Salam from Pulau Weh, Sumatra,
I'm so grateful you've taken your time to learn about my past week's adventures. You'll discover I had a quieter week of activities as my plans changed once I arrived at Bukit Lawang, my first Indonesian destination on Sumatra. I'm slowly adopting an attitude that whatever I do is just fine as traveling is my life for now. I simply want to enjoy the blessing of seeing the sunrise one more time! 🙏
I sincerely hope the universe has shone its benevolence on your past week! Please reflect on those moments that you are most grateful for. It can be challenging to avoid taking the small gifts in your life for granted!
Traveling around Sumatra is an interesting challenge given the long distances between locations I want to visit. The primary method of travel is bus (local or coach), plane (connecting through Jakarta in many instances), private car and driver or car rental. My preference is to avoid driving as the road rules in Sumatra are less evident. The lines on the road seem to be invisible to drivers, many roads are narrow without shoulders, volume of slow moving traffic in combination lead me to having someone local do the driving. I figure they have a better chance, as erratic as their driving may seem, at times.
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Riani, Dave, Devi
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I've periodically referenced my ongoing mission to connect businesses with Google Maps. I also invest time throughout my travels posting reviews on places I visit. Yes, I'm contributing to the Google empire's efforts to rule the world through being the one source of information. I reached an interesting milestone in the past week as the screen capture below reflects. The photos I've shared have been viewed 8,293.023 times; my reviews + videos + photos have been viewed 10,000,000 times. I think I might be making a small difference through the information I share in my Google Reviews. I know I've been a Google Review beneficiary many times over.
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My good friend (and guardian angel) Dave was in touch with me over the past week regarding the possible travel risks associated with the disruption in fuel deliveries to SE Asia. He suggested I might start looking for a place to park myself should my flying options disappear when the jet fuel disappears. While Indonesia has imposed rationing along with asking government workers to stay home one day a week, there is little evidence (knock on wood) of restricted travel. I am the most blessed individual to have such a good friend keeping watch over my back! Thank you Dave! 🙏
May the universe bring endless blessings and moments of magic 🦄 to you and your loved ones in the week ahead. 🙏
Travel Administration
Something simple and impactful you can do in your travels - compliment the local people for their English language skills. I've been very grateful for how their diligence in learning English has made my life. Many people I've met throughout my travels have worked diligently to learn English on their own, using whatever resources (mainly free - think YouTube/Tik Tok) they have access to. The common reaction to my compliment is stating they have so much more to learn. I also know they appreciate the recognition for their proficiency.
Travel Update
A more settled week regarding my future travel plans. Sicily has appeared on my travel radar based on a conversation I had with a Canadian couple I met at my Bukit Lawang hotel. Giuseppe is a native Sicilian who spoke glowingly about the diversity on his native island. I shall see where the universe takes me.
Travel Maps
I left Nepal on Monday night, flying overnight to Medan, Sumatra via Kuala Lumpur. I arranged for a private car to take me to my Bukit Lawang hotel. I also arranged for a private car to take me back to Medan on Saturday evening so I could take an overnight bus to Banda Aceh.
Nepal: March 8 to April 6, 2026
Intercountry Travel: Kathmandu to Medan Indonesia (via KL) April 6/7
Indonesia (Sumatra): April 7 to May 3, 2026
Kathmandu
I spent my final days in Kathmandu working hard to catch up on my travel blog which had suffered because of my travels. Tough situation when the travel needs to take precedence over the post travel summary 😉
I also continued to visit the nearby cafe where I enjoyed their great food and desserts. Asmita, a cafe employee, was particularly engaging so I had a full culinary experience instead of just eating a meal!
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| Cafe frontage |
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| Books to read |
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| Interior dining area |
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| Service counter and dessert display |
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| Amazing food |
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| I love noodles! |
Kathmandu, Nepal to Medan, Indonesia (through Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
I ended up flying business class on Malaysian Airlines given the small differential between economy class and business class by the time I booked my flight. I appreciated the extra comfort on the overnight flight plus all the amenities in the business lounge for my brief layover in Kuala Lumpur.
