When in Bali...

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The Maya Resort and Spa is not a resort, but a sanctuary of stress free bliss! We have died and gone to heaven. Cold towel upon arrival and exotic beverage. After we checked in, the staff drove us down to our villa. Each villa has their own "door entrance". You open the wooden doors and walk down the stairs to your villa. Our unit overlooks the lower section of the rice paddies. Bonnie and I are both speechless over this place. Negative edge pool, outside shower...it is stunning! There is a book on the table listing this as one of the worlds top 100 resorts. I can see why.

The spa called our name...full hour massage, body scrub and lunch one day, facials the next.

The hotel provided a shuttle to uptown Ubud. We ventured to the Monkey Temple after a morning of spa relaxation. Rule of thumb when visiting the Monkey Temple, do not take food in with you(even if they are selling bananas at the entrance way!) and don't make eye contact. I love monkeys, but I also know how easily they can turn on a person. So we strolled through the temple without food, making fun of the idiots who carried food in. The idiots were then being accosted by monkeys. Couple of loud screams heard in the distance could not have been good. Last thing I wanted on this trip was to be bitten by a rabid monkey.

We found a great restaurant I read about on Trip Advisor. I must give high regards to Bridges. The food was incredible, great wine selection and the setting was just as wonderful. It was so good, we ate here twice!

Travel to Ubud

I am usually researching and planning any vacation ever taken. All the planning for this trip was in the hands of the Wilmots. I left myself open to any experience willing to cross my path. We had no set plans on the places we wanted to see. Bonnie has never been to Ubud, so this was a new area for her to explore.
I am in awe to the landscape of this country. The temples along the roadway are a work of art. Driving on the other hand....we will leave this task up to the hired drivers. There is no rhyme or reason to the lines on the road, who gets what lane...all while motor scooters are coming at you like you are invisible. Yet, no accidents. This may take some getting used to. Did I mention you can fit a family of five on a Vespa?


Our driver is quite the character. He takes us to all the touristy places along the route to Ubud. The silver/gold smith, the batik fabric store, wood carvers and lunch at the rice fields along the way. The narrow roads are lined with store after store of goods for sale. The workmanship is pride worthy, yet the cost is pennies on the US dollar. Each town you pass specializes in a certain trade. This is a decorators paradise.

Arrived in Bali!

After a long day of travel, our feet landed in Bali. Upon exiting the airport, I have never seen so many motor scooters in my life! We grab a cab to the Patra Hotel not far from the airport. Vacation has begun. I can smell the salt water in the air. After checking in, we unload our bags, shower and head out to the ocean. Nothing is better than a long walk along the ocean after flying all day. We kicked back and enjoyed a few cocktails and headed back to the room. Tomorrow brings us more travel...to Ubud.

Chopper or bus, that is the question?

Four in the morning, we are packed, loaded in the truck and back down the mountain to catch a chopper to the airport. Plans are to spend the night at the Rimba and catch our flight to Lombok the next day. I believe I mentioned in a previous blog you give a few extra days in travel time for "choppers not flying." As we are about to experience.

After sitting at the helipad for a few hours, we are informed the choppers are not flying due to weather in the lowlands. A decision needs to be made as if we will now board a bus and head down the mountain, a three hour drive on a windy, unsettling road.

First let me explain the hesitation of taking the bus. Shootings have taken place along the road to the lowlands at buses full of expatriates. John lost a good friend a few years ago during an ambush on a convoy of vehicles heading to the lowlands. Matt was fired upon while heading to the golf course in the lowlands and watched a guy die next to him. Matt has not taken the bus since. I can understand his apprehensiveness. I have heard about the bus ride. Honestly, I am a little nervous myself. Everyone is leaving the island, the tribe knows they are leaving for the summer and there has not been an altercation in quite awhile. They may be getting restless. After much discussion, we decided to take the bus.

Normally, you board the bus and you are taken directly down the mountain. This time we were boarded onto the bus and taken "uptown" to the bus stop. We were then to board another bus going down to Timika. As we grabbed our luggage, we looked around us and realized, this was not a good scenario. 15 or so expats being looked upon by the local tribe, knowing where we are heading and the route to be taken. You may as well put a target on us. OK, now I am not feeling very fuzzy about this. A few phone calls were made to security and we were advised NOT to get on the bus. Don't have to ask me twice! We head back home and hope the choppers are flying tomorrow.


