The journey to Tanjung Puting continues.

We arrive on the klotok around dusk as we motor on down the river on the sides of the banks the palms were decorated with fire flies they even flew onto our boat where Kyle held one glowing in his hand. Saw fireflies on the edges of the river. We sleep on the deck of the boat after dinner on our carpet –Indonesian style, under a mosquito net. The sounds of the put-put of the boat is exchanged for the sound of the jungle. It is almost full moon it was warm when we go to bed and as the night goes on we are cold. I wish I’d brought a blanket! Tomorrow night I’ll wear my jeans and long sleeve top to bed!!

Banana pancakes, eggs, mango, banana, and water melon breakfast yum.

Now to see the orangutans – we stop at two sites for the feeding all the klotoks are bunched up together at the landing area. You need to walk across boats to get to the landing or people are walking across yours.

Camp Leakey is the most comprehensive of the the feeding stations as it has an information centre, a variety of animals near the rangers quarters – wild pigs a gibbon cats and oranghutans who don’t want to be bothered with the feeding platform about ¾ kilometre away.

The orangutans are used to this daily ritual of feeding at the platform, the rangers and guides call to let them know that bananas and milk is a happening thing on the deck. It is amazing seeing orangutans so close they move from tree to tree – it sounds like crashing in the treetops.

One tetchy orangutan played scare the tourist. Had our group worried it then divided our group and then chased me Sharon and Kyle for a short way into the jungle. Both Sharon and I tripped over. This orangutan Siswi came with a reputation, bitten five tourists in one year!! I was thinking I would be tourist number six!!! With help we got onto main track but it was an adrenaline rush as well as being downright scary.

On the way back Thomas spots a crocodile – no one swims in the river because of them and they are unusual to see.

Going to Suryabaya

We leave ‘pagi-pagi’ from Denpasar airport and arrive in Surabaya – big city in East Java. It is a huge port we take a charter taxi into the city. First to Kalimas a river port where most of the large wooden cargo boats that go between Sulawesi, Kalimantan and some of the other eastern islands depart from. Then it is to the Samporna cigarette factory. It is a tourist attraction in Suryabaya. It is a huge city but it is not known as a major tourist city. There is a beautiful display of all memorabilia about cigarettes as well as the history of the building and family. Upstairs is a shop and viewing platform of the factory. Mainly women are seated in red and yellow uniforms hand rolling cigarettes, trimming them and packaging. The speed is incredible. How does one relax after rolling 325 cigarettes an hour after an eight hour day!!!! So with over three hundred people working in this particular factory one of many making that many cigarettes an hour how many cigarettes are being smoked!!!

Then it is off to have lunch. We go to a local hot spot for ‘Lontong Balap’ a vegetarian soup with sprouts and tofu as well as solid cooked rice with young coconut. You know a place is good when you see a busy place.

A famous mosque in Surabaya is Sunan Ampel it is situated in the Arab section of the town and that was out last destination on our whirlwind tour the city. There are tiny lanes leading to the mosque all filled with small shops selling toys, Arabic and mosque clothes, henna, perfumes in shiny bottles cakes and dates many from the middle east. We were not wearing clothes appropriate for the mosque so we did not enter. Kelsey needed to go to the toilet so Sharon her mother asked if she may use the toilet in the information booth. Sharon came out wearing a sarong and head scarf to accompany Kelsey to the toilet. They both went into the area where women and girls prepare for the mosque. The mosque is a beautiful a large colonial building with huge wooden shutters, many doors and a beautiful polished floor. I would recommend bringing/buying some clothes that would allow you to enter.

Back to the airport and to Kalimantan Pangalabun and meet Bu Arfa and her family. A quick taxi ride from the airport and we are on a ‘Klotok’ (Kapal air- wooden boat).