Last Days in Indonesia

The ferry crossing from Bali to Java with so much easier than the first time across. It seemed like no time and we are rolling off the boat and into the Baluran National Park. As we rode, monkeys lined the road. Some were so close to the road we wondered why we never saw any dead monkeys. The trucks would roll by sometimes just inches from them. Then we came across the proof that some monkeys just weren’t so lucky.

We rode up and over the mountain, descending back into the villages. Near the top we pulled over to get a drink at a small, isolated roadside stand. The woman working the stand was so excited to have Americans, on a motorcycle, stop at her stand. She gladly fixed me a coffee and got Melanie a Coke. We chatted for a bit using Google translate and then got some photos with her and Melanie. Big smiles were all around as Melanie and the woman exchanged social media information.

We were headed to Solo, which is where we would put the motorcycle on the cargo train, and ourselves on the train back to Jakarta. We were taking our time getting there so it would be over a 3-day period. That’s when we finally had our “adventure”. Many adventure travelers will say that it’s not an adventure unless you crash or something happens. Well, after six continents and over 70 countries, we finally had an adventure.

We were pulling into Solo to see our friend Roby at Superbiker Moto, and we’re just 100 mts from his business. The traffic light had turned red at a busy intersection. All the scooters were queued to the front and jammed themselves in, as they do. We were on the left side of the road, next to a telephone pole and a ditch. The bikes left indicator was on, as we were turning left. The stoplight changed and we all started to move in one mass. A woman towards the back swung way to the left and tried to cut in between myself and a scooter in front of me as we were at turning left. In the middle of my left turn she hit my front wheel turning it to the right and causing us to low side onto her scooter. We all tumbled to the ground, myself landing on my ribs and Melanie landing on her back, with her foot pinched underneath the pannier. With the adrenaline running we all jumped up, righted the bikes and pushed them to the side of the road. That’s when the fun began.

She wanted to blame me for running into her. Melanie went across the street to grab Roby so he could help translate, as she had said that she didn’t speak English. When I told her that Roby was friends of the police, she miraculously started speaking English. We were all basically okay and the motorcycle had minor, reparable damage. I told her we would get the police involved unless she admitted to her guilt. Once she realized I wasn’t going to pay her anything and she didn’t need to pay me anything, she admitted it was her fault.

We finally made it to the hotel where we would rest for a couple days, realizing how our injuries really did hurt. A visit to the doctor would have been in order, but for our injuries, there’s nothing they would have done anyway. I probably ended up with a couple bruised ribs and Melanie a crushed / broken big toe. Nothing that a little time wouldn’t cure.

A couple days later we got the motorcycle to the cargo train. The next day we took a really nice train ride into Jakarta. Tim and Marisa Notier, aka “2 Up and Overloaded “, were next in line to ride the motorcycle in Indonesia. We were all staying at the same hotel just enjoying a few days relaxing and getting the bike prepped for the next ride. We wandered around together a bit and ate at some of the small restaurants around the hotel.

Finally it was time to leave Indonesia. Our flight to our next destination went through Dubai, where we would spend a night at a hotel. Then on to pick up our other bike, Gypsy “, and spend the next 4 months riding around…

Cheers,

2WANDRRs