Bintan, Indonesia

Last weekend, continuing birthday week/month, I hopped a ferry to Indonesia. I went from the island of Singapore, to the nearby island of Bintan, Indonesia. Bintan is a quick and cheap holiday getaway. After a two and-a-half hour ferry ride, and $10 USD at the other end, you have yourself a visa and entrance into a whole ‘nother country! I booked a package that included round trip ferry, ground transportation, a one night-stay at a beach side resort, and breakfast, lunch and dinner, included. As soon as I stepped through customs, a nice woman approaches and says, “Stephanie?” Come with me. And my Bintan adventure began.

There was a long van ride to the resort, which I enjoyed immensely. As the resort is on the other side of the island, I got a tour of Bintan through the back seat of this van. It felt like a cross between Cambodia and Palua Ubin—much less developed then Singapore, but slightly more advanced then the Cambodian country-side. Every so often there’s be a random big estate thrown in, which didn’t fit in with the rest of the ambiance.

The resort I went to was called Agro Beach Resort and Spa. Upon arrival, they give you a glass of orange juice and a receptionist personally escorts you to your room. My room was surprisingly nice. I had my own private patio, which extended onto the beach, and overlooked the pier. It was low tide so there wasn’t much water, though I was boggled by the fact that in a matter of hours, the boats went from being stuck in the sand to floating on water. (I mean, I went into dinner and when I came back, water had suddenly appeared!)

After arriving, I went straight to lunch. The dining room overlooked the beach as well, and playing in the background, I kid you not, was the theme song from The Godfather! I was surprised at the amount/quality of food I got for free! There was fish ball soup (which is big in Singapore, but I never tried it until Indonesia); chicken nuggets; and a plate of fish in lemon sauce, white rice and fried egg. It came with both an iced tea and fresh watermelon juice.

I spent the next few hours sitting on my patio writing my screenplay. Isn’t that every writer’s dream? To sit quietly by the beach and write your screenplay? (Admittedly, if I were there more than a few days, I probably would be bored of that lifestyle…but you get my drift.)

I then went to the spa to get a Traditional Javanese Aromatherapy Body Treatment (according to the brochure, this means jaquzi, boreh scrub, body massage and bath). While it was nice, and the atmosphere was relaxing, it was really quite silly. They spend a half an hour rubbing your body in this disgusting goo. I guess it’s supposed to be cleansing, but I felt gross. Then you have to take a shower to wash it off. That’s when I noticed it looked like my body was covered in dirt. Maneuvering in the shower isn’t the easiest thing either, cause you have to hold the shower head with one hand and the scrub with the other.

Then came the full body massage, which was nice, but not spectacular. I got a much better message for $7 in that sketchy place in Cambodia.

Then they draw you a bath. I couldn’t help but laugh when I looked into the tub: I was stepping into what looked like a bathtub soaked in blood. (Now the Godfather music at lunch was starting to make sense) A blood bath?! It looked like a horror movie! (Either that or a Giantess going through her cycle…) But kidding aside, it was some kind of fragrant oil, that just so happened to be the color of blood… Once over the whole Psycho aspect of it, it was really quite nice. But then after ten minutes of soaking, you shower again. (Get rid of the evidence, you know.) But seriously, another shower was a bit overkill at this point. I was over the whole water thing.

After my two-hour spa experience, I headed to dinner. For a mere $2, I got upgraded to the “fancy” dining room. This was a restaurant on the pier…on stilts, I think they call those structures kampong in Malay. The meal was amazing. It was a five-course meal! Soup (chicken corn)—de-licious! And then rice with three dishes: sweet/sour mix with pineapple, chicken, onions, peppers; mixed veggies with shrimp; prawns with chili peppers and sautéed onions; for dessert: a large plate of watermelon and pineapple, probably the freshest, sweetest fruit I’ve ever tasted! I read “The Importance of Being Ernest” as I dined.

The next day I woke up to have my free breakfast—like the two meals that proceeded it, this was both filling and tasty. Buffet style—there was chicken curry and a bunch of other unidentifiable dishes (I’m still not sure what distinguishes this from lunch…) and of course, my favorite was the make-your-own Kaya Toast station! After breakfast, I went back to my patio and wrote more of my screenplay. I read some August Wilson and put on my bathing suit, lounged on the beach reading Barthes’ “A Lover’s Discourse” and then took a quick dip in the pool. (It’s crazy to think that I’m swimming after my birthday in November!) I went back to the spa for foot reflexology. For this, they put you on a lounge chair outside on the beach. The woman who massaged me this time was named Zarah. She was very friendly, spoke very little English, but enjoyed trying. She told me that she was 28 and married, with one kid (after of course, asking me if I was married. hahBintan.

I returned on a ferry that afternoon. It was pouring. I don’t just mean “raindrops keep falling on my head.” It’s monsoon season. This was heavy-duty rain. Like I’ve said before, rain: It’s inevitable.

Once back on the island of Singapore, I was ready to start my week again: I was rested, I was relaxed, and I was ready to go!