Distance cycled: 75.1km from Jakarta to 1000m in altitude on highway 3 SE of Jakarta.
Average speed: 16.6km/h
Moving time: 4h31m
Total distance: 2350km
Border X'ings: 3
Money spent: Not much.
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Now I thought the Malaysians were friendly and giving but this one day I have cycled in Indonesia I was pampered beyond belief. Locals, left right and center with big smiles offered me their kindness refusing to let me pay for pretty much everything today, even items I didn't need.
Despite all this generosity I was certainly thrown into the shark infested deep end regarding to cycling out of the capital of the most populated island on earth. The roads were not as bad as I anticipated but the traffic... Oh my god... The traffic was relentless, at no point during the 4+ hours of cycling 75km did I get a break from honking, the road being cram-packed with all vehicles being bumper to bumper and with no indication that you have entered a new town as there was no visual gap between them. Put simply it was fucking crazy. Thanks to my bicycle being much narrower than all the other vehicles I was able to squeeze past most of the traffic on, I suppose what you call the shoulder which was a mix of broken asphalt, garbage, glass and dirt.
Essentially today's terrain profile could be described as almost an exponential curve where the road got progressively steeper as the roasting day went on but still I reached my goal of 1000m in altitude meaning tomorrow I only have to climb 500m before I can enjoy the descent over the volcano pass. Because this was the first decent climb that I have tackled since Turkey I struggled quite a lot, drippin with sweat, having a few exhaustion breaks where i was gasping to recover my breath and the agonizing pain of cramps in my legs I found some sort of resort where the security guards and the reception were kind enough to let me sleep in my tent under an unused pavilion.
Writing this now having had a quick dip in the swimming pool I am nursing several cramps in my legs and feet... I should stop smoking and eat more bananas.
On my way out of Jakarta, lots of friendly locals and busy roads
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