Could we be so lucky...no choppers flew the next day. Decision is made, we have to take the bus. Security is contacted. We board the bus and are taken to a destination where we are met by armed security to escort us down the mountain. The photo above is us waiting outside the buses for security to arrive. I think it is time for a Xanax! Down the mountain we go. I say a few prayers along the way. I looked fear in the face when I was diagnosed with cancer, but this was a different fear. You are taking a chance of not only yourself, but your family. This choice is presented to expats everytime a chopper does not fly and there are flights to catch. Tough decision to swallow.

So, the bus travels on and we are 10 minutes from the airport. Ten minutes to catch our departing flight. The airline is contacted to hold the plane for the people arriving via bus. Game plan is Bonnie and Christi head into the terminal, I grab luggage and meet them inside. We arrive, and the ladies go blowing through security to the check in counter. The guards don't even blink. In America, they would have been shot dead or tackled.

In the words of John Wilmot, he could not have stated it better:

"They made good time down the hill, made it to the airport and Garuda was still there. Only to get in the terminal and watch the last of the standby folks board up and go. Flight left them standing there, and the Ibu’s(white folk) nearly had a riot. Freaking out shouting ensued- as they then found out all flights to Bali or Makassar or Jakarta were full up through the 17th (when I am scheduled with the girls). Then they found out that no rooms were available in the Rimba! You could nearly hear the screeching up here as about 10 Ibu’s were stuck in the same situation. Finally after calls to the VP level and above, intervention by PTFI folks set it right and they mostly all had a place to sleep, but definitely not separate rooms.

That afternoon, after looking at many, many options (Jayapura to Makassar on standby to Bali) or other even less favorable versions involving Merpati Airlines and unsavoury airports, they decided on a longer, but very reliable method of Airfast to Cairns (yes, they had to go East to travel Westward… typical of here). Once in Cairns, they caught the JetStar flight to Darwin, and will catch a connecting flight to Bali tonight. ETA in Bali is 8:45 tonight. But, they will miss Lombok entirely, and will spend the night in Kuta area tonight and see if they can extend their stay in Ubud one day earlier. It should all be right now, but crazyness all yesterday. Woke up this morning to a fine mist and again, no choppers flew- for the third straight day. Sheer pandalarium at the helipad and at Rimba and at the Airport. People are getting seriously stuck and sick of the travel here- specifically in the highlands. Looking at about 750 folks not able to travel properly and more tomorrow, maybe."

There you have it. Travel in Papua. Can't wait to get to Bali!

Weeks Events

After taking time to decompress, the rest of the week was filled with less excitement, at least for a few days.

Hot stone dinner at the local/only restaurant. Melting Pot meets 2 inch stone is the only way to compare it. Aussie lamb, prawns and chicken to cook your own way. 3 dipping sauces on the side and the tastebuds loved it!

I browsed the Hero market for a few items. I passed on the tendon and other strange objects which resembled a bone of something. Chickens were smaller than in the states. No hormone injected animals here. However, they do like to remove the breasts of the chickens and repackage them. When you get a craving for a roasted chicken and open the package, you have a 50/50 chance of the breasts being gone. Aggravating for the locals. I picked up a fantastic Australian cheese at the store, Black Forest. I know I will have a craving for it in the near future. Cooked a nice dinner of penne and tomato cream sauce...forgetting to look for weevils in the pasta. Extra protein is always good.

Kate and Sydney were prepping for the big "50's" theme school production. All the children in the school participate in the nights events. Each grade does their own singing and dance number. The restaurant is decorated for the evening festivities with a drive in movie theater and a 50's soda fountain. The Tembag PTA needs to inspire PTA's in the states. Kate gave her goodbye speech since she is leaving for boarding school this year. A few tears from her mother, myself and I do believe her father.

Time for a good nights sleep. Chopper to catch Saturday morning, we hope.

