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Published: January 14th 2009
So we left Georgetown and made our way to the port to get our ferry over to Sumatra. The ferry crossing took us across the Mallaca Strait, the strip of sea which seperates Peninsular Malaysia from Sumatra. Historically this area was a prime hunting ground for pirates and it still has occasional problems today although incidents are becoming increasingly rare. However the pirates of today aren't swashbuckling Johnny Depp look-a-likes but instead they ride around on speed boats and carry machine guns, which doesn't seem quite as cool. We got across ok though and the sea was nice and calm.
The ferry dropped us of in Sumatra in a place called Belawan and we then got shuttled to the city of Medan. Unfortunately we had to spend a night here as we were too late to get the last bus to Bukit Lawang. Medan is a truly gruesome place, the armpit of the world. It is a big, sweaty, dirty, arse crack of a place. We managed to find a hostel down a back street, it stank of urine and had mosquitoes everywhere. The one good thing about it was that the owner, Bob ( i suspect that this may not have been his real name), also did jungle trips in Bukit Lawang and he organised us a guide to take us from Medan to Bukit Lawang and then to take us into the jungle to find Orangutans. We bartered pretty hard and manged to get a good price. We then went out on the mean streets of Medan to find some food, the only place we could see that we thought wouldn't give us disentry was MacDonalds so we had a burger and then went to bed.
We were very rudely awoken at 5 am the following morning by the Mosque just up the road from our hostel. Every morning at five this place sends the most tuneless, incessant chants across the city through its huge speakers calling people to prayer. I think i would kill myself if i had to hear this noise every morning, there are no words to describe its badness.
Later that morning Bob took us to the bus stop were we met our guide, we also picked up three other people who would be joining us on the trip. The bus to Bukit Lawang was cramped but interesting. There were some english students on the bus with their teacher who were heading to Bukit Lawang on a trip to practise their English. We ended up spending the journey as teachers and we helped them practice their role-plays. They had sheets of them with all sorts of scenarios. One in particular caught my eye, it was about child molesting and whether it was a problem in our country. Thankfully we didn't go through this one, it's a rather wierd coversation to engage someone in if you've just met.
One of the guys we were helping took a bit a shine to me, he said that i was handsome and that he liked my beard. I personally think it makes me look like Peter Sutcliffe. The other boy in the group who had remained quiet until the end asked me if he could have my watch as we were about to get of the bus. I said no and we hopped off finally in Bukit Lawang.
Bukit Lawang is a beautiful, very laid back jungle village. We took a tuk tuk from the bus stop down into the main part of the village as the road turns into a dirt track unsuitable for buses and cars etc. A river cuts the village in half and a rickety bridge connects the two sides. On both sides are various jungle guesthouses, small restasurants, shops and of course the villagers homes down by the river bank. It is surrounded on all sides by lush, tropical jungle which is home to the Orangutans we had come to see.
The village has endured terrible tragedy and in 2003 280 people died when a flash flood decimated the village. The villagers have slowly rebuilt their homes and their lives and now welcome the tourists who make the effort to come here like old friends. As we walked along the river bank the locals would stop and chat to us, not trying to sell us something or be pushy like in many other places but purely to be nice and out of genuine interest. When people try and do this in the west they are normally ingnored and branded a wierdo which is shame.
Once we'd sorted our room at our guesthouse we decided to go and try and see some Orangutans. The semi wild Orangutans who have been re-habilitated and released into the jungle are fed at a feeding platform twice a day. They are given a bland fare of bananas and milk which encourages them to forage for themselves. To get to the feeding platform we had to cross the river in a canoe and then walk ten minutes through the jungle. On the way we saw one Orangutan in a cage who was recieving treatment before being released and another little ginger guy appeared and followed us along the path for a little while. Unfortunately none of the Orangutans came down to the feeding which was a shame. It had just rained and apparantely they can be a bit lazy after rain. We did see a mother and baby nesting in the trees in the distance but they were just little ginger dots against the green jungle backdrop. We would try again the next morning.
On the way back to the guesthouse we stopped for some food and afterwards we bumped into our students from the bus. We managed to get pressured into doing some more teaching and that evening they came down to our guesthouse to practise their english some more. After they had left we had some beer and went to bed ready to start our two day and one night jungle trip the following day.
We got up bright and early the next morning and made our way back to the feeding platform. This time we were lucky. The first visitors were the mother and baby we had seen in the distance the previous afternoon. This time however they were just a few meters away. It was incredible as they swung down through the trees into view and settled on the platform. The baby was so cute, it clung to its mothers back and it had tufts of spiky ginger hair on its head. Next a male strode his way majestically through the canopy above and dropped down just infront of us and made his way to the platform. He seemed a bit intimidated by the female, perhaps they have history. He then came right over to within touching distance of us and the rangers gave him some milk. He was literally just inches away and it was humbling to be so close to this amazing animal. Their DNA is very similar to ours and when you look at their faces and into their eyes you can really see how human they are in their emotions and expressions. We felt very lucky to have the opportuntiy to be so close to this magnificent ape.
