Lessons from Talaud, North Sulawesi, Indonesia

This article in Indonesian language was written to be submitted in a contest called Get Stranded sponsored by Telkomsel. It didn't win, but I'm happy with this piece, so I decided to post it here :) 
In brief, this post is about being 'stranded' in Talaud Island, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. I wasn't stranded for real, but Talaud is a remote island that I could relate some experiences with being stranded. 

“Hei, Kak, ambil ini ikannya, buat kamu. Ya, ambil saja..,” seru seorang wanita kepada beberapa orang yang hilir mudik di depannya. Ia berdiri di samping kantung-kantung plastik biru yang masing-masing berisi empat ekor ikan tude, siap untuk dibagi-bagikan.

FRIENDLY HABIT - A NOTE FROM SULAWESI TRIP

I just got back from my 17-day Sulawesi trip 11 days ago. Overall, it was one of the best trips I’ve had so far. Many of the places I went to were amazing, some turned out to be lower than what I’d expected. But for me personally, the most highlight of this trip was that I (along with my travel mates Mumun & Reno) mingled with other travelers as well.

lunch at Karebosi, Makassar
with Jaap and Marlies from Holland

I don’t know why, but this was actually the first time I talked quite a lot to travelers other than my own group. In my trip to Vietnam and Cambodia last year (with Mumun & Renny) actually we met a lot of travelers as well, but somehow we preferred to keep conversations only among ourselves. Like, I would hesitate to start a conversations with others, afraid that they’d feel bothered, with a thought in mind that westerners in general are more private people.