Indonesia and Malaysia, September 2024

Day 15: Bali

Breakfast on the balcony overlooking the forest ✅
Laundry drop off ✅
Tegalalang Rice terrace ✅
Tegenungan Waterfall ✅
Batuan Temple ✅
Art Villages (handcrafted by local Balinese people) ✅
Purchased a painting ✅
Gift for the housesitters ✅
Laundry pick up ✅
Lunch, nap ✅
Drop off suitcase at Alaya Resort for my return in three days ✅
Airport for flight to the jungle to see ORANGUTANS ✅

Phew I’m exhausted thinking about it. Now off to sleep for a few hours before my next flight 6/20 ✅

Day 16: Borneo to the Sekoyner River

After only 3 hours of sleep the night before and almost missing my flight because I fell back asleep while waiting to board (thank you fellow traveler for waking me up), we arrived in Pangkalan Bun.

Two things of note: PKN is an airport on an Indonesian Air Force base and for the first time since I left the US, western travelers were the majority on the flight. It was a strange site going from nobody looked like me to everybody looked like me. Experiences of being the only western person around has helped me develop even greater empathy for people who have these experiences everyday. I know it’s not enough to end racism but if my voice and sharing can contribute to that, I know I will have helped.

Once arriving in PKN, we made our way onto the boat which would be home for the next couple of days. I said hello to two of the cutest girls that when I asked them if I could take their picture, they gladly smiled and posed for me. ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹
We traveled down river towards the Java Sea at a leisurely pace. Later in the day, we went to the first feeding station in the Tanjung Puting National Park. This park is protected land with mangrove swamps, canopy of 100’, monkeys, birds, and the orangutans.

Later in the evening, I had dinner with the crew. I’m told this used to happen a long time ago but travelers have forgotten that part of the experience. We took pictures together and used Google translate and I’m beyond happy that we did. After a late night hike in the forest (man was it dark, I shared a prohibited beer with my guide, Ivend, I realized people all over the world have so much more in common than different. Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Jewish. I mean I knew it, but it becomes even more clear as you interact and share experiences with people that are different than you.

Sorry for all the photos, I kept getting better ones and didn’t know which to choose.

Tomorrow: looking for monkeys and more orangutans.

Day 17: Camp Leakey

Okay, so while the orangutans were cool, they lost some of their coolness as they are bribed (with food) to come to the stations. However, we also saw them just hanging out as we cruised the river. We also saw a ton of long tailed macaques and proboscis monkeys. We saw a gibbon come to the feeding platform, some kind of animal in the water, and lightning bugs which made the trees twinkle like Christmas.

I also met another solo traveler and as luck would have it, we were both headed back to Bali.

I can’t believe I am 3/4 of the way through my trip and I am 9/20 flights down. It truly has been the trip of a lifetime.

Next up: Bali and then off to see Pygmy elephants in Malaysia.

Day 18: Back to Ubud, Bali

But first, not before saying goodbye to the amazing crew of my boat (thank you Varada Borneo Tour - Orangutan tour in Tanjung Puting). The crew (and Varada) were so amazing and I really hope they know how appreciative I was of their efforts.

On our way to the airport, we stopped at a local community center in Pasir Panjang - i love seeing stuff like that especially since this space is used all the time. I can imagine the conversations, meetings, and debates that might be held here. Discussing the next flood, how much fish one caught or how to regulate the fish to ensure there is enough, electing a new council member, or deciding if alcohol should be allowed in their city.

Oh now, Ubud, so beautiful. Definitely a city I could see myself enjoying on a long term basis. Kim and I went to Ibu Soso for dinner and had the most amazing red snapper carpaccio. We had a lovely chat with some Brits and then just walked the strip. So many tattoo places - maybe getting one here is meant to be 😉 my only gripe - the sidewalks are so narrow, barely two people can walk alongside each other and with the motorbikes, walking in the street is not advisable.

Tomorrow: the Monkey Forest, the local art market, and the Ubud Palace.

