Jonny Rides 52 Miles For Charity

Hey,

Why don't you sponsor me, I'm riding 52 miles around London in aid of Leukaemia Research on Sunday 19th July 2009.

http://original.justgiving.com/jonnyrides52

All the best JW

Semarang to Surabaya or 15 Minutes Of Fame And Champions League Heartache Part 1

Yes that’s a picture of Lyns and I in a radio station. It's called a ‘hook’ to get you interested in reading lone reader because it’s at the end of this tale and not the start.

Allow me to begin where I left of in the jungle at 5.00am.

It was an early start that saw us travel back down river on our Klotok to catch a plane back to Semerang and then a train across the north of Java to Surabaya.

There was a reason I didn’t talk about Semerang in my last post, there was nothing to say. As a very long day unfolded in Semerang it became clear that it was not my lack of investigative travel skills, to unearth the hidden gems the city had to offer, basically what looks like a shit hole normally is a shit hole.

(Apologies to the people of Semerang who I could potentially have offended with my comments. In order to set the record straight and provide fair balance to the debate upon reflection I have uploaded a series of images to flickr which can be found here in order to allow people to take a rational fact based assessment based upon the cities esthetics and cultural landmarks.)

Anyway I digress from the story at hand. The journey out of the jungle was as spectacular as the journey into the jungle. Our guide Ferri and the crew must get an honourable mention for looking after us so well on our time with them. Ferri was a real character who has lived in Pankalan Bun all his life and is studying to be a lawyer, having already tried his hand at seeking election in the regional parliament but failing I feel sure that I could have met the future president of Indonesia.

To digress slightly further Ferri and I struck up a bit of kinship during the trip he would tell me his stories and I would tell him mine. This I think was a way of understanding our cultural differences. Let me give you a small example;

Ferri; “Jonny did I tell you about when an Orangutan chased me with with a machete?”

Jonny; “No Ferri please tell me some more.”

Ferri; “A female Organgutan was watching the workmen in Camp Leakey, when they were on a break she picked up the machete and chased

me with it, copying the actions of the workmen by swinging it from side to side.”

Jonny; “Ferri that sound very dangerous you could have been killed!”

Ferri; “Yes I laugh now but at the time it was very scary!”

Jonny; “The Queen of England tried to shoot me once”

Ferri; “No way she seems like a nice old lady!”

Jonny; “I was having a picnic in her garden and she shot her gun at me through the window of the palace.”

Ferri; “I have never heard of this happening!”

Jonny; “No Ferri it is all covered up by the secret police. She has killed many people who have tried to have picnics in the palace gardens.”

Ferri; “That is horrible you could have been killed.”

Jonny; “Yes Ferri I laugh now but at the time it was very scary!”

This is a picture of Lyns, Ferri (In the reversed hat) and the rest of the crew.

Anyway after a plane ride back from Pankalan Bun we arrived in the city of Semerang to collect our main luggage before catching the 2.00pm train to Surabaya.

At the airport we were greeted by our guide Nofri. Why we needed a guide didn’t become clear until we found out that our train wouldn’t be leaving until 3.30pm. It was now a little bit before 9.00am!

Nofri has lived all her life in Semerang and was clearly on a one woman mission to turn Semerang into the cultural icon of central Java.

I have made my feelings about Semerang very clearly earlier in the post so let’s not get back into that one. I would rather highlight the main points to you.

Chinese Temple - Went to see fortune teller. Luckily by number was 13! Nofri kindly translated for me.

Nofri; “Your married life will be good, if your health has been troubling you it will get better”

All going well so far (I feel I have written those words before)

There then followed a period of silence on Nofri’s part. The fortune teller became increasingly animated and talked for around three minutes. I noticed that during this time he gave me little eye contact.

I asked Nofri what he had said; “Ah thats bit is not important to you Mr Jonny”

I feel that vital information about my future has been witheld. Perhaps information that I may some day need..

After the Chinese temple, came an old disused dutch colonial office (a bit like looking around a condemned house). Highlight was a tour of the dungeons used by the Japanese in the second world war. Had to put wellingtons on for that bit and Lyns didn’t join me. In fact neither did Nofri. Just me an a 17 year old girl with a taste for the macabre, “this is where the bodies were put Mr Jonny”.

Then we went to a shopping mall and had some ice cream (Lyns had some tea, Nofri and I had the the ice creams.)

From the shopping mall we went to the ‘historic’ train station (Sh**h*le) to catch the train.

Nofri sat chatting to Lynsey whilst I prepared for the epic train journey across Java. I had visions of Michael Palin waxing lyrical about the’ ‘sights and sound of the real Indonesia’. My heart was filled the the romance and adventure of it all.

