NOTICE: has anyone seen my rental motorbike?
TRAVEL STORY: DISASTER- MISSING RENTAL MOTORBIKE!
I watched my burgeoning travel and blogging life disintegrate before my very eyes. I nearly had a heart attack as my heart thumped full steam ahead. My rental scooter was gone!
I searched up and down the street in the area I’d parked it three hours earlier. A car was now parked where I remembered parking my bike. Hmm… I searched nearby on both sides, becoming increasingly more alarmed as I scoured dozens of parked bikes ever more carefully, all to no avail.
motorbikes parked on Ubud street
Just before leaving the cafe a few minutes earlier, I’d been unable to locate my bike key in the bag pocket where I habitually stash my keys. I had not been worried at that point, though it did cross my mind that perhaps I’d left the key in the seat-release lock at the back of the bike when I strapped in my helmet. Oh, dear.
But I felt quite confident the bike would be awaiting me even if I’d made that silly blunder. I was lucky with such things. I just knew the bike would be there. Either I’d see the key dangling from the back end and reprimand myself or I would search harder through my bags to find it.
row of motorbikes
My cocky, I’m-a-very-lucky-girl attitude quickly dissolved when the bike was not there after all. As I searched longer and increasingly more carefully, I tried to remain calm and think clearly. Dozens of thoughts flooded my mind, as they do in emergencies. What would come next?
I’d have to go to the police to report the bike stolen. I realized that I did not know the license plate number or the make of the bike. Even worse, the bike registration was tucked inside the seat compartment. What a dunce!
Just yesterday I’d told myself to write down the license plate number, get a copy of the registration, and keep the original in my wallet. But I hadn’t done it. Now it was too late.
I’d have to call the bike owner and report his bike stolen. How embarrassing to confess that it had been stolen because I’d left the key in the bike for three hours!
rental motorbikes
They’d have to search for the bike. Would they? I hoped. But I might very well have to buy a new bike to replace that one. There goes all my hard-earned travel blogging money, down the drain in one fell swoop. Back to square one and $0. What would become of me? How could I keep traveling?
I made one last, very careful inspection of every bike in the vicinity, still holding out hope. But my bike was not among them. Game over. I could start ‘my new life’ as the victim of a stolen bike by telling the shop clerks where I’d parked about my predicament. Perhaps they knew what had become of it? I walked over to tell them.
Up on the sidewalk, I looked back at the bikes again. What was that? Was that my white helmet strapped to a bike? Was that my bike with the turquoise stripe? Was that the cool sticker on my bike’s dashboard? My bike! It was there!
I noticed that no key was dangling from the back, either. That meant I had the key in my bag after all.
hugging my motorbike!
“My bike,”I yelled, throwing my hands in the air. I hugged that bike. I kissed that bike. I paused to exhale and catch my breathe, while my heart gradually stopped thumping. I clutched my chest. I very nearly burst into tears I was so utterly relieved.
Everything was ok! Suddenly, my money was back in my bank account. My life-as-I-knew-it had been restored. I did not have to call the owner with a confession. Did not have to spend hours in a police station. Did not have to walk back to my guest house and ask for help. None of that messy business for me!
All I had to do was climb back on my ‘returned’ bike and resume my day, just as planned 10 minutes and one disaster ago. Amazing how vastly life can change within a few minutes.
My scooter had been turned around while I was in the cafe. I had parked it facing inward towards the sidewalk, back end at the street. Now the front of the bike was facing the road. And it was relocated about 20 ft from where I’d parked it.
Who moved my bike? That’s what had caused the collapse of my life and my near heart attack. That’s why I couldn’t find it. I’d been specifically searching for a bike facing away from the road.
Meanwhile, several shop clerks and the parking attendants were watching me with amusement. I asked who had turned my bike around. The parking attendant confessed. I pulled him over and gave him a light-hearted punch on the arm and waggled my finger at him.
back on my motorbike in Bali
But honestly, I could care less at that point. I had my bike. Life was fine. Onward ho!
A famous Mark Twain quote comes to mind:
“I’ve had thousands of problems in my life, most of which never actually happened.”
QUESTIONS:
Have you ever faced a disaster while traveling? Share your story!
