Indonesia
05/10 - 04/11
Not so easy to draw an itinerary in a country made of … 17000 islands! But we still had to plan a little. Landing in the city of Jakarta, Java’s island was automatically part of the program. We added the famous island of Bali where we volunteered, as well as the one of Lombok on our way. We ended our Indonesian adventure with the fierce island of Sumatra to meet wild orangutans.
Contents
Java (05/10 - 13/10)
Arrival the 5th of October, beginning of the afternoon, at the airport of Jakarta. Looking for authenticity, we skip the taxi and decide to join the capital aboard a local bus. The heat is already stifling and we manage to get to our hostel, chosen randomly... in the plane, with relief. After 20 hours of travel and a well-deserved cold shower, we look forward to feed ourselves and discover the reputed Indonesian cuisine. Our meal for the evening: chicken satay with peanut sauce, gado-gado (vegetables with spicy peanut sauce) and a nasi goreng (fried rice), typical dish of the country.
First night in Indonesia and already first early wake-up call to catch a train, direction Yogyakarta. Indeed, we don’t linger in the capital, more famous for its heavy traffic than its places of interests. We prefer its younger sister, Yogyakarta, where we arrive 6 hours later. The train offers different classes, but for this first travel, we opt for a little bit of comfort in “Exekutiv”, where it’s possible to tilt our seats, which are already much spacious. A tuk-tuk is taking us to our guesthouse, that is again a last-minute choice.
2 nasis/mies gorengs and 2 mango juices later (our now daily ritual), we prepare our program for the upcoming days. And what a program, as the region is full of surprises to discover!
Starting with the sites of Borobudur and Prambanan, listed as Unesco World Heritages. Situated an hour away from our lodging, the location of a scooter is unavoidable… and that’s a good thing, because it’s without a doubt the most beautiful manner to enjoy the indonesian landscapes.
Built in the 8th and 9th centuries, Borobudur temple is a square-shaped Buddhist construction with four visible superimposed corridors. The upper terrace is itself surmounted by three circular terraces housing 72 stupas and an unfinished Buddha in its center. Long forgotten as hidden by volcanic ash and jungle, the temple of Borobudur is rediscovered and renovated in the 19th century. It has since represented a place of worship and sacred pilgrimage. It is to this day the most visited monument of Indonesia.
Built in the 9th century, the site of Prambanan consists of 240 temples dedicated to the hindu God “Shiva”. Despite the after-effects of the 2006’s earthquake, it remains well preserved and impressive (47m high for the highest temple). Because of its colours, its layout and its architecture, this is the one we preferred.
Yet not planned at first, we take the direction of Cemoro Lawang, base camp of the famous Mount Bromo. Always by train (clearly the best value for money/time), but this time in “Ekonomi” class, we wriggle constantly on our small perpendicular bench of 3 people. Fortunately, a Mie Goreng (fried noodles) makes the travel passes faster.
After that begins a hellish race to avoid the scams that all tourists are victims of at the train exit. Sharing a minivan with another family allows us to slip through the cracks, even if we get double charged the entry of the site a bit later.
Alarm at 2:45 am to climb the Mount Penanjakan and admire the sunrise on Mount Bromo. We wrap ourselves up as much as possible as it seems very cold up there, but we remove everything very quickly. The walk is pleasant, between small roads in the village, forest paths and rock climbing, all at the light of our head torches screwed on our heads.
We are delighted to have opted for this expedition on foot and in complete autonomy, as it allows us to avoid the hordes of jeeps on the main road (and pay). We arrive at our destination shortly before 5:00 am, and we realize that one or two more vests would not have been a luxury! However, the cold gets quickly forgotten in front of the painting that is drawn little by little in front of our eyes. The sky emerges and the clouds let their place for wonderful colours on the valley and the surrounding volcanoes. So beautiful!
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We admire this beautiful show for the following hour and then continue our adventure to the crater of Mount Bromo. This is when things start to get tough… As real budget backpackers, we always make research on travellers’ blogs to look for good deals as site visits can be pretty expensive when you have a white skin. Prices may also vary according to the seasons, days of the week and visiting hours. In short, we thought we had found a super good idea to climb the crater of Mount Bromo by reading a story about a free path hidden in the middle of a leek field.
