Destination: Tanjung Pinang, Bintan

Last weekend, I decided to spend my long weekend out of Singapore - in nearby island of Bintan in Indonesia. I applied friday as offset for the vesak day holiday weeks ago.

I woke up early last friday and managed to leave home before 6 in the morning but arrived at the Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal at 9:00! The reason was that I dropped at a wrong bus stop. The lady I inquired on misunderstood my query, so I have to wait for the next bus which arrived 30 minutes later.

I took the ferry that will first to depart that day. The terminal is spankingly clean and yes there is a duty free shop too. It is the opposite of the terminal in Bintan and once you go out of the terminal it was chaotic more as there were plenty of touts from drivers to hotel personnel who will follow you around non-stop!

This is the ferry that will bring us to Bintan.

A view from afar of the Sri Bintan Pura ferry terminal at Tanjung Pinang. As Asean citizen, I don't need to secure visit visa, but the port is a visa-on-arrival port, so you any foreign visitor can still have one for a fee upon arrival.

Just outside the Port, noticed the motorcycle bikes? Called Ojek, it is the mode of transportation here aside from the white mini vans.

I did not make prior reservation for the trip as I planned it to be a free and easy tour. My plan was to explore the whole town first and proceed the next day to the beach which is around 40 kilometers from the town center.

After I arrived I immediately explore the town, and I was quite surprised to find out that is quite a progressive town. This one is their own version of the Baywalk and becomes busy from late afternoon until late in the evening as mobile food stalls were set up and become a huge hawkers center. I am not sure if this happening everyday or only on weekends.

On a typical day.

On late afternoon.

A typical street alley.

A government house I supposed.

The Raja Haji Fisabillah monument, named after a national hero.

I took my lunch in a local restaurant. The food display is arranged on top of each other forming a pyramid, a unique to the island

The food preparation is pretty much the same to any asian country yet has a very distinctive taste though a bit similar to malay food. The food cost me 31,000 rupiah! Around 4 singdollar or 135 pesos :). Take note it came with the local softdrink and a bottled water. I want to live in this island!

The malls. There are three of them, aside from the ones populated at main streets in the old commercial district. A store names are quite interesting. Armani Exchange, D & G, Fendi, you can find them there!

The one and the only one western fastfood you can find in the island, lol!

Next stop, the Trikora beach!