Sumatra Day Two: To the Bat Cave!

Our first morning in Sumatra, we woke up early to meet our driver.  We checked out of the Marriott and climbed into an SUV, then merged onto the busy city streets.  There were lots of cars mixed in with motorbikes, pedestrians, bicycles and motorcycles with sidecars.  The sidecar motorcycles functioned as taxis and were called "becaks."  Every time we travel to the countries outside of orderly Singapore, I'm taken aback by how unsafe transportation seems.  As we drove through the city, Bryan snapped some photos of precarious travelers.

The driver is back there somewhere behind that mound of produce

Medan police on benches in the back of a pickup truck

No seatbelt laws in Indonesia!

Outside of the main thoroughfare of the city we began passing miles and miles of palm oil plantations. Palm oil production had really picked up in Southeast Asia over the past couple of decades, and it's devastating for the environment.  Rainforests are clear-cut to make way for the plantations, destroying the delicate habitat of many species, including the orangutans.  Although the palm oil plantations make me feel sad, they also have a strange kind of beauty.  The trees are all aligned perfectly and when you drive by, geometrical patterns emerge from the perfectly straight lines of the trees, creating a kind of optical illusion.

Palm oil plantation

You know you're really out of the city when you have to start dodging the cows that are lounging in the middle of the street.  Lots of cows were grazing at the palm oil plantations, and many of them wandered out onto the road, where they stood, seemingly oblivious to the cars and motorbikes swerving around them at high speeds.

Playing chicken with the cows?

I think the oxen have the right of way...

Finally we emerged from the palm oil plantations and saw mountains and rainforest ahead of us.  After about two-and-a-hours, we'd reached Bukit Lawang, the town adjacent to Taman Nasional Gunung Leuseur, the national park where we were going trekking.  Our car was met by the guide that would take us into the park the next day, a soft-spoken guy named Wilfan (if you want to go into TNGL, a guide is required!).  Wilfan (aka "Will") was the brother of Obiwan (yes, like Star Wars), the guy who organizes a group of guides to lead treks into the national park (for more information, see www.sumatra-indonesia.com).

Welcome to Bukit Lawang!

Will schlepping our bag to the inn

We planned to spend the day exploring Bukit Lawang, then spend the night at the Jungle Inn before heading into the national park on an overnight camping trip.  Obiwan met us at the Jungle Inn and said that there'd been a mix-up with our room and he'd have to upgrade us to the honeymoon suite for free!!  Woo hoo!  Bryan and I had gone from being exiled from one hotel for not being married to getting upgraded to the honeymoon suite at another!  Our room was fabulous- it was at the top of a long outdoor staircase, and it had a porch that wrapped around two sides.  One side of the porch was abutted against the jungle, and the other looked over the lovely Bahorok River with the national park on the opposite side.  There was a big, four-poster bed, a cozy hammock, and all the furniture looked handmade.

Jungle hideaway

Jungle Inn honeymoon suite

Love the stained glass windows

Too bad there's no hot water : )

Next to the bed

Comfy porch

We dropped our stuff at our room then headed back down to the Jungle Inn's cafe to get some lunch and to discuss our camping trip the next day.  Lunch was great but everything around us was so fascinating and thrumming with life that Bryan kept jumping up and wandering off to snap a photo every few bites.

After lunch and talking with Obiwan, we headed back up to our room.  The view was so fantastic that we decided just to lounge around on the porch for a couple of hours to see if we could spot any wildlife.  Our efforts were rewarded almost immediately when we spotted a group of long-tailed macaques swinging through the trees right next to our porch.  Upon closer examination, we spotted an unusual-looking monkey in their midst.  They appeared to be keeping company with a single pig-tailed macaque.  How strange!  I laid back and observed the monkeys from the comfort of the hammock as Bryan snapped photos.  Before long I heard him call me, and I turned around and saw the the monkeys were making themselves at home on our porch!  He also spied a fat monitor lizard sunning himself on a roof below our porch.

Pig-tailed macaque

Long-tailed macaque hanging out on our porch

Not sure why I look about 11 years old in this picture

Clouded monitor

After enjoying our front-row seat to the jungle for a couple of hours, we decided to head out and explore the town.  Obiwan had advised us to check out the Bat Cave, so we set off in that direction.  We made our way toward a big suspension bridge to cross over the river.

