Sunday, July 6, 2025
We leave for the airport shuttle right after the Gathering in the hall. No other blonds are in sight, as usual.
You know that feeling when you're vaguely hungry but not for anything in sight? That's us at the Jakarta airport. We settle on a cup of noodles. At least the bookshelf overhead is interesting.
With an unpredictable travel time (today it takes 4.5 hours instead of 3), we stay overnight in the airport hotel.
Monday, July 7, 2025
The flight out is uneventful and the Garuda meal is not memorable but palatable.
We reach the island of Flores in early afternoon, landing at Komodo Airport in Labuan Bajo. A volcano erupts at the opposite side of the island, throwing ash 11 miles into the sky. The winds must be blowing it the other way since we don't notice any effects. Many Bali and east-Java flights are cancelled and a half-dozen can't get rescheduled flights so they miss the conference.
The styles of batik are unique to each island or people group.
At the end of our hotel corridor is a view over the fields and mountains.
From the balcony, we overlook a pool shaded by tall palm trees.
Supper is the first group activity. I order one of the cheaper items. For under $10, I get three enormous prawns that taste like lobster tails. They fill a dinner plate.
Cattle roam in the scrub along the ocean shores.
We walk along the beach to meetings at the next hotel a few times a day.
The sunset is beautiful. The tide is out when we walk home in the dark. We shine a flashlight and watch for the ropes securing the boats that have caught water and float near shore. Little crabs scurry across the sand.
Tuesday
We wake to a stunning view of the sea. Not bad for $70/night. W has done his research for a bargain rate near the conference hotel.
The organizers have left a few hours open this afternoon. These conferences used to be mostly interactive but now are scheduled with more meetings. We enjoy the speaker.
In our free time, a few of us decide to walk 2 1/2 miles into town since we've been sitting most of the day. There's a Mexican restaurant with good ratings, and ... why not? The food is surprisingly authentic and delicious.
The post-dinner debate is whether or not we walk home. Why not? We joke about it being mostly downhill. We go slowly enough to pause to smell (and see) the flowers growing wild along the sidewalk.
The come in many textures, colors, and shapes.
Some blooming trees overhang the walkways.
Some weeds are bursting with white flowers, too. No smell to these, though.
We're happy to get our 10,000+ steps in as the sunset lights up the sky.
Wednesday
It's our "free day" to explore and interact. 40 or 50 of us are island-hopping on a long speed boat.
Within 15 minutes, we're at a swimming beach with some corals and warm water.
The next stop is a reef with a strong current - the boat keeps repositioning as we drift across the anemones, corals, and clouds of tropical fish.
Komodo Island isn't open so we get off on another island with the big lizards. Apparently they're good swimmers so inhabit several islands. At night, tourists come here to see snakes. During the day, those are in hiding. The lizards are lying in the shade. They don't like heat above 95oF (35oC).
We walk through the habitat of the Komodo dragons with tour guides who carry long forked sticks in case one attacks. Komodos are very quick when they want to be. A few were lying in the shade near the snack stand. They can scent prey 3 miles (4 km) away through skin and tongue sensors.
One guide takes photos of us, crouching 15' (5 meters) behind a 10' (3 meter) lizard. Looks impressive from that perspective. We were all happy that he was dozing and uninterested in us. They are aggressive hunters: 15 feet per second sprints, anyone?
We get a pep talk before and after the stroll. I wipe out on a slow descent, the hard soles of my water sandals rolling on round pebbles and dry leaves. They're not trail shoes, that's for sure.
At the next beach, we eat a box lunch of chicken, rice, and vegetables.
The little kids sit in the warm water up to their tummies or chests. A watchful dad tosses a rock to chase away a small shark (2-3'?) from the play area.
"Not a dangerous shark," says a bystander. "It eats little fish but leaves us alone."
I skip the 10-minute climb to the top of hill since my soles are slick on the sandy steps. W captures the view from the peak.
