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Day 126 – Borobudur

“When you realize how perfect everything is, you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky.” – Gautama Buddha as quoted in Civilization V Brave New World

Saying goodbye to Andy who hosted us for a couple of days. He even prepared lunch care packages for us today.

Saying goodbye to Andy who hosted us for a couple of days. He even prepared lunch care packages for us today.

Before heading out, we had one last morning with Andy. He really pulled all the stops for us. Not least of all getting up with us at 7 in the morning. Staff in the cafe remarked on the fact that they have never seen him around this early. Once again, all we can give is our appreciation and gratitude for what he has done for us. We had breakfast together, got the bike out and loaded up. After we got one last of Andy’s treat for the road, all that was left was to say goodbye. It has been a great weekend, just what we needed and a pleasure to meet fine Andy again. Hugs and goodbye, back on the road.

All the routing tips from Andy were absolutely golden. The first one led us away from the truck laden main highway through the fresh green countryside towards our first goal of the day: Borobodur.

Stairs leading up to the platform on top

Stairs leading up to the platform on top

We were a bit apprehensive about going. The price tag is hefty on our new Indo adjusted budget and we had such a bad experience at the Mother Temple on Bali. But then again, it is on the cover of our Lonely planet, so what can you do? Overly prepared to be annoyed we actually ended up having a pretty good time. Yes, the hawkers were the worst in Java, but on the other hands there was almost no crowd. Borobudur is impressive for a 1200 year old structure, with great scenery to boot, but not on the level of the Vatican, Milford Sound or Uluru. I wanted to come here, if only to bag as many Civ wonders along the way as possible and we did not leave disappointed.

Right after the Temple, we stopped in a roadside warung to get some drinks to go with our treats from Andy. The panini with home made pesto were soooo good! We will miss Andy, but we will also miss his food 🙂

And, of course, along the coast

And, of course, along the coast

On we went, following the south coast to Cilacap. Once again, we have to thank Andy for the recommendation. The traffic was light. We passed over several hills and through beautifully green fields and were in Cilacap by 4 pm. For the first time in a long while, we had a bit of a challenge in finding a room for the night. The first hotel was out of our league, the second I turned down because of the horrible smell of cigarettes in the room. We ended up in a rather odd place in the end: The go-to business hotel for the local (state run) Pertamina refinery. The price fit though, and the next day we got the manager really excited when he realised that we were on a big touring bike, so all was well.

Day 124 – Bikes, big and small

I have been in contact with Andy for a while before we came here and he was helping me to sort out a spare part that was getting urgent. The brake pads on the front breaks (the Transalp has two disks on the front wheel) where getting precariously close to the wear indicator. Luckily, there is one bike sold in Indonesia that uses the same pads (for the most part), the “enormous” CBR 250 ABS. Although the parts list say that only the right side is compatible, I found that the same model could be used for the left side if a spacer from the old set is reused.

Andy found a shop that at least has one pair and was going to drop me off there to get things worked out from here (and check on the state of one of his bikes in the shop). When we turned up they did not only produce one but two sets of pads for me, so all I had to do was get Rocinante and fit them to be 100% sure. Andy rode us to where Rocinante was safely stored away and showed me the way back to the shop. I was back there in no time.

The engineer who rode my bike into the shop got jealous stares from everyone else. I was more worried about my bike. Sure, the Indonesians can ride, but they are used to half the weight and power. At least they picked the tallest guy in the shop and he could almost reach the ground with his feet …

The work was done in 10 minutes and once we found the ABS reset plug everything was good to go. Both sides fitted. It was just in time as well as the old ones both were down to 0.7mm and the wear indicator.

Later that day, I got to use Andy’s tools (well, a rubber mallet) to have a go at my dented pannier. It worked pretty well. I hope the fancy mounting brackets of the ZEGA II pro will last the rest of the trip though. They are starting to bend and warp all over.

The rest of the day was a continuation of yesterday. Chilling, good conversations and a great dinner from Andy. This time we got his take on Indonesian food. I tell you, the eggplants in chilli were to die for! Later I found out that Andy is not only a good cook but also magically efficient in getting the kitchen back into shape. Colour me impressed!

