we waited for Frank and Andreas to join us.  Meanwhile we found out that one of the novices could speak English and since his name was Loi he was excited to meet Loic.  I told him that I would like to go see the other cave and he said he escort us there in exchange for an English lesson. Agreeing on what time with a monk was not easy.  He spoke with his Master who gave the okay for 8:00 am.  He had a heavy schedule which started at 4:30 am in the morning and he said that at 7:00 am is when they go down the main street and receive food from the locals and then bless the village.  So we bid him goodbye and went off to check out the cave but the light was already receding so we decided to do it another day. I rose early the next day mush to the dismay of Frank who wanted to sleep in. I went to the main street and sure enough through the mist I could see the monks coming while the villages offered them food that they had prepared.

So at 8:00 am Loic and I went to the monastery to fetch Loi and he was accompanied by two other novices as well.  We then proceeded to introduce our selves and give a brief history on where we came from and what we do for a living and what we studied etc.  At one point Loi explained about the offering ritual every morning. They receive mostly rice but Loi told us that he was allowed to eat other things as well but never ever a snake!  He also told us other sins which included, lying stealing and killing but he mention twice that he must never touch a woman. I can’t think of a worse sin for a teenage boy that would incorporate the touching of a woman. He giggled and the said sweetly that if I was to have a problem in the cave he would not be able to help me. He was so sorry! I laughed and said that is why Loic is here! He will save me!  We finally approached the cave where we saw a woman washing clothes and beautiful fishes of all sizes swimming in the pools below the rocks.  Loi also informed me it would be a sin to kill these fishes.  I smiled and said it is a good thing I am not hungry.  He looked puzzled but I was not surprised.

Photo by Loic 

 We entered mouth of the cave which was further up. I followed them in and found the cave very warm and humid which surprised me. We ended shortly at a drop off and a muddy bank which folded underneath us into nothingness. We decided it would be too dangerous to go any further and headed back. We then ran into Johnny from Canada who was leading a group in and asked if we had made it to the swimming hole to which we replied no.  We then had to reenter the cave and follow the true cave pathfinder.  The two novices were afraid and said they would wait. I took off my shoes to get better traction since it was muddy slippery and slimy.  We went deeper and deeper in.   At many points you could see drop offs that disappeared and I keep thinking if I fall down there I am dead meat.  None of us had a rope and where would we get one anyway?  We finally reached it.  The river was below which meant you needed to rock climb down a half stone half muddy bank to get into the river which would eventually lead you further into the cave.  Loi watched Johnny and Loic disappear over the side and enter into the river.  The rest of us remained above since we did not have swimming clothes.  Loi bid me farewell since he knew his time was up and he had school work to do. I told him I would try to give him a lesson or two in the next couple of days.  Loic returned excited and told me what a wonderful feeling it was to go upstream until the river disappeared under the cave wall.

We then proceeded to the next small village, ate lunch and headed back to see the other cave and viewpoint that we missed the night before.  It was a full day for me and returned to find Frank had planned a two day trek up the mountain.  It should be easy he said.  I shook my head and said you are starting at 400m to 1000m is not a piece of cake.  It means I would have to go straight up. No way besides I desire two days of rest.  Early in the morning we took a boat and headed up north against the cold wind. We arrived at a very simple village and I sat with the boat man as the others started their trek. I then jumped back in the boat as several of the locals piled in.  We then stopped at the next village, and the ladies scrambled up the hill in a flash.  I soon was following the boatman up the hill as he smiled at me and said,” This is a good place to buy some scarves.”

 I realized that I didn’t have any options looking down the lane at twenty woman waiting for me to buy some scarves which essentially was paying for my lift up and back down the river. I ended up buying four scarves but boy was I under a lot of pressure.  Which one should I buy? So I started to look at the individuals to decide who needed the money the most and I finally felt like I had done my share and hoped Frank would not be unhappy with the decision I had made.

