Francesca and Henk-Jan's Backpacking Trip!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Getting Out Of Jakarta...
The morning of our tour we woke up early to meet our guide and driver at 9:00 am: Mr. Budi (our guide) and Mr. Topik (our driver) would guide us around for the next 10 days of our time in Indonesia. After getting our bags in the car, we learned they had driven from Yogyakarta to Jakarta starting the evening before at 5:00 pm. They had only arrived at the B&B at 5:00 am, with no rest from their journey! Wow, that surprised us. We didn’t think our guides would drive all the way from Yogyakarta rather than be from Jakarta, but they did.
Our first destination in Jakarta was the Monas (National Monument) I told you all about earlier. Yes, this is the famous ‘erection’ of Jakarta. We first had to get through the traffic however, passing though a concert in the streets which we first mistook for a protest. It was funny to see the police drinking beer, enjoying the concert, rather than attempting to keep order!
We followed Budi into the Monument, letting him get our tickets and guide us through, cutting quite a few lines in the process. We read all the displays in the ‘historical’ area, which told us about Indonesia’s history – the Dutch occupation, the revolts and riots towards independence, and the final gaining of independence. Then we moved outside to get a closer look at the monument itself, exploring an inside room. We opted not to go to the top since the line looked like it would take more than 40 minutes to conquer.
Next was a trip to the ‘Mini Indonesia.’ I had read that this place was extremely interesting, having houses from all over Indonesia, giving examples of some of the 800+ different tribes throughout the 1700 islands that form the country. At first, it looked to have some cool things. There were different houses, labeled the ‘Sumatra’ house and other traditional Indonesian-style houses. Upon entering the houses, there were bedroom and living room sets from the specific culture, along with examples of their traditional clothing and artifacts.
As we walked further into the area however, we saw less open and finished houses and more half-completed, ‘under construction,’ or even completely closed off houses. Some were closed because it was a Sunday, others because they were being used for various local events or gatherings. Regardless of the reason, it looked like we were only going to get to see less than 1/5th of the park. Not cool!
Tired and frustrated with our guide’s lack of knowledge about the park (he hadn’t been to Jakarta in 3 years… but that’s what you get in 3rd world countries I guess) I devoured an ice-cream and asked Henk if we could try going into the on-site museum. Good idea! We went in, and there was finally a decent wealth of information for us. There were rows and rows of traditional costumes, artifacts, and some really cool traditional musical instruments that a museum worker showed us how to play. One of the exhibits I thought was pretty cool was a display of a ‘Traditional Bridal Room in Southern Sumatra.’ In this room, the number of pillows determines the social standing of the couple that has gotten married.
After the Mini Indonesia, we were really ready to leave the city. Our plan for that evening was to drive from Jakarta to Bandung via the Puncak highland through the tea plantations. We made sure to start stocking up on some snacks in the supermarkets, and I even managed to score some KFC for lunch. (I just need to mention, it is not that I ‘mind’ trying new foods. I love new things! It’s just that I have a very weak stomach when it comes to ‘new’ foods and I enjoy familiar tastes. I have to say: American fast food, I’d starve without you in 3rd world countries for sure.)
That evening, Henk and I were dropped off at our $20/night hotel called the ’Puri Cenkeh’. We filled up on our purchased snacks and decided against getting dinner, just glad to be sitting still (not in a car) for a moment.