Except that… after getting down all the Mount Penanjakan, stopped just at the right place, found THE right field of leeks (among the 100 others), hurtled a dune of sand, crossed the no man’s land at the foot of the crater in the middle of mini tornadoes...
We spot in the distance a motorcycle getting closer and closer to us. Anouck the optimist believes in a street vendor… No way! This is a site guard that quickly ask us for our tickets... Long story short, we fail the negotiations and the feigning of total idiocy (“you want to see our passports? No problem!”) and we give up after seeing his walkie-talking. We say goodbye to 30€ and therefore explode our budget. Direction the crater, better for it to be worthy this one…! And we take all in indeed, more in the literal sense than figuratively. To get to the crater, we cross the caldera and trudge for over an hour, under a blazing sun but especially in a permanent cloud of dust.
Finally arriving at the top, we appreciate more being able to take a break than the crater in itself. Yes, it’s beautiful, but the accumulated tiredness takes over the smoking hole present under our feet.
We reassure ourselves by thinking that the descent will be better, except that it comes up to be twice worse. We don’t see a single thing, the wind is crazy and it seems that we are constantly trapped in a tornado of sand.
Judging by the faces of locals crossing our paths, we conclude that ours must be funny. However, when local workers offer us a ride to the village, we conclude that we are probably scary.
First impulse when we get back to the guest house: the mirror. What a laugh!!!
We have to say, with us, every day has its own surprises package… So, of course, we put it back the next day! The night before, we arranged a transportation with our driver… we are disconcerted when he tells us 15 min after the appointment that his car broke down on the road… So we end up urgently sharing a minivan with 11 other backpackers to reach Probolinggo, where we have to catch our train. When we think that we almost got it… we would have needed just 5 more minutes! Bye the train, we must find another solution to reach our next destination: Banyuwangi, east of Java. The bus seems to be the simplest option, the only thing left to do is to find the good bus among the 10 others ready to depart. After the negotiations that we must keep secret from other travelers, we board a bus with a driver that ensures us that the trip lasts 5 hours. After 15 minutes, we wonder how we can travel on these tiny seats without any A/C. Very hard. After 2 hours, all passengers need to change buses. Apparently, that’s normal. “Let’s follow the crowd!”. More space on the seats and the A/C, we are relieved. Short rest as we have to change of bus again. This is already completely full, so where are we going to seat? Ah, we are not able to seat apparently… The ride standing up lasts an hour, before locals who arrive at destination give us their seats. Already 4 hours have passed, we should arrive soon… Weirdly, Google Maps geocalise us and indicate us that we are only half way… Unfortunately for us, Google Maps is right as the trip finally lasts 8 hours! 8 hours during which we as well as the other passengers thought we would die when 2 buses in the opposite direction start to dispute a race and brush us.
Anyway, we arrive at Banyuwangi during the night, where we will need a good day to rest and process those emotions. We take the opportunity to wander around and rest on the black sand beach of Bangsring.
Flat tire on the way… of course! To live the Javanese experience fully before taking the ferry to Bali.
Bali (13/10 - 20/10)
We have long hesitated to visit the island of Gods, preferring less touristy places. But a volunteering experience, not planned at all, introduced itself to us. So, here we are, heading to Seririt, North of Bali. We are welcomed by Simone, a German expatriate since 2014, who horrified by the amount of waste around her place, decided 3 years ago to set up a volunteering project to clean the beaches and the rice fields nearby. We will spend 3 days there, during which we become aware of harmful and lasting effects of plastic that rots the earth and its resources. If you would like to read more about this project, please click here.
We take advantage of this mission to get closer to the locals during our free afternoons. Following a search of the most authentic place to eat and recommendations from locals, we taste our first Soto Ayam (tasty broth made of vermicelli, chicken, potatoes, eggs and onions), which will become one of our favorite dishes. We also meet a Balinese couple who invite us to their home to explain us the subtleties of Indonesia culture and the coexistence of several religions.
The island of Bali is also known for the many waterfalls it has. On the road to the South, we select some that we will never find but will lead us to even more remote waterfalls. While their access is quite tricky (hillside roads which are something like 30 cm wide), they are completely worth it!
