Last weekend Jeff and I needed to clear out our lungs with some fresh air so we hit the road for Malabar Tea Estate. We got an early start to the weekend, leaving Jakarta just after lunch on Friday. Our drive out to Bandung was smooth; it amazes me that we now consider 115 miles in 5 hours to be "making good time". We arrived before dark, just in time to take in some of the gorgeous scenery and cool crisp air that reminded me of fall back in Oregon. Our driver got out of the car and instantly bundled up and started shivering from the cold mountain air. Jeff and I weren't far behind as we realized that 65 F is pretty dang cold when you're used to the mid 90's every day.
Jeff with Pak Karyadi who's trying to stay warm
Our cabin for the weekend
View from our back porch
Testing out my new lens (thanks Jeff)
Every time we leave Jakarta we're reminded of how beautiful and lush Indonesia is. The next morning we had leisurely breakfast of nasi goreng (fried rice) and eggs to fuel up for some trekking through the tea fields. Along the way we passed several schools full of smiling children. Indonesian children are adorable and always excited to practice their english with a "hello mister" and pose for pictures.
Very enthusiastic!
What a view!
Go America!
Our final stop for the day was the tea factory where we saw the cleaning, drying, grinding, bagging, sampled a few varieties of tea.
It was a great weekend escape and much needed break from the city. We've both been feeling a bit homesick so next up we'll be heading home for Christmas to catch up with family and friends. Here we come America!
Jeff and I headed off for a quick trip to Kalimantan last weekend for a chance to see the endangered Orangutans. In Indonesian orang means "person" and hutan means "forest", so orangutan means person of the forest. We'd been warned by friends to be ready to rough it and thank goodness we came prepared with wet wipes and snacks! It was sad to see that a mining operation has polluted the river water so extensively that it closely resembles chocolate milk. The wildlife viewing was unforgettable though and it felt like we could have starred in a nature documentary.
Most of the orangutans we saw were living near Camp Leakey, a research and rehabilitation facility. They're fed a supplemental meal of bananas and milk once a day and have become very comfortable around humans. We saw 2 wild orangutans along the river which was so exciting.
One of the wild rangas munching on some fruit
This gal seemed pretty used to posing for tourists
This mom kept stealing food from the crews backpacks and ended up spilling milk all over herself and her baby.
Splits!
This male had huge shoulders and arms and our guide said he still wasn't fully grown
We saw so many little babies clinging to their moms while they climbed from tree to tree. This pair came so close to us that we were nervous she was going to grab the camera as Jeff filmed.
This gibbon was getting ready to steal some bananas during feeding
Long-nosed monkey, a very common sight during the weekend
Beautiful sunset on the boat
Sun bear breaking into a beehive
It sounds crazy, but we both found the hole in the ground more inviting than the wet toilet seat. I wasn't nearly as excited when I noticed our dishes were washed in the same river water all the toilets open into. Our stomachs survived the weekend and I have a new respect for the "clean" tap water we're so fortunate to have in Jakarta.
Sydney was bittersweet for Jeff and I because it marked the end of our unforgettable trip, but the city and it's skyline views are absolutely gorgeous. The Harbor Bridge and the Opera House were stunning and we were lucky enough to get a room with a view of both.
Amazing view from our room
The weather was perfect for our bridge climb at dusk and I made it to the top with a manageable amount of anxiety. Coming down in the dark was a challenge, but it was absolutely worth the amazing sights.
Bridge climb
View from the Manly Ferry
The famous Bondi Beach
Symphony at the Opera House - Choppin
After living it up in Sydney we headed north for a visit with Brendon and Sue, our close friend's parents. Brendon showed us the best restaurants and viewpoints, guided us on a bushwalk to explore aboriginal art, and even grilled up some amazing lamb for dinner . He outshined an offical tour guide we met along the way and shared all the details about what the art meant and the ceremonies that took place, which made the sights so much more interesting.
Viewpoint in Newport
Aboriginal carving - several thousand years old
Our tour leader - Brendon
Our trip completely revived us for another year in Asia. I'll leave you with a few of our favorite Oz sayings we heard along the way:
bonnet - hood of the car
rumble strip - bumps on side of road
pokies - poker slot machines
boot - trunk of the car
strawbs- strawberries
schooner - glass of beer smaller than a pint
bush - not city or road, countryside (can be used as bushfire, bushwalking, out in the bush, bush whacking, bush folk)
bunyip - a mythical creature that a guy in a laundromat told us to look out for claiming one had eaten his dog
drop bear - another mythical creature we were warned about that drops from trees onto victims
old bloke - old guy
good on ya - well done
slap on some lippy - put on lipstick (hear this one on the news!)
The Great Barrier Reef has always been at the top of my bucket list, so I insisted that we had to see it. I had no idea what a huge variety we would see. The pictures paint a much better picture of this part of the trip so I'll (try to) keep the commentary short. We spent a few days on Heron Island which used to be a turtle canning facility and has now turned into a turtle conservation sight.
We saw a lot of green sea turtles and a huge loggerhead turtle. Loggerheads are endangered and this guy had 2 tracking tags on his fins. He looks small in the pictures, but he was massive and our guide guessed he was about 80 or 90 years old! He was swimming around, eating clams, and generally not too concerned with the snorkelers stalking him.
Munching on clams
Spotted eagle rays
Keep the ocean clean
This lemon shark sure got our adrenaline pumping!
Stingray
As if the sharks swimming around weren't enough, the ocean floor was packed full of stingrays, cowtail rays, and shovelnose rays. There was a few times when we were snorkeling along and realized we were completely surrounded by huge, scary fish.
Next we headed up to Airlie Beach for a sailing trip in the Whitsundays. We stayed on a beautiful boat and had a blast sailing, snorkeling, drinking wine, and relaxing with 3 other couples on board.
Hoist the sails
Captain and first mate, Jeff loved steering the boat and learning how to sail
Sunrise on the water
Whitehaven beach
Whitehaven Beach
Sand on Whitehaven Beach
Swimming with the turtles
Giant trevally
Champagne on the beach with a great group of friends!
We had less than 24 hours in Brisbane, but we made the most of it with plenty of sightseeing, a rugby game, and a little shopping for my first pair of Lululemon pants.
We couldn't resist a ride on the Wheel of Brisbane, amazing views
Brizzy lights on our way to the game
We arrived at Suncorp Stadium with just enough time to pick up our Wallabies souvenirs - a stubby holder (beer coozy) and scarf. Unfortunately the Wallabies got creamed so a rowdy argument over seats turned out to be the most exciting part of the night. Even though they didn't score a single try (rugby touchdown) we had a blast cheering them on.
Singing the National Anthem - Advance Australia Fair!
5th row seats!
Continuing our journey north from Brizzy, we had to stop at the Australia Zoo on the tip that we might be able to pet a koala.
Crikey that's a big croc
Sleepy koalas
Baby croc
Feeding the wallabies
The finale - petting a koala
The next day we headed out on a whale watching trip in Hervey Bay and lucked out with a spectacular show. There were so many calves and moms breaching, tail slapping, fin waving, rolling, backstroking, and even singing.
Mom and calf were putting on quite the show
We were able to get so close!
Curious little guy
One set came right up to us to have a peak
Seeing the whales up close was such a breathtaking experience, definitely at the top of the trip highlights.
