Category: Bali

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Terima Kasih Indonesia

Welcome back folks,

Well, the time has flown by, and the first month is basically wrapped up.  I have been thrust into the adventures of solo traveling, and am off to some new lands. The time in Indonesia was great, but you get 30 days on a standard visa, and I’m ready to roll forward.

The last few days in Indo were good examples of how traveling and vacationing are not really the same thing. I had a bit of a downward turn in mental space, starting with the destruction of my phone on Gili T. It was my source of music, maps/gps, and my camera among other things.  I was eager to replace it.  I did have another in Vancouver, so hastily I asked my good friend Mike to fedex it to Ubud, where I would be at that time.  Sadly, in my haste, I sent it to an address that didn’t exist, and, despite fedex’s assurance, it got trapped in customs.  Doh’, two wrongs don’t make a right!  Well, since these things are so cheap, I might as well just go buy a few more, cripes.   A few days later, I would suck it up, and buy a new Samsung A5 to add to my growing collection, and would be reunited with modern technology.

This spiraled my brain a bit into negative land, and was timed with Julie and Co. hitting the road. Luckily I met up with some friends that I had met on Gili T, and sulked a bit, but greatly enjoyed their company for my last couple evenings in Ubud. They also will be heading on a similar travel path as myself, so hopefully more entries featuring them later.

Next up, my first bout of intestinal difficulties. It’s bound to happen. You spend months here in Asia, well, you are gunna spend your share of time on the toilet.  I hunkered down, back in Legian for a couple days, waiting to feel better, and also figuring out what to do next.  I had a scare, as one evening I had a fever and some solid aches.  Dengue fever was hitting Gili T, and a few friends I’d seen there had come down with the horrible disease.  Thankfully, it was not in my fate for now, and I did manage to recover, albeit, my appetite is not so strong.

I managed to take in a last stunning sunset on Bali, but was more than ready to go somewhere new.  That would be Thailand. I decided a 3 day, 3 night diving trip was needed, so I made my way to Khao Lak, passing through Singapore airport along the way.  It felt great to get off to a new destination, and hopefully a Thai massage can boost my spirits.

Peace out.

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Anniversaries….

Time. It streams in what seems forward to our human perception, a steady march into the future.  We humans have a hard time detaching the meaning of our lives from time. How old we are? How long have we known somebody? Has it really been that long?  I should be married by now! How much money should I make at 30?  It seems to be tightly integrated into how we exist.  The natural cycle of the earth’s rotation about the sun drives us to mark things by the year, in what is really an arbitrary excuse to revisit some meaningful event.

Unfortunately, this means marking sad events as well as happy ones.  For me, this may make January a challenging month for a few years.  January 2014 took my young friend and neighbor Vincent Keating at the young age of 26, and my Father on the 31st in what would be a day that changed the game for me forever.   My mother also celebrated her birthday on the 15th of January, and passed away just two months after my father.

To commemorate these events as we spin into the new year, I, as you all know, have found my way to the other side of the world.  Does it change anything? Do I really feel different?  Not really. Time heals all wounds, and we ain’t quite there yet.  However, I do have the luxury of taking it in stride with some beautiful friends, old and new, and in what most people would consider paradise.

We found our way to Ubud, a quaint little village in central Bali, most known for the book/movie Eat, Pray, Love. It has become quite a mecca for both legit and wannabe yogi’s, trying desperately to find some peace of mind, and maybe find some meaning in the continuing cycles around the sun.

For me, I had been here almost 4 years ago on what was a very different tour through the paradise of Bali. Not much had changed. Just a few more shops selling expensive clothes to stretch and sweat in.  The local vibe was a nice change from Kuta.  Just the odd yell of “taxi!”, instead of “Valium!”.

Julie had registered for a yoga retreat, and I was looking forward to taking in a class or two. We had traveled with our new family Chehab, Lucie and Nicolas and settled in.  The next morning we decided to take in the Mount Batur volcano trek. You leave Ubud at 2 am to get the volcano and hike up to see sunrise. As a little twist, we decided to rent bikes, and drive ourselves there, a bit adventurous for those that have seen Bali roads :).  I sadly was burned out from partying, could not sleep that night at all, and had done this trip 4 years ago, so I bailed to sleep and regain some sanity.  The others had a fabulous time, albeit a few bumps along the way.

Over the next couple days, Julie would finish up her retreat, and also her vacation would come to a close.  Coincidentally, our other 3 friends were all leaving to make the journey home on the same day.  We had a good bye, and off she went to find the skies and eventually Vancouver, after a very long flight.

