Motorcycle taxis are the only way to get around (Saumlaki part 1)

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Dear E,
Most people get around this island by taking Ojek's or motorcycle taxis. Super fun! We took a taxi every time we went to the office, or anywhere really. The ride to the beach was just beautiful. long stretches of green jungle, nice views of the ocean, and some fun times navigating the bit that wasn't paved :p. Also, the car taxi we took to the airport was themed! I guess the driver really likes Tazz??


It's been a crazy week. Too much happened for one post so I'll have to write two. We got back to Ambon Monday (this) evening. I looked at the calendar today and was shocked to realize it's already February 17! This last week we were in Saumlaki, south Indonesia. It was HOT there! Oh my goodness it was like being in an oven. Everything I wore out to work or dinner I had to wash asap.

Overall, I did enjoy my time in Saumlaki. Despite spending the first two days in bed sick with a horrible sore throat, the rest of the time was quite interesting. S knows a lot of people around the little town and I got to meet a few of them. Here are a couple pictures of the town so you get a sense of it. Saumlaki has a different feel than Ambon. Ambon is bigger and louder and crazier. Saumlaki is smaller and quieter, though still chaotic. 
I've met some really cool people while here. The people S works with are really nice. Plus I got to meet a waitress friend at this cool new restaurant in town. It's a place that would easily fit in back in San Diego. It has lots of beautiful wood seating and decor, an open kitchen, and really yummy food. It's pretty much hipster, though I doubt they would describe it that way. S's friend, Jeni, is fun and bouncy and loves practicing her English. I wish I knew more Indonesian but I didn't manage to learn enough to say anything really useful. Here's us having dinner after work one evening:
The other cool friend I met is actually Chinese, born and raised in Indonesia. Her family runs a hotel and restaurant down the street from S's house. We went there twice for dinner. It not only had a really beautiful location right by the water, but the Chinese food was great. S's friend (Maggie) was a cool person to talk to. I think she's probably about my age. She is wrestling with some things that I can totally relate to right now. These are some pictures from one of our dinners there:

Sunday, we worshiped at a local protestant church. This was a weird experience. It had a good liturgy, not a great sermon, lots of groups who came up to the front to sing, and the chief of police gave a speech and sang a solo. IDK what's going on there. The people here love to sing though and they are good at it. Saturday night, I fell asleep listening to a choir practice I'm guessing in one of the neighbor's houses. They sang acapella in parts and it was beautiful. Everyone here sings.

After lunch, we rested a bit, then went to a beautiful beach and snorkeled. I got to see a clown fish family in their sea anemone home!!! It was so cool. Plus other really cool fish. I left my phone so it wouldn't get stolen so I don't have any pictures. Sorry!

Next post I'll share some of the not so glamorous stuff we dealt with in Saumlaki.



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