Part 4...Grasberg Tour

John had planned a tour of the Grasberg mine during my visit. A copper mine? I really could not grasp why this could be such a big deal, I was completely wrong! John and I headed to his office first. The office building was surrounded by large equipment spewing rock out of the mountain and machinery larger than I have ever seen. We checked in and headed through the tunnel for my first view at the stages of copper mining. Conveyor belts, tumblers, extractors, etc. Final product in liquid form to be pumped down the mountain to barges. Amazing. Next phase, take the tram to base camp of the mine pit.

Now is the time in your life where you realize you need to overcome any fear you may have of heights, claustrophobia, or vastness. The tram arrives at the dock and unloads about 30-40 workers packed in like sardines. I state to John there is no way I can get in the tram pack in like that. To my luck, there is only 12 people going "up", but coming back I may not be so lucky. As we leave the dock, the clouds roll in and my view is impaired. Bummer. However, in about two minutes, we come out of the clouds with a view indescribable. You could see the top of the mountain and behind us all the way to the ocean. I am now blown out of the water. This is just the first phase of the views I am about to encounter.

John and I meet up with our guide, Jim, who has been at the mine over 20 years. Hop in the Land Rover and off we go....up "that hill!?" Any other time I may have been leery of the drive, but my adrenaline has gotten the best of me. We venture the road to the top of the open mine pit. Elevation is fourteen thousand feet and I am still able to breathe. The view has got the best of me. I feel like an ant looking over the edge of the Grand Canyon. We are lucky enough to have the skies clear to view Carstencz Glacier.

The rest of the trip was spent testing my ability to climb up metal staircases at high altitudes, walk out on narrow metal walkways over the worlds largest rock crusher....ok, now I am getting winded!

We ventured down the HEAT road to head back to our starting point. Along the way we pass a few areas where rock slides had happened not to long ago. The road signs are interesting as to the "incline" shown for a hill with rocks dropping next to it. We stopped at this beautiful waterfall along the way. It was a nice to see nature un-interrupted amongst man made works.

Part 3....Tembag Living

After an exciting chopper ride, we make it to the truck to head to the Wilmot household. Elevation is about 8,000 feet and the short walk to the truck, uphill has made me realize my lungs are not quite ready for this. The town roads are all gravel, up the side of the mountain, no guardrails with speedlimits of about 15-20 miles per hour. Vehicles of choice are Ford SUV's, Land Rovers or large industrial equipment. Enough said.
Understand, I usually drive due to car sickness. I have no option but to be a passenger in this country, besides, I would not even consider driving these roads. We climb up the switchback roads to Hidden Valley. I am in complete awe at the waterfalls coming out the side of the mountains, the clouds rolling in within a blink of an eye and another corner reveals mountain terrain only seen in magazines.

The Wilmot household is located at the end of the road in Hidden Valley. The view from the home looks down onto Tembag. The view to the east is a large mountain with waterfalls everywhere. You don't see the top of the mountain very often due to clouds. The clouds change on a constant basis. One minute you get a spectacular view, the next you can see and feel the mist as it rolls in. Jungle terrain.
There are also a few homes which have been condemned due to sliding off the mountain. Add it to the rest of the excitement.

After a hot shower, John takes me down to see Bonnie at the school where she works. Not a large place, I do believe the school has about 36 students total. I spent the day in the class room watching Bonnie in action. The students gave me a tour of the school and were so proud of the gardens they were growing for a science project. For a small school, the curriculum is amazing. The school was going to be putting on an end of year 50's themed show on Friday, so many of the students were rehearsing for this huge event.

After school, Bonnie gave me the walking tour of area up the street from the school. It is basically considered the "male" market area. The tribe travels up from the bottom of the hill to sell their "goods"(beetlenut with lime, cigarettes,peanuts, snake fruit, cell phone batteries, sim cards, etc.) The smell is like no other. The tribe covers themselves in pig grease to protect their skin, the smoke clove cigarettes and chew beetlenut. While chewing his strange combination, they spit it all over the place. The spit leaves blood red stains everywhere. Now I understand what the signs for "No spitting" is for. Women are barefoot and carry their children in slings they wear around their heads hanging down there back. They are friendly and love to have their pictures taken. Out of respect, I did ask to take photos before I did so. It is very hard to determine the age of these people, as it is not documented.