Then Nofri piped up that the train was going to be two hours late arriving. Michael Palin never did a piece to camera in the dark. I never watched enthralled as he crossed Africa at night looking out of a window at blackness.

No wonder Nofri hadn’t translated the fortune teller. She already knew that he said, “Mr Jonny you will undertake a great journey with little to light your way. No great wisdom will come your way other than watching some Indonesian soap operas on a BRAVIA TV for five hours in the darkness.”

Gutted I shouldn’t have bought Nofri that ice cream. She wasn’t telling me the whole story.

But Surabaya did beckon and I'll tell you more about the radio interview next time.

Out Of The Jungle

Over a week has gone by and no blog entries. First of all apologies,I thought all this chat about going into the jungle was just the tourist version of the jungle (with broadband). Unfortunately not, I should have suspected something was up when the airports began to get smaller and I didn’t even take much notice when the planes got smaller. It wasn’t until we boarded our small boat (klotok) and turned left up the river that I realised, I was in the ‘freakin jungle’. (With hindsight the lack of any western faces, intense heat, huge mosquitos and panic on Lynsey’s face probably were the key signs that I was actually going to the jungle.)

‘So what’s the jungle like Jonny?’ I hear all one of you asking me. Well lone reader I have to say it wasn’t really what I was expecting.

First of all I thought it would be brimming with wildlife. In fact it’s not. It takes about a day to get into the flow of things so you can start picking out the monkeys, rare birds and other creatures that like to call the jungle home.

Secondly its very very hot. So hot in fact that you give up trying to keep the sweating thing under control, even the animals were sweating!

Thirdly any most importantly, it’s very beautiful in away I can’t really describe. It’s incredibly quiet in such away that makes any noise stand out like a bright colour on a dull day. Even though I’ve been out of the jungle for a few days I can still remember everything we did on each day we were there. I could thoroughly recommend the jungles of Kalimantan to any one who has the time and inclination to find their way there.

Of course the main reason we were Kalimantan anyway was to see the Orangutan. In case you did no the word Orangutan means ‘person of the forest’ in Indonesian. Orangutans have been identified as the second most intelligent animal on the planet after humans. They come in three different flavours, cute baby, cuddly female and shit scary male varieties. They are, as I have discovered, very difficult to photograph properly but try I did and when I’m back I’ll upload as many as possible to flickr.

Our days were spent on the Klotok boat, sailing further up river from our lodge to visit various feeding stations located 20-30mins trekking time into the jungle. The feeding stations are there as a result of the re-orientation of captured or orphaned Orangutans into the jungle in the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s by Dr Mary Galdikas and others. These Orangutans have had contact with humans and some still live in around Camp Leakey where they were originally released.

In the evenings we would return to our lodge at sunset for some Indonesian dinner before getting an early night to start the next morning. (Earliest start was 5.00am!!)

Oh! the Orangutan pictured is called ‘Sweet Po’ she is one of the ones sitting in the ‘cute baby’ classification.

Singapore Diary

Hello and greetings from Singapore. Sitting by the pool was a nice way to overcome the jet lag and I also attempted a bit of light camera lens shopping at the ‘Funan Digital Life Mall’ (Six floors of tech).

My lens shopping was a bit of an experience, check this out for a customer journey.

Jonny, “Hello I’m looking for X lens”

Shopkeeper, “Ah yes here is the discount I can give you.”

(All going well so far I think you’ll agree)

Shopkeeper, “I don’t have the lens here but I can get it from my other store.”

Jonny, “When the lens arrives can I try it on my camera?”

Shopkeeper, “No”

Jonny, “Can I not try the lens on my camera to check it is working?”

Shopkeeper, “No”

Jonny, “Can you tell me why not?”

Shopkeeper, “The lens is new and no-one gets to try new lenses, they must stay in the box.”

(I was now trying to make sure the exits were clearly visible).

Jonny, “So I can’t try before I buy?”

Shopkeeper, “All lenses must stay in BOX!”

Jonny, “OK thank you”

(I then walked around 12 yards away, tried the lens in his competitor and bought it for around £100 less)

I think the morale of this story is that one must sample life to the full before deciding it is worth living. I’m sure the shopkeeper was very disappointed when his wife gave birth and his child finally came out of the box!

Picture from the aforementioned lens coming soon.....

Welcome to Indonesia!

Actually that should be welcome to Heathrow Terminal 4. As the sun sets over sunny Staines I sit, excited, flying on the only BA flight which still leaves from T4. T4 in case you haven't been here for a bit is half closed for some sort of huge re-fit to welcome some of the airlines that are currently being denied entry into European airspace; most of which I intend to fly in the next two weeks.

