Dragons, Bat, Volcanos... 7 Days in Flores Indonesia

It was a bumpy 2 hour flight, a real roller coaster. We landed in Flores just before a downpour started.

After a quick introduction to our guide we hoped in a car then off to a boat where we immediately started sailing out to see and around some islands. The islands were very green and some had almost no trees on them.

The seas had apparently been to rough the few days before we arrived to sail, but today they were much “better” it was still very rough.

We arrived at a small island national park and the local guides here had large forked sticks. We were here to see DRAGONS. Big fire breathing, flying… ok no… komodo dragons. Large lizards and we were not disappointed, it was less than 5 meters into our trek when we got to see our first one.

Further on in the mangroves was a larger, 2 meter female lazing in the sun. well what sun there was. It wasn’t long before the heavens opened and it was raining again.

Around the national park kitchen huts was a pair of larger still dragons, our guide told us stories of how the dragons would kill buffalo and cows and how children have gone “missing” and skulls found later.

On our little hike we also encountered some buffalo (apparently the lucky ones not to get eaten) and some wild monkeys curious as always to see what we were doing but not curious enough to venture to close to the ground.

After the tour we returned to our boat where I was able to go snorkelling in some of the most clear and untouched waters I have ever been in.

After a quick paddle the captain of our boat told me to come back in, the weather was closing and we had to rush back to the harbor.

As we arrived we got news that the boat behind us with 4 Holland tourists on had sunk and the harbor gates were closed so we had to walk to the hotel in torrential rain. Oh well our shoes where flooded and now so was our cloths. At least we got to see dragons?

Sông found a nice pillow in our room that she called her “husband” it was given prime place everywhere… till I kicked it/him out ;)

The next day we started our drive into the heart of Flores. Our new guide told us the last few days have been some very bad weather and the next few seem to be worse. This was not good news.

The first place for the day was a cave, which was said to have mirrors in it. Or at least to the locals. The water and the crystal in the cave gave it a mirror look. It was quite nice.  The cave was full of micro bats and cave spiders, that our give told us 1 bite would kill us “oooooo” the spiders looked like something out of a movie. Actually come to think of it I have seen it in a harry potter movie somewhere.

After another drive we reached a hill side where we would walk to see the famous spider web rice fields of Flores. The fields were set out in a shape of a spider web symbolising we all have a starting point and we all come from the same place. Its so the villages never forget there family.

As we reached the town we were going to stop in that night we pulled into our first native village. It was small and featured a brick wall constructed when the village was first built in the Neolithic age and 2 main houses, the chiefs and the ceremony house. All the other houses around were people living in the village.

In the center of the village was a raised area used for sacrifices and praying to there gods. It had a large flat stone. The chief’s hut was grand and had a small carving of a “strong man” on top.

That night Sông and I checked into a nunnery well it was before they converted it to a hotel. The Nun’s still ran the hotel. The room even featured a bible and a picture of merry on the wall and a cross.

The next day was a full day of driving but what a drive. We drove through some small villages that had been completely wiped out by a typhoon that had ripped over the island the last few days. houses were spread over the road, roof moved down the road, trees ripped in ½. It was like a bomb had gone off…

We stopped at a hill side to view the scenery, a old man was in the process of chopping a palm tree into planks of wood to repair his house that was ripped away. It was also the first time I had seen bamboo trees snapped like twigs.

A short time later we stopped for another “pitstop” leaving my camera in very capable hands…

The weather seemed to clear that afternoon and we stopped at a place that made palm wine. 60% proof stuff, it was like the rice or corn wine I had in dong van.

The process was that the used the seeds from the palm trees the female trees only.  After a complex process of fermentation the steam runs up a pipe into a bamboo pole where it cools then down the bamboo into a bucket ready for drinking.

That afternoon the car drove through some amazing hill sides and past a old volcano. We stopped for a quick photo and the local kids crowded in for a photo, always happy to see there face on a little screen. A few were not quite sure and stayed at a safe distance ;)

We then stopped in that evening at another “traditional” village. This one was much lager than the last, our guide explained that each family (maybe 5 or 6 for this village) had to each year kill a buffalo and put its horns outside there house for the gods.

