First trip in ten years – to Batam

This was one of the most fruitful activities after the conclusion of my exams. Due to many factors, I had not stepped out of this tiny island – including the neighboring countries – in ten years. Hence, I was pretty nervous yet excited at the same time. To add on, it was also my first time going overseas with my friends. =D (How pathetic when I am already 22 this year but have not tried so many things when most of my friends already did! The worse is, I am a curious person who yearns to learn as much as possible)

First of all, I was glad to receive my passport in about seven working days especially when my first photo submission was a failure and the trip was about three weeks away from the day which I applied for my passport online. As a result of that and the fact that I am a muddle-headed person in nature, I had already predicted that something (bad) would happen to me. True enough, it did. = /

My friend used my old passport number (which was using my NRIC number then) to apply for the trip, hence it did not tally with the passport number printed on my boarding pass. Before some argue that it is common sense to check it, I must emphasize that it was my first trip and my boarding pass was being requested (by the staff) to be printed again after I collected my first one. Only when we were a step away from the ferry, then the officer told me that I could not board the ferry due to the mistake. My friends and I were shocked about it. The worse was, a customer service officer blamed us for the mistake! Ha. What a joke! *roll eyes*. Not only that, she sounded very unhelpful and even said that we could only board the ferry at 12.10 pm (NOTE: our departure time was 9.20 am) WITHOUT checking it properly for us. Did she even know how worried we were especially when we were on a tour? Luckily, her colleagues were MUCH nicer and helpful by helping us to check it and ensure that we could board the ferry as it was delayed anyway. So, my friends and I and along with another stranger were being escorted to the boarding point. The whole thing took about ten minutes which could seriously scare the hell out of me.

I must say that Batam is in every way so different from our country! There are many things which we must be thankful for:

1. Toilet - yes, the most basic facility in here. Over there, we flushed the toilet manually by pouring water into the toilet bowl after we have done with our “business”. I am very particular about using a clean toilet so it was a little tough for me, hence I only used its toilet ONCE for the whole trip. = x In addition, please do not expect any toilet paper to be provided.
2. The whole process was so slow that………….(okay, I shall not indicate how we managed it just in case I offended anyone).
3. The houses were very run-down and so close to the other houses. In addition, it was so small that many people would have to squeeze in a small house. So, obviously, there is no storage area for their stuff. (Something which I have been wondering about – how adults make their babies when their kids sleep in the same room? =x)
4. I think there is no proper traffic system. A narrow road could be a two-way traffic so it is pretty dangerous to cross the road. To add on, the tour guide told us that the drivers would not stop for us to cross the road too.
5. There are more motorcycles than cars on the road. Not only that, a motorcycle could have 3-4 people riding on it. How skillful!
6. People are allowed to smoke in the shopping malls which include the restaurants. This is totally unacceptable to me. = /
7. They only earn $100 + (in our currency) in a month. Of course, some earn lesser than that.
8. It was challenging for us to spend over there because the items are calculated in tens or hundreds thousands of dollars. For us, the items are very affordable. Even so, this posed a problem to us when we had our dinner. The total bill added up to – erm, either $400, 000 + or $4M. We actually emptied our pockets but were still short of $10, 000 +. Hahaha. So, the guys had to find the money changer shop to change the currency. To add on to our anxiety, we must board the bus on time otherwise we must cab to the ferry point by ourselves. (NOTE: We were usually the last group to board the bus for most of the stops. =x) The point is, I am glad that our currency is very strong, hence calculation has been very simple for us!

It surely was an eye-opening trip for me especially when I read some books on third world countries, hence it was like a dream for me to visit these places. I am thankful for this chance and of course, not forgetting the wonderful group of people. =) Oh ya, I loved the ferry rides too! =D