At a little market by the hill, I buy some fabric (2.5 meters @$8) for a tablecloth or bright wall hanging. I help another tourist bargain with my limited language. She gets what she wants at a price she's willing to pay. The seller is happy so there's contentment all around.
A decision is made to cut short the day in mid-afternoon: the little kids are getting tired. Maybe 10 youngsters are along, plus a few energetic teens (who could play all night). We skip the promised ocean sunset and the last swimming beach and putt back to the harbor.
W and I walk back along the beach from the drop-off point but are showering by 5 PM. I take a long bath before an early night to bed.
Thursday
It's our final day in Flores. After all-morning meetings and conference photos, we get a few hours off for lunch and conversation. I take a quick nap in our hotel room before walking back to the meeting place.
Tourism seems to be the only industry and that's not booming. In mid-afternoon, the bus takes us to a farewell dinner cruise for Dave and Gigi. They have lived in Indonesia for over 30 years. They'll retire next year but this is theoretically their last conference. (That's assumed ... before they are made honorary lifetime members of the group.) They are friends and mentors to most of us.
We're on a big boat and pass a variety of seacraft and islands.
We're told to watch out for Komodo dragons. Strong swimmers, they range between islands. None in sight.
As the sun goes down, many boats move in the same direction. We're heading near the mangrove island from where fruit bats migrate to another island each evening to eat fruit.
Another stunner is watching the shadows of islands emerge on the horizon as the light changes.
As we're drifting with bats flying overhead, the full moon rises. "Yesterday was overcast. You couldn't see a thing," says the boat crew. "Tonight is perfect."
We are blessed with perfect weather and views on every side.
The full moon rises. We eat a wonderful dinner before the boat lights and music come on. We return to harbor at 8:30 PM. Julie and I climb stairs at the side of the hotel instead of taking an elevator. It looks like 3 flights - but then there's a platform - nope, locked out of the building so up we go another 2 or 3 flights, and a long car ramp past laundry rooms and offices ... we go up 10 flights according to my watch. We come out on the opposite side of the entry and have to walk back to the lobby, fending off taxi drivers.
When the bus pulls in and loads, it's a short ride to the drop-off hotel and a quarter-mile walk back in the dark to our place. We relax into the night but I'm wired so stay awake until midnight.
Saturday
It's a lazy morning. After breakfast, I take a long bath and then sit on the balcony overlooking the ocean. Hillocks poke out of the sea on every side. Tourist boats, cargo ships, and fishing rigs share the calm water. When the wind kicks up in late afternoon, whitecaps will punctuate the water.
The flight is delayed so several of us hang out in the airport, There are no decent meals available but lots of ramen and pastries. I nap on a sofa in the airport before our flight boards. It's a short flight (2 hours+) and we're in Jakarta before we know it. Our luggage comes quickly and the shuttle bus leaves within a half hour of buying the ticket.
But the driver is sloooowwwww, yo-yo-ing between 60 - 90 km/hr (40-55 mph) though the highway is mostly empty after leaving Jakarta. Cars pass on every side and disappear into the distance while I pray that the driver isn't falling asleep. There are only 4 passengers and W sleeps soundly all the way. Because we're accelerating and drifting, I am wide awake.
We get into Bandung before 2 AM. W hails a cab, which looks like it's parked across the street. W knocks on the window to wake the driver, schlepps our suitcases across the concrete divider, and we're home within 15 minutes. I leave my luggage closed, shower, and fall into bed with relief.
Read more:
*God reveals deep and hidden things. Daniel 2:22
*Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, Lord, preserve both people and animals. How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
People take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light. Continue your love to those who know you, your righteousness to the upright in heart. Psalm 36:5-10
*Jesus prayed, “Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you, and these know that you have sent me.” John 17:25
Moravian Prayer: Loving God, help us to be good stewards of the gifts we have received. Help us to care for ourselves, our families, our communities, and your world. Let us not forget that you have provided us with all that we have. Amen.
