SEA TO SKY TO HELL

I woke up late in Ende and ordered a second breakfast to compliment the one provided (a tiny donut). From here I packed up and started the coastal ride West, today's destination.. the mountain town, Ruteng.

Leaving Ende, sweating in the morning heat

 

Beautiful volcanic sands along the entire coast-line

A local being dropped at school by dad

The winding coast road was absolute bliss to ride

More coastal beauty to absorb that morning

The view from my cockpit, heavenly

With extreme fog, clouds and rain amongst the mountain tops my pace was slowed and it ended up taking a total of 8 hours to reach the mountain town of Ruteng - here it was cold but beautiful.

Making my way higher, occasional dirt roads

Stand back to take a photo of the pony, oops there goes the bike!

Rice fields, mountains, curvy roads... what more could I want

Rains coming in again, misting off the hot road

Beard progress selfie up in the clouds

The clouds and fog became extremely dense as the altitude increased

Lost, looking for a nuns convent to sleep... a greater power didn't want me to find it!

That night I stayed in the Rima hotel where I had one of my best sleeps yet, at 16.6 degrees C that night it was cold enough to need my sleeping bag for the first time on the trip. I was however woken at 345 AM by the ritual call to prayer from the local mosque. With Indonesia being the most populous-Muslim country in the world these mosques are everywhere with hour long prayers held 5 times a day. Well now I was up, so I went down for an early breakfast and made a start to the day.

Stunning rice fields expand as far as the eye can see

School children every morning and afternoon

More luscious fields

Typical small town in Flores

Drying my boots after the days ride in the rain

By leaving early I was able to enjoy the beautiful Flores roads before the afternoon rains and arrived in the coastal port city of Labuan Bajo around 1 PM. Beer, food, relaxation and meeting other travelers before an early night in preparation for the ferry to Sumbawa the following day.

Labuan Bajo sunset

I woke up Thursday morning feeling like I’d been hit by a train, still I prepared the bike for the ferry and almost made my way down to the port before deciding to take a rest day instead (the ferries now go daily). I walked to the pharmacy and in my best Indonesian ordered some drugs to ‘fix’ me. I lasted a few hours in the hotel room before I caved and walked down to the local emergency room. I walked in saying ‘fever... pain’ and was given a small bed to wait on. Here I lay for the rest of the day until at night they took my temperature, 39.7 degrees C. I was in quite a bad state being hardly capable of walking, talking or moving... but I later found out they weren't doing any tests or giving me any treatment because it was Chinese new year, a public holiday!

Fever, pain and rudimentary basic care

Friday blood test and Typhoid diagnosis, I started antibiotic injections and was given ibuprofen every few hours. I was delirious with pain, all I could do was stare at the neon lights and try my hardest not to go insane. Saturday and Sunday were more of the same.

By Monday I was well and truly over this ‘hospital’ and to top it off the doctors now made a new diagnosis... dengue fever. The hospital was far from any Western establishment with a filthy, flooded toilet, people sleeping on the floors, the occasional stray dog entering, it was definitely not hygienic by any stretch.

Tuesday I was told the risks if my blood count decreased further, uncontrollable bleeding from my nose, eyes and internally... awesome! Alone in a third world country and I get this explained in a mixture of Indonesian and English. Luckily by now I had made contact with my parents and they had called my travel insurance by that night, it was all about to turn around!

It has to be said that World Nomads have been outstanding so far, I was called multiple times on the Wednesday by doctors and nurses in Sydney to check on my condition and they even organised to fly me to Bali for better treatment in an international hospital. It’s now Friday and I’m laying in the hospital bed in Bali. As I type this with my mum next to me, tv, wifi, running water, food... there are too many things to list that make this a far better healing environment. The blood tests continue and I’m awaiting a new diagnosis, but I've been told my blood has started to improve. Fingers crossed I’m back with my bike in the next few days!

The Bali international hospital feels like home

Last trip, now I'm in Bali with the bike back in Flores