We survived an earthquake in Sumatera!
01 October 2009 | Sibigo, Pulau Simeulue, Sumatera
Mainly because we are a fair way away from it and actually didn't know that it had happened until our satellite phone and mobiles started ringing in the early hours of this morning. For once Eddie was not the first with the scoop, in fact my Mum led the pack (god love her) with an early morning sat phone message demanding that I get in touch to let her know I was ok, while on the phone reassuring her that I was indeed fine and didn't even know about the earthquake Jay's sister Wendy followed a close second with a call to the sat phone, followed by Ed, our daily deliverer of news, with the details. The earthquake occurred approximately 300 nautical miles South of where we are that's about 546 kilometres which is about as close as I want to get to an earthquake! At the time that the earthquake occurred we were sitting in the Sharia jail on Simeulue visiting our friend Ranu, who is doing 10 months for bringing in some alcohol for some aid workers, and of course despite the TV being on we did not feel, hear or see a thing about it. But anyway we are safe in case you were worried about us.
We are currently sitting at anchor at a place called Sibigo which is at the top end of Simeulue. We have until the 10th of this month to check out of the country which means we are on the move again! Yay! I have enjoyed Sumatera despite some of my grumpy patches but I am glad to be moving back to places where I won't feel as boat bound AND I can safely say that Jay's plan worked and never again will I insist on accompanying him on a surf trip, guys he's all yours!! Although we feel like we could have left The Banyaks a month ago due to poor surf, Jay's final surf was a beauty and it was worth staying the extra month just to see the glow in his eyes as he talked to me about what he was claiming as one of the best surfs he's had in Sumatra.
JAY: The right at Bangkaru known as Treasures or Machine Gun Rights was absolutely smoking. Around the 4 to 5 foot range with the odd 6 footer which is about as big as it handles there before it starts breaking wide. I can safely claim the biggest wave of the day (for the guys that have seen it that means past the claw and around the corner on my way into the bay) nearly needed a bemo to get back to the line up! It was really doing its thing with 2 or 3 barrels per wave and I can honestly say I had some of the biggest, longest barrels I've had on the trip! Just as well because I've done the sums and my next surf will be in Bali in 5 months unless Thailand turns on a sneaky Christmas/New Years wave like it did last year.
We farewelled The Banyaks on the 29th of September after drinks with our new friends Marcus and Ayu aboard the Gaia, a charter boat that operates through The Banyaks from Simeulue, (see www.banyakislands.com) if anyone is thinking of heading over there we can definitely recommend taking a look at Gaia, Jay is definitely planning a trip back with them at some stage and we hope to catch up with them on the Gold Coast! Friendly crew, atmosphere and awesome food!! We can also recommend looking up Gus on Bohemian, a catamaran generally with a Thai chef, Gus was the man that delivered our passports back to us so that we could head out without having to do another stint in Sibolga and so to him we owe a debt of gratitude. Elation was mixed with regret as we left The Banyaks, excitement to be on the move and sadness at leaving a place I don't think I will return to in the near future.
Next stop, Sinabang Simeulue. Jay and I almost feel like locals in Sinabang having been back and forth so much picking up the troops. I really like Sinabang, for a town that's not quite a village and not quite a city, they strike a happy medium. The people are friendly and we have never been harassed there by officials. We have developed friendships with the people at the fruit and vegetable markets, supermarkets, restaurants and the becak drivers and it was strange to go to see them for the last time and say goodbye. With their limited English and our broken Bahasa we managed to say goodbye and thank you, we love the people of Simeulue. Once we had sourced all our supplies we went to see Ranu. It is sad to see him in jail especially as he is a good muslim, he doesn't drink or smoke and prays the appropriate amount of times at the mosque each day. But he is also a business man and when a customer requests a product he sources it for them. It's a shame that the aid workers didn't take responsibility, they merely left the island and didn't want to have anything to do with Ranu, they came there to help the people of Simeulue and ended up having one of them put in jail for something they shouldn't have been requesting in an alcohol free area. But he doesn't hold grudges and instead has been talking to the tourist bureau to get things changed so that alcohol is allowed for the tourists that visit the area. He hopes to open his own surf camp on Simeulue, he has the land and is already in the process of organising it. We wish him the very best of luck and will stay in touch to hear of his progress. He is making the best of a bad situation by teaching the other inmates English while he is there. He is a good man.
We left Simeulue this morning and arrived at Sibigo around 4pm. After searching for somewhere to anchor near Ian and Michelle, Jay and I moved to a more secluded area after seeing their boat overrun with locals in canoes they had paddled out from the shore, mainly kids but despite Ian asking them politely to move on, from where I sit I can still see about 6 canoes out the back of Raku as Ian and Michelle sit inside and try to ignore them. Having said that, Jay is having a stilted conversation in Bahasa at the back of the Makani Kai with a fisherman that just wants to chat but so far Jay has not let him on board. I suppose when we turn up in an anchorage in the middle of nowhere we look like a spaceship and everyone wants to come and just sit on board for a while.
Tomorrow we head for mainland Sumatera, an overnighter that we have not done for a while. By Saturday night we should be anchored up South of Banda Aceh.