My arrival in Sulawesi assured me that I was back in the third world….more chaos, more people yelling “hello mister” everywhere I went, and ultimately, more culture and craziness.  I arrived in Ujung Pandang, a huge sprawling port city at the southern tip of Sulawesi.   The city is a bit hectic and dirty, and it takes copious amounts of patience and courage not to flip out at the number of people who just yell out “hello mister” until you respond.  Acting deaf does not work. They are really on to that one!!!

Anyway, it took some adjusting, but it was nice to be speaking Indonesian again and to stop the heavy bleeding my wallet had taken in Singapore.   I caught a few of the sites and ate along “the longest dining strip in Sulawesi, Indonesia or maybe the world” -  It depends who you ask.  I managed to go out one night and had a fun time mixing it up with the locals and dancing to a local band that actually did a good job covering various types of music. 

My first excursion took me to Bira, a small fishing village about 5 hours away. I has some nice beaches and is very laid back.  I hadn’t been to the beach in what seemed like forever, and knew it might be another week or two.  I couldn't take a chance on a messy withdrawal, so off i went.   I needed my fix!!   It was a beautiful little town, although basically deserted while I was there.  The water was amazing, crystal clear and full of fish.  I spent a couple of days relaxing exploring the area and doing lots of swimming.   It was brutally hot during the day and the limestone surface in most areas cooked me like dinner. 

In some of the nearby villages they specialize in making wooden boats and large ships.  They come in basically all shapes and sizes and are truly amazing.  they are all built by hand, with a bare minimum of power tools.   It takes forever to complete one, but they are gorgeous when finished.  A number of foreigners were there having boats built.  It is supposedly one of the few places in the world where they still build wood ships and they have their own unique look and style which sets them apart.  I would have loved to work on one of them. Alas, it was too damn hot!  Maybe when I retire?!?!