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- News – March/April 2018 (Manokwari/Indonesia, 4/30/2018)
check now and then also our information site → "what's happening?"
- Website statistics: 'Webalizer' has been shut down in February 2013. 'Logaholic' became too unreliable in Sep. 2016.
- Thus 'Google-Analytics' remains unfortunately the only somewhat reliable counter for us.
- 'Google-Analytics' showed 9'169 pageviews during April 2018. The visitors came from 235 countries!
- ('Google-Analytics': March 18 = 11'353 pageviews / Feb. = 12'190 pageviews / Jan. = 11'714 pageviews)
- Record day since 12/17/1998 = the birthday of our website: on 11/5/2007 = 13'407 visitors and 787'456 hits ('Webalizer')
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- We sailed quite a lot in the Northeast of Indonesia since our last "News – January/February 2018" of March 2nd, 2018, from Ambon in the
- Central Moluccas. Actually we intended at that time to go in a westerly direction, i.e. slowly back to "civilization". Whether the whole exercise
- was worth it – perhaps, if the costs, particularly for shipping, are left aside. Here's the essential of the past two months:
- Back then we contemplated to "hop" with 4 different ferry ships via the Moluccan islands of Manipa-Buru-Sanana-Mangole-Taliabu and
- Banggai to Luwuk in the very end of Central Sulawesi, because the only direct connection to Makassar in South Sulawesi – the Pelni boat
- "KM Dobonsolo" that was only recently converted for ro-ro-service – was stuck in the drydock. Thanks to an English speaking lady, who was
- coincidentally in the Tourist Office in Ambon, it showed that the second ferry between the islands of Buru and Sanana was also lying in the
- drydock for 4 to 6 weeks without substitution. Result: Project abandoned!
- One day later we see on the bulletin board at the Pelni building that "Dobonsolo" will be surprisingly back in service on March 19th. It's
- supposed to arrive 4 days later in Ambon – albeit in the opposite direction to the East, i.e. to Jayapura at the Papua New Guinea border. Not
- thinking twice we enter the office, as our 3rd visa extension just started. As a consequence we are still able to do an "excursion" to the
- Indonesian province of Papua. But what a disappointment! Because the port of Jayapura constructed the berth too high for ferry ships, their
- ramp cannot be lowered. The last possible ro-ro-station is Serui on the island of Yapen, which belongs also to the province of Papua. Though
- we would be able to put our LandCruiser into a container, but this would cost more than the double (about 18 mil Rupees (~US$1'370) – with
- a bit of luck it doesn't cost more to ship a car to South Africa or Europe!). Thus we decided to send the car by ro-ro for "only" Rp. 7'936'800
- (~US$605 to Serui – duration 2 nights).
- On March 23rd, 10:30pm, we depart from Ambon – our LandCruiser parked in the vessel's hull together with many brand-new cars. After a
- 20 hours' sea journey there was a 3 hours' layover in Sorong/West Papua. The continuation to the chosen island of Yapen took another
- 21 hours. Arriving at our first Papua destination showed that the ramp couldn't be lowered (either here) due to low tide. The captain didn't want
- to get involved with experiments and decided to take us and our load to Jayapura and check, whether discharging works after the return. He
- offers us for the remaining two nights a four-bed cabin for single occupancy as a "treat" (otherwise there are on this "economy boat" only huge
- mass dorms, cabins for six or the floor and the deck). Unfortunately we couldn't leave the ship during the 7-hour stop in Jayapura, because we
- hadn't any ticket for here; simultaneously we could note that the vehicle couldn't have been unloaded here! After another 20 hours we were back
- where we had been two days ago: Serui – and what an excitement, the ramp fitted and we could drive out of the hull after four nights.
- Then we had once more luck: The ASDP ferry "KMP Masirei" appears on schedule after 4 days (3/31), coming from Nabire and brings us for
- Rp. 799'000 (~US$60) during another nightly ride to the somewhat bigger island of Biak that belongs also to the Papuan province. We learnt
- on the next day that – would we have missed it – nothing would have happened for a whole month, reason: Again drydock! There will be soon
- picture galleries of the islands of Yapen and Biak – but before there will be one from Ambon.
- Actually we wanted to continue from Biak to Manokwari on the Bird's Head Peninsula on April 7th, with the boat "KMP Kasuari Pasifik IV",
- but – we haven't been astonished anymore – it didn't appear due to storms; we were told this time. Fortunately we were able to extend our visa
- before in Ambon for the 4th and last time, if not, we would have faced serious problems. The closest immigration office sits only in Manokwari,
- 13½ hours of sailing away, and delays are simply not accepted – only fines. The costs for the relatively short night sailing time was pretty heavy:
- Rp. 1'650'000 (~US$125), but it was according to the tariff list. We are sitting now on the easternmost end of "Irian Jaya's Bird's Head
- Peninsula" and are waiting another time for a ship to arrive, the "KM Ciremai", the second similar built Pelni "Roll-on-Roll-off-sistership" of the
- "KM Dobonsolo", which runs a slightly different route between Jayapura and Jakarta. And as before on April 23rd, in the Pelni office in Ambon,
- they try to overcharge also here: For the route from Manokwari via Sorong and Bau-Bau to Makassar, which according to the price list costs
- Rp. 10'250'550 (~US$780), we should settle Rp. 3.5 Mil rupees (~US$270) more – therefore be attentive! But it's not only Pelni, also the
- second state-owned ferry company ASDP, which tried to rip us off for one million rupees on their sailing from Sorong to Seram.
-
- On May 4th, 2018, we should arrive in Makassar/South Sulawesi after 3 nights and 62 hours on the "KM Ciremai". Because our final visa
- expires on May 8th, we decided to do two days before a visa run with Air Asia to Kuala Lumpur (= 20th visit). We won't apply this time for
- a two-months extendable visa at the Indonesian Consulate, but return immediately on May 7th, to Makassar and ask during the arrival at the
- immigration counter for a one-month non-extendable that is for free. We researched on the internet whether it's not simpler and cheaper to pay
- at the exit border in Entikong the fine of Rp. 300'000 (~US$23) per person and overrun day. This would have cost us at least 1.8 mil Rupees
- (~US$140), whereas the visa flight with Air Asia was charged with Rp. 4'986'600 (~US$380). There are two reasons that we chose the more
- expensive version: Firstly we don't face the "hovering sword in the neck" that the visa overstay fine increases in the meantime from Rp. 300'000
- to 1 million (~US$76) per person/per day), what currently is discussed in the "Expat-Indo-Forum" and also in the "Trip Advisor". Secondly
- we are able to do now and then a day's rest during the 950 miles [1'525km] long road trip from Batulicin in South Kalimantan to the Malaysian
- border in Entikong.
![Sudan/Meroë (Bagrawiyah): Pyramid-shaped tombs about 125 miles [200km] northeast of Khartoum](/bilder%20sd/902-P1060850.JPG)
![Djibouti/Tadjoura: In the background the 5'740 ft. [1'750m] high Goda Mountains](/bilder%20dj/901-P1060475.JPG)
