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INTRIGUING INDONESIA July 9-30, 2010 SOLD OUT, WAITLIST ONLY
FRI, JULY 9 - LOS ANGELES-HONG KONG Our Intriguing Indonesia adventure begins today as we depart Los Angeles on Cathay Pacific, bound for Hong Kong. SAT, JULY 10 - HONG KONG-JAKARTA We arrive in Hong Kong this morning and connect with a flight to Jakarta, arriving shortly after noon. The remainder of the day is at leisure. Hotel Mulia Senayan (D) SUN, JULY 11 - JAKARTA-BORNEO / TANJUNG PUTING A morning flight takes us to Pangkalanbun, Central Kalimantan, on the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo. Beyond the famed orangutan haven of Tanjung Puting National Park, the interior of Central Kalimantan remains largely unvisited. We drive to Kumai, then board boats for transfer to our lodge on the bank of the Sekonyer River. Like other orangutan rehabilitation sites, Tanjung Puting guarantees plenty of these irresistible auburn primates close up. What sets the park apart is the journey on the Sekonyer by klotok (boat). Motoring gently between walls of pandanus fringing the river, sharp eyes may spot wild orangutans perched on riverside branches or macaques scurrying through a forest canopy shared with over 200 bird species. Tanjung Puting is also home to sun bears, wild boars, clouded leopards, spotted cats, pythons, gibbons, porcupines, and Sambar deer, none of which are likely to turn up along the riverbank. But you can absolutely count on seeing proboscis monkeys, which we’ll look for late this afternoon. Found only in Borneo, these odd creatures flaunt potbellies and white faces highlighted by a tubular nose. Shortly before dusk they congregate in large groups in the trees by the side of the river, giving us our first chance to photograph them. Rimba Orangutan Ecolodge (BLD) MON, JULY 12 - BORNEO / TANJUNG PUTING The only great apes outside Africa, orangutans face a very real threat of extinction as their rainforest habitat is devastated due to often illegally cut timber and palm-oil plantations. Dr. Biruté Galdikas began research here in 1971; her discoveries include the orangutan’s eight-year birth cycle, which makes the species highly vulnerable to extinction. Valuable studies still continue at Tanjung Puting, though the park’s rehabilitation work is being phased out. The part that survives is daily supplementary feedings to released orangutans at jungle platforms. After breakfast this morning we journey upstream to the Pondok Tanguy feeding site to photograph orangutans up close and personal. Lunch is provided on our klotok as we continue upstream to visit the Camp Leakey research center. Later, we walk through the rainforest to the afternoon feeding platform near Camp Leakey, then cruise back to the lodge as the sun sets over the forest canopy. Rimba Orangutan Ecolodge (BLD) TUE, JULY 13 - BORNEO / TANJUNG PUTING We return to Pondok Tanguy this morning for an encore visit with the orangutans. After lunch, we take our klotok to Tanjung Harapan for the afternoon feeding and, time permitting, explore a nearby village. Rimba Orangutan Ecolodge (BLD) WED, JULY 14 - BORNEO-JAKARTA All too soon, it’s time to return by boat to Kumai and our flight back to Jakarta. The remainder of the day is on your own. Hotel Mulia Senayan (BL) THU, JULY 15 - JAKARTA-SULAWESI / TANA TORAJA An early-morning flight takes us to the port city of Makassar, on the island of Sulawesi, from where we begin our drive via rice fields, along shallow lakes, and through magnificently rugged terrain into the fascinating highlands area of Tana Toraja. It’s a vast, pretty, and mostly unspoiled area of traditional villages, unique architecture, and fascinating cultures. July and August are the height of the funeral season, when Toraja workers throughout Indonesia return home for celebrations. Toraja Heritage Hotel (BLD) FRI, JULY 16 - TANA TORAJA The next three days offer incredible sightseeing in this region. Torajaland is noted for its distinctive architecture -- richly ornamental, boat-shaped, brow-roofed houses with a life-size wooden carving of a buffalo at the door. The Toraja people believe they are direct descendants of the gods and members of one huge family. They eagerly welcome visitors and escort them to their unique festivals, including their “Feast of the Dead,” which they consider a ceremony of joy. Any ceremonies such as weddings, funerals, and housewarmings will be included in the program, if possible. Today’s full-day excursion includes Lemo, its sheer rock face adorned with balconies for tau tau; Makale’s 6-day market where the specialty is pigs; Suaya and the baby grave tree at Kambira; and a children’s cultural performance at Sangalla. After lunch we visit the extensive burial cave at Londa, and Kete Kesu, renowned