Surfing West Java

There are lots of tourist attractions on Java Island, Indonesia’s most densely populated island, but I only came here to learn how to surf.

The travel guide book recommends a couple of beaches in West Java for surfing, so that is where I wentafter touching down in Jakarta a week and a half ago. I endured a noisy, rocking night bus ride to the beaches and where I met a teacher who offered to give me a ride to the hotels. The unwritten part of the deal was that I go to his school and meet his class and practice English with them. Not the easiest thing to do on almost no sleep, but rewarding all the same.

The beach I stayed at is called Pangandaran. Each night there were beautiful sunset surf sessions that I took part in. I stayed in Pangandaran for 5 days, surfing 4 of them.

On my rest day I took a stroll through the national park where monkeys and deer roam.

I also took out a scooter and drove it through the countryside to a quiet spot in the jungle where I went swimming beside some small waterfalls. There was a swarm of photographers taking pictures of a girl dressed up like an Indian, so I took my best paparazzi shot.

After four days of surfing at Pangandaran I was ready for a change of scenery, so I took a bus about an hour up the coast line to another surf spot called Batu Karas. I am very glad I did, because Batu Karas turns out to be the perfect spot for beginners. While the waves at Pangandaran are hard to paddle out to, inconsistent, and very tiring, Batu Karas is the opposite. The waves keep rolling in all day long, and the breaks are a nice consistent size and shape.

Everybody rocks longboards at Batu Karas and are very friendly and welcoming (even when I accidentally cut them off). By my last day surfing, I could catch the waves and ride them all the way in to shore. It was a ton of fun!

Now I’m in the airport in Jakarta again waiting for a flight to Indonesia’s larger but more remote island to the north-west called Sumatra. I can’t wait to see more of Indonesia.