Blogs from Pulau Weh, Sumatra, Indonesia, Asia

For the first time I am planning to go to Asia on a holiday. I have only ever been over there “travelling” before so I would normally not have as many plans but I have spent some time planning this trip to make sure it is maximised. It feels a bit strange doing it this way but I have a job and a flat and all that shizz now so there is no other option. After an overnight stop in KL we got on a short flight to Banda Aceh with AirAsia. There is an early morning flight and an afternoon flight at present. If you do not want to spend a night in Banda Aceh then you will need to take the morning flight – not that there is anything wrong with BA! We were ... read more

Indonesia is the tenth country we have visited on our current escapade. Sometimes, while I think that we are spoiling ourselves rotten and visiting country after country, without respite or returning to “real life,” I wonder if maybe we are becoming unappreciative of our experiences or desensitised to certain cultural differences. For example, when we first arrived in Asia in February 2010 we must have visited every temple within a ten mile radius, now we’re temple fatigued. Whereas I previously counted down to our ultimate our embarkation, every day for two months or more, now I hardly ever know what day it is or how many days I’ve been in a country, let alone how many until our next destination. Before we would get giddy over passport stamps, being asked to pose for photographs, squat toilets ... read more

Le 1er aout, j'arrive un peu par hasard à Pulau Weh, pour ma dernière escale en Indonésie. Au fil de discussions avec des plongeurs j'ai cru comprendre qu'au nord de Sumatra il y avait un spot de plongée un peu "roots" qui valait le coup d'oeil. Tout le monde en parle mais je n'ai rencontré personne qui y soit allé. Donc je me lance... Premier hic: j'arrive le premier jour du ramadan à Aceh, la province la plus stricte d'Indonésie (où la sharia est dans la loi). Tout est fermé, du coup je me nourris aux chips... Je ne sais plus vraiment si c'était une bonne idée, mais j'oublie rapidement cette pensée quand depuis le ferry se dessine une île verdoyante et valonnée, ce qui n'est pas sans me rappeler la traversée entre Tahiti et Moorea. ... read more

so where to begin? We are no longer sick and in sumatra. our second trip to malaysia was short and very sweet. The goats at permaculture perak were stubborn but we once again made them our friends and had them eating out of our hands. Christmas was a small but merry time celebrated with fun folks from around the world. we feasted on a far from traditional dinner of stir fry, prawns and water buffalo bbq. After the buzzing streets of bangkok the highland jungle was the perfect place for respite and rejuvenation. we parted from our farm friends grudgingly but recharged and ready for the sumatran gauntlet. that lies ahead. leading up to the flight from kuala lumpur to banda aceh it felt as though a dark expanse of unknown lay before us. it was ... read more

Ramadan, Tsunami and going up Hi again. In a little while I will be heading out on a night dive which is also going to be the last dive here on Pulau Weh for now. Tomorrow I will be going back to Sumatra and heading up into the mountains to go trekking in the jungle. When I laid out my plan in the dive shop Eric, an American from Connecticut and Sylvia, a Canadian from Victoria, BC became very interested so the three of us travel together. Excellent, since they are both funny and clever and I'm sure that we will have a great time together. Everything is a bit complicated though. Ramadan also starts tomorrow and that makes everything quite a bit more challenging. It basically means that it will become tricky to get anything ... read more