MINI TOURING IN BELITUNG (PART I)

Day 1 (Oct 04, 2013)

As our airplane descended to Tanjung Pandan airport, we saw vast vegetation all over the island. Belitung was truly a "green" island, and we felt excited to explore this magnificent place popularized by the novel "Laskar Pelangi" (Rainbow Troops), which had been published in 21 countries by far.

Belitung (Billiton in English), was home to approximately 300,000 people, and was famous for "Satam" stones (Billitonites), which were pieces of meteorites falling down to earth millions of years ago, and large granite boulders, which could easily be found on beaches.

Some said that the large granite boulders were thrown out from the belly of the earth when meteors hit the ground. Some other said, that the cause was the movement of the tectonic slab. It was anyhow miraculous to see such natural wonder.

Our airplane landed at 07.50 AM, and the Event Organizer had been there to pick us up. After the cargo was complete, we went to Grand Pondok Impian hotel to put the luggages and bike boxes, and drove off to enjoy Belitung noodle soup in "Atep" restaurant.

 

The noodle was delicious and sweet, although the portion was quite small for my stomach. Luckily, I took quite heavy breakfast in Jakarta.

After the meal, we went back to assemble our bicycles. There were mostly Road Bikes, except for three people including I, who brought Mountain Bikes.

The plan that day was to ride our bikes to Tanjung Kelayang, where we would ride on a boat to sightsee several islands.

The distance between our hotel and Tanjung Kelayang was 25 km, and the road condition was so smooth that it was very enjoyable to ride. Nevertheless, it was humid and hot in the afternoon.

After reaching the place, we took lunch before riding on the boat.

The sea breeze was so soothing, and we had passed several groups of rocks including Batu Garuda, before stopping at Lengkuas Island.

 

On Lengkuas Island, there stood a 131-year-old light house. The Belitung icon that was built in the era of the Dutch colonization.

 

It was amazing to see its 322-step stairway, 18-floor steel construction. A strong building that could defy its age. We went inside the light house, and took photos.

The view at the top was mesmerizing. The sea water was so clear, and there were large granite boulders that made quite an impression.

On this trip, we also arranged a little time to snorkel. Near the Lengkuas Island, we put on our goggles and saw underwater creatures and reef.

We then headed to Kepayang Island to see the turtle conservation.

It was almost 4 PM when we went back to Tanjung Kelayang, where we took another 25-km bike ride to our hotel. Luckily, at that time the sun was already near the horizon, so that it was not as hot as before.

After having dinner in a restaurant, one of Green Fly members, Wie Wie Wen (GF 132) who happened  to spend his childhood time in Belitung, took us to a tavern which served dried squid. We enjoyed the snack with the special local sauce.

We drove back to the hotel and quickly took our rest, as the next day we would go on a 100-km bike ride that would take us across Belitung from west to east.


Written by: Chris Wibisono - GF 71

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