THIS Indonesia page - Page 1 Indonesia, page 2: Lembata to Makassar Indonesia, page 4 - Makassar to Lombok, the accident Chrissi describes our Indonesian Adventures Text and the page layout is by Jack , photos by Jack and by Chrissi . How do we express our utter delight with our adventures throughout the vast island nation of Indonesia! Here's a country whose cultures range from Head Hunting in some remote areas to the highest and most sophisticated arts in others. Dance, music, painting, sculpture, and temple architecture are frequently nothing short of breathtaking. Muslim, Hindu, Animist, and Christian generally live in harmony and mutual respect. Here's a country whose military slaughtered 500,000 people to prevent a red uprising of the poor in 1965 and to maintain the privileges of the still very privileged rich. Here's a country of vulcanism and earthquakes that's called the Ring of Fire, a country with the most awsome and diverse scenery and with no cyclone / hurricane season. And most of all Indonesia is an archipelago of the most friendly smiling and super-humanly generous people. We loved our time in breathtaking Indonesia - one of the most special places we've ever visited. It's worth a visit to the Sail Indonesia Rally website. You'll learn more about the Rally and the country. There are links to other cruisers' experiences and resources. And if you're in the region, you might want to sign up for the next Rally! I guess this is a good place to thank Rally organizers Ray and Dewie and David, along with all who helped them, for leading us to discover wonderous Indonesia. The Sail Indonesia Rally was our ticket to all this and a lot more. It was the best "ticket" for the money that any of us had ever bought - by far!
We don't normally sail in company. And we certainly had never sailed in a "rally" with something like 100 boats! So this was a new experiment for us. Why did we try it? The CAIT - Sail Indonesia? You send some email attachments and make a reasonable payment to them in a bank - and your CAIT is ready and waiting for you in Darwin before you leave for Indonesia! THAT'S reason enough to do the rally! But it gets much better. It would be hard to count the number of "galla dinners" that were included free for the price of entry into the Rally. We've lost count of the number Village and Regional events that hosted us and treated us with respect and kindness - and, yes, even as VIP's. There were extravagant tours - both paid and free - that revealed many aspects of this remote and fascinating land and culture. Sail Indonesia makes it easy to figure an itinerary in this vast and varied archipelago. The mysteries of weather systems and currents and times of year and good places versus not so good places - all these mysteries are magically dealt with by the experienced organizers of the Rally! We hadn't had time to research all this complex and obscure stuff at all, so by being part of the the rally it was all figured in advance! So. Sail Indonesia? 100% Positive Recommendation. It's the best way to go sailing in Indonesia. The Start -
The weather was light and fickle,the perfect situation for everyone to try differing tactics. The mystery, or course, would quickly become: where is everyone else?
The Rally Route -
Kupang waterfront. Yes, Kupang is a funky city, one of the least attractive places in the region. But it was great to be there - such a refreshing change to be back in the cheap and friendly " third world" where smiles and ease come so naturally.
The sail to Kupang had been a light air affair, and sometimes a "no air" affair, but the seas were kind and the city was welcoming. After a few days of festivities - we were a special event there! - we were off on a slow overnight light air sail against currents up to 4 knots, destination Kalibata, the main "city" on the island of Alor!
We were certainly received as honored celebrities in Alor - most especially by the children! There's Chrissi surrounded by this enthusiastic crowd, and that's our traveling home, Naga, just behind. The kids somehow had this thing about getting our names and addresses and autographs in their notebooks and we finally resorted to using stamps to speed the process. Did their teachers put them up to it? No matter: such enthusiam and happiness!
Our arrival coincided with an annual regional Cultural Festival, with visiting artists and acts from all over the state. That was one of the great things about the Rally - much of our itinerary put us right into the middle of special events, and we became a part of the events. Lovely. These flute players serenaded the Festival and us along with traditional gongs. Wonderful and lovely.
Welcome to Alor's "traditional village" of Takpala! We visited Takpala with a bunch of other yachties on our first excursion tour with the Rally. The traditional dance and its accompanying rhythm and singing was mesmerizing. And it was just a start of our introduction to Indonesia's otherworldly mesmerzing cultures. This fella was, in fact, very friendly, but traditional foes back in the good old days would have had to look out and be fast on their feet!
Click
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little video
Ah, the Naga Boat - In Alor local mythology tells of the original inhabitants of the island arriving on a Naga Boat. And the myth goes on that a special Naga lives under the island and protects its population. We were very specially welcomed everywhere we went when the people discoved that we had arrived on NAGA. This photo, taken in the
Kalibata, Alor, museum, depicts the original
Naga Boat
From Alor, we sailed on to Lembata with a stop at "Murder Island" along the way. Use these Links to Continue: Indonesia, page 2: Lembata to Makassar |
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