The clock struck 00:00 in red as I heard the wave of horns and cheers rise from the floor below and come towards me riding a wave. I could barely walk, so I was sitting in a wheelchair in the Denpasar airport waiting for an attendant to bring me back my ID card when 2015 started. “Happy New Year,” I said to him when he returned. He responded with a “yeah, happy new year,” and pushed me to the counter to pay my departure tax. I had managed to control my bowels by now, but It was still an exciting start to 2015. How did I get here? It all started a week prior.
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Sumatra and the Old Man of the Forest /
Jungle Inn sits just across the river from the Gunung Leuser National Park that rehabilitates Orangutans and reintroduces them into the wild. The Orangs that live close to the river are what they call "semi-wild", meaning they were raised by humans, but live in the wild. They are the ones the park rangers feed once a day. They forage for the rest of their food. Further into the forest the wild Orangs live. There are also Gibbons, Macaques, Thomas Monkeys, Elephants, Jungle Turtles, and many other wild animals. They all live in different habitats, but they can all be seen if you stay there long enough, and hike far enough.
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