Bengkulu and Banderlampung

It didn't take long for a van to fill up in Maninjau, and soon I was headed back to Bukittinggi.  We arrived at the bus station before 11 am, plenty of time to spare for my 1 pm trip bound for Bengkulu.

Bengkulu is a small city (of about 300,000) along the southwest coast of Sumatra.  It attracts very few international visitors, or even Indonesians for that matter.  Lonely Planet says it's one of the least visited parts of Sumatra.  Then why did I choose to go there?  Good question.  Partly because it was one of the only sizable towns in between Bukittinggi and the southern end of Sumatra, the direction I needed to go before island hopping to Java.  Another reason was the Lonely Planet description of Bengkulu.  No other tourists?  Sounds cool!

Bengkulu is on the southwest coast of Sumatra

For awhile I wasn't sure our bus was even going to make it it Bengkulu.  First of all it looked like the oldest bus at the station.  I didn't want to be cynical, but it was hard not to worry about the bus breaking down.  Before we left they changed the tires, which should have been a good thing, but the "new" tires they put on looked just as crappy as the old ones!

Okay, the bus was better than this one, but really not by much!

After the tire-changing delay we were off, only 30 minutes behind schedule.  5 minutes later we were already stopped at a gas station.  Why the driver waits to fill up the bus or van until he has finally left the station and is starting a new trip is beyond me, but it seems to happen, without fail, on every trip I've taken in Southeast Asia (maybe that's an overstatement, but certainly it happens an awful lot).

Several of us used the bathroom, but after 15 minutes of waiting I was beginning to wonder what the hell was taking so long.  How much gas can this thing hold?  The word got passed around that we were waiting for a passenger.  So we waited.  And waited.  Finally, after 45 minutes at the gas station, a woman casually showed up.  Thanks for taking your time!

And we were off...into crazy Bukittinggi traffic.  The holiday was winding down and every single car in Sumatra seemed to be on the road, vacationers heading back to work.  It took us another hour just to get out of town, and still the traffic was heavy.  I wasn't in a rush or anything, but the hold-ups were even getting to me. After a few hours of slow progress the traffic finally started to let up and the delays seemed to be in the rear-view mirror.

Not so fast.  Around 8 pm, when we were finally making good progress, the bus came to a stop.  At first I thought it was just a bathroom break.  But soon we realized there was a problem with one of the tires (yeah, one of those "new" tires).  We stood around for nearly two hours as a couple pseudo mechanics tried to "fix" the tire.  I'm definitely no expert, but from what I could gather a tire got cut up and they were smoothing it over so when back on the road - yes we would be riding on the same tire - it wouldn't snag and continue shedding rubber (like my very technical car talk?).

I though we might have to push the bus to Bengkulu!

I don't know if I was relieved or scared to get back on the road.  Thankfully there didn't seem to be any more serious problems along the way.  Oh and of course less than an hour after we had the tire delay we stopped for a meal!  At that point I was just telling myself I'd be happy if I ever make it to Bengkulu.

And we did make it to Bengkulu, a full 24 hours after we had left Bukittinggi!  726 kilometers (451 miles) in 24 hours...not exactly a course record!  I go the distance from http://www.distancesfrom.com/ which seems to have tons of locations to choose from if you are curious.

A moto taxi drove me to a nearby hotel, and for 8 bucks I got a nice sized room with shared showers (bucket system).  Of course what did I see when I first walked into the hotel - another Western tourist!  So much for a get away.

Well actually that tourist was (if my memory is correct) the only other white person I saw in town either day.  Which, for a city of 300,000 people, and one I did a lot of walking around, is quite an accomplishment.  Very few people spoke English well, and I could tell the town received few foreign visitors.  And honestly I can see why.  Not that Bengkulu was a particularly crappy town, but there really aren't many tourist attractions.  Add in its difficult-to-reach location, and its not surprising that there were few visitors.

street in central Bengkulu

a city square; as I said, not a whole lot to see here!

