November (October Part II)

 November

November has been a bit tumultuous, so I’ve decided to spend awhile longer in the ‘friendly confines’ of October.  Here the Cubs have just clinched the National League Pennant and are playing in the World Series for the first time in 71 years, public opinion polls favor the Democrats to win in November, and the crew of Amandla are happily sailing in Indonesia.

Belitung Light
Belitung Light

After leaving Kalimantan, we sailed three days to beautiful Belitung, anchoring each evening along the way. Belitung is an unspoiled gem with very welcoming people, distinct traditions, and miles of pristine beaches dotted with seaside shacks serving yummy, fresh, affordable food.

Tanjung Kelayang
Tanjung Kelayang

In Tanjung Kelayang we saw a Kuda Lumping performance where dancers rode decorative horses made from woven bamboo while traditional instruments were played in the background. The dancers eventually entered a trance, which is traditionally said to be caused by spirit possession.  Once the dancers were “possessed”, they displayed unusual abilities including resistance to the effects of whipping.

In the Kelapa Kampit District, we watched the traditional Belitung fighting game ‘Beripat Beregong’. In the game, two men fight for about 10 minutes using rattan as weapons while music is played. The origin of the fight was to win a young girl’s hand in marriage, but now it is commonly performed at ceremonial events.

In Manggar, we witnessed the Antu Bubu ritual that is used to cleanse the sea of evil spirits for the fishing fleet.  A local shaman invited a sea ghost (Antu) into an oval-shapped fishing tool made of rattan (Bubu). The Bubu was draped in a white cloth used to cover corpses and a coconut was placed at the top. The Bubu becomes very heavy when infused with the Antu. Two young men were brave enough to face the Antu Bubu and both put up a good fight. The second man triumphed by damaging the trap.

In Tanjung Padan, we were the honored guests of the students at SMK  N 3 Tanjungpandan, a vocational high school training students for careers in hospitality industry. They treated us like rock stars and fed us an incredibly delicious meal. I have no doubt that these students will succeed in their chosen profession.

On our final days in Belitung, we provisioned at Tanjung Padan’s bountiful marketplace, relaxed, and waited for our friend Abby to arrive for a four-day visit from New York; far too short, next time, I hope she’ll stay a year.

Abby had never been on a sailboat before, but she was a natural sailor and a very welcome guest. We lifted anchor the morning after her arrival and sailed over two days to Pulau Ketawai.

Ketawai

In Ketawai, Abby got a little taste of the Indonesian welcome that we have been experiencing since our arrival in West Timor. Our hosts treated us to three delicious meals a day and fantastic entertainment.  They also took the rally fleet on an exciting tour of nearby Bangka, but the crew of Amandla opted to enjoy a relaxing day at the beach.

Abby disembarked Amandla on October 23rd and was ferried to Bangka for a flight courtesy of our generous hosts.  The Captain and I set out on a two-day sail to Batam which turned into a three-day sail as we opted to anchor due to inclement weather.

Fisherman Braving The Storm

We arrived in Batam early on the 26th for an afternoon checkout and plans to sail onward to Johor Bahru, Malaysia via The Singapore Strait. The following morning, we lifted anchor, and sadly sailed away from wonderful Indonesia and into our future.

Singapore At Sunrise

Submitted for Cardinal Guzman’s ‘The Changing Seasons’

69 comments November (October Part II)

badfish says:

Yeah, nothing like an October storm to get your blood moving. This really makes me yearn for Indonesia, but I need very little prompting. Are you suggesting there is no street art here? I love the photo of the guy in white with black hat just above the girl with garlic! Is the Singapore Strait the body of water that separates Singapore from Malaysia? Isn’t that where Moby Dick was sighted?

It is tough not to love Indonesia. I think it was my favorite sailing ground of all time. There was no street art in Belitung or on Ketawai Island but the people, food, performances and miles of empty clean beaches made up for it :-). Delighted that you liked that photo. Thank you. The Singapore Strait separates Singapore from Indonesia. The Straits of Johor separate Singapore from Malaysia. I think it was where Moby Dick was sighted. How are you? Any plans to come Singapore/Malaysia way?

