Pandawa Tours responds

With reference to the letter from Mr. Brian Wemp (Dec. 19, 1996) entitled Trip to Krakatau, we would like to clarify the matter as follows.

We left Jakarta for Labuan in the afternoon after office hours. At 7 p.m., we had to provide dinner for our customers. During the journey, our driver, who hails from Jakarta, had to ask for directions to Labuan several times. This should not be used as a reason for making complaints.

At Labuan, they spent the night at the Carita Hotel. It took about four hours to get to Krakatau from Labuan by motorboat. It was raining hard on the way back to Labuan. The captain of the vessel had to force his way to the shore. It was here the mishap took place. The boat ran aground on the sand and was slanting. We all became panicky. The captain asked me, as a guide, to jump ashore and ask for help from the nearby fishermen. In the meantime, the captain was trying to correct the position of the boat.

However, on account of their impatience, our customers also jumped into the sea and made their way to the shore, before help came. Although it was already late at night, after a little argument, they agreed to go back to Jakarta using the minivan we had provided for them. They all thanked us because they arrived safely at Jakarta.

URIP HANDOYO

Pandawa Tour

Jakarta