Prambanan and the beginning of the end

Bobby's driver friend, Agus, is a chipper morning person. He chatted with us the entire hour ride to Prambanan Temple in the morning, and I hardly remember what we discussed. I am not a morning person.

Because we left Bobby's at around 6:30am, we were at Prambanan in plenty of time to savor it for a few hours. We made plans to return to Agus by 10am so we had a 60 minute window in which to travel the handful of kilometers to the airport (in case of traffic) and still get there with a two hour window. Not to get ahead of myself, but it only did take 15 mins to get to the airport.

Prambanan is fabulous, and we might have loved it even more than Borobudur. For one, it's easier to take in from ground level; the multi-layer, traveling-through-the-cosmos approach wasn't used for Prambanan (probably because it's a Hindu temple, as opposed to Buddhist). For another, it's set up as separate structures in a common compound, so it's far easier to navigate around swarms of people. "Prambanan Temple" is actually 240 separate temples, all in one site! Since neither Steve nor I are particularly fond of large crowds, and since we had spent the better part of the previous morning dodging 6th graders wanting selfies, we were very pleased to be able to mill about with more flexibility than had the temple been one large structure as was Borobudur. Not least, I think it's pretty cool that the largest Hindu temple complex in Indonesia isn't on the Hindu-majority island of Bali, but, rather, is on Java!

Prambanan Temple 

So we spent lots of time traipsing about the grounds, snapping photos and generally reveling in the fact that we were in Indonesia. Because it still hadn't set in and we were practically on our way out the door. 

Steve

Me

Volcano

Inside Prambanan

There were three other temples nearby inside the "park," if you will: Sewu, Bubrah, and Lumbung. It's incredible that these structures built in the 8th century have survived the volcanoes, typhoons, and earthquakes that ravage the Ring of Fire, but there you go. Really cool fact: Sewu, Bubrah, and Lumbung are actually all Buddhist temples, but are part of the larger Prambanan complex! Just goes to show that religions can peacefully cohabitate. 

Sewu Temple

Sewu Temple

After a few hours of meandering, we decided it was time to head back to Agus. We made our way out through the shopping area. We've noticed that all the temples are set up with a large complex of stalls as the exit. Great way to get tourists to buy things, but they're also accessible from the outside so that the temples can serve as the local markets, as well. We stopped and picked up some tchotchkes to bring back home. Agus scooted us off to the airport in record time and we started to wrap our heads around the trip ending. We were headed to Jakarta and would be flying back home in less than 24 hours.

We hit our first and only snag of the trip when we landed in Jakarta. I'm actually really glad to be writing this after a 3 week cooling off period because we were both STEAMING mad. We had decided to fly to Jakarta in the afternoon rather than the evening in order to be absolutely certain we'd catch our international flights. There had been some late night options which would have allowed us to spend the whole day exploring Yogyakarta and then only have maybe 4 hours in the airport before catching our flights home. I nixed that plans out of paranoia about flight delays and a desire to get a solid night's sleep. Since the Tokyo leg was due to take off at 6am, I wanted to get a solid night's sleep and not feel like a complete bag of... potatoes... on the leg home (24+ hours of daytime). So the plan was going smoothly until we arrived at the airport and discovered that our airport hotel, the one which advertised itself as being located INSIDE THE AIRPORT, was actually a 35 minute drive away. NOT in the airport. And there aren't any payphones at the Jakarta airport, and apparently the Information desk people can't make phone calls for you, so we were stumbling around like assholes trying to get my phone, which we had successfully NOT used the whole trip, to make an international call. It was an absolute nightmare. I think I've suppressed it because I frankly can't remember how we finally connected with the airport shuttle from the hotel except that we had already waited for more than an hour (and apparently he had too, because we were told to wait on floor 2 and he was on floor 3). Ugh.

So anyway, we take this bumpy-ass car ride to a hotel that's located a half hour away from the airport (so we'll have to wake up extra early to get there on time instead of being able to maximize sleep, as planned, and we all know how well I operate on not-enough sleep), get checked in, and find cockroaches in our room. I don't mind mice (until they poop on my cooking surfaces), I don't mind ants, I don't mind dog hair being all over my life. But I cannot do cockroaches, ESPECIALLY when I've been successfully living in random Airbnbs for a week and a half without them and suddenly the overpriced hotel that IS NOT INSIDE THE AIRPORT has roaches. So we're trying to explain to the guy at the front desk what was wrong with the room and he seems to just think we're having room key trouble so he sends along another guy to help us get in, and now Steve is steamed, and I'm suddenly having to be the voice of reason telling him that translating cockroach into English is probably pretty tricky and using the internet to do some of that work for me and FINALLY we get it across to them. So they're super apologetic and we figure well eff it, we're staying. So we get a new room, acknowledge to ourselves that at least 3/4 of our frustration is actually hanger, and head down to the hotel bar to have some dinner. It was the worst meal we had during our trip, but when we asked for a check they explained that they'd comped the expense due to our troubles. So that was very sweet. The poor server was pretty nervous all through our meal which we belatedly realized was because he was expecting us to be dicks because we were mad about the roaches. So then we felt like dicks. Anyway, went for a swim in the pool on the roof and watched a pretty spectacular sunset. We had it all to ourselves and, after all the bullshit, it turned out to be not such a bad way to spend our last sunset in Indonesia. And really, as far as travel snafus go, this one wasn't so bad. 

A lovely photo Steve took of Prambanan, because this should all end on a positive note

Our trip back to the airport wasn't so bad. The front desk guy suggested we leave at 3am(!!!!!!) to be sure we would get to the airport in plenty of time. We were seriously struggling to believe that we needed to leave that much of a cushion to make it there safely, but I wasn't about to doubt the guy and then miss our flight. There was a nasty thunderstorm raging when we woke up, and the poor doorman had to go out and physically flag down a cab in the rain. Our driver must've thought he was on a tryout for NASCAR or something, because we made it to the airport in a flash. No issues with security meant that we were there and ready to go with plenty of time to kill. All the flying we'd been doing meant that I was able to finish 6.5 books during the trip, so that last morning, waiting for our flight, was no different. Besides Steve almost murdering the guy next to him on the flight from Tokyo to Newark (he was a leg jiggler and I thought Steve's head was going to explode), the trip home was unremarkable. First trip to Asia is in the books.

So this is what being a celebrity is like

We woke up bright and early to get to Borobudur Temple on Saturday, and left the property at 6:15. Plan was for us to visit the temple for as long as we wished, use the free wifi there to send Bobby a message saying we had finished, and he'd come collect us. The trip to the temple took about 10 minutes and the sun was just settling low in the sky. An interesting quirk: there are two lines for visitors. One for domestic travelers, one for international. I believe at least part of this is because domestic visitors pay less, but I have to say our line was MUCH shorter! We were able to buy our tickets as a discounted deal by getting a two-temple pass which would also allow us to visit Prambanan the next day and save a few bucks in the process.

