Lombok and Bali (last days in Indonesia)

Thursday 22nd September

Gili Trawangan. I have definitely landed on my feet with this room. It has a proper bed, a fan, a venetian blind(!) and even a wardrobe so I don't have to put stuff on the floor! And the communal toilets are decent and there is a proper shower. For just 50,000 rupiah ($6). People had told me I would probably be paying 120,000 a night because the island is expensive. And I can sit outside the dive school in the morning eating Trangbulan cake and looking at the sea and watching people getting ready for their dives.

So since I will be staying here for a week I have been pacing myself because there is not that much to do. This morning I went snorkelling again off Turtle point. The current was not so strong today. There are some metal framework structures just off the beach; I am not sure why they are there but some great coral has grown on it and the fish hang around there. I swam further south and came to some more good coral and the water was crystal clear. As always, there were yellow and black Moorish Idol Fish. I didn't see any turtles........

....but just when I thought I had finished, I decided to see what three other snorkellers were looking at - it was a big turtle. The shell was probably a metre long and it looked like an old one, it looked like an old man. I swam along with it and it stopped to chew on some plants on the coral. Cool.

I watched another big fish (Yellow Mask Angel Fish?) as it demolished a piece of coral with it's sharp teeth. It bit into the coral and then ripped big chunks off. What amazed me was that it would hold the coral in it's mouth and then reverse and then drop the coral out of it's way, like someone removing soil from a hole. Smart! It stopped for a rest a few times and then ripped off more. I was watching for ages but never figured out why it was doing this; there was no plant or anything underneath. It also seemed to be warding off the smaller fish hovering around.

After lunch I walked around the perimeter of the island; it is only about 4kms. In the north there is supposed to be good snorkelling but it was very windy and choppy out there. Further round the beach was very windy and I got sand blasted! On the west side, I stopped on a low viewing platform by the beach and read my book and then other people turned up too to watch the sunset behind Gunung Agung on Bali, about 20kms away.

There are big rolling waves running parallel to the beach, in the channel between Gili Trawangan and Gili Meno. Also there are smaller waves crashing over the coral onto the Trawangan beach. It is quite mixed up. Some of the fast boats between here and Bali have been cancelled because of the strong winds.


Friday 23rd September

Well, I have a morning routine now: cake and reading at the dive centre then snorkelling. After Gado Gado for lunch I sat on the beach listening to podcasts. By 5:30pm there was a cool breeze on the beach and no one swimming so I didn't either. Bought my ferry/bus ticket for Sunday.


Saturday 24th September

After sitting out of the front of the dive shop most of the morning, I was surprised to then find a note on my door at 11:30am asking me to check out at midday as the room was reserved for someone else. They said the booking was made ages ago so how come I got such short notice? After a bit of a whinge I found a nice homestay along the back lanes.

Snorkelling today I saw two turtles. I followed the first one for quite a while. It was cool when it gently glided up to the surface for air. As it glided back down I could see its belly. Also saw a long grey narrow fish, a bit like a letter-opener, with a long nose and its eyes a third of the way along.

Gado Gado again for lunch then reading and podcasts on the beach and one final swim. In the evening I went to see if I could watch the football; one of the bars had the TV clearly visible from the road so I sat on the kerb opposite, the same as some locals, and watched 1.5 games before going off to bed.

Sunday 25th September

Got the slow boat back to Bangsal harbour (30 minutes) then shuttle bus to Mataram (well, nearly; I still had to get a bemo into town). Back at the Oka hotel for the third time; the ladies who run it are a bit grumpy and not very friendly but its the cheapest place I know of in town. Wandered around finding out stuff for tomorrow.

In the evening, I sat down for noodles at a roadside joint and a couple of locals invited me to sit with them so I did. They are married and both teach English at a school here and also teach specialist English to bankers, doctors etc. They were good company. As they left the guy said he would pay for my dinner as that was the custom. I was a bit uncomfortable about that but only protested a little as otherwise I would have offended them.

Good chat with French couple back at the hotel.

Monday 26th September

At the Commonwealth Bank at 8am to get some US Dollars. It went a lot more smoothly than I thought it might; part one of the mission successfully accomplished. Bemo one hour to Lembar, then passenger ferry for 4 hours to Padangbai, Bali. As we approached Bali I sat under cover on the top deck reading my book and looking at the sea and the islands; my last ferry trip in Indonesia.

Had to wait a couple of hours and then got the tourists' shuttle bus (minivan) from Padangbai to Kuta Bali. We went along a dual carriageway and it only took a couple of hours, past some rice fields with palm trees and the sea beyond.

On my way east I had used local transport rather than tourists' transport because I thought it would be cheaper and I would get to hang out with the local people more. Well, having used some tourists' transport on the way back west I can say that it is often cheaper and quicker to go with the tourists. Still, I am glad I did it my way heading east, along the country roads and through villages.

Came back to same good hotel in Kuta. I don't really want to be here for 48 hours but just wanted to be sure I am here for my flight on Wednesday. Had a wander around in the evening through the neon jungle of Kuta with the throbbing nightclubs.

Tuesday 27th September

Tried to resolve some issues with my bank transaction from yesterday. The bank said to call Visa, Visa told me to call the bank.

Kuta is quite quiet in the morning; I guess people are sleeping off their hangovers. I walked around and around visiting the bank, lots of bookshops and CD shops. I found some Chinese money in my bag so coverted that and bought some knock-off CDs 

Kuta is not typical of Bali, or Indonesia. There are glimpses of it here and there: some of the architecture hidden down the alleyways, the offerings placed outside some of the shops and the friendly locals. But it is not like the rest of Indonesia; the only experience here is locals selling sunglasses, handing out flyers outside clubs or calling 'transport?' at you from across the street. But it's all good.

Wednesday 28th September

Wandered around. Dealt with the bank, a bit stressful but sorted. Kindof. Tonight I fly to Kuala Lumpar, assuming Indonesia lets me out of the country; I am one day over my visa.


 

Gili Trawangan (diving and snorkelling)

Monday 19th September

Up at 6:30am. Got a bemo most of the way to the immigration office. It was open before 8am, and they confirmed that I stuffed up with my outward flight so will overstay my visa by one day so will have to pay a fine of about $25 at the airport. Doh!