Bukit Lawang suspension bridge

The bridge and the Bahorok River

We crossed the bridge.  It looked sturdy from the shore, but once you were on it, it swayed easily in the breeze.  I thought its position high above the river would make Bryan worried since he's afraid of heights, but he managed it quite well.  And the view was great!  They must not get a lot of foreigners wandering around on the other side of the bridge because as soon as we crossed over, people became much more interested in us.  People called out greetings ("Hello Mister!!!") and waved like they were greeting old friends.  We were stopped by giddy groups of teenage girls, asking us to pose for photos with them.  They snapped picture after picture with cell phones, then scurried off, giggling with each other.  Others shook our hands.  It was all slightly hilarious to us- now I know how a celebrity must feel!  This had happened to me in Kenya before, but then I was in a place where white tourists rarely ventured.  Why here?  There were plenty of white folks headed for the national park.  And our white skin wasn't as conspicuous in Sumatra as it had been in Kenya.  It was all very strange.

Although cavorting with the locals was entertaining, we were having a heck of a time finding the Bat Cave.  Everyone spoke enough English to ask us for photos, but our inquiries about the location of the cave were met with nervous giggles and replies of "Not much English!"  It was all right though, because exploring was fun.  We stumbled upon a second, smaller, and much more treacherous bridge, and some sheep, one of which seemed to be harboring some hostility toward Bryan. I think the sheep had it out for Bryan because it knew Bryan wasn't a vegetarian.  I'm pretty sure that was what was going on.

Rickety bridge over the river

Sheep headed straight for Bryan

We crossed the big bridge a few times, asking people for directions along the way.  Eventually an older guy who spoke pretty good English got us headed in the right direction and we emerged in an open, green space with a sign that said "Area Flying Fox" and some long-tailed macaques high up in the trees.  It was quieter back in the wooded area, away from the river and the bustle of people and angry sheep.  We followed signs for the Bat Cave past a scenic little eco-lodge, some gardens, a couple of open-air restaurants, and eventually to a rubber plantation.

As we weaved our way along a path by one of the gardens, Bryan grasped my arm and said in a hushed voice, "What IS that?!" pointing to one side of the path.  I looked up and saw...what WAS that thing?!  It looked like a man-beast! After careful inspection and some hushed debate, we concluded that it was a big male pig-tailed macaque.  I'd become so used to the relatively petite Singaporean long-tailed macaques that it was hard for me to believe this creature was part of the same genus.  He was huge!  And despite the fact that we were at least 20 yards away from him, he appeared annoyed by our presence, raising his eyebrows in a threatening expression.  We backed off a little bit and watched him for awhile before he moved on.

I don't think he likes us...

Man-beast

It was interesting to see the things growing in the garden, since we don't see a whole lot of agriculture going on in Singapore.  They had pineapples, and I was struck again by how strange it is to see them growing out of the ground.

Pineapple in the garden

Leaf spout

The rubber plantation was fascinating.  The bark had been cut away from the trees and viscous white sap was running into strategically placed coconut shells.  I never would have imagined that this was what natural rubber looked like.  In some places, leaves had been jammed into the bark so that the white stuff would run down the leaves and then drip into the shell.  It was interesting to see a harvesting process that utilized so many natural tools!

When we were coming out of the rubber plantation we heard a big commotion that sounded like a group of angry pig-tailed macaques.  We looked around to see if we could spot them but instead we found this cute little lizard guy!  I think he's an earless agamid.

Green guy

Just as the skies darkened overhead and the thunder rumbled nearer and nearer, we reached the Bat Cave.  We paid the cheap entrance fee to some guys relaxing in a hut and headed off down a steep muddy path.  We had to do a little bit of scrabbling over rocks and climbing up homemade ladders to get to the main entrance of the cave, which smelled strongly of guano.  It was cool and dark down by the caves, which was welcome after all the walking.

Bryan on his way to the Bat Cave!

Lookin' stylish with the headlamp

We explored the cave awhile.  It was massive inside and there were a few bats flying around.  It was really dark inside so we didn't do much photography.  While we were inside it began storming outside.  Although the cave was great protection from the storm, I got a little claustrophobic thinking about what would happen if there was a flash flood (it wouldn't be the first flash flood in Bukit Lawang).  Despite my fears, the cave stayed dry until we were all finished poking around.

