Sumatra Island / INDONESIA!!!

Coconut grill


My first interaction with the Indonesians was with the security guards at the bus terminal. A friendly welcome, a few games of chess, and my first lesson in Indonesian..





Coffee shop Indonesian style


Rice fields everywhere




Youngsters break dancing


On the left is my tree house room


Sunset at Lake Maninjau


Indonesian Christian Fusion





Teenagers playing the guitar at Lake Toba

Ohhh the sweet taste of mangoes, lychees, salas and a ton of other tropical fruits I don't know the names of. Fish dressed in a variety of sauces and curries, accompanied with delicious vegetables, and of course rice, and chilies, always the chilies. No matter how magnificent the nature may be or great the architecture is, it's always the food that lures me first and foremost. And I already like Sumatra for that very reason. Of course there's more to it than just the cuisine. People are friendly in a sincere way, and it's very underdeveloped, which makes it attractive for a traveller like me even though the locals would have preffered it otherwise. Sumatra has also been the place with the least number of tourists around. First question you get asked is your country, naturally, then whether or not you're a muslim, and finally if you can speak Indonesian or not. I tell them I'm from Turki (Indonesian for Turkey), pretend to be a muslim (scoring big points), and start listing all the basic bhasa Indonesia (Indonesian language) I know of, so right away we become BFF. :)
The island is a natural beauty, covered with lush green tropical forests, volcanic mountains, and gigantic crater lakes, where I spent many of my days chilling around in. Downside of such a mountainous landscape is loooooong bus rides (also contributing are terrible conditions of the roads and run down buses). For a short distance of 400km (250miles) which should only take 3-4 hours (2 hours if I'm driving) you end up spending 12 to 15 hours in an uncomfortable bus. And the broken seats are not the worst part of it all. Apparently Indonesians've never heard of second-hand smoking, because people (only men actually) smoke everywhere, including the buses. I don't think I've ever been to a country where smoking is as wide spread as it's in Indonesia. From young teenagers to old old men, every male in this country smokes it seems like. One entertainment you get during the bus rides is (I'm not considering the cheesy ear scratching Indonesian pop music video clips they play as entertainment) guitar players getting on and off the bus for short periods of time to play their music and collect money. Guitar is like a national instrument here, every teenager plays it, making one think it originated here. During any given bus ride you may encounter at least ten different guitar player/beggars performing in the bus. Interestingly enough, people always give some money to these performers. It's such a contradiction how people in poorer countries such as India or Indonesia give out a lot more alms to beggars than the ones in developed countries like the States. If guitar is their national instrument, chess should be their national sport. Everywhere you go you come across chess sets and they're not there just for decoration, people actually play chess to pass the time. Having always liked playing chess, I got to practice my skills quite often in the short amount of time period I've been here.
Sumatra definitely deserves more than just a week, but unfortunately there's so much to see in Indonesia and I only have a 30 day visa to do it all. Off to Java island...

Kuala Lumpur / Maleka / MALAYSIA

Petronas Towers, once the highest buildings in the world


A modern mosque in KL


Old Railway Station / Kuala Lumpur


Streets decorated for the Chinese New Year


Read the sign above the dog!! (only in Asia :))


Horse shoe shaped Chinese gravestones




A traditional Maleka house


No, the temple is not on fire, just lots of incense burning




Oldest mosque in Malaysia. It was quite weird seeing mosques in far-east Asian style.


Street Scene / Maleka

Kuala Lumpur greets me with monsoon rains and great humidity. When the cheapest ticket I found out of India was to Malaysia, I didn't know it was the monsoon season here. Although not lasting for too long, you have to endure heavy rains at least once, sometimes twice a day. As a friend over here put it nicely, when the rain comes it's the coffee time of the day, because there's nothing you can do but seek shelter at the nearest enclosed place and sip on your coffee. Even though it effects my travel plans, I'm happy to experience3 the monsoon rains.
I decided to give the couchsurfing site another shot in Malaysia after a not so pleasant first experience in India. I made arrangements to stay at two different houses and spent four days in the first house and two days in the second house during my visit in Kuala Lumpur. Both of my visits were fun and pleasant. While staying in a family environment and enjoying home cooked meals in the first house, I was hosted by younger people who showed me sides of KL I hadn't seen at the second house. I will keep using this site when I get a chance.
Kuala Lumpur is a highly developed, modern city. It's no different than any western city except for all the Malay, Chinese and Indian people surrounding you. After centuries of immigration from China and India, these minorities now form 40% of the population and their demands for social equalities as citizens occupy the political scene here in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur, being a very livable city, is not all that interesting for a traveller, but has been a pleasant stop for me thanks to the experiences I had through couch surfing. Malaysia has many other parts to explore but I decided to cross over to Indonesia and return to Malaysia towards the end of my journey. I arrived in Maleka to take a ferry that would bring me to Sumatra island of Indonesia. After spending a few days in Maleka exploring the interesting architecture including the oldest mosque and temples of the country, I'm leaving this highly touristic city for Indonesia where I'm planning on spending a month in...

Kerala / Au Revoir INDIA!!!

Chinese fishing nets








Boathouses you can rent and spend the night in


What you see actually is a river bed covered with overgrown plants


Kerala is a communist state, governed by communist political parties so you see such signs and posters all over the place



Chinese fishing nets


First day I arrived in Kerala the whole state was on a strike against the local government. Every single business was closed and the city (Ernakulam) was like a ghost town. Being the southern most state in India, temperature was much warmer and more humid than the north. I spent the day walking around the empty streets of Ernakulam and more touristy Fort Cochin. Kerala is known for its backwaters, which are river-ways and channels that make their way through dense tropical forests of palm trees and small villages scattered around on the shores. I took a boat ride through these backwaters that lasted for eight hours with magnificent views of the nature and life on the river. As quiet and peaceful as it is, there’s an endless activity on the waters as the locals use them to fish, wash, transport, and swim. Traveling along the coastline, I reached the beach town of Varkala on New Year ’s Eve. Not knowing what a popular tourist destination the town was and not having made any reservations I desperately started looking for a room only to find out that every single hotel in town was full despite their outrageous prices. But my protective angels were busy at work as always and I ran into a guy who offered me a spot on the rooftop of his hotel for free. Washing away my exhaustion with the best shower I have taken in my life in open air on a rooftop under a full moon I was ready for 2010 filled with optimism and enthusiasm. Celebrating the midnight with a British couple and two Swedish brothers I met at a restaurant, we made our way down to the beach after cops forced the restaurant to shut down for some obscure reason, and joined the crowds of people on the beach celebrating to the early hours of the new year. I spent most of my last days in Varkala just enjoying the beaches with the company of new friends. Soon (always too soon) it was time for me to close the India chapter of my travels and start a new chapter in Malaysia.

Spending two months in India was nowhere close to being enough for such a vast country with so many different cultures and sights to explore. India feels like a different universe than the rest of the world, and it’s very easy to lose yourself in this overwhelming place. I don’t know whether it’s over one billion people living together, all the religions existing in harmony, endless spices you eat in the food or the colors that surround you, but the country grows on you and before you know it you become addicted to it. I think most of all it’s the people smiling unhesitantly with their perfect white teeth despite the poverty or conditions they’re in that leaves the deepest mark. I know that I will go back to India someday and she will welcome me with the same joyful head wiggle.