I can’t say enough about how great a travel partner she was. Always considered in everything she does, well tempered, and also out going and up for whatever adventure presents itself. Thanks so much for sharing the journey Julie, it will feel strange without you for a while!

Thats that, up next the trials and tribulations of bad decisions and life on the road….

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Full Circle

Hey all,

When we last left you, we were headed back to the Kuta/Legian beach area of Bali to do some last minute surfing.  It was sad to say bye to Gili T. but we hoped on a fast boat, and enjoyed a rip on the ocean with the wind in our faces as we made our way to Bali.  A sweaty, crammed Bemo ride after, and we had found our way to our hotel, perhaps more in the Kuta area than last time.

Our patience was a bit fried, with the heat and travel. The noise also was rough. Gili T has no motorized vehicles, and it’s a magical concept. Back in the busy streets, the noise was very mentally disruptive.

This first day back we chilled, and then met up with our friends from Gili, Lucie, Nicolas, and Chehab for dinner.  We had a nice quiet evening, but I was still tired of the booze from my big outing, so turned in quite early.

The next day, we hit the beach, and the surf boards again.  Julie was again, looking like her skills were ramping up, and managed to drop a bit more skillfully into a few waves.  I took this time to move my body around, and took a 7 km barefoot run on the beach. Exercise keeps my head clear of demons, so it felt good to get it done.

That evening we headed to the beast, club/restaurant in Kuta, Sky Garden.  Kuta is basically a bit of tourist hell, and Sky Garden is the belly of the beast.  Every three buildings you have a surf shop, a massage place, and a restaurant. In between you have guys offering viagra, cialis, weed, mushrooms, valium etc. I felt like if one more person offered me stuff I was gunna stab my ears out with hot knives!

But, a night out in Kuta is a quintessential thing to do, so we did.  It actually was a fun time, the massive 4 story club has many different rooms of music, and we found some really solid deep house.  Too many drinks later, I made my way back my room.  Now the late night street dwellers stopped pushing drugs, and started pushing girls. Every block my hand was grabbed, asking if I want a girl, and finally as I reached my hotel, a tranny hooker ran up, grabbed my junk, and wouldn’t let it go for about 30 seconds. I laughed, and kindly asked her to remove herself from my body, and finally managed to wiggle myself free.  A strange experience I dare say.

I slept off the booze, and the next day we headed to the hopefully more peaceful town of Ubud. Julie had queued up a yoga retreat here, I planned on a few classes, so here we will round out her leg of the trip in this little town in central Bali!

Till then.  Transport? Cialis boss?  Valium boss?

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Surf, Sand, and Sun

Hey Dudes and Dudettes,

We continue things in an easy going lifestyle in Bali.  After our first day of lounging ( and burning ),  we were eager to get ourselves moving.  The activity of choice was surfing!  The Kuta/Legian area is a fabulous beach for beginners. Big, yet forgiving swells, with an all sand bottom to cushion your fall.  There are no shortage of beach options too, with all the locals set up with their own little business of selling comfy chairs, surf boards and cold beers.  Being low season, it didn’t take us long to find a new friend named Bego.  We negotiated an acceptable rate for 2 boards, a one hour lesson for Julie, and some umbrella space for staying out of the sun.

Surfer Dude

Julie kicked some ass, and actually was up on her feet on her first run.  A remarkable feat I say! I floundered around on my own, and after a couple hard crashes into the sand on my burn, I took to the beach to watch Julie’s skills improve from afar.

After hanging ten for a while longer, and a couple Bintangs in the sun to celebrate, we took it easy for the rest of the day.  We queued up 2 scuba dives for the following morning however, as we were both excited to get under the ocean as well as on top of it.  I was tuckered from my burn and slept away the evening, while Julie did a little shopping and ordered some hand made leather garments from a local vendor.

The next morning we woke early, as our driver was picking us up at 7 am for our first day of diving!  Again, due to low season, it was just the 2 of us and our dive master.  The site, Padang Bai, was a 1.5 hour drive and as we rolled in I remembered it clearly as the jump off point for fast boats to Gili T ( a fav spot of mine from 4 years ago ).  We chilled in the local restaurant while they assembled our gear, and after a refresher test we were on a small boat heading out.

Our first dive went smoothly, a there and back cruise along the reef wall at a depth of 6-20 meters.  It was a nice dive to get our comfort levels back up, and see a little bit of sea life.  The water temp was 28 and the visibility was about 15 meters so conditions were great.   The next would be much more interesting.