Meanwhile I taught Loi English, met some local girls, had dinner with two Korean students, and said farewell to Fiona and Miguel.  But the best part is I joined Johnny again for a cave tour and finally swam in the river. It was wonderful and on the way to the next village I ran into Frank, Andreas, Melina and Loic once again.  Boy did they look exhausted!

Rainy Season in Borneo - Changing Travel plans

After our famous Orangutan trip we were sitting in Pangala bun in our hotel and discussing the next steps. We tried to get a flight to Benjarmasin, but many flights are full, as the bridge to Sempit was damaged and not accessible for buses anymore. We found one in two days and we were also evaluating the options in Samarinda. Hence we talked to a Dutch Tour Operator to organize a boat up the river Maklam. He said it would cost 6,8M pp and no other people could be joined. Only 300 tourists per year are doing this trip, so we were only us. We discussed back and forth and finally decided not to go into the heart of Borneo. First of all it was very expansive, second of all the transport possibilities are rare (there are almost no roads, so you have to take the boat or the plane) and last but not least we had rainy season, so every day we had quite a bit of rain:

Hence we decided to go to a region, where the sun shines and the rainy season would be over. We looked at the map and found LAOS. The weather would be similar to Myamar and we both have not been there. Our remote travel advisors Bjoern and Stefan agreed, so I started to evaluate flight options in the lobby of the Grand Kecubung Hotel and booked all the flights and hotels after some hours of research.

So we spend a last day in Pangala bun and enjoyed the heavy rain!

A Treasure Waiting to be discovered: Those Orange Hairy Apes!

Jumping into a Kalstar plane heading for Pangkalan Bun in Central Kalimantan located on the island of Borneo, I got the brilliant idea of doing The Cross-Borneo trek. It was listed as one of the top activities to do in the Lonely Planet.  The description of this trek explains that it is done in three stages which includes accessing two of Indonesian’s longest rivers, the Sungai Mahakam River, and the Sungai Kapuas River as well as crossing the Muller Mountain Range.   It is known to be an experience exclusively for those adventure-travel-seekers who are living on the edge of life. Realistically I know I don’t fit into this category but I still had visions of being one of those explorers who would manage to find my way into the very heart of Borneo by doing this adventure.

The first stage of this trek begins at Balikpapan where you travel overland to the exotic town of Samarinda known for its great Mosque. The Sungai Mahakam River flows some 930 km from its source where it ends at the east coast. You have to take a succession of boats from here until you arrive at Tiong Ohang. The journey takes a full week and there you see lakes, marshes, river towns, and wildlife.

The second stage is actually where the problem begins. The Muller Mountain range divides east Kalimantan from the west and you have to use guides in order to cross these treacherous slopes which are supposed to be filled with leeches and snakes among other undesirable wildlife like Malaria-carrying-Mosquitos. It entails walking eight hours a day in a forbidden jungle where you follow a guide while carrying a machete and all your food and water on your back.  The humidity is about 97% while at the same time, the rain comes and goes, creating a swampy mud like environment in which you have to survive until the end of this trek; because unlike the river trips there’s no turning back.  So this is the do or die part of the trip!

The third part of this trek begins with a boat ride taking one day along the upper Kapuas and then connecting to Sungai Bungan which is the most thrilling part of the journey. Then one has to fly from Putussibau to Pontianak since the boat which travels to the lower part of Kapuas is never running on a set schedule and can take weeks until the end the journey is in sight.  Luckily, my fantasy was quickly shattered by Frank’s realism since he not only reminded me of our trek from Kalaw to Inle Lake which crippled me for a few days but he also brought to my attention that this is rainy season and most likely everything is flooded and it would literally be impossible to do this trek.

 This was a trip that needed precise planning with the right equipment. So naturally he was right! What was I thinking? How quickly I had forgotten my pain from the last trek.

 We later realized how outrageously expensive this trek would cost. We thought we could at least do stage 1 of the trek with boats and fights to Balikpapan. For a three day boat trip it would cost us over 1000.00 dollars (6,8M IRP) per person and flying around this country is practically impossible since they have a limited number of flights per day and they are often sold out making it even more difficult to know when the trip will end.  We also looked at the limited time we had left on our Visa and decided not to risk it.

