Blogs from Lombok, Indonesia, Asia - page 19

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 ... read more

I am sitting here, staring on the screen and thinking what I could write. Can inactivity and relaxing harm the creativity? Apparently it can. Okay, I'll give it a try now. Ryan's entry finished with us cooling down in the pool I think. So, yeah, we cooled down in the pool and chilled in the sun and cooled down in the pool again on our first day in Ubud. This was completely exhausting so we had a nice little nap before we went to get some nice food for dinner. Afterwards we met up with the Dutch couple and Paul for a drink in the XL Shisha Lounge and then we went to bed. Very unexciting but relaxing. The next day started with a refreshing swim in the pool and a nice breakfast served on our ... read more

From Flores we made our way back westward, over six days, through Sumbawa and Lombok, to Bali, for our flight to Darwin, Australia. The most notable aspect of our short time in Sumbawa was Ben riding on the roof of a mini-bus for two hours, with about 15 locals, none of whom seemed to speak any English. Sadly, no photos are available. Only the mental scars. After an arduous 27 hour journey that took in two ferries, the aforementioned minibus, a comfortable coach and a bemo (a mini-mini bus - often found providing transport to the Indonesian public), we arrived in the chilled out coastal village of Kuta, Lombok. Some of you will know Kuta, Bali. The Lombok namesake could not be much more different. It is wonderfully traffic and trouble free. Whether this will change ... read more

Monday morning marked our departure from Gili Trawangan, one of the three Gili Islands. Gili Island a tautological travesty of a name - Gili means (small) island in the Bahasa Indonesian language. So Island Islands it is, it seems. Anyway, pedantry aside, 'the Gilis' are the sort of place where one can easily spend far more time than originally intended. Gili Trawangan is the largest - but can be strolled around in under two hours - and the most developed - but half its perimeter is deserted. All buildings on 'Gili T', with the exception of the new mosque, are single or two storey, and consist mostly of dive centres, restaurants selling straight-out-of-the-sea fresh seafood, and accommodation to suit every budget. The dusty unpaved streets are free from motorised transport. This is the home of the ... read more

To start the day off Benny brought us breakfast at 5:30am. A little early considering our pickup was schedule for 7:00am. After eating we went back to bed and at 6am we got a knock on our door saying our ride was here. I repeat, WHAT IS WITH INDONESIA ALWAYS BEING EARLY??? In the van I was talking with a couple from Quebec. She buys jewelry and then wholesales it back home. Anyway, later she saw us looking in our Lonely Planet and asked if we needed help with accommodation. We said that’d be great, and it turns out her and her hubby own some bungalows. For 200,000 idr ($22) we are staying a year old bungalow with a big bed and open roof shower, very modern. No air con but it gets pretty cool at ... read more