Republic of Indonesia
Sengkang
Jl. Emmi Saelan No. 8
Dirty twin room with horrible bathroom and a meagre slimmer's breakfast for two for IDR 88,000.- or US$ 9.90 per night. Bedbugs and unfriendly staff.
Click below for an interactive road map of the Hotel Al Salam II in Sengkang, which we would not recommend, and for directions:Chartering a skippered boat with outboard motor from Sengkang's town jetty, negotiating a deal with boatman Ahmed (IDR 75,000.- or US$ 8.40 for two hours) and speeding thereafter along Sungai Walanae, greeting the water-villagers in their rickety stilt houses and visiting the floating village of Salotangah in the middle of Danau Tempe, a large and very shallow lake fringed by wetlands with magnificent birdlife (spotting: pairs of common moorhens [Gallinula chloropus], white-winged Javan pond-herons [Ardeola speciosa] and long-necked great egrets [Egretta alba]).
Taking a public minibus aka mikrolet from Sengkang to Watampone (c. 80 km, 3 hours, IDR 25,000.- or US$ 2.80 per person), thereafter another mikrolet from Watampone to Bulu Kumba (c. 140 km, 5 1/2 hours, IDR 45,000.- or US$ 5.05 per person) and, finally, the third mikrolet of the day, from Bulu Kumba to Pantai Bira (c. 50 km, 2 hours, IDR 10,000.- or US$ 1.10 per person), the number one beach destination in Southern Sulawesi (admission for foreign tourists: IDR 5,000.- per person).
Click below for more blog posts about other scenic inland lakes
12 Apr - 28 Apr 2012 Tuk-Tuk (Lake Toba)
28 Jan - 05 Feb 2012 Inle Lake (Lake Inle)
18 Jun - 20 Jun 2011 Spangmik (Pangong Lake)
31 May - 07 Jun 2011 Srinagar (Dal Lake)
01 Aug - 29 Aug 2010 Toronto (Lake Ontario)
Click below for a summary of this year's travels
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| Facing Sulawesi © Konni & Matt |
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