We've been in Malaysia for the past week or so in Georgetown and the Cameroon Highlands. But before we talk about those, lets catch up from Sumatra.
Get me out of Medan!
We flew into Penang on the west coast. We originally intended to take the ferry back from Sumatra to Malaysia but we had a brain fart and forgot to check when ferries actually departed. We arrived in Medan, the capital of North Sumatra (Indonesia's third largest city), on Saturday night. We intended to take the ferry out first thing in the morning on Sunday but to our dismay we learned that the ferry did not leave until Tuesday.
Usually this wouldn't be a problem, okay we kill two days sightseeing but this was Medan, Sumatra. To date, the dirtiest city we have been to. When we say dirty we mean your eyes will begin to burn if your on the street to long and your snot will turn black from breathing in to many diesel and generator fumes. First thing in the morning, we decided we would leave that day at any cost. We headed to the airport and bought an Air Asia ticket for later that day (7PM flight). Unfortunately, the airport at Medan does not have a lounge for passengers who arrive earlier than two hours before flight departures. Not having much of a choice, we spent the rest of the morning and afternoon in a Dounkin Doughnuts and KFC, waiting until 5PM to be allowed into the airport.
And that's when the real fun started. We clear security, which was much better than the security at the airport in Sulawesi; the guards were actually looking at the xray screen rather than conversing among themselves. Around 7PM an announcement was made in Indonesian, we didn't need to understand to know that it was not good news; the flight was delayed. The delay soon turned into a cancellation and we ended up stuck in Medan for one more night. After 2 hours of confusion Air Asia finally put us up in a hotel around midnight and took us back to the airport around 5AM, about enough time to shower and nap. The next morning we hopped over to Penang on the 35 minute Air Asia flight.
Enough with the bad, on to the great!
Like most third world cities we've visited, you really have to get out of the city of embarkation to enjoy the country. Sumatra was definitely no different. Once outside of Medan, it's hard not to fall in love with the country. We visited Danau Toba, Berastagi, and Bukit Lawang. We headed out to Danau Toba first, enjoying the milder climate and swimming in the largest volcanic lake in the world. The lush green mountainous cliffs jet right out on all sides of the lake.
We spent 3 nights lazing around, swimming in the mornings and late afternoons. On the second day we took a motor bike around the island (which is larger than the country of Singapore!) and enjoyed endless panoramics of the Jurassic landscape.
Next, we headed north to Berastagi, a crossroads town known to tourists as the jump off point to summit Mount Sibayak. The town was nothing special at all, almost receiving the runner up position of being one of the dirtier places we've been too. But we weren't there for the city, we wanted to summit a live volcano! The hike up was quite strenuous but the views from the top were well worth it. The smell of sulfur was inescapable on the top, but not bad enough to ruin the packed lunch we enjoyed at the top. The hike down however was a completely different story.
The guesthouse we stayed at told us to take the 'stairs' down, which was a far stretch from what was actually there. Over the years, rain had eroded what used to be stairs. To be honest it made for a more exciting trek down. The 'stairs' eventually wind down into the jungle at the foothills of the volcano where the vegetation becomes so thick it creates a tunnel surrounding the crumbling remains of the 'stairs'. You can't help but think Indiana Jones. After about a 4 hour walk we managed to hitch a ride on local transport back to Berastagi, where we immediately headed to our gas heated shower.
After successfully summiting, we decided to head to Bukit Lawang (Kevin's main reason for putting Sumatra on the iteneray). Bukit Lawang is of course famous for its orangutans, one of only two places that orangutans still exhist in the wild, the other being Borneo. Bukit Lawang truely did not dissapoint, we loved it. We stayed in a very clever jungle bungalow built into a jungle hill about 50 feet up from the river. Our shower was located outside, under our bungalow; the water pouring out of a bamboo shoot.
Two days after arriving we signed up for a two day guided trek through the jungle. Well worth the money. We paid around $55 / person which included a guide, camp site, lunch dinner and breakfast and a rafting trip back into town. The trek was great, the guide made sure we got dirty, taking us off the trail down into little river gullies. We all managed to slip and fall all the way down, getting caught on some mean jungle thorns that will rip your pants before letting loose. We trekked all day and by 4PM we were drenched with sweat. Off in the distance we could hear the sound of falling water, a truly beautiful sound. We emerged from the jungle to a campsite right on the rivers edge, with chickens roasting over a open fire. We immediately changed into our bathing suits and headed to the pure spring water river for a well needed bath and swim. We spent the night on nothing more than a tarp above us and a thin mat below.
(Kevin Speaking)I woke up at sunrise and headed to the river to watch the sun burn off the morning mist. To my amazement I kept seeing a large white and black 'eel' surface and descend right where we had been swimming the day before. I watched this 'eel' 'hunt' for about 10 minutes until I called a guide over. With excitement he exclaimed it was no eel but a python! Unfortunately it had died sometime overnight and drifted down stream and was being swept in the current in front of our campsite. There is nothing like chasing down a dead python at sunrise in a Sumatran jungle river to wake you up!
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