Day 123 – please re-charge to avoid data loss (4th Month-y-versary)

Andy dishing up delicious home-made food for the hungry mob

Andy dishing up delicious home-made food for the hungry mob

This one will be short and sweet, since the two main activities today were eating and sleeping. Albeit, it was some of the best eating and sleeping we have done in a long while. This was mostly to the credit of our amazing host, Andy. Even though his other half Shita was out of town and he was busy as, he made us feel so comfy and welcome. This was the best stay for us since Herman’s place back in Dili, over a month ago now.

Nina st ayed in bed most of the day to recover, mostly coming out for great food. It started with a decadent breakfast across the street. Great muesli, fresh juice and cinnamon rolls. Lunch was sorted with a cheap as chips takeaway nasi campur. In between we both read and watched some youtube, catching up on our favourite channels (happy late Pizzamas to all Nerdfighters).

The calm before the digging in

The calm before the digging in

Andy was busy getting the work sorted out for the four backpackers for most of the day, but we got some time to chat about bikes and travel in the afternoon and more after dinner. Andy got some really cool bike projects going. He also helped me forge a plan for tomorrow, getting Rocinante’s front breaks and oil change sorted out.

Dinner was the golden highlight of the day. Since the four backpackers get meals on top of their free accommodation, Andy put his skills as a chef to great use and prepared Italian food for the nine of us (including the other house guest and visiting Brasilian intern). Spaghetti, salad, home made pesto and heaps of homemade pizzas rolled out of the tiny kitchen in their café / shop. Cooking on a boat really seems to hone that talent for efficient use of space. The taste was none the less impressive. I loved sitting in the café, the long table buzzing with people and food and good conversation.

No doubt, we needed, no still need that break. But this is as good a place to have it as we could wish for.

Day 121 – Rain in Solo

Nothing to keep us

Nothing to keep us

Our plans were a bit in pieces since we did not manage to get all the way to Pacitan. We did not feel like adding another day here before getting to Solo (also known as Surakarta, don’t ask), hence we passed on the first couple of beach detours along the way and headed straight for a Pacitan beach proper. The one we picked, closer to town was already developed for Indonesian tourists. That means no vegetation behind the beach, a vast desolate beachfront with moderate amounts of rubbish and some “fancy” places right at the beachfront with a bit of a view. All in all it was nothing that could coax us to stay for more than a coffee, especially with it being too hot to swim. We could have gone and check out one of the more remote beaches, but we were not feeling it today.

Adi, who was taking the first group shot

Adi, who was taking the first group shot

So off we went north towards Solo. About half an hour or so later, our bellies started rumbling once more (Nina’s a bit more than mine, she was not feeling too well) and we were looking for a place for lunch. For a moment, I was almost decided on heading out again from the palace we stopped. Now I am super glad I did not. For one, we had a really nice noodle soup and the Es Jeruk (Fresh citrus fruit juice on ice) was the best in a long while. But more important was what followed when we were about to leave after our lunch. Adi, the sweet proprietor, tried to make a point and with google translate it turned out he was pointing out we should have a longer break. A brief look outside explained why: Thick dark clouds were gathering and is was just about to start to rain. The rainy season has started in earnest now. That was all the convincing we needed. I got to put my bike inside under the roof and we all settled in for an hour or so to sit out the rain.

Apri and Bangun

Apri and Bangun

Adi dished out another round of Es Jeruk on the house for us, I got the second pineapple out and shared it in return with him and his wife. Then I got talking to two other fellas on a road trip with their Kawasaki Supermoto, Apri and Bangun. With the pleasant company and in a safe place, time really flew. Nina used the break to chill out and recharge her batteries a bit watching the rain soak the surrounding rice fields. When the rain stopped and it was time to go on, it was smiles all around and we all gathered around for a customary group shot around the bike.

too empty for our taste

too empty for our taste

Coming into Solo, I was surprised of how little was going on on the streets for a city this size. Traffic was almost easy and we found a hotel right next to the action in no time. The reason we were going to Solo was for Nina to check out the local Batik manufacturing and maybe get a present or two to send home. So after checking in, parking the bike securely and having our customary post-road shower, we got some time left to explore the “Batik Quarter”. Turns out, that same as in the rest of the city, the “sidewalks have been flipped up” as we say in Germany. Most shops and manufactures were closed. One was open, though it was the fanciest in town. Nina and I were quite overwhelmed with their massive store and their hefty prices. We still enjoyed a little tour though and having a look at the manufacturing process in the very back of the shop. Sadly, no pictures were allowed there.

