On the morning of 1st May I checked out of Radiah’s House, and found a dokar (horse and cart) to take me to Masbagik. On the way I told the driver to stop a couple of times so I could take a few photos – that’s the advantage of cheap semi-private transport!
The fact of being open, with a through-breeze, makes dokars a perfect way of travelling in the tropical heat and humidity, so long as there isn’t heavy rain…
In a village between Lendang Nanka and Masbagik there was a colourful roadside market.
My dokar, like many, was decorated with hanging ornaments which tended to get in the way of photos taken looking in front…
From Masbagik I was able to get a bemo that was heading directly to the ferry port of Lembar. It was a scenic trip through hills and rice paddies.
On the ferry back to Bali I got talking to a Danish girl called Pia. She recommended that for further exploration of Bali I should base myself in the village of Ubud and stay at some bungalows called “Widiana”. I chatted with Pia for most of the 4 hour crossing, but towards the end I was feeling very tired and rather weak, and wondered if I was going down with something. From Padang Bai (the port) Pia headed off for Denpasar, and I found a bemo that would take me to Ubud.
On arrival in Ubud, I quickly found “Widiana” and checked in to a clean simple little bungalow. Ubud looks to be a wonderfully laid back and peaceful place to rest for a day or two. Two British girls in the nearby restaurant gave me a quick orientation about things to see nearby, but before long I excused myself and headed for an early night.
I felt very feverish in the night and no better when I woke up on 2nd May. I went out briefly to the post office to check for any messages, but went back to bed and by mid afternoon found that my temperature was 40 degrees (104 F). I raised the alarm, and the son of the owner of Widiana took me to the doctor on the back of his motorbike. The doctor checked me over, I was give a broad spectrum antibiotic, and a blood test was scheduled.
On 3rd May, I felt no better, and at 8 am went to the clinic get the blood test that the doctor had ordered. I was feeling very weak by this stage and with no appetite. However in the afternoon I started sweating profusely and I noticed that my temperature was starting to come down a little. At the end of the afternoon I got a ride on the motorbike to see the doctor who said I had tested negative for malaria, but with an inconclusive result for typhus fever. He seems think there is a 50% chance I have typhus, so will continue the treatment on that assumption.