Yeah lah!: April 2007

Pulau Balat

Pulau Balat is a small island just off the coast of Pulau Kundur that can easily be reached via pompom. There are a lot of shaded, hilly single tracks that are really nice for cycling. Even better, there is absolutely no car in the island. It is quite easy to get lost - which I did - but it doesn' t really matter since the island is probably about the same size of Pulau Ubin in Singapore. I didn' t really manage to explore the whole island as I was rushing to get the last ferry back to Singapore which I ended up missing anyway. Will just have to go back.

Just love taking pompoms with my bike. Sit back, have a smoke and enjoy the ride. Missing a nice beer though...

Saw quite a few young kids going around the island with rifles, very common in Riau. I guess they were after some nice meat for dinner like the goat below.

Around the island

Pulau Kundur is one of the bigger islands south of Singapore. You can either reach Tanjung Batu straight from Singapore or the town (~40Km) in the north by taking a small boat from the rickety jetty (not the main jetty) near the mosque in Tanjung Balai in Pulau Karimun.

It is a great place for cycling with loads of single tracks in the center of the island.
The main town, Tanjung Batu, though a lot quieter than Tanjung Balai in Pulau Karimun, is also a weekend getaway for old uncles and other singaporeans who want to get some taste of cheap fresh meat. Found this uncle in the ferry telling me how in Singapore "even 300$ cannot enjoy" while in Tanjung Batu 60$ keeps him going for the whole weekend.

The town is a really sleepy place but lives up to its reputation.
I arrived in Tanjung Batu filthy and full of sweat after 40km cycling from the town in the north. While I was looking at my map to find a guesthouse, I was quickly approached by 2 young girls and their "mother" and, yeah, their "grandmother". Had a really hard time convincing the "mother" that I didn' t want to go to their home for a beer and to freshen up a bit. Even funnier, as I was having some satay in the market in the evening this guy comes over and asks me if I have a "reservation". When I point to the guesthouse at my back, the guys laughs and say "no, no, reservation for girl?".

Lovely bathroom! May not be as convenient as an ensuite bathroom but at least no need to clean it ever. Just pray you don' t mistake your bar of soap with the floater of your upstream neighbour.

Got to be one of the best kampong chickens in Riau. Didn' t dare to ask the owner to sell it to me to have ayam bakar. Pulau Kundur has the best chickens in Riau