Welcome team and welcome anyone else who has been let into the circle of trust that is Jonny's blog. Alternatively welcome to anyone who has searched the term 'naked girls' and 'hot' into google blogs in the hope of some 'titalation' (welcome to search engine optimisation JW style !)

I hope to excite you over the coming days with tales of adventure and some fascinating photographs of Indonesia. Last time I blogged I hit the front page of google search for 'Jonny Blog' here's hoping that some judicious use of language such as 'naked bush' will push me up there once again.

Anyway sit back and enjoy the 'ride' together with the power of Google Analytics we can be famous 'if just for one day'.

Jonny

WWF & Earth Hour

Hi,

I'm really excited to say that one of the images from the Australia Trip is being used as the main banner for a WWF Australia campaign called Earth Hour. The campaign is aimed at getting the people of Sydney to turn off their lights for one hour as a focus point to highlight global warming.

Australia is one of only two nations not to ratify the Kyoto agreement. During our stay we saw the impact of global warming as many parts of Australia endured their worst drought in living memory. Apart from the shortage of water in reservoirs many farming communities were coming to terms with a way of life that meant bankruptcy and hardship.

It's great to see WWF Australia developing such an innovative campaign and both Lyns and I support it wholeheartedly.

If you would like to learn more please click on my picture and it will re-direct you to the WWF website for this campaign.

Regards Jonny

Snow where I live!!!

Hi,

A very rare sight. There was snow where I live yesterday. Amazing how such little snow can make London grind to a halt!

Hope you enjoy the picture.

Regards Jonny

Happy New Year

A Happy New Year to everyone who's been reading the blog over the last few months.

Best Regards

Jonny

Nearly Xmas

Hi,

Mad busy at work hence no posts. Hence no one has been looking at the blog.

Went to Manchester last weekend to see the footie, Man U v Man City. Great match for a derby with some open play and a decent atmosphere. Better than West Ham today which was a total disaster.


Anyway to cheer myself up I'm posting some images to flickr from the German Market in Albert Square, Sunday morning after the game. I had a sore head after a great night out with all our friends up there. Things seemed a lot better after drinking the Irish Coffee I'm holding in the picture.



Some pictures from my work Xmas party soon.

Regards Jonny

I've added quite a few new images of the Australia trip to Flickr this morning.

Take a look

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonnyw/

Regards Jonny

Runner

Just starting to get some more images finished from Australia. I appear to have taken well over a 1000 pictures! My camera shoots in a format called RAW so I also now have a rather full hard drive with 8GB's worth of pictures just from Australia.

I have therefore invested in a great little gadget that I really recommend from Western Digital called a My Book. It's a 500GB hard drive that sits near your PC, connects via Firewire400/800 of USB2 and is roughly the size of a paper back novel. It now has a copy of all my digital photos on it just for safe keeping. At under £200 I think it's a price worth paying, I'd hate to think how I would feel if I lost them all.

Anyway must get back to uploading some more pictures to Flickr. This one was taken just before sunset at Byron Bay on the beach. I've called it 'runner'. What a way to chill out after work!

Blog you soon

Regards

Jonny

Blog On Jonny Blog On!

I'm still sorting pictures out at a frantic rate. Hopefully i'll get all them uploaded by the end of the weekend.


So to blog or not to blog?


Over 90 people have visited the site and I'm amazed! Therefore i'm going to carry on blogging! Lots of stuff to talk about and lots of pictures to share.....

The first post Australia image for most people is a boring one, 'my hits stats!'. Anyway at least i'm proud! Who knows who the 90+ people are but I thank you anyway.

Speak to you soon.

By the way Lyns has lost all interest in blogging, i'm sure she'll come round.

and

Mum if you were the one to send me the weird e.mail, not funny, even on Halloween.

Images From Australia Uploaded

Sandcastles, originally uploaded by jonny_w.

I've started uploading hi-res files from our Holiday to Flickr. Hope you enjoy.

Regards Jonny

The last week

Today is our last day in Australia. Since our last post we have covered 1,700kms (1000+ miles) mostly in pursuit of giant objects at roadside shops and restaurants. Check out the giant prawn!

