The past week has really flown by, and we’re creeping ever closer to the time that we have to give our motorbike back. Due to this, we’ve been trying to the make the most of our last few weeks being able to zoom where we want, whenever we want.
This week, we’ve held out first Days for Girls session since I’ve been here. These sessions are aimed at educating women on female health and sexuality, as well as providing them with reusable sanitary kits, which are both good for them and for the environment. I was fairly daunted about helping to deliver this session, even more so when we had over 30 women turn up to the first one, many with toddlers in tow! Luckily, the group was incredibly friendly (I shouldn’t have expected anything else of Indonesians) and the session ran smoothly, although with a LOT of laughter. There’s still a lot of topics I want to introduce to these sessions, but it’s difficult to find a balance of protecting women and stepping on the toes of another’s culture. In a society where FGM is prevalent and rape within marriage is only just being banned, it’s a challenge to hold discussions on taboo topics. Nevertheless I am pleased with the talk we gave and indeed with the anonymous questions session we held afterwards. Although I will admit the teenage class who we held the session with the next day giggled a lot less than the grown ups had!
Earlier this week, I managed to break the headlight on the bike and bust the front tire – this sounds more dramatic than it is, the roads here are simply so bad that older bikes don’t stand much of a chance against all the bumps, rocks and potholes! Luckily we found someone who fixed both these problems pretty cheaply for us and as if by a miracle, the road in Bukit Lawang has finally been resurfaced!!!! I feel so honoured that this has happened while I’m here – I think it only happens about once a decade!
So after a week of teaching on the topic of family, on Friday we used the newly fixed bike to zoom down to the river. We could tell a storm was brewing, but after a week of work it’s so nice to cool off with a swim and I find it so much easier to wash my hair in the river than in the bucket shower. We managed to find a patch of water where the current wasn’t too strong and had a quick local shower, before we headed back on the bike, towels over our shoulders, just managing to make it home as the rain hit. We also discovered the fun fact that the key sometimes falls out of the ignition when we drive- and yet the bike somehow keeps going without the key….
On Friday evening we had a lot of catching up to do, as we had held a staff meeting that morning and we had a lot of information to go through following this. We had promised ourselves we were going to make pizzas, but by the time we got round to cooking we were far too hungry to wait for the oven we found in an old storeroom to warm up, so instead we had cheese of toast with ketchup – which is basically a pizza anyway right? After a couple more hours in the office we finally managed to switch off at around 10 and then joined our volunteer to watch a film.
After a well needed lie in on Saturday, we headed out on an adventure. It was a sunny day and so I wanted to go somewhere quiet enough that I could wear a bikini and sunbathe without every man and his dog coming to gawk at me – a common experience here if you dare to show your knee caps. We decided we would head somewhere new, so we drove up the hills towards Batu-Katak. The views on the way were completely astounding, miles of mountains and jungle (and palm oil) as far as we could see. So so many different shades of green that simply don’t show up on a camera.
After a few stops to admire the view, we arrived in Batu-Katak and began exploring. This is a village far smaller than Bukit Lawang and it seemed quiet after the constant hustle and bustle of the tourist centre here. We paddled in the river before heading to get a drink at a nearby guesthouse – who charged us a small fortune! Bule prices of course. I then headed into the river next to this guesthouse, but the current seemed to strong to cross. As I started to head back, a guy on the other side of the river started shouting to me. My first worry was crocodile! But it soon became clear that he just wanted to help me cross the river. I tried to decline, but he wouldn’t take no for an answer and borrowed the microphone from the restaurant next to him to talk to me over the river! He then proceeded to wade across to get me, so I felt it would be rude not to come with him. Having been guided across the river, I ended up in a fabulous restaurant, but sadly my money and camera were both still the other side of the river! I eventually persuaded him to let me cross back, where I found the other volunteers and we braved a series of very sceptical bridges to head back towards the restaurant- this time without getting quite so wet!
After a drink and a snack, we headed to the waterfall behind the restaurant and began to climb. At the top, we found a great little pool of water – perfect for swimming and secluded enough to wear a bikini – hurrah!
Leaving our bags by the pool, we walked further up stream, heading towards the jungle. After a lot of slippy rocks and fish we decided head back for a dip in the pool by the waterfall. We then set off back through the village to the bike and towards Bukit Lawang again. We stopped briefly in town for some shopping time, but I managed to just about resist the urge to buy a million souvenirs, although now I have finally assembled my mosquito net properly, my room does look in need of decorating.
After a quick nap, it was time to head back out – Saturday night in Bukit Lawang is not to be missed! Going out here is so different to clubbing in the UK- a lot more live music and a lot longer skirts. I love the fact that once a week the divide between locals and tourists seems to totally disappear, as everyone gets on the dance floor!
After a lazy morning, we’ve been planning next weekends jungle trek! I can’t wait to finally head properly into the jungle, although I’m not sure I’m quite ready to meet the leeches yet!!!
Rosie Roams 