Instead we opted for a three day/two night Klotok boat trip which follows the Sekonyer River leaving from the port of Kumai at Pangkalan bun. We had contacted The King River Tour agent Harry (081 2500 0508);harnavia@yahoo.com, price 240 dollars = 3M IRP pp). He was very efficient and even met us at the plane to make sure we knew our tour would take place and everything had been already arranged.  We would start first thing the next morning.  We had booked The Swiss Bin Hotel which is a business class hotel. The hotel, food, bathroom was great but about three o’clock in the morning the mosque started its prayer announcements at full volume.

Oh my, what a way to start the day! We then asked Harry where we could stay after the trip because the prayer which is projected by loud speakers at full volume was very annoying and this hotel is far from the city center.  We booked the Grand Kecubung Hotel and met our new guide Dedy. Frank and I were so happy to find that Dedy could speak English perfectly and was an animal/photographer enthusiast just like we are.  He has an English wife and had lived in the U.K. and was currently back home for a period of time which coincided perfectly with our trip.

  As we drove through the town I noticed that there were several cement bunkers within the town. I had noticed them from the plane and thought that this town must have been in a major war at some point in time since they are reminiscent of the bunkers in Germany. The answer is no. Dedy replied that rich merchants build these concrete skyscrapers for the black swifts, a bird that builds a nest from their salvia and the Chinese are willing to pay a lot of money for these nest which they incorporate in their Bird nest soup.  In order to attract the birds the owner uses artificial bird sound recordings to attract them to his buildings.  The entire operation cost very little and generates a lot of money if the birds pick your building. The owner is usually the one who looks after the nests and they usually incorporate a shop at the bottom of the building which adds to their income.

We finally arrived at the docks, met our crew, the captain, his son who was the assistant and the cook, Paul and then came the offer of a life time.  “Frank, do you want to have some beers on this cruise?” asked Dedy.  Frank’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Sure, how about ten bottles of Bintang, having in mine that he could share them with the crew!” Of course it never occurred to him that they had to buy these beers on the black market since beer is forbidden in Pangkalan Bun.  They arrived back with a case telling him got two extra beers included since he bought so many.  When they told him the price, his jaw dropped. (600,000 IDR=36 Euros) for the case beer making it the expensive beer Frank has ever bought.  In the end it was a very wise decision since the crew took extremely good care of us.

We then headed up the river and were amazed at the beauty of the jungle and how thick it was.  On the right side was the Tanjung Putting National park and the other side was a fishing village and palm oil plantation but this could not be seen by the river.  We also noticed the muddy waters and assumed it was from the rainy season.  But Dedy had worked as a park ranger/ conservationist and quickly informed us that the muddy waters were coming from a gold mine just outside the reach of the national park area.  We ate a fantastic lunch which included a fish that we were unsure of how to eat.  It reappeared at dinnertime and I finally asked for help.  As we approached the first feeding station in the jungle it was raining like crazy and Dedy was not sure the rangers would feed them when the weather was so intense. Eventually it stopped and we went to check out the Orangutans which was a bit of o problem since we did not have any food with us.  We saw three gorillas who were waiting in the trees for food.

 We then decided to return and an aggressive male showed up coming out from the jungle. We hurried past but he continue to pursue us.  Dedy used some little rubber bands to deter him which worked only for a moment.  He continued on.  He was very close to us and won’t let up.  We finally crossed a bridge with water and he then vanished into the jungle. I was the most worried since my rain gear was the color of the bananas and I noticed he had is eyes on me! So my question is this what colors does an Orangutan see? Is there anyone out there who can help me with that answer? Unfortunately no one on this trip could.  The good news is that I don’t smell like a banana.

 The rain came and went but it always came down in vast waves of sheets which drenched everything it touched.  As we continued to cruise upriver we saw the Proboscis monkey, the long-tailed macaque, and the silver leaf monkey monkeys and numerous birds such as the Rhinoceros hornbill, the Oriental Hornbill and the Blue ear Kingfisher before we settled in for the night.  That night a wonder appeared. We could actually see a sky full of stars.

