This is the story of Deb’s and my six-million-dollar speedboat ride and one-and-a -half-million-dollar tip. When we booked our trip to the Raja Ampat of Indonesian New Guinea ten months in advance, we were warned to be flexible. That was good advice. Between January and October, our international airline tickets got canceled, forcing me to rebook them, and later our domestic Indonesian airline tickets were changed to the point that I had to cancel and rebook them too.
The first part of our adventure was ten days sailing on The Katharina, and after that we had five days at the tiny, two-cabin, Raja Ampat Eco Lodge on the island of Waigeo. A few weeks before leaving the United States, I rechecked everything and was shocked to learn that the ferry schedule between Waigeo and the town of Sorong on the island of New Guinea had changed. They had eliminated the Tuesday morning ferry we were depending on to get us to Sorong, where we would catch a domestic flight to Jakarta, and then continue home via All Nippon Airways and United Airlines. If we missed our flight out of Sorong, the rest would go down like dominos, resulting in having to rebook every flight.
Learning that, I emailed Adecya at the Raja Ampat Eco Lodge, and she said if we wanted to spend six million dollars, she could arrange with the Olin Dive Center for a speedboat ride. Was she joking? I went online and converted Indonesian dollars—called rupees—to American dollars. What a deal! The ride would only cost $370.00 U.S.
I then contacted the dive center to confirm the ride and a transfer from the port of Sorong to the airport. I tried to pay in advance, but the owner said it wasn’t necessary.
Fast forward to the morning of our departure. The dive center was roughly ten miles down the coast, and they were to pick us up at the Raja Ampat Eco Lodge dock at 6:00 a.m. Would they show up on time, or was this another “prepare to be flexible” situation?
They arrived at 5:58 a.m. In the speedboat were two men and a woman. One man piloted the boat and the other stood at the bow, watching for large waves and water hazards. I wasn’t sure about the woman, and when she moved to the back, I assumed she was a girlfriend of one of the men.
From there we headed on a jarring, two-hour, 47-mile-long speedboat ride across open ocean to Sorong. The skill of the men was amazing. The man in the front would give the driver hand signals to let him know what was ahead. Sometimes it was to avoid big waves; other times it was to abruptly stop and lift the engines to avoid barely visible rafts of vegetation or floating logs.
When we arrived at the port of Sorong there were no open spaces at the dock. So what did we do? We double parked! One of the men found the owner of a boat, who allowed us to tie up to the far side of his boat. To reach the dock, we had to climb off our boat and then climb through another person’s boat!
The Olin Dive Center had assured us that we could pay with a credit card, and I also hoped to pay the tip that way too (tips aren’t expected in Indonesia but are appreciated). From the dock at the port of Sorong, the dive center promised to have a taxi prearranged to take us to the airport. I didn’t know how much the taxi would cost, so I had saved a wad of Indonesian rupees.
It was then that Deb and I learned why the woman was along. She was in charge of the mobile credit card machine, and she would also ride with us in the taxi to make sure we reached the airport without incident.
Leaving the two men with the boat, we proceeded to the airport. Because the taxi driver didn’t speak English, the woman interpreted for me when I asked how much the ride would cost. “One hundred thousand,” she replied.
I handed the driver the bills and looked at what we had left. We had plenty to tip the woman and the two men for their services in cash, something I knew they’d appreciate more than a credit card.
Deb counted out one-and-a-half million rupees (most of what we had left), and I handed them to the woman, saying, “This is for you to split three ways with the men.” Because of language differences, I restated my words to make sure she understood.
Later, I thought, “I hope she pays the men on the speedboat. Nothing would stop her from pocketing the money and claiming we didn’t tip.”
My worries were unnecessary. Not only are Indonesians some of the nicest people I’ve ever met (see yesterday’s post on that subject), but honesty is one of their traits too.
The next day I received a WhatsApp message from the woman with the above, hilarious picture of her and the men in the speedboat holding the tip we gave them.
What an inspiring way to end an amazing trip!