From the "Hallo Mister" to the Smartphone age
The first big voyage outside Europe in 1988/1989 took me over several months from India, through Southeast Asia to Australia. For the first time I experience Flores very close.
Whoever visited Indonesia outside of the travel centers of Jakarta or Bali at that time threw himself into unforeseeable adventures. The sparse information I have taken from the travel books of Loose and Lonely Planet. And, of course, from the encyclopaedia for all Indonesia travelers, written by Alfred Russel Wallace: "The Malay Archipelago: The land of the orang–utan, and the bird of paradise. A narrative of travel, with sketches of man and nature".
Fortunately I bought this book years ago in Singapore. So far it is an absolutely indispensable bring-along for me.
Another excellent source of information for on the road have been other backpackers who have been on the same paths as me.
Nowadays, such interpersonal conversations are no longer necessary. All the information can be beamed to our smartphones. Regarding this, Indonesia has done a great job. There are transmitter masts everywhere. Nearly area-wide reception.
The "hello mister" shouts are gone! The teenies don't notice when a "Bule" gets lost in their village. The glances are spellbound at the small screen!
What "progress"!