I walked about a mile up to a major junction hoping to go directly to Pemenang/Bangsal but I could only get to Senggigi and from there there is no public transport to Pemenang/Bangsal so I had to go on the back of a guy's motorbike which was more expensive. But the scenery was great, views of the bays and the beaches and oceans. It was quite hilly and with my backpack on my back I had to really lean forward at times so I didn't fall off the back; I had my chin pretty much on the guy's shoulder.

At Pemenang I walked along to Bangsal harbour where there were many other tourists waiting for the public boat to Gili Trawangan. The long wooden boat had outboard motor, 20 white people and a couple of locals.

There are 3 Gili Islands: Gili Air, Gili Meno and Gili Trawangan. Gili Trawangan is the most touristy and normally that would put me off, but I read that there are quiet parts and I heard (mostly) positve things about it from other travellers. Soon after the boat dropped us at the beach, I found a nice place to stay but went to see if I could find anywhere cheaper for the rest of the week. An Aussie girl told me about a place for 50,0000 a bit north along the beach so I went for a walk and found it; the rooms are behind a dive school and the room looks ok. The Aussie girl told me the bathrooms were horrible so I didn't bother looking, I will save that for tomorrow. Had a chat with a dive school guide.

There are a couple of cool English guys here and they directed me to local cheap noodles in the lanes behind the main drag, rather than the more expensive stuff along the beachfront. It is a family-run shop and the mother just took packet noodles and eggs from their shop and cooked them in their own house and it was about a third of the price you pay on the main strip.

I had a cat nap this afternoon and woke up very hot so went for a late afternoon swim in the sea. The sun had gone behind the trees and the water was cold and refreshing.

Chatted to the English guys. One of the guys has been to Myanmar and he waxed lyrical about it and I did the same about Africa. We went down to the market for dinner. The island is full of white people and the restaurants and bars are geared towards western tastes, but the island is quite clean and calm; there are no cars or bikes on the island which is great. There are only motorbikes and a few horse and carts used as taxis and delivery vehicles. There is a good vibe here. My current plan is to stay until the weekend....

Tuesday 20th September

I moved to the rooms behind the dive centre. It is clean and so are the bathrooms. After arranging my dive for tomorrow, I walked north for a bit and then went snorkelling off Turtle Point. There were some good fish, and the current takes you along parallel to the beach. I hadn't seen any turtles so I got out and walked along the beach, back to the start again; you can't swim against the current. Again the current took me south and just at the end I saw a turtle in the sea for the first time ever! The shell and it's flippers were like a leopard skin print had been ironed on. I followed it around for a while and then it went under a rock.

After lunch I sat on the beach and read my book and had a quick snorkel and swim.


Wednesday 21st September

For breakfast I had Trangbulan, the cake that I also had in Ubud. It is cake mixture, baked while you watch and mixed with the ingredients of your choice; chocolate and condensed milk for me. I buy it at the food market the night before and eat it cold in the morning as it is a cheap alternative to the breakfast at the restaurants here.

For some reason the hotel staff asked me to move across the outdoor corridor to an almost identical room. After moving I just read this morning. Pineapple for lunch and then out to the dive shop for my dive briefing with English dive instructor Blair. He showed me the equipment, which looked pretty new and then sat me down and told me what was going to happen and about the dive site. I felt comfortable with him as the instructor and I just let him know that I would be fine as long as we went down slowly.

The staff carry all the equipment to the boat, just off the beach. There were about 15 divers on the boat. The sea was pretty rough and we were all soaked by the time we got to the dive site. Our group was Blair, an American Lady, a local guy and me. I had a few butterflies, but I figure that's how it should be. We rolled backwards off the side of the boat and into the deep blue sea. We met at the front of the boat, but then Blair looked down and told the Captain we had stopped at the wrong point (the buoy had moved) so we had to clamber back on the boat!

After moving to the right place, and rolling back in again we slowly deflated our BCDs and began to sink down to Hans Reef. It took me a bit longer to descend than the others, but once I started breathing out more heavily I went down and my ears were mostly ok, my mask got a bit tight on my forehead. Anyway we went down to six metres to the sandy bottom and then swam along and down, using our breathing  to control buoyancy.

The main site is a large pinnacle of rock with lots of coral growing on it, with fish living in and around the coral. The visibility was good and we saw some amazing fish including large shrimp, lionfish, octupus, scorpion fish, ribbon eel, clown fish, angel fish, nudie branch and tube worms.

The shrimp was as big as my hand and it was disguised against the coral and then when we got close it darted into a hole. When Blair pointed at the clown fish it looked up and was drawn to his finger. The scorpion fish melted into the coral almost exactly; at first I could only see it because of it's eyes and then you can just trace its outline in the rock; it was actually vertical with its underside against the rock. The deadly lionfish was just behind a rock and I had a good long look at it. The Angel fish were the size of 2 baseball mitts. The nudie branch looked like a green slug. The octupus was in a hole but it was still cool seeing its head and body.

It was amazing just looking at this whole eco-system, this whole community living under the sea. Although the coral is not bright it kind of looked old or rather ancient, meaning it has been like this for millions of years - I liked that. I also just enjoyed being under the water and being in control; the only sound being my breathing. It is good to look up and see how far away the surface is.

After about 35 minutes we were all down to about a quarter of a tank so Blair got out an inflatable plastic flare and let it go up to the surface to let the boat know where we were going to pop up. A few more minutes and then we were soon at the surface. We had dived for 43 minutes, to the maximum 18m we are allowed to dive to.

I was really happy at the end of the dive. I had seen some great fish and had none of the stress that I had had at Pulau Weh. The 20 minute boat journey back was very choppy with lots of swell; we got soaked again. Back at the dive shop I got Blair to tell me the names of the fish we had seen.

I spent the rest of the afternoon sitting on the beach. I think there are just the right amount of people on the island at the moment. Few enough people on the beach to keep it calm and relaxed but enough for people-watching in-between chapters of my book. And I went for dinner at the night-market by myself but soon found other people to chat to.

From Lembata to Mataram

Monday 12th September

Today I started my journey back west from Lembata island to Bali.

Up at 2:15am, on the bus at 2:45am from Lamalera back to Lewoleba. I decided to travel back with the other guys partly for moral support as the journey here was fairly arduous, and partly to be sure of getting to the Monday market. The journey was actually ok and we arrived in town about 7am, and the others went off to the ferry.

I checked in and went to look for the market. Well, there was some Lost in Translation and I found myself directed to the small fruit market 3kms away. Still, I got to see rural parts of the Island, and at the market I bought lots of donuts and fruit and the locals were friendly. Eventually I found out that the Monday market I was looking for no longer exists!


