On the road into Medan we had a flat tire. We got lucky and pulled over at a random tire repair "tempel ban" within a block of realizing our problem. The tire was switched for the spare within about 15 minutes. How shockingly efficient. With all the surrounding chaos I would have guessed the flat would have set us back for much longer. We were safely returned to the hotel Medan within 4 hours of leaving Langsa. Upon driving up the hotel driveway we were stopped and a mirror was placed under the car to check for explosives. On the way into the hotel we were put through a metal detector and our luggage was scanned. That gave me a good sense of the life situation in "modern" Indonesia. Above is a photo of the common Indonesian tuktuk. Some have sun coverings, all are brightly painted, motorized, and have side cars — they remind me of the psychedelic 60s.

It's now been 36 hours since I left Aceh. I must admit to being very happy to be out of Indonesia. As I said before the people we met were very generous, kind, helpful and supportive of our work. To that end I am thankful. However, heading toward the developed world feels very welcomed and satisfying. My bath at the Singapore Meridian was one of the best I've ever had. And I have to stress again how wonderful the Singapore airport is, it has everything a weary traveler needs. There are english speaking information counters, comfortable lounges, worldly food, endless shopping, clean bathrooms, children's play areas, working escalators and travellators (what they call the moving walkway). I'm so impressed with Singapore's cleanliness, efficiency, and organization. Though after Indonesia, almost anywhere in the world would be an improvement. I still have a few hours to go before arriving in Seoul. Then a long weekend to rest and sight see. There's a good chance I'll be able to move my return up by a day or two. That will be a wonderful reward.

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