Bali - Indonesia

As Carrie and I planned our trip (mostly Carrie) before we left Taiwan one of our major expenses was going to be the ticket home. So, we searched the internet looking for the cheapest flight back to Canada from any countries close to us. We tried them all and for the time we wanted it turned out that Bali had a decent price. This meant we had to work our travels around our flight home and make sure that before August 2nd we were in Bali. Ohhhh tough one eh. So, we decided to stay in Bali for the last two weeks of our trip. (Later it was decided that JP would join us in Bali) Two weeks gave us time to see the island, have all the cultural experiences and lay out on the beach, which is something we had not really done much on our travels. By the end of the trip we wanted to have time to just eat, drink, unwind, and get a tan!

After a short flight to Kulua Lumpur, Malasia and a connecting flight we made it to Bali! Bali is one of the most gorgeous places we have ever been. It even smelled good. The people are sooo friendly, the beaches are amazing and the food was great! We spent our first couple of days in Kuta which is one of the most popular cities. It is a party place with a beach club vibe. Everyone surfs all day and parties (hard) all night. The town is full of Aussies and the locals all assume because we are white that we were Aussie too. A man on the beach was relentless trying to sell random crap. He kept pacing up and down the beach yelling, "Bloody good! Ohhhh Bloody good!"

Sunset in Kuta
Photo by Jean-Paul Mouton

JP arrived a couple days after we got to Bali. I was so excited to pick him up at the airport. As I waited patiently pacing back and forth at international arrivals I begin to worry because his plane landed a while ago and I still could not find him. Suddenly somone wrapped their arms around me from behind. I jump then realized in the same moment that it was JP. He was laughing as he said, "Domestic arrivals." Silly me forgot that he had flown into Jakarta, Indonesia a couple days before to get a VISA for Taiwan and was flying into Bali from there.

The night life in Kuta is alot like a first year university scene. It is wild! It is like they are all out for the first time unsupervised and everyone is right drunk in the bars. It was hard to find a place that was low key to grab a few drinks to start the night. All the popular places were filled with people who were complete messes. You also had to watch out for Kuta Cowboys (local men who like to hook up with female travelers) the dance floor was full of them. Some of the great things we did in Kuta included laying on the beach, whitewater rafting, and watching epic sunsets. JP went surfing and I totally regret not taking a lesson. Next time for sure! Also, we drank alot of Bintang (the local beer), went shopping and played cards together. We stayed in Kuta about a week and then our friend Mandy arrived from Korea. She was keen for a holiday. Carrie and Mandy decided to stay a couple more days in Kuta but JP and I had planned to move onto Ubud which was the culutral center of the island. In Ubud we visited Monkey Mountain, some stone temples, natural springs and rented scooters so we could drive through the rice patties. At night we watched beautiful cultural dances and had amazing meals.

Mandy & Carrie in Kuta
Photo by Mandy Wishak

Monkey Mountain
Photo by Jean-Paul Mouton

After Ubud we moved to a few ocean side towns on our way to the Gili Islands. The Gili Islands are a small island chain off Lombak (which is beside Bali). Carrie and Mandy did the same thing but took a different route. There were many options of how to get there. We took a slow ferry for five hours on the way there and the one hour fast boat on the way back. The fast boat was maybe one of the most awful experiences of my life. I would take the 13 hour death bus ride from Loas twice before I would go on that fast boat again. You are flying through 3-4 meter swells and I swore the hull of the boat was going to smash out. We were white knuckled the entire time holding the seat a head of us as we dropped off the huge swells and smashed into the next. People were getting sick the entire ride and we were positive the driver didn't really know what to do other then go fast. The one positive thing about the fast boat ride is that you save travel time between places.

Lombak and the Gili Islands

Photo thanks to Wiki Travel

Photo by Jean-Paul Mouton

There are three islands in the chain: Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air. We stayed on the largest Gili Trawangan. There are no vehicles on the islands or police. The only way to get around was to walk, ride a bike or travel by a small horse and buggie. We were only on Gili Trawangan for a couple days but we all fell in love with this place instantly. It was breathtaking. The clear blue ocean, light sand beaches, and clear skies. JP and I went snorkeling and I got to see my first sea turtle. It was AMAZING! Carrie and Mandy rented bikes and toured the island as well experienced some special local drinks (haha). As we laid on the beach, swam in the ocean, ate great food and drank cold drinks we could not help but think about quitting our jobs to live there. The only problem would be a few people in Canada (Momma Dixon, Momma Ritchie and others) who would not appreciate us disappearing. After Gili we met back up with Carrie in Kuta before our flights. JP's flight out was the night before ours so I rode with him to the airport. Another goodbye in another airport (this was getting old) but it wouldn't be long until I was picking him up at arrivals....and the right gate this time!

Finally, after all our adventures Carrie and I loaded up our backpacks one more time to head back to Canada.

Photo by Mandy Wishak

Photo by Jean-Paul Mouton