Stalactites inside the cave

In the cave entrance

Once satisfied with our spelunking, we emerged into the rain and decided to head back into town for some food.  It was pouring but we popped out our umbrellas.  Bryan's umbrella was damaged (I swear he uses them for swordfighting or something) so we traded umbrellas so he could use my fully functioning one to keep the camera dry.  As we passed by people on the path, I spotted some grins in Bryan's direction- he did look a little silly with my pink, heart-patterned umbrella!  In order to get out of the rain, we agreed to stop at the first place that appeared to be serving food.  It happened to be the eco-lodge, and we were grateful to duck into their covered dining area.  As soon as we sat down, two friendly cats hopped into our laps and made themselves at home.  It was cozy here, sipping Cokes in the warm, dry dining room with a cat purring away on my lap.  Bryan had some chicken and rice and I scarfed down another plate of tasty nasi goreng as we watched gecko battles playing out on the walls.

After dinner we continued weaving our way back toward the Jungle Inn.  We spotted a group of long-tailed macaques on the way, and some more sheep, and a few more locals stopped and asked us for photos.  We also paused briefly on the bridge to watch the kids tubing down the river.  This appeared to be a favorite past-time of the kids in the town- there were always wet kids racing up the banks of the river with black inner tubes, then jumping in and screeching as they zoomed down the river.  It looked great.

Hello Mister!

Bryan got this shot just as this lamb leaped into the air!

It was growing dark by the time we got back to the inn.  We got a couple of Bintang beers and took them up to our room.  I took a quick shower and as I walked out of the bathroom I shrieked!  A fat brown rat had run across the floor and hid behind a stand of shelves on the other side of the room!  Now I know that for most people, a rat in their hotel room would be a dealbreaker.  But you have to consider the following things: 1) We were IN the jungle.  It was RIGHT outside our window.  A little wildlife is hardly shocking.  2) There had been monkeys on our porch earlier and we had been ecstatic about that.  It seemed silly to complain about a rat when we were welcoming monkeys. 3) The local people have experienced a lot of hardship.  In 2003, a flash flood swept through and killed 230 people in the small village.  In light of all of these things, I would have felt like a spoiled rotten city girl if I'd gone to the front desk to complain about a little rat in our room.  Besides, if I'd seen the same rat while out on a hike I totally would have been excited about it!  But I didn't want to sleep with it in the room, so I recruited Bryan to chase it away.  And he totally came to my rescue and scooted it out the door.

A while later, we were lying in bed reading when I saw some movement out of the corner of my eye.  "IT'S BACK!!!!!" I shouted!  Bryan eyed me warily.  I'd been jumpy ever since I first saw the rat, and no doubt he thought I was imagining things.  But he inspected the room thoroughly as I stood on the bed, and he found nothing.  Not knowing what else to do, we settled back down, read some more, and went to sleep.



In the middle of the night, I went from horizontal to vertical in about half a second.  "SOMETHING RAN OVER ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I squealed.  I had been lying down and something had run right across my chest.  I had opened my eyes just in time to see a dark blur.  Bryan was up and confused, again thinking that I'd lost my mind.  He turned on the lights and poked around a little bit.  On the floor in one corner he found a granola bar, with the wrapper gnawed open and about half of a bar eaten.  I continued standing on the bed, looking around like a crazed lunatic.  I know it's unlike me to flip out about animals- for goodness sakes, there was a huge gecko hanging out under our bed, and I was totally cool with him.  But something about that rat running right over me had really set me on edge.

Our gecko friend.  What's not to like?  He kept to himself AND he ate mosquitoes!

Anyway, we couldn't find the rat.  No doubt my shrieking had sent him deep into hiding.  Bryan put his other granola bars in a place he thought would be out of reach and I laid down, clutching my headlamp.  I heard so many things going bump in the night but I tried to take deep breaths and eventually I fell asleep again, and managed to sleep the rest of the night without having any wild creatures racing around on the bed.  However, in the morning, I got some validation.  I hadn't been hallucinating.  Apparently the rat had somehow managed to get Bryan's granola bar, despite his attempts at putting them out of reach.  The rat had hung out under our bed and swallowed up both of the bars in the packet.  It must have been such a huge find for him.  I figured he was off somewhere, napping like I would after a big Thanksgiving dinner.

So our second day in Bukit Lawang extended into the night with the adventures of our friend the Jungle Rat.  But he was all forgotten in the morning, because we had big plans!

