Ubud, Bali
Sorry for the delayed first post but the wifi (weefee as the Europeans say) has been less than desirable so far. So, we made it safe and sound with only a minor hick up at the airport. The Balinese airport security were keen to inspect our bags and almost seemed disappointed when they only found a packet of nuts, (not sure why the strip search was necessary, but thanks again Chon for the memories). We met Bryn and Kate at the airport in Bali and headed inland as fast as we could to avoid Kuta and the neighbouring areas.
We explored Ubud the next day taking in some of the amazing views of the surrounding rice terraces and stepping into a beautiful jungle area full of fat monkey's that suffer from kleptomania. We witnessed one peel a banana sniff it then toss it away as it didn't meet his standards. We spent another day white water rafting down the Ayung River, then the next cycling for over 30km from Mount Batur (mostly down hill but the up hill bits were very up hill).
On the way to the cycling tour, we had the pleasure of trying cat poo coffee. They feed these cat like creatures, called Luwak's, the ripe coffee beans then collect what comes out of them which looks like a bunch of nuts glued together or a peanut brittle bar in the shape of a turd. There were plenty of jokes about shit coffee flying around and it definitely had a nutty after taste.
Lovina and Amed, Bali
We booked a private van to drive from Ubud to Lovina Beach. On the way we stopped at more rice terraces, the Twin Waterfall's and a temple on the Lake Bratan. The locals seem to think that Chon is one of them and are constantly speaking to her in Indonesian. If it wasn't for Kate being fluent in the language and answering the locals with "She is not from Indonesia", I am certain that she would have been abused by now. "I'm so sorry but I think you are one of us" is a phrase she gets a few times a day.
During our short visit to Lovina we booked a tour to go snorkeling (diving for me) at Menjangan Island (meaning deer island), which is a national park on the north western tip of bali. The sealife and coral was well worth the trip. We tried plenty of local delicacies around Lovina including goat satay where the back half of a goat was hanging in the open air from the stores ceiling. The dreaded Bali belly didn't come out to play even after our invitation to dance.
Amed was a three hour coastal drive east where we caught a glimpse of the imposing volcano Mount Agung and we also stopped at a beautiful Hindu temple. Out of respect we all wore skirts whilst exploring the beautiful structure and it was nice and breezy. We once again equipped ourselves with fins, snorkels and goggles to see more coral and sea life along with a Japanese ship wreck. A highlight of our Amed visit was a cooking class where we learnt a couple of local fish dishes.
Senggigi and Gili Trawangan, Lombok
We made our way to Lombok via fast ferry from Amed. To get to our destination (Senggigi), we made land at the small yet seedy port of Bangsaw. As soon as the boat was tied up to the pier, the scammers flocked around us and it was difficult to work out who was the ferry staff and who wasn't as they were quick to grab our bags from the boat. Fortunately we managed to salvage our bags before the buggers ran off with them.
We left our travel companions (Bryn and Kate) for two nights as they trekked Mount Rinjani and Chon and I trekked from our hotel room to the pool. I am happy to report that no one was hurt during either expedition bar my liver from those cocktails. We also explored the neighbouring city of Mataram stopping at the old water palace (Mayura Garden) where fierce fighting occurred between the Dutch and Balinese forces in 1894 and the Museum of West Nusa Tenggara that exhibits the geology, history and culture of Lombok and nearby Sumbawa.
We caught up with Bryn and Kate again on Gili Trawangan, the larger of three tropical islands off the North West of Lombok. We explored the island after renting bicycles and checked out a few snorkeling sites along the way. Chon, Bryn and Kate all did an introduction to diving course and I joined them on their ocean dive. Whilst they were learning the basics in a deep pool, I went to a site called shark point but it should have been called no shark point.
We have had a heap of fun exploring Indonesia with our travel companions Bryn and Kate and it is a pity that they are returning home. Thanks for a great trip so far B and K and for helping us out with speaking their language.
No comments:
Post a Comment