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Published: December 18th 2011
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Gilli Islands
There were buildings on there somewhere! As it turned out, Surf lessons were $90 per person so, deciding that we were bound to be inate surfers anyway we headed to the beach... As it turned out only one of us was a natural (no surprises that it was Emma) Fortunately the local guy we rented the boards from decided to throw in a crash course for the cost of a Sprite or two. On only her second attempt, Emma, with confidence oozing as if channeling John Wayne caught the wave all the way to the shore while offering a nonchelant salute for the watching crowds... It took me a few more facefulls of saltwater but eventually we were both surfing and feeling very pleased with ourselves. Our noses and shoulders the following day were not so happy given that we burnt them to the point that they resembled bacon, but It's all in a December day in Bali...
Other than surfing, relaxing by the pool and eating fantastic Mexican food (of all things) there is not much else to report from Kuta but this was exactly what we had hoped for after how manic the previous few weeks had been; to be honest, it didn't get
Turtle!
Off the Shore at the Gillis any more stressful from there!
While we were in Kuta Emma read Eat Pray Love of Julia Roberts fame, in which the narrator visits a hillside town in Bali called Ubud. As I'd also read that it was a nice place to pass a few days we took the 2 1/2 hour (50 kilometer!) ride and, other than swapping the surfing for hiking across rice fields and forgotten rivers, and swapping Mexican food for lounging with Balinese coffee in quaint cafes, our routine didn't change much. (There was still a pool!)
Although all of the relaxation was fantastic we felt that there was space for one last adventure in Asia so we decided to go through with a half formed idea which had previously seemed ambitious and took the 10 hour bus-ferry-bus-speedboat trip to visit the Gilli Islands. Thank God we did! From the second we jumped off the side of the speedboat and into the pristine, warm, turquoise water it had been worth the admittedly horrible journey. We met a nice group of people and had fantastic food right there on the beach for dinner, and what was even better, we found cheap, clean accomadation with the
all important fan! In fact after a small amount of pursuasion from one of our small group, the lady who ran the homestay agreed to put on a traditional balinese homecooked meal the following day for us, fried chicken, strange, sticky peanut brittle and vegetables in a spicy peanut sauce all went down very well indeed.
On the second day we woke up and after the staple breakfast of toast with butter and strawberry jam we went snorkelling, WOW! The water was so clear you could see for miles, and the colour and veriety of the wildlife was as good as anything I've ever seen. I got out of the water and decided there and then that I wanted to go for it and complete my Padi open water diving course and although Emma had reservations before the snorkelling she agreed that we would be mad not to when she saw what it was like down there. So the next 3 days were spent learning the tricks of the trade each morning in the pool and then going on a series of deeper dives in the afternoons! not too bad! Once we had got the hang of it, it became an unforgettably brilliant experience and you will be pleased to hear that after a cramming session the evening before, we both passed our final tests with flying colours!
Even out of the water the Gilli islands were exactly how we had hoped, simply paradise with great food, isolated, white sandy beaches and lazy walks... They were the perfect way to end our Asia experience. Which brings us to now. I sit in an internet cafe, looking forward to watching the football in a couple of hours and utterly over exited at the prospect of going to Sydney tomorrow!
Fingers crossed our E-Visa's are legitimate, otherwise we may well be home in time for Christmas!
Love you all, Speak to you soon, and most importantly...
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Adam and Emma
P.s. Apologies for the spelling, Internet is costing far too much to read back through, and there is no spellcheck on this computer!!!
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pat
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We so enjoy hearing about all your escapades. You certainly have made the most of everywhere you have been and experienced some wonderful things. Well done for making the most of all the opportunities which have come your way.