Sumatra - Epic buses rides, colin comes back.

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  Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia
Monday, August 25, 2008

Sumatra was one big bus ride for me, unfortunately i only get a 30 day visa in indonesia and being too yorkshire and tight to pay for a plane ticket i decided to get two buses that would total in all 56 hours of scenery viewing, car crashes, lorrys that had fallen down clifftops, locals rioting, thunderstorms, bats, giant insects that populated the landscape.

Talking of the landscape, it was like something out of jurassic park and left me with my jaw open the entire way through (aside from when i was sleeping).....which was quite often as well. There are so many open spaces here as opposed to java which even in its quieter areas has plenty of small villages, you could go for days without seeing anyone in sumatra, there are tons of huge hills, lakes that seem to descend for miles and lush vegitation. I wish id given myself longer to explore it but ce la vie!

The first bus i took went from jakarta to padang, in western sumatra. The bus took 36 hours in total (you read that correctly) and featured none stop jungle/trance/karoake/poppy speeded up music accompanied by music videos that'd give el dorado a run for its money with regards to cheesyness, it also featured a leaking roof and a cracked window screen, it also featured a man with one arm and a hook for the other as well as a bunch of other equally wierd and wonderful collective of locals. Drugs who needs em? This stuff was like being on acid.

After numerous pitstops for food, more food, petrol, food, food, petrol, random stops where we just appeared to stop for a chin wag with the locals etc etc etc we arrived in padang at 3am. Lovely timing that id grown to expect by now, and so i set off with a taxi driver to find a hotel.

The first was full, so was the second, and the third and the 547648746th. There was a local event taking place in town and everywhere was full up, obviously as per the cliche the only hotel we could find had creaking doors and it was raining, a thunderclap sounded as i entered, im not even joking here! it was 15,000 rp for a room? thats cheap, thats less than cheap, thats, thats too cheap...thats not good.

Entering the room was like walking onto a crystal maze set, we are talking the jungle zone, just picture richard o brien now with his bald shiny head, THHHHE JUNGLE ZONE. I tested the bed, scores of cockroaches jumped out from under. Mmmm lovely, i tested the mandi, scores of colin's had a bit of a run around and made noises as if to say "what the frick are you doing in my room you bassa!?!".

I checked out at daylight, luckily 4 hours later. And found a lovely hotel, it was lovely, it cost me 8 pounds, this is alot to me, but it had a BATH, A BAAAATH. Everyone should have baths more, after 60 hours on a bus with only wierd locals and crying children and cockroaches for company, a bath is the equal of leeds winning the champions league and manchester being relegated to the Unibond league and being beaten 5-1 by Guiseley. Thats how nice it was.

Now im in Medan, after a much less stressful 20 hour trip on a much nicer coach, and tomorrow i leave for malaysia where im staying for a month or so aside from a litle vis a vie trip to singapore to pick up a package from home. Im tired from typing now. Love you all xx

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