A lovely, smile-rich report. And don’t be sad, future is imminent. 🙂

The future is imminent indeed. I am glad that you enjoyed the images Manja. Looking at the smiles keeps me smiling.

Margo says:

What memories you are forming!! Your photos have such charm. They really show the warmth of the people and beautifully capture their culture.

Thank you for the love Margo! We miss you and Steve very much. Would have loved to have sailed with you in Indonesia. The place was magical.

Dominique Guenot says:

It is a treat to follow you blog with all these great pics. Indonesia looks amazing and I guess you are not in a rally, right?

I hope that you and Songhui make your way over to Indonesia on your sailing adventure. And I am very much looking forward to seeing New Zealand through your lens! We are docked in Johor Bahru, Malaysia until mid-January. The Captain will then take Amandla northward to Penang, Pankor, or Langkawai for a refit. If I can find work, I will stay behind to replenish the cruising kitty.

What a good idea. To go back in time! And place!

I may have to stay here in October for awhile ?

Ngumabi says:

Must have been a really fun trip!
The photos are great and interesting

Thank you for sharing the experience with me virtually Ngumabi and for your lovely compliment.

Barbara McFadden says:

Wow!
I loved every photo and the comments.

Thank you for sharing your journey!
(…still reeling from a nasty election season here. Yikes.)

Thank you for hanging out with me here Barbara and for your very generous compliments. The election has been disheartening indeed. Hoping that love will find a way. Hug to Dan.

Marjorie says:

I love being along on your journey. One stop is more amazing than the next. I love the school girl in the lower left who is like — what the heck? The colors and the sights are incredible. Is there anything YOU miss from home that we could send you?

I am lucky to have you along Marjorie! Thanks for your kindness. All I can think of these days is what I want FOR home rather than FROM home …peace, love and understanding.

lexklein says:

I never thought about just going back in time for a while – I may have to do that myself as October was quite pleasant. Hoping the tumult was manageable and temporary and that you are settling in. I love the sweet faces pictured here; these stories of the wonderful Indonesian people and scenery are lighting a new fire under me (as if I need any more!). Wishing you better things in December!

Thank you for your warm wishes and support Lexie. I needed that! I am so happy to hear that my pictures and stories are deepening your desire to visit Indonesia. I think you’d need to fly through Singapore on your way ??.

Lisa hoping that all is well and that November will leaves its tumult behind. I have enjoyed your trip to Indonesia very much. Almost like a fairy tale.

Your well wishes and kind compliments have buoyed my spirit Sue. Thank you. The Captain is having double hernia surgery tomorrow and has a boat refit to look forward to when he recovers. I am looking for work, trying to digest the recent election, and dreaming of the Indian Ocean journey that awaits somewhere in our future.

I am very keen to regress to October too, especially if it in as beautiful and place as you are visiting.

I seem to have left my heart in Indonesia Hilary. We have now shifted our focus to recovery (The Captain is having double hernia surgery tomorrow), job hunting (me), boat repairs and trying to get our head around the new political realities in the US. But an Indian Ocean journey awaits somewhere in our future, and that keeps us afloat.

Liesbet says:

Beautiful photos as always, Lisa. I am sad to hear that another lovely sailing chapter has ended, but happy to learn about all your experiences and adventures in Indonesia. Doing the islands relatively organized brought a lot of unique experiences. Good luck with all your endeavors in Malaysia and Singapore! Thinking about you both!!

Given your sailing experiences, I know you can appreciate the pain that comes at the end of a lovely sailing chapter. But you’ve also taught me that fun and adventure can be had wherever one roams. And we have much to look forward to knowing that Indian Ocean awaits somewhere in our distant future.

What beautiful pictures! I would also like to revert back to October. Is that possible? I’m sorry you have to hop off the Amandla for a bit, but that means, of course, we’ll be treated to more of your photos for awhile.

Thank you for your lovely feedback on the images Janis and for joining me here in the comforts of ‘October’. With The Captain’s double hernia surgery and my (hopefully soon to be successful) job search, I am not out shooting as many photos as I would like…but I hope to have more opportunities for photography when we land travel up the west coast of Malaysia between Christmas and New Years to check out yards for a boat refit.

