In the morning we work a bit on our blog and by noon we leave for Ruteng where we have an appointment with Marcus and co. The main road in Flores is in a good condition and where this is not the case, they are working on it. The road is very curvy so it takes some time to get to Ruteng, but the beautiful scenery and the waving people make up for this. A major problem in Flores are the petrol stations, there are only a few and the ones that are there, are full of people waiting in line.
We have to wait at least half an hour for our turn.

Waiting at the Petrol Station

The road winds inland through the mountains and occasionally we drive on a plateau where it’s greener and cooler. Like everywhere in Indonesia we see lots of paddy fields, but in Flores they have one that surely stands out from the rest. It has even become a tourist destination due to the structure of the field, which looks very much like a spider web.

Spider Web Rice Field

After five hours we arrive in Ruteng and look for the hotel of the family. We immediately see that this hotel is not within our budget and decide to look for something else. On the street we are approached by some students who want to help us find a hotel. Kevin takes one of them on the back of the bike and Kitty walks with the rest of the group. It immediately becomes clear that we get less value for our money here, although the room is clean. After we are installed in the room, we call Marcus and we enjoy a nice dinner at a local restaurant together. After dinner we have a beer together in the garden of the hotel. Then it's time to say goodbye and return to our hotel.
We go to bed quickly because we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow.

Discovering the Beauty of Flores

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