We worked it out to be about 10-12 buffalo for the entire village each year sacrificed, that’s a lot…! The village was laid out in a circle and in the centre was small huts, this was used for the ladies and large stones used for sacrificing. Each house was slightly different but all had a similar quality, some had a idol on the top indicating a strong man.

At the back of the village was a amazing view and a Christian alter with a cross and image of Christ. 

We took some time to admire the view and see lots of other small villages scattered around before we headed back into the village.

As we were walking around the village we got to see and talk (with translator) to some of the locals. Sông even got a marriage proposal but a man smaller than her… hehehe

The next day was a loooooooong drive, we spent all day in the car to get to the ocean side. It was extremely tiring.

It all seemed worth it when we pulled into a small fishing village and its harbor. We hopped on a tiny boat. It was so small the poor captain couldn’t stand up in the cabin so he cut a hole in the roof to stand through.

After a short 30 min or so boat ride we stopped at a island, it seemed the trees where dead and the branches moved. As we drifted closer I could clearly see what it was…. Bats… millions of bats. They were the same as the large flying foxes we have at home.

It was really a sight to see, as the captain started up the old boat motor with a backfire or two, the bats came alive and scrambled as the noise ripped through the trees.

We spent a good 30 min just watching the swarm of bats flying around then headed to a small island for a grilled lunch.

The island use to have tables and chairs on but the tour company that built them long since closed and it was abandoned. The sand was white the sun was out and as our fresh fish cooked on a coco nut shell fire, sông and I when for a little walk.

The food was amazing, it was so fresh and the view was making it taste even better, we were sooo hungry it was about 4pm and we had gotten up at 6am with nothing in between.  Still the place and the weather seemed to be great.

As we headed into shore though the weather turned once again and it bucketed down with a intensity I had never seen before.

The next day we had another longish drive, thankfully this time we stopped at a few places. Our first stop was at a beach called the blue stone beach. Strangely all the stones at “blue stone beach” were blue…

We wondered up and down the beach for a while and found some small stones as presents for the people back home. Our guide told us some random story of how the stones never stop and its from the gods. But as we drove further around the island you could clearly see the blue stone in a layer of rock on the island.

They (the locals) farm the blue stones into size and color depth and bag it, then sell the bags of stones to bali and the world to use as they please. Its apparently the “only” place in the world where they exist and the 10 old ladies scrabbling the beach for these stones work every day of the year.

We pulled into a small hotel, it was very cheap and nasty. The first room we had bugs on the sheets, so the second room the sheets were wet. We told our guide and the hotel owner and left the hotel for a walk. About 20 min into our walk the downpour of rain started again. Our guide had tracked us down with the car and drove us back thankfully as we would have been wet and my camera ruined otherwise. They had changed the entire bed and sheets. But now we found out there was no water or power in the hotel. It was all because of the storm the last day or so it had ripped off the 2^nd level of the hotel completely and there water tank. The power was because all the lines were down.

The next morning we were up at 4am… why???? Oh why??? We were climbing up a volcano today to see the magical 3 colored lakes.

After a very scary and windy drive with lots of trees and power lines down, we arrived at a small dark car park. I really should have brought my touch and my phone was flat as couldn’t charge it. 


We started with a few groups but having lived at altitude over the last few months we quickly finished the climb. It was extremely windy at the top of the volcano and dark. 


It was another 40 min before the sun started to rise, and we got the first glimpse of the lakes. The sulfur in the air was making us all a bit sick but as the time went on the clouds lessened.

Until finally at 6am we could see the lakes in all there prime.

The lakes were very beautiful, they apparently change color every few years for no reason. Scientists think it’s the minerals being released from the volcano that cause the color change. 

It was out 2^nd last day and we had another long drive, time for a cat nap as we were up so early. That evening we checked into a nice hotel, air-condition, TV, power and water… luxury!.

The next day we were due to fly out at 12 midday, so we headed to a small beach for a bit of time killing. The beach was hit by a tsunami a few years ago. It was so beautiful, almost like a post card.

We went for a nice long walk on the beach and found a bent over coconut tree to sit and pass time on. Nice end to the 7 days.