After leaving Byron Bay we followed the main highway down along the coast to Coffs Harbour, from there we turned in land to the small town of Bellingen to a little guest house just outside of the town. Our guestroom was very well appointed with a range of giant spiders, which Lynsey was really pleased about. The can of knock out spray left in the room had limited effect, the copy of ‘What’s On in Bellingen’ although less spider friendly, yielded immediate results. After a nice dinner in the local pub we retired early as country folk do. During the night a large mosquito took an immediate liking to Lyns and left some lovely bites. Not nice you might say? Well yes…. but back in Sydney we found out that the large brown hairy spiders are actually friends of the country folk. Huntsman spiders are, and I quote ‘timid creatures and harmless to humans’ their staple diet being those pesky flies and other spiders that annoy humans so much. So in summary brown spiders good, black spiders bad. I also must now admit that I also killed another huntsman in the lodge we stayed at in the Hunter Valley but now spiders are my friends all that killing is behind me.

After cleaning off the copy of ‘What’s On in the Hunter Valley’ following a long drive from Bellingen, Lyns and I decided to take a balloon ride. This was our earliest start yet (3.00am !!!!). The weather unfortunately was not to kind on us and after driving around with the balloon crew for a couple of hours daylight had already broken and we finally took off with three other balloons for a fantastic flight across the valley. After a drive back to our lodge Lyns became ‘designated driver’ and we headed back out to sample the many vineyards in the valley. The problem is apart from the odd duff white all of it tasted so nice (I bought far too many bottles) correction (I bought way too many bottles even if I was to become a wholesaler of fine wine). A barbecue we cooked at the lodge did help reduce the wine lake I had purchased and subsequent tastings have helped as well. Australia will have to become part of the European Union before our flight lands though for my new ‘cellar collection’ to pass duty free laws.

And now we are back in Sydney, yesterday we were meant to go to the Blue Mountains but instead just had a walk through the parks in the city and then drove out 40kms from the centre to spend the afternoon on Palm Beach lapping up the wonderful spring sunshine that has returned to New South Wales. Today we have some shopping to do, pack and then enjoy a nice lunch somewhere overlooking the harbour.

Whale Ahoy!!

Just got back from a morning whale watching. Very enjoyable and we actually saw some whales....

We're now off down to the town of Bellingen in a guest house for a night and then on to the Hunter Valley to a lodge on top of the Barrington Ranges. Unfortunately I don't think any of these places is connected to the worldwide web via broadband yet, so radio silence probably until we arrive back in Sydney on Saturday.

Regards Jonny and Lyns

Pictures From Tallow Beach - Byron Bay

Hi All,

Great day chilling in Byron. Took a long walk down Tallow Beach at sunset pictures in the post.

Another! early start tomorrow morning with a 5.30am alarm call. We're going whale watching in the Bay. The Humpbacks are just returning with their calves from Antartica so hopefully we'll see some. I think catching them is out of the question these days... The Victorians has so much fun...

Regards Jonny

(Lyns wants no part of this post due to my 'catching a hump bank' comment)

Mini Poll Sabotage

Dear All,

I have some sad news for you all. Through some e.mail correspondance I have received on my hotmail account mailto:getjonnywhite@hotmail.com I believe that the poll might have been sabotaged!!!

Yes Yes I know it is hard to believe and saddening for everyone who has been reading the blog but it's true. I don't wish to reveal the persons identity but lets just call him Mr W from Birmingham England. He has been voting 'too geeky' on multiple PC's. Please keep voting to stop this evil online villain succeeding in his plan.

Anyway, just sat having breakfast in Byron Bay. Great hotel right in the middle of a wetland rainforest and wireless access on the veranda! Weather has not been too great. The grey clouds followed us up from Sydney and although the weather was bright and sunny in Brisbane as we drove down Highway 1 back into New South Wales the rain began. Today is far brighter so we're off to town and then one of the beaches to chill for the day.

Regards Jonny

More Images Uploaded

As promised I've uploaded some more photos from our trip. Melbourne, Yering and a few from Sydney again.

Just click on the latest image in the bog to go to my Flickr page.

From a rainy Sydney..... Jonny

Lyns Calling

It's our first wedding anniversary today (we are now officially no longer newly weds!) and had a wonderful lunch on the balcony of the world famous Doyles Seafood restaurant at Watsons Bay overlooking the city. Our day was very relaxed and chilled but - yes - yet again the 15th October was drizzly and overcast as it was last year (and yesterday hit 36 in Sydney). We are destined to be blighted with poor weather on this day every year - but it is good luck! - so we consoled ourselves with a couple of bottles of chardonnay over lunch.

from Lyns.

Hello From Melbun International Airport

After a lovely 24hrs in the Yarra valley (plenty of wine tasted!) we're back to Sydney for the rest of the weekend.

Tomorrow (Sunday) is our first wedding anniversary so we're living it up in a 5 star hotel in the harbour.

Lot's more pictures to upload and news on the crazy weather as soon as we reach Sydney.

Enjoy the weekend.... Jonny