We get dropped off by Justine and our driver at the airport. They have looked after us for the past week and have been a great team. We give them their tips and say our goodbyes, but not before exchanging contact info.
There are two flights to get to Maumere. As we get checked in I receive my first message advising me of a big quake and checking to see if I was alright. I end up sending out some quick preemptive notices to family and then board the flight.
The two flights to Maumere on the island of Flores were uneventful. The fight was via a regional carrier NAM air and baggage was included. My bag weighs in at 15 kg; Judith’s is 18kg but I think all that extra weight is all in the luggage itself. I can’t speak for what Judith did on those flights, but I know I spent almost of it napping.
Judith’s bag was the very last piece to come off the plane. We now think there’s a meal and a baggage conspiracy against her.
We met up with our tour guide, Ben, and our driver, who were waiting with a sign with my name only. That’s the first (or maybe second) time that’s ever happened in the four trips we’ve done together. Our luggage was piled into a black Toyota Innova and we set off.
It’s been a day of slight drizzle throughout most of the day. We’re driven directly to the hotel, a short trip from the airport to chill for the rest of the day.
Balcony off our room.
We check in and proceed to have lunch. The lunch took a long time to arrive for both of us, but mine still came before hers. We weren’t in a hurry, so just chilled until the meal arrived. After we ate, the waitress indicated we needed to cover the bill. Our meals today were supposed to be covered. It thought it was a communication problem, but Judith went up to the front desk to check. Meanwhile, the bill was presented and I signed it to the room. That’s normally what happens when the meal is included in the stay.
Lunch view.
After lunch, I took advantage of the free Wifi and down time to catch up on emails and work on a blog post. I sat by the infinity pool overlooking the ocean. There were few people there as it was too cold to even consider swimming. Everyone else must have been just chilling in their rooms. I would have made some inroads in getting caught up in my blogs, but I must have been pretty tired and more napping was what I did most of that afternoon. I think Judith did the same thing, but she was in the room.
Pool side and ocean view.
The hotel is nice enough except that our room wasn’t so clean. Judith used a complementary toothbrush to clean the sink. And the mothballs placed against the walls by our beds and in the bathroom were too offensive for my friend’s olfactory limits. She located the offending balls, sealed them in a ziplock bag and put them in the garbage.
We connect again for dinner. This time the dinner was also slow, and there seemed to be muffled arguments underway every time the waitress went into the kitchen. But Judith’s dinner arrives before mine. The spell is broken.
Tomorrow is a late start. We need to be ready at 8:00, but given how slow the restaurant has been, we decide to wake up 30 minutes earlier than normal.
No comments:
Post a Comment