For dinner we went out to a street recommended in the Lonely Planet. Next to the old Dutch fort, a street is closed off for traffic daily and a whole armada of stalls woe for the attention of potential diners. Only that, most like in the rest of town, no one was really out. We could count the people dining on two hands, with about three times as many stalls waiting on customers.  At least it did not detract from the taste. Nina got a grilled corn on the cobb and I had another delicious round of sate. All was well, except for Nina’s belly …

Nina’s comment: I started having stomach troubles in the morning and it didn’t get better during the day so I had a hard time riding the bike till Solo. Wasn’t very social and also not up to much.

Day 120 – Crashes

This could have been an uneventful day. Our only goal for today: Eat miles! With over 350 km to go till Solo, our next “want to see” item on the list, it was clear that we had to stop somewhere along the way, but no place was coming forward as a logical stopping point. All we did was set a route as far south as possible and got going. To force us south and avoid going through the busy and populated middle I set a waypoint on what I thought to be the last proper road somewhere half way between Malang and Pacitan.

This looks promising, and less traffic as well.

This looks promising, and less traffic as well.

After a light breakfast we got on the road early and were in for the first section of pain. The urban traffic of Malang was exhaustingly slow going. I would not mind if there were a ring road or motorway around, but everyone has to go right through the heart of the city. Two hours later we had covered maybe 20 km.

From here on out it got better, but in no way enjoyable. It seems that every possible stretch of flat land on Java is one endless settled mess. Rubbish, vehicle, people all moving about each other. The roads are good but full. It was one long exercise in overtaking. Everything was made even harder by a bunch of the worst drivers in Indonesia to this point. In ascending order: slow cars – Mostly new ones, so I expect inexperienced drivers plus tiny 800cc engines. Black Mitsubishi pickups – The primary means of short range haulage, most drivers think they are the main character in Gone in 60 seconds. Plus, they constantly try to squeeze in with the bikes and block everything. But the crown of jerks must go to bus drivers – The number of times we have seen these 10t death wielders force others off the road in just three short days is shocking. They stop where they want, they go where they want and I am sure if they were allowed to mount crash bars they would start pushing the people in front out of their way.

3 more seconds. See the deep rut on the right?

3 more seconds. See the deep rut on the right?

It was on a more densely settled stretch that we witnessed our first accident. We heard it mostly. With the sound of a giant water bottle being crumpled, someone came off their scooter just behind us. We stopped to check a couple of meters down and saw the rider crumpled on the ground, but there were already a bunch of others on the case. Plus, people started looking at us. We were not directly involved, but maybe someone was distracted by us or something. We felt it prudent to leave to avoid getting into a pickle here.

Then suddenly 50 km on, the same road took a turn and everything became bliss. There were steep mountains on the horizon, and when we hit them, the traffic turned to a trickle. The road got windy and settlements ended. We had a short rest in this stunning scenery, at a spot where we could even see the sea. Further down, the road became this beautiful brand new strip of tarmac, leading along the beach and sweeping on a new bridge over the river. And then, it stopped. The brand new road ended in a gravel track. On the GPS I saw another road maybe 500m down, and the gavel was not looking too bad. Even after a small river crossing … see, there was the other road, 50m ahead, just up the … very steep washed out track. Hmm. Nina got off and thus catastrophe commenced. Ten meters short of the seal, I hit a rut and dropped the bike. Nina was there in no time and we got the bike up again. A check revealed only minor damage. Good. When I got back up, Nina let go of the bike due to a miscommunication on my part and I fell hard into the exact same rut. Sandstone! This time, one of the paniers got a dent and a bunch of nasty scrapes and our mood was down to arctic levels.

The dent can be bashed back out, miffed about the sticker though ...

The dent can be bashed back out, miffed about the sticker though …

After a long breather and an assortment of curse words, we were now on the right road. Only to learn that it too would end just around the corner. So would every other, leaving only gravel tracks to go further. It turns out that I marked a gravel track as our waypoint and have led us into a 35km dead end 🙁 – Ah well, at least these were the nice 35 km. That, unfortunately also removed all hope to get to Pacitan in time tonight. Back where we took the wrong turn, I checked for hotels along the road and found two about 45 km further along. It would be a bit of a push but that seemed doable.

