Hi Jiri
Glad to hear that the shipping and customs went OK have fun in Indonesia Skip (Pete)

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Do the best you can with what you have,
A stranger in a strange land now heading North South East West to.....

Today I collected my bike in Malaysia and have passed on the info to a few friends on the road behind me. Much of the info is already here on the HUBB but I've added a few GPS co-ordinates, suggestions for some cheaper accomodation in Medan and the (in)famous Mr Monte's telephone number.

Here's how it went...

(Addresses and GPS at foot of page.)

INDONESIA

Firstly, let me say that I didn't feel entirely comfortable with the whole Indonesian end right from the beginning. I went along with it purely on the experiences of others (as posted on the HUBB).
It went like this:
In Belawan I rode through the dock gates, past ships on my left and on to the passenger ferry terminal at the end. Here the road bends tightly to the right and on the right hand side you'll see motorbikes parked outsidee the 'Food Centre' or 'Food Court'. This is where I asked for 'Mr Monte'. Immediately a guy jumped up and said "Yes,yes. I khow Mr Monte. In Belawan, follow me". He and a policeman jumped in a taxi van and I followed them into town. The driver went off to phone Mr Monte whilst I waited in a cafe(?) with the policeman. A message came back saying he would arrive in one hour.
Two hours later he still hadn't arrived. It was Friday 3rd October,the day after the 'Idul Vittri' two day national holiday following Ramadan.
One of the guys in the cafe phoned Mr Monte and between them they decided I should stay in a hotel and Mr Monte would come in the morning. I asked if Customs would be open and the general consensus was no. Realising my concern, Mr Monte was called again but I couldn't understand him over the phone. Just as it looked like I'd have to spend the night he turned up.
He said there was no regular ship crossing to Penang but one left most weeks. A phonecall confirmed that a timber ship was leaving on the Sunday evening. Another phonecall confirmed a price of 1.2million Rupiah - for 'Everything'. I choked at this and said previous travellers had paid 850k. He made another call and the price was reduced to 1.1million. Final offer - take it or leave it. His reasoning for the high price was the holiday.
NB - 'Everything' does NOT include the Transport cost. This can only be paid in Malaysia.
Once I'd agreed another call was made and I had to deliver my bike immediately to the warehouse within the port as the guys there were ready to lock up. Iunloaded what kit I wanted to keep and handed over 1.1million to the guy in the warehouse (as instructed by Mr Monte who was with me). I was given a lift back to the cafe where I had to wait until 1700 (2hrs) before we could go to Customs. At 1700 the guy from the warehouse arrived and took me to Customs. The boss spoke pretty good English and completed my Carnet in a matter of seconds. He then said "Indonesian Customs very easy. Stamp, stamp. Very quick. No money". It was then that I realised the price was a scam as I'd been told it included 550k for Customs. I asked the boss why warehouse man was charging 550k for Customs and a rapid conversation in Indonesian took place. I didn't push the subject as I needed my bike to be on that ship so never got a straight answer.
Back at the cafe I gave warehouse man a copy of my passport and that was it. Mr Monte put me on the right local bus to Medan and told the driver to drop me at The Angel Hotel (my choice). I paid 10k.
Once I'd checked in I phoned Mr Monte to confirm where I was staying and he said he would come in the morning with my bill of lading. This he did and it was then that my suspicion was proved right. The 1.1million did NOT include his 'tip'. I gave him 150k. On the back of the Bill of Lading was typed an address for an agent in Penang.
I asked everyone I met in Sumatra about where to stay in Medan and the general concensus was that the Angel Pondok Wisata was the best of the budget options. They have one TINY room for 35k that would be OK for one night but I had to wait 4 for a ferry so got the next size up for 60k. The hotel is opposite the Mastjik Bakery (Lonely Planet). You could probably park your bike here but not inside. Had I needed to stay in Medan with my bike I would have headed for JJ's Guesthouse near the airport. Quite hard to find so look at the maps on their website.
The ferry to Penang took 5.5hrs and cost 420k including the bus transfer from Medan. I'm told that outside of holiday periods the plane isn't much more so may be a consideration.

