Last day in Pangandaran, Java, Indonesia

We rent bicycles in the morning and ride out to the bus station to find out about buses to Jakarta. There doesn’t seem to be an official office anywhere but I chat to a helpful guy who tells me the times and prices that he thinks, which is pretty much what I had been told by someone else. We ride back towards town and stop at the travel agents. I give them my old laptop, which they are delighted about. We buy our tickets for tomorrow mornings bus to Jakarta.

We ride down the eastern side of the peninsula and pass through some wonderful traditional backstreets, eventually coming out on the shore where we see more evidence of the tsunami. There is a lot of work going on to build strong see defences. We stop outside a restaurant, buy fruit from a seller and eat it overlooking the sea. After a dip in the very strong waves back at the western side of the beach, we return the bikes and take a walk. I take some photos of some of the sites that lie empty since the tsunami. Abby and I both think a lot about the people here and how their lives have been affected by this tragic event. I hope the tourists return to this area, and I hope the people here continue to rebuild their homes and business with the same spirit that we have seen.

We are sad to leave Pangandaran. Tomorrow we head to Jakarta for a single day, before flying to Malaysia.