Tuesday 13th September

The hotel here (in Lewoleba, on Lembata island) gave me banana fritters and coffee for breakfast and I ate 4 of my donuts. Walked down to the jetty and caught the 8am ferry from Lewoleba to Larantuka (on Flores), eating another 5 donuts along the way.

It is a 10-hour bus trip to my next stop, and since I only got here at midday I decided to stay here for the night. Found nice room by the jetty. Walked along the main road out of town accompanied by the near-constant calls of 'Hey Mister'; it gets tiresome responding each time, or ignoring it. Some of the guys gesture that they want cigarettes or my (cheap) sunglasses. But the walk was ok and I found the ice cream 'van'.


Wednesday 14th September

I was sat on today's only direct bus to Ende at 6:45am this morning. But, understandably, the bus doesn't leave until it is full. So we left at 10am. Annoying, but there you go.

The smoking and the music on the bus wasn't too bad. I had grabbed a seat not next to a speaker, and when Bryan Adams inevitably came on, I put my earplugs in. In among the Indonesian pop and rock came Queen's "I want to break free", and Abba's "Chicken Tikka". I was happy when the bus dropped me off outside this nice cheap hotel, in Ende, at 8:30pm.


Thursday 15th September

At 8am I walked out of Ende town a few kms to the small village of Wolowana, where the streets were lined with people selling fish and fruit and veggies, and donuts of which I bought 4. I was lost for a bit but then walked across a bridge and down a country lane, past some small rice fields, nice houses with palm trees, past some cows, with hills in the background. I came to Nanga Nesa which is a black sand beach with good views of the bay.

I walked along the beach for a while and then onto the road watching the mad waves crash on to the beach and on to rocks. The road was then a bit hilly and it was very hot but eventually I was looking down on my destination, the small coastal village of Wolotopo.

A bit more walking and then I came to Wolotopo. I met 3 excitable kids on their break outside their school and they followed me for a while. Then I met 3 teachers and they ushered the kids back towards school. I asked the teachers where I could buy some water and there was no shortage of little volunteers to show me where the shop was (probably because it was nearly the end of the breaktime!). So i followed 12 kids up the path to in to the village. The shop had no water, and we headed back to the school.

I sat in the shade and chatted in broken Indonesian/English to a couple of guys, the older of whom was breaking up small rocks into small rocks using a lump hammer; he had very strong arms, and wouldn't accept my offer of some of the water I still had left.

Back up the path, I found myself pretty much in people's backyard's and was thinking I should turn back, when a guy opened his gate and ushered me through his yard, past his family and onto the right path; very friendly. I had a good view of the village and the Catholic church from the path that runs along, about half way up. On the way back down there was a kid in a tree cutting down durian, and the school kids were playing football.

I headed out of the village and back along the coast road and all the way back to the hotel, via fried noodles for lunch. It seemed to take ages to get back and I was very hot and sweaty, but glad that I had seen Wolotopo and met the friendly locals.

This afternoon I walked down to Ende town and to the harbour. It is not much to look at, and the fish market had (not surprisingly) finished by the time I got there. But there was a cute little kid having a bath in a bucket. Many of the shops were shut and I liked their different pastel-coloured doors. I walked back to the hotel, still hot and sweaty.

Friday 16th September

In Ende. It is often difficult to get accurate information about departure times for buses; I can get 3 different answers from 3 different locals. So I got to the bus station by 6:20am this morning. The bus left Ende at 8am. We got a flat tyre at 8:15am, but they soon replaced it with a bold one.

So of course I was going back the way I came last week so I enjoyed the scenery again, and it was good not trying to take pictures, just relaxing and dozing, because there was no loud music. We arrived in Ruteng at 5:30pm and most people got off the bus, but as arranged, they took me a bit further, to meet my next vehicle, which was not a bus, but a 8-seater Toyota. The guy waiting asked for more money than I had been told when I left Ende, so I stood my ground, even though I had no other transport options. He backed down and I was squeezed in the back with a family of 5.

Eventually we left Ruteng in the dark. There was a video screen in the car and we watched some American Wrestling for a bit before they reverted to the same collection of songs that I have heard in every vehicle I have been in in Indonesia; they must all just have copies of the one CD.

We stopped for a break which was fair enough and then arrived near Labuanbajo around 11pm. They dropped passengers off at their homes and eventually they dropped me at the homestay at 11:30pm and didn't ask for extra cash! I was very happy that there was a bed available at the homestay, albeit the smallest room in Indonesia.

Saturday 17th September

I was woken up at about 6am by music blaring from an old local guy's phone on the communal balcony outside my room. He seemed to be enjoying listening to 'I'm a Barbie Girl' full blast. At the ferry terminal ticket guys were selling tickets all the way through to Mataram which was my destination. Getting there under my own steam would be tricky (I know, having come that way) and so I let myself be persuaded. But then they asked for 300,000 rupiah. I told them it had only cost me 200,000 to get here and that they were trying to rip me off. They said "ok. Sorry. 200,000 rupiah". But they are only sorry after you complain. The ferry left at 9, an hour later than scheduled.

There were some friendly tourists on the ferry and I realised that I hadn't spoken to any tourists for almost a week. It was noisy on the main deck but very quiet on the upper deck, so I stood up there for a while in the shade, looking out to sea and listening to my football podcasts.

We arrived in Sape at 5pm and we were herded onto oven-hot buses that must have been sat in the sun all afternoon; it was ok once we started moving and the breeze came through. We arrived in Bima at 6:30pm and were allocated to "Executive" buses for the rest of the trip. The bus was comfortable with reclining seats. I was sat next to a friendly older local guy called Risky. We broke down after an hour, for an hour. The bus made it's way across Sumbawa island and I managed to get some sleep, and we stopped for food at 4am. Rice of course!

The same as most travelers, I have just sat on the bus across Sumbawa, as a means of getting from Flores to Lombok. It is difficult to explore Sumbawa without your own wheels, but it does look like a nice place. It also looks extremely dry, some of the small rice terraces were barren. I thought that was typcial for the dry season, but on the (English-speaking) news they said that this part of Indonesia is in drought.

Sunday 18th September

Arrived at Poto Tano around 6am. The passenger ferries are regular and the trip is only 1.5 hours. Chatted to ex-pat Geordie guy who was a ten-pound-pom who moved to Adelaide with his family in 1973. I enjoyed listening to his experiences, things I have heard before about how the housing they were given did not match up to promises made. And of course he had many positive things to say too about how his lifestyle improved and how he was successful there and has now retired to Lombok.

