Dharma ferry to Sulawesi

Most people would call this a very filthy and disgusting accommodation and mode of transportation and would simply feel much discomfort being on board and touching any seat, or laying down on the "beds" available. Ha! This accommodation is so cool! You want authentic then get on this boat for an over night ride and you will get plenty of authentic!

The kamar mandi (washroom) is phenomenal. Basically the usual shit hole with a hose and bucket of water to rinse of, but the big difference is that it is about 1 cubic meter in surface, and half of one of its wall is just an open window to the sea. Seriously, hang your belongoings the wrong way, one wrong move and it all goes at sea. Spectacular though, to "shower off" with the fresh ocean air and view of the boat speeding on the water. Peaking my head out gave me a real idea of the gigantic scale of this boat.

Spending an overnight trip on this boat and in these conditions kinds of makes me think of the lowest passenger class in the movie Titanic and how they must have felt all cramped up in their "cage/dump" when other floors of the same ship were occupied by much higher class passengers with much more luxurious accommodations. Not like this boat has any higher end floors, but before boarding I did have the choice of other boats with better conditions.

Anyhow, I will try in the morning to actually film a bit the surroundings so I can keep a record of the experience.

This evening I caught myself wondering about why is it that no matter where i go, I constantly get everybody around to stare at me. And I was just wondering if it was because my skin is white, thus am an obvious foreigner, and locals just find my presence in such remote places strange, or is it rather because of my dark beard. People here, as you might imagine, are rather hairless on their face (and also body I believe). I guess I will ask at some point, just so I know. Perhaps it is simply a combination of both.

(...)

Well, let me tell you that I once more learnt that having long legs in a country where people tend to be short and where all amenities are manufactured accordingly makes it quite challenging for me to rough it up while traveling. If my legs had been a good 30cm shorter I would have probably been able to get a little sleep last night rather than trying to continuously try to fold myself in the best way to fit and not have my feet painfully hanging in the hallway, and leaning on the sharp metallic bed hedge. Hmmm...oh well...aside from a very sore back and neck, it's all good. Tonight I should make up for it in slightly better conditions in Makassar. No big deal! (I also mistakenly and naively assumed that just like in a plane, when it is sleepy time, the lights are dimmed and the TV volume is shut off. How naive of me! Not at all what happened, so though the ear plugs helped a bit, it still was quite a bright and loud night)

One interesting thing as well is that, since Indonesia is so influenced by Islam, during each of the 5 prayer times per day, the entire boat is under the enchanting call to prayer blasted in the speakers in each cabin. The one we are listening to right at this moment (11am) is by the voice of a young lady I believe and is particularly beautiful to listen to. Its sound almost makes me feel as if I were transported hundreds of years in the past and in the middle east. Magical to hear such soothing chant in such pseudo chaotic, hot, humid and cramped environment. As if the chant was a way to announce the mysticism and magic of the land we are about to land on, Sulawesi.

Oh, and by the way, the ticket controller confirmed to me that out of the 500 passengers aboard, I am the only foreigner. Exactly the way I wanted to travel. :0)

(...)

I just realised actually, while trying to discretely film some of the cabin life, that during the call to prayer, the "lobby" part of the floor is closed for Muslims to use as their Mosque and pray. Silly me, I was wondering why I didn't see anyone praying during the cal, to prayer. Sulawesi has a very large majority of its population that is christian and not Muslim, unlike other islands of Indonesia.

Silly me #2, I also only realized now that the upper outdoor deck is open, and that I could have spent the whole morning reading here instead of breaking my back and eyes in the uncomfortably hot obscurity of the cabin. Maybe I could have even slept on the outdoor deck, who knows!? (Vladimir told me when in Derawan that when he travels with Pelni, the main sea transportation in the region, he actually prefers to sleep on the outdoor deck as it is more breathy and comfortable. He even bought a tent to do so.)

Lesson learnt: be more curious and don't wait til the last few hours to venture around for possible better options. ;0)