Ujung Genteng Journal

My trip to Ujung Genteng begins early morning August 8. With my two friends (Mona and Fir), we wake up at 4.30 and after some problems with the ordering of the cab, we are off from Mona's house. All of us must be in the meeting point in West Jakarta at exactly 6 AM. Three mini buses await on the side of the road. I wonder why there are only the small version of buses (later I know why. UGH!) We are in bus number 2.

At 9 AM, we make our first stop at the gas station in Cibadak. What long queu we create!!! People are ready with their tissue paper and their long pants rolled up to their calves. No wonder because the trip from SUKABUMI to SURADE (the nearest town to Ujung Genteng is 180 km). 3 more hours to the next toilet!!!

We are blessed that the weather at that time is nice, sunny but not too hot. Lunch is at 12 in the middle of the tea plantation. It is not as green as I expected, though. I don't know exactly where it is but we take some pics there. Well, I take some people's pics. :P No toilets there, so we have to take the leak somewhere in the bushes where no one could see us. A natural toilet! And lunch is also done standing up since there is only a hut and no chairs. Lunch consists of rice, fried chicken and sweetened soybean cake. This is truly an 'economical' kind of trip. :)

The road after the tea plantation is full of turns, all sorts of ups and downs. Sometimes the driver has to make a 180 degree turn on a steep hill without any bridge or corner mirrors. The road can only accommodate 2 cars and it barely fits for a mini bus and a truck (that unfortunately is often found on our way). Now I know why we are put in a mini bus. A full-size bus just won't fit in the road!!! Thank God I sit at the back! The idea of 'meeting' a vehicle with equal size in that small road and watching the driver rolling the wheeldrive to the left and to the right within 10 seconds is too much to take. Even for someone who drives like a mikrolet driver. :r

Though the roads are driving all of us crazy, we try to make ourselves comfortable and happy. Eating whatever we bring is one of them. I mean, what else besides talking and eating to kill time on a small bus cruising down that small road right? :D

On the way, we stop at CIKASO waterfalls. To reach the place, we have to take short trip by small raft with motor. It is unfortunate that the water volume is not that much. But we try to have fun anyways. :D Continuing our trip to the inn, we find that the road is then divided into two, one is going straight leads us to Pelabuhan Ratu and the other one is going to Amanda Ratu and Ujung Genteng, our destination.

Before we reach SURADE, no one expect any bad news would come. Apparently, the driver of OUR bus (why does it have to be OURS?Well, I guess we just are plain 'lucky' to be the chosen one. ARGH!) broke the shock absorbant and he needs to have it fixed ASAP so we all could go back home the next 2 days. So? What happen then? After a short 'communal discussion', it is decided that all passengers of bus 2 (that's our bus number, remember?) must be separated into two and some continue the journey on bus 1 and the others on bus 3. I am lucky enough to be able to sit (not stand up like many of my bus-mates) for the next 1 hour trip. Yes, from SURADE to Ujung Genteng, we need to grin and bear the crowded atmosphere of the bus for another 22 km.

We finally arrive at the inn at 4.30 PM, just in time to clean up and to go to the toilet before reaching for our cameras and ready to take some pics of the legendary sunsets.

Do we sleep after dinner? Weeeelllll..... :)