Still on Bali

Hi all, sorry for the lack of content recently. I lost the cable to put pictures on here from my camera so was going to wait, but there are no computer shops here to buy a new one.

The last week has been very busy. We went from Bali over to the Gili islands which involved 2 ferries, 2 busses and a taxi. They are a group of tiny islands off the coast of Lombok. Whilst we were there we went snorkeling And saw all sorts of brightly coloured fish and some turtles too (photos as proof!)

And we also rented canoes to go to the smaller deserted islands with white sand, clear water and palm trees. It was perfect. After 4 days of this we headed back to Bali and to the cultural capital Ubud. Here I stayed for 3 nights in the king's palace which was incredibly luxurious. There was even hot water!

Each evening there was a gamelan performance which is traditional in Bali. It was really interesting, but I can't say that the music was particularly pleasant to my ears being so discordant!

Whilst I was in Ubud I bumped into some friends I had made on the Gili islands and we decided to rent scooters and travel all around the island seeing the sights.

The roads and really bumpy and we have to keep stopping to ask for directions in sign language. As we ride by houses the children run out and wave at us. We feel like celebrities! So far we have been up a volcano, seen huge, beautiful golden temples and jungle waterfalls. By this evening we should be in Amed on the coast to do more snorkeling and relax after a few days riding. We should be back in Ubud by the 14th to return the scooters and then I will head over to Java.

First Few days

Arrived safely in Bali on the 1st after 30 hours of travelling. The first night I spent time getting to know other people in the hostel and planning what to do the next day. We got up early and travelled towards the centre of Bali to the forest where there were loads of monkeys living in the old temples. We took along bananas and the monkeys were very interested! We quickly became covered in monkeys of all sizes trying to get them from us - the babies were fine but some of them were huge! 

At the moment I'm on the island of Gili Trawangen just off Lokbok in Indonesia. Yesterday we left Bali at 5am and took 2 busses to Pedang bay before getting a ferry to Lombok and then a bus through the jungle road to the other coast. After a wait on the beach a small boatbcame along and we travelled over to Gili Trawangen. It is a very small island surrounded by a coral reef and white beaches. There are no vehicles on the island and the houses are more like huts with thatched or tin rooves. Today we hired gear and went snorkelling. The water was so warm and clear and there were so many fish with amazing colours. We are now just chilling out next to our hut and listening to the calls and singing from the temple near us! Tomorrow maybe more snorkelling to try to see the turtles that are common on the reefs or maybe hiring surf boards...