Today we are leaving Madura Island in Indonesia’s Jawa and moving to Surabaya, the country’s second largest populous city.. In the morning, we went to meet the owner of the land for the forest area of 1 hectare near the sea, which I had my eye on yesterday.. He sold some of his own land to an American whose wife is also from Indonesia, and we talked in front of a house that is under construction and made entirely of wood, looking like a mosque.. He is a rich man in Indonesian terms, but he is no different from a typical peasant.. Then we went together to the plot of interest I was interested in, which is right next to the sea.. Not only the beach, but also the places where the trees are sandy. The price he gave me was 50% above the market price.
The reason was that the government had built it on this land and in places that would soon benefit the public.. However, these investments of the state were left unfinished due to the conflict and many buildings were abandoned.
There was no need for extra expenses for services such as roads and electricity.. We left because we thought the price was high and we were not in a hurry.. In the future, Johnny and his relatives will visit the landlord frequently and persuade them to sell.
If the price I want is given, let’s see what happens.. By the way, you cannot own property in Indonesia. You make the sale here to someone you know, then you arrange a contract between yourself and you get the title deed.. If you happen to find me living on Madura Island, who knows, after a few years, don’t be too surprised, I’ll tell you in advance.
After saying goodbye to the villagers, we got on our motorcycles and set off for Surabaya, it was late. had happened. We took a shortcut through old village houses and tobacco fields.. Nature is fascinating as always.
Madura island is bigger than I thought. We had not reached the other end of the island yet, although we had been traveling by motorcycle for more than five hours.. When it was time for iftar, we ate something at a warung (simple restaurant) on the road.. At least 2 hours drive to Surabaya. It was dark so we decided to stay on the island.
Johnny and his mother traveled Indonesia for more than 5 years years ago, on a 1921 Harley-Davidson engine.. They mostly stayed at the police stations and in the houses of village chiefs.. So we called the police station first.. We walked into one of the police stations on the road and met, told our problems and they said we could stay.. There is a very thin carpet on the concrete floor in his locked room.
After discussing the situation for a bit, we decided to go to the village chief’s house.. After probing, we made our way into the village and found the chief’s house.. When we went, they were drinking their tea on the terrace in front of the house.
After the greeting, we gave our IDs.. Farid gave the passport copy and I gave my Turkish driver’s license.. The chief took a long look at our documents and asked what we were doing in the meantime, information about the country and the trip, and Johnny translated what we said into the language of the villagers.. Maduran is spoken here, completely different from Indonesian and Javanese.
After confirming our stay as chef, we were served refreshments.. First came water, cassava and banana chips, watermelon and fruits in small plastic cups, teas were drunk. The chief of the construction company is quite serious and bossy, but you can feel his sincerity. After the conversations, we went to the room allocated to us because we were tired.. Since they did not have suitable beds, they only gave us pillows.
The air in the village was cool.. I put on some more clothes, hugged my sarong and slept on the rug.. While Farid and I were sleeping soundly at night, some cops came to the chief’s house and took our identification information.. They misunderstood the expiry date on Farid’s passport stamp and wanted to pick him up and take him to the police station.. They misunderstood the deadline for entry into Indonesia since he got the visa from the Netherlands. Before that date, he has to enter the country and has a 2-month visa.
The chief and Johnny convinced the police and sent them.. Honestly, I woke up and heard some conversations, but I fell asleep again.. A short time later, this time, more than ten police officers came to the village house.. This time I was the reason they came.. Since I didn’t have my passport or photocopy with me, they were going to take me to the police station.
They had no intention of letting me go until I got my passport, which was in my backpack at Johnny’s house in Banyuwangi city.. This means at least 2 days under these conditions. Johnny told the police not to cause any trouble, he’ll get on his motorcycle tomorrow and get my passport.. They were not convinced and insisted on taking me to the police station.
The chief of the village put an end to the discussions.. He said that these are my guests and I trust them, the roads are from you, but the village is asked from me and convinced the police.. Village chiefs are rich and powerful people. In addition to being like the headman in us, they also carry out some legal affairs.. Finally, the police left the village, but tomorrow morning I will go to the police station to testify.. While all this was going on, we were sleeping well on the rugs in the cool of that night.
When we woke up in the morning, we were brought our breakfast with rice pilaf and something on the side.. While Johnny was telling us what had happened, a plainclothes cop came. We tried to make the atmosphere a little softer by chatting with the police, taking pictures, and of course making ourselves look cuter.. After breakfast, we thanked the chef for his hospitality and hospitality and went to the police station.
While sitting at the police station answering questions, Johnny was doing the necessary translation.. You know, it was not recorded in an official notebook or computer.. The police chief wrote down my identity information, my passport number, country and address information on the blank paper he took.. Since it was Saturday, there was no opportunity to call the imigration office and verify my statement.. I showed the photo of my passport that I had taken on my mobile phone.. However, if I had sent a police officer to the house we stayed in Banyuwangi and checked my passport and visa in my bag, the problem would have been solved, but it is difficult to talk and understand.. Fortunately, they released us without any problems after the statements.
Thus, I narrowly missed the opportunity to spend a few nights at the police station.. For me the truth is no problem, maybe it would be an adventure. However, it would be a problem in terms of my travel friends and the course of our trip plan.. We shook hands with the police and were sent with smiling faces.
An hour later, we were crossing the 5 km long bridge between Madura Island and Indonesia’s second largest city Surabaya.. After eating at the warungs across from the zoo in Surabaya, we first visited the zoo.
The condition of the zoo, which hosts many wildlife living in Indonesia, is not very good.. There are many species of animals, birds, mammals and fish but it is old, dirty, rundown and filthy.. Trash on the roads. When we arrived at a place where there was announcement and noise, we saw that there was an amphitheater and there was a show with parrots, bears, chimpanzees and pelicans.. I think this is not legal in many other countries anymore.
When we found a training hotel owned by the Tourism and Hotel Management Agency outside the city, we settled there.. After leaving our things and resting for a while, we went back to the city.. The streets are crowded, there are motorcycles everywhere. On the one hand, the sounds emanating from the mosques and on the other hand the noise of the roads.
If you are on the side of the road, it is very difficult to understand each other because of the noise.. We visited a few large shopping malls, wandered the streets, and then went to a parking lot and mingled with the public.. We spent our time in the area with children, children, old, young and of course hundreds of vendors, and then we returned to our hotel.
Day 374, ID:31 Surabaya, Java. Sunday, August 14, 2011