On my way to do some research for the next travel novel

It was high time to do some research for my next travel novel. And so, I'm in Dubai where I have 5 hours to kill… But well, I remember when on my way to Laos I got stuck at the airport in Moscow for more or less 5 hrs (and was sick at time – which made the whole experience really far from being pleasant). Dubai is a different cup of tea. I know the airport, I like the airport. And I feel good. I always have my coffee here at Costa near the smoking zone ;) where I can also use the internet. It’s a modern, friendly airport with a lot of things to do and places to chill after / before the flight. So, I’m not complaining, I’m just saying that 5 hours is a bit too much for a layover.

Anyhow, did I mention at all where I’m heading this time? Well, I've found a cheap ticket to Jakarta, from where I intend to explore the islands of Indonesia. However, I have no intention of going to Bali or Komodo. I don’t want to hang out in those touristy places. To see the ‘Komodo dragon’ and to explore some caves I’ll go to Flores I guess, I also intend to visit Sulawesi and then maybe even head to Papua. We'll see. 

Anyways, after my Borneo trip I promised myself to do some reading before I go on my next trip, to maybe book a place to stay for the first night etc. But I didn’t manage. I had so much work and other stuff to do before my trip that I actually have no idea on where to go or what to see. I mean, I do have an overall idea about Indonesia - the biggest Muslim country in the world, hundreds of islands, the ‘hobbit’ from Flores, terrorism, volcanoes and earthquakes. That’s all pretty much. Oh, and I’ve learned by flipping through the Lonely Planet that in some regions there are… rats on the menu. Challenge accepted ;) But seriously, it sounds like something I’d like to try. I ate spiders and other insects, and crocodile and snake, drank cobra blood, but I’ve never eaten a rat.

As one needs to have priorities, I don’t know where to go once I get to Jakarta, but I do know that I wanna eat a rat and I did prepare a soundtrack. There are some Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin, there’s some Bob Marley (and Ziggy Marley in fact), Beck (the album ‘Guero’), a few relatively new bands which I discovered lately, like the Wombats - fine tunes which go well with travel adventures. Last but not least, there is also Soundcity on my iPod. The soundtrack I mean. Did you see the movie? It’s a documentary directed by Dave Grohl about… well, about music. To be more specific, about the history (the rise and fall) of the recording studio SoundCity. The movie shows how the music and the recording have evolved over the years and there are amazing songs on the soundtrack, played by some of the best musicians. One word: awesome.

Well, in the meantime I still have 4 hours at the Dubai airport...