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| Sunrise over Kuala Lumpur International Aiport |
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Tres chic Kuala Lumpur International
Terminal |
Bukit Lawang
Sometimes I wish I was more thorough with reading the specifics about my destinations. My Bukit Lawang objective was trekking in the jungle with the hope of seeing an orangutan, possibly other wildlife. I discovered, on arrival, a local guide was mandatory for my proposed jungle adventure. Ugh! My hotel offered a six hour trek for about $114 Cdn ($83 USD) including a lovely lunch. My newest friend Marc (see Friends section below) also mentioned the orangutans in the area were likely to have been rescued/released or have been born to rescued orangutans released into the wild. This additional information further dampened my enthusiasm. I decided seeing an orangutan in the wild was a nice to do. I'd look for another trek adventure that was more interesting.
Walkabout
How did I repurpose my time? I spent time my previous week's blog post. Additionally, I set out, on foot, to find the park entrance to learn more about the costs and guide requirements. Unfortunately, I was unsuccessful in my pursuit. I did meet some lovely local people who tried to give me directions. Hey ho! Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
My visit to Friday's market evoked memories of Saturday's market in Assosa, Ethiopia where I lived for two months in 2017. I used to go to the market for food and hard goods. Markets appear to have the same energy, cleanliness and organization. The Dimapur market in Nagaland (India) was similar as well.
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| Welcome to Bukit Lawang |
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| Local wildlife needs TLC |
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| Looks like poachers attacked this elephant |
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| That's a lot of ground cover - TLC please! |
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| Landmarks I did reach |
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| Friday's local market |
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| Friday's local market |
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| Friday's local market |
Sumatra Cheeky Monkeys
I had what I now call a 'David moment' when I taken to my hotel room. Wow! What a disappointment! Mini-meltdown! The lack of sleep/travel may have aggravated my situation! While the information the hotel shared about the room was accurate, this is another instance where the photos fail to tell the entire story. The room was above the kitchen area with a tiny terrace with a view of the road in the distance. The room would have been ok for an overnight stay, not for the four nights I was planning to stay. After a discussion with Sarah, co-owner with her husband Agus, I agreed to pay about $8 Cdn more nightly for a bigger room with large windows facing the compound's beautiful interior courtyard.
Once I got over myself, and did some exploring around the village, I soon appreciated I was staying at what I thought was the nicest and best run hotel in the area. The staff were amazing, the food was fabulous and the overall experience was wonderful! I did have this underlying feeling that the trekking was a big revenue generator. There was a lot of subtle guardrails (like implied consent) to increase the likelihood/reaffirm one's desire for trekking. I had a comfortable place to stay at the jungle's edge!
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| Entrance |
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| Road to main building - drive slowly |
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Main building. My initial room was up the stairs
on the right. |
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| Capturing the hotel's vibe! |
Juma Juma Cafe
Many thanks to my new friend Stefanie (see Friends section below), I was introduced to Juma Juma Cafe. I was blessed to have Stefanie's directions to find the cafe which is situated on the edge of a rice field. If I had followed Google Maps instructions I would have been trying to walk across a rice field!
What started out with simply enjoying a good lunch evolved into meeting the cafe owners - Riani and her daughter Devi. I met mother and daughter during my second lunch at their cafe. My third, and final lunch, was the best blessing ever! I was invited to pick a fresh dragon fruit off the plant which was then prepared for me as part of my lunch. What a most extraordinary culinary experience over the three day period!
Cafe
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Take this path next to the Apotek
Keep walking |
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Just another 50m around the corner
ahead |
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| Cafe in the rice field |
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| Almost there |
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| Eating area/kitchen is behind yellow wall |
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| Eating area |
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| Eating area |
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Couple on left are from Nashville, Tenn who quit
their jobs/traveling for nine months! |
Food and Drink
The food was freshly prepared with local sourced ingredients. All prepared with lots of love and at a reasonable price!