As we got inside, we quickly discovered that we were among a very small handful of western tourists, and a VERY large group of student tourists. Kids from age 5 or 6 through high school aged, clearly on school trips and all wearing matching tee shirts from their various groups. Considering how many kids (we're talking THOUSANDS of kids, all on bus trips, all visiting this massive temple complex) there were, it was a good call by all those various schools. Anyway, as we had discovered on South Bali when we met the college kids in Nusa Dua the day we rented a scooter, Indonesian kids are really psyched to have some native English speakers to practice on. Since they all start taking English in grade school, they're quite proficient, and they all want to just say hello and giggle at our accents. So we're walking into the temple complex, built in the 9th century and the LARGEST BUDDHIST TEMPLE IN THE WORLD, and there are kids everywhere. There are these beautifully manicured gardens, and there's a massive staircase you've gotta climb to get up to it, and then the whole thing is set up as a trek through Buddhist cosmology, moving steadily up through to enlightenment. So it's a series of square layers, topped by circular layers, topped by a dome. We're slowly approaching, doing our tourist thing, and some kids come up, giggling, and ask to take photos with us. We're so pleased because the little critters are so excited, as only middle schoolers who are slightly nervous can be. So en route up the stairs we're probably stopped 5-6 times by various groups of kiddos. When we get up the first giant staircase to get to the ground level of the temple itself, we swung around to the south facing wall, which looked less populated, and climbed from there.

Celebrities

Borobudur Temple from the ground

Relief on Borobudur

 The structure is unbelievably massive. You can hardly fit the whole thing into a camera frame. But we made our way around and slowly up to the circular layers which are covered with these giant domes that look like latticed bells just sitting on the ground. They're called stupa. Each stupa houses its own Buddha statue, and they overlook stunning views. If you Google Borobudur Temple, the stupa are probably what you'll see. As such, the stupa are where all the crowds go for picture taking. Including the kiddos. And by the time we got up to the stupa layers of the temple, they were all wide awake and no longer shy about asking for pictures. When I tell you that we were each asked to take over 100 photos with various folks - mostly kids, but not entirely - it is not an exaggeration. We had so much fun!!! They were so excited, I kept feeling like Bradley Cooper making my way through the site. We kept saying to each other "are you sure they don't think you're famous?" because we were so inundated with photo requests. We eventually agreed to stop making eye contact with people because that at least slowed the tide of requests! Our cheeks burned from all the smiling, but it was such a blast because every person would light up when we said yes like we had just made their whole day. It was a very cool feeling, but it was VERY tiring. There was another couple, Australian by their accents, and they were such jerks that it made us feel even better about being nice. They were rude to the kids and kept griping about how they were going to have to edit out all the people from their photos - um, sorry that the most-visited tourist site in Indonesia hasn't accommodated your Instagram habit well enough. Rude.

Stupa... inside each is a Buddha statue

Stupa are very large

Volcano AND stupa

Anyway, we had tons of fun snapping selfies with the other tourists, but the sun was a'coming and it was getting hot. We decided to roll out and wander the grounds a bit, and then go grab some food in town - it was nearly 10am by that point, so we'd been wandering a while. There was a fried chicken shop nearby that we decided to check out and someone had very casually left an owl tethered to their motorbike outside. Just hanging out on the handles. #casual. After some nosh, we wandered down a side street in the direction of a massage parlor that Google seemed to think existed (it didn't) and past the local Catholic church! They had very kindly left a mass schedule on the bulletin board along with whether the mass would be said in Javanese or Indonesian. There was a 6 o'clock mass scheduled in Javanese, so I made a mental note and we headed back towards the temple. Being so close to the end of the trip, we were pretty well exhausted at this point. Despite the afternoon downtime during the rainstorm the previous afternoon, we decided to replicate it and spend another low key day at Bobby's place. That porch was just too inviting to pass up, and it's not every day that I can enjoy the sounds of wild parrots and glance up from my kindle to see a volcano, so we went for it. Bobby had offered to do a tour of the village he lives in, and to go see a coffee plantation, but we weren't totally sure how to decline graciously (not least because it was going to cost like $25USD each), so we decided that our best bet was to just totally exhaust ourselves by walking the few kilometers home!

Middle schoolers

Who am I to turn down a selfie with this adorable little person?

So we set out. And we've barely made it a quarter mile down the road before Seo, Bobby's girlfriend, pulls up on a scooter and starts rapid-fire apologizing to us because she thinks we've been abandoned by our drivers! We try to explain to her that we've CHOSEN to walk back, that we WANT to walk back, but she's not hearing it. So she scuttles back 50 yards or so to a shop to chat with a guy who looks like he might be one of the scooter dudes who's been driving us around (you can't really chit chat on a scooter - too much wind noise when there's already a language barrier). We chase her, emphatically promise that we're not too tired to walk, that it's not too hot, that we're seriously just dumb bunnies and WANT to walk all that way. So she looks at us pretty skeptically and agrees. It was so so sweet, she was absolutely convinced we were just trying to be polite. So she lets us go, we continue walking along, and about 15 minutes later Bobby rolls up on a scooter with another dude in tow. Apparently Seo didn't believe us :) so we tell him that seriously we're good, he laughs at us for being silly white people out wandering in the freaking hot sun, and says he'll see us back at the house. They are seriously such sweethearts.

So anyway, we dumb dumbs continued walking and only stopped at a little corner store to pick up an ice cream cone and some water, and to reapply sunscreen so we didn't become silly lobster people. Made it back only to realize that Bobby was still going to feed us breakfast! We had forgotten that breakfast was included in the stay, and Bobby didn't disappoint. All kinds of fresh fruit, pineapple pancakes, hot tea, cold water, these little rice balls with chicken and coconut that had been steamed in banana leaves and were SO tasty. Man was it good. And, having already eaten fried chicken, man were we full! It made it really easy to head back to the bungalow, shower, and settle into vegetating. Or that was the plan. I made it as far as the hammock chair on the front porch before I passed out. For two hours. Oops.

The day before, when Steve left to pick up the dinner noodles and I hung out in the breakfast area, we returned to find two little pots of spices on a tray, along with a note explaining that they were freshly ground spice blends that are used in traditional Javanese spa treatments. Just add water, use it as a body scrub all over, and rinse! I had been too invested in my book the day before to try it out, but post-hammock nap, and still stinking from our temple explorations and long journey home, it seemed like prime time to do so. Honestly, it smelled like I was rubbing gingerbread spice mix all over my body - there was lots of cloves and cinnamon and ginger smells going on, and it made my skin feel as smooth as butter. Apparently it was originally used before Javanese princesses would get married and I can see why! Smelling freshly of delicious spice mix, I went to coordinate transit to get to mass. Steve said he'd join me before he napped, but I managed to forget that in my actual conversation with Bobby. So we decided that I'd fly solo to mass, we'd plan to eat dinner at a restaurant just down the road from church, and Steve would meet me there. Then we'd both head back to Bobby's together. I really do need to work on my listening skills.

