Where Horses and Bikes are the Taxis of Choice

Marooned on the Gili Isles, (off the west coast of Lombok, Indonesia) I had plenty time to consider how people, luggage and supplies are moved around this haven for sun-worshipers, would be divers, and those into serious relaxation; where the nearest taxi (or any form of combustion driven 'wheels') is on the mainland, some 20 minutes ride away by fast speed boat. 

Our day trip from Sengigi, Lombok's main tourist base to the south, had been interrupted when our snorkelling venture on the reef off Gili Air (the closest of the Gilis to Lombok), was interrupted by two of our party being struck down by sea sickness.  This necessitated an unscheduled stopover at a random little 'rumah makan', one of many 'wall to wall' beach bars, cafes and warungs along the shoreline. While others topped up their tans and fluid levels, I chose to stroll along this small sand island's perimeter track, noting (but not oggling) the interesting blend of skimpily clad tourist beachgoers and the more conservatively dressed local traders and hospitality staff.

No roaring of car engines or motorbikes on this quiet haven.  Only the slow chatter of de-stressed foreigners, occasionally interspersed with the jingle of bells, as a cidomo (horse-drawn cart) clip-clops by, carrying visitors and their luggage to one of the many resort bungalows built around the island's beach perimeter.

                                        Cidomo mode of transport (complete with poop catcher) on Gili Air

Giving a wide berth to a wide-beamed, lobster-skinned foreigner, mounted insecurely on a wobbling bicycle, I was inspired to think of the many different modes of transportation that had caught my eye during this and previous trips to various parts of the Indonesian Archipelago.  Some, like the becak (an Indo pedal bicycle rickshaw), still survive in designated tourist areas and quiet rural villages (if there still are any), being elsewhere mostly considered a hazard (and potentially lethal interruption) for the fast flow of cars and trucks, invariably escorted by a snaking matrix of small buzzy motor bikes and scooters (very few deep throated Harleys in Indo).

I was interested to see, on an earlier visit to Sumatra, an abundance of motorised becaks (motorbike-driven instead of pedal power).  These seem to be an eminently sensible means of getting people and goods around in busy traffic, and also in the smaller back streets or 'jalan tikus' (which literally translates as mouse street) stitching the big city sprawl of desas and former kampungs together.

Major Indo city traffic appears a little crazy to unaccustomed foreign eyes, but, as in many Asian cities, everyone drives looking forward, prudently 'advising' vehicles in front, of intended passing (or squeezing through) by liberal use of the horn.  Traffic lanes are intended for guidance only, particularly for motor bikes, which are allowed to go anywhere and everywhere, and invariably do, like swarming killer bees (no offence to present company). Traffic does move reasonably well, however, even in peak hours (or days) and road rage is rare.  This is probably due to an overall expectation that other drivers will do the unexpected, whereas in Western countries (Italy and France excepted) any occurrence of the unexpected usually results (at best) in a fender bender, or (at worst) in complete remodelling of the bodywork.

Incidentally, 'motorbike madness' serves many useful purposes in Indonesia, just as in many other parts of the world. A 'sepada motor' has the following benefits:

• it is relatively cheap to own and run, compared to even the cheapest 'mobile', and is therefore an essential mode of transport for a complete cross section of society and even whole families (see above); 
• fuel for bikes is easy to come by and can be sold in bottles by small roadside traders, even in the most remote districts;
• it allows many more road users to share the bitumen, besides permitting ready motorised access down the web of alleyways and 'jalan tikus' - imagine the chaos if all the motorbikes and scooters were converted into automobiles (an environmental nightmare being currently enjoyed by China and India, as the rising middle classes trade up to four wheels to keep up with the Wongs or the Chaudarys).

'Orang Bolanda' (or foreigners, literally Dutch people, a throwback from Indo's colonial past) should beware, however, and avoid falling foul of the implicit simplicity of the car-bike tango, as executed daily on the highways and byways. Would be scooter hirers from foreign places, where road rules are obeyed, would do well to sit back for an hour or so and study how the locals do it, over a cold drink or two at a roadside cafe, before throwing a leg over a hired Honda, or taking a Vespa for a vroom around the paddy fields.  Too many 'blondies' end up in the 'rumah sakit' (hospital) through an assumption that the apparent lack of road rules equates to a lack of simpatico between road users. 

For more on this year's Indo trip, why not have a look at this buzz:

https://www.bebee.com/producer/@ken-boddie/durian-heaven-or-hell

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When not researching the weird or the wonderful, the comical or the cultured, the sinful or the serious, I chase my creative side, the results of which can be seen as selected photographs of my travels on my website at:

http://ken-boddie.squarespace.com

The author of the above, Ken Boddie, besides being a sometime poet and occasional writer, is an enthusiastic photographer, rarely leisure-travelling without his Canon, and loves to interact with other like-minded people with diverse interests.

Ken's three day work week (part time commitment) as a consulting engineer allows him to follow his photography interests, and to plan trips to an ever increasing list of countries and places of scenic beauty and cultural diversity.