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| Mie Goreng (Chicken) |
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| Potato wedges |
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| Asam Manis (Ayam/Chicken) |
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| Amazing home made drinks |
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| Rosella youghurt |
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| Dragon fruit I picked |
Lunch companion
The photos tell the story!
Hosts
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| Picking my dragon fruit |
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| Riani |
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| Riani, Dave, Devi |
Friends
I was blessed with meeting new friends during my four night stay at Sumatra Cheeky Monkeys. As you see below, I missed memory pics for three of my new five friends. Like I've mentioned before, taking a photo is situation specific. Sometimes it makes sense to ask, sometimes I just enjoy the conversation.
Stefanie
Stefanie is an interesting person, in a most positive way. She and her ex husband are seasoned travelers who enjoyed exploring the world, albeit South America has yet to be explored. Stefanie was born in Germany and moved with her husband to Australia to work. She is an Australian citizen, having had to relinquish her German citizenship. She's been able to retire at the tender age of 48. She is currently living in her apartment in Bangkok, Thailand. Her current travels, over a three week period, are focused in exploring North Sumatra through trekking, diving and snorkeling. While we have a few common destinations, we are unlikely to cross paths again in Sumatra. We've exchanged contact info as I'd like to stay in touch. I like Stefanie's thoroughness in planning. I could learn from her experience!
Marc
Marc is a 29 year old German completing research on the palm oil industry in Sumatra. His time in Sumatra comes to an end in the next two weeks - the money is running out! Fascinating to learn about the palm oil industry's power and influence in the area. There are illegal palm farms in the buffer zone surrounding the nearby national park. Marc has secretly explored the illegal farms for his research. He mentioned there was a strong interrelationship between local politicians, the palm industry, the local mafia and local farmers. Another example where the jungle is disappearing due to commercial interests. All of this is also happening within an UNESCO world heritage site. Our world is incredibly vulnerable to exploitation. We had a few broad conversations about how the world is changing, our freedoms are disappearing and following the money typically leads you to the root cause of the world's evil. Marc requested we exchange contact information as he thought there may come a time I could be helpful to get in contact with.
Hester
My friend Hester is at the onset of her traveling adventures with Sumatra being one of her destinations in her three month itinerary. At 33 years old, her desire was to leave the corporate world to have her own business that had a people, culture and change perspective. Interestingly, her business interests have some commonality with key topic areas that my business focused on over the years. We exchanged contact info so I could
my series of blog posts where I started to share my experience, tools and techniques to help other professionals with launching their independent business pursuits. Hester was also thoughtful in sharing a couple Indonesian travel tips after we parted company at the Sumatra Cheeky Monkeys. I'm likely to follow-up on her tip about visiting Mentawai Islands as the destination is close to Padang where I plan to spend time.
Colleen and Guiseppe (Joe)
Please meet my fellow Canadians living the beautiful city of Calgary, Alberta, Canada (a city I lived in between 1989 - 1992). This couple, who are both 60 years old, own a dog training business. Giuseppe (Joe) was born in Sicily and Colleen was born in Saskatchewan, Canada. We spent an engrossing three hours talking about our respective travel, Sicily's natural and diverse beauty (and inherent danger with the mafia) and retirement planning considerations. Colleen has visited 150+ countries so far. She's going to be a valuable resource for my proposed African safari. I'm also thinking I may travel to Sicily for a week after visiting Egypt. We exchanged contact info given our common travel interests!
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| Notice the perfect flower placement |
Next Week
On Sunday morning, I'll be in Sabang on Pulau Weh after traveling by overnight bus from Medan to Banda Aceh and taking the ferry from Banda Aceh to Pulau Weh (pulau is island in Bahasa). This island has the most northern point in Indonesia. I'll return to Banda Aceh on Wednesday to give me a chance to explore the 2004 tsunami's horrific impact on this city and its people. I return to Kualamanu Airport outside Medan via another overnight bus ride. I fly to Jambi City via Jakarta for a three night stay. The
Muara Takus Temple complex, located about 30 km from Jambi, is of interest.
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