Have you ever had anything stolen while traveling? What did you have to do to recover? Did you get it back?
Hi! I'm an American nomadic world traveler who's been traveling solo since 1998. I’m passionate about traveling the world nomadically and then sharing it all with you. I hope to inspire you to travel the world, to entertain you with tales from the road, and to help you reach your travel dreams. Welcome! 
25 comments
Elizabeth says:
2012/08/21 at 7:53 pm (UTC 8 )
OH MY GOD I would have flipped out!!! I do not do well in emergency circumstances ( although those people who ‘remain calm’…how???). SO GLAD you found it!
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/09/05 at 3:58 pm (UTC 8 )
Hi Kiran. Oh, boy. A ‘flipper’ eh?! Yeah, part of me was freaked out, but I’ve learned to remain calm and try to think through all the possibilities and options. When it comes to serious emergencies, though, I flip into a completely different mind set, become very focused, calm and logical. Weird, but good. :) Thanks for coming to read my ‘disaster’ ! cheers, Lash
Ayelet - All Colores says:
2012/08/22 at 12:01 am (UTC 8 )
Wow, how fortunate that this disaster only felt as if it were happening! I, too, would have hugged it after all this :)
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/08/22 at 11:35 am (UTC 8 )
Yes, I’m certainly hugely relieved that I found the bike after all! whew. Hugging is always good. :) cheers, Lash
tara armitage says:
2012/08/22 at 8:48 am (UTC 8 )
That happens all the time to me, in the area I live in Sumatra, it’s safe to leave keys in your bike, helmet unlocked, and I daily leave my shopping hanging from the bike while I go to a different shop.
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/08/22 at 11:32 am (UTC 8 )
Hi Tara… Which part happens to you all the time? Your bike is gone (someone borrowed it) or parking attendants move the bike or?
Cool to hear that it’s so safe over in sumatra! I would have thought the opposite- more theft. Everyone here in Bali keeps advising me about heavy theft in Java. Not sure if it’s valid or inter-country unfounded suspicions?
Anyhow, thanks for stopping by and for sharing your experiences. cheers, Lash
tara armitage says:
2012/08/22 at 11:18 pm (UTC 8 )
Hi, sorry, Leaving the keys in my bike part.
I can’t confirm about heavy theft in Java as I haven’t spent a great deal of time there myself, although it is the most densely populated island in Indonesia so there could be some truth in the rumors.
Jakarta is famous for pickpockets and lately there have been many instances all around Indonesia of ‘snatch and runs’ (two people on a motorcycle driving beside your motorcycle and pulling at your bag), many of the victims have been seriously injured and a few have died because the thieves tug so hard the person loses balances and crashes.
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/09/05 at 3:48 pm (UTC 8 )
Thanks for the info, Tara.
Yeah, I suspect that a lot of my friends are getting their ideas about Java from Jakarta news. I wouldn’t be surprised if the theft issues are condensed mainly in that city. I’ve been in east JAva nearly 2 weeks now. I have to say it seems very safe here. Nobody even so much as glances at my bags. :))
Tony says:
2012/08/22 at 4:16 pm (UTC 8 )
OMG, I know that exact feeling! We have the same exact same story with the exact same reaction and the exact same ending – and it all happened not far from there in Nusa Lembongan. Maybe that’s some kind of Balinese joke they play on foreigners.
Leigh says:
2012/08/23 at 12:02 am (UTC 8 )
That is such a sick feeling when you’ve lost something of great value or importance. So far when traveling I’ve been lucky though I’ve had my fair share of adrenalin surges when I’ve had to go looking for a wallet and imagined the hassle of getting everything sorted out again. What relief when it’s found! Fun photo with you and your bike.
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/08/23 at 1:39 pm (UTC 8 )
Hi Leigh,
Ah, ha! YOu can relate exactly to this incident. So amazing when it works out to NOT be a disaster after all. :))
Thanks for stopping by, as usual. cheers, Lash
Suzy says:
2012/08/27 at 9:10 am (UTC 8 )
My heart jumped for you Lash. Those moments while traveling, the second you think something terrible has occurred, are truly terrible. I’m glad you found your bike!