 Dedy was always prepared with different applications on his mobile phone where we could check out the different star constellations. Our bed for the night consisted of two mattresses side by side and the essential mosquito net. Sometime in the middle of the night it rained hard but our boat assistant was in position closing up the boat with plastic blinds which keep us safe from the water. Unfortunately the mosquitos manage to get it on my side and were attacking Frank the entire night, despite the msquito net. 

Early in the morning we swallowed our Malaria tablets enthusiastically now that we were deep in the jungle and the mosquitos were following us like mad dogs every minute of the day. We then headed to the smaller tributary which would take us up to Camp Leakey. At some point the river changed from its muddy color to deep black waters. 

Our adventure was just about to become more challenging.  First I have to say that our boat left the last tourist boat to take off that morning. So as four or five boats took off we were wondering why they were taking their time.  It never occurred to us that we were on board o race horse.  Within 20 minutes we had passed all the boats and had taken the lead by quite a distance.  This turned out to be a blessing in disguise because we soon came upon an impasse in the river which required a powerful engine.  Three boats were facing us and between us were several fallen trees which needed to either be cut or dragged away in order to allow the boats to pass. Dedy informed us that this was a common occurrence which is why they take care of where they park their boats for the night.

 The scene before us was chaotic and wild. Four guys were swimming in the crocodile infested river trying to remove the branches that several other guides were cutting with machetes.  Our crew used ropes that then were attached to the cut trees and then our captain reversed the boat with its mighty engine to pull the logs out of the way. It took a good forty minutes to create a free passage for the returning boats.

 We then continued upriver celebrating our victory. We passed the second feeding camp and arrived at Camp Leakey greeted by an elderly gentleman who smoked a cigarette on a long winding stick which served as a holder.   Dedy informed us that this man was his uncle and had worked here for twenty years. He also informed us to take care since there is a female Orangutan Sesery who was also known to be aggressive.  But as we crossed the boardwalk, we saw no signs of wildlife. Camp Leakey was created by a Canadian woman in the 1970s. At the information center we learned that not only forest clearing was a threat to the habitat but also gold mining, and the palm oil plantations.  More and more people are moving from Java to Borneo.

We then ate lunch and by that time we were done five other boats appeared out of nowhere and the tourist piled out and vanished into the jungle to visit the center and then to the next feeding.  We followed them a bit later which was to our advantage, we saw the King of Camp Leakey!  There he was drinking milk out of a bowl like a pussy cat.  King Tom took us by surprised and we laughed and he then turn and started at us which shut us fast enough quicker than you could spit.  He was a magnificent creature with kind eyes.  Dedy told us that when he wants to go into the food storage they simple open it for him because he has enough strength to tear it apart.  We also saw Sesery who looked as docile as a kitten and found it hard to believe that she was also an aggressive Orangutan.  We then went to the feeding grounds where we literally saw mothers with babies, young males and other individual swinging from the trees waiting patiently for their turn. 

  Here it was clear to see the hierarchy that rains over this species.  We then continued our next destination which was the fishing village which is across from the second feeding ground.  The village here housed maybe two hundred people.  Many of the buildings were no longer occupied since people had stopped fishing and had gone to work for the palm plantations.  It was not a wonder to see why when you looked at the poverty which was clearly present.  There was a mosque off to one side and a few little souvenir stands but not much was going on in this village.  The people we met were neither friendly nor hostile.  They simply accepted their day to day circumstances. We then proceeded to feeding station two where we were lucky and saw yet another king. King B has the reputation of being a kind king and we then saw members of his group moving in grabbing bananas in bunches and then disappearing into the forest. Here we saw four types of squirrels, the Prevost squirrel, the slender squirrel and the western stripped squirrel and the pygmy rat squirrel. This night we found our place to sleep and the clouds loomed over head and we would indeed have another rainy night ahead of us.  Dedy had organized three short films for us to watch while we waited for dinner which gave us further information into the lives of these wondrous creatures.

