Berastagi

Written a couple of nights ago

Some quick notes before I go to sleep. For once, I am feeling positive. I like when that happens. I am in Berastagi, 3 local buses and 5 hours from Parapet. The first bus was a shit mobile that clanked up and around Lake Toba. After about an hour we stopped at Siantar. I got off and almost immediately got on the next bus and we took off. Great timing. It was an even bigger piece of shit than the previous clunker. I didn’t even have a seat, more like a bench with my back to the driver and facing the other 20 passengers, 4 rows deep. It wasn't terribly comfortable to look at all these faces nor was it physically comfortable either. And for about two hours we rode like that, with me barely holding onto the seat and trying not to fall onto the tiny old lady in front of me with her pink, betel-nut juice stained purse in her lap.

From inside local bus #1

Eventually we made it to Kabanjahe and the guy in the bus pointed to another bus and said Berastagi, the word I was waiting for. This time, it was a smaller, local truck-type bus with seating along the sides and back, the most comfortable of the lot. It wasn't a long ride and there I was, in the rain, on the sidewalk in Berastagi. I was cold and hadn't a clue where to go. But I was happy to be off the bus, 7 hours from when I left my hotel and 5 hours since I ducked my head into the first bus. I walked straight into the closest eatery to sit down and have a bite to eat. I had only had a couple mangoes and a brownie all day. The hot sweet tea hit the spot immediately and the mie goreng (fried noodles) was also quite delicious in that moment.

Mie goreng

Warm and content, I went up the street to what appeared to be the main thoroughfare in town and asked a guy in a bakery where the Sunrise Hotel was and to my surprise he spoke enough English to direct me there. Everyone on the street seemed surprised to see me and were very pleasant to interact with. I found the guest house and met a couple who also planned to hike the volcano tomorrow. They seemed very easy to get along with and were a nice find. The first thing I did was book the room with the hot shower. And it was well worth the extra $3 for that blast of heat. And I’m going to enjoy it in the morning as well.

After making plans to do the hike together tomorrow, I went out to try and book a ticket to Jakarta and get some more food. The guy in the internet cafe was really nice and the cafe was one of the coolest I've seen. Very basic, but with private cubicles, in which you sat on the ground. I miss a big screen and the speed of desktops! I realize how much of a piece of shit my netbook really is.

After that, I strolled down to the main strip again and sat down and had too much food. Had the nasi goreng (fried rice) complete with sambal (chili sauce), peanuts and egg with some more hot tea and bullshitted with 3-4 guys working there or nearby. They spoke enough English and it felt good to have normal conversations with normal folks. They taught me some words and I kept scarfing the food down. Then they directed me across the street where I could buy some martabak, this folded pancake look-a-like with peanuts, sugar and chocolate in the middle and brushed with margarine on the outside. It was quite good, almost too sweet and now I am way too stuffed.

Probably will climb the volcano without having breakfast. Hopefully it won’t rain in the morning as I am looking forward to this and the soak in the hot springs afterwards. I might even stay another night just to chill out in town and try more local cuisine and talk to more random people. I like random cities. This place has a reason for tourists to come, but there’s practically no one here. Seems to be the case in most places I've been thus far in Indonesia. I’m not complaining. Lights out. Good night!