What followed was one of the nicest stretches of road in Indonesia, yet. A winding road led over the mountains towards the sea again. There was barely any traffic. The views were gorgeous and our spirits rose while our butts started to cave. We made it to Panggul on the coast by 5pm and the hotel was within our price range. We even found a warung with a lovely owner staying open for us so that we could get a dinner.

Day 118 – Overdue (Stats 103 Timor-Leste)

cc-by Nicolas Raymond

cc-by Nicolas Raymond

A lot of little things to do accumulate when we are travelling. Most of the time, we do not get through all of them in our evening downtime. Or the required facilities are not around (WiFi, Laundries etc). So the little scratches, tears and aches accumulate, until it is time to just not move, rest, watch a movie and get through our homework.

We stayed in our Probbolingo hotel for one more day. They had WiFi, a good warung across the street and bug-free beds (I murdered a lone bedbug, but I feel that we have brought that with us).

We got our mid-term plans for Indonesia to Malaysia shipping and a visit to my dad in Thailand over Christmas / New Year’s sorted out in concept. There is even time to finally do the Timor-Leste stats post. So here we go. Continue reading →

Day 116 – By any means

Sadly, she decided not to lay eggs (before we were allowed there). Only 30% nests compared to last year.

Sadly, she decided not to lay eggs (before we were allowed there). Only 30% nests compared to last year.

The moon stood almost full in the sky, peeking through impressive backlit clouds. The surf was thundering a couple of meters away and there is no light but the moon’s. Excitedly, our little party patrolled the beach. We spotted tracks in the sand, but the real goal of this nightly adventure was nowhere to be seen, until finally: A one meter long greenback turtle was spotted, scuttling over the beach. The ranger turned on his torch, we walked up from behind not to disturb it. What a magnificent sight. We are once again humbled and stunned by our trip.  How did we get here?

Continue reading →

Day 114 – The Leberwurst Connection

It was almost a sin not to have taken a photo of our marvelous breakfast. Then again, some things should be enjoyed uninterrupted. We decided to go all in with the level of the accommodation and have breakfast there. It was excellent: Freshly toasted home made bread, local made jams, fresh fruit salad, scrambled egg and fresh juice. It was so delicious! We even had briefly considered staying another night, but after that breakfast we were thoroughly luxuried out.

View back north where we came from

View back north where we came from

We took our time and were back on the road by 11 am. By chance of our starting position, our GPS chose a beautiful back road back up the mountain towards our first goal. The three lakes looked cool on the map and as expected delivered on beautiful roads and moderate amounts of tourists.

We briefly dipped down to the lakes themselves, but found little to hold us for longer. The first one was the most touristy and after realizing that we stopped in front of another temple. Half way out of our gear we did a 180° and were back on the road in no time. The second lake was quieter and had the first campground we found in Indonesia on its shores. It was too early to think of camping and the warung had no food – so after a quick drink with lake view we headed for the ridge road over the last two lakes.

at lunch, great spot

at lunch, great spot

Coming in we saw that the ridge road had plenty of eateries with a view, so that is where we were heading for. The road held true with all levels of eateries. We ended up stopping at a top end warung run by a french expat. He had the trees on the lake side cleared and put up tables across the street so that guest could eat with a view. I had a chat with the owner, who it turned out had been travelling quite a bit in his day.

I still did not make it all the way back to our table after that. As happened in New Zealand, a couple on vacation from Germany noticed the German licence plate on Rocinante and we got talking some more. Alexandra and Patrick seemed definitively to be on the nicer end of tourists we encounter. Just earlier that day we had another weird run in with Germans that re-affirmed our dislike for “touristy” areas. We got asked the same disinterested questions and then got ignored while answering because they had to purchase ridiculously overpriced rubbish from hawkers. Anyway, we gave a business card to Alexandra and Patrick when they left and soon after headed out ourselves.

german welcome for a german bike

german welcome for a german bike

The last itinerary for the day before finding a place to stay. Back in Dili, we got an address from fellow German traveller Hubert – go and say hi to Richard at his place in Lovina. Aptly named “Deutsches Eck” (German corner) we were in for a rough culture shock. Richard has build himself a good life here, with a family and a good little hotel. As we were ready to head out again to find a place to stay (the rooms here are a bit too pricey for us) Richard offered us to stay on the bale bengong (A 3x3m raised platform with a roof for shade that is out front most houses for chilling during the day). We got a mosquito net and there were even blinds, all for an unbeatable fee for the night. When he threw in the promise of “Leberwurst” and sour dough bread, we could not refuse, could we?

