The Great Sojourn — theNOSTOMANIAC.com

55 - Danau Gunung Tujuh (Sumatra, Indonesia)

Sahar managed an actual conversation on the way back. He was, in truth, an interesting guy with lots to offer. Just not then. And not to me. Still, I liked him. Really, I did. The only thing standing in the way was his work ethic. I wanted to do shit. He didn’t. Nothing exotic there for him. That was his life. For me? It was like driving to Wally World so I could tailgate in the parking lot.

After our non-adventure, he invited me into his home and showed me pictures and videos of all the shit I yearned to see. (Ironic, much?) Pictures from his Orang Pendek explorations. Videos of Mt. Kerinci’s spectacular eruptions. I considered asking him where I could find that Sahar…

Indonesia 2, Batch 10by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Sumatra, Danau Gunung Tujuh

56 - Mt. Kerinci (Sumatra, Indonesia)

Before dinner En, in his Ugarte fashion, inquired, “Ummm, sorry, Richard, do you want to play with fire?” Who wouldn’t? Let’s burn shit, I say. Smokey the Bear can suck it. “Play with fire” was his English device for “start a fire.” He was merely asking if it would be okay for him to kindle a flame for dinner. Not sure if this was a regulatory issue or a courtesy in case I had a phobia. It was difficult to know as En asked permission before doing anything. My effusion of laughter required clarification so as not to offend. An English lesson on the connotation of “play with fire” ensued.

Early to bed. Early to rise. We rose at 2:15 am and began the climb around three. Our camp was just below the tree line where vegetation falls away, replaced by exposed rocks and scree…

Batch 10, Indonesia 2by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Mt. Kerinci

57 - Pit Stop Padang & Backtrack Fever (Sumatra, Indonesia)

Turns out, I have some semblance of a conscience. Who knew? I let guilt be my diving rod. En spent three days surveying a route in the shit (i.e. the intended inclusion area). He’d spent his own time and money at my behest. I couldn’t leave him hanging. This wasn’t just business. I genuinely like En and considered him a friend. Sure, a shitload of things could go wrong, but I had to take the chance. The payoff was potentially huge. Lions, and tigers, and bears, oh my! (Minus the lions and the bears). Elephants? Tapirs? Rhinoceroses? Who knows? Only one way to find out, right?

Time was of the essence. He was only free for a week which included the three days for the trip.

Batch 10, Indonesia 2by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Padang, Mentawai Islands, Sumatra

58 - Kerinci National Park (Sumatra, Indonesia)

En had a knack for the lyrical. After leaving the second “crime” scene, we encountered flower blossoms “snowing” in the jungle. White flower petals fell to the ground in sputtering gasps, taking on the aura of large snowflakes. En pointed to this and said he’d only seen it once before under similar circumstances (i.e. in the presence of slain tiger prey). He compared the blossoms to jungle tears, a land mourning the loss of life. Simple. Evocative. Profound. Well done, En. Well done.

Less poetic were the leeches relentlessly assaulting our ankles, an assault that would continue for the duration. Anticoagulant-secreting bastards with an insatiable appetite for blood. Not a fan. Tear ‘em off and bleed. And bleed some more. And then keep bleeding. Delicious…

Batch 10, Indonesia 2by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Sumatra, Kerinci National Park

59 - Mishap & Maninjau (Sumatra, Indonesia)

I took my time. I lingered. No rush. No agenda. A photo here. A vacant look across the lake there. Got lost in my head. (It’s a jungle up there.) Such a worthy pursuit, no? An anomaly garnered my attention, one I had to verify with close inspection. I passed a man on a motorbike with two large baskets filled with coconuts attached saddlebag-style. And on the back seat betwixt the baskets was his partner: a monkey. It wasn’t just the fact he appeared to be delivering coconuts with a primate shackled to his motorbike. It was the juxtaposition of their task and the stoic, borderline angry expressions held by each. Not sure if man mimicked the monkey or vice versa. These two were dead fucking serious.