Day 19: Ubud or shall I say the day I was attacked by a monkey 🧐

Kimberly and I set out early, a full morning of exploring Ubud. We planned to go to the Monkey Forest, Ubud Palace, and the Art Market. The good news, our day went as planned. The bad news, not without adventure.

If you follow along my main profile, you already know, those cute monkeys are also aggressive. After walking around the forest for about an hour, we were standing around watching them play, and next thing we know, our legs became the subject of their play.

The end result, me with a pretty nasty scratch on the back of my ankle from a claw (OUCH) and Kim with some teeth marks. I’ll let her share her own details (HIPAA and all, not really). Anyways, after getting our wounds treated by the medical staff, they assured us there were no rabies in their monkeys and we were good to go.

So we pressed on. Made it to the palace, found the art market, had an amazing lunch, and did some shopping. After finishing our highly productive day, we each went back to our hotels but in the meantime, my tattoo idea had really started to take shape in my head.

So what else is a girl to do except find a tattoo spot, which are plentiful in Ubud. Insert image of the result. I absolutely love it.

However, getting back to the hotel, all the adrenaline of the day wore off and I realized my cut hurt pretty badly. Long story short I decided to get a house call from a local Ubud doctor. She thought that a rabies vaccination series (4 since we don’t have the specific monkey available to observe) was probably a good call. We cleaned the wound up pretty good after which she told me that if I had went to the hospital that morning, I probably would’ve needed stitches and I was lucky that my Achilles had not been torn.

So I can add to my SouthEast Asia adventure a scratch by a monkey, rabies vaccination, a tattoo, and another night in Bali to ensure I don’t have a reaction from the vaccination.

It’s a great story. I don’t think my boss is entertained by it though 🤷🏻‍♀️

Next up: spending the day in Bali taking it easy and doing some work.

Day 20-21: Lazy Days

Okay so the past couple of days haven’t been interesting. Yesterday, I relaxed at my hotel, alternating between my comfy bed, the balcony, and the hotel restaurant. I feel guilty about having one of these days. I shouldn’t but I do. I guess the guilt comes from knowing there are so many things still to see here on the island of Bali. Seminyak. Nusa Penida. Sanur. Gili Islands. Temples, volcanoes, the water. Amazing stone and wood craftsmanship, gardens full of flowers and trees, delicious food, and shopping. But the reality is sometimes even the most voracious traveler needs to relax and just be with themselves.

So instead, i caught up on some shows, finished reading my book about a group of 9 Russian hikers (Dyatlov Party) that died in 1959 of unknown reasons. Started another book about Chernobyl. And did about 5 hours of work.

Today, I’m traveling to my next adventure, another tropical rainforest on the island of Borneo but in Malaysia. I’m hoping to catch the Pygmy elephants in the wild. I’m so thankful for Borneo Adventures’ flexibility since I had to delay my trip by a day but they were still able to accommodate my desire to travel via river to maximize our sightings.

BTW, Nadia and Victor are taking good care of Oliver and shadow. She send loads of photos and I’m reminded that I was lucky to find them.

Days 22-24, Malaysia

Well those darn monkeys messed up even more. I had to cut my trip to Borneo, Malaysia short by a day and apparently that day was everything as I didn’t get to see any Pygmy elephants. Super disappointing especially since the guests that had arrived the day before saw them 😢

The rest of that excursion was okay, it’s not the company’s fault but since I saw so much in Borneo, Indonesia, it was more of the same. I knew that was a risk but it was going to be worth it for the elephants. I saw a video of elephants in African that another guest showed me. They were so incredible when they walked. Truly gentle giants. I’m even more determined for that safari.

One thing that I learned is that Sandakan is the spot where Japan brought more than 3400 British and Australian prisoners of war during WWII. They brought them to an island and forced them to build an airstrip. The close up mountain picture is the island. Would have loved a tour of the island. Men were separated from women and children and sadly all but 6 of the POWs died. A book about this event is next on my reading list.

Next up: was supposed to be Penang, Malaysia but I’m headed back to Vietnam instead. While I don’t leave until Saturday, it’s the start of the trip home