Indonesian buses 101: a not-so-short course (Feb. 27/09 - Bukit Lawang, Sumatra, Indonesia)

Our plane lifted off from Phuket this morning and headed southeast, giving us a nice view of Koh Phi Phi and Koh Lanta. We passed over the southern provinces of Thailand and then into Malaysia, over the Cameron Highlands and eventually into Kuala Lumpur. Pleased that we wouldn't have an overnight layover there like we did last time, we were soon back on a plane heading west over the pirate-infested Straight of Melaka and down into the city of Medan in northern Sumatra. Our plan was to make our way west to the town of Bukit Lawang, which is home to one of the four orangutan populations in the world and some beautiful rainforested national parks. Medan sounded like a big ugly city, so we didn't care to hang around. Right out of the gate, Indonesia gave us a bad first impression, as the taxi drivers outside the airport were extremely pushy and manipulative, and when we got to the bus station and climbed out of the cab, we were surrounded in an instant by a dozen guys trying to get us on their buses and one creepy guy who walked past me and tried to put his hand in my pocket. Not a great initial ten minutes in a new country - we were not impressed.

We weren't even certain that we were at the right station, as there was no signage, no official ticket desks, and just a bunch of buses and guys trying to fill them. Overwhelmed and overheated, it was difficult to know what to do when they first quote you ten times the guidebook's posted rate, then less than a third the posted rate (making you think it's a scam...) - what do you do? Eventually, we established that we would pay 10,000 rupiah each for the three hour bus ride (the posted rate - about a dollar!), on a bus that was leaving in ten minutes. Forty minutes later, we pulled out with just the two of us on the big empty bus. Three blocks later, the driver pulls over, shuts off the engine, inserts a tape blasting awful Indo-pop music, cranks the volume, and disappears for an hour. Turns out that the way these things work is that the driver cruises through town, stopping at the popular spots, and doesn't leave town until the bus is full. Oh, and the loud crappy music is supposed to attract passengers! A bunch of people climbed on, then we drove a few miles through town and did it all over again. Only this time, a random guy climbed on carrying a ukelele, turned down the blaring music, and broke out in a song that quickly had half the bus clapping and singing along. Even with almost every seat full, the driver continued to slow right down and gesture when he saw anyone standing near the side of the road, hoping they'd want to go to Bukit Lawang. This entire time, it is almost unbearably hot, especially when we weren't moving. I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about the cool winter weather back home to make the crazy heat seem even a little bit better!

Urban streets gradually gave way to more residential areas with intermittent rice fields, and eventually to never ending palm oil plantations. Indonesia is apparently the world's #2 producer of the commodity (after Malaysia), so plantations literally stretched for a hundred kilometers or more, broken only by the occasional rubber tree farm. The road became twisty and poorly maintained, with potholes big enough to rival those in Zambia! The rollercoaster-like ride became even more interesting when the road narrowed, and chickens and cows started to prefer standing in the middle of the road. The driver would slow right down every few minutes to yello and wave at a friend, and we basically got to ride in a hotbox of chainsmokers. Needless to say, we were relieved to see the towering green mountains and sprawiling farmland on the outskirts of Bukit Lawang. Just as we were pulling into the station, the sky darkened and began to dump extreme amounts of rain, accompanied by thunder and lightening. When the bus stopped, the driver was nice enough to stop such that a huge puddle greeted you out the door under a waterfall that was rain pouring off the roof. Lovely! We waited a few minutes for it to ease up a bit before getting a ride into town in a funny little tuk-tuk-like cart. These ones have the motorbike positioned beside the cart, and with the pouring rain, each driver had covered the entire thing with a sheet of plastic, simply cutting a hole in the right spot for his head to pop out. It made for a funny image and a fun ride when you can't see out at all!

We crossed a rickety footbridge over the river that bisects the town, quickly getting drenched as the rain refused to let up. We found a decent little guesthouse on the river for about $5 (a new record!), then sat down for our first real meal of the day and marveled at how we were sweltering hot mere hours ago and a little chilly now! To make matters worse, there was no hot water in the room, so our showers were remarkably short and peppered with curse words!