Another weird lesson learned abroad

There is an interesting phenomenon that occurs when you travel alone in a country where you look completely different from the local population. While in nations that are used to tourists, this doesn't seem to have any effect. In places where the sight of you is still quite foreign, though, interesting things can happen. While visiting the port city of Ende on the island of Flores in Indonesia, I found myself in an interesting situation as the only non-Indonesia on the main street.

I didn't really plan for my laptop to die, my ATM card to disappear and for my camera to be stolen in a string of five days, but the fact is, it happened. Having a second card to take out cash, as a writer, my first priority was procuring a new device to type words for people to read. While the laptop that died was a Macbook (Sure, it may have been six-years-old...), my budget would only allow for me to get a much more affordable Acer. I was told by a local that I could find laptops for sale on Kelimutu Street, just a bit away from my hotel. This is where the fun began.

After handing out high fives like hotcakes to interested locals on the way to the store, I was told that there was not credit card machine, so I’d have to pull money from the ATM. This isn't a hard task except that the ATM was directly next to the school letting out. With white faces being an anomaly, I was barraged with school children shouting any English they knew, and following my every move. While I normally love the attention, having literally 40-50 kids watch me at the ATM didn't seem like a fun activity. I already felt weird making purchases with locals watching, let alone a big one like this. I decided to cut my losses and wait until the crowd dispersed to pull money.

While lessons come in many forms while traveling, I didn't think I would be learning how it feels to be famous. I’ll never judge a celebrity again for flipping the bird while trying to shop.

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