We set off early from Labuanbajo in the back of our jeep for our journey into the heart of Flores. Our driver, Roberto, was just a tad erratic - you never knew whether the day would bring hours of crawling around at a snails pace or careering wildly around the winding roads at breakneck speeds. I think we made the right decision not to go by public bus as our rear ends and our sanity wouldn't have lasted the 4 days. Although saying that we were almost at breaking point with having to endure UB40 and Roxette day after day! Anyway we were heading for the small town of Bajawa around 7 hours away from Luanbanbajo by car. We got our first proper view of Flores as we drove and we were amazed at its natural beauty. There are dozens of volcanoes, clear unspoilt beaches, rice paddy fields, rolling hills covered by dense forest - you expected to see King Kong come stomping out of the jungle it was that wild looking! Every now and again we drove through tiny villages made up of wooden or tin huts - it was refreshing to be somewhere completely unspoilt and to see the local people going through their daily routines with no hint of being affected by the tourist trade. After stopping in Ruteng for a lunch of Nasi Goreng (fried rice with an egg on top) we hit the road once more only to be stopped shortly after by roadworks. As the traffic built up we watched an interesting display of how not to drive a large truck. The driver was trying to get past the JCB but went a little to close to the edge of the road - which dropped sharply down the hill side - and his back wheels started slipping. The JCB saved the day by pushing it back onto the road amidst the shouts of advice from the huge group of locals...the tourists kept quiet but did take photos of course! After that drama we were back on the road and finally reached Bajawa which is a little town nestled in the hills, and the huge volcano called Gunung Inerie towers over the place. We walked through the town and were greeted by lots of smiling faces and "Hello Mister/Missus". After an early night huddled under the blankets (its a lot colder this high up) we set off for the traditional Langa village a short drive away. Through the mist we could see the many traditional wood houses built around a swampy courtyard and several nghadu (carved poles supporting a thatched roof which represent the clans male ancestors and guard against sickness and preserve fertility). We were greeted by a group of local children and as you will see by the as yet uploaded pictures, clothing was optional! They were intrigued by the strange visitors to their village but keen to pose for photos. Their reactions when I showed them the image on the digital camera was lovely and resulted in lots more pictures being taken. We were invited into one of the houses and met a family - although not entirely sure which children belonged to which adult, I don't think they were that sure either! We had a coffee and looked around the house which was very basic but cosy - Changing Rooms has definitely not made it as far as Langa! We bade our farewells to the family several thousand Rupiah lighter (about 1 pound) and met up with Roberto from our onward trip to Moni.