That afternoon I visited Fort Marlborough, an 18th century English fort and one of the few attractions in town.  There I met a high school girl who, to practice her English, offers to give foreigners a tour around the fort.  I was a bit skeptical at first (thinking she would ask for money or something).  It turns out that, like many encounters I have had in Indonesia, she was honest and just wanted to show me around.  She wants to work in hospitality or tourism so speaking with foreigners is great practice for her.  Two thoughts: first, I doubt there are many foreign tourists visiting the fort, with whom she can practice, and second, I don't know of any high schoolers back home who are that motivated!

entrance to Fort Malborough

View of the fort and surrounding city

Ingried - not exactly a common Indonesian name (well, she was Catholic, so maybe that has something to do with it) - offered to show me around the local university as well.  Great opportunity for a free tour guide!  At the university I met two of her friends who would be starting school there in the fall.  Since summer break was still in session campus was deserted, but I still enjoyed the walk.

One of the main university buildings

After the tour Ingried dropped me off at my hotel (with her motorbike).  I went to the nearest Internet cafe to check emails and met more locals: three guys in their early 20s who invited me to get a drink with them.  Not alcohol - they, like most residents of Bengkulu, are Muslim - but a special drink with raw egg, milk, and syrup.  It may not sound tasty, but actually it was delicious.  I had dinner at the outdoor food stall and hung out with the guys for an hour or two.

It was nice to meet locals since I was traveling alone, and back at my hotel there wasn't much to do.  Once I got back I read my guidebook for awhile and went to bed.  The following day it was already time to leave again - off to Bandarlampung.

My ride wasn't leaving until noon, but by the time I got my ticket situated, arrived at the travel company, and found a bite to eat, it was nearly time to go.  This trip was with another van.  I got the front seat again, but unlike last time I had it all to myself!  There weren't any technical problems, and overall the ride was smooth sailing (with a few long food breaks), but the trip still took over 14 hours!

I wish I could sleep like this during car rides!

14 hours actually seemed short compared to my ride from Bukittinggi to Bengkulu.  We took a road along the southwest coast of Sumatra, driving through many small towns.  My Lonely Planet mentioned the scenic drive along the coast, and although there were a few impressive views, it couldn't compare to the likes of Maninjau and Toba.

When we arrived in Bandarlampung it was already near 3 am; if we had been behind schedule I might not have bothered with a hotel, but considering I could still salvage a decent night sleep I went ahead and booked one.

The next day I slept in and then made my travel arrangements to Jakarta.  I would be taking a bus, followed by a ferry from Sumatra to Java, and finally another bus to the capital (arriving the next morning).  With 4 weeks in Indonesia and a plan to explore Sumatra, Java, and Bali, my time was limited, so I wasn't going to stay in Bandarlampung any longer than I needed to.

Bandarlampung has nearly one million people and is the major gateway to the rest of Sumatra.  Many backpackers used to shuttle through the city going from the rest of Sumatra to Java and vice versa.  Due to dwindling tourist numbers in Sumatra and cheap airfare - booked in advance and outside the Indonesian holiday season - the city sees far fewer foreign visitors today.  The people were still quite friendly, but there seemed to be no compelling reason to visit.  Still it may have been nice to stay an extra day or two.  Hey, there was no compelling reason to visit Bengkulu either, but I still did.
 

A main traffic circle in central Bandarlampung

During the day I went for a walk around the neighborhoods of Lampung (its shortened name).  If I were in a city such as Rio or even near home in a place the likes of Chicago, for example, I wouldn't just stroll into random neighborhoods solo.  The homes were not lavish, and many of the people poor, but never did I feel threatened or unsafe.  On my walk a family stopped me to say hello and offered me tea.  There were lots of kids around the neighborhood, and as they walked by many stopped to get a good look at the strange visitor.

For some reason there was a large group of kids walking home, maybe from school (although some were only preschool age), and they all stopped to say hello.  Once I got up and went on my way there must have been 30 or more children.  I asked if they wanted to go for a walk, and we all took off through the neighborhood together.  I wish I had photos of this!  As I wound up the hillside some went on their own separate ways.  I met another local who spoke English well and he invited me in his home to say hello to the family.  The kids outside were disappointed but soon dispersed.  It turns out the man's brother was living in the US!  We chatted for a few minutes, and then he offered to walk with me back to the central market, as he had to go shopping anyway.

Foreigners seem to be a big hit with the kids

I had a late (second) lunch and continued walking to another neighborhood, where I was greeted with more friendly faces - I told you, Indonesians are a hospitable bunch!  Soon it started to rain and I made my way back to the town center.  Once I was back it was already time to pick up my luggage from the hotel (they will often store it for you behind the front desk, so much easier than lugging it around and trying to find a safe place) and get to the bus station.  It would have been nice to stay longer, but that evening I was leaving for Jakarta!