This was too much. I needed a snapshot for posterity. Who knew when or where …

Indonesia 2, Batch 11by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Sumatra, Lake Maninjau

60 - Low Calorie Acid Trip (Bukittinggi, Sumatra, Indonesia)

And yet, I was drawn to his mysterious nature and reciprocal curiosity. Wanna see a tiger, you say? Well, he knew a guy. Of course he did. Not just any guy, but a tiger whisperer, if you will… or would. For the right price and a fair amount of patience, we might succeed in “summoning” a striped crusader. This tiger “shaman” (my word, not his) lived just outside the town’s center. According to Pria, Mr. Whisperer, with the aid of a spirit man, had the power to compel tiger attendance. Difference between his guy and a spirit man? Dunno. Shit got confusing and stayed there well before the actual meeting. If the spirit guide was the one doing the calling, then what was the purpose of the man we were going to meet?

Batch 11, Indonesia 2by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Bukittinggi, Turret Cafe, vespa, Sumatra

61 - U.F.G - Unidentified Flying Goofball (Lake Toba, Sumatra, Indonesia)

So, I sold the fucker. I sold it for less than half of what I paid, but this was better than the alternative. I thought for sure I’d be handing the keys to some lucky bastard in Medan with instructions to “Live long and prosper.” Profits be damned. I was willing to take what I could get. While waiting for a ferry from Parapat to Tuk Tuk (Samosir Island), I struck up a conversation with a local man. I mentioned offhand I’d hoped to sell the Phantom before I left Medan. I quoted a price. He disappeared ninja-style. Much to my astonishment, he returned shortly after with the rough equivalent of a thousand dollars (US). He smelled a deal. He smelled right. I suspect he was as excited as I was when I first bought it. He had that “kid in the candy store…

Batch 11, Indonesia 2by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Sumatra, Lake Toba, Danau Toba, Batak

62 - Ratna’s Place (Danau Toba, Sumatra, Indonesia)

Upon return, she recieved me with a smile and a cup of tea. Soon after, we went for a stroll in the hills behind her village. Ratna was one of twelve children; her father a Batak king whose jurisdiction stretched to adjacent villages and up the mountain. He died when she was four (she was forty at the time) and unfortunately, didn’t pass on a king’s ransom. I guess the crown wasn’t what it used to be by his reign (more of a leadership/advisory role, I deduced). Power without glory. Her father married twice, Ratna’s mother being the second following the death of the first.

Ratna spent most of her adult life away from Toba, living first in Jakarta with her extended family—brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, etc. She worked at a transportation/cargo company based…

Batch 11, Indonesia 2by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Sumatra, Lake Toba, Batak, Permaculture

63 - A Trip Within A Trip (Danau Toba, Sumatra, Indonesia)

On my world trip, I took a little “trip”. And it was fucking glorious. Absolutely magnificent, kind sir… or ma’am. Drugs in Indonesia are a big fat no-no. Illegit. Too illegit to quit. Shrooms technically fall into this category, but no one seems to care. They are sold openly in Bali, the Gili Islands, and the Lake Toba region. It’s so blatant, I was sure they were legal, or at least not illegal. Nope. I guess it’s on the books, but the books are out of print. And that was fine with me.

What does “openly” really mean? More than one Toba restaurant had mushroom omelette on the menu. Ideal, as I love breakfast and tripping my balls off. A winning combo indeed, so gimme a “P” for paradise, eh gov’nah?…

Batch 11, Indonesia 2by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, Sumatra, Lake Toba, Danau Toba, psilocybin

64 - Lounging Lawang (Bukit Lawang, Sumatra, Indonesia)

The area’s biggest draw is orangutans, and for good reason. They’re spell-binding little bastards. (Actually, some are quite large.) The term “orangutan” was coined in the seventeenth century and is derived from the Malay and Indo words orang, meaning “person” and hutan, meaning “forest”. And when you meet them you understand the appellation “person of the forest.” All in the eyes, my friend. All in the eyes.

Not far from a cove of guesthouses (including mine) lies a rehabilitation center. The surrounding area contains a mix of wild and semi-wild (rehabilitated) orangutans. Every day at 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. rangers feed “attendees” and offer a public viewing. The most popular activity is a two-day, one-night shallow trek into the park to spot “wild” orangutans.

Batch 11, Indonesia 2by Mr. Nos T. O'maniacMarch 1, 2020Indonesia, sumatra, Bukit Lawang, orangutan