Week One - ULUWATU

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Day one, October 13th, we arrived in Bali in the afternoon. We started of trip heading to Uluwatu, a small village at the tip of southern Bali. Unfortunately, there was a major traffic jam caused by a bad accident. We arrived at our destination, The Gecko, but they were out of rooms. Well almost out of rooms they did have the luxury suite available at the top of the hotel. We decided to spoil ourselves and splurge. We rented a motorbike less than five minutes later and headed to the cliffs of Uluwatu. The cliffs overlook the spectacular Uluwatu Beach. To get to the beach we started making our way down the hundred or so steps which are linked by a maze of warungs (little family owned Balinese restaurants/shops). Once at the bottom we went through a tiny cave that revealed a beautiful white sand beach and great view of the surf break. We watched our first Bali sunset from this perfect spot then headed up the cliff to “The Edge” bar to finish the sunset enjoying a Bingtang and watching dozens of surfers get in their last waves of the day.

Day two, Oct 14th, was our first full day in Bali. We ventured to Balangan Beach, when we will be married. The surf was good so we ended up spending the day surfing and hanging out on the beach. We headed up the cliff to La Joya to have lunch. After lunch the manager wanted to meet with us to talk wedding details so we spent the rest of the afternoon planning.

Day three, Oct 15th, was overcast in the morning but gorgeous by the afternoon. We ventured around to find a new/less expensive place to stay. After much looking, we stumbled upon the Gobleg Inn. The property has an amazing tropical garden and the buildings are very traditional Balinese. We negotiated a discounted rate for a four-day stay of $100,000 Rupiah a day (about $12 US).

Day Four, Oct 15th, we work up to pouring rain. It lightened up a bit so we ventured out to change money and use the Internet. Along our way it started pouring. We decided to take a break on the side of the road until it blew over. No luck. We were in between our hotel and town so we decided to press on. We made it to town totally soaked and freezing. We changed money and found a great café with Internet. We dried out over a great breakfast and warmed up with lattes. By afternoon, it was clear and sunny.

Day Five, Oct 16th, was a gorgeous day. We surfed Uluwatu for hours, went swimming, enjoyed a beautiful sunset, and then went to a great dinner. The food is awesome here. It is really good and cheap. However, the Balinese wine is terrible (don’t know why I thought it would be any good).

Day Six, Oct 17th, was a great day. John dropped me off in Bingan and went to surf Uluwatu. I found a great place to practice yoga and started my morning with a lovely class in the gardens of a cliff top resort. Then I climbed the hundred or so stairs down to the beach and had a swim. The waves were small and fun so I rented a long board for $3 and went for a surf before I met John for lunch. We headed to La Joya to meet with the wedding planner. Our appointment was set for 4:30, Monday Oct 18th. So you can imagine the La Joya staff’s surprise when we showed up this afternoon, Sunday and 3:30pm. Somehow we were confused as to which day it was and what the exact time was. No worries, now we are back on track… Since we had the afternoon free we headed to Kuta and Legian. Traffic was crazy, John is a master on the motorbike since he had to maneuver through some insane situations. Had a great sushi dinner but were excited to return to the peace of our Uluwatu sanctuary.

Day Seven, Oct 18th, spent the morning sleeping in through a heavy rain shower. It was so nice. Then went to a late breakfast before heading to Nyang Nyang for an aloe vera massage to soothe my sunburn. The trek to Nyang Nyang is an adventure of its own. We rode our motorbike down the rocky dirt road, now muddy from the rain. Once, at Nyang Nyang cliff we took in the incredible view before enjoying our massages from two elderly Balinese ladies. The two ladies pick fresh aloe vera leaves from the plants and use that for the massage. It totally helped my sunburn and felt great. While John was waiting for me he decided he would have a massage too. It was definitely no luxury spa, but it was outside overlooking the ocean and only $6. Now I am writing about our first week from the porch overlooking the garden. We are getting ready to head to Balagan beach to snorkel. Then we will meet with our wedding planner at La Joya at 4:30pm (like we tried to do yesterday).

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Comments

[Cindy]

Yay!
Hey guys! We stayed at the gecko inn back in '06 when it was new and cheap(er). Sounds like a great trip so far! Congrats to you both:)