Taro's Travels

I've had a fair amount of travelling (with two time zone changes) over the last three days - the laundry list is 30m bemo (Lovina - Singaraja); 2h bus (Singaraja - Gilimanuk), 1h ferry (Gilimanuk - Banyuwangi, Java), 6h train (Banyuwangi-> Surabaya), ~2 hours taxi (Surabaya) and 5h train (Surabaya - Solo).

Buses: I'll try not to catch a (normal) bus long distance again; its too awkward and crowded when you've a largeish backpack.

Trains: I've been getting first class("eksekutif") tickets because the carriages are air conditioned and the baggage space is good. About half way to Surubaya, something malfunctioned so we were herded into second class ("bisnis"). Smoking is acceptable inside bisnis carriages (in eksekutif smokers step out).

Banyuwangi: A port town with wide swathes of mud between the road and buildings. I decided to stay there overnight rather than arriving in Surabaya after midnight. The first place I looked at was rather horrific (it had a couple of cell-like windowless rooms and they asked almost as much as my homestay in Ubud) but the second place, at an anonymous motel behind a dumpling seller's, had a much better room (simple but clean, with shared mandi but... a window) and very friendly hosts.

Surubaya: Absolutely _insane_ traffic. To cross the road you basically step out, keep walking, and rely on drivers and riders not wanting you to damage their paintwork. There's a scene in "Bowfinger" that's pretty good approximation of my technique... There were a couple of times I was rather tempted to take a taxi just to get to the other side of the street. The central streets are confusing too, with lots of awkward angles and turns that the taxi drivers exploit to their fullest value. Surubaya is a juxtaposition of poverty - beggars, hawkers, and becaks - with wealth - the malls are large and upmarket, and their shoppers stylish. To find an Internet cafe took a bit of work (there's a one in and another near the huge Tunjungan Plaza but elsewhere you get blank looks).

Solo: arrived last night and had a wander this morning. Parts are compartmental. I'm staying in Cakra Homestay, on one of a maze of alleys. At 11pm, the gates to the block are closed and locked, leaving only limited access. The two kratons, are high-walled compounds containing a palace and homes (the larger one, Kraton Surakarta has what amounts to a town within its outer walls - I've read 25000 residents somewhere but 2500 seems more likely), again with only limited access. I should be here a few days.

Meanwhile in a location not too far away - Mt Merapi is getting ready to erupt.