Part 2...Arriving in Timika

When you board a full size plane with only 15 people on board, it makes you wonder where you may be going. I arrived on the smallest airstrip I have ever seen outside of St. Thomas. The terminal area was the size of a CVS. We disembark the plane, on the tarmack and head into the terminal. I am in line with other Freeport, Redpath and contract workers. Custom agent checks my passport, guy at the small counter stamps my passport(with great fierceness) and moves me to the customs inspection. Everyone has a specific job they take pride in. I am laughing inside at the casualness of the customs agents. The xray machine is in the corner, but not plugged in. On the days it does function, they run your bags, but no one watches the xray machine. Comforting.

I gather my belongings, get my visitor pass and head out to find John. He is on the other side of the "security area" explaining to the guard he is waiting for me. The guy was not going to let him through, but security turned their back and John walked right past him. Now, I am laughing out loud. I use the term "security" in a humorous sense.

Bags in hand, off to the Rimba we go. Game plan is to spend one night in the Rimba, head back to the airport bright and early to board the helicopter to Tembagapura.

The Rimba is centered around tropical gardens, palm trees, wood carvings, etc. Flying around the area are the Blue Emperor butterflies. Papua is the only place you will find them. They are a magnificent neon blue color with black trim along the wings. They are everywhere. Grasshoppers are something you would see in a Jurassic Park movie...I think it was a grasshopper! The hotel interior is decorated with local wooden sculptures from the Papuan tribes. The rooms are spacious and cozy. All the bathrooms are equipt with a phone next to the toilet...still trying to figure this one out.

Hot shower and off to get some dinner. Baramundi wrapped in bacon, coconut rice in a banana leaf and veggies. Amazing! Morning will be here before we know it, so off to bed.

Off to the airport to catch the helicopter. After many hours, clouds have decided to alter the plan of us heading to Tembag. Back to the Rimba we go. Pouring rain, no luck of enjoying the pool. Try again tomorrow.

Tomorrow arrives and so does our luck. We board the chopper and off we go. In speaking with people who do this regularly, you need to schedule your plans two days out for chopper delay. I completely understand why people get antsy living here. This is only the beginning of the transportation frustration.

The view from the chopper is amazing. Waterfalls flow freely out of the sides of the lush green vegetation. Small huts spot the landscape, tribal life at its best. Tembagapura is within visual site. Time to land....another day of Papuan adventure awaits.

Time to travel....part one

I have returned from an amazing trip visiting Indonesia. Many people cringe at the time it takes to get there, but once there, it is all worthwhile. As Americans, we have learned the hustle and bustle of everyday life. My hustle slowed down once I reached Cairns, Australia. This was my first stop before I headed off to Papua Indonesia.

After checking into the Il Palazzo, I ventured out to the waterfront area. They were hosting the first ever Cairns Triathelon, so the Esplanade area was bustling with people. I took this time to enjoy the great weather, shops and check out the local menus of the restaurants along the way.

No plans, no time frames, no calls to make, just time to enjoy life in the moment. I came upon a small art studio selling consignment work of local artists. The woman behind the desk was painting on a small canvas. I was amazed how easy she made it look just by using watercolor pencils, a little water and wahla! I complimented her on how easy she made it look. She explained art is not what you think people will like, but rather a feeling from inside. She handed me a small 2 x 3 canvas a few pencils and asked me to try. I made my attempt and realized I can change it with the swipe of a brush. I was happy with my personal rendition, knowing in another brush swipe it can be different. Funny how life reflects the end of a brush.

Fasta Pasta earned kudos from the locals, so I enjoyed a late lunch early dinner during my city exploration. I grabbed a bottle of wine, a block of cheese, crackers and an apple for a late night snack. Amazing what you can purchase at Woolworths. I dropped it off at the hotel and headed to the Esplanade to watch the sunset. And oh what a beautiful sunset it was.

The next morning, I awoke to the sound of the screaming lorakeets outside the hotel. I ventured out to the Esplanade to the same spot I watched the sunset, but only to watch the sunrise. The couple behind me was meditating to the sounds of flute music. I am in the moment, in a spectacular element, under the most breathtaking sunrise I have ever seen. I look to the sky and am grateful for life and what it has given me. The man above works wonders.

Packed and ready to board the plane to Timika, Papua. Travel may be a little different, I tell my self. That thought could not have been more accurate.