Konni & Matt - Perpetual Travellers: 10 Apr

Southeast Asia

Republic of Indonesia

Sumatra

Aceh

Tapaktuan

Jalan T. Ben Mahmud 17A

Hotel Metro +62656322567

Clean but overpriced twin room with good wifi reception, private bathroom, mandi and a great sea-view terrace for IDR 180,000.- or US$ 19.70 per night, including an in-depth interview by the cute, twenty something receptionist about our marital status and a sumptuous Acehnese breakfast.

Very friendly and helpful staff.

Unfortunately, still a beer-free landscape due to the strict enforcement of Sharia law.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Hotel Metro in Tapaktuan, which we would recommend, and for directions:

N 03° 15.45' E 097° 10.26'

Exploring the sleepy and rather nondescript Islamic coastal town of Tapaktuan, digging into all kinds of juicy and exotic fruits (malty sweet chikus aka sawo, succulent sweet mangos aka mangga, fresh sweet watermelons aka semangka, lemonish sweet soursop aka sirsak, nutty fresh snakefruit aka sirsak) and enjoying a most spectacular sunset over the vastness of the Indian Ocean.

Leaving Sumatra’s rugged west coast with its bazillion kilometres of deserted white sand beaches, taking the Mentari Tours +6265129263 minibus from Tapaktuan to Subulussalam (160 km, 3 ½ hours, IDR 45,000.- or US$ 4.90 per person) and thereafter the STS Simpang Tiga +6281397783431 minibus from Subulussalam to Sidikalang (70 km, 2 ¼ hours, IDR 20,000.- or US$ 2.20 per person), thus crossing the border between the Islamic, semi-autonomous but still separatist province of Aceh, Indonesia’s most northern province, and the more liberal-minded province of North Sumatra (where the boring Acehnese election posters were eventually replaced by much more cheerful Batakese billboards with mouth-watering beer ads, thank goodness).

Click below for more blog posts about delicious tropical fruits
05 Sep - 15 Sep 2011 Tanjung Karang
22 Jul - 23 Jul 2011 Kuala Rompin
03 Oct - 10 Oct 2009 Kota Kinabalu
24 Oct - 04 Dec 2008 Khao Pilai
17 Feb - 05 Mar 2008 Goa

Click below for a summary of this year's travels

2012 Map Konni & Matt

Visit the Konni & Matt Online Albums and order high-res travel photos

Konni & Matt Travel Photos