August 20, 2023
Day 112 - a hard ride to Rankasbitung or is it Panancangan?
It's late, and I'm sitting in room 51 of the Hotel Kharisma. It's a foul dungeon. The sheets sport any number of holes - cigarettes, of course. A window doesn't close, the fan works on one setting only and squeaks, while wires dangle from the ceiling, suggesting that the room once had a TV. Geckos (good) and roaches (not so good) guard their home ranges. The traffic is loud. I didn't look at the room before signing up. The price, along with the fact that the place has a pool and that I was given water and a breakfast ticket, implied that it was on par with some very nice places I have stayed. It's not; it's a disgrace. And so why am I here? There's a simple answer: I am riding a bicycle, had done 95 km, didn't want to do 20 more and this is the town's only hotel. I arrived back from dinner not very long ago. What did I eat? Masakan Padang - the stuff that sits there for who knows how long. It's just like the last 100 Masakan Padangs.
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You may already have guessed that this stuff came at the end of a long, hard day.
I was up early and after taking a few photos of Daisy's house, finished yesterday's blog, having lost a good bit of my latest entry last night. There are a few glitches on Cycleblaze.
| Heart | 4 | Comment | 1 | Link |
8 months ago
With that done, I ate a very good breakfast of tempeh, vegetables and rice, with bananas for dessert, prepared by Daisy. The last chore was to inflate my tyres a little.
There are some people, I am sure, who finish their ride and check their bike immediately. I'm not one of them and, as I was putting some air in my tyres, I noticed a broken spoke - the first on this bike in about 65,000 km. Changing it was quick but it still held me up, so much so that it was 9.30 when we took some photos and said goodbye. It had been a good time.
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8 months ago
It was 10, and very hot when I reached the main road that I would follow all day. Whenever the road passed through a town, gridlock occurred, until I was about 35 km into the day.
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I was back in that all too familiar territory of exhaust fumes, noise and, especially out of towns, horrendous roadside garbage. It's dumped and, at some time, someone throws a match at it. I'm rather familiar now with the smell of burning plastic and coconut shells. The other thing, even more prominent today, was cigarette advertising.
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I may harp on about the garbage but it's my way of coping with it. If organisations, like Lonely Planet, had mentioned it decades ago, there's a chance that something may have been done.
As usual, there are always things that catch the eye.
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https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/427895-Amorphophallus-variabilis/browse_photos?place_id=6966
8 months ago
It was one tedious day and I didn't get a truck or a bicycle of the day. But, I know the bicycle. It was one, with drop handlebars, ridden by a child. If it were one size bigger I think it would have been two big for him to ride, but it wasn't and he blew past me in heavy traffic going up a hill.
I did get a vendor of the day.
There's no doubt that the highlight of the day had nothing to do with cycling and everything to do with Indonesia and religion. Daisy sent me a message saying that she had to write a political statement, about my visit, to the community chief. Of course, I replied "what is a political statement"? She didn't quite answer that question, but instead told me her response to the community: that I am an angel, who has been doing a lot to help Indonesians with education. She then included Islamic teachings, such as, Allah has reduced many obligations for travelers including the need for fasting; Allah helps and listens to the prayers of travelers; Mohammad taught the importance of caring for travelers. Daisy also told them that she knows both Cora and Kah Ying; she's aware that this is a serious issue.
I'd say to the community that, if you were peering through the window, you would have been ecstatic about our correct behaviour. I thought that this stuff was the domain of Saudi Arabia et al.
My mind jumped to the atrocities committed by the Indonesians in Timor Leste, often targeting women. Of course, they also exterminated untold Indonesian communists.
The next couple of weeks are not going to be easy. I never did work out whether I am in Rankasbitung or Panancangan. What I do know, however, is that if I can teach a hotel a thing or two about cleaning, they have very serious problems.
Today's ride: 95 km (59 miles)
Total: 7,826 km (4,860 miles)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 7 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 8 |
1. zinah (which we didn't do),
2. making prejudice on others, look down on others, slandering others, gossiping, making false reports, intimidating, and inciting others to support their evil minds. These last one, some of my neighbors who probably have never seen a westerner within 1 km distance but you, did, out of their fear and misunderstanding.
But, no worries. Just go on with our lives and enjoy every bit of Indonesia which are still enjoyable, such as some sweet, cheap, and refreshing pineapples along the way. 😃
8 months ago
8 months ago
Long time readers, first time commenters …
We are learning so much from your travels - each day’s entry is our bedtime story and we love it. The girls are big fans of bike/tree/vendor of the day (and roadkill pics!). Your broken spoke had us worried as we once broke 8 on our snail bike (long story) and that did not end well. Wishing you all the best for the final stretch and thanks again for your wonderful insights.
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