Dear Loyal Bloggers,
After a short but much too long hiatus, we've figured out how to write a blog from China. We should have figured this out long ago, but we're back.
We have much to catch up on. Pat's brother Matt caught up with us in Bali, Indonesia. We were on our own for two days in Kuta, Bali before he arrived from Hong Kong. We should mention that we arrived First Class. It was the first time for Pat. Malaysia Airlines is considered one of the top 5 airlines in the world, so the experience was amazing. Apparently economy was fully booked but we made reservations long before, and after Shauna's persuasive ways we enjoyed 3 hours of bliss on our way to an idyllic island.
Our first impression of Bali was not great. We stayed in the resort area of Kuta for two nights waiting for Matt. This place is like Cancun on drugs for Australians. The tourists were more than annoying, and the locals asked us repeatedly "need a taxi, mate?" or "want some drugs, mate?". We had all we could handle of the Aussie Bali after 36 hours, and thankfully Matt wanted none of it. We immediately made our way to the Gili Islands. Gili means island in Indonesian, but "The Giles" are commonly known as three perfect specs of earth just off the coast of Lombok, about two hours by speed boat from Bali. We didn't notice at first, but Matt was at once at peace with Gili Trawangan, the largest of the three Gilies. It has a burgeoning population off 800, with no cars whatsoever. We took a 20 minute horse and carriage ride out to our place on the quiet north coast, which was in of itself an experience. Once we got there we had lunch in a recreated gigantic ship, which for some reason was the centerpiece of our "resort". We surmise it was once a big party spot, but has since been passed over for the more populated area by the port. Either way it was an interesting introduction to the island. Our room was fantastic, however, and we never looked back. We spent three days lounging beach side, and just to see the stress melt off Matt was fantastic. He swears he's never breathed such fresh air. He also became a legend with the locals. The day we walked the island was constantly interrupted by "I love your style". His hair and beard are international. That combined with the fact he got burnt to shit the first day made him look unusual, to say the least. Besides that, the island really was paradise. The coral was impressive, and Shauna saw her first sea turtle feeding naturally among the seaweed. They really are majestic creatures, and they are amazing to see in their element. The only other moment worth mentioning was Matt's first experience with the "Barbra Streisand techno song". We had become accustomed to this "song", but Matt had never heard it. It was funny seeing his reaction.
After Gili Trawangan we moved onto Ubud, Bali. This is the cultural heart of the island. We ended up spending 4 nights here before going to Hong Kong. Even though it is definitely touristy, it is still amazing. Matt ended up getting what may be our favorite hotel ever while we "slummed it" amongst the rice paddies. We didn't slum it at all. In fact it was an amazing but cheap place. Nevertheless, Matt's hotel was incredible. It felt like you were in a Hindu temple. It's hard to describe, but for the money it's got to be one of the best hotels going.
Besides that there is something for everyone in Ubud. It is literally an arts and cultural center in the middle of a perfectly lush jungle. Shauna spent an afternoon on her own, and at one point explored a yoga studio and enjoyed some green tea with the company and wisdom of a meditation master. She came back enlightened, so to speak. We also had an interesting evening taking in a trance and fire dance show. Bali is the one island in the Indonesian archipelago that has remained Hindu, as opposed to Muslim, and the fire dance showed the islands roots. The show was based off the famous Hindu epic, Ramayana. At its climax, there was a man walking on flaming coals. We also spent a day traveling the northern volcanoes. Although not as impressive as Hawaii, they made an impression nonetheless. The other story worth mentioning was the expat lunch we ended up having after an afternoon at one of the Ubud museums. We heard through locals that Naughty Nuri's was a popular place across the street from the museum, so we made our way there. We didn't realize this was the place made famous by "Eat, Prey, Love". Apparently the woman who wrote that used to eat there all the time, and it's in the movie at some point with Julia Roberts chowing down on ribs. When we came, what turned out to be the owner made some other expats move over and asked us to join them. We don't mean to think we're cool, but when you walk up looking as Shauna, Pat, and Matt do, people's curiosity perk. It turns out the owner is from New York, and we had an interesting conversation with him and his conglomerate of expats. A lot of them seemed to be "recovering" from their previous lives, like alcoholics, as they explained it. They were also quick to judge our previous lives. Is there some irony there?
