Thursday, July 30, 2009

A view from the other side...

Crista and I have returned safely after many hours in transit. Trains, planes, and automobiles were all modes of transportation used to get from Malang to Lancaster. Too bad we couldn't have added a boat into the mix. Now that I have unlimited, high speed internet access I'm going to add more pictures and details about our time in Indonesia. I'm still processing all that we saw and experienced, so maybe I'll post more once I have time to formulate.

Our first interaction with Indonesia centered around its methods of transportation. Upon landing in Malang and exiting the airport we encountered the motor bike, the most popular mode of transportation. I know that I mentioned this before, but I was fascinated with how much was transported on these bikes. From entire families to all kinds of home products, they managed to get just about anything from point A to B.

They're so helpful... notice the tow rope.

Bicycles were also used to haul various things. We saw beds (yes, multiple) being pushed down the road on top of a bicycle. On the outskirts of town in the more agrarian areas bicycles were used in place of carts for hauling all kinds of produce, sometimes the driver just walked beside the bike because the load was too large.


Driving was a battle of the most aggressive and nimble. Above is a brief video demontrating how challenging it can be to navigate a car down a street. Every time I sat in the front passanger seat I usually let out a little gasp as a motor bike or car nearly cut us off.

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