Borobudur's Catholic Church

Mass was gorgeous. The church band was made up of traditional Indonesian instruments including the gamelan, a percussion instrument that is a bit like ringing a bell by tapping it with a pickax. The church choir sang hymns that were unlike any I've ever heard - mass was definitely true to following the customs of the local population! When M&D and I traveled around in Northern Italy back when I was in college, we went to a mass together in Italian and muddled along with the mass parts. Trying to do it solo, in a language that bears NO resemblance to English (at least that I can tell), was tricky. But Jesus and I spent some time chatting while I didn't know what was going on, and I left feeling great about having gone. Mass ran a bit longer than it does at home so I didn't get out til 7:15 or so. I scooted to get to the restaurant where I was due to meet Steve and as I was walking realized that he could, possibly, maybe, be concerned about my having disappeared in Indonesia without a means of contacting him. Apparently the church left its doors open during mass, so when he drove by it looked like we had already let out for the evening. So he was understandably panicked when I arrived. We quickly worked out the confusion, clarified that I had not been kidnapped by roving bands of school children, and enjoyed a really lovely dinner.

Back at Bobby's, we made plans for the following morning. Bobby had found us a driver who was willing to wait while we explored Prambanan Temple and would then drive us to the airport (which is only about 10km from the temple!). It would be another early morning, so we shot for another early to bed evening.

On to Java

Friday dawned bright and clear and I apologized for being an insufferable twat the night before. Steve forgave me and was happy to spend the rest of the day calling me Grumpy or Crankypants, so everyone won. He was also happy to eat the fancy breakfast that my Hilton status earned us fo' free. It came along with a cupcake, frosted, and had a little "thank you for being a Diamond member" flag. Cute.

Breakfast was a speedy affair and we headed to the airport on the free shuttle. We had been told that we only needed to arrive an hour early for a domestic flight, but we shot to get there an hour and a half ahead... All the traffic we've dealt with has made us paranoid. The check in line was long and slow, but security is SO fast that it hardly mattered. We still had to sit around waiting to board for 45 minutes. Boarding consists of walking out onto the tarmac from the gate  and just meandering to the plane. There seemed to be a government jet next to us, as it was cordoned off and had Indonesian Republic and the flag plastered on the side. That said, this trip has definitely enhanced my awareness of the ways that American litigiousness (and paranoia about violence) has shaped the way we do nearly everything - including board airplanes.  Bali had a bombing in 2002 that rocked the little island, but their way of living doesn't seem to have changed (based on conversation with Dina and others) anywhere near the way we have since 9/11 at home.

Flight went smoothly, we got a taxi at the airport without hiccups, and made our way to Borobudur. Our taxi driver wasn't chatty, but when the roadway to our Airbnb was closed he had to communicate. Google maps has been a lifesaver this trip and it helped us out again. Before I left home, I downloaded maps that could be used offline, including to get driving directions, with no need to use data. The maps just can't take into account traffic if used without data. So I whipped out my phone and got us to the stay...which seemed to be in the middle of some rice fields. Umm...?

We wandered around the corner a bit and finally found the place, and I've gotta say it was lovely. Beautiful, well maintained gardens spread throughout the guest bungalows that were for rent. Bobby, our host, was so boisterous in welcoming us and getting us settled in. The sky had impending rain clouds but he helped us get sorted out with takeout food (Steve ran with the guy on a motor bike, I held down the fort), brought us afternoon tea, and generally supported us laying low. It was so what we needed. Steve and motor bike guy had barely returned with lunch when the skies opened up. It poured for hours, with long rumbles of thunder and sharp lightning over the fields. We cuddled up on the porch with books and wiled the afternoon away. When the skies cleared a bit around 5 we went for a stroll through the teeny tiny village we were in. It took about an hour and then we were happy to get back and do more vegetating. Bobby swung by to make plans for the next day - the price of our stay included one round trip motor bike ride to the temple - and we pretty much called it a night. We planned to leave at 6am to get the early morning light at Borobudur Temple without paying the extra $10 bucks a pop for the "sunrise" tickets that open up at 4:30am. We didn't even eat dinner, just hit the hay early and enjoyed listening to the storms as they rolled through during the night. We also managed to set the A/C properly so we slept comfortably this time!

View during our stroll

View from Bobby's garden

The side of Bobby's house

Our Bungalow at Bobby's

The porch of our bungalow, complete with hammock chair!

Rice terraces and a half day tour - Central Bali

Neither of us slept well, for the dumbest reason: the A/C was too cold. And like two dumb dumbs, neither of us turned it off. I got up and put on my raincoat and slept in that for half the night, because that seemed practical to half-asleep Kate. I never claimed to be particularly smart. Anyway, the two of us being tired and cranky really didn't set us up for a great day, but then Bali still gave us one.

Wayan (the young and energetic one) met us for a rice terrace trek at 9am. That was good because we had time to get up and apply bug spray before heading out and since we didn't have any coffee/tea that was more of a process than it might have been. The silent guy who followed along behind Wayan did so again for the trek. It was so beautiful. Lush, green, and filled with information about the types of rice they grow and how they do it. We met several farmers along the way, and really enjoyed seeing the terrace we had observed from our house to close and personal. You basically had to be a mountain goat to make it along the pathway without looking like a nincompoop, but we were well equipped with bamboo walking sticks and those palm leaf, cone-shaped hats that the rice farmers wear. It worked out well and the hats were clutch for keeping us cool. 

The whole thing was upbeat until the last 5 minutes when Wayan suddenly froze on the pathway and said "stop!" in a very nervous tone. He pointed to a little green snake that was poking its head out of the greenery and told us it was a green Mamba and had to be killed. Silent guy swept into action using Wayan's walking stick to whack the little critter to death. Wayan was clearly shaken up and was very much in the "live and let live" camp, but also had to acknowledge the practicalities of living on a rice terrace - venemous snakes that left us alone might not do the same for the farmers that work there every day. It wasn't a happy note to end our trek, but it sure gave us an authentic taste of the way folks live here.

The tiny restaurant next to our house was open after the trek, so we headed that way for a blunch overlooking the terraces. The food was stupendous and the best part was the banana fritters and ice cream we had for dessert! We had about two hours to eat, shower, pack, and go to be on time for our 1pm pick up from Dina to get some of the sights in and head to Denpasar for our flight to Yogyakarta in the evening (*a note about pronunciation: jog-juh is what everyone calls Yogyakarta. It's rarely called by the full name, and you see it spelled with Y, J, and even Dj, but everyone leaves off the extra "karta" at the end).

Dina was prompt and we got rolling on our grand tour. Because we hadn't realized how long it takes to travel any distance in Bali by car when we planned the trip, we wanted to get in a few of the sites we had assumed we'd easily be able to see already. Before we left Dina and Ketut's warung the previous night, we laid out a basic plan of action for our tour and travel to Denpasar. We definitely wanted to see Tanah Lot, a Temple on the Western coast, a bit north of the big beach towns of Canggu, Seminyak, and Kuta. We definitely wanted to see Goa Gajah, the Elephant Cave. We definitely wanted to see the Sacred Monkey Forest. Everything else was gravy. Dina suggested we check out Pura Tirta Empul (Pura just means Temple), located just north of Tegalalong, where our rice terrace is. Then we'd head south twards Ubud to Goa Gajah and the Sacred Monkey Forest (practically around the corner from each other) and then we would still make it to Tanah Lot for sunset if all went well. Away we went!