The next morning, November 9th, we were supposed to meet our driver and guide at 8:00 am for a half-day tour of the supposed interesting local sites. Good! A half-day tour means we get to sleep for the rest of the day, I just wish they could have decided to pick us up a bit later… say, after 12:00 pm noon? Anyways, we headed first for our morning tour of Tangkuban Perahu volcano crater and planned after that to visit the Sari Ater natural hot springs. Indonesia is one of the most naturally ‘violent’ places on the planet. Consisting of numerous islands dotted with volcanoes, craters, and huge mountains, it is amazing that Java Island is in as few pieces as it is – not as many. In fact, Indonesia has over 129 active volcanoes; more than any other country! God, I hope nothing decides to burst while we’re here. It’s not unlikely…
Henk and I opted to pay for a local guide, which in retrospect was completely unnecessary. At the time, I was worried the condition of the volcanic crater was more dangerous, and the path to get down it more complex. However, the guide basically led us down a straight path, and explained no more to us than we already knew, or read on the signposts. Plus at $25.00, he was insanely expensive – especially for Indonesia. I know, we got ripped off. But we were determined to not let it happen again, and be warier next time. Traveling in the 3rd world is NOT simple! Be wary!
Next we went to relax in the hot springs. Henk had jumped out of the car just before that to take some pictures of the tea plantations. The hot springs – which was more akin to a hotel plus a strange amusement/fun park – was no more than a dip with our feet in some natural spring heated waters. We decided there were far more interesting and expansive craters and springs in New Zealand and chose to walk around instead. Getting a bit bored, we headed back to the car and asked to be dropped back off at our hotel. For dinner that evening, Henk had a nasi (rice) dish from KFC and I ate some snacks from the supermarket, after finding my chicken to be grossly undercooked and deciding not to eat it. We also tried to find an internet café, but quickly gave up after getting freaked out trying to cross crazy Indonesia streets. These people are insane drivers! But I’ll let Henk tell you more about that.
Francesca
Our first destination in Jakarta was the Monas (National Monument) I told you all about earlier. Yes, this is the famous ‘erection’ of Jakarta. We first had to get through the traffic however, passing though a concert in the streets which we first mistook for a protest. It was funny to see the police drinking beer, enjoying the concert, rather than attempting to keep order!
We followed Budi into the Monument, letting him get our tickets and guide us through, cutting quite a few lines in the process. We read all the displays in the ‘historical’ area, which told us about Indonesia’s history – the Dutch occupation, the revolts and riots towards independence, and the final gaining of independence. Then we moved outside to get a closer look at the monument itself, exploring an inside room. We opted not to go to the top since the line looked like it would take more than 40 minutes to conquer.
Next was a trip to the ‘Mini Indonesia.’ I had read that this place was extremely interesting, having houses from all over Indonesia, giving examples of some of the 800+ different tribes throughout the 1700 islands that form the country. At first, it looked to have some cool things. There were different houses, labeled the ‘Sumatra’ house and other traditional Indonesian-style houses. Upon entering the houses, there were bedroom and living room sets from the specific culture, along with examples of their traditional clothing and artifacts.
As we walked further into the area however, we saw less open and finished houses and more half-completed, ‘under construction,’ or even completely closed off houses. Some were closed because it was a Sunday, others because they were being used for various local events or gatherings. Regardless of the reason, it looked like we were only going to get to see less than 1/5th of the park. Not cool!
Tired and frustrated with our guide’s lack of knowledge about the park (he hadn’t been to Jakarta in 3 years… but that’s what you get in 3rd world countries I guess) I devoured an ice-cream and asked Henk if we could try going into the on-site museum. Good idea! We went in, and there was finally a decent wealth of information for us. There were rows and rows of traditional costumes, artifacts, and some really cool traditional musical instruments that a museum worker showed us how to play. One of the exhibits I thought was pretty cool was a display of a ‘Traditional Bridal Room in Southern Sumatra.’ In this room, the number of pillows determines the social standing of the couple that has gotten married.
After the Mini Indonesia, we were really ready to leave the city. Our plan for that evening was to drive from Jakarta to Bandung via the Puncak highland through the tea plantations. We made sure to start stocking up on some snacks in the supermarkets, and I even managed to score some KFC for lunch. (I just need to mention, it is not that I ‘mind’ trying new foods. I love new things! It’s just that I have a very weak stomach when it comes to ‘new’ foods and I enjoy familiar tastes. I have to say: American fast food, I’d starve without you in 3rd world countries for sure.)
