Never again

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  Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Sunday, July 20, 2008

18 hours on a bus. There is absolutely nothing good about that. And the bus was jam-packed. There was a rooster in the bag storage below the bus. I thought he was going to peck at all my fantastic belongings.

The bus stopped at random places where we were fed (included in the ticket) pretty good tempeh and vegetables. It was a cramped bus, definitely made for Indonesian-sized legs, not my Amazonian preportions (Jocie? You reading this? Amazon!). All the "highways" are only 2 lanes, and I had at least sixty-five heart attacks as our bus driver drove straight into the opposite lane to pass trucks and other buses.

There was a ferry from Gilimanuk on Bali over to Java. It was kind of like a circus where I was the attraction... lots of people taking pictures on their cell phones. There was some mystic Balinese guy who wanted to tell me all about my horoscope and how we're all connected by the great circle of life, thanks Mufasa. The bus goes right on to the ferry with everybody else, and then when it docked in Java you have to go into this giant floating garage on the boat and find your bus (not easy), which looks just like every other bus, and is crammed in there with motorcycles and trucks carrying cows and who knows what else.

On the plus side I discovered a very strange fruit called salak. The outside is exactly like a snake skin. Mom, this food is for you! You peel off the reptile bit and inside there is a crunchy white fruit that isn't too sweet. My braces and I hacked away at that one like good little soldiers.

Well, I'm in Yogyakarta, so I'd better go do something about it.

PS: it's official, I love my mom better than I love any of you, because she made a comment. She's such a star!