We finally back to the first feeding station and saw the third king with several of his group.  We never seem to tire of them.

 Dedy was a perfect guide always giving us plenty of time to do as we pleased while at the same time making sure we were safe.  We then returned to Pangkalan Bun were we slept at our new hotel The Grand Kecubung Hotel which we preferred since it gave us access to the town which has a population of 213,000.  The next day we set off to explore it landing at the waterfront.  We were amazed how friendly the people were and wanting to have their picture taken.  It was quite a different feeling to those we had in Africa.  I met several kids and had great conversations with their broken English.  We realized that most of the tourist never see the town.  We were the only ones there those two days.  Even at the western style café Iduna Bakery and Café, we were the only ones.  The woman working there spoke perfect English said seeing tourist is rarer than seeing the Orangutans!  We very much enjoyed the city but had to watch out for the spontaneous rainfall which would leave you drenched with no way of drying your clothes.  We also tried to get use to the artificial bird sound which continuous roared in our ears trying to attract those black swifts.  

 There was only one negative image I have from the town and that was that along the docks where the fishermen and their families live was highly polluted.  The people have little outhouses along the water where they take a dump, wash their clothes and themselves all in the same space.  As I talked to some boys they asked me what my hobbies were. I made the mistake of saying swimming and all their eyes brighten and tried to encourage me to go swimming in that river.  I faked a cough and told them maybe next time.  The trash between the buildings were also appalling, but the town itself was very clean and had won awards for being one of the cleanest towns in Indonesia.  That certainly made me think about Indonesia in general and how serious their pollution really is.  I just read an article in Spiegel describing the Komodo trip with diving tour which was describing the same places we had been to but not once describing the water and trash pollution which is clearly in this region.  It is a shame that the environmental issues are always put on the back burner while people want only to present a pretty picture of their vacation in order to sell it.

Unfinished Business in Flores

Sixteen years ago, Frank and I attempted to go to Flores to see the Komodo Dragons for our honeymoon. We had taken a small boat and landed on a small beach island where we were supposed to spend the night in Hammocks. It was freezing cold and we had one only one sleeping bag which Frank declared belong to him. I hardly slept that night and noticed the boat crew fussing with the boat. By morning we woke up to a rude awakening that our boat no longer functioned and they were sending us another boat to take us back to where we had begun. We then attempted to fly to Flores with Merpati Airlines but in the end the flight was cancelled. So we then took a ferry to Lombok and climbed Mt. Rinjani instead which turned out to be a great experience even though it was hard on both of us for different reasons. For Frank, his knees were hurting as he made the descent. For me, I was unusually tired and later found out that I was pregnant with Adrian! 

Now we were back and wanted to complete this unfinished business of seeing the dragons. Times have changed in Indonesia which we noticed the minute we arrived in Ubud on Bali. This once quiet and open village was now heavily clustered with trinket shops, vegetarian restaurants, yoga centers and esoteric shops selling stones. The only good news we were staying at a wonderful hotel Pandok Pundi. We loved the family, food was great and the atmosphere was quiet and beautiful. The massages were only 6 dollars and definitely saved my life after our 60km Trek that messed up my knee and foot.

 We enjoyed our quiet Christmas and even met a group of Hindu ladies where we had a small Christmas party together. It was their first one! They explained how their daily lives are and how integrated the Hindu ritual is which includes making forty offering at the beginning of the day and then setting them around at different locations.

