Day 87 - Opting for the hills - Unfinished Business

July 26, 2023

Day 87 - Opting for the hills

After the misery of yesterday and what I thought would be a miserable day today, I've decided to head for the hills. Well, today was actually pleasant so, when I got to Madiun, I had a choice. I could take it easy by continuing along the road to Solo or I could cycle to Solo via Magetan and get a couple of thousand metres of climbing. It seemed sensible to choose the latter.

But, back to the start of the day. I was given two tickets for the buffet breakfast, something I found hard to comprehend. It may be purely philosophical. The breakfast was brilliant, not just for the food but for the time - from 6 am. So, I applaud Hotel Fatma with its free tea, coffee and breakfast. The room was spartan but fine and, I thought, by spending 130,000 rp I was using my retirement money judiciously.

Armed with two fermenting pineapples, I found my way out of town easily via a few twists and turns. The main road was much quieter today, and there was scenery rather than abject squalor.

The road is a free-for-all. You get used to vehicles "on your side". One must watch the wires, too, for that low one.

Vehicles stopping at a red light - a worthwhile photo!

These flag people are everywhere, stopping the traffic in one direction so others can merge. Sometimes drivers give them money.

A railway crossing; drivers even stay on their side of the road, unlike in India.

I caught up on the serenity I missed out on yesterday.

Outside of towns, the road traversed agricultural country that was easy to cycle through.

Cane cutting. When was the last cane cut by hand in Australia?

I managed to push well and stopped for photos only. There was no shortage of stuff that caught the eye, be it colourful, thought provoking or just plain bizarre.

Kites for sale. Behind them were birds. I suppose if caged birds didn't sing they'd be in the pot. Would they be better off?

Sometimes the road was divided and even had pot plants in the middle.

A motorcycle on a pedestal. If it's a warning it doesn't seem to work. Perhaps it's art.

Look at this! A protest float, about garbage, on the edge of the road.

I planned to do about 50 km and then have a break. After 42, I saw a sign indicating Madiun was 14 km away so that's good. After 14 km I passed under an archway and kept going, stopping after 65 km at a roadside warung. I later realized that the distance marker was to the "district".

I'd lend one of my calves to Sam, if I could.

Things seem to be getting cheaper. Three mugs of tea, two coffees and a plate of fried noodles cost 25,000 rp. I couldn't pay that!

I powered on, eventually getting to Madiun after 95 km. A rather pleasant smell of sugar greeted me.

If only all pipes emitted the smell of slightly burnt sugar.

It wasn't much further to a rather unusual sight - a new housing estate with the rather bizarre name "Marshall Mansion"

If you're going to resort to the English language, wouldn't you call it something like "Paddy's Village" or "Paddy's Overlook"?

Here's my fruit vendor of the day. I bought rambutans that weren't very good. How can that be? I suspect that they're out of season.

The last 15 km dragged uphill to Magetan. I would have preferred that in the first 15. I knew it was going to happen and so had a break beforehand in a shady spot near an airforce base. I devoured a pineapple while wondering about the sculpture I could see down the road.

What about the innocent people on the ground? Is that winning? Did you win in Timor Leste?

There was much more pleasant stuff ahead.

I found a place to stay at RedDoorz, a budget hotel chain. The great thing about it is that it's safe. Safety, in this sense, means clean according to the certificate. In other words, the black mould in the bathroom will not harm me.

And, my cyclist of the day.

Today's ride: 122 km (76 miles)
Total: 6,723 km (4,175 miles)

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Ian DouglasThe breakfast ticket thing works in both directions: Kids Stay Free (jamming all into one bed) means no breakfast tickets for them.
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