Flying to KLIA2

Last little bit of sightseeing in Makassar

With the 1h time difference between Ambon/Papua and Makassar, I woke up early. With two half-days in Makassar, I wanted to make the most of my sightseeing opportunities to catch sights that I didn’t get to do few years back.I was out the door soon after 0700 to go to Paotere Port. There were quite a few Makassarese or Bugis pinisis (ships) parked up with lots of activity loading and unloading. Unfortunately the sun was in the wrong place and it ruined the photo opportunity.

Even though the original people of Makassar are Makassrese, the nearby region is home to the Bugis people who are famous seafarers. They had a strong influence through the archipelago including Malaysia and Singapore. Some argue they were pirates? Bugis are famous for their big pinisis which are quite big for a traditionally built vessel. They are also very wide.

Leaving the port area, there were no taxis so I asked a motorcycle-rickshaw to take me to the main road where I could find a taxi. As we got somewhere more central, the driver spotted a taxi in the distance and gave it a chase so I could get my taxi ride back to the hotel. That’s the typical Indonesian helpfulness at no extra price. It’s common for people who are hanging around to come up and volunteer themselves with information and directions.

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Leaving Indonesia after nearly a month!

I had paid for a late check-out till 1400 for IDR40K (NZD4). That gave me plenty of time to use the internet and lie in. For lunch, I took a taxi to the Ratu Indah Mall nearby. McDonald’s beckoned and had a Big Mac, McSpicy (chicken) and an iced-coffee ice-cream float. It made up for all the healthy fish, vegetables and rice I had eaten through Papua.

With a departure for KL at 1740 and a check-out at 1400, I got to the airport with good time to spare. I used up most of my mobile internet quota updating stuff on the computer; it seems lightning fast compared to in Papua where it barely worked at times.

We boarded really early because the plane got in early; it was typical AirAsia punctuality.  The senior flight attendant announced that there was a weight/balance issue which needed 30 people from the front to be relocated to the back.  The young man confidently stood in the aisle and explained over the PA that this was caused by 2-tonnes of cargo which would be harder to relocate than moving 30 people.  I guess the ground staff didn’t quite get their loading right today!  Despite that doors closed about 20 minutes earlier but we were then held back by ATC for about 30 minutes, making a 10 minute delay.

He also explained that breaking of the fast would be announced by the crew, as it would be slightly later than Makassar time due to the west-bound flight and altitude (you can see the sun for much longer). Sure enough the Captain came back with an announcement when the sun disappeared from his view. The cabin crew on board today was an unusual mix of Malaysian x2, a Filipina and a Kazakh!

This was my first time at the new KLIA2 which replaces LCCT which was bursting a the seams.  They’re still having their teething problems it seems; luggage got to the conveyor belt about 35 minutes after arrival. Not all of it was waiting time as it is quite a long walk from the plane to the belt.  It is an impressive airport in a shopping mall but rather badly finished (eg. signage still covered with greasy palm prints and dust, paint drips). Some walkways were rather narrow as well.

I had booked a night at the Tune Hotel and they had also shifted to brand new premises next to the terminal. That would give me an economical nightstop before my flight to Kuching tomorrow to see family.