Dina is Hindu and his English is fabulous so going to Tirta Empul ended up being an incredible experience. The temple itself is dedicated  to Sacred waters that flow from a natural spring there. Dina brought offerings for the temple so he was able to get in for free to worship, and he was so patient, explaining the layout of the temple compound (three parts, meant to help worshipers move physically towards holiness as they move mentally towards holiness through prayer), the history of the temple (basically Wishnu had to kick a bad Balinese king's ass because he had decided the people should worship him and then he killed a bunch of minor gods when they came down to try and stop him by poisoning them with the water at Tirta Empul. Wishnu not only cleaned the water after nixing the king, but he also blessed it so that each of the spouts of water imparts a different blessing to those who wash in them - everything from improving your memory and getting blessings for building a new home to washing your soul and forgetting the bad things that other people have said to you), and helping us to know how we could respectfully take in the experience without accidentally offending anyone. It was invaluable. Plus, the water was so clean and clear that we drank some and washed our faces (who doesn't want blessings that help us to stay mentally grounded?!). Other folks hopped all the way into the bathing area to wash under each spigot. People were mostly respectful, but I guess you can go anywhere in the world and find people taking glamour shots of themselves in sacred spaces. In short: touring with Dina was already a good idea.

Next up: Goa Gajah. The temple itself is only a few years old (some portions were built as recently as 2015), but the cave itself dates to around 900 AD. We walked in and sort of got suckered into having a tour guide take us around for what ended up being ten bucks, but he was funny and the cost of upkeep is all through those donations and the $2.50 or so that it costs to get in, so it was probably a good thing. The guy is from the highest caste here, for holy people. Brahman I think it's called. Wayan had explained during our terrace trek that even though Balinese follow a caste system, it's not socially rigid the way it still is in India (despite attempts to dismantle it). So our guide has been studying and living by Goa Gajah since 1991, and sounds like he spends a lot of time meditating. He explained that the cave originated as a school, a place to learn to meditate in the darkness of the earth. Inside were niches cut into the walls where folks would meditate for hours or days at a time. Because the site is such a popular destination, you can only meditate on the floor now, but it's open 24hrs a day for practice. He said that there are always students on hand, so twice a week he sleeps at the temple to help other worshippers. It was fascinating. There was also a Buddhist temple on the same grounds until the '60s, or thereabouts, when a huge earthquake leveled it. Apparently it was something to behold, and the rubble has been left there to commemorate what once was. Our guide was a bit long winded and Dina was checking his watch an awful lot, so we wrapped up and headed towards the Sacred Monkey Forest.

As we were driving, Steve and I briefly discussed skipping it in order to ensure our arrival at Tanah Lot before the sunset. Fortunately, Steve nipped that plan in the bud and we proceeded according to plan. And thank goodness we did!

My pal Bruce, from Elmira, had warned me about the Sacred Monkey Forest. When he was in Indonesia back in the '70s, he went there and said he had never been more frightened in his life. He said the monkeys were vicious and aggressive, and he was just happy to leave without being bitten. I mulled over whether that meant it was skippable but ultimately decided we should give it a whirl - things had likely changed since the '70s. They definitely have. It's a little like walking into Sea World, and costs probably as much (something like $40 per person, a ridiculously expensive admission price for Indonesia). Everything is clean, the ticket counter is very modern, and the decor looks like it came out of a hotel. There are also large signs with instructions for interaction with the monkeys that include tips like "don't make eye contact or smile with teeth" because those are signs of aggression, "don't feed them snacks" besides the bananas and sweet potatoes that are available inside, and "don't scream if a monkey jumps on you." Cool cool. We had 40 minutes before we were due to meet Dina outside, so we got hopping.

The area is sacred because of the temple located inside the forest, but it's a tourist trap because of the monkeys. And the place is TEEMING with monkeys. There are pathways around the area for visitors to stroll along, and the little critters popped up out of nowhere. We first saw monkeys back in South Bali at Ulluwatu Temple, where they would sneak up on folks around sunset, when they were distracted by taking photos, and would try to steal hats, glasses (sun or otherwise) and flip flops. We had watched one there sneak up behind and follow a little boy in flip flops to try and snag them as he walked. Little nudge. Anyway, at Ulluwatu there were monkey minders who walked around and clucked at the naughty things and made them get away from the people. But the critters were smart! As the sun set, they headed towards the main pathway that folks would take to get out so that they could more easily find things to snatch! Fortunately, the monkeys in the SMF were either better behaved or better fed, so they weren't interested in causing a nuisance. The critters had NO fear of people and just pretty much went about their business. So many Mama monkeys with teeny tiny babies running around. We sat and watched two infants, barely scooting around, as they explored. One young Mama was very protective of baby (or maybe it was an overzealous babysitter) and would grab him by the foot or tail every time he tried to get away to explore. The other Mama just sat and was groomed by a friend while her baby scampered around newrby, practically running into my feet as he checked things out. We got some really cool, really close up photos. Steve could see me antsing to touch a monkey and asked if I wanted to buy bananas to feed them, but I declined - rabies shots are EXPENSIVE, and I still had Bruce's worries in my head. We checked out the funeral temple inside, along with the cemetery located there and made our way to the exit - I was excited about having seen so many baby monkeys and we needed to make our way back to be on time for Dina - and to make it to Tanah Lot by sunset!

As we headed out we passed by two toddlers - they were still small, but no longer had Mom hovering around - hanging out on a low wall with a built in bench. I asked Steve to play photographer so I could have a photo of me with a monkey nearby. I sat down and one of the things immediately climbed on to my shoulder and down into my lap! I HAD A BABY MONKEY ON MY LAP!!!!!! He was definitely barely past infancy because he was grabbing at my shirt trying to nurse - no dice, bro. So I kept gently moving his hands away and tickling his belly to distract him while he rolled around my lap like a kitten. He would stick his little face into my armpit and then grab my fingers with his little feet. It was incredible. When he turned into a puppy and wanted to play by nibbling my fingers we decided I needed to encourage the little guy to get off me. But he wasn't super interested, so I eventually just stood up, slowly, so he had to scoot. He obliged and we giggled the whole way to the car - I had held a baby monkey!!!!!

We were giddy, but poor Dina had an hour and a half drive in traffic to try to get us to Tanah Lot for sunset. Traffic seemed to be following us, and he kept taking short cuts that helped... But then we'd hit traffic again. The guy is an absolute ace though, and he got us to the temple at 6:15; perfect timing for the start of sunset. The temple is a little odd: it's situated out in the water about 100m off shore and is only accessible at low tide. It reminds me a little bit of Mont St. Michel that way. That said, there's a second temple right next door (maybe 1500m down the shoreline) that is posted on this gorgeous outcropping with a natural bridge to it. It was low tide when we arrived, so the ground in front of Tanah Lot was filled with people. Because it's such a popular tourist spot, they didn't seem to be letting folks inside, so we posted ourselves overlooking the second temple (which I'm pretty sure is Pura Batu Bolong, but I need to confirm when I have WiFi again), and couldn't get over how spectacular the view was. We were SO lucky with sunsets this trip - days we went to sunset spots it was clear and dry, and days we hung out at our various Airbnbs it stormed spectacularly - and this one was no different.