Frank then booked us a flight out heading toward Flores. At this moment it feels like all of Indonesia is doing a facelift. Both Bali and Flores are getting new airports, streets and harbors. Arriving at the Flores airport, a young man with wild hair greeted us and said Welcome to the jungle, do you need a Taxi? Frank was quick to reply and said “No thanks.”  But later we learned that there is normally No Taxi service, so we should be happy to hook up with these guys.  However we were in luck because shortly afterwards our hotel’s shuttle bus showed up with some other guests. The airport was small chaotic and muddy. It was pretty unbelievable. Even one of the airport managers made the comment that Obama didn’t even come to see the dragons. Frank and I looked at each other and then looked at the mud and laughed. We booked La Prima since it was the only one available during this time. Frank was worried since it was not our style since it is a modern hotel. In the end we felt blessed to have it since it was on the beach and is quietly located 2 km away from Labaun Bajo. This main small harbor town contains not one or two mosques but three mosques which blear out their prayers throughout the day (and night!)

 We arranged a boat to take us for two days with one overnight. Frank picked the agency Perama which coincidently was our original company from the past. We laughed and hoped this one would work out better. My only request was to have a captain and a cook with a good sense of humor, and that was just what we got; Anton and Emmanuel plus two stowaway friends of the captain.  We sailed off to the island of Rinca where we landed and immediately were confronted with aggressive dragons. One in particular had already attacked three people so we had to stay in a group as we passed them. 

We then continued on a medium trek and saw a wild pig, birds, lizards, yellow monkeys, and where the dragons laid their eggs. We learned that they are solitary animals and eat their own species including the young dragons and their eggs as well. The young dragons survive by climbing in the trees and live there until they are ready to take on the big ones. We saw one adolescent and one adult in the jungle.

But you could always see some dragons hanging around the kitchen of the rangers. That was quite disappointing and could be easily fixed with a barrier between ranger’s quarters and dragons, but that was not interesting to the rangers who like it the way it is. 

We then headed to Pink Beach where we snorkeled and saw wonderful fishes and even a manta ray. We then headed to a small fishing village on Komodo Island where our entire crew disappeared and we walked around the small fishing village. We bought some drinks and greeted many of the locals. We were mesmerized at their houses and how they currently were rebuilding many of the roofs out of tin. There were hawkers selling goods everywhere and the poverty level was clear to see. That seemed to be a big mystery to us since the Komodo Dragons National Park fees are expensive and clearly the small fishing village that shares the island doesn’t see one penny of that money.

Our crew returned to the boat with happy faces. They had won their soccer team against the other team.  We then moved our boat to a place where we would see the flying foxes take off in the morning.  The heat of the sun finally hit me and I had a headache that would not stop. I fell asleep to the sound of the generators and eagles catching fishes. Frank stayed on the roof and tried to sleep but the generators were annoying. 

When they finally stopped he slept well while I was sweating like a pig in my bunk on the floor.  I was only thankful that there wasn’t any night creatures crawling around on board. The crew slept everywhere on board our small board. There is nothing like the sound of five snoring men…

The second day was a wakeup call as we saw the swarm of flying foxes disappear in the jungle of Komodo Island. We arrived at the Komodo Island which was a duplicate of Rinca Island. Frank told the rangers they needed to change their National Park, but again the rangers looked at us like we were crazy. We then went snorkeling twice, saw a shark and another manta ray. I was surprised to see how much marine life was there to see considering how much garbage could be seen floating through the waters. In general I would not give Indonesia high marks on recycling and ecology. Both Frank and I had all our energy drained out from us and we both suffered sunburns despite sun protection.  Frank had started the trip with a strong Haka pose and before the end was reduced to a man in extreme pain.

We spent the next two days recovering and got ready for a New Year’s Eve in Labaun Bajo. I was not sure what to expect since this town is predominately Moslem, but actually we had a great time. We started off by eating dinner at an Italian restaurant with a wonderful view to the harbor where all the random fireworks were being shot off. There is no regulation here so the people seem to drift from one party to the next wishing everyone Happy New Year. We joined in first going to the harbor then meeting our captain Anton and the entire crew of friends plus family members. We danced in a water puddle with a disco light swinging over our heads which was more than bizarre. My hips definitely are not made for swaying back and forth. We finally returned to our hotel, to yet another party with fireworks being set off on the beach. We both finally collapsed in our beds, knowing we had to leave early the next day for Bali.  

So we wish all of you out there a Happy New Years for 2014!