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October 27, 2005
New and Old faces - update from Phil
LOCATION: Jambi, Sumatra
SEE WHERE WE ARE - NEW!
NAUTICAL MILES KAYAKING: 865
STANDARD MILES BIKING: 1372.85
Well this is an experience! Met up with Kenny in Singapore and we flew to Jakarta, where Jason and Yous the pick-up driver met us. Then:
Q. what’s worse than a 30 hour flight?
A. The same in a car in Indo.
Still, it’s been amazing to see the country fly by, people waving and pointing at the kayaks.
Jason - Kenny - Phil (L-R)
My impressions of Jambi? Can’t really describe it all, it’s hot but not unbearable. I went out and took some photos today. Hard to not take too many, everyone wants their picture taken. There’s not too many folks like Jason, Kenny and I here – not at all a tourist centre, and I ended up leading a little parade of kids through the alleyways. Quite an eye opener this trip, seeing such poor living conditions – homes that are stilts above open sewers. But the people you meet have these huge grins and are so gracious and welcoming. I’m sure it ain’t all a barrel of laughs for them but the sense of family and community was so strong.
Oops getting a bit hippy-ish! I’ll try to be a more cynical old fart from here on in.
Had a visit from the local fuzz at the hotel. Spent about 15 mins trying to figure out what he wanted, Kenny showed up, talked for a couple of minutes then abandoned me to figure out a way to get rid of the cop. Turns out he wanted us to hire him as a guide – his family has boats. Tried to gleen some info about the river from him but the few tid-bits I did get contradicted other info Jason had already found out. Nice chap, just trying to make an extra buck.
Alright then, I’ve hogged it for too long. Catch everyone later.
Thanks to all who have made this trip possible, and a special hello to Angel – love you buddy.
Phil
** Thanks to Phil and Kenny for making it out to document these last couple of weeks for the documentary series and expedition photo archives.**
A kiwi (New Zealander), Phil recently worked with Kenny on the feature film 'Devil You Know' shot on the US east coast. He lives and works in New York City.
Posted on October 27, 2005 3:50 PM
Comments
Hi everybody especially son Kenny. Glad to be able to follow your progress on the web. You're all looking so well. Remember Kenny to take a spare pair in case you fall in the burn!
Love Mum
Posted by: Annette Brown at October 27, 2005 10:28 PM