On the way out, we grabbed some fresh roasted corn from a vendor that was absolutely slathered in salt and butter and was, consequently, delicious. It was nearing 8pm and we still had to drive to Denpasar. It took an hour and a half to drive the 25km, and Dina answered my questions and chatted the whole time. Guy was worth his weight in gold, and he wasn't even crabby about having probably a two hour drive to get back to Tegalalong. We had huge hugs, made promises to keep his business card and tell our friends about him, and paid him about $60 for the 8 hours of driving AND his excellent information sharing. We used my Hilton points to stay at a property that practically sits on the airport so that we wouldn't have to face the terrible Denpasar traffic in the morning and risk missing our flight to Yogya, and it worked out beautifully for that purpose. It was, however, very strange to be in a hotel after all these nights of homes! We decided that our Airbnb experience has left us feeling much more in touch with what Bali is actually like than we ever would have in a hotel. Each home has been remarkably different from the last - surfer crash pad in South Bali, partying Beach town in Gili Trawangan, a rice terrace in the agricultural heartland in Tagalalang, and still more to come over in Java. It was our last night in Bali which was a little sad, but we were so excited to get a taste of yet another flavor of Indonesia. So despite feeling like the hotel was a little bit of a sanitized Bali compared to what we've had so far, it was good to be nearby the airport.

We showered (no monkey lice for me, please) and headed down for dinner in the restaurant. It was priced for Americans, so we spent about $30 on some appetizers and beers. Far cry from $1.50 for some fried rice. As we headed up to crash (remember, we hadn't slept well the night before), we checked out the laundry room. It would cost about $8 to do a load and Steve was preparing to throw away some of his tee shirts rather than continue to carry them. I assumed that was a problem. A comedy of miscommunications occurred, Tired and Cranky Kate came out, and Steve was left staying up til midnight doing laundry. It wasn't pretty, but we sure slept well in that temperature controlled room.

Back to Tuesday

Well, Steve found my phone charger. It was hiding behind a curtain in our place on Gili Trawangan, and thank goodness he has a reflexive habit of tidying up Airbnbs before we leave them. I normally would, too, but was in a funk...due to the missing phone charger. Suddenly everything felt sunny again, and we headed out for breakfast and to book the ferry back to Bali. When we left Padangbai, they explained that we just need to give a half hour of notice to get a ferry, but we found instead that the early fast boat, leaving at 10:30, was already full. So we were looking at two extra hours to kill before the 12:30 and decided to walk over to the west side of the island for breakfast. We ordered pizza and juice, which was a mistake because both were terrible (though it's worth noting that ALL the other juices we've had have been more delicious than I even could imagine. It's just that this one tasted like drinking pureed ginger root), but the location was spectacular. We sat in chairs overlooking Serene Beach and it lived up to its name beautifully.

To get to the beach we walked across the middle of the island rather than the beach route because of time concerns. It was pretty eye opening. We had been talking a lot about how Gili Trawangan was a weird place, a little like Disney World. Everything is happy and fun, but you definitely aren't supposed to look past the veneer. The middle of the island was much more of a reminder that we're in an impoverished place, despite tourist attractions and pricing that might say otherwise. Everywhere we've gone, trash is a real problem. On the beaches that cater to visitors, staff are really attentive to cleaning it up and raking the sand to get it even and clear. On the dirt roads across the island it just sits. The horses that are used to draw carts are left in pastures that are covered with trash, with maybe a small clearing where they can walk on grass and dirt.

We took to calling the strip near the dock where we stayed Wildwood - filled with shops selling overpriced tee shirts, jewelry, food and tchotchkes. A lot less neon, but the same habits of overcharging tourists for crap. If you walked to the center, the same goods cost significantly less and were sold without the beautified shop space.

Anyway, we made it back to the ferry in perfect time and made our triumphant return to Bali. We hired a taxi to drop us off in Ubud for our next stay, only to learn that the house isn't "right outside" Ubud, but is, in fact, a whole different town 10km north. We have slowly been realizing that 10km is more than just an extra few minutes down the road... It's more like an extra 40. Because Ubud is very much the cultural capital of Bali, the tourist season is always going. As such, traffic is a nightmare. Our kind and patient driver took us all the way up to Tagalalang to the rice terrace our Airbnb was located on.

Thus far, the weather has been spectacularly cooperative on our travels. Rain might sprinkle in the afternoon for a minute or two, but the heavy storms have all come at night and the skies have been mostly clear and blue. Totally not what we had been expecting for our trip during the less expensive rainy season. That was not the case during the trip to Tagalalang. The skies absolutely opened up as we reached Ubud, and the roads were so filled with water that everything slowed. It became dangerous for the ubiquitous scooters to drive so they mostly pulled to the side to wait it out, but that still left cars jockying for space on already cramped roadways, made more narrow by the channels of water churning down the street. It was a mess. Our driver handled it like a champ and got us to the rice terrace village, but then seemed a little confused about where to go. The directions on the Airbnb confirmation just said to have our driver call for directions to the house, which he had done, but there was still some confusion. Fortunately the directions mentioned that the place is located next to the Dewi Cafe, and we were able to spot it amidst the downpour. It was a little touch and go for a second there though!

Two guys met us at the bottom of this rain washed hill, one exuberant and one decidedly not. They were expecting us, so that was a definite upside to the driver having called. They ushered us quickly to a rocky set of steps and away we went, trekking up to our house (trek is truly the best verb to describe the trip). We scuttled over rocks and wet leaves and used the stepping stones that were meant to make the walk easy, and 3 minutes later found ourselves on the front porch of a traditional Balinese home. That happened to be built on the rice terrace. After a VERY thorough introduction to the space by the exuberant fellow, we were happy to just sit down and relish the air conditioning that we hadn't expected. It was an exhausting trip.

We managed to shower and get out on the porch to watch the lightning storm over the ride paddies and I was ready for bed despite it being about 6:30. Steve, however, needs more frequent feedings than I do, and doesn't allow sleep to dissuade him from eating. Wayan (the exuberant one) had left us a cell phone to use to call him with questions and concerns, and also to let him know whether we would like to go trekking up the rest of the terrace in the morning. We called to confirm that, and asked him about places to eat dinner. He replied, " but it's raining!" Apparently that was supposed to mean that no one goes out so restaurants and warungs would be closed. He quickly recovered and said he would call us right back. *Click*

So we waited for maybe 4 minutes before he called back to say that the restaurant was closed but don't worry, his uncle would come by soon to get us and make us traditional Balinese food to eat at our place. Considering we didn't have a kitchen, that was a curious explanation. We didn't get a lot more detail though, so we just sat tight and wondered what the hell we had gotten ourselves into.

