A strange buffet

Trip Start Mar 19, 2003
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Trip End Apr 15, 2003


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Flag of Indonesia  ,
Monday, April 7, 2003

We went to see Fort Rotterdam this morning, one of Ujung Pandang's few tourist attractions. We were asked for a donation as we signed in and, assuming that this covered the museum inside the fort, gave 2000 rupiah, the entrance charge mentioned in Lonely Planet. It turned out we still had to buy tickets for 1700 rp each. Yoong was very annoyed as the "donation" obviously went straight into the pockets of the guards so she went back to complain. They offered to give back the 2000 rp, but she returned 1000 as she saw locals were also giving a small donation. This way everyone saved face and we could enjoy our tour of the museum.

Every Sunday there is a formal discussion group in English at the fort and we were invited to join them. The topic for the day was what should happen in Iraq after the war is over. The students expressed very intelligent opinions and showed a good understanding of the issues.

We went to the Sedona Hotel for a small buffet high tea, a chance to have some Western food for a change before 24 hours of Ekonomi Class food on the boat, not a very exciting prospect. There were some very nice kebabs and pastries with unlimited soft drinks, juice, coffee and tea. We relaxed here enjoying the view of the sea and the swimming pool for a few hours, partly because it was raining, and also because the all-you-can-eat food came out only sporadically, the strangest buffet we have ever had, but very good value. The rain was actually a nice change from the oppressive heat of Makassar. Although our room has only a cold-water shower it is almost too hot to bear for at least five minutes.

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