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Time Out
GETTING TO CENTRAL SULAWESIâS TOGEAN ISLANDS TAKES A LOT OF TIME, BUT ONCE YOU GET THERE, TIME IS THE LAST THING ON YOUR MIND
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ETTING TO CENTRAL SULAWESI'S TOGEAN ISLANDS TAKES A LOT OF TIME, BUT ONCE YOU GET THERE, TIME IS THE LAST THING ON YOUR MIND.
The Plan: To visit the Togean Islands, in Central Sulawesi, as a birthday present to myself.
The Destination: Waleakodi Island, a 6-hour trip from Ampana to Waleakodi via the island of Malenge.
The Trip: Well, not quite what I had expected.
THE FIRST DAY '¦
08:00 Oops. I missed my boat to Malenge yesterday. There's no boat to Malenge today, but there is a boat to Dolong, which is actually closer to my destination ' all good! On the advice of the ticket seller, I buy the ticket to Dolong (Rp 70,000) with the plan of persuading the captain to drop me off in Milok, where five other tourists are also headed and which is the nearest island to Waleakodi on this day's itinerary.
09:00 The boat sets sail. It is full of tourists ' foreign and Indonesian ' and it's tough just finding a place to stand. Overloaded as it is, the boat takes its own sweet time moving through the water.
14:00 Phew. We have finally reached the first stop of Kadidiri. People are busy disembarking, so I seize my change and approach the captain, asking him to drop us off in Milok. Of course, he says no, and only the promise of an extra Rp 100,000 from each tourist gets him to change his mind. Not a chance of us paying him before he drops us off, mind you.
19:00 We've made a few more stops. The captain asks me ' as the only Indonesian in the group, I am the unofficial spokesperson for the Milok contingent ' if we still really want to go there. Sensing he's about to renege, I instruct my notso- merry band of tourists to hand him half the additional fare. It seems he is upping the price '¦ Hungry and tired, we aren't in a position to argue and agree to give him extra 'cigarette money'.
22:00 Finally, we arrive at Milok after what was not the most enjoyable 13 hours of my life ' and I'm still not at Sifa Cottage, the accommodation I've booked. Milok is a small village and people are already holed up in their homes. I knock on the closest door to the jetty in search of someone to take us to Sifa Cottage. We are ready to pay any price to get there. It takes some bartering, but soon two canoes are ready to transfer us.
22:40 We arrive, and for the record, I do not recommend canoe as a means of transport. The trip was about the longest 20 minutes of my life; we had to sit really still, or end up drenched. I am relieved when Sifa, a native of Malenge Island and owner of the cottages, greets us. Dinner time is long past, but she kindly instructs her staff to serve us whatever is left in the kitchen. Our hunger sated, we tumble into bed.
THE NEXT DAY '¦
Morning. Something o'clock. I wake up to the chirping of birds. I open the door of my wooden bungalow, and blink in the bright sunlight at the gorgeous turquoise waters before me. I walk barefoot to the jetty and feel the previous day's ' indeed, weeks' ' travails melt away. Late afternoon. Whatever time the sky turns orange. I hang out on the jetty with snacks and a cold beer. Ah yes, that's why I made that nightmare journey yesterday '¦ was it only yesterday?
ANOTHER DAY '¦
Time? No idea. I do nothing much at all. Sifa and her staff treat guests like family. It's nice to know that they aren't all about getting money from us. I learn that when Sifa returns from her daily trips to the market in Malenge with something for guests, especially children.
SOME OTHER DAYS '¦
Time? What's that? Did some snorkeling. Maybe I'll do some diving one of these days. Time? Who cares? I wander to the nearby village of Pulau Papan, over the long winding wooden bridge that connects two islands. Time? I don't even know what day it is, let alone the hour. I take a day trip to the recently discovered lake full of stingless jellyfish near Katupat Island.
MY LAST DAY '¦
09:00: Sifa takes me to Dolong and walks me to the ferry. She helps me pick the best seat and waits with me until the boat leaves. Ah well, time has caught up with me again, but at least I managed to escape it for a few days there. That alone is worth a repeat journey to this timeless piece of paradise.
Enigmatic Islands
Island Info
The Togeans, also spelled Togians, are a group of 60 ecologically rich islands. In 2004, they were designated a national park, spanning 292,000 hectares of sea and 70,000 hectares of land.
Accommodation
Sifa Cottage (www.waleakodi.com) on Waleakodi Island. Rates, including all meals, start at Rp 125,000 per person, depending on the bungalow: standard with shared bathroom outside; exclusive with en suite bathroom; and luxury bungalow with Western toilet and shower.
Getting There
The easiest way to get to Waleakodi is to take the Tuna Tomini ferry from Gorontalo to Dolong; the ferry runs every Tuesday and Friday. From Dolong, Sifa Cottage will pick you up and take you to the resort. Alternatively, Cengkih Apo runs ferries from Dolong to Bumbulan, a small town about 3 hours from Gorontalo, every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. Transfers from any harbor to/from Sifa Cottage are free.