About a half hour later, Dina knocked on our door. He escorted us back up the hill towards the main road through town and explained that he owns a warung there. It seemed like he opened specifically to feed us! So obviously we felt like total buffoons, causing all these people to have to change plans to feed us, but he and his wife, Ketut, were so so so kind and wonderful that we got over it. They made us Balinese fried chicken and rice and soup and we chatted about Balinese life and they answered all my questions about Hinduism as practiced here and it was amazing. They could not have been kinder. Dinner wrapped up around 9:30, and one of my last questions was what time Balinese eat dinner usually. Apparently that's between 4-6. So they definitely went out of their way to feed us. We apologized for keeping them up, made plans for Dina to take us on a tour the next afternoon and to drive us to our hotel in Denpasar. Back to the house in the dark and rain, and to sleep under the thunderstorm that was still rolling.

At the moment...

I'm a day behind in my notes, but I've discovered a glitch in the blog that lets me post photos! I can't try linking them from the camera, I have to take them directly from the app. So I can only post photos if I'm there taking the photo in the Blogger app. So, this is where we are right now: the Tegalalang Rice Terrace north of Ubud in Bali! We're eating lunch here after a trek through the rice paddies. The second photo shows the house we stayed in last night - it's on the far left!

Mondays in Gili

I woke up and couldn't find my phone charger. Since my phone has all of our reservations on it, is functioning as our primary camera, and is helping us to stay in touch with Anj for puppy questions, this was disconcerting. I messaged Wayan to ask if he had seen it and then we left the house to check on two shops nearby that sell phone gear. We quickly learned that Google does not sell their products in Indonesia and, in fact, only sells their phones in 8 countries. So we were a little screwed. I was in a funk (despite Steve's reminders that we had redundancies in place for all my phone jobs), but we decided to take advantage of the snorkeling boat trip offered right outside our apartment.

Literally everywhere you walk on Gili Trawangan, there are men attempting to sell you boat trips to go snorkeling. We had been ignoring them (much as you ignore the guys in Central Park selling watches or purses), but the allure of maybe seeing sea turtles and Manta Rays was too big. So for US $10 each, we went on a 4 hour boat trip to sites around the three Gilis.

Very quickly, I began to understand why the trip was so cheap. We were equipped with mask, fins, snorkels, but there were zero safety precautions laid out. We had a driver and a kid who sat on top of the boat spotting for turtles and directing the captain, but there were no directions given the entire day besides "jump, jump!", "in, in!", and "one hour stay here, very romantic" when they dropped us off at a beach side bar on Gili Meno, despite no one knowing that was going to happen. They certainly never instructed folks to be mindful of their fins and not kick the coral, so the reef was in bad shape. There were two upsides to the whole thing. At the second stop on our journey, after telling us to "jump, jump!" we went on a maybe 20 minute snorkel sprint looking for turtles. We saw two! Steve and I, along with one other tourist, kept up with the "divemaster" and didn't realize til later that the reason we didn't see any of our other boat mates was that the driver left the four of us in the water so he could drop someone off who was feeling seasick. So thank goodness we were all keeping up, because there was no boat rescue coming if we had any problems. It was exhausting, but the turtles were amazing. Later when we were dropped at the bar we found out about the woman bring left there to recover during our adventure.

The outing was exhausting. We got back to land around 5pm, went straight to the Airbnb to shower, and accidentally took a 4ish hour nap. We woke up around 9:30pm and got food before heading straight back to bed. It was a long day in the sun, but perfect weather for it!

Sunday Funday

...was actually spent in the car. We woke up around 4:30 (probably because of the rooster) and Wayan, our host, said we could shoot to take the 11am shuttle instead of the 1pm since we were up early. Needed to leave at 8:30 in case of traffic. Boy was he right about the traffic. We spent 2hrs 45 mins driving to Padangbai, the harbor from which our boat departed. We obviously did not make the 11am, so then we had to either fend off people selling bracelets and sarongs and sunglasses for a few hours while we waited for the 1pm or go to the bar. Can you guess which we chose?

The fast boat to Gili Trawangan was air conditioned and had a terrible/awesome movie playing, Monster Truck. It was about this giant squishy squid monster thing that was living in deep oil wells til industry found it. The oil company caught two of them and were doing tests on them, but a third escaped and befriended a boy. Think ET meets Free Willy and you've got the right idea. Again, amazing. Unfortunately, depending on your perspective, the boat landed before we could find out if the industry-paid scientist who turned to the good guy's side had successfully helped the two captive creatures to escape. Will obviously have to check that one out at home to find out!

We got to Gili Trawangan around 3pm and found our place right away. It's only a 5 minute walk from where the ferry plopped us down on the beach. There aren't motor bikes at all here, you travel by bicycle or horse drawn cart or by foot! We decided to walk to the other side of the island to watch the sunset from the West and it was absolutely breathtaking. We took turns helping other tourist couples take photos so they could both be in them. Let me tell you, drinking a  cold Bintang (Indonesian beer) while watching the sun set over a volcanic island is nothing to sneer at.

The downside of watching the sunset on the Western side of the island was that we had to walk back "home" in the dark. Sunday nights are apparently big for partying in the Gilis, so we passed many bars and dance floors that were welcoming patrons. Us, still in bathing suits and smelling of sunscreen weren't the ideal clientele, so we got some weird looks. We managed to navigate the darkness successfully (in fairness, large stretches of the dirt road were lit), and even managed to stay awake past 9pm for the first time this vacation! This Airbnb had blessed, blessed air conditioning, and we were so grateful for it; not only does Gili Trawangan have lots of roosters, but we were only a half block away from the local mosque and the first morning prayer is started with a call to worship that is projected via speakers... At 5am. So the AC helped us to successfully sleep through that (mostly).

This place was every bit as nice as the last one, in an entirely different way. It's beachfront, located above a jewelry shop, and has this amazing balcony overlooking the beach. They left us welcome Bintangs, plus the bathroom was designed as a wet room so I didn't have to worry about traipsing water all over. It was a really lovely space. First day's impression was all good!

South Bali - Feb 18

After 13 hours of sleep, it was time to rally. We got up and headed to the warung next door, attached to the Bingin Inn. It's helpful as a landmark, but also as a money changing spot and eating spot. As we were eating, one of the women we chatted with yesterday, Marie, struck up conversation again today. She asked our plans for the day and we told her, only to have the conversation turn our plans upside down. Turns out Balinese traffic makes even 25 km trips take hours, especially by car rather than scooter. So while we had planned to head north of Denpasar to see a Temple on the west coast, we reversed course and decided to stay totally in the south. All this dithering took a lot of time and we were faced with it being nearly noon by the time our conversation wrapped up. We decided to exchange some money, call a car, and just wing it. While waiting for the money exchange we reversed course. Again. And decided to just rent the darn motorbike, learn to ride it, and do our own thing. It was a CLUTCH plan.

Marie, amazing, new friend Marie, spent an hour with us, teaching Steve to drive a motorbike. The woman had the patience of a saint. Not only did she teach him, she also taught us about Balinese haggling (after we got totally ripped off on the bike rental fee), etiquette we didn't know, suggested places to visit, and generally made a lovely chat out of nothing. Delightful comes close to describing Marie. Anyway, she made sure we weren't going to die and then sent us on our way!

