Videos I owe you all

I thought I might as well throw up some stuff for you all to peep while I try and remember everything. Here are a bunch of videos I took and have yet to blog the links or only recently shot material. Check them out when your bandwidth and time allows and get a little taste of my experiences. Some of these vids are from my phone and all of them where just spur of the moment things, unplanned, therefore a little rough and some are just short little snippets but I hope you enjoy them anyway.

First up, if we go chronologically, here are the two I shot in Bajawa, Flores, in Camillia Resuraunt. Remember the band N'Jel I would stay up getting drunk with? Well click here for the ballad they sang which really shows how good the singers voice is or click here for a nearly hip hop track with one of their mates doing the raps.

Here is the call to prayer in Labuanbajo, that sleepy little sea port from where I caught the Komodo boat to Lombok. The picture is the sunset over the harbor, the view from one of the restaurants perched up on the hill. This prayer over the loudspeaker goes on several times a day, the first at around 5am!! When traveling Indonesia, if it's possible, always check out your hotel during call to prayers. I mean no disrespect but it gets very old quickly, at ear-splitting volume, that hour of the morning. My hotel in Labuanbajo was WAY too close to a mosque, but you live and learn hey.

Next I have a few videos of some funny things or random moments that have happened along the way. Clicking here will take you to Ani's place in Ampenan. It's just two of Dewi's (Ani's sister) boys but you can see in the background what the place is like. Mattresses on the floor, bare concrete in the living area, but it's pretty clean and homely now that I’m a little more used to Lombok. By clicking here you will find the gathering of kids I get at Hendro's place, which is in a different section of Ampenan to Ani’s. This was the first time I had been and the kids followed my every move. I think that they are more used to me now and I don't get such big crowds anymore but there is still a buzz when we ride down the narrow laneways to Hendro's pad. They definitely ALWAYS know when I’m around. Following the link here and here will take you to the lounge room at Hendro's crib. This is Bahim, Hendro's youngest of three boys. He loves to rock out to cheesy Indo pop tunes on his pink guitar, he does this regardless of whether there are people around or not but he certainly did not hate having an audience. The first one I think he thought I was taking a photo but he rocks out, as all cool 1 year olds do, in the second until he breaks a string. No sweat.. minor adjustment and off he goes again hahaha. Go Bahim!

I'll throw the band from that wedding in here. The wedding Hendro took me, Ani and Iwan to in the East of Lombok. It's disappointingly short to me. I'm kicking myself I didn't take more but I was self-conscious in the middle of that crowd. You can even see me checking over my shoulder as I film. I'm not sure exactly why I was so... well uncomfortable I guess... but I’m spewing now. They had a dope show and the whole thing was mobile. The speakers in the background are mounted on some cart around a battery powered P.A. complete with mixing board, flutist, singer and bass player (I think) that followed the drums around. They did the whole procession through the village streets, playing while on the move and keeping the masses entertained.

Clicking here will take you on a ride in a horse cart on Gili Trawangan. I went to Gili with Hendro and Ani for one night and we ended up staying two we had so much fun. Well really we just didn't sober up enough to think of leaving until then.

Ani celebrated her birthday late January at Casanova Karaoke Club. We hired a room and partied on singing and grooving up a storm. It was a blast and I laughed so hard and so often I was sore the next day. Here is Ani and Hendro in a duet of an Indonesian song that is very popular and apparently from the late seventies. After a while Ani booted Hendro off the mic for cramping her style haha. So he decides to dance up a storm instead. Finally when Ani can sing no longer the dance music disc gets broken out (shudder) and everyone busts their techno moves out.

Hope you enjoy them all.... update is progressing... painfully slow but I’m getting there. I'll speak to you all again soon. Poice.

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