Arrived in Labuhan Lombok around 8:30am and the bus continued here to Mataram at 11am. I could have continued to Senggigi but I have things to do here and I just need to stop moving, after 50 hours of travel!

I walked to the immigration office, on a reckie for tomorrow. I bought a new hat since I left mine on the bus the other day. Sun hats are not cool but they serve their one and only purpose. Went to the bank and managed to complete my transaction without waking up the security guard. Mataram is actually ok.

I had hoped to watch the footy on one of the TVs in Macca's or KFC but the locals were watching the Moto GP. Then I was too tired to care so came back to the hotel.

Whale hunting off Lembata Island (really!)

Thursday 8th September

In Larantuka, Flores. Up at 6:15am (when will I get to sleep in!?) After breakfast of coffee and three tasty cakes, I walked down to the harbour and soon found the wooden ferry to Lembata, an island in the Solor Archipelago (no longer in Flores). The ferry is a bit like a big fishing boat and takes about 60 passengers, as well as 10 motorbikes and lots of boxes of mineral water and noodles. The Captain arrived just on time and we set off into the Solor strait among the islands with Gunung De Boleng, a perfect volcano shape, to our leftside. I chatted to Abdul the carpenter along the way.

After 2 hours, we stopped briefly at Lamakera on Pulau Solar where the drinks were unloaded. We then continued for 2 more hours to Lewoleba on Lembata island. I was excited to be arriving on a remote island in the far eastern part of Indonesia (but although it is remote, most people have better mobile phones than me and are quite westernised in their dress and most people speak a little English).

Abdul had said he would help me get to the market in Lewoleba from where I would get transport to Lamalera but when I got off the boat I could not see him in the crowd of people getting off and those unloading the boat. But I found a guy who would take me to the bus terminal in his ute for a fair price so off we went. I am glad I have picked up enough Indonesian to usually get by.

At the terminal I only had to wait 15 mintues before transport arrived. The 'bus' has a truck's cab and in the back are opposing bench seats for about 30 passengers, with the sides just open, no windows, and a curtain at the back to keep the dust out.

The road was bitumen for a short while and then became like a track and was pretty bumpy. Again the music was blaring but the driver's taste was not so bad as yesterday. I did exaggerate my annoyance at the guys smoking next to me. I know I should be used to it but it still annoys me, especially when there are little kids breathing in their smoke. The mothers don't seem to mind, or maybe it is the same as with the music and they think they can't say anything.

After a couple of hours there was a big bang and we had got a flat tyre. It obviously happens quite a bit on that road, and the guys had it fixed pretty quickly. As we approached the fishing village of Lamalera (population 1900) we were looking down on a stunning bay, with a big fluffy white cloud above the cliffs, which drop down into the ocean. There were lots of trees blocking the view so it was mostly glimpses, I will try to see it again before I leave.

The guest house here in Lamalera is nice. I thought I might be the only Bole (foreignor) in town but there is a French/Spanish couple here. I walked down with them to the beach to arrange with a guy for a fishing trip tomorrow. I walked up the hill and down to the other part of the village. Most villagers say hello and a group of schoolgirls ran over to talk with me.

Today on the bus a guy was transporting two live chickens. He didn't seem to care too much for them. One was tied up such that it's head was on its side with it's cheek against the floor of the bus. Later the other one was moving around a bit so the guy just shoved it back in it's bag and into the corner the way you might treat a bag of potatoes. I wouldn't want to be a pig around here either; most of them are tied up and/or in small pens. But this afternoon, one was tied upside down to a log as two guys carried it away to be slaughtered; it was squealing in distress.


Friday 9th September

The locals like to party, put my ear plugs in at 3am. Up at 6am and after coffee and donuts for breakfast we walked down to the beach to see if the fishing trip was on. But the guy came down and told us there was no fishing today because there is no kerosene; maybe that's why they had a party last night instead. So I went back to bed; it's not often I am lazy but I was this morning.

All meals are included with the room charge at this guest house. For lunch we got omlette and rice and vegies; it was left on the table in bento boxes. After lunch, at the hottest time of the day(!), I walked out of the village and uphill to find the lovely view that we passed yesterday. It only took half an hour to get up there and I saw the bay, but there was no shade up there and it was too hot to hang around, I could feel the heat coming from the tarmac through my sandals.

I walked back down to the village and to the other side. I popped into the Catholic church with it's relgious paintings and discarded plastic water bottles.

I carried on along the track, past some villages and orchards. I had planned to turn around at 4:30pm but as I turned a corner high above the sea there was a beautiful view of the sun reflecting on the open sea, with the village of Tapabali in the foreground, so I decided to keep walking. I watched the sun shining on the cliffs with the waves crashing below. I walked back a bit and sat on the road reading my book while waiting for the sun to set. A few locals came past. The sunset was pretty good, but it went behind the haze.

It obviously got darker as I walked back quickly with my torch. I stopped in my tracks as I spotted a small scorpion cross my path. It cordially sat there under my torch light while I took it's photo, good job it didn't get stuck in my sandal!

Pretty tired when I got back to the guest house, but dinner was on the table (Omelette, potato and too much rice), and an Italian guy, Jacomo, has arrived so that's 4 Bole. We took the opportunity to charge up laptops and phones as there is electricity only at night.

 
Saturday 10th September

Lamalera is not an ordinary fishing village; it is unique because it is, apparently, the only place left on earth where whales are hunted by hand, using bamboo harpoons, with the approval of conservation groups, because they only catch about 25 non-endangered whales per year; sperm whales. The whole village lifestyle and survival is based around hunting.

As soon as you arrive in the village you can see signs of whale hunting. Whale meat is hung up to dry in people's yard's, on the beach, all around. The fat from the neck is allowed to drip off into a plastic channel and into a plastic bottle and is used for cooking. There are plenty of whale bones around too. The locals also catch sharks and dolphins. 

The fishing boats are stored in thatched boat houses just at the top of the beach. It was there that we met local fisherman Stefanos to begin our fishing trip at 7am this morning. While we waited we saw a couple of guys come ashore with a dolphin and a shark that they had caught in the nets overnight. The shark had already had it's fin cut off and was being cut in half. I prodded the dolphin with my finger; the blubber is a few millimetres thick and then it's rock hard underneath. 