for its traditional Torajan houses and woodcarving. Toraja Heritage Hotel (BLD) SAT, JULY 17 - TANA TORAJA Nanggala has a particularly grand traditional house and an impressive collection of 14 rice barns; a colony of huge black bats lives in trees at the end of the village. The remainder of the day will be used in the event we need to reschedule sightseeing due to any special ceremonies we’re fortunate enough to attend. Toraja Heritage Hotel (BLD) SUN, JULY 18 - TANA TORAJA Another full day today. This morning we photograph the fabulous 6-day buffalo market which draws people from all over Toraja. The traditional village of Palawa has tongkonan houses and rice barns. Bori is the site of an impressive ceremonial ground and some towering megaliths. Farther north, in the weaving center of Sa’dan, local women sell their woven cloth, all handmade on simple looms. Marante is a fine traditional village with stone and hanging graves nearby. Batutumonga, a haven on the slopes of Gunung Sesean, offers panoramic views and rice terraces. After lunch, we visit Lokomata, a village with cave graves hewn into a rocky outcrop, then take a two-hour nature walk from Pana downhill through picturesque rice fields and tiny villages with towering tongkonan to Tikala, where we meet our transport back to the hotel. Toraja Heritage Hotel (BLD) MON, JULY 19 - TANA TORAJA-MAKASSAR Today we drive back to Makassar, with photo stops en route. Time permitting, we visit Makassar’s bustling Paotere Harbor with its many wooden Bugis sailing ships. Hotel Makassar Golden (BLD) TUE, JULY 20 - MAKASSAR-PAPUA / BALIEM VALLEY Papua (formerly Irian Jaya) shares the island of New Guinea with Papua New Guinea. Early this morning we fly to Jayapura and connect with a flight to Wamena, the main town in the Baliem Valley, which was first seen by white men in 1938. The valley’s discovery came as a great surprise to a world that had been mapped to its farthest corners. While the Dani people who inhabit most of the inner valley have adopted some Western conveniences, it remains one of the last truly fascinating, traditional areas in the world. This afternoon we begin our sightseeing in this photogenic area. Baliem Valley Resort (BLD) WED, JULY 21 - BALIEM VALLEY The Baliem Valley’s isolation preserved its primitive “Stone Age” culture, intriguingly exemplified in the dress of the villagers. Dani men usually wear no clothing, merely a penis sheath (koteka or horim) made of a cultivated gourd, and ornamentation such as a string hair net, feathers, and a cowry shell necklace. A married woman usually wears only a skirt made of fiber coils or seeds strung together, hung below the abdomen and covering the buttocks. Dani women often carry a string bag around their head and draping down the back, usually heavily laden with vegetables, babies, or piglets. Traditional Dani villages comprise several self-contained fenced compounds, each with its own cooking house, men’s house, women’s houses, and pigsties. A typical Dani house is circular, topped by a thatched dome-shaped roof. The program during our time here will be determined by our guide and local conditions. Highlights include a colorful morning market, a very photogenic hanging bridge, a blackened mummy 250 years old, and a Dani mock battle and pig feast. Our visit to the Baliem Valley offers a rare opportunity, indeed, to walk back in time. Baliem Valley Resort (BLD) THU, JULY 22 - BALIEM VALLEY-JAYAPURA Continued Baliem Valley sightseeing before our afternoon flight to Jayapura where, time permitting, we visit Lake Sentani and the island in its center. Swiss-Belhotel Papua (BLD) FRI, JULY 23 - PAPUA-BALI This morning we fly to Denpasar, on beautiful Bali, “Island of the Gods.” There’s a certain magic about Bali, with its exquisite scenery, talented and charming people, traditional society, and vast cultural wealth. Though our time here includes extensive sightseeing, we’ll also “follow the happening” if we come across a colorful temple festival or cremation ceremony. En route to our hotel in Candidasa, we make several stops. Rows of colorful outriggers line the black-sand beach at the fishing and salt-making village of Kusamba. Pura Goa Lawah (Bat Cave Temple) has a cave in the cliff face that’s full of bats which fly out at dusk. The walled village of Tenganan, occupied by descendants of the original Balinese, retains strong and distinct craft traditions that include basket weaving, lontar painting, and the weaving of double and single ikat. Puri Bagus Candidasa Hotel (BLD) SAT, JULY 24 - BALI Today we explore East Bali. We drive through the main town of Amlapura, famous for the decaying grandeur of its palaces, reminders of the district’s period as a kingdom in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Amlapura’s