I need to get a FlowToll beeping thingy for my new car. In other more important newz; I have an internet boyfriend!! His name is Nelson.
Cross cultural / language issues make things a bit tricky however.

That is about all I ramble about in this episode!
Oh oh, what are you all doing for Christmas?

click here for file if U want

PS- Recorded 7/12/11

I venture into the depths of Sumatra this week for my friend’s wedding! I ramble about travelling in Indonesia (hell), and some cultural observations of how an Islamic wedding works. Also, I meet my ex’s new wife(!).

As I listen back to this, I really do talk a lot about the travel. Sadly, in Indonesia, just getting somewhere is it’s own adventure. This CAN be fun, but not always; especially when you just want to bloody well arrive already!
Hopefully you find it interesting.

Click here to listen to podcast online

PS- recorded Sat, 20 November 2010

I’ve downloaded new wordpress iPhone app, so here we go.

Oh wait; where is option to attach a pic?!
Urgh. Stupid app. I can’t find out how to do it…

Tonight I’m in Medan, north Sumatra. Looking across to Malaysia.
Sleeping at my ex’s, Robi’s house – with his new wife. Ah yes, the irony of life

Hi peeps.
All going well here in Sumatra. Lots of content for future episodes!
Wanted to upload a pic or two, but can’t from iPhone with wpress online. Ugh.

All going well my old HDD is leaving Aust this week, so I can repair my old crackBook!

Call me with your questions on Indonesia!

Part 3 of my holiday, in Rumbio village, Sumatra, Indonesia. This (enhanced) podcast required TEN hours of ass-pounding, so I hope U are all happy, and grateful!
I bought protection the night before, but it was very tight. Still, as the biggest size they had, and at $6, I bought it. Not much confidence that it would save my life, if need be.

The rest of the show I talk about the great time I had in and around Rumbio, Panyabungan, Sumatra… hot springs, topless bathers, farm boys…

click ear to listen to enhanced show
[recorded 17/2/10 in Indonesia, and today]

PS- I still have 1 show to do on my trip to Tana Toraja, Sulawesi.

Holiday is going really well

after leaving Yogya, we flew on to Makassar and then got a little package tour up to Tana Toraja, near central Sulawesi.
Toraja area is amazing.
on day 1 we went to day #2 of a 5 day funeral. We got there just a bit too late to see the bullock being slaughtered, but in time to see the dozens of pigs being brought as ‘presents’. We also got to hear the poor wee piggies SQUEAL when they were stabbed. :-O
I can’t upload any photos here in this cafe, so you’ll just have to wait to see them later. – It was quite an experience!!!!
We also visited many graves, as the Torajans bury their dead in caves, cliff faces, or (once upon a time) babies were buried inside trees! I have soooo many cool photos.
It was also great to have a holiday with someone for a change(!)… Doug, Caity and I had lots of fun everywhere we went; sometimes at poor Doug’s expense. LOL

After Sulawesi Doug & Caity went to Bali to relax for a few days (they head home today), and I went to Pekanbaru to meet Ajir. We then got a bus (sadly, it was ‘economy class’) at around 5pm. Ajir tells me “only a few hours, we’ll be in Kubu by 11pm”. Famous last words… we got to the Kubu exit from the ‘highway’ at 2am, then waited 1 hour there for a mini-bus to take us to Kubu. In the end, we arrived at Ajir’s little shack at FIVE a.m.!
Later that day, we checked in to a Losmen (hotel) in Kubu, where I had an actual bed. That night, after being so exhausted from the prior night’s trip, AND from being paraded around town as the exciting ‘bule’ (foreigner), we went to bed early. It was about an hour later that there was a knock on the door…
…Pak Polisi, open up! :-O
The local police chief had tracked me down, and was here to say he was not happy that I hadn’t reported to the police station. I wanted to say, “HELLO, this isn’t 1989 you know!”, but instead chose diplomacy and just agreed that yes, tourists should do that etc etc, and blah blah kiss-ass, so sorry sir etc… Then he bought us drinks and fried banana!
Next 2 days in Kubu were spent being dragged around by Ajir to meet any person he’d ever known there, or worked with. Schools, classes, students, etc.

Yesterday; 16 Feb 2010:
We were going to ride to Rumbio (on the west side of Sumatra). Kubu is on the east side, opposite Kuala Lumpur basically. So I ask Ajir how long it will take (cause I’ll be doubliing on the back of his little Honda motorbike!), “Only a few hours Scott, if we leave at 7am we’ll be there by 1 or 2 pm”. When I express great doubt at that (the roads here are utter crap, & it seems a long way on the map), he says, “I’ve driven to Rumbio 4 times before. It is not far.”
At 7am I buy a bike helmet, cost A$6. Yes, you read that right, SIX dollars. I had as much faith in that saving my life as a paper bag on my head, but anyway… zero options.
Before we can leave, we HAVE TO visit the Primary school (again), for photos with every class…. at 9am we leave.
- – to cut a loooooong story short, and to miss out the times I yelled at Ajir, and all the times I made him pull over cause my BUM was KILLING me!… we arrived at Rumbio at NINE p.m. ~ 12 hours later, and about 10 of those hours sitting on the back of a small motorbike. *ouch*

I better finish up. On the weekend I return to Jakarta for 2 nights, then home via Bali on Monday.