Palangka Raya.. part 2

Palangka Raya Trip

18-20 April 2014

Rita. Yana. Tiwi. Erni. Ambi

This is day 2 and 3.. please click here for day 1.

Today we’re going on two river cruises: one cruise is to see the orangutans at Kaja Island and another is to experience the famous kahayan river cruise.

Well, the one for Kaja Island is not exactly a cruise, it’s a boat ride.. a very-small-wooden-boat ride. It’s fun though. Especially because we could take a glimpse of orangutan.

orangutan at Pulau Kaja

Lunch at Samba, a famous local food restaurant. They serve fishes, vegetables made from young bamboo, and many more. And then we went to Jl Arut to take some pictures while waiting for the kahayan river cruise which starts at 2 pm.    

2pm. We went on board to the KM Lasang Teras Garu, which has been operating since 2009. This boat can carry up to 60 persons. We joined the 3-hour river cruise.

Hmm.. I must say that I am not recommending this cruise, just because unfortunately we went on the cruise on the same day as a group of middle-aged women whose main purpose is to sing as loud as they can... and non stop.. on a karaoke set provided in the lower deck of the boat. It was a nightmare for me. A total nightmare! Of course I went to the upper deck, but still I cannot fully enjoy the cruise with that female voice constantly haunting me. Silence! I just want silence!

I suggest you ask the operator beforehand whether there will be a bunch of people singing on the karaoke or not. You can join the cruise if u really love karaoke and very keen to sing along. Or u can opt for another cruise if u love silence (if there are other cruises).

karaoke

waiting to sing?

KM Lasang Teras Garu

The Last Day

One more river cruise.. small-wooden-boat-river-cruise to the river of sebangau. The start point is the Kereng Bangkirai pier, the one that we visited on our first day. Turns out, this river cruise is the one that I love the most. Combination of beautiful sunny day, red water (looks black but it’s actually red like tea), and the peat swamp forest creates a very unique experience.

And just before we went to the airport to catch our flight back to jakarta, we stopped by at Bukit Raya Guesthouse. A very nice place. We weren’t able to stay there during this trip. But one day, if we get the chance to come back to Palangka Raya, we’ll definitely try to stay at this place.

For Palangka Raya travel info, please click here