water-loving rajah created a masterpiece at Tirta Gangga, a small, intimate ruin of a once-grand water palace. The northeast coast from Amed to Selang sits under the shadow of Gunung Agung, Bali’s volcanic “mother mountain,” so the hillsides are dry and barren, but the fishing villages provide the spectacle of hundreds of colorful outriggers drawn up on black-sand beaches. Perched over 3,000 feet up the side of Gunung Agung is Bali’s most important temple, Pura Besakih, an extensive complex of 23 separate but related temples. The panoramic view and mountain backdrop are most impressive if it’s not foggy. A scenic rural road runs around the southern slopes of Gunung Agung through superb countryside with old-fashioned villages and some of the most beautiful rice country in Bali. Puri Bagus Candidasa Hotel (BLD) SUN, JULY 25 - BALI Another full day today. Located on a perfect little bay, tiny Padangbai is a port for ferries and passenger boats. Semarapura (Klungkung) was once the center of Bali’s most important kingdom, and a great artistic and cultural focal point, but most of it was destroyed during Dutch attacks in 1908. Today all that remains of the palace are a gateway and two ornate pavilions. Pura Kehen, in Bangli, is one of the finest temples in east Bali, somewhat of a miniature version of Pura Besakih. The holy springs at Tirta Empul, founded in 962, are believed to have magical powers. They bubble up into a large, crystal-clear tank within this temple near Tampaksiring and gush out through water spouts into a bathing pool. We pass through some of Bali’s most dramatic rice terraces on our way to Lake Bratan, with its picturesque Hindu/Buddhist temple which seems to float on placid waters backdropped by majestic Gunung Catur. Saranam Eco Resort (BLD) MON, JULY 26 - BALI We photograph at Lake Bratan again this morning in different light, then continue north to a string of villages on the black-sand resort coast known collectively as Lovina. We visit the fishing village of Anturan and explore the sandstone temples at Sangsit, Jagaraga, and Kubutambahan with their imaginative sculpted panels. The artist Symon has built a fabulous, whimsical, and extraordinary Art Zoo near Yeh Sanih, which is the last stop of the day before returning to our comfortable hotel overlooking the verdant rice terraces of Pacung. Saranam Eco Resort (BLD) TUE, JULY 27 - BALI Our journey to the south coast takes us through fantastic rice terraces on the slopes of Gunung Batu Karu. The huge state temple of Pura Taman Ayun, originally built in 1634, extensively renovated in 1937, and surrounded by an elegant moat, was the main temple of the Mengwi kingdom, which survived until 1891. After checking into our luxurious hotel on Nusa Dua Beach, we visit the spectacularly located sea temple of Tanah Lot for sunset photography. Nikko Bali Resort & Spa (BL) WED, JULY 28 - BALI We begin the day with an exhilarating music and dance performance at Batubulan (featuring gamelan, barong, and legong), then visit some of the craft villages along the route from Denpasar to Ubud. Celuk is a silver- and goldsmithing center, with numerous jewelry specialists. Sukawati specializes in wind chimes, temple umbrellas, shadow puppets, topeng masks, and palm baskets dyed with intricate patterns. Across from the busy craft market is a colorful morning produce market with the old royal palace behind. The road through Mas is lined with craft shops selling woodcarvings, particularly masks. Perched on the gentle slopes leading toward the central mountains, Ubud has attracted visitors interested in Balinese arts, particularly paintings, since the 1930s. We pass through lovely rice terraces near Ceking, photograph the cliff face at Yeh Pulu carved with various scenes of everyday life, and visit the Sangeh Monkey Forest. Late this afternoon we drive to the southwestern tip of the island, where sheer cliffs drop precipitously into the sea and there are several important temples to the spirits of the sea. An enchanting Kecak dance is held at sunset at Pura Luhur Ulu Watu, in one of the best settings of any Balinese dance in Bali, and we’re here to experience it. Nikko Bali Resort & Spa (BL) THU, JULY 29 - BALI The entire day is at leisure before our farewell dinner this evening and a performance of Sanghyang, or Fire Dance, at Batubulan. Nikko Bali Resort & Spa (BD) FRI, JULY 30 - BALI-LOS ANGELES The morning is free for shopping and packing, or just to enjoy the beautiful white-sand beach one last time. We transfer to the airport about midday for the long flight home, arriving in Los Angeles late the same evening. (B)
Note: Included meals are indicated by B, L, and D for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
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