Four weddings and a funeral

Nov 11-12 Four weddings and a funeral  - Lake Toba

The plan for today was to sleep, chill and get my onwards travel organized. Well that is easier said than done. Due to some new thing Visa is up to (f...ers) I wasn't able to use my credit card for online payments to book flights. So I asked someone here to book them for me and had to pay the fare in cash plus commission. This sounds fairly easy but I wasn't prepared and who carries millions (ah, everyone's a millionaire in Indonesia) around with them anyways. So I rented a motorcycle solely for the purpose to drive to the single ATM on the island. So hours of online research lead to a trip. I drive and drive and drive through some backroads. It's all very scenic and I make a quick stop at some tourist sight 'The Stone Chair of King Siallagan'. I don't quite get what it is about but still decline the guided tour (even at 50% discount). I am not in the mood for taking in information right now.

It's a few houses and some stone chairs, church and whatever else. I am so uninspired just thinking of the flights and money. The weather is amazing but my mood is sour. I guess you can't have a good day every day. And yes, more surprises to come. When I finally make it to the bank, the ATM is out of order. I manage to get the info, that it will be working again in an hour or so, they are fixing and restocking money. I really do hope so. So I set off to explore more of Ambarita and Pulau Samosir. The landscape is stunning, there are buffaloes grazing, churches and burial grounds, richly decorated all over and breathtaking views over both, the mountains in the middle of the island as well as the lake all around it. It is a sight to behold but I am still not in the enjoyment mode. After driving along for several km it starts to look similar and I do turn. What is nice though that I managed to drive by a whole of 3 weddings. Seems 11^th November 2011 has got it's charms even here. People are beautifully dressed and there are gigantic flower ornaments everywhere. The celebrations are on empty fields, spilling on to the road with announcements made, songs sung and happy people that drop in and out. Seems many people are attending more than one wedding today.

On the way I run into a South African who has in fact been to four weddings today, and a funeral. He felt very much like the partycrasher, but the Batak being who they are invited him in on every occasion. Four weddings and a funeral. Busy day.

I am just glad that when I do get back to the bank that the ATM is working and I can draw some millions (sounds cool to be saying that). Mission accomplished, now back to Tuk Tuk. But today is not my day and it starts to pour rain on my way back. But I do run into the French girl I met the first night AND three of the Penang/Pulau Weh group. Seems they have split up and they made their way to Lake Toba yesterday. Asia is just too small to hide. Funny who you all run into. I head back to not get totally soaked and indulge in some expensive beer. After that day I totally do deserve that.

Hanging out with Philip, an American and some Dutch I met here. It's a chilled evening and a chilled next day. Bit more walking through Tuk Tuk, windowshopping, swimming and eating.

Packing again, it's gonna be another long travel day tomorrow and.... drumroll please. After traveling through more than 30 countries I have never crossed the equator before. I always stayed in the Northern Hemisphere. My flight from Medan to Jakarta tomorrow will bring me across that line for the very first time. Took some time but yes it's happening. Another travel first for me!