Around the world with 80 gadgets - Around the world with 80 gadgets

Ah, Singapore! It's ridiculously clean compared to India. I even stayed in the area called Little India, which looks a lot like big India minus the flies, the dirt, the constant honking and the spitting. The hostel, footprints, is great, super clean, comfy aircon and friendly and helpful staff.

I met a couchsurfing friend I'd met in Oslo a year ago for lunch, browsed a few huge shopping centers and had a lovely McDonalds milkshake. Everything was so different from India and I felt very relaxed. Everybody spoke English, signs everywhere and a detailed map that was easy to follow makes Singapore a perfect destination. My friend Ben showed me around a little after dark, and it was just sooo beautiful with all the lights and tall buildings ... we checked out some Chinese live music (very Idol-like I must say) and had one (1) beer. The next day I woke with a hangover and actually puked in the train station. I was a little embarrassed, but more worried I'd get fined! Spitting is not allowed, so I'm not too sure about barfing 2 diet cokes, one mineral water, a milk coffee and 3 pieces of dim sum at the bottom of the escalator. I went to bed and stayed there for 2 days, turns out it was food poisoning (thank goodness I do not get sick after 1 beer) so I got some carbon tablets and was feeling better when I got on the plane for Jakarta. Didn't get to see much of Singapore though, but I am coming back in December, so it could have been worse.

I arrived at Jakarta airport in the morning after sleeping all the way (still very little energy after the food poisoning and couldn't eat much) trying to prepare myself for less orderly manners than in Singapore, and the trouble started at the airport. No information at all, just the regular swine flu scanning. I showed up at the immigration desk and was told I didn't have a visa (didn't know I needed one) so I went to the visa desk and got one for 25 USD - 300 000 Indonesian Rupiah. Felt like a millionaire with 2 million in my pocket! Back to immigration, and the officer was kind enough to tell me I needed to fill out the arrival card (why on earth didn't I get one on the plane?), so I went back to that desk again, filled it out, back to immigration and had to show my PDF version of the onward ticket to Australia and then everything was fine. By then all the luggage had been loaded and I could easily pick up my pack, change shoes and look for the airport bus. In the customs they asked for the customs card, which I of course didn't have, but luckily they said it was OK this time.

Walking out in he humid Jakarta air I was bombarded with "Taxi, Madam" 40 times worse than in India, the clerks actually jumped from their chairs when they saw me, the walking ATM, and waved little fans saying "taxi" and I felt quite annoyed already after the first 25 offers. I found the bus, which had lovely aircon, and fell asleep at once, which was good, as the bus stopped at 3 more terminals and took at least an hour (Lonely Planet said 30 minutes). I had already figured I did not bother to see Jakarta and got off at the train station heading for the city of Bandung. The train ride was scenic (but hot) and I slept for at least 2 hours. Arriving in Bandung I needed to get to a toilet quickly, got out in the wrong end of the train station and missed all the budget hotels. I managed to find one for around 8 euro (by then it was dark already and I was too tired to carry the backpack through the city again). I had some lovely Thai food (turns out I don't like the Indonesian national dish Nasi Goreng, which is little more than fried rice they have at least 3 times a day here ...), booked an expensive tour for the next day and slept soundly for over 12 hours. The tour was quite nice and the guide very good, he told us all sorts of anecdotes and explained a lot about the culture and the stuff we saw. We visited tea plantations, saw some bamboo mat weaving, a volcanic lake and a crater. Being blessed with a poor sense of smell was quite nice that day, as the craters' sulfuric evaporations apparently smelt like bad eggs and made the other tourists hold their breath in disgust.

View from the train Jakarta-Bandung

Volcanic lake

Volcanic crater

Tea plantations

Back again at the hotel I picked up my luggage and walked to the train station to book a ticket, but as it is currently the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan, everyone wants to be in the cool mountains and go to big cities so it was full. I just missed the last bus also, and the very friendly and helpful hotel staff tried to call various bus companies, but they were either full for the next day or had already closed. So I had to get another night at the 8 euro hotel, which isn't all that bad (bathroom had not been cleaned though - I got the same room!). I just feel that Indonesia's not really doing it for me right now and I hate to lose another day I could have spent on the white sand beaches of Bali ...

 

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