So we stuck around for the night, chatted to Richard’s sons, other guests and German expats that came by and gathered further contacts along what we dubbed the “Leberwurst Connection” – a row of German expats along our further path through Indonesia. Speaking German again and even seeing German dishes on the menu was cool and supremely weird at the same time. Definitively something we will need to process a bit once back on the road.

Day 111 – Cruising

Taking aim ...

Taking aim …

I was surprised when we did our daily bookkeeping to learn that we only traveled 48 km today. Feels like more. Never the less, it was a good day. Not mind blowing, but enjoyable and entertaining.

It started alright with a good breakfast – which says something. Breakfast is often included in the room prices, but at 175k per night for two, the money has to be saved somewhere. So breakfast, in westernized establishments is usually either a pancake or two slices of whiter than white toast, plus tea or coffee. Since many locals prefer nasi goreng or rice cake, the pancakes are usually of dubious quality. Not this time though! The pancakes were excellent, we got fresh fruit to go with them. For a bit of colour, as our host said 🙂 – what a great start of the day. Continue reading →

Day 106 – Tourism

No, this is not a holiday. We are travelers. A clarification that I had to use more than once in the last week. The point becomes infinitely harder to make as soon as we get off the bike and base ourselves somewhere. And twice over, if that base is in an area “developed for tourism”.

No, no, no! I don't want to buy anything!!!

No, no, no! I don’t want to buy anything!!!

By why is that so important to me? Well, for starters, because we do not have the money that tourists have, nor their naivete for that matter.  No, I don’t want your overpriced trinkets, no massages, please stop hollering. I know how western food tastes like and have my own transport. But worst of all, it destroys most access on a personal level. All interactions of a tourist with the host environment are business transactions. This is the opposite of the genuine human element that we are looking for.

Is this our own fault? Are we not looking hard enough or looking in the wrong places? Maybe. For now our first lesson is to be weary of any place with a “great break”. For some reason, surfer beaches are filthy, westernized places of dread for us. Cheap booze, dirty sleeps and modified scooters with surfboards, ridden by shirtless “dudes”. Definitively not our scene.

So much like Tropico, I was looking for my cursor

So much like Tropico, I was looking for my cursor

So after all this sermon, you might be surprised that we stayed another night in Kuta Lombok. Well, it was too hot and our motivation was at rock bottom. We stayed close to the fan and Wifi and mostly did nothing much. One thing was sure though, we were through with Lombok’s south coast.

Around lunch time, enough energy was gathered to head out for one excursion to a restaurant recommended by the Lonely Planet. We did even manage to pack beach gear for an eventual afternoon at one of the “gems” promised by the same. Well, the restaurant was closed for renovations. At least there was another one right next door – although it was also in the “tourist” price range, about 2-3x more expensive than local food. The view was good though and we decided to risk it. The food was OK, we liked the chilly cheese popper and we got an instagram out of it that looked like a HD rendering of Tropico III.

not for us ...

not for us …

I’ll keep the “beach” experience brief. A filthy beach surrounded by scorched wasteland soon to be developed into a cheap faceless resorts. Currently only interesting for surfers. We fled.

As we were cruising back (very slowly, as we chose to ride without gear and stick to 30km/h) relieving clouds rolled in. And actually coalesced into proper rain clouds. Which later on would even lead to actual rain. Wohoo … still far less than would be normal for this time of the year though, thanks to El Niño.

And thus concluded our day. We loved the higher regions, the green and the serenity of Gunung Rinjani but we were bitterly disappointed by the savanna and the tourist of the south. Tomorrow, we will leave for Bali. There is a promise of lush green, but also of millions of tourists waiting for us. Will we be able to find some more of what we are looking for there?