Location: Banjarmasin
As we awoke on the Banto River, we sat and ate our breakfast to the sounds of local fishing boats chugging along the river and a mosque on the river bank playing the call to prayer over the loudspeaker. We finished our meal and continued to do our daily jobs, and then we did a boat appreciation. Everyone was very eager to go ashore and explore the amazing cultures of Kalimantan, Borneo, so the BA did not last long. Two of our shipmates and a staff member went upriver to provision for the boat and were helped by a local school teacher. We were brought into the school, got to meet the school children, and performed a rendition of “I’m a Little Tea Pot” for them. The rest of us hailed a water taxi and made our way upriver. The ride was amazing. Driving past all the houses on the riverside up on stilts and seeing people swimming in the brackish brown water. We made it to the main city. All explored for an hour or so in the rain. We all were amazed at the culture of these people. Could not wait to go to the market in the morning.