When we arrived back in Bali it was the day before the Balinese “quiet day”. There was floats and parties all over town. It was quite a sight to see. Each shop seemed to have its own idol and thing, and they had closed all the streets down for this parade.

The next day was quiet day, no TV, no internets (Nooooooo!), no going outside… only sleep.

The day after we flew out back to Vietnam. With a stop over in Malaysia because I fell asleep and we missed the flight…

Till next time, HAVE FUN!

Steffen

                             

Slow boat too... umm I'm in China? So Yichang?

Man fishing in river with faint
skyscrapers in background

Chongqing is the fastest growing city in the world,  its population and tourism boom in the last 10 years is largely due to the construction of the 3 gorges dam and the displacement of many towns and cities by the rising water.

The city towers and apartment blocks started some 30 min out of the city and just continued all the way in. Millions of people now live in this over night super city.

I had been travelling with Tom a guy from the UK since the train incident in Xi’an a week ago and we were both heading the same way to at least Yichang.  Its always a much more enjoyable trip when you have someone to talk.

We arrived in the city and headed to the docks, we were trying to find the ferry to Yichang before the evening so we didn’t have to stay in the city. Every 2 meters there was someone selling a tour on the river. It was like a pack of flies buzzing around you, “tour tour tour, englishy tour” *Zap* my imaginary fly zapper goes…

Police bikes in China

We found the ferry terminal and the price was double if not more than what we had read and expected. So we took our chances and headed to the hostel and checked in. The hostel was most helpful with booking things, mainly because they get a large cut of it as well but its understandable. The hostel didn’t have access to the ferry but could sell us a tour for 50 Yuan more than the ferry would cost us, and then we could get off and see some sights and the ferry is for workers not very nice.. ok we go the Chinese tour boat then. Ooops the 2 night one is sold out, we must go the 3 night one, add 100 more and we have to pay extra for the sights, so we bought a package. Before we knew what had hit us the fly zapper slapped me in the face, we had gone 4 times over the original price we thought we would spend on the river, and we were on a tour. OUCH!

Oh well it will be more interesting than sitting on a boat for 2 days we thought. I also booked my train, accommodation for the rest of china, Zhangjiajie and shanghai as the week coming up was a national holiday in China and getting it booked later would be difficult so the hostel was very helpful with this too.

That night we were on the way back from dinner when we were walking through a dark ally and passed a small shop. We were thinking of buying something to shot on the boat to pass time at night. The small shop had traditional Chinese drinks up on the shelf. I pointed at one bottle which looked like vodka in a small bottle. The alch was 60% wow!. We asked how much and the owner put up 7 fingers. 7? No that can not be correct, again we asked and again 7… ok it must be per shot.. lets try 1 and see what its like and we can buy a bottle later we thought. 2 please… out comes 2 bottles. So we bought both and headed off happy with out pickings. 7 Yuan is $1 Aus for a 300ml bottle of 60% moonshine.

Shopping Day

A round of cards with a few Germans and us 2 and a bottle was gone that night, it was extremely strong stuff that I would be happy to never see again.

Shopping Day Supplies

The next day we went shopping for supplies, the hostel had warned us that there was nothing on board and we should bring our own food. So what we need… 4 days worth, 10 cups of noodles each, some chips, bottle of whisky (we both agreed the Baijiu should be a last resort), some cookies, 12 Litters of drinking water, and 6 Banana’s  (must have “some” healthy food). We were set. 3 Super large bags of 2 minute noodles sat in prized spot in the hostel and the hostel owner just shook her head when she seen it. We had no idea…. J

That night we were off and racing the boat was a rust bucket, and we were the only 2 white people on the boat, and only ones speaking English. The boat left Chongqing after dark and the lights over the city was a nice way to say farewell and hello to a new section of the trip. It took about 20 min and we were into our first cup of 2 min noodles (9 more to go each).

The karaoke had started on the boat as well. Well one due started, and everyone left hahaha….

The accommodation on the boat was very very basic, and it looked like the bed had not been cleaned ever. The noodles down the side gave it away. First time the entire trip I was thankful I had my sleeping bag with me. Warm, clean sleeping bag ahhh…

The next day we were up at the crack of dawn to see the temple of the dead. Downed a cup of noodles (2/10). Headed off the boat to a Temple.