Special mention for the Blemantung Waterfall. Near this one, a local kindly suggests us to show us the way. We accept with pleasure and follow her during a 60° descent with flip-flops, and then barefoot through the banana fields for about an hour. Arrived at the waterfall, we offer her a tip to thank her. She refuses to ask us five times more. Shocked by her request and tired to be only judged as moving wallets, we try to explain her that we don’t have this amount on us and that she could have warned us before. Upset, she leaves the place and let us find our way back alone. Judging by the very dense environment surrounding us and the almost identical paths that are presented to us, we clearly count on our lucky star to find our way back and our accommodation before it gets dark. Challenge accomplished!
Not far from Denpasar, we stop at Ana’s, a friend who has been living in Bali for several years. She hosts us for two nights, time for us to recharge our batteries. A big thank you to her who welcomed us with open arms!
We then go North, direction the charming town of Amed, known for its warm atmosphere and its beautiful snorkeling/diving spots. The water is indeed so clear, we are so amazed by the incredible fauna and flora. The sun passes through the surface and reflects the purple tones of the corals. The multicoloured fishes are curious about our presence.
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We would have liked to stay a few more nights to admire the beautiful seabed and sunsets of Amed.
But another island is calling us, the one of Lombok.
Lombok (20/10 - 24/10)
Less known and touristy than Bali, the island of Lombok has nothing to envy to its neighbor! Mount Rinjani at the north, rising at 3700m, and a surfer paradise at the south, everyone can find its happiness. To reach the island, nothing more simple, speedboats regularly make the connection with Bali in just 2 hours. However, simplicity has not really been the motto of our trip so far… We prefer to cross the sea by local ferry, more authentic and 10 times cheaper.
We arrive at Lembar where we want to join Mataram, the largest town on the island. A bemo (local bus) offers to take us for 150 000 rp per person (10 euros). Ok, this one clearly takes us for beginners. We begin to walk, when the same driver meets us a few minutes later without any passengers. He does not want to make his journey with an empty bus. He then offers us the real local price of 50 000 rp for 2 (just over 2€). Sold!
Cosy at our guesthouse, we prepare our little itinerary for the days to come. Lombok is not very large (50 km long and 50 km wide as the crow flies), we decide to let our big backpacks at the hotel and rent a scooter for 3 days to make a loop around the island, about 300 km in total.
Direction the mountains to the northeast. On the way, we stop at the famous Stokel & Kelambu waterfalls. Again, all the ploys are good to make us pay the most expensive entry as possible. Some agents explain us that there are several waterfalls on the way and that the price is decreasing depending on the number of waterfalls visited (yes sure, there will be checkpoints at the entry of each waterfall…), that some are inaccessible without a guide (hop, let’s add 60 000 rp) and that the site being quite wide, better to take our motorbike (of course, we pay a higher price with it). In short, they really begin to annoy us and we make them understand that 2 waterfalls will satisfy us and that we will do it without the guide and the bike. Result? 150 000 rp per person… We pretend to wait for friends (because yes, the price is also decreasing depending on the number of people...) and we wait for a while. We explain the situation to a German couple who arrive later and agree to form a group with us. We approach a local who agrees to do the transaction for us. Result? 100 000 rp for 4 with motorcycles, 6 times cheaper than the original price. We notice the price of 40 000 rp paid by the local, who also took his small commission… Of course, not a single ticket control after… But we are happy and did it pretty well at the end!
We are even happier to not have given up when we see the waterfalls. They are clearly up to their reputation, and being almost alone on the site makes the moment even more beautiful. From the top of their 30m, these waterfalls seem to dominate the surrounding jungle. The wonders of nature…
We continue to the village of Sembalun Lawang and its famous Mount Rinjani, where we hope to arrive before dark. The road to access the village overlooks the rice fields before meandering through the mountains. A first with a scooter, but the journey goes very well and makes us thirsty for more.