Our fishing boat was wooden and about 20 metres long with an outboard motor, and 5 bamboo harpoons along the side. There were 5 crew including Stefanos, and four of us Bole. They pushed the boat down to the sea across logs placed at 90 degrees to the boat. We were not sure what to expect today, some people get to see whales being harpooned and stabbed repeatedly in a bloody mess until they die. I was not sure I wanted to see that but was prepared for anything. Ours was the only boat out at that time.

My first priority was not to get sunburned and I was constantly putting on sunscreen. We headed a couple of kms out to the open sea with the crew scrutinising the sea for their prey, while I continuously bailed out the small swimming pool gathering around our feet. After about half an hour they spotted, I think, a dolphin. The one guy stood up the front of the boat, harpoon in hand but then it got away. Soon after, though, they spotted a whale, a prize target. I had wondered how 5 guys on a small boat would catch a whale, and of course they can't and we headed back for reinforcements.

With the outboard motor at top speed we approached the village with the guys all shouting 'Baleo, Baleo', so that the villagers could hear that a whale had been spotted and get themselves organised. It was crazy and exciting as about 90 men from the village descended onto the beach and dragged their boats down to the ocean to join the hunt. Some of the boats don't have motors; we towed one back out to sea.

With about 12 boats, the hunt split up and went looking for the whale. And sure enough the huge grey whale surfaced quite near to us; and other boats zoomed over. The hunter on the nearest boat perched on the front end of the boat with his harpoon raised, but the whale dived and got away.

All the boats split up again and then all killed their engines and waited for the whale to come up for air again. The whale was spotted a couple more times after that but after a couple of hours the whale seemed to have disappeared and the fishermen decided to call it a day and we headed back (I thought they would have stayed longer, but they know best).

Back at the coast the fishermen were hauling their boats back up the beach, across the same logs as before while all the village kids were playing in the water, and body-boarding on pieces of wood. I helped to push the some of the fishing boats back up to their thatched boathouses. They sing/chant as they push the heavy boat and there was a sense of camraderie among the men. It was a bit of a carnival atmosphere; I wonder what it is like when they bring a whale back?

So in a way it was a disappointment that we didn't get to see the fishermen display their hunting skills, but perhaps the kill would have been too traumatic to watch anyway. I didn't really have any moral qualms about what they do, since this is how they survive, they sell some of the whale products and keep the meat for themselves.


Sunday 11th September

Ideally we would have left Lamalera this afternoon, but then we found out there is no transport out of the village on a Sunday, so it was a lazy day. When I got up at 9:30am most of the villagers were away at church. We sat on the verandah reading books, sharing travel stories and watching people go by. And we got in the sea in the afternoon.

Lamalera is as far east as I will travel; tomorrow I will start retracing my steps as I head back west. I am not sure what I will do with the my remaining 15 days in Indonesia (except diving) as I will probably be just heading back the way I came. Oh well, there are plenty of beaches to sit on and I enjoy just being here without necessarily doing anything. I will take my time and hopefully not travel on too many consecutive days.

Moni, Kelimutu and Larantuka

a bit shorter today....


Tuesday 6th September

Up at 5:45, bemo to bus stop terminal and away at 7am, packed in with big sacks of rice. It was 4 hours to Ende, where we stopped for lunch; rice, egg and tofu. The Czechs stayed in Ende and Yotam and I continued for 2 hours here to the small mountain town of Moni. The scenery was great, very green, hills, rice terraces, good views and more leg room.

After a bit of a mission, found a cheap guest house. No running water in my bathroom, I have to go to the vacant room next door for the bathroom. I intended to go for just a short walk around the village, as far as the waterfall. But there was a path heading up from the waterfall so I started walking, then met a local lady for directions, and a couple of other tourists.

So we walked up the hill, passing through villages with friendly people pointing us in the right diretions. Nice views of Moni. Got swamped by 10 little kids. Down the other side we passed by lovely rice fields, with a hot spring in the middle, but an older local lady was taking a bath there so we didn't hang around. A bit further along we met the main road and walked back into Moni after a pleasant 2 hour hike.

Wednesday 7th September

Up at 4:15am. Put on some warm clothes. As arranged 'John', whose guest house I am staying at, picked me up with his motorbike at 4:30am for my trip to Gunung (Mount) Kelimutu. It is a 13km drive, mostly uphill, the road is not too bad and it was a bit of an adventure in the dark.

John left me in the car park and I walked with a few other tourists along a path and up to Inspiration Point. Kelimutu is famous because here are 3 volcanic craters, each one holding a different colour lake. I got there just as it was getting light and I could just make out the two craters on one side and another on the other side of the point. Apparently the two lakes change colour but today, once the sun was up, they were both torquoise, while the other is pitch black. The sun came up behind the clouds, and the rolling clouds in the distance added to the overall ambience.

The clouds began to cover the lakes a bit and I wanted to get back down in time for my bus, so I started walking back down at 6:30am, stopping briefly at another viewing point. I walked down the same road we had come up and after a few kilometres I took the shortcut back the way we had been yesterday afternoon, through the rural village of Manukako.

I packed up then stood at the side of the road for about 20 mintues before a bus came from Ende, heading to Maumere. It was a bigger bus and fairly comfortable and the scenery for 4 hours as we wound further east across Flores, was beautiful. Through the hills, past forests and sometimes the sea. The only problem was the deafening music coming from the speaker above my head. It is quite common on public transport and I don't understand the other passengers view of it. Does an old lady really want to listen to bad techno or Bryan Adams blasted at her for 4 hours? Do they like it or do they just have no choice?  I just can't work it out. Bryan got the thumbs up from the guys on the bus.

At Maumere I realised the bus was carrying on to Larantuka, where I wanted to go, so I stayed on. Unfortunately this meant a few more hours of Bryan Adams on loop, and other rubbish music being blasted at me. Sometimes they play kind of reggae or Indonesian pop which is ok, but I can't stand Bryan. Still, the beautiful scenery of the coastline and volcanic islands in the bay and Gunung Mandiri in the distance stopped me from jumping off the bus! When we arrived I had a bad headache from the music, from twisting my head out of the window all day to enjoy the scenery and from a lack of food.

The guest house owner in Larantuka is a nice guy and he put me in a dorm room with his visiting cousin. There is a large car/passenger ferry in town, on its way to Sulawesi so the port town has many extra visitors including the cousin, and some students I chatted to near the water. I was then joined by 4 young guys who just wanted to hang out near the Bule (foreignor); one of them spoke good English.

