============== THINGS TO LEAVE HOME ==============

• Bulky items such as sleeping bag, air mattress.
• Jeans, dress shirt (other than flight clothing). If needed during trip, buy.
• Valuables, such as expensive watches, jewelry, camera, laptop.
• Pots, pans, stove, fuel. (Fruit is cheap, and always in season).
• Travel guides with nice photos -- just too heavy. Consider Lonely Planet digital version. Truth: I'm NOT happy with performance on a cell phone. Magnification on maps is useless. Continual crashes. SLOW. No phone numbers for guest houses???? Don't want a book to tell me where to eat; DO want to know where the guest houses are located in town, preferably on a readable map with street names!
• Water bottles -- just buy bottled water in size to fit the side pockets on your pack, and then refill.
• Deodorant, shave cream, shampoo -- use plain bar soap. Plan to shower couple times a day.

===================== VISAs ====================
Visa requirements change: Some countries offer Visa exempt stutus to travelers from select countries -- show up at the immigration booth, your passport is examined/stamped for 14 to 90 days travel -- no cost. Other countries require many details in advance such as date of arrival. Your visa will ONLY be for that (~30 day) period starting on that date! Fees also vary depending on passport country. Obtaining a visa in person at a counsulate may be the cheapest approach, but making a mistake or not bringing a required document can be costly. Finding a reliable visa agent may save you time, and in some rare cases, money too.

============= DISCUSSION and POINTERS =============
Postage rates change: Malaysia was cheapest, now most expensive. Singapore cheapest, but Thailand fastest.
Ask for better currency exchange rates for bills and (American Express) traveler's checks of larger demonination (i.e. US $50, $100).
IMPORTANT: ONLY CARRY THE MOST RECENTLY ISSUED CURRENCY!
T'was a time when flights were prohibitively expensive. Air Asia and several other airlines have changed that, if you can book your flights 4 to 6 weeks in advance. Check out cell phone app "HOPPER". But if for some reason you can not fly while island hopping in Indonesia, you will have a Pelni Experience.

============== THE PELNI EXPERIENCE ==============
Try to obtain a Pelni Schedule before arriving in Indonesia -- most helpful for long-range planning. The schedule gives sailing times for each ship, as well as interruptions for overhaul. Pelni has a web site (www.pelni.co.id) -- hopefully it will expand to show more schedule details. In general, most ships are on a 2, or 4 week schedule, then repeat. Some remote ports only see a ship every 4 weeks -- not encouraging if your Visa is only good for 30 days.
Their are six classes of Pelni offices; ranging from "Cabang A" which can sell tickets for any from/to destination, to "Cabang D" and "Sub Cabang" offices, which are highly restricted in the types of tickets sold.
If you must travel "Ekonomi Kelas", bring food for meals or buy at snack bar on top deck, back of ship. (Food is also sold by vendors plying the decks on some journeys.)  Bring ear plugs to use while sleeping (4 am call to prayer), and also while eating in snack bar (loud music). If traveling alone, make friends immediately for security reasons. You can't watch your backpack while in the bathroom, sleeping, etc. Security is the single most important reason to NOT travel "Ekonomi Kelas".

============== INTERNATIONAL FERRIES =============
The show time is several hours before departure to facilitate passport control (and customs?). My experiences were between Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. May have to surrender passport at the ferry office in town several hours before departure, but you are free to walk around town before (or after) it is returned to you. (Melaka, Tanjung Pinang, Dumai, Tawau experiences.) When boarding the ferry, just a cursory look for declarations was made, except for folks obviously carrying commercial items. On the ferry, the passports were again collected for just a short time, then returned. Upon arrival at destination, the passengers just walk off the dock -- all formalities have been completed.

==================== COSTS ====================
After paying for round trip airfare and medical necessities, my budget was $100 per week in 1999. But costs continue to rise, and were double that in 2007. If traveling as a couple, lodging costs will only be slightly less. Update 2015/16 daily costs: Street food, $5 - $7 per day. Lodging, $10 to $18. Average about $150/week, but no longer includes transportation nor admissions. Airfair is reasonable if you purchae tickets many weeks in advance.

==================== ROUTINE ==================
Upon arriving at a new destination, my first priority is lodging. Everything else is secondary. With cell phones, sometimes reservations can be made, even just one or two hours ahead of time, thereby saving a lot of meandering around checking availability. Down side to that philosophy is you don't get to examine the room before you book. Once your room is checked out, unload your pack and enjoy the new environment. One can always retrace footsteps to get a closer look at something interesting passed on the way in.

Questions? Contact me at the Juno.com address Dancer2SEAsia.