Our train travel out of Jakarta was so pleasant that we decided to do the same out of Batu Karas. There was a direct "Business" class train from Sidareja, about three hours away, so we shared a car there with our Dutch friends, Remi and Jacobine. We couldn't buy tickets ahead of time without paying eight times the price, but the guidebook claimed that the train was never full.

You can probably see where this is going ...the only seats left were on an Economy class train stopping at every city and town. The train pulled in absolutely chock full of people (with no one getting off), and one of the train guys started passing our bags through a chain of people into the car. We could not even see a way to board - it honestly looked like we would have to hang out of the doors. I kept saying, "It's full, there are four of us, it's not possible," but the train guy just kept repeating "it's no problem" and pushing me up into the car. It was total chaos. I glanced back at Remi and Jacobine and saw a look that just screamed, "F&%k this!!" At that point I was wedged between people with the train whistle blowing, pretty much fully committed. Shen gave our friends our phone number, we waved goodbye, and the train pulled out.

For the first half-hour, it was almost as bad as we had feared. We were squished into the aisle with our bags, with vendors constantly climbing over us to sell their fried tofu, cold drinks, ice cream, cheap necklaces, band-aids, purses, etc. etc. At every (frequent) stop, air flow would cease and the car would fill with the smell of cigarette smoke and sweat. A few people gave us dirty looks for clogging the aisle, though we could see no other option. Others just stared and giggled, mortified when we decided to stare back. Thank goodness, after half an hour some seats opened up. Once seated, we were able to order one of the lunches making the rounds - ultra-spicy tofu and vegetables wrapped in a big banana leaf. The rest of the four hour ride was no Business class, but it was manageable.

In Yogyakarta, we encountered another whole kind of chaos. In the "backpacker" neighborhood where we exited the taxi, roving bands of white people wandered door-to-door looking for a room, with touts following eagerly behind. Most of the hostels were full, so everyone looked a little panicked. I took the bags and Shen, unencumbered and light on his feet, darted through the gangs looking for an available room. With a bit of Indonesian and a bit of aggressiveness, he found us a great and very cheap room with a balcony. Yeah!!

Six hours later, while we sat by a restaurant doorway to escape the smoke, who should walk by but Jacobine and Remi! They had just arrived after a long ordeal from Sidareja. We didn't think we would ever see them again! It was nice to spend a little more time with them, especially after the crazy goodbye at the train station. After their long day from Batu Karas, and being smarter and less masochistic than we are, they immediately booked a three-day package tour for their remaining time on Java.

Well, I hadn't planned to spend a whole entry on transit, but there you go. Our transportation woes continued when we tried to buy tickets to Singapore and then to Kalimantan, but that's another story. I read a Mark Twain quote recently that is just perfect for days like this: "An adventure is something that while it's happening you wish it wasn't." If it was all surfing and diving, and no man-o'-war or economy trains, something would be missing. Or so we tell ourselves at the end of the smoky, sweaty, but endlessly interesting day.