We settle in a little bungalow at nightfall and we take head torches in the search of a local little warung. On the way, we notice an orange light at the distance, and the closer we get to it, the more we get the impression that it is flames. Yes yes, flames. So, fire, on a volcano… And why not a volcanic eruption? Surprisingly, our good mood gradually leaves room for a slight tension. But no one seems to worry and the evacuation route is not busy. We enter the only open warung of the village when we are soon surrounded by about thirty firemen who came to eat. Well, if they have the time to eat, it shouldn't be an urgency… To be reassured, we still prefer to ask for clarification. They explain to us laughingly that it is ONLY a forest fire they have been trying to extinguish for about 3 days.
We sleep tight and get up in the early morning to climb the Pergasingan Hill, a small mountain whose summit offers a magnificent view on the valley and the Mount Rinjani.
We leave Sembalun Lawang late morning for the South of Lombok, 100 km away. Direction the peninsula of Ekas and the small fishing village of Telone that offers only one lodging place. Despite the strong wind, the journey goes smoothly until 20km before arrival, where the paved road leaves place to a rough way. It will take about an hour to cross a maze of sand paths and stones. What an adventure!
But the result exceeds our expectations: three typical bungalows just a few meters from a deserted beach. Not a single tourist, we are completely alone in this heavenly place for a few hours.
We then decide to abandon the south of the island preferred by popular surfers because of the tiredness accumulated by the miles and the heat of previous days. We reach back Mataram where we rented our scooter and left our backpacks, as our flight to the wild Sumatra Island takes off the next morning.
Sumatra (24/10 - 04/11)
We selected this island primarily for its authenticity. Much less solicited by tourists, it offers a wide variety of landscapes, mountains, seashores, rice fields, lakes, caves, waterfalls, jungle and a nature that is even greener.
We land in Padang, where we meet our Spanish friend Andrea also on adventure for several months. She accompanies us for the next 10 days. While visiting the city, we realize that tourists must be VERY rare judging by the locals’ faces when they see us. The photo shoots we’ve participated to since the beginning of the trip are multiplying.
We continue our way until Bukittinggi. The locals speak very little English, or not at all, even in hotels and travel agencies, which will make our journey’s organization a little more complicated.
We decide to make a return trip to the Lake Maninjau and stay overnight there, before one of the longest and most demanding journey of the trip.
Indeed, we have to arrive to Bukit Lawang two days later as we booked a 2-days jungle trek to see orangutans. Just a little detail, Bukit Lawang is about 800 km north from our current position, almost 20 hours by bus. But since there is no direct transport, we realize that we will probably spend more than 24 hours in transport. Travellers’ comments on internet are not more reassuring, since the road is apparently extremely difficult, but this is our only option. At the bus terminal, which has become a travel agency center, we are immediately approached by many vendors. After some thoughts, we decide to take the most comfortable possible to compensate for the duration of the trip: A/C bus, reclining seats, toilets, and as a bonus a smoking room. At the end, it’s not that bad, if we forget the cold (freezing) bus and the full volume karaoke that lasts almost all the trip. It will just take 10 hours more than expected, or 32 hours in total to reach the village of Bukit Lawang!
The next day, we keep going with a trek in the Gunung Leuser National Park. Yes, we would have preferred to get more rest, but hikes start only 3 days a week, thus limiting us in time. The excitement makes up quickly forget how tired we are.
After seeing a snake nicely wrapped around its branch, we cross a plantation of rubber trees, the industry of which (and palm oil) directly threatens the population of orangutans. We then end up face to face with a family of Thomas Leafs monkeys (famous monkeys of Sumatra) and a dozen of long tail macaques.
The pace of the trek is fast, the ground rather rough (a big thank you to the lianas for their unconditional support) and the heat and humidity, very characteristic to this island, are high.
However, it doesn’t matter. The idea of being able to admire these endangered animals in their natural habitat makes us climb mountains without any problems while the three local guides who accompany our group listen to the slightest crack in the forest. Everyone has a well-defined role:
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Mino Mino our scout,
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“Fireman” our leader,
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and our quiet guide closing the path making sure to not leave anyone behind.
Approximately 2 hours later, we have the immense chance to meet 3 wild orangutans (including a mother and her baby) playing in the trees. We remain speechless and emotional in front of this beautiful image and we measure our privileged place.