We decided to head east towards Nusa Dua, the neighborhood that houses the fancist hotels in Bali. Goal was to check out a Hindu temple called Puja Jagatnatha. We made it in one piece, got some fresh juice to celebrate our safe arrival (and cool down, bc we are NOT "heat treated" for this weather, as our friend Parker would say), and sat down in some shade before heading inside. That was the plan, anyway, before we met a bunch of University students who were there on a school trip from their school in Surabaya and we're FASCINATED by us. We talked to then for at last 20 minutes, about our trip, about our home, about their school, about the school system in Indonesia vs the US... We were totally their guinea pigs for practicing English. And they could not have been sweeter. They filmed us as we spoke, required photos with us when we finally begged off, and we just had the best time. After begging off we explored a bit... Meaning we walked around the parking lot and realized we couldn't go inside! The place was really intriguing: a line up of houses of worship all on a single property. Islam, Catholicism, Buddhism, Protestantism, and Hinduism all lined up like ducklings. But each had a sign outside saying knees had to be covered to enter and we hadn't gotten sarongs yet. So we hopped back on the bike and decided to check out a beach nearby!

The beach, Pantai Geger (Pantai just means beach), was located right next to the St. Regis Hotel, so it was, to say the least, swank. Lounge chairs for rent for more than a motorbike daily rental fee. Massage tables, cafes, and crystal clear water. We grabbed some more juice and a bottle of water at a cafe, and Steve held down the fort while I went for a swim (because we sure as hell weren't paying for lounge chairs!). The water was like a a most refreshing bath. Amazing.

After a quick swim, I headed back to change and we continued on our journey. I downloaded some maps from Google Maps before we left so that I would have offline access to them. A cool feature is that you can plan directions using those offline maps, it just doesn't include traffic info. So we were using those to get around having to pay for data use on my.phone. So using Google maps, we headed towards Ulluwatu Temple, which is just about 15 mins from our Airbnb near Bingin Beach. Maps said it would be a 45 min trip, but maps did NOT mention that portions of it would be on unpaved, heavily potholed, dirt and stone road. It was like driving on a flash floor path; the hard edges were mostly smoothed, but there was debris everywhere and you wouldn't want to be on it in the rain. Thank goodness it was a crystal clear day, or we might not have made it. It was definitely a trial by fire for our new motorbike driver! But we survived and got to Ulluwatu a few minutes before 5.

An important note about Ulluwatu: it is renowned for it's gorgeous sunsets. It's situated at the south west tip of Bali, and the beaches along that coast are all at the bottom of steep cliffs (as we discovered yesterday when we had to climb down the million steps to Binging Beach). Ulluwatu is at the top of REALLY dramatic cliffs - we both expressed the similarity to the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland - and its situation on the top is gorgeous to behold. So anyway, our arrival at 5pm put us there immediately as every other tourist in the region also descended. It was packed, and made me really appreciate our visiting during the rainy season! It was like visiting the Sistine Chapel in November - way less crowded than it might have been, despite going during the peak hours. We snagged a gorgeous spot to watch the sun go down and we're glad for it because other folks slowly crowded in as sunset approached. We watched it dip below the horizon and boogied. The plan could not have been more perfect because we were able to get out of the parking lot before the tourist busses, and able to get on the road back to the Airbnb before all the light was gone. Limited time driving in the dark on our first day motorbiking seemed like a good plan.

Back to the Airbnb and Steve headed off to shower. I hung out with some other folks staying here, including a couple from North Jersey - Christina and Hayden- who've been here for a month and two guys from Germany who are here doing a ton of surfing - Jence and Surin. I begged off when they started playing card games, and thank goodness I looked up as I walked to our room... The stars are absolutely incredible. I put on my glasses in the shower so I could watch them through the open roof! Now to bed, before trekking to Gili Trawangan tomorrow.

Jakarta arrival - Feb 16

Well, we made it through the 24 hour international leg of the journey! Most signs in the airport are in English and Indonesian, but we quickly learned to ask for directions because not everything is laid out clearly. Guards sent us to the shuttle bus to go to a different terminal for our domestic flight to Bali, but when we got here, realized that we can't get into the terminal til some as yet unknown time in the future. So where at Philly you'd be dropped off, go inside and get ticket, then go through security, here we have to wait outside at what would be the outside drop point in Philly, go through security first (whenever it opens), then get our plane tickets after security. It's currently 12 hours ahead of home, so 1:30am here on Saturday morning. Flight leaves at 4:30, so we'll see when they let us inside. Thank goodness we already peed.

We've already met some lovely folks, including a couple that we first encounteed in Newark at our parking lot! We didn't notice them on the flight to Tokyo, but re-encountered them at the gate to Jakarta. Turns out they live in northern liberties and are just headed home to visit family in Jakarta before heading back. Faustine and Ronny. We exchanged email addresses so that Faustine can let us know about any good drivers in Bali and answer questions we might have! Super sweet. I also chatted with folks next to me on the two flights... Julia, a Philipino ex-pat who lives in NJ and congratulated me on the eagles win, and a Dutch guy living in Chicago who travels out this way to teach chemical engineering classes at Universities in the region. His mom grew up in Java, and so he was pleased to start coming out this way and seeing where she grew up.

In Tokyo we had grand plans to get sushi but instead I passed out on a bench at our gate. We took sleeping pills for the 8 hr trip to Jakarta from Tokyo, figuring that was our only chance to get steady sleep. Downside is that we're still on an East coast sleep schedule and will have to force ourselves to stay awake for about 24 hours. Upside is that we're gonna sleep like the dead tonight when we make it to town and get showered and in bed!

Steve was a little hangry, so he went off to investigate the ATM sitch at the airport and the open food sitch. Fortunately, there were options for both right next to each other. So we got $ and then had our first Indonesian meal. The menu was all in Indonesian, so fortunately our waiter spoke a few words of English and pointed some things out to us on the menu... We both had chicken and noodles and MAN was it good. Hunger may make good kitchen, but Jakartans make good noodles. The bowls came with a side of meatballs in a light broth and they left a little to be desired. They were a little too chewy for our taste, but we both got through the two we were given. The whole meal cost 80,000 rupiahs, or about 6 bucks. For both of us. Welcome to Indonesia.

Balinese welcome - Feb 17

We made it! I managed to sleep on the 4:30am flight to Denpasar, Steve didn't so much. We landed and there was no skyway, so we got off the plane and walked straight onto the tarmac... And oh, what a tarmac. We walked out into a movie-perfect day, with the smell of the ocean, gently swaying plants, and a view of the water. From the tarmac. So it was a good start. (NB: I'm having trouble uploading photos, so I'll have to work on that later)

We headed into the airport and had no hold ups... We had already done the customs thing back in Jakarta (barely noteworthy because all our security checks were so speedy), so being domestic travelers made it go by super fast. I made my way into the bathroom and decided it might be a good time to put on deodorant and brush my teeth and change my clothes. But I neglected to mention that to Steve who looked like he was about to storm the bathroom when I walked out. Turns out he was slightly concerned that I had already managed to get myself abducted. Whoops! We found some coffee/tea (Starbucks is found even on this side of the world -  and the decor is identical to home) and felt slightly more human. Used the airport wifi to tell Anj the home WiFi password (oops!) And then rolled over to the taxi stand. There are tons of people hocking taxis right when you exit the terminal, but if you use the taxi stand, the rate is supposed to be more fair. That definitely seemed to work because we paid about 140,000 rupiahs for a maybe 40 minute ride to the Garuda Wishnu K-something Cultural Park (ten bucks).

