Let’s Go Bali… We landed in Bali after what was a very long few days of travel- most of which was accumulated when our plane was delayed seven and a half hours in Columbo, Sri Lanka on our way back from the Maldives. We had met a girl named Jenn from Calgary who is travelling on her own for 6 weeks and had just left Thailand as well. She’s fast become our travel companion for this leg of the journey and we’ve enjoyed the company!
As soon as we’d left the airport and cleared customs we all piled into a taxi bound for Kuta which is the main beach area of Bali in search of a reasonable hotel. Luckily our cab driver brought us right to a cute little place with a large garden courtyard and a terrace in front of each of the rooms- which we made full use of during our stay! We dropped off our bags to start exploring the town. First stop was Top Shop… there is a proper shopping mall on the main street in front of the beach- which indicates the level of tourism here in Bali- but me being me… a Top Shop is always a welcomed discovery! There is just about everything you can imagine here in Bali- from the street vendors to the high end designer shops to Starbucks and Burger King yet somehow the island still maintains its charm- but we’ve attributed that mostly to the people who are warm and genuinely welcoming.
Checking out the beach gave us a little surprise at first as we realized that the path doubled as a cemetery and then lead to what was at the time a very dirty beach. We later realized that while the beach isn’t the best we’ve ever seen, it was only dirty because we had just missed a storm that had washed garbage and other debris ashore which was quickly cleaned up. We did however meet the cutest puppy to date… we’ve named him Bruno and have paid many a visit to him and even taking him for walks and bringing him food. The locals have offered him to us permanently a few times and while we considered it momentarily, sadly the logistics seem a bit much.
That night we sat on the porch of our room and drank some much needed wine (a rare and expensive commodity in Asia). Before we knew it we were quite happy and hitting the town, grabbing additional beverages from the local convenience stores and making friends with a few of the local tourism information guys. Before we knew it we had a full day excursion for the following day booked and a return boat transfer to the Gili Islands just off of Lombok in 2 days. Luckily for us it couldn’t have worked out better.
The next day we were picked up bright and early for our full day tour and while it started off quite sketchy with a very strange and hard to follow play that we suspect depicted a religious or possibly mythological Balinese tale. I actually dozed off for a bit but was awaken to multiple phallic references and gestures all before 9 a.m.! Following that interesting experience we had a jam-packed day of great experiences including a silver factory where we saw all the jewellery being made by hand and were then lead into an amazing store where everything was on display to be sold. Some of the pieces were truly amazing and very unique. We had our eye on a few items which might warrant another trip before we leave Bali.
After the jewellery factory we headed to a spring water temple, had lunch looking out over an amazing volcano, and marvelled at a spectacular rice terrace, before heading to the coffee farm and home of the most expensive coffee in the world. Luwak coffee has a rather unique method to attaining its high quality- the process entails a Luwak (A large rat-looking type animal with fur) who picks only the finest coffee berries to eat (as opposed to them being hand-picked by humans who grab all the berries from each plant) the coffee then undergoes a fermentation process while being digested by the Luwak before exiting fully intact. The beans are then washed and hand roasted and ready for brewing. Sounds delightful!
The farm itself was quite nice but provided Stijn with a particularly interesting photo op and sent me running… as we came around the corner of one the trails to the coffee sampling areas where the Luwaks are kept and samples of the various coffee and teas are served, there was a cage containing the most hideous and rather large fruit bat which was somewhat okay until I was informed that the bat that was now just behind me was on the wrong side of the cage. I’m fairly certain the whole farm heard me scream and ate my dust as I took off while Stijn got as close as possible to take pictures and even touched it! After that we made our way to the shop where we purchased the very special coffee for $25 for a 60g jar… it had better be really good... we plan on testing out in the full luxury of our camper van when we get to Europe!
Next up was the monkey forest and for me this was equally as terrifying as the Bat! The male monkeys were extremely aggressive and as soon as Stijn entered with his bananas (me having learnt my lesson at the Monkey temple in India) the target was quite literally on his back! He had the pleasure of trying to feed one monkey while having another large male jump on his back and try and shake the bananas loose only after being attacked so aggressively he nearly surrendered his entire bunch only a few steps into the forest- not that I blame him- you can imagine I was quite far from the 'action' by this time! The forest itself was beautiful and had a temple with a stream running through it all of which combined to make a fairy-tale ambience. It seemed like a rain forest sprung out in the middle of the town and we were instantly transported into a magical place… or at least I thought so when the monkeys weren’t around!