Being in a remote part of Indonesia, foreignors do attract attention and I got many calls of 'Hey mister' and people watching me walk past. That's ok, they are friendly and if you come here you have to expect it.





 

Labuanbajo, Komodo Dragons and Bajawa's traditional villages

sorry it's a bit long again....you might like to read it in stages :')
Friday 2nd September

Last night, here in Labuanbajo, I went for dinner to find out about trips to see the Komodo dragons and some hiking. At the restaurant I asked the first couple I saw if they knew anything about the trips (maybe they had already been and could recommend a travel agency?) and they said they had already made a reservation to go on a trip tomorrow and there was room for other people. So I went down to the travel agency with the Czechs to find out more. At first I wasn't sure because it seemed I wouldn't be able to do the trek I was interested in, and it seems every tourist just does the same thing, but I thought the Czechs would be good company for the trip and maybe something would work itself out with the trekking.

So this morning I got down to the travel agency at 7am, and had breakfast at the bakery across the road. At 8am, Swatya, Jana (the Czechs), Florentine the young trainee travel agent and I walked down to the boat to begin the trip to Rinca and Komodo Islands to see the Dragons and go hiking and snorkelling on a 2 Day / 1 Night trip. Once the Captain turned up we were off!

As we left Labuanbajo we passed by the same small islands I had passed on the ferry here, but a bit closer up. Florentine helped the Captain's mate to prepare lunch while we sat and enjoyed the views for a couple of hours, until we reached Loh  Buaya, the small Jetty on Rinca Island.

There are 1336 Komodo Dragons (known here as Ora) on Rinca, 1288 dragons on Komodo and about 150 on the surrounding Islands. As we walked along to the Ranger station we noticed that the Island is very dry with sparse vegetation, it is the dry season. We met our Ranger, Harris. He explained that on our 2 hour hike, he could not guarantee that we would see dragons, since they are wildlife. He grabbed his sturdy, two-pronged trident-shaped stick to fend off any aggressive beasts.

As soon as we walked around the corner we saw a dragon splayed out on the sand, which took us by surprise. This one had a broken leg from fighting. Close by is the rangers' canteen and there were more dragons hanging around there. They don't seem particularly dangerous (though of course they are) because they are lazy and just lounge around in the shade. Harris would give them a bit of a nudge on the backside with his trident so they would get up and walk along a bit.

We hiked a little, along the dry riverbed. we came to a dragon's nest and we stopped while Harris told us a bit about dragons. We were stood next to a few holes in the ground. The female actually digs a few holes and keeps her eggs in just one of them, the other holes are decoys to trick the male dragons who would otherwise eat the eggs. Dragons are cannibals! The mother protects the eggs but once they are hatched she pretty much leaves them be and the babies climb up a tree for safety, and stay until they are about 3 years old. Males outnumber females 3:1.

The thin forest gave us some protection from the searing sun and we saw some megapodes, but then we walked out onto the savannah for a while, cooking. We were the only visitors out there and it felt very remote. We came to a watering hole where a water buffalo was drinking, and then Harris pointed to a dragon up on the dry river bank. It had it's back to us so we walked around to the side of it, staying the regulation 5m away from it, maybe!

It was aware of us but not interested and again Harris gave it a nudge and it got up and walked about 5 metres before slumping down again. Then a huge water buffalo started down the bank and we thought there might be a fight but I guess the dragon wasn't feeling hungry or brave because it just stepped out of the way. After watching the dragon for maybe half an hour we walked back the way we had come and back to the boat.

Lunch was waiting for us: fried fish, which I guess they caught this morning, rice and veggies, very good. We then arrived at small Kambing Island for snorkelling. The water was a bit chilly at first, but ok. There was some good coral nearby, then I swam round to the beach and further round to the other side of the island. There was alot of plant life there as well as coral. The different coloured plants swayed gently with the current and it was great, as good a snorkelling as I can remember.

In the water I met a couple of tourists with their Indonesian guide. As we went along we saw many strange things clinging to the rocks, I wish I knew what they were. Then I saw a huge lionfish, maybe bigger than a football, including the length of its spines, much bigger than the one I saw in Pulau Weh. I knew not to get close, but when I pointed it out to the Indonesian guide he made us swim even further away; he had previously had a guest injured, poisoned and hospitalised by one, this was enough to persaude us. It only took about 20 minutes to swim round the island so I started to go back to see the lionfish again but then the water seemed a scarier place and I thought better of it!

Back in the boat I chatted with Florentine. She is 18, from a catholic family, goes to church every week and has 7 siblings. She is studying tourism and wants to be an English teacher. We talked about the differences between Australia and Indonesia. As with many Indonesians she was surprised when I said I am not religious. She has only ever been to Labuanbajo and and her home town of Ruteng. we moved along to Kalong Komodo where we could see Flying Foxes in the distance. We put down the anchor, had dinner, watched the sunset and chatted, partly about Swata's trips to Africa. There wasn't much else to do so we crashed out, under blankets since it was a bit cold out there.


Saturday 3rd August

Up at 6am to watch the sunrise over the sea, and the boat started moving. Banana fritters and coffee for breakfast. As we arrived at Komodo Island we could see the small fishing villages. We docked at Loh Liang at 7am. Last night I had asked the Captain if he would pick us up from Loh Sebita, the other side of the peninsula, so that we could hike there for four hours and not have to then double back. Last night he said no, because he did not know the conditions but we asked the Rangers at Komodo and they were happy to provide a guide for us (for an extra fee) and when Florentina asked the Captain this morning he said ok.

Again we did not have to walk far to see dragons. As we came to a bit of a clearing, there were two big ones under a tree, and again the sight of them made us jump a little. I expect they are there most days, along with 15 or so other tourists. I was a bit snap happy with the camera and should have taken more time to watch them, not just through the camera lense, nevermind. At one point one of them was striding right towards me, with a couple of the people between us, but the ranger soon stood in the way and waving his stick around was enough for the beast to back off. On cue, the dragons struck classic lizard poses, just like the small lizards in Pulau Weh.

The hike across the peninsula on Komodo Island was excellent. It was just the four of us and the guide and we walked thorugh the wilderness; sparse forest, up some small hills, down the side of valleys and in the open country, sometimes with ocean views. We saw orchids and cockatoos. Towards the end of the hike we spotted a dragon crossing our path up ahead, he was running quite quickly and went into the bushes so we didn't see him for long but at least he was out in the wild.

