10/06/2009, Kumai,Borneo, Indonesia
After a swift and comfortable 2 day passage we arrived in Borneo. As we approached the south end at Kalimantan; squalls, lightening and head on winds greeted us. By the time we entered the mouth of the Kumai river visibility was reduced to minimum as a persistent haze engulfed us. It was a further 10 miles up river to the murky anchorage, the heat and humidity was all consuming in its oppressiveness leaving us hot and sticky, as we dropped the hook close to several other sailboats. Not the most attractive of locations indeed, and why all this you ask? What followed was an adventure that entailed a 2 day trip into the river jungle to pay a visit to our relatives, the Orangutans. Early the next morning we jumped directly from our boat to a river boat we had hired for the occasion, yeah, lets do something different for a change! The boat was basic but clean and came with a driver;naturally, a guide, a cook and a helper, more people than we have ever had waiting on us, each of whom were relaxed helpful and friendly. We would sleep aboard on the partially covered open deck, on foam mattresses shrouded under a large mosquito net to keep those malarial demons away. One delicious meal after another was prepared by the nice lady in the cramped quarters below decks on a basic 2 burner kerosene stove where only Kara could run free and uninhibited. We sat like royalty upstairs, although Kara spent most of the time joining the ranks below helping the cook, chatting with the guide and even steering the boat. It took us most of the day to reach the end of the river, as we plodded just over zero miles an hour through the narrow channel, the motor resounding with the fusion of a lawnmower reverberating with helicopter blades. Along the way, we sighted several Probuckis monkeys swinging from the trees. What sets them apart from other species is their characteristically enhanced nose, the male long and pointed; the female short and stubby. The first orangutan we encountered was at the modest little research center; a rehabilitation and monitoring zone for the protection of the Orangutans. Clearly used to the attention, Tutut, as he is affectionately known posed mutely, much less interested in us than we were in him. Another one sat munching bananas. Just to sit and watch them and ponder their thoughts is such an intense thrill, the hand gestures, the melancholy eyes, and if there is any doubt in the minds of those who dispel the theory of evolution, I wonder if they have ever sat and watched these cousins of ours. While reading about the threats facing the habitat of the Orangutan we learned about supply and demand issues first hand. Indonesia and Malaysia are the top growers of palm oil and its byproducts. In the last few years demand has doubled and to meet this, more jungle must be burned to make room for the plantations. The inhabitants of the area, people and animals alike are pushed out. Due to the enormous corruption in the country, permission is easily granted for some $ in return. With the plantations all the necessary chemical fertilizers are another side effect of the developments. One reason for the sudden increase in the demand for palm oil is the new green approach to new organic fuel for cars in Europe and States. Green fuel + less jungle with all its implications, the typical catch 22. A few kilometers downstream we pulled in and stopped for the night. After a delicious dinner we settled into our jungle nest set up by the crew. Although sleeping on a boat is nothing new for us, the surroundings certainly were, only the echoes of the jungle could be heard, we fell asleep just as the moon cast its shadows though the palms under the scent of the steamy jungle night air as the mosquitos buzzed outside. The day began when summoned by sunup, and we made our way to a stop where we could watch Orangutans emerge from the wild to a feeding zone set up by the research centre. A large platform stands in a small clearing with which are spread an abundant display of bananas ready to entice their appetites. A young local sits there each day at a certain time and screams into the jungle a high pitched call sign sounding like a long drawn out "YOU" while us tourists await their impending arrival. If not a single one shows up, it's a good thing, not for the tourists impatiently waiting cameras in hand, but for the Orangutans, because it means their food quests have been satisfied naturally Despite this, we were hoping we wouldn't get a 50, just today! Sure enough, little sweethop who is 6 years old came swinging cautiously through the trees, with Mom in tow. Together they sat and consumed their fill, all the time cautiously watching the paparazzi and the flashing lights gathered in front. When they'd had enough, off they went, casually and expertly swinging from tree to tree before disappearing from view. We had one last stop at a village only accessed by the river, to whose residents I take my hat off to for making a life there. While efforts were made to appear somewhat pretty, with flower pots scattered outside some dwellings, it was perhaps the most austere of spots I could ever imagine living in; and must surely be a flooding mess in the wet season. The houses spanned only meters on either side of a murky salty channel of water, where children slopped about, the most charming aspect being the concrete path running through the village. I felt a tinge of nostalgia for one of the decorative villages of the South Pacific. Leaving this memorable experience behind us, we departed Kumai immediately after the trip, as we are somewhat under pressure to make it to Batam before our visas expire
|
Comments [1]
10/01/2009, Bawean, Indonesia
Thankfully we have not been engulfed by a tsunami or swallowed up by an earthquake. In fact we were oblivious to any movement from the impact in nearby Sumatra. The overnight moonless journey north from the island of Bali brought us to a relatively unknown island of Bawean. The ocean was like a highway with many obstacles in our path; unlit fishing traps that the radar does not pick up, dimly lit fishing boats intercepting our course constantly; cargo ships on collision course picked up on our AIS system. All of these distractions kept us on our toes and colored a few more ribs of hair. Communication is rendered especially difficult if you are fortunate enough to receive a reply from a big ship whose command of English is about as good as our Indonesian. But we use what we got, spreader lights, spotlights, flashing lights and good old fashioned luck. At the island of Bawean, tourists are a rare thing, so we were the source of much fascination to the super friendly locals at the beach as we played bochi ball with our friends on SolSearcher and Listowel Lady. A group of young boys asked if they could pose with Kara for a picture taken from their cell phones, and within minutes poor Kara, ever so patient was being passed around like a parcel as they all waited their turn to hold her. One man who is an English teacher invited us to visit his school the next day; which we did, saddled separately on 2 motorcycles we were whisked through the village and into a classroom of giggling and unruly 12 year old boys and girls. Their requests for Kara to come sit with them were flatly refused so intimidated was she by the large classroom. The English teacher unfortunately did not seem to possess a decent level of English to make conversation possible and needless to say the students followed his lead! Still it was fun.
|
09/28/2009, Java Sea, Indonesia
Our stay at Lovina in the north side of Bali brought us closer to leaving Bali with a much better sense of authenticity than when we first arrived. Becoming acquainted with the locals is as always the key to success. We ended up staying much longer than anticipated in order to reunite with our Swiss friends, Dario and Sabine, who just sailed to Bali with their brand new baby, and older siblings Salina and Andri. Together we drove into the central mountain area to the volcano of Gunung Batur, Bali's second most important mountain at 1717 meters high. The road meandered up through scenic fertile rice lands spanned with glorious views of panoramic lushness; stark and spectacular peaks shrouding over glimmering lakes. An early rise at 3.30am was required in order to climb to the top and witness the sun rise. Kara participated with glee in the great adventure, her first "night hike". Coming from the intense heat down below, we underestimated the cold that greeted us as we ascended and unfortunately Uwe had to retreat back with the shivering girl finding shelter and warmth amidst the shrubbery until dawn broke. I continued up with Dario, and although it did not generate the same impact like the active eruptions or smoking cones at the volcano at Tanna, the contentment of watching the sun rise over the vast caldera atop the crater lake was equally mesmerizing. We'll miss the easy relaxing ritual of sitting at the beach each evening singing and chatting with the locals at Lovina, but time beckons us to move north toward Kalimantan. We are loaded with THE most delicious local organic fruit most of which we have never seen before. The fertile soil of Bali is rife with organic produce from rice to fruite and vegetables, we know its organic as Kara's job is to sieve through the rice grains to remove the little critters. Lets hope the ships keep clear of us.
|