Anyway, it's so good to be back, so please enjoy the pictures. We're in Shanghai now, but we've got to update you on Matt's second half of his vacation. That means Hong Kong. From there we need to go to mainland China, where we've been for 10 days now.
Until then.
Much love and admiration,
S&P
After a short but much too long hiatus, we've figured out how to write a blog from China. We should have figured this out long ago, but we're back.
We have much to catch up on. Pat's brother Matt caught up with us in Bali, Indonesia. We were on our own for two days in Kuta, Bali before he arrived from Hong Kong. We should mention that we arrived First Class. It was the first time for Pat. Malaysia Airlines is considered one of the top 5 airlines in the world, so the experience was amazing. Apparently economy was fully booked but we made reservations long before, and after Shauna's persuasive ways we enjoyed 3 hours of bliss on our way to an idyllic island.
Our first impression of Bali was not great. We stayed in the resort area of Kuta for two nights waiting for Matt. This place is like Cancun on drugs for Australians. The tourists were more than annoying, and the locals asked us repeatedly "need a taxi, mate?" or "want some drugs, mate?". We had all we could handle of the Aussie Bali after 36 hours, and thankfully Matt wanted none of it. We immediately made our way to the Gili Islands. Gili means island in Indonesian, but "The Giles" are commonly known as three perfect specs of earth just off the coast of Lombok, about two hours by speed boat from Bali. We didn't notice at first, but Matt was at once at peace with Gili Trawangan, the largest of the three Gilies. It has a burgeoning population off 800, with no cars whatsoever. We took a 20 minute horse and carriage ride out to our place on the quiet north coast, which was in of itself an experience. Once we got there we had lunch in a recreated gigantic ship, which for some reason was the centerpiece of our "resort". We surmise it was once a big party spot, but has since been passed over for the more populated area by the port. Either way it was an interesting introduction to the island. Our room was fantastic, however, and we never looked back. We spent three days lounging beach side, and just to see the stress melt off Matt was fantastic. He swears he's never breathed such fresh air. He also became a legend with the locals. The day we walked the island was constantly interrupted by "I love your style". His hair and beard are international. That combined with the fact he got burnt to shit the first day made him look unusual, to say the least. Besides that, the island really was paradise. The coral was impressive, and Shauna saw her first sea turtle feeding naturally among the seaweed. They really are majestic creatures, and they are amazing to see in their element. The only other moment worth mentioning was Matt's first experience with the "Barbra Streisand techno song". We had become accustomed to this "song", but Matt had never heard it. It was funny seeing his reaction.
After Gili Trawangan we moved onto Ubud, Bali. This is the cultural heart of the island. We ended up spending 4 nights here before going to Hong Kong. Even though it is definitely touristy, it is still amazing. Matt ended up getting what may be our favorite hotel ever while we "slummed it" amongst the rice paddies. We didn't slum it at all. In fact it was an amazing but cheap place. Nevertheless, Matt's hotel was incredible. It felt like you were in a Hindu temple. It's hard to describe, but for the money it's got to be one of the best hotels going.
Besides that there is something for everyone in Ubud. It is literally an arts and cultural center in the middle of a perfectly lush jungle. Shauna spent an afternoon on her own, and at one point explored a yoga studio and enjoyed some green tea with the company and wisdom of a meditation master. She came back enlightened, so to speak. We also had an interesting evening taking in a trance and fire dance show. Bali is the one island in the Indonesian archipelago that has remained Hindu, as opposed to Muslim, and the fire dance showed the islands roots. The show was based off the famous Hindu epic, Ramayana. At its climax, there was a man walking on flaming coals. We also spent a day traveling the northern volcanoes. Although not as impressive as Hawaii, they made an impression nonetheless. The other story worth mentioning was the expat lunch we ended up having after an afternoon at one of the Ubud museums. We heard through locals that Naughty Nuri's was a popular place across the street from the museum, so we made our way there. We didn't realize this was the place made famous by "Eat, Prey, Love". Apparently the woman who wrote that used to eat there all the time, and it's in the movie at some point with Julia Roberts chowing down on ribs. When we came, what turned out to be the owner made some other expats move over and asked us to join them. We don't mean to think we're cool, but when you walk up looking as Shauna, Pat, and Matt do, people's curiosity perk. It turns out the owner is from New York, and we had an interesting conversation with him and his conglomerate of expats. A lot of them seemed to be "recovering" from their previous lives