Sumatra Day One: Look For Bombs

Our most recent adventure started before we even left Singapore. Bryan and I were all set for our long-awaited trip to Sumatra. We’d chosen our destinations, booked the hotels, and booked a guide for going into Taman Nasional Gunung Leuseur. When we emailed the guy coordinating our guide with the name of our hotel so we could get picked up, he replied that the Madani Hotel was a Muslim hotel that might not allow Bryan and me to share a room, as we are not married. We emailed the hotel and they informed us that they do not, in fact, allow unmarried couples to share rooms. Normally we could have just found a hotel on the fly, but since we needed a concrete destination for our driver to meet us, we scrambled to find a place where we could book quickly (a lot of places in Indonesia don’t have online booking systems, and it requires some email exchanges to get it all worked out). Anyway, we decided to go with the Marriott- although it was nicer than what we would usually shoot for, they didn’t object to our marital status and we could book online immediately. (By the way, if you are married or traveling on your own, I still recommend checking out the Madani Hotel- it looked like a nice place, and it had a good location right near the Grand Mosque and the National Palace).

With hotel arrangements all straightened around, we joined the mass exodus leaving Singapore for the Chinese New Year holiday weekend. Even though we had an evening flight and only had to work half-days at work, we decided to take our bags to work and then just head to the airport straight from there so we could avoid extra traveling in the holiday traffic. This led to us arriving at the airport hours early and spending the afternoon exploring and drinking beer at Ruuyi and Harry’s. While admiring the CNY decorations, we also met a very bizarre American guy who babbled to us for a few minutes about how he almost married the queen of Indonesia. It seems that you can travel all the way around the world and still not get escape the reaches of some of the U.S.’s more colorful characters!

Changi

Once we were finished rubbing elbows with the would-be royalty, we boarded our JetStar flight to Medan. An uneventful hour and a half later, we were touching down and making our way through immigration. Although we had canceled our reservations at the Madani Hotel, there was someone waiting there, holding a sign with Bryan’s name emblazoned under the Madani logo. We spent an awkward couple of minutes explaining, then got a taxi to the Marriott. Driving through the streets was interesting- like some of the other Asian cities we’ve been to, chaos reigned supreme as motorbikes whizzed by, cars weaved in and out of lanes, and pedestrians strolled along the shoulder. It was nowhere near the frenetic insanity of Saigon, but it was no orderly Canton, Ohio either.

As soon as I saw the Marriott I felt a little awkward about staying there- it was a tall, majestic building, noticeably more glamorous than its surroundings. It seemed strange to be staying somewhere so chic while the rest of the city was substantially more dingy. The sense of unease deepened when we pulled up outside the hotel’s formidable gate and stopped. Five or six guards surrounded the car, opened the doors, looked in the trunk, and peered under the car, all while chattering away in Bahasa. Bryan and I were totally confused and looked quizzically at the driver, who said simply “Look for bomb.” As I looked up at the Marriott looming over us, it became apparent that, what with its clientele of westerners and its showy glam, it just might make an obvious terrorist target. The search was over quickly and we drove in through the gate. Before entering the hotel, our bags were X-rayed and Bryan and I had to pass through a metal detector just like the one at the airport. It was definitely the beefiest security I’ve ever seen at a hotel, but I wasn’t honestly worried about terrorism (might as well worry about being struck by lightning), and I decided to let go of my misgivings about the hotel and just enjoy staying in such a posh place for the night.

The hotel was magnificent. It was all decked out for the holiday, and everything was beautiful (well...almost everything.  Some of the decorations were kind of creepy). The lobby was spacious and flanked by two elaborate spiral staircases. Glittery chandeliers hung from the ceilings, and music played softly in the background. It was all pretty impressive.

This mannequin looks all ready to rob a bank.

Pretty Chinese New Year decorations!

Up on the 21st floor, our room was even better! After doing the usual checking-out-the-room stuff (bouncing on the bed, poking around in the mini-bar, scoping out the stellar view), we decided to get some dinner. It was kind of late by then, and we had an early morning ahead of us, so we just went for the restaurant in the hotel lobby, where Bryan got some satay and I had the first of many plates of nasi goreng, which was a staple of my diet in Sumatra. The nasi goreng was really good- it had a nice spicy kick to it. By the time I was done, my eyes were watering and I’d downed a whole glass of mango juice!

Even the elevator was fancy!

In the mini-bar.  Mmmm...sweat.

In the nightstand- the New Testament, the Book of Mormon, and the Qur'an

Big window to the bathroom!

Our room

We went to sleep pretty early that night, in preparation for our early morning departure for Bukit Lawang. We were both really excited about heading out into the jungle!