After this exciting start to the day we set out on our jungle trip to hopefully find some Orangutans in the wild. We weren't that hopeful as we had heard that is quite rare to spot them in the wild during such a short jungle trip. Our group consisted of us, the three other people we'd picked up in Medan and two guides. The first part of the trip took us past a rubber tree plantation and we could see the rubber being bled from the trees and collecting in tubs at the bottom. We then entered the thicker jungle and after walking along a fairly accesable track for a while it started to get more dense. We had to clamber over felled trees and big roots and hold on to vines as we lowered ourselves down steep hills. The jungle was so lush and green and everything in it was big from the trees to the ants and other creepy crawlies that live here. We spotted a few monkeys, including Thomas Leaves monkeys who can only be found here, along the way but no Orangutans yet.
After climbing up a particularly steep, overgrown section of jungle we were rewarded with what we'd all been hoping to see. An Orangutan in the wild. We first spotted a little baby up a tree but a few seconds later we noticed its Mummy swinging down to meet us. She came right onto the walking track and settled on a branch just infront of us. It was incredible, more so than the feeding platform because it was unexpected and it was right in the heart of their natural environment with no-one luring them down with bananas. We had to be careful as she could get agressive if she felt we were a threat to her baby. They are very strong animals and she have could ripped our arms our of their sockets if she'd wanted. We managed to get very close before she got off her branch and started making a move. Everyone took a step back but i went with her and for about thirty meters we were walking side by side, just a meter away from one another, along the trail. It was one the best moments of the whole trip, she was incredible. She eventually settled on another branch down the track and let us get close enough again to take some pictures and admire every detail on her face. One member of our group then started walking back up the path towards her baby and she flipped out. She got down from her branch and chased us up the path, our guides were pretty scared and they ushered us up a side track to safety. We were amazed with what we'd just seen, we never imagined that we would be able to get so close to the Orangutans.
We kept on walking for a while and eventually stopped for lunch next to a waterfall. Afterwards we clambered down the side of the waterfall and walked another twenty minutes to our camp which was next to the river. It was a beautiful setting with the jungle all around us and a cheeky monkey who had made his home in a tree above our camp. We didn't stay in a normal tent, instead it was a long shelter where we all slept in a line. Surprisingly comfy. That night we enjoyed an amazing meal and just chilled out and listened to the river and the sounds of the jungle.
The next morning we had to get back to the village and our method of transport would be tubing. This is basically sitting in rubber rings and floating down river on them, however this river was pretty rough. We were given an option to either do some more walking and tube from further up river or be lazy and start from where we were. The rest of our group were lazy so we ended up just doing it from camp. The tubing was so fun. All the rings were tied together and we had a guy at the front with a stick to guide us through the rapids safely. We were tossed around everywhere by the rapids and got thoroughly soaked but we made it back to town in one piece.
We were back in town fairly early because we had gone for the lazy option so we spent the rest of day just relaxing and walking around the village watching the villagers wash clothes in the river and people transporting goods in canoes. This is definately a real jungle town and there is no acting up for the tourists like in many other places, this is actually how these people live. We had some lunch in one of the restaurants by the river. Lil had a fruit salad and later that day we went back to the restaurant and Lil told the man she had loved the fruit salad to which he replied with pride that he thought it was the best one he had ever made. We thought that was quite sweet.
That night, our final night in Bukit Lawang, we went for a drink in nice bar which overlooks the river, we ended up staying there a while as there was a blackout which made it impossible for us to find our way home. When we did finally get back to the guesthouse we stayed up for a while and listened to the locals who were all gathered together playing music and singing which is somethnig they seem to do here everynight.
The next day we reluctantly got on a bus back to Medan to make our way to our next stop in Sumatra, Lake Toba.
We absolutely loved Bukit Lawang, it had a real effect on us. The people are so warm and happy despite the devesatating flood and their complete lack of material goods which we in the west feel the need to surround ourselves with in order to feel some kind of happiness. In a way we also found it quite sad. The village is full of lovely gusethouses and restaurants and is ready for the world to visit but most remain empty due to the lack of tourists, the owners wait outside waiting for someone to come and sample their hospitality but there just aren't enough visitors here. It's a real shame and a surprise that people don't come here. It is one of only two places on Earth where you can see Orangutans, Borneo being the other. Sumatra has a reputation of being unstable and dangerous but we saw no evidence of this so we suggest that you go to Bukit Lawang before the rest of the world catches on.
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Pamela Joy Fuge
non-member comment
Travellers to Bukit Lawang
Hi, Just needed to let you know that BL can be very busy in the dry season of June July August and September. I have been writing about BL since April 2005 to get travellers back there and it is happening- no matter what you were told. Last year Nora my friend from RAIN FOREST asked me to post on the internet for travellers to book ahead because some weeks all the really good accomodation up along the river had been booked out- leaving many disappointed travellers. Pamela who was in BL in April 2008 and will be back again in July 2009.