Articles
08
Feb
I rolled into Kendari on a high, just on dark. The city turned out to be larger than I'd hoped, which made finding budget accommodation...
02
Feb
Running out of island
Morning in Kolaka brought brilliant sunshine and a queue for fuel that stretched down the road. Evidently a fuel tanker had just arrive...
31
Jan
Sulawesi’s Self Service Coastline
Once I figured I was clear of bandit country, I allowed myself a morning tea stop. There was a warung on the cliff, but no people anywh...
28
Jan
Don’t Stop In Bandit Country
I could have happily idled away many more days at Ibu Salma's house, watching the children run wild and eating oranges under the mango ...
26
Jan
Wedding Day
I'd been chilling with Ibu Salma for a few days when I got invited to a wedding. Fortunately, not my own. So I was all for it.
24
Jan
Home Sweet Illegal Home
I'm under instructions from Ibu Salma to call her before I leave - she will come and show me the way to her house, and we will have cof...
21
Jan
The Hungry Lake
Dawn shows me my campsite for the first time. Under trees, on the edge of a lake, across the road from houses that look like they belon...
19
Jan
Gatecrashing, stealth camping
I fuel up, and it's hot. I've got a headache by the time I leave town, and now that I'm on the coast road, there's traffic. Cars and tr...
17
Jan
Sunshine in Palopo
My second attempt to leave Tana Toraja features wild amounts of sunshine. The birds are singing, the chickens gleeful; the only reminde...
13
Jan
Of Fuel Leaks & Flooding Rains
Too much excitement. After my little escapade to Ollon, I immediately come down with a cold. Even the weather is in on the act: the clo...
11
Jan
The broken road to perfection
Another cool morning in Tana Toraja. The house is silent - Tony is away for a few days on business - and all I can hear are the chicken...
27
Dec
Kete Kesu: A long passing on
The Toraja people are known for their elaborate funerary rites. It can take years to prepare and complete all the proper ceremonies to ...
20
Dec
Arrival in Tana Toraja
High in the volcanic mountains of Sulawesi, just scraping the underside of the clouds, is a land for both the living and the dead. In t...
16
Dec
That time I offended a whole village
Okay so here's how it goes.
I'm riding through southern Sulawesi, heading for the mountains in the middle of the island - windy roads. ...
04
Sep
Following my gut
I stayed on the beach for a few more days after the night of the fishermen. They didn't come back to disturb me, and my sunbaked utopia...