It is always a pleasure to see your terrific photos and learn something about the variety of cultures and communities you visit and share with us! We just celebrated Thanksgiving in the cold North, but thoroughly enjoyed ourselves with family and friends!

It is always such a pleasure to hear from you Terri. How I would have loved to have celebrated Thanksgiving with you. Thank you for the wise reminder that Thanksgiving is perpetual.

Another post with lovely people that have crossed your path. Indonesia certainly welcomed you well, and they seem to love having you and the crew of Amandla around. I really like the shot of the girl and the garlic. She certainly looks lost in thought and hard at work doing what she has to do, and you captured it so well 🙂 It is very nice to see the young students treating all of you like rock stars and giving you a good feed. You might have been fed by a world-class, Michelin chef in the making then!

Happy sailing onwards and hope Malaysia and Singapore are treating you well. Mr Wobbles hopes to see you again at some point. He loves the moment you took a photo of him 🙂

I loved that moment too! Mr Wobbles

Thank you for your visit, well wishes, compliments and friendship Mabel. I look forward to the day that I see you and Mr. Wobbles again.

Max says:

I might have asked about this before, but how long will your journey(s) be? Do you have and end date or some end destination where you’re heading? (Except the obvious one where we’re all heading)

You have not asked before. My life’s goal is to circumnavigate the globe on a sailboat. A proper circumnavigation would be on a single boat with the same start and end port. In this case, my destination would be Isla Mujeres, Mexico where I started sailing with The Captain in 2013. But really, I would be happy if I could just complete a full circle (360 degrees of longitude). I just need to get somewhere on the line at 4 degrees 53 minutes EAST (I have sailed from Amsterdam in 2011 to where I am now, but in a combination of boats.) Coming up the Gulf of Aden and into the Mediterranean is not the safest option, so we will likely head to the Cape of Good Hope and onward to St Helena. I will complete my full circle somewhere between those two ports. But St Helena is kind of in the middle of nowhere, so we will have to sail onward to Brazil…and once we get there, why stop? We’ve both wanted to tour South America and here is our chance. We are stopping for a bit now so that I can replenish the cruising kitty and The Captain can refit himself and the boat. But we have an Indian Ocean journey to look forward to….and beyond.

Sounds freaking awesome. If I lose my job (which is very likely – after I told my boss to go fuck himself and to suck his own ass), I’m thinking about joining you guys (if you have room for one more person on the boat of course). 🙂

? I hope you don’t get fired but we’d love for you to come visit when we set sail again ⛵️

Good news (?). I got fired today. This means I have time for traveling, but there are some things that needs to be arranged if I’ll travel for a longer period. (quitting the apartment, storing my stuff, etc, etc.)

Congratulations! Adventure awaits.

A lovely post and experience you shared with us Lisa. Thank you.
Unfortunately my pollster colleagues were wrong… 🙁

Thank you Brian!!! Will be interesting to see how polling evolves given the recent misses with Brexit and the US Election.

It has to evolve, but I don’t see many methodological avenues between margin of error and attempting to measure randomness… 😉

Its a tough one. I am no pollster, but I wonder if asking the same questions in several different ways could gauge the level to which the a response is ‘true’ for the responder (I’ve seen this method used on personality tests). Or perhaps we need to be asking different questions altogether to more accurately predict behavior. But really, I have no idea what the answer is.

I’ve done surveys on sexuality. For publication. So have some of my colleagues. There are wide differences in some results. They ask the question directly. I used an “anonymous” self-filling questionnaire. 🙂 The interviewee only had to tick the precoded answers. Anonymously. I believe this methodology is much more accurate. Imagine the interviewer asking directly “Have you been sexually molested as a child?”. “Of course not!” Now the “yes” answer to that question soars in a self-applied questionnaire… 😉

I wish that the ‘anonymous’ self-applied questionnaire had been used in this election. I think we would have gotten a real pulse on expected behavior. Saddened to think of all those ‘yeses’ on your sexuality questionnaire but glad to know that you found a way to get closer to the truth with the victims.

As always fascinating following your traveling and amazing photos too… 🙂

You are very kind Drake. Thank you. Thought of you as we were sailing through the Singapore Strait. Singapore is the world’s largest transshipment port and second largest container port so there were tons of boats. You would have loved it.

Michele says:

Thanks for sharing your story with us. As always, lovely pictures leave me dreaming of travel. I am rather glad to leave November, with all the political turmoil, behind. The animosity is high between people supporting the two political parties and it is difficult to have decent conversations these days as neither side wants to hear the other’s viewpoints. I hope the Captain is recovering well and that you are able to find some work to keep your sailing kitty funded!

Appreciate your kind compliments Michele. I hope you have lots of travel in your future Michele. And I agree that it is difficult to have a political conversation these days. I think that both sides need to listen, seek to understand, find common ground where possible, and discuss where we disagree in hopes of coming together. Hatred and anger are exhausting and ripping the world apart.

I think you are a fabulous person and your story telling along with your amazing photos make me feel as if I were there.

Thank you for the love Eva. I really needed that today.

prior.. says:

I agree with Eva – and Lisa – that opening photo is amazing….
all of them are, but the first one is one of my favorite photos this year – the colors and mood.

sending you a hug my friend
and also
thought of you when I was reding some nautical terms

“A smooth sea never made a skilled mariner”

When asked, “What news from the sea?” The fish replied “I have a lot to say, but my mouth is full of water.”

Sailing, the most expensive way to travel 3rd class. (OK, there can be some debate about it!)

Ahoy there Yvette! Great to hear from you. Thank you for your lovely compliments and introduction to The Maritime Blog and its fun list of nautical proverbs. ‘Sailing, the most expensive way to travel 3rd class’ had me roaring 🙂

prior.. says:

(((hugs)))

prior.. says:
paintdigi says:

Good posts. Beautiful blog. Congratulations. Welcome see my creations on: paintdigi.com

Thank you for your lovely compliment.

November was definitely a rough month i would have to agree.But moving forward, your photographs are just fabulous. I love the one of the little girl with the vegetables and the story about the shaman and the ghosts. Fascinating.
Always a great read Lisa.
Peta

Thank you so much for your lovely comment Peta. Have been talking up your Sri Lanka adventures to The Captain and now he is looking forward to visiting you as well. Best to Ben!

jmacindoe says:

Wonderful collection of shots! Looking forward to following your adventures in 2017!

Welcome aboard Jon! Thank you for your visit and kind compliment ?

Hope the new year find you and the captain well. Great photos, as always! Hoping for some street art from Malysia.

Ahoy there Frankie Beane! Happy New Year to you too! Great to hear from you. Expect a post with great street art from Penang soon. Just returned from a trip there. And thank you for the compliment on the photos in this post ?

Mona lisa says:

What recollections you are framing!! Your photographs have such appeal. They truly demonstrate the glow of the general population and flawlessly catch their culture…Indonesia looks stunning
http://www.wildlifedestination.com/

Thank you for your very kind compliments. Hard to miss a good shot in Indonesia. Pictures take themselves. And your site shows that is true for India as well. Gorgeous photographs.

Did you take the photo of the fisherman braving the storm?
Are you planning to go to the Galapagos Islands.
It’s pretty harsh there with no water in many places.
Definitely a place where planning is a must
Well happy sailing⛵️

I did indeed – we were sailing in that storm but luckily have good cover in the cockpit. I’ve sailed to the Galapagos (http://lisadorenfest.com/2013/06/01/galapagos/) anchoring off Isla Isabela for 21 days. Remarkable experience. We had sea lions living on our poop deck ?

The sea looks so calming and relaxing, Lisa! Great post. 🙂

Thank you Agness! The sea is a wonderful muse and the people of Indonesia so beautiful and welcoming.

MNL says:

That is so cool to see the Antu Bubu ritual. Is that like a daily ritual, monthly or annual — do you know? I’m just curious.
(also my likes are not sticking todya, they disappear when I leave the page. So if my like doesn’t show, that’s why)

From what I can glean, the ritual was once held at a special time but is now held more often when tourists visit. It is interesting that this ritual seems to only be performed in Belitung. Thank you for sharing the experience with me.

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