After a few stops at some amazing furniture stores we made it back to our hotel around after 7 p.m. and once again hit our porch for some more wine. The next day we slept in and slowly made our way to Starbucks after some more window shopping and further exploration of our temporary home. We eventually made our way to the beach and were delighted to find the sun waiting for us. The waves were massive and made for quite a fun time. Jenn and I had troubles keeping our bikini’s on with the force of the waves but it proved to be great for body surfing and boogy boarding. We must have created quite the scene as Stijn had to ward off local teenage boys with cameras as we got out of the water. We had grandiose ideas of surfing but after feeling the strength of the waves we thought better of it. Tomorrow we head to the Gili Islands located just north of Lombok. We’re hoping for more sun and even more waves… there is supposed to be great snorkelling, surfing and diving on each of the three Gili islands so we’ll start at the largest and go from there.
Let’s Go Gili Islands… Our boat transfer was early the next morning and before we knew it we were on the biggest of the three tiny islands. We were greeted by a number of locals offering rides in pony-drawn carriages (as no motorized vehicles are permitted on any of the islands) and a variety of accommodation. One local boy brought us to a number of villas before we found one that we would make our home for the next week or so. Our hut is quite basic but not short on charm complete with outdoor bathroom, free breakfast and right on the beach- all for $150,000 Indonesian Rupias or about $18 per night.
We spent our first few days getting acquainted with the island and taking in the amazing snorkelling that is quite literally right out front of our hotel. To-date we`ve found a number of sea-turtles and an amazing variety of colourful fish. The second night we managed to find a beach bar with reasonably priced cocktails (the accommodation is cheap but a lot of the food and drink isn`t) and stayed for a number of drinks before stumbling into a Reggae bar with an amazing local band that pulled us in for a few more drinks and a full night of dancing which lead to us inviting ourselves for a quick dip in the pool at the expensive resort a few feet down from our not so expensive hotel! We had a really great spontaneously fun night full of island charm!
The next morning we were committed to our hunt for more turtles and regardless of hangover we managed to make it out before 9 a.m and our mission proved to be a successful one. It was so amazing to see a turtle in the wild- they are such beautiful yet prehistoric animals and the first one we saw was kind enough to put on a show for us including completing an ascention for air which provided particularly good photo ops. We all tried to get closer to him but the currant was very strong and we were swimming against it. Regardless, Stijn got some great pictures and we fulfilled our goal of finding sea turtles!
Knowing full well if we didn’t keep moving the hangover would win over and the day was far too beautiful to waste so we rented bikes and headed out to tour the island. For the most part only one side of the island is developed with the majority of the locals living in the centre part and a few scattered resorts along the shores of the rest of the island. The road turns to sand in many places forcing bikers to walk there bike for stretches but everywhere you look you are met with spectacular views or a friendly smiling Indonesian face… and the odd goat. We stopped along the way many times to check out the long stretches of continuous beaches- most are quite hard to walk on because of all the coral that has washed up but the water is amazing and hard to resist- coral or not-and of course it’s that coral that makes the snorkelling so amazing from just about any point on the island.
The next few days were spent relaxing and exploring the island (both on land and in the water) and taking in the sun. The weather has been consistently beautiful in the morning and then clouding over in the afternoon and raining. Most nights the rain parts just in time to head out for dinner and an evening stroll. We’ve found a couple of great restaurants that we frequent often as we’ve had some misses and have decided to stick with what has worked for us.
Island life continues to treat us well… last night we departed for a fishing trip in hunt of tuna in hopes of having a beach barbeque. The locals troll which means that they put a line out on either side of the boat with us holding the rods and it drags them behind while the boat is going- we’re not sure if this method is really that great for catching tuna which are generally deep water fish but we decided to trust them none the less. Perhaps our instincts were right as we caught nothing… no snapper, no barracuda, no tuna… no barbeque! The rain started only about an hour and a half into our trip so we decided to head in early and resume our efforts bright and early this morning. Barely awake with our headlamps on, we headed down to the beach to meet our crew and head out on another attempt at catching something (at this point we had lowered our standards from tuna and were just hoping for anything!). It looked promising upon initial inspection… calm seas, jumping fish… and yet… nothing. Well that’s not entirely true… both Stijn and I did manage to catch plastic of some sort, and in unison no less! Though there were no fish to be had we did manage to have a great morning with a beautiful sun-rise and followed up our hard work on the boat with a great breakfast at the local Mexican restaurant… yep… Mexican! The chef is Mexi-Canadian and his little restaurant is one of our favourites on our little island. The best part is they have little individual huts with tv’s and dvd players and all the burnt movies you could ask for! We’ve spent a few nights there- tucked into the oversized pillow cushions eating our enchiladas. Tomorrow we are back on the hunt for all things aquatic on a snorkelling trip around the surrounding island’s hot spots.
