Blogs from Indonesia, Asia - page 622

Most Aussies seemed to have been to Bali so we thought we should probably give it a try. We spent a week at Sanur on the island's relatively quiet and protected east coast. We chose somewhere well away from the surf of west coast Kuta in the hope that our toddlers could enjoy the calmer waters. We'd also heard a lot about the drunken antics of our fellow countrymen over in Kuta, and weren't overly keen on experiencing any of that first hand either. Our resort was called the Segara Village. It did indeed seem to us like a series of small Balinese villages with simple single and double storey accommodation set in gardens filled with traditional statues and fountains. Our room was right next to a small pool and we spent a lot of time ... read more

1992………..2MTHS-1st CYCLING TRIP-1300kms ACROSS INDONESIA 8/7/92 Mataram, Lombok 21.46km The over-night bus ride through Sumbawa was long, with not a lot of sleep but it was compensated by the pleasant 1½ hr boat trip to Lombok. I realize now how undeveloped Flores was. Lombok has good wide roads and a lot of traffic, 4x drives, bicycles, bemos and ‘Ben Hurs’ - horse drawn carriages. People are more reserved and just stare with a few hellos. It is a relief to get some personal space. 9/7/92 Kuta, Lombok 58km 978.15 km total I spent a few days cycling through Lombok and lazing on beaches. This morning I had my thinking challenged by a German girl who I talked with last night about Flores. She is a lace bobbin maker and previously a garden designer. She was having ... read more

1992………..2MTHS-1st CYCLING TRIP-1300kms ACROSS INDONESIA Heading from Adelaide to Darwin to Kupang, Timor, I started my cycling trip proper in Flores........... 21/6/ 92 Maumere, Flores Flores is about 360km long, although its road from East to West ends up being 700km, with it winding through the mountains. It averages 60 km wide and is 72 km at its widest. Racial types are very complex in Nusa Tengarra, especially on Flores and Timor, where not only Malays and mixed blood Portuguese are found, but also descendants of even earlier Veddoids, Negritos, archaic Melanesian and Australoids- it really shows in the people who are of varying facial and stature characteristics- occasionally some with reddish or blond hair or very straight or very frizzy hair, looking Papuan. I gave my bike legs a rest to get ready for heading ... read more

Seeing SadieandOyvind's contemporary Gili Meno blog on the front page reminded me of a retro-tale, another self-indulgent reminiscence from a (relatively) innocent youth. The names listed have been changed to protect the guilty (and me from any potential lawsuits given the protagonists' careers). 16th December 1990. Two nights ago we’d met the solicitors from London: Alex and Gwynn, both bronzed and sleek from months of travelling, although looking amazingly smart on the back of this. Three bottles of banana wine at our hostel in Cakra, Lombok, and we were of the same opinion, that Meno sounded best. The smallest and least developed of the three Gilis, Meno is half a mile long and less wide. Covered in palms, encircled with fine white sands and Indonesia’s ubiquitous turquoise seas, it has no cars and few people: locals ... read more

Spent much of the day in Candidasa, although there was not much to report according to my diary. We did need to complete some chores before we left for Australia, including checking for mail at the American Express office. Andy was the last to check, but the woman in the office had some trouble understanding the name 'Gifford'. In the end, he was getting frustrated and in a final, desperate attempt tried "Golf, Indigo, Foxtrot, Foxtrot, Omega, Romeo Delta". Most of the people in the office were very impressed and some amused, but we all felt sympathy for the poor woman. You could see the life drain out of her as she almost started to cry, and we felt duty bound to step in and try to help her out - but probably with five of ... read more