Kilometers Cycled Today: 73 km
Semerang to Jepara
The Final Leg.
We were accompanied by approximately 50 antique bike enthusiasts dressed in traditional Javanese clothing. I never knew how popular old Dutch bikes are in Indonesia.
After these easy-going cyclists said goodbye we were joined by a whole other sort of cyclist - the aggressive touring and mountain biking cyclist. I now understand why touring appeals to the ambitious young corporate professional: it's high-speed; there's potential for injury; fear only lets others cut in; it's all about pushing the others out as part of the activity; and when one is pushed back it's hard to blame anything other than one's own timidity. On the other side of this, those guys seemed to enjoy the hell out of themselves - ribbing each other, constantly telling others to stay in formation, and laughing when a fellow team member was shaken by a pothole.
Arrival! Thanks, Smiles, and Tears!
Nice one girls!
Awards and dinner at the Jepara Keraton (Palace).
Support Team Expose.
Pictured below is Pak Asep "proposing" to Lucy. Pak Asep was a driver of one of the support vehicles. He tried to teach me Sundanese but with little success. There are 3 people I can't believe I have no picture of. One is Mas Wang, the craziest Indonesian man I've yet to meet. I will forever say, "go-od" instead of "good" because of him. He was the man who fed us, took care of my bike while I was away (even washed it) and helped me find a room when I was displaced. The other two are Hendrik (or Kah Hendrik) and the very quiet camera man.Below is a video of the music at the dinner and awards ceremony. I hope you can hear it, it's a traditional Javanese style that sounds kind of cool.
April 19th, 2011
Days Left to Journey: 40 Days
Training Kilometers Cycled: 635 km
If you've followed the kilometers, they don't quite add up somehow - I know, the math is wrong somewhere.
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