MALAYSIA

In Penang I am staying at SD Guesthouse on Love Lane. This is where I stayed last year, there's free internet, hot shower and I can park my bike inside. Single (Fan) RM18. Double RM25.
The address I'd been given for the agent turned out to be a n Indian restaurant! Whilst looking for it I'd seen the office's of Cakra Shipping so went there to ask. There I met Mr Lim who was most helpful. He told me I didn't need an agent to get my bike from the docks and took me on his motorbike to the new offices of Sinaran Idaman Enterprise. Here he stayed with me until I'd been given the paperwork I would need at the docks and paid the 'Transport' fee of RM310.
It was too late to go to the docks this day so the following morning I caught the ferry to Butterworth (Docks are on the mainland) and walked to 'Bangar Dalam Port'.
Directions - Exit the ferry terminal down the escalator and walk to the end of the covered walkway. To your right you will see containers stacked up. The port is behind them. Follow the road towards them and you'll pass a steam locomotive where the road bends to the left. Follow it to the 'T' junction and turn right. Walk approx 500m and you'll pass the Post depot. Turn right and walk over the flyover and you'll see the port offices on your left with 'Pedang Port' in big letters above glass doors.
Through the doors, turn right and explain to anyone what you've come to do. The relevant person will then send somone to measure your bike before they can calculate the port charges. Mine were RM26.85.
Step outside, turn left, and walk to the port gates where you exchange your passport for a visitors badge. Walk through the gates and keep walking straight. The building you will (most likely) need is right on the waters edge. The location (Lokasi) is on the paperwork provided by the agent in Penang. Mine was W3 and I could see this painted on the warehouse. My bike was parked at the foot of the stairsand after looking her over I went upstairs to the office where they checked my identity (Drivers Licence) and prnted the release document.
I rode my bike to the port gates and presented my Carnet to Customs. They sent me to their other office which is on the first floor of the port building I paid the port fees in. For some reason it took 40mins to get the Carnet completed. They also gave me a photocopy of the 'Import' slip to give to the Customs office at the gate.
The Customs office at te gate gave me the paperwork I needed to present at the police check (adjacent to customs at the port gate) and leave the port. In all, a little time consuming but very friendly and no hassle. Tip - take a bottle of water, the only drinks macine there was broken.
Once outside the gates, don't forget to return your visitos badge and reclaim your passport. Standing with your back to the port gates you'll see the roadsigns for the ferry. It's RM2 back to Penang.

Total shipping cost for bike was approx GBP120 (U$215)

Good luck! - Adam (</title> <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> <html> <head> <title>YourTravelJournal.com)

GPS & Addresses:

Mr Monte Tel: 0812 6499 3576

Medan: The Angel Pondok Wisata
Opposite Mastjik Bakery
N 03 34.480
E 098 41.291

JJ Guesthouse - : GUESTHOUSE JJ MEDAN :

Penang: SD Guesthouse
Love Lane
N 05 25.178
E 098 20.264

Correct address for Sinaran Idaman Enterprise is:
No72, First Floor, Church St
10200 Penang
N 05 25.121
E 100 20.406

Please advise Mr Monte of this if you deal with him.

Cakra Shipping:
No187, 2nd Floor, Beach St
10300 Penang
N 05 24.857
E 100 20.277

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Thanks Adam for that detailed info.

Q: Sinaran Idaman Enterprise was the name of your shipping co.?

Using GoogleEarth this must be close to JJ guest house in Medan:
N3 34.310 E98 40.303

Cheers,
Peter.

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Cheers,
Peter.

Europe to NZ 2006-10

Hi Peter,

I hope this answers your question(s)?

Q: Sinaran Idaman Enterprise was the name of your shipping co.?

A: Not exactly! I didn't have any dealings with a shipping agent in Belawan. Only Mr Monte, the warehouse guy and Customs. I asked Mr Monte for a contact address in Penang and he gave me Sinaran Idaman Enterprise. I've just double checked the co-ordinates on my GPS and they are correct. Their office is in Penang, a short walk from SD Guesthouse.

Using GoogleEarth this must be close to JJ guest house in Medan:
N3 34.310 E98 40.303

A: No. It is in Georgetown, Penang.


Cheers

Adam

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ShortWayRound - OTR RTW since 2006

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Thanks for the clarification, Adam.

I'm sorry, I didn't express myself properly. What I meant by:

> Using GoogleEarth this must be close to JJ guest house in Medan:
N3 34.310 E98 40.303

is that these coordinates must be pretty close to JJGH. Nothing to do with the agent we were talking about. I added these coordinates for the benefit of those who might want to stay at JJ.

Cheers,
Peter.

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Cheers,
Peter.

Europe to NZ 2006-10

You walked to the port from the ferry terminal?
We tried but failed, caught a taxi.

Glad things worked out for you.

Indeed its hard to get clear answers in Indonesia, but really there isnt much you can do.
I hazard a guess the fees we have all paid are going to different pockets than we expect.
I found Monte a reasonable and friendly guy though.

In Malaysia as I sure youve discovered, things re easier and more straight forward.
We will be back in Penang in a few days, staying at Star Lodge on Muntri Street no doubt. Lets meet up.
Skip, Claudio, Ruth! You still in Malaysia?