GWK is dedicated to Vishnu, one of Hinduism's big three gods. Upon completion (planned for later this year) the park will hold a 120 meter high statue of Lord Vishnu riding Garuda, a giant bird. As it stands, the park already has statues of Garuda and Vishnu, and you can practically touch them. It was very, very cool. The grounds were impeccably kept and we had our first chance to wear sarongs - required to visit the plaza that held the giant Vishnu statue. Steve also learned that he's very photogenic when two complete strangers asked to take pictures with him. He's still baffled.

The driver who dropped us at the park suggested we have a taxi called for us to leave at the info center, so we followed that plan. Taxi dropped us off at our first Airbnb for the trip, which is super convenienly located right next to an inn with its own Warung. As explained to us, warungs are little eateries, often located in people's homes, where locals eat. It seems that they can cater to tourists as well, but I get the impression that depends on the location. We were about 30 mins early for checking in, so we grabbed a lunch of fried chicken (for Steve) and chicken fried rice (for me) that was fabulous. 2/2 on meals in Indonesia. Because the warung is in an inn in South Bali where surf culture seems to reign, there were two women who chatted with us and gave us beach recommendations for nearby. We're staying a ten minute walk from Bingin Beach, so that sounded like our best bet.

Checked into La Cama and quickly realized that the Airbnb reviews that said this is a great surfer bum rental were right; the place is very well constructed, very basic accommodations. Thank goodness we packed soap! There are four rooms for rent and at least two of the others were in use by some Americans and Germans we met upon arrival. Wayan, our host, is a total surfer. Laid back, super tan, and happy to welcome us to his island home. The room itself had a bed, a table, a jug of bottled water, and a bathroom. The bathroom was the part I was most excited for; its open roof design lets you watch the stars or storms or just the blue, blue sky while you shower. Fortunately, toilet paper came with the place, though we've also realized that bidets are used everywhere. Besides TP, though, we pretty much just got sheets and towels and a mosquito net over the bed (and, again, that handy jug of filtered water which is great because we aren't supposed to drink tap). I bought a great water bottle before leaving home that uses a push filtration system (it's called a Grayl if you're interested) so we've been using that primarily for drinking and brushing teeth, but it's nice to be able to just tap the jug in the room! For $14 per night, it's absolutely perfect. It also has a great front porch with comfy benches that overlook the two cows that live right outside!

We also succumbed to naps on the porch benches before managing to rally. We marched ourselves to the beach! It's absolutely gorgeous. The walk there is a little precarious due to no sidewalks but everyone assured us that walking single file would be fine. Cars and motor bikes just beep a little to let you know they're coming. Then there's about a million steps to get down the cliffside to the water, passing tons of seemingly abandoned buildings. I guess when storms damage property here, it's too expensive to haul the junk away so it just stays. The whole beach was rocky and sesame-seed sized sand grains, but smoothed by the water. The beach itself was riddled with massive volcanic boulders that made amazing caves and niches to explore. We spent the whole afternoon doing that, swimming, and befriending local strays. As sunset neared, we headed back to the stairs for our Airbnb and the warungs there. Drank some beers and watched the sun set over some seafood grilled right on the beach. It was amazing.

Downside to watching the sunset on a cliffside beach was that we then had to climb up out of the beach on those same million stairs...in the dark. So one of the little strays that adopted us was kind enough to guide us home in the dark! She was a tiny little dog, black with a white tipped tail, and would wait when we fell behind. Forced ourselves to stay up til 9 and then we passed out for nearly 13 hours. Nearly because we were awakened a few times: first by the rooster at about 3:30, then by the rolling thunderstorm that quieted the bird, then by a bat (probably) that flew through our window. Since we had the mosquito net down, we ignored it and went back to bed. Steve is now up and at 'em, encouraging me to get my ass out of bed (as if he wasn't snoring most of the time I spent writing this). Better get moving!

So you think you want to go to Asia...

I've had a longstanding dream of traveling to each of the 7 continents. So far I've knocked off North America (trips to Canada and Mexico justify this, even if my home wasn't located here), South America (looking at you, Brazil and Argentina), Europe (only the Western portion - need to rectify that), and Africa (Morocco, my one, true love). That leaves me with the As - Asia, Australia, and Antarctica. Well, my trusty sidekick decided to change that when he found flights to Jakarta, Indonesia from Newark for under $600 round trip. Almost too good to be true! Anyway, we did it. We're going. In less than a month. And we still don't have anything booked besides the flights to Jakarta!

It's been a nutty fall/winter, you see. Work keeps me under wraps from Sept through Nov (not that it's a good excuse, since we booked these flights in November), and then December is given over to the holidays and becoming a human being after all those weeks on the road. Now it's mid-January and I'm doing the heavy lifting.

For starters, choosing Indonesia as our first foray into Asia travel is tough because, I'm not sure if you're aware: Indonesia is made up of over 17,000 islands. That's a lot to choose from. We had decided to focus our time on Bali for this first go around, only to have a volcano erupt there. So then more dithering ensued with us finally deciding YOLO, we're going to Bali anyway. That's great, and all, but when I tried to book flights today from Jakarta to Denpasar, I discovered that Indonesian airlines don't like US credit cards. The inspiration for this blog post came about when I realized that folks need to know how to navigate this sort of thing (folks AKA me, the next time I find myself in this scenario) and perhaps, just perhaps, I should write it down so I remember what to do. A quick Google search told me I could use a website called tiket.com (an Indonesian ticketing agency, much like travelocity or expedia). Tried it, no dice. Googled again and learned something that should have been obvious: that handy little chat feature at the bottom of the page has a real, live, friendly person on the other end who can fix things! Right now, I'm waiting for my credit card to be "whitelisted" so that I may purchase flights from this site in the future. I sent along a photo of my passport and credit card (with the account number covered but for the final 4 digits), and they're going to get me sorted. I like Indonesia already!

The plan so far: fly to Jakarta on Thursday, Feb 15th, arrive in the wee hours on Saturday (Jakarta is 12 hours ahead of EST, so it's like noon at home on Friday when we arrive). Hang out in the airport til 4:30am flight to Bali. Get to Bali, and try desperately to stay awake all day! Gotta sort out the schedule for the time spent in/around Bali, but eventually we're gonna make our way back to Java (that's the island that Jakarta is on, and it's just to the west of Bali). What with the still-erupting volcano, we don't want to risk airport closures due to ash, so we're gonna make that a multi-day journey back to Jakarta with a stop in Yogyakarta and environs (we want to see Borobudur Temple!). Fly back home on Monday, Feb 26th and actually arrive in Newark "BEFORE" WE LEAVE ASIA. I think that is so freaking cool.

Here's to hoping that my credit card gets whitelisted, that we don't miss any connections, and that the sushi in Tokyo's airport is as delightful as I've heard!