With both of us now eased back into our skills, the next dive was to take us a bit deeper across a lagoon, where the boat would meet us.  The first point of interest was a small sunken boat!  I had never done a wreck dive ( not calling this a wreck but… ), so it was very cool to float along side this lovely little vessel.  I’d forgotten how serene and otherworldly it is to just float weightless underwater, temporarily sharing existence with the tropical life usually only seen through a camera lens.  A few interesting fish later, we had an encounter with cranky fella. He was quite a large fish, perhaps 1.5 feet long, 1 foot high, and he decided Julie was the enemy.  He followed us lunging at her fins, nipping away! Wow, what a jerk!  We did manage to scare him off, but a sobering reality as to who owns this world. Clue, it is not us.

We completed that lovely adventure, and feeling quite satisfied, headed back to our home base to plot the next one.   It was decided to take a walk on the beach and browse the ocean side offerings.  We strolled on the sand, sipping beers care free as can be. A happening new venue, called Potato Head Beach Club was recommended, and I had seen a photo from a friend of this place, so we made our way. It is a stunning restaurant and bar with an infinity pool, and an incredible view.  The sunset was magnificent.  We indulged a bit, as the drinks were fancy and expensive, but delicious, as was the food.  It was a pretty perfect day in paradise.

The next day we awoke with another craving for the beach, and a mild hangover.  Our surf buddy who gave Julie the lesson was happy to rent us a board, and give us some shade. I toughened up and even went for a barefoot 6 km run on the sand to kick start my body. After we clearly needed another massage.  Comically, we found our way to a suspect operation in an alley way, perhaps in a back room of somebody’s home.  We received the classic 4 handed massage, but were constantly up sold on mani/pedicures etc.  It was a decent massage but we shall not return.

This would be our last day on Bali for now, as we were bracing for a cultural extravaganza in Tana Toraja, on the island of Sula-what, sula-where?  Sulawesi.

Till next time.

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The Sun is the Same in a Relative Way

Welcome back,

The adventure has taken us to beautiful Bali, Indonesia. Bali is a classic holiday destination, and in recent years has started to be avoided due to it’s overwhelming success. This sadly leads to a cookie cutter, inauthentic touristy experience, however, we are lucky and it is literally the lowest season possible here!

The Balinese are known for their kind charm, and they have been living up to it. I visited 4 years ago for my first real Asian adventure, and vowed to return someday. Well, for most someday never comes but for me someday has arrived.

The trip here was not without its troubles however.  Julie and I hit up the HK airport with lots of time to spare. We were scheduled to fly over night through Singapore, getting into Bali 5 am the next day.  I had booked a one way ticket, as my departure date was still a mystery. Should be fine.  Ergh… nope. When we went to check-in we were informed, no entry to Indonesia without an exit ticket booked. Cripes, ok.  No problem, I’ll book some cheapo flight online really quick 30 days later.  I focused, and quickly found a 60 dollar flight and had it booked. Back to the counter I went.  Nope, no confirmation email. For the first time ever. It didn’t show up. No flight. Ok, whatever, I’ll book another flight. I’m easy.  I managed to book another 60 dollar flight on a different site, and low and behold, it came. We were however, now painfully close to the cut off, and had to navigate the giant HK terminal to our gate.  But not yet. We had to pay a fee for our bags, equal to about the cost of the ticket, and the credit card took about 10 minutes to go through, fools!

Woops

We clipped it to immigration, pushed quickly through security, and with not much time to spare we arrived at our gate after a quick train to another terminal :-/ .   Relaxed finally, wait cripes. Nobody is here!  Like a skilled amazing race team, we checked the board and saw a gate change.  A gate in yet another terminal! We ran to the train, up some escalators, and somehow managed to get to the gate on time.  Things had worked against us, but we conquered the airport, and after sleeping pretty much the whole flight, were in Bali as planned :).

As we arrived so early, we had the whole day to ease in, and do as we please.  It was Julie’s first visit, so we took a little stroll around to explore, grabbed some breakfast, and roamed the beach.  The sun we’d been seeking was blasting hot and we vegged out on the beach for half the day.  It was glorious.  Not glorious was that in my sleepy state, I failed to fully apply sunscreen to my, at the time, very white carcass.  Not sure how many times a white boy can learn this lesson in the course of a lifetime, but I digress.  I soaked up the sun indiscriminately, and the sun payed me a similar attitude in return.  Later that day I would discover my error to the tune of a very abstract red painting on my back, showcasing both the power of the sun, and the effectiveness of sunscreen!  Curses, poor form.

Poolside

Our early flight and sun bathing had taken its toll so we indulged on my favorite Asian activity. Cheapo massages!  No not the happy ending kind, just the normal ones.  They run from 5-10 bucks for a quality relaxing hour.  It was a wonderful hour indeed.  That evening, after some dining and a beer, bed was calling and we answered happily.

Stay tuned for more Bali action.