Bangka

Amy Lou and I eagerly woke up and headed to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II airport. We’d kind of hoped that the shops would be open in order to fill our rumbling bellies but timing isn’t something the Indonesians care for much. However, that’s what being laid back is all about and beats the robot nature of the west.  After a short wait we got on the plane, only to find that Dustin and Deirdre had bagged a ‘first class’ seat. Jammy! Before you get on the plane Garuda airlines give you some water and a meat filled bread roll in a little cake box-alright for a smooth 30 minute plane ride to Pangkal Pinang.

So, it’s always about who you know and luckily a colleague Diya has a friend who just so happens to be a driver and lives in Bangka. I half expected a driver patiently waiting with a Hafiza engraved placard, much to my disappointment, we aren’t that important and stick out like a sore thumb. He spotted us from a mile off and we were on our way in no time.  On the journey, I remember thinking this is what I visualise when I think of Indonesia; lots of palm trees, fruit trees, mud paths and windy lanes. Fantastic! So first things first, we had to find a hotel. We discussed what we wanted from the driver and he was happy to take us hotel hunting and sightseeing for a set price. We’d already decided that we would go towards Sangai Liat. En route we came across a rather lovely temple so made a pit stop.  

We got back into the car and got a phone call from Dustin’s friend who kindly invited us to her host home for an Eid ul Adha feast. This involved making a U-turn back towards the city, however, food was involved so neither of us hesitated to accept.

We were asked to attend a Qurbani or slaughtering which was taking place the following day. For those of you that aren’t aware, to put it simply, for Eid ul Adha, we normally slaughter an animal in repetition of Abraham s sacrifice of a ram in place of his son, Ishmael. After stuffing our faces we left and for the second time, headed towards Sangai Liat. However, there were more things to see before we got down to hotel hunting, for example, this magnificent temple, with stunning views called Fatin San.

 

We then made another pit stop to take pictures of the pristine blue water and more magnificent views.

 

By this point we were all pretty exhausted and thought we should find somewhere to stay and headed towards Tanjung Pesona, which was unfortunately fully booked. A short drive later we found a place called Telek Uber which had a great view.





On the down side it’s pretty secluded and the one place to eat that closes at 2 am, for some reason was closed at around 7 pm which left us with a food hunting mission. Ok well it wasn’t much of a mission as we found some neighbours that were eating and they kindly offered to take Dustin to the food place to pick up some food. Some night time beach pics to follow.

We spent the next day hanging out at the beach and then decided to have a little walk towards Tanjung Pesona.

We found a great spot with a nice view and yummy chicken teriyaki.

We then got a motorbike ride back to Telek Ubur and tucked in for an early night...or so we thought. BANG BANG BANG.

Amy: “Pergi, pergi”.

Deirdre: “Get lost, who is it?”

Me: “What’s going on?”

POLICE: “OPEN THE DOOR!”

Shiiiiit. What? Why? Deirdre opens the door to find not only one but around 15 policemen at the door. What do they do? Peer in, whisper laki laki and leave. All you can do is laugh. We then hear from Dustin that they were searching for narcotics in his room...he should stay away from all that talcum powder. Unfortunately, being a foreigner comes with a little baggage; this may include visits from the police now and then, especially for the white male folk. Well anyway, it left us with a fun story to tell. To add to the adventure, we decided to wake up early and attempt at seeing the sunrise, but unfortunately the clouds persisted and left us with just a glimmer.

Two days later, Dustin and Deirdre had to leave for Palembang so Amy and I stayed at Tanjung Pesona for our last night. We decided to explore and made our way over to the rocky area of the beach which had great waves.

After our last meal in Bangka and ok internet connection we went to sleep and woke up just in time for some of the fabulous buffet spread the hotel has to offer. Overall, it was a great weekend, we got to the airport, paid what we needed to (they don’t include airport tax in the tickets) and then, to top it off with traditional Indonesian gratitude, we had a lovely three hour delay. Luckily it was a perfect opportunity to upload some pictures but I don’t think Amy was too impressed.





So long for now Bangka...