Gong Xi Fa Cai 恭禧发财

With a population that’s 74% Chinese, it’s no small wonder that Chinese New Year is a big deal around here. Decorations come out early, the CNY music starts playing, and once February rolls around, everyone’s pretty excited for the two-and-a-half days off work (more than we get for any other holiday)!

It’s bizarre to experience a holiday as an outsider. When you know almost nothing about a holiday, everything looks so random. Last year, I was totally clueless, and CNY appeared to be about tigers eating oranges, red envelopes, cookies, LOTS of red and gold decorations, and big sales at the malls. This year I know a little more, but forgive me if I screw something up - I’m still an ang moh, after all.

Chinese New Year is based on the Chinese lunar calendar, which is on a cycle of twelve years. There’s a different animal for each year in the cycle. Much like the Zodiac signs I’m more familiar with (Aries, Pisces, Sagittarius), each animal has a set of characteristics that are supposed to be embodied in those born during that year. For example, I was born during the Year of the Rat, so I’m supposed to be energetic, talkative, witty, curious, observant, and occasionally aggressive. There are twelve animals total: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon (?!), snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig. There are also five elements (water, wood, metal, fire, and Earth) incorporated into the calendar. The elements are associated with the positions of certain planets, and people born during certain years aligned with elements and animals are supposed to have special, slightly different characteristics. For example, tigers are supposed to be brave, competitive, unpredictable, and protective. However, Bryan’s a Water Tiger, which means that he should be compassionate, giving, and able to work well with others without feeling the need to be in charge. I don’t put any stock in Zodiac signs, but I think the Water Tiger and the Rat describe the two of us reasonably well.

Japanese Garden has statues of all the Chinese Zodiac animals

So last year was the Year of the Tiger. This year is the Year of the Rabbit. Rabbits (unlike tigers) have a lot of positive characteristics such as creativity, friendliness, loyalty to family, and calmness. Because of the desirable characteristics of the Rabbit, I hear that birth rates are expected to rise a little bit in Singapore this year! Whatever the animal of the year, it shows up all over the place in all the decorations. Last week I saw a lion dance team outside of Singapore General Hospital (lion dances are also popular this time of year) and they were accompanied by a guy in a bright pink Easter bunny suit. Hilarious.

Creepy rabbit decorations at IMM

Less creepy rabbits at Changi Airport

That’s the lunar calendar aspect of Chinese New Year. The holiday is observed over a couple of weeks and involves some other aspects as well. For example, a lot of attention is focused on luck and prosperity in the coming year. Because the Chinese word for tangerine sounds much like the Chinese word for luck, and the Chinese word for oranges sounds like wealth, tangerines and oranges are all over the place during the holidays. They’re incorporated into decorations, handed out at work, and laid out as offerings for ancestors. Chinese coins are a more obvious symbol of wealth, and are often seen in holiday decorations.

Oranges and rabbits for CNY

Chinese coin decorations at Changi

Chinese New Year at Changi

Much like Christmas in the States, Chinese New Year involves spending a lot of time visiting family. Instead of getting presents, people hand out hongbao, or red packets, full of money. The packets are usually little red envelopes. Generally older people and married couples give them to children and young people who are still single.

Coins, hongbao, and oranges at IMM

Gold and red feature prominently in the holiday, just like red and green at Christmastime. Much like the red and green of Christmas, I don’t fully understand the significance of the CNY colors. I believe the gold is related to prosperity. The color red is apparently significant because of a traditional myth about a beast who eats children, but is afraid of the color red. Thus, those wearing red aren’t eaten. Apparently this is the origin of the red decorations and lanterns- they’re all put out to scare away a mythical, child-eating beast. Remember what I said about holiday traditions being strange when you’re an outsider? This is one of those. Although I suppose it’s no stranger than a mythical fat man who squeezes into your house via the fireplace and eats all your cookies.

Speaking of cookies, they're my favorite part of CNY. Just like at Christmas, there are cookies EVERYWHERE. They all come in these plastic see-through containers with red lids. Even when people make them at home, they end up in those containers. I don’t know why, and I don’t care, because Chinese New Year cookies are amazing. A friend who shall remain anonymous claims to have gained 10 pounds one February due to these things. When I say they’re good, I’m not messing around.

Our days off work have passed but the New Year celebration continues. If you’re in Singapore and looking for a way to enjoy the holiday, you might want to peruse this list of events.


Gong Xi Fa Cai (Wishing you prosperity in the coming year)!