The temple was nice and had a few small buildings but when you looked close it was very new, all reinforced concrete and ply board. There was a section that looked very original and the small models of people getting cut up and dissected and  boiled was totally gross.

We spent about 2 hours walking around this park, on the way back to the boat we passed a Ute with a bunch of pigs in it.. the shop next to the Ute was selling pork. Nice to know it was fresh, the pigs didn’t look to happy about it though.

We spent that afternoon chilling and doing nothing on the boat, mainly because there was nothing to do. You can only play “shithead” (a card game) so many times before it gets boring. The Chinese on the boat on the other hand used the time to create the perfect picture… standing in front of a green screen and having there photo taken in various poses. It was pure comedy. The photo’s they were going to be super imposed on didn’t even look that good and the scale to the person to the background made it look so fake! Lunch time again cup of noodles (4/10 now, had a snack earlier) They all started to taste the same and the stomach didn’t like it very much.

That night we stopped at another temple. It was to a local hero. As we were on a Chinese tour we missed most of the explanation and it really wasn’t that “amazing” I’ve seen better temples in Korea. The only authentic part of the day truly was the meal after the temple at night, each place seemed to have 100’s of stops leading up to the “attraction”. I picked one that looked nice and ordered food, at the time I didn’t care what it cost I didn’t want noodles, but when the bill came I wished I had asked. It was more expensive than a nice restaurant in the city. It tasted “nice” though.

Salute

We spent the rest of the drinking the local beer on the boat till we got ticked off the top deck at midnight, then continued at the back of the boat with the Chinese flag as our companion.

The next day we woke up to the first of the 3 gorges, it was a nice site to see. The cliffs were super high and straight down.

The rain had started to come in as well which closed off much of our freedom to get away from the loud karaoke that seemed to go 24 hours on the boat.

Im going to skip over the noodles now, it was making us both sick and we still had 2 days supplies of the little cups. Backpacking on a budget never tasted so bad. (5/10)

At lunchtime we arrived at the little 3 gorges, the last of our prepaid attractions, the first 2 were bitter disappointments but hopeful as this was nature it couldn’t be refurbished into something it wasn’t, or at least we thought.

Lol! its upside down.

We got shuttled onto a smaller boat and practically ordered to sit. Every time we stood up someone would come and tell us to sit, it wasn’t until they had finished selling the roof top tickets and “professional” photos that we were permitted to move.  The little gorges were quite amazing and it was a real shame it was raining.

After about 2 hours we arrived at this pontoon and transferred to a smaller craft again, these looked like traditional boats you would see in movies. The ride was actually fun the host on the boat started of a song and everyone on the boat chanted in time. Everyone except Tom and I had life jackets on, it was a follow the leader moment. One person did so everyone follows. There was no reason and we were not asked to. One of the Chinese guys had his upside down, it wasn’t till he stood up to have a picture taken and seen me on the floor laughing at him that he realized and took it off. Sorry dude! But it was too funny.

Once the chant finished the host pulled out the key chains, to sell as souvenirs. Can not have 1 ride without someone wanting to make a extra buck.

The ride was short but nice.

Again we transferred into the previous boat and onwards again. This time we arrived at a small town with lots of apartment blocks. It was very strange when we got shuttled into these golf buggies to take a trip around the town, up to a small shrine (2 min walk) then back down. It was more like they were showing off the town then the shrine. I later found out that’s exactly what was happening. The city was built for the displaced people and it was being shown off. So sad.

We missed the 2^nd and 3^rd gorges as it was night. The tour guides still gathered everyone up on the top deck and talked for 2 hours in pitch black, and everyone still took pictures of the black abyss.

The next morning we arrived at the docks of Yichang and not fast enough! The boat although was a “experience” really wasn’t fun and was a waste of valuable time in china.

Yichang I said farewell to Tom, he was taking a bus towards Hong Kong and skipping Zhangjiajie, and I was taking a mild 5 hours ride to Zhangjiajie by train. It worked out that both our transportation left 1 hour after docking and we both just made the connections.

See how Zhangjiajie also known as the Avatar mountains is.