In the morning we want to leave Dili but the road is blocked because there is a mountain bike race going on. We wait since this is the only way to Baucau, our next destination. After an hour of waiting we can finally leave. The road first follows the coastline for a long time. The sea and the beaches offer a nice view but you immediately see that it is not ideal for swimming due to the coral. Then we drive inland where it’s very dry but is invigorated by the many animals that walk around: cows, goats, pigs and dogs.

A Beautiful Coastline

The people here seem to be a lot less friendly, they don’t give a welcoming feeling. In the late afternoon we reach Baucau, the second largest city of East Timor. The city is not really nice, a few shops and a single restaurant. We drive down to the beach of Baucau since we had read on the internet that there is a 'beachfront' bungalow. On the way down, we are approached by a Portuguese who recommends us a homestay on the beach. We take look at the homestay but the man is really crazy: he asks 40 euro for a room with just a bed and a fan. The toilet and shower are located outside and are very dirty. We go to the other hotel and here we get a bungalow for 24 euro, which is really too much in Asia but apparently ok for East-Timor. It is a simple but nice bungalow with beautiful sea view. The best part is that there is only one bungalow which gives us the feeling of being all alone.

Our Bungalow at Baucau Beach

The next morning, Kevin goes to get breakfast at the owners home, who live a bit further. After breakfast we will have to find an ATM or a money changer. There is only one bank in Baucau but you can’t withdrawal money with foreign cards. We go inside the bank to ask to change some money. The commission is so high that we refuse to exchange the money. With about 40 dollars in our pockets we decide to see how far we get. We drive to Com but again it’s expensive to get a room. We decide to camp somewhere so we drive to Lospalos, a place you should definitely have seen, we know from hearsay. Lospalos is really nothing more than a street with some derelict buildings. We drive further to the beach, where we want to set up our tent somewhere. From here the roads are very poor, repeatedly clashing the belly of the motorcycle.

On the Road in East-Timor

The beach is disappointing, it is not possible to swim due to the coral. Again there is no store or restaurant to be found in the village. We want to continue following the coast but end up in the jungle. We want to drive to the next town on our map but we hardly make any progress: we have to cross several rivers, the road usually consists of boulders and there are many big puddles on the road. It is getting dark but we are only 4 km away from the village when... the road is blocked by trees chopped down which is clearly done on purpose.

End of the Road

It is too late to return to the previous village but not so long ago we saw some huts in the middle of the jungle. We hope to set up our tent there. We drive up to the cottages and there are two old people present. They don’t understand a word of English but they understand we need a place to sleep. The old man offers us a hut: a platform on stilts with a roof. The man brings mats, a blanket and coffee before he goes to sleep. When we turn off the light to go to sleep, we hear many sounds around us. Apparently, there is a huge pig snoring and below the platform are a few dogs. And then we see it, the shelter cabin is full of mice! After a terrible night the old man brings us some coffee and boiled eggs for breakfast. Afterwards we want to leave and decide to give the man some money for the coffee and the eggs. The man takes the money but keeps asking for more. We are very disappointed, we only asked to set up our tent, the rest was out of kindness, we thought. We have had it with East-Timor, since day one we didn’t feel comfortable in this country. We go back to Dili where we want to prepare Mickey for shipping. We want to go back to Indonesia as soon as possible until our bike has arrived in Australia.

Tombstone Along the Way

Animals in East-Timor

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