Contrasts

All of Indonesia has been amazingly beautiful scenery.  The route to and from Kang JJ’s added the fresh ingredient of extinct volcanoes.  The steep triangle with the cap ominously cut off has a splendour, grandeur, and a powerful majesty to it.  I found it impossible not to wonder what it would be like for one of these old dragons to once again open its mouth and spew lava at the surrounding countryside.  Not out of any sense of fear or caution, just out of the sheer magnitude of the geology and history and pathos of it all.

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I arrived in good time at the general vicinity Kang JJ recommended.  I didn’t locate the official campsite suggested, but wild camped near a cliff that fell 30 or so metres to the rocky outcrop where rainforest meets angry surf.  It was comfortable timing to get set up, cook some dinner, make a cup of tea, and settle in with a camp chair, happy belly, tired body, and gorgeous sunset.

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A storm rounded out the evening (and much of the night) with rivers of rain and plenty of thunder and lightning.  I quite like camping in those conditions.  Except it sends me in scurrying into the cramped tent rather than out in the open.  And it often means I’m packing up and stowing away wet equipment.  That’s not so fun, and leaves me calculating when it will all be unpacked and in use again – mould would be deadly for my gear and not take long to take hold in these humid conditions.

Kanang Nini was peaceful, coastal, remote, wild country.  Food for the soul.  Quiet.  Picturesque.

It is difficult to imagine a contrast more stark in a single day than leaving the remote Kanang Nini beach in the morning, and arriving in the crowded, buzzing Jakarta metropolis that night.  Between the two was a long 10 hour ride.  An array of conditions on the road between had only this in common – that a lapse of concentration for a split second could at any point spell disaster.

The 10-hour ride achieved less than 400km through the Java map.  Compare that to riding outback Australia, comfortably doing well over 1,000km a day.

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As I neared John’s place Google eventually reported 50km distance to go.  And nearly 3 hours to complete it.  I was sure it was a mistake, a glitch in the matrix.  And if not, I was pretty confident I’d better the “normal” time anyway.  But no, it actually took every bit that long to navigate the sprawling, jam-packed parking-lot Jakarta traffic.  Some of the traffic I’ve wrestled through Indonesia and even Timor-Leste has probably been more erratic.  But Jakarta’s was exhausting, especially after an already long day’s ride.  My brake hand and – even more so – clutch hand felt like they would drop off, and I was concerned that at some critical point I’d will the clutch or brake to engage and just not have the strength.  That could have easily created a pretty bingle, so I’m really glad it didn’t graduate from an imagined scenario.  My legs felt like a case of rigor mortis, despite a rest stop for lunch and a few posture shuffles along route.  More than a few times those stiff legs have been cause of the bike simply falling over after a ride so long my body (and brain) are too tired to brace the 300+ kg weight when the near-stationary bike leans over just a fraction of a degree.

Nonetheless, to Jakarta I arrived with no incidents and a happy day’s ride.

John Salim found me on my brand new Instagram account after Kang JJ insisted I set it up and kindly alerted his 30,000 followers by posting about my road trip.  With nothing more than the knowledge that I’m a (new) friend of Kang JJ’s and that I’m riding Melbourne to London, John has welcomed me into his Jakarta home and run around all over town to accomodate, to help repair my bike, to take me to the best shops for the equipment I’ve needed, and to share some of the best visitor sites and local history.  Once again, it is quite overwhelming and just a beautiful display of humanity at its best.  I can’t really thank you adequately just now, John, but maybe I’ll be back another day and able to return the favour – or at least commit to pay it forward at some point down the track.

John and his family turn out to share my Christian faith, but have not been back to church post-Covid.  We went together to a local church on Sunday, and John and family will likely return hereafter.  That’s a good result!

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There’s a bit to get done before I move on from Jakarta.  And a bit of a pretty puzzle to work through with whether or not to extend my Indonesian visa past the 30 days.  Ramadan will apparently put a 10 days pause on the ferry schedule out of Indonesia and into Malaysia, right when my visa is due to expire.  But I probably don’t quite have time to get to the middle of Sumatra to take that ferry.  Aargh.  But if I get a visa extension, it’ll cost me a week in Jakarta getting my passport back, putting me smack at the start of the no-ferry timing.  Bah!

I also need to get my bike back from the repair shop, get my smished up right boot repaired, source some new tech, etc etc.  Quite a busy stop in an already-busy city.  But there really aren’t burning platforms so much as nuisance delay factors, so I’ll take it easy and get done what I get done when I get it done.