Wendesday 26th August
Our sightseeing on
Pulau Ternate was a bit hit and miss but, once again, we did enjoy our day.
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| To start with - a sturdy safe jetty, always a plus! |
We were following
our Lonely Plane guide and it let us down just a bit…Firstly we walked the
streets looking for the tourism office so we could work out the best way to do
a trip around the island in a car or shared van or whatever. This way…that way…asking for advice and
directions, going this way…that way…and never actually finding any such thing as
a tourism office.
Never mind; I
found various items of interest to photograph.
Firstly, a big hole in the footpath, beneath which gushed, quite deep
down, a swift-flowing stream of stinky grey water. I asked Pete to pose elegantly around the
edge and this inspired a young chap to cross the road very energetically – he
wanted to be photographed with Pete, right now, thank you very much! No laughing matter!
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| Faro and Pete, BFFs |
I very much
enjoyed walking the streets and idly contemplating what I might buy with my
rupiyahs. I could get dentures!
Or I could buy some
lovely items of kiddystuff at Silent Furniture.
In the fruit
market I could buy durians, glowing and stinking away in the sunlight.
We stopped at a
shopping mall and asked if anyone knew where the tourism office was. Absolutely no idea, was the general
consensus. But the young women in the
foyer followed me around looking longingly at my bag. Finally I understood – they wanted to be
photographed! When I got out my camera
they shrieked with joy and applauded loudly – at last I had the right idea!
We gave up on
trying to find the office and went to look at Fort Oranje. I was only mildly interested in this; it is
mostly in ruins and is being very energetically reconstructed. But I did like being able to look at the
volcano from the ramparts.
Lonely Planet had
highly recommended a restaurant around the coast, at Florides. We went there in a bemo, with great
expectations. We were going to sit on
the terrace on a clifftop, exclaiming at the sight of the volcanic islands
below us.
Well…most of them
were wreathed in cloud…
And the
restaurant, which promised “superb” seafood…was under deconstruction.
So we went back to
town in another handy bemo. (Good thing
these noisy little vans are so cheap…only about $1 each per trip.)
No problem re food
–we could go back to our popeda shack for another little feast of fish and
vegetables and another bowl of spicy soup with a big lump of gluey sago in
it. Delicious! We shared a table with a very nice young local
woman, Eda, who teaches literature at one of the local universities (there are
three on this island!) She invited us to
come with her on a sightseeing trip tomorrow, with some of her students who would,
she said, enjoy practising their English.
This would have been good, but…we are leaving.
Before going home
to 2XS we thought we should go and look at another fort. Into another bemo – doof doof music blasting
forth – and off we went. Our driver was
extraordinary – I don’t think he looked at the road at all. He sent texts, chatted on his phone, swiveled
around to do some hand-waving dances for Pete, who was taking video film.
He also instructed
me to take a photo of the schoolgirl in the back of the van. She beamed most obligingly and looks very
fetching in her photo, I think.
We were very glad
to get out when we reached Bentong Tolucco.
All very
pretty…but just outside the gate there was a small wire cage with a poor
pathetic creature chained inside. I
couldn’t bear to look and asked Pete if he could unlock the door and let it
out. Alas…the door was securely
padlocked.
I was much happier
to walk past the mall and take photos of the very strange big fiberglass
elephants standing guard.
Tomorrow we will leave
for the northern tip of Sulawesi.
Another overnighter coming up; I can do it!! It is actually time for us to leave Kota
Ternate, much as we like it. We are
being bitten to death by small invisible creatures, and there are mosquitoes,
to add insult to injury.
Today's birthdaygirl - Ann-Marie Nuttall
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