Ahhhhh I’m in Bali! As I’m writing this. I am travelling on a fast boat heading towards the Gili Islands. The fact that I almost didn’t come on this trip is horrifying! The girls had the trip booked for almost two weeks. Me on the other hand, booked the flight two hours before leaving for the airport! After all, You Only Live Once!
————
As we stepped off the plane at Densapar airport, we were greeted with heat and ‘the smell of holiday’! There was a bit of drama arriving, as the flight was delayed by almost two hours and, our taxi driver couldn’t find our hotel. But, four hours and a dog chase later, we were tucked up in our Bali bed! Lovely.
Waking up to sunshine and warmth was amazing. Our morning began with a cup of tea and a quick dip in the pool. After a relaxing start to the day, we had a saunter around Kuta and Seminyak. To be honest, I didn’t really think much of either. The two areas did not mirror the Eat Pray Love-esque Bali that I had read about. Rather, the Aussie equivalent of Marbella; with its Western restaurants and over-priced boutiques! Of course, if that’s what you’re after it would be amazing. However, we were in search of some tranquility and culture.
Conveniently, tranquility and culture was only a two hour boat trip away. Via Gilli Air and Lombok, we finally stopped at Gilli Trawangan. Warm azure waters, white sands and a bright blue sky greeted us at this tropical paradise. Whilst we were on Gilli T, we stayed at Permata bungalows. For 133K IRP (£7) p.p.p.n, we had a spacious room with air-con and delicious breakfast. Furthermore, the staff here could not do enough for us!
After settling in to our Balinese bungalow we headed out to see what nightlife the island had to offer. As we were there during Rammadam, the scene wasnt exactly buzzing. however, the Irish Bar jumped on to the fact that music couldnt be played past 11 and conjured up an amazing silent disco!
Despite the easy flowing Bintags the night before, the next morning we saddled up and hopped on some Tandem bikes! The six of us trying to balance on these lime green bikes was a sight all of the locals enjoyed. In between the giddy cycling, we decided to do some snorkelling. This was the first time I have been in the sea properly, for about eight years! After freaking out whilst on holiday previously, I have never really been comfortable in the water. Luckily, the girls were there to ease me in and help me get to grips with the snorkel. Ten minutes in the shallows allowed me to get comfortable, before paddling out over the coral. It was beautiful! An array of fish swam beneath and around us. On the second trip out, some of the girls were lucky enough to swim alongside turtles.
Once we had dried off and grabbed some food, we cycled over to the other side of the island to watch the sunset. With the mountain sat behind the burning sun and a freshly cut coconut in hand, we were sat in our very own postcard.
The next day was somewhat of a fancy one. We relaxed at the Blue Pearl Beach Club all day. To use the facilities we each had to spend 100,000 rupiah. That covered the cost of a nice meal and a drink in the swim up bar. Like I said…fancy! Despite our day of leisure, a couple of us weren’t feeling too good. Possible cases of Bali belly,I think! Despite a lengthy power cut on our return , we all managed to get ready and fo for dinner at Scally Wags. The food was delicious ; a BBQ and sald bar. After fully satisfying our stomachs, we strolled up to the other end of the beach and sat around the bonfire with a Bintang!
The next day was party day! Not its official title, but rather the ‘Drunken Monkeyz’ party boat. We Sailed around the Gili’s and then stopped just offshore Lombok for a swim. However, in order to swim we had to hurl ourselves off the side of the boat! I knew if I thought about it too much I wouldn’t do it. So, as soon as there was space,I held my nose and just went for it. After a quick dip, we all (rather ungracefully) clambered back aboard and set sail again. The music was blaring, the cocktails were cold and, the sun was setting across the ocean. It was not a bad place to be!
After some serious chilling out on Gilli T, we caught a rather chaotic boat back to the mainland. By chaotic, I mean ‘my life flashed before my eyes’! We decided to go on the sun deck of the boat. This was NOT a good idea. We lost water bottles, scarves and nearly our lives on the top of that boat. At first, it was hilarious but, after twenty minutes of holding on for dear life we had to get back down to the main cabin. This wasn’t very enjoyable either. A few us managed to keep our dinner down but some of us…not so lucky!
Traumatic experience over, we then had to catch a bus and walk for half an hour in the rain. Finally, we arrived at our gorgeous hotel in Ubud, Pondok Bulan Mas. These beautiful, traditional-style rooms were the perfect base whilst we explored the town. After sorting ourselves out and drying off, we all went out for dinner and a mooch around.
Our last couple of days in Bali were relaxed. We shopped in local markets, drank tea in rice paddy cafés and, watched the monkeys swing through the trees. On our final day, we hired a driver and saw some of Bali’s highlights including, Tannah Lot temple. The temple was set on the coast and was simply stunning to look at. As were the other other ‘attractions’ we visited throughout the day.
The people and sights of Bali were absolutely beautiful. So if the island uses the rest of Indonesia as an example, I definitely think I will be back to explore in the future!
Photos from Bali are here….
Piece O' Travel 