This is our 4th day in Bintan, Indonesia. Beautiful beach and blue skies. This is quite a change from Singapore yet is only an hour ferry ride away.
Saw my first dragon fruit on the bush and jackfruit in it’s tree. Also saw acres and acres of palm trees harvested for palm oil.
I’m taking some awesome photos of the crazy motorcycle drivers on this island. There are laws around but from what I see, they might only be suggestions (like the one stop sign on Bonaire). We’ve seen a driver and up to 4 little kids on one cycle! 75% of all motorized vehicles here are cycles of all shapes and conditions.
We went to a Dragon Boat Race in Tanjung Pinang or on some road signs is Tanjungpinang and a tour of the city. Had a dish of the local snails for lunch. Really good – the sauce was killer hot so we stayed away from it.
The thing we had to get used to at the resort we are staying at is the sound of the ubiquitous small fishing boats with motors that sound like Blackhawk helicopters flying overhead.
We went on a night mangrove boat tour. Got a good taste of how many of the locals live and saw some awesome fireflies in the mangroves. 100s of them would light up a tree like Xmas lights, all blinking at once. Really amazing.
The last photo above was taken on our walk back to the road at around 10 at night. It was low tide so under this walkway, about 5 feet down, was muddy river bottom. The locals drive their motorbikes on it. Gulp.
I’ve figured out a partial fix for my humidity/temperature problems. If I carry my camera around, focusing on a good shot can help distract me. I get just damp and sweaty though. Can’t wait to test it out back home.