We weren’t able to go snorkelling the next day as Stijn was a bit under the weather… most likely food related as we ate street food last night. I think he is slowly rearing towards joining me on the vegetarian front! But all was not lost- we spent the day on the beach soaking up as much sun as possible as we prepare to trade our stint of beaches in Asian for big cities and the open roads of Europe.
The next day we took the morning ferry over to Lombok- the large imposing island that is easily seen from our tiny one only half hour away by boat. As soon as we arrived we were aggressively greeted by boys trying to rent or sell us just about everything. We finally were able to cut through the attack and rent a bike a little ways down the road from the pier. We headed out in search of pearl farms that we were told were in a nearby town. The views along the way were spectacular- on one side mountainous yet lush farm land and on the other deep blue ocean filled with local fisherman and their nets out for their early morning catch. It is always nice to be back on a scooter as this is one of our favourite modes of transport and opt for it anywhere its manageable and safe. We stopped a few times to ensure that we were on the right track and weren’t surprised that every person we asked had a different answer. One pearl and gem store seemed the most convincing seeing as theys sold the very pearls we were hoping to see being farmed, but before too long we ended up back at the pier and in completely the wrong direction. Sadly by this time we were too late to turn around and try again since the last ferry heading back to the Gili islands left at 4 p.m. We traded in the scooter and headed back to our tiny oasis and laid on the beach taking in more rays. The hard life of island dwellers is really getting to us!
Today was our last day on the island the perfect day to fit in our snorkelling trip. With Stijn feeling much better we headed out for a few of the other islands in the area on a small boat with about 15 other people. There were three snorkelling stops in total, one of which we saw three turtles and another one the site of a ship wreck- all proved to be interesting though it didn’t offer anything new for us in terms of fish and other marine life. We did however have lunch on one of the other Gili islands and while it was delicious local food… my stomach isn’t quite sure about its presence. Nasi strikes again it seems! On the way back to our hotel while attempting to stop for gilatto I was hit and nearly ran over by one of those seemingly adorable horse and carriages- I don't care what anyone says... there was hate in his eyes! Luckily the driver managed to get control of the beast before too much dammage was done and most importantly I still got my lemon gilatto! Follwoing that interesting experience Stijn found a couple of local boys trying to catch fish along the shore with a harpoon- before I knew it he was handing off his ice cream and trucking towards the shore and caught the boys just as they were swimming away. THey didn't seem to mind the late joiner and while they didn't catch anything (fishing apparently not being our thing this trip) I think Stijn really enjoyed seeing the harpoon in action. I tried not to think about 7 year old boys having access to a harpoon let alone Stijn being in close enough proximity to being shot! Tomorrow we head back to Bali for two days before we fly back to Bangkok to catch our flight to Europe.
As we wrap up the first portion of our trip and reflect on the three months in Asia we are really happy with the variances in our experiences and the locations that we ended up visiting. We of course are sad that we weren’t able to see and do more- a visit with Stephen and Julia in South Korea being top of the list- but even with a year of travelling it is impossible to see and do it all. We’ve found that in most cases we prefer to stay a bit longer in a few countries and really experience them well, as opposed to seeing more countries but less well. Of course this is a luxurious choice and one that we are constantly grateful for. This opportunity has already exceeded our expectations and not a day goes by that we don’t realize what an amazing journey we’re on and the unforgettable memories we are creating, together.
It seems so long ago that we started our journey in India but luckily we have our blog to look back upon and remind ourselves of all the amazing places we’ve been and just how great our adventure has been so far. Each place has its own unique charm and even when at times we’ve been frustrated, looking back the good always outweighs the bad (if in fact we can even call it ‘bad’). Although there is much of Asia left undiscovered, we leave feeling fulfilled by what we have experienced and we happily look forward to our time in Europe, a visit from our Mom’s, and other friends and family along the way. Europe… here we come!
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