A little further, the male of this small tribe is doing his parade to show us that he is the one in charge!
We have a hard time taking our eyes off this show to continue our journey, but the road is still long until our camp for the night. We make many stops to drink and regain strength in this environment that is beyond us.
In the early afternoon, our guides explain that the two females orangutans we are likely to encounter very soon are semi-wild, therefore accustomed to human contact. Unfortunately, they do not keep very good memories, having been gravely attacked by poachers. We must therefore be very careful and not dwell on it. As expected, Mina is waiting for us at the right place, blocking the way. Very intelligent (orangutans share 97% of our genes, just after gorillas), she has implemented a well-done stratagem. Having noticed that this path was almost inevitable for hikers, Mina blocks the road at a strategic point, waiting for food a little bit aggressively. Mino has to make a “diversion” with fruits so that Mina deviates from the path to let us pass. A toll in the jungle!!
A similar story comes a few minutes later with Jackie grabbing a tourist’s arm. One of the guides must give her a bunch of bananas so she finally agrees to release her.
We reach our camp 3 hours later, after 8 hours of walking finalised with a crazy descent.
Fortunately, the campsite is located just at the edge of a wonderful river, allowing us to refresh ourselves before dark. We are then invited to eat a crazy meal: curries, sweet potatoes, chicken, potato cakes, eggs, rice, etc. Hard to imagine that such a fest was prepared in the middle of the jungle! The evening ends with stories from our main guide who tells us his two “fights” with Mina, bite marks as evidences!
The night spent in the tent is better than expected despite the torrential rain, but we are happy to find the sun the next morning.
We take advantage of this peaceful place to recharge our batteries before seeing several monitor lizards that brutally slow down our desire to go for a swim.
No regrets, since a wonderful surprise awaits us at the entrance of the camp: two orangutans watch us from the top of their tree. They are quickly joined by 20 long tail macaques who swallow everything they can from the remains of yesterday’s meal.
A treat later, and it’s already time to leave.
The trek’s return is less tiring since it is done… by rafting! Indonesian way, of course! And we love it! We make a small stop at a hidden waterfall and there, a new surprise…! An orangutan mom tenderly cuddling her baby on a branch. Judging by his size and hesitant gestures, the baby is very young and still learning. This moment seems so unreal and precious.
We withdraw ourselves quietly to continue our crazy aquatic descent to Bukit Lawang. A real treat and especially a well-found way to bring us back to reality!
It will takes us almost 3 days to recover from this experience, both physically and emotionally. Three days to assimilate those incredible memories that we have just created by meeting fascinating animals that look so much like us, in an ultra wild environment and alongside guides passionate about their region and history.
We then head to Medan, after having played badminton with locals to make sure it was their national sport… well, no doubt about it!
The city doesn’t have much to offer, except its strategic location, making it the 3rd largest city in Indonesia and an obliged passage for travelers going to Sumatra. It is from this airport that we say goodbye to Indonesia and leave our friend Andrea for new adventures. Direction? Thailand!
Our Indonesian adventure cannot end with peace and positivity… we of course had to find something to spice up our departure! That’s how we ended being denied to board the place by the Indonesian immigration, for one day of overstay in the country. Because yes, here we count the day of arrival AND the day of departure, and the deadline for leaving the territory is not specified on the visa. Only thing left is to pay the 125€ fine. Too bad for the budget that we have, so far, respected so well! Fortunately, the plane is waiting for us! We have barely the time to seat and we take off.
Highlights
OUR FAVOURITES
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An infinite choice of itineraries thanks to the islands’ diversity and their respective particularities (landscapes, culture, religion, food…)
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The possibility of discovering not so touristy places that are still authentic
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One of the two only destinations in the world (with Malaysia) where we can observe wild orang-outans
OUR DISAPPOINTMENTS
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Oppressing atmosphere because of behaviours towards tourists
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Continuing scams in negotiations (we are backpackers, not billionaires)
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Time spent in transportation (>100H)
Budget
We estimated for our 30-days trip in Indonesia a budget of 1380€ (23€/person/day). For a detailed explanation, please click here.
Below is a breakdown of our actual spendings in regards to our estimated budget.