We arrived at Loh Sebita and the Captain seemed happy enough, had tied the boat up and we had to walk in the mud and then the sea up to our thighs to get back on the boat and I let the Captain know that we appreciated his efforts. We had lunch and headed across the ocean enjoying the views and nodding off. We then arrived at Kerachoul for more snorkelling. I walked in off the beach and the coral was ok and there were some big purple fish. We didn't snorkel for long as we wanted to get back to Labuanbajo for the bus.

At 4:30pm We arrived at the jetty and the end of the trip. We went to where the bemos hang out hoping to make it to Ruteng tonight, and as soon as we got there, there was one just leaving. The bemo was not too cramped and we enjoyed the scenery as we got into the countryside where the road is lined with small basic houses and crops. We stopped for dinner, mine was rubbery tofu and tempe. We arrived in Ruteng in the dark and checked into a (relatively) decent hotel. Again a blanket was necessary.

Sunday 4th September

As we were having breakfast on the terrace, thinking about how to get to Bajawa, a couple of guys came past in a Toyota and offered to take us to Bajawa for the same price as the local bus. Well, although I often prefer local transport, it seemed silly to turn down their offer. I don't really understand why transport in Flores is so expensive and the driver could  not explain it either. This was something I hadn't really realised before I started this journey to the East.

The scenery was good today; we passed by jungles, volcanoes, rice terraces and valleys. The road wound it's way up to Bajawa and unusually for me I felt a bit travel sick. I had a walk around the town and got a few friendly 'hey mister's'. I got my shoulder bag fixed by a tailor with a sewing machine, he fixed the zip too and I think he was going to do it for free but I gave him some cash. I found the bank and some mangoes and had gado gado for late lunch.

In the afternoon I met a couple from Victoria and they recommended local guide Alfonse for the tour around the villages around Bajawa. So with the Czechs I rounded up 3 other tourists and after meeting with Alfonse, we have arranged for him to guide us tomorrow. A bit chilly this evening, fleece required.

Monday 5th September

The six of us (2 Czechs, 2 Poms, an Israeli and I) met up with Alfonse and the bemo driver at 8am and we headed out to the villages surrounding Bajawa, the highest town in Flores at 1100m. There are many traditional villages, where the Ngada people live, today we visited 3 of the villages.

We drove out into the countryside and overlooked Bajawa. The area is dominated by Gunung Inerie, a perfect 2245m high volcano. The first village we came to is Bena; the bemo stopped just short as we came down the hill to see the picturesque village set on a plateau with about 20 thatched-rooved houses set in a horse-shoe shape around the raised village square (rectangle).

We walked up a few stone steps and Alfonse started to tell us about the village. We were stood next to a totem pole with an umbrella-shaped thatched roof; this represents the males in the village. Opposite each totem pole is a corresponding small thatched house to represent the women of the village. Alfonse said that people first lived here 100,000 years ago.

The people are animist but with some catholic influence, e.g. the Cross on tombstones. There are nine clans in this village, each with about 6 or 7 families. The eldest member of each clan is the clan leader, but the leader of the village is elected. When a person dies, or there is a marriage or a new house is built, there is a two day ceremony. On the first day there is dancing, and on the second day buffaloes and pigs are sacrificed. The horns of the buffaloes are displayed outside the houses.

We had a look around the village and the locals were content with our presence as they know Alfonse and he brings people here often, and a donation to the village is included in our payment to him. There were women weaving ikat, for which these villages are well-known. A house was being repaired and the people were busy. At the far end of the village, and up a few steps, is a look-out.

From Bena we hiked down the road and then along a trail in the jungle. It was a pretty easy hike and we stopped sometimes to look at the views, to rest in the shade and look at the macadamia nuts, cinammon, coconuts, small pineapples and huge bamboo.
After a couple of hours we arrived at the village of Tololea. It was much quieter here as most of the people were away farming and the kids were at school, 5 kms away. An old lady was busy chewing a betel nut wrapped in a betel leaf, which results in a very red mouth, like you have blood in your mouth, not very attractive. Women chew it for the same reasons as men smoke tobacco, it's a habit and maybe makes them feel good. I had some and it made my mouth go numb and it tasted yuk and I spat it out.

The third and final village we visited was Goresena, population 380 adults, most of whom were out working. We had a walk around, again the village is set on a small plateau in a beautiful setting surrounded by forest and the hills. While still being very traditional, the villages have some generators that they use sometimes and we did see a solar panel, a sattelite dish, some coke bottle crates and the kids have Premier League football shirts. And the kids were good at football.

We went along in the bemo for a bit and then got out and hiked along a rough track until we came to the Malanage Mata Air Panas hot springs, where we had noodles before bathing. Two small rivers meet here: one river is emerald green and the water is too hot to swim in; the other river is cold. So where they meet the combination is a pleasant temperature for bathing. Of course it's not perfectly mixed so you can step from a cold patch to a hot patch, or even have your left half in the heat and your right half in the cold. We stayed in the water for ages and our hands were more wrinkled than ever by the time we got out.

At the end of a great day, we headed back to the hotel in the bemo, with the same music on as this morning, including Hotel California, Dolly Parton and an Indonesian song sampling Mungo Jerry's 'In the Summertime'.

As we got back there was a catholic service happening at the front of the building next door. Meanwhile, as I type, I can hear a pig squealing, possibly being slaughtered like the one we heard yesterday.

Bali to Lombok to Sumbawa to Flores

Tuesday 30th August

Today I started my journey East from Kuta in Bali. I overslept, had breakfast, walked to the bemo stop, got 2 short-trip bemos then a bemo from Ubung to East Bali and the jetty at Padangbai. Chatted to some friendly Argentinian guys who live in NZ, while we Waited 1.5 hours until 3pm for the next large car/passenger ferry.

On the ferry I sat out on the deck on the port side, reading my book, watching Bali fade into the distance, though Gunung Agung was always visible. I chatted to Alan, a local guy who works in the Gilis and to another local guy who has a villa near Lovina. It was a pleasant 4 hours looking out to sea, and the sun set directly behind the boat.