N+A

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Round the world on a Postie bike, 2-up
Bilingual Blog (japanese and English)
http://faster-than-walking.com

Anyone in KL? Sorry to hijack this thread....
Im really bored..... plan to quit my job, start my own business & Travel!
Love to meet up up with you fella bikers out there!
And yes I must say Mr Lim is our top bloke. planning to ride to Indonesia next year.

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G'day Aussie Nat!

When I got off the ferry in Butterworth a taxi driver asked me where I wanted to go. I showed him the name of the port and he pointed towards the containers and said 'behind there'. I think he was looking for a longer fare.

Mr Monte was an OK guy. Did what he said he would, when he said he would, for the price he said he would. You can't ask more than that.

Anyway, I'll be in Penang until at least Wednesday so meeting up sounds good. I'm in SD Guesthouse on Love Lane.

Be good to see Claudio and Ruth again to but I'm guessing they're long gone by now.

See you soon

Adam

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Hey Guys....I reckon now a few of us have shipped Belawan to Penang that its reliable easy and possible without a fixer.

Spanglers account is spot on and you could do it this way.

My experience was different cause i was taken to the shipping agent in Belawan by a kind stranger and now believe you DON'T need a fixer...Just the HUBB. The agent might want you to use one of his 'friends' but you really dont need any help.

How to do it!!

As you ride from Medan to Belawan you will come to a T junction as you arrive in the chaotic town of Belawan. Here you will need to ask for directions to the shipping agent PT Melda Jaya on Jalan Bangka which is off to the right and is near a Mosque (the road has got a small signpost).
Little english is spoken but they know why you are there and will tell you when the next ship sails and when the cutoff is for loading. They will create a Bill of Lading and you will pay the transport cost in Penang. Ask them what number warehouse you have to take the bike. This was the bit i didnt like cause you just leave your bike outside an office and walk away.

Customs is FREE dont pay.To find the customs house head toward the ferry terminal and take the last right hand turn before the main entrance gate of the port. 150m down the road on the right is the customs building with a security guard at the entrance. Go round the back to the far entrance and up some stairs to the customs office.

You now take the bike to the warehouse and thats it...easy hey????

Because Belawan isnt a great town and neither are the hotels, i took a bus back to my cheap hotel in Medan had a night out and then flew to Penang with Lion Air for $60 us......ive heard the ferries no fun!!!

On the Penang side everything went smoothly thanks to Spanglers post...the price for the shipping and port charges were the same.

Hope this helps and look fwd to an update.....

Later Tim

Tim
Glad it worked out for you.

Can you just confirm how much it cost you in total?
Rp on the Indo side
and
RM on the Malaysian side.

I just want to cry over how much I let slip through my hands.

The Ferry Belawan to Penang was fine for us.

N+A

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Round the world on a Postie bike, 2-up
Bilingual Blog (japanese and English)
http://faster-than-walking.com

Just some advise for you guys. You don't need Pak Monte! Bikes in Belawan will be in warehouse 108 and you can get them out in less than 3 hrs and for a fraction of the cost. 1 million rup for 2 big bikes Africa Twin and R1200GS!

I just say watch the drivers (or should I sat Sepeda motor riders in Sumatra) Very easy to get hit!!!

Cheers

Shipping costs...Belawan to Penang..Suzuki DR650

Mr Sanam (fixer).....Rp 600,000...money for nothing???

Penang Agent......Ringit 310....shipping costs.

Butterwort port....Ringit 26.85..port charges

Lion Air Flight....US 60...a little more than the ferry but you can stay in Medan and its only 15 mins to the airport.

Hi there,
just a short report of our shipping. We followed Spanglers post (thanks Adam) and used Tim's shipper (thanks Tim). After we arrived at the harbour and Mr Monte (I think it was him) wanted to stop us and started to talk to us. We answered politely that we already have everything we needed and left to the company Tim had mentioned. Anja went in and first talked to the ladies but then to Mr Sanam who had been called.
And that's the thing - another couple went in with a translater but they also called this Mr Sanam for fixing everything. The price depends on your skills in bargaining (Anja's really great). So I think it's difficult to get it done without a fixer, not because of the paperwork or whatever, it's just that they call this guy and he's the one you are talking to.
Cheers Holger

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That's very good! So, I just go to the shipping agent in Belawan and get the delivery order? Anything else wee need? We are about to ship.

Thanks,
Peter & Su.

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Cheers,
Peter.

Europe to NZ 2006-10

Another Q: is it safe to leave bags on the bike or do we need to remove anything that's not padlocked? I don't think we will be able to carry all our stuff onto the ferry, it's just too much.

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Cheers,
Peter.

Europe to NZ 2006-10