That evening, Henk and I were dropped off at our $20/night hotel called the ’Puri Cenkeh’. We filled up on our purchased snacks and decided against getting dinner, just glad to be sitting still (not in a car) for a moment.
The next morning, November 9th, we were supposed to meet our driver and guide at 8:00 am for a half-day tour of the supposed interesting local sites. Good! A half-day tour means we get to sleep for the rest of the day, I just wish they could have decided to pick us up a bit later… say, after 12:00 pm noon? Anyways, we headed first for our morning tour of Tangkuban Perahu volcano crater and planned after that to visit the Sari Ater natural hot springs. Indonesia is one of the most naturally ‘violent’ places on the planet. Consisting of numerous islands dotted with volcanoes, craters, and huge mountains, it is amazing that Java Island is in as few pieces as it is – not as many. In fact, Indonesia has over 129 active volcanoes; more than any other country! God, I hope nothing decides to burst while we’re here. It’s not unlikely…
Henk and I opted to pay for a local guide, which in retrospect was completely unnecessary. At the time, I was worried the condition of the volcanic crater was more dangerous, and the path to get down it more complex. However, the guide basically led us down a straight path, and explained no more to us than we already knew, or read on the signposts. Plus at $25.00, he was insanely expensive – especially for Indonesia. I know, we got ripped off. But we were determined to not let it happen again, and be warier next time. Traveling in the 3rd world is NOT simple! Be wary!
Next we went to relax in the hot springs. Henk had jumped out of the car just before that to take some pictures of the tea plantations. The hot springs – which was more akin to a hotel plus a strange amusement/fun park – was no more than a dip with our feet in some natural spring heated waters. We decided there were far more interesting and expansive craters and springs in New Zealand and chose to walk around instead. Getting a bit bored, we headed back to the car and asked to be dropped back off at our hotel. For dinner that evening, Henk had a nasi (rice) dish from KFC and I ate some snacks from the supermarket, after finding my chicken to be grossly undercooked and deciding not to eat it. We also tried to find an internet café, but quickly gave up after getting freaked out trying to cross crazy Indonesia streets. These people are insane drivers! But I’ll let Henk tell you more about that.
Francesca
3 Comments:
Hallo,
Hier ben ik weer,ik heb alle verhalen gelezen,en ze waren weer net als altijd. Prachtig.
Met dit verschil, dat ik veel herken in jullie ervaringen.Als je wat koopt,dan vragen ze maar wat,dus altijd afdingen. En dan het verschil tussen arm en rijk. De hotels zijn soms zo mooi,en een paar honderd meter verder is het pure armoede. Maar het zijn zulke vriendelijke mensen,toen tenminste nog wel. Maar ze hebben in de loop van de tijd, ook meer te horen gekregen over de rijke landen,via TV e.d. En daar willen ze graag een graantje van meepikken. Geef ze eens ongelijk.Maar wat maken jullie een mooie tijd mee.Francesca ,wij jij vindt het erg warm daar he,maar dat went en op Bali is het allemaal wat groener
vervolg,
Francesca,jij vertelde over een ontbijt,die zo uitgebreid was, nou daar verbaasden wij ons ook steeds over.Jullie vinden het nog steeds leuk he. Ik hoop nog heel veel van jullie te horen en te zien.
Liefs Oma xxxx
Hallo daar!
Die oma he??!! Super dat ze jullie zo intens volgt, maar ik ook hoor, ik heb de vertaling maar eens even weer ingezet, af en toe is het net Afrikaans maar toch wel wat makkelijker te lezen.
Ik heb net jou eerste verhaal gelezen Francesca, dat zo'n gids niets toe te voegen heeft aan julllie kennis en dan ook nog 25 euro durft te vragen, weer een wijze les. Zo leer je iedere keer weer van je ervaringen.
Zoals ik al had verteld, jullie foto's print ik uit en heb rechts van mij hangen, elke dag denk ik aan jullie en nogmaals ik mis jullie.
mams
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