We arrived at Lembar on the island of Lombok at 7:30pm. It was a bit chaotic with trying to get transport to Mataram. I was going to share a bemo with the Argentinians but they were bargaining real hard so I ended up sharing with a European couple. Like me, the other travellers felt that the bemo drivers were taking advantage of us being a bit stranded there, and charging us way more than they would charge a local person. I stayed out of it since I was just happy to share (the cost) with anyone! I think some of the travellers were a bit rude to the bemo drivers, but maybe I am like that too sometimes but I don't want to be. Mental reminder to be polite even if I think they are ripping me off.

The journey into Mataram was fun as it was Idul Fitri, the last day of Ramadan, so a big Muslim celebration and a carnival atmosphere. There were a few floats on the roads, people hanging out of the back of pick-up trucks, people banging drums at the roadside, people walking in processions, hundreds of motorbikes and random fireworks going off. Our driver whisked us past it as quickly as he could, mostly on the wrong side of the road.


Wednesday 31st August

I overslept a bit but nevermind. In Mataram, went to look for a bemo to the minibus stop on the edge of town but random guy on a motorbike offered me a lift for a reasonable price so I went with him, and he dropped me next to the minibus just about to leave for Labuhan Lombok. We were stuffed in like sardines, no leg room.

Along the way a few of the ladies seemed to be complaining to the guy collecting the money, like he was overcharging and also stopping to look for new passengers when we were virtually suffocating already! He conned me a little bit too although I was expecting it, had a whinge and paid up. At the ferry terminal he zipped past the ticket kiosk and I had to walk back 300 metres with my bag in the midday heat to buy a ferry ticket. Thanks mate.

This was the ferry from Labuhan Lombok to Poto Tano on Sumbawa island. We left at 1:30pm. Again the views were excellent; looking back at the fishing village and then Lombok from a distance, then the wide open sea with small islands dotted around. Again, the low-lying islands looked good as We arrived at pretty Poto Tano at about 3:30pm. As we docked I watched the guy tying and untying ropes to secure the boat.

We were soon back into a minibus and headed for Sumbawa Besar, the main city on Sumbawa, it took a couple more hours to get there but the scenery was good and was a bit like in Sumarta. On arrival a tout asked if I wanted to go to Bima (the gateway to Flores, about 9 hours away) which I did but not right then as I had been travelling for 2 days.

But then I thought 'why not?' and talked to him about it. Well, anyway there was some Lost in Translation and tiresome discussion, plus they either deliberately or otherwise gave me the wrong information about the only ferry to Flores (I know because I then called the ferry company) so I decided not to use them and checked into a nearby hotel. This was a bit stressful because it took a while to find and in the meantime I all but broke the strap on the shoulder bag that I carry my laptop in.

At the hotel I tried to sew the strap back on but it needs a machine. I walked back to the bus terminal for food and to see about other buses to Flores. While there a couple of Indonesian guys asked if I wanted to go to Bima with them in their flash Toyota, for the same price as the bus. Well I worked out that going then would probably save me a day so I said 'yes'. The bus touts got wind of this and seemed displeased that a potential customer was being taken away, so we drove off pretty quick, stopping at my hotel to grab my bags. Of course, I had already paid for my room but that's ok.

After a few kms the driver (I don't remember whether he told me his name) stopped to look for more passengers, which was not my understanding of the arrangement. So I followed him out of the car and complained, and we set off again. Then I felt a bit bad for complaining and got the other passenger to apologise for me properly in Indonesian. We were friends thereafter. Off we went into the night on 400km trip east.

We stopped for food at about 10:30pm at a small village called Segari. The white guy attracted the attention of some of the friendly local guys who came over to have a look and ask a few questions. One of them invited me to play table tennis behind the shop while our Fried Noodles was being prepared. I played for a while against the driver while the guys watched.

At around midnight we arrived at Empang where we dropped of the other passenger. I thought we were heading back to the main road but then we went down a narrow street where we parked up and the driver indicated that he was just popping in to see his family - we were outside his family home! They came to the door to have a look and I waved hello.

Soon the driver got back in the car as if to drive off, and I thought surely he would like to spend more time with his family, we are not in a hurry and I would quite like to be nosey and see his family home and relatives. So I suggested that he/we go back in and have some coffee to help him stay awake driving through the night, and he was very pleased about that.

The family home is made of very strong wood and judging from the fixtures and fittings and their fancy mobile phones they are a relatively wealthy family. They had pictures of Mecca on the wall. They opened a big new tin of fancy biscuits and a box of butter cookies and insisted I ate as many as I could! Then they gave me fried noodles and then coffee while we talked about football in broken English and Indonesian. I was suprised when the non-English-speaking driver said 'Mourinho - Special One'.

The female members of the family, including two kids, had been milling about and when I went back out to the car to leave at midnight, I realised they were coming with us. Six of them were crammed into the front and middle seats and my bag and I were in the back, which was fine, I rested my eyes but couldn't sleep.

Thursday 1st September

We stopped a few times along the way and when we were close to Bima at about 4:20am I started to worry about getting to the bus station at Riba by 5am, but the driver and his mother insisted on me following him and his family to some other house, just to say 'hi' to someone. He had shown me great hospitality but my patience was tested because if I missed that bus I would have to wait there for 24 hours for the next one.

Anyway we made it to Riba on time at 5am and of course the bus wasn't there. I woke up a sleeping policeman to ask him about the bus. He was very friendly and assured me it would come. In the meantime he asked me lots of questions but after 3 days of travel and no sleep for 24 hours I couldn't even remember which island I was on! For some reason he kept asking if I had been to Jamaica and we hadn't even been talking about travel. Then the bus turned up just as it started to get light. The bus wound its way around the rural countryside of Eastern Sumbawa and in the morning light it was lovely; rice paddies, hills, a torquiose river.

Two hours later we arrived at the fishing town of Sape and the jetty for the ferry to Labuanbajo on Flores. I got some proper food; rice and veggies for breakfast. We got on the ferry at 7:30am and it left at 8:30am. I met 4 other tourists. I read my book and listened to my football podcast. The view was mostly of the open sea but as we approached Flores in the late afternoon, there were small picturesque volcanic islands sticking up out of the water. The islands are mostly dry with not much vegetation. The closer we got to Labuanbajo, the better the scenery was and it felt like we were in a beautiful remote part of the world (even though we were on a huge ferry full of people and vehicles!)

I found an overpriced room but snapped it up as the cheapest place in town. The food at the tourist restaurant was rubbish and I was still hungry after so I went to a restaurant where local guys were eating and it was much better value, and I enjoy the banter with those kind of guys; they usually like to have a chat and a laugh.