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/08/27 at 1:57 pm (UTC 8 )
Ah, ha! You know the feeling too! I hope you haven’t lost anything valuable during your travels, Suzy. Thanks, I’m sooo glad I found the bike!
cheers, lash
vero says:
2012/08/28 at 7:46 pm (UTC 8 )
Hey you , I remember one day in Amed, you and I on your bike, riding with you to where your work was……and having a Balinese fella coming after me cause I stole his bike according to him !!! T’was fun! Hope all is well in Lash’s world !
XO Vero
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/08/29 at 10:19 am (UTC 8 )
Hello stranger.
That’s interesting. The way I remember it, I had actually in fact, accidentally stolen the man’s bike thinking it was mine. Somehow my bike key worked onhis bike, too! I drove back, apologized, and took my bike. They were kinda pissed off and looking at me sideways. I had to apologize a lot.
Yes, all well here. And you? cheers, Lash
Wendy Chin, Langkawi says:
2012/09/03 at 11:20 pm (UTC 8 )
LOL!!! Damn funny!! Sometimes things like this happens to teach us a lesson not to be overconfident. Happens to me sometimes :P
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/09/04 at 9:40 am (UTC 8 )
Hi Wendy! Nice to see you here. :) Thanks for coming to read. Yeah, it’s good to be confident, but not over-confident.
cheers, Lash
Kevin Moore says:
2012/10/31 at 1:19 am (UTC 8 )
Wow – you look just like the lady from the first Matrix Movie, particularly in the picture “back on my motorbike in Bali”.
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/10/31 at 8:29 pm (UTC 8 )
Hi there Kevin,
Well, I”ll take that as a compliment. :))
Thanks for stopping by. cheers, Lash
Henry says:
2012/11/22 at 12:31 am (UTC 8 )
Hei, im indonesian..its in bali ??
.am i right ?
:)
Lash WorldTour says:
2012/11/22 at 10:14 am (UTC 8 )
Hi Henry,
Salamat pagi dari Bali! Ya, anda benar!
Di mana anda?
terima kasih datang ke LashWorldTour!
cheers, Lash
stephen says:
2013/01/06 at 6:45 am (UTC 8 )
I was in the Thai Airways lounge in Bangkok yesterday, returning from a 3 week holiday in Thailand.
I sat down, opened up my back pack and removed my camera and put it on the chair. Just then a waitress came by and I ordered a cup of tea and then I promptly went back into my bag to look for my camera.
First I went through the front pocket and then the middle part and then the rear compartment., but the camera wasn’t there. With frustration beginning to mount I went back into the first pocket to check more thoroughly, but the more I looked the more it began to dawn on me that I must have left it back at the apartment.
I was so careful when leaving and checking that I had everything that I couldn’t understand how this could happen. I was now beginning to swear under my breath and people around me were beginning to notice my constant rummaging in my bag.
All my photos were on the camera from the last two weeks and without them I would feel lost and it would be months before I could get access to the pictures.
Never one to give up on a situation I started taking all the items out of my bag and stacking them up alongside me on the chair, but once everything was out of my bag I new that I must have left the camera behind and mentally kicked myself for being so stupid.
I slowly began to repack my bag until everything was back inside the bag, my heart missed a beat when the last thing I picked up was the missing camera. It had been sitting alongside me all the while and I had no recollection of ever taking out of my backpack.
I know exactly how you felt when you found your motorbike and realised it wasn’t stolen, but at least you know that the problem was not of your own doing, unlike in my case. What a relief for you though.
Lash WorldTour says:
2013/01/07 at 3:23 pm (UTC 8 )
Wow, That’s quite a story, too Stephen!
I”m glad you found your camera! I guess your mind must have been really pre-occupied when you took it out and set it on the chair! That sometimes happnes to me, too. :)
Thanks for stopping by. And for sharing your story.
cheers, Lash
Cole @ FourJandals.com says:
2013/01/24 at 12:05 am (UTC 8 )
Haha we left our keys in a scooter in Tuscany. Luckily no one decided to take off on it or move it about. So relieved to see if there when we got back!
Lash WorldTour says:
2013/01/24 at 2:59 pm (UTC 8 )
Ha! so you’ve had pretty much this same experience! Scary for a minute, eh?!
Thanks for stopping by, reading and commenting.
cheers, Lash