Moving on

I've been CouchSurfing in Bandar Lampung for a couple of days now. Later today I will take an overnight bus to Jakarta, stay there for one night, and then it's back to Hong Kong. My current plan is to walk around Jakarta all day with my uber-light pack and then sleep at the airport, since none of my last-minute CouchSurfing requests came through. That's a lesson for me: Next time contact more people!

Jakarta, one of the largest cities in the world, has a population of over 22 million. It's nicknamed the big Durian, but I've been told that the name has nothing to do with the smell.. Silvi's cousin David, who is from Jakarta, taught me a local saying: Better to be with your mother-in-law than in Jakarta. No offense to all the mother-in-laws!

Silvi, my host, and her entire family have been great. I haven't been this well fed since Hong Kong (ok, maybe in Penang). Silvi has previously hosted two Couch Surfers are they both only knew one word: Terima kasih (thank you), and Silvi's non-English speaking parents are so excited that I can speak some Indonesian that they are always trying to help me learn more.

Clockwise from me: Silvi, Purwati, and Silvi's sister Vera.

Silvi's cousin David

Bapak Rudy

Ibu Lydia

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There was an earthquake in Padang two days ago, less than a week after I left. It was a relatively small earthquake (4.x), but it caused a lot of panic because of the recent tsunami and since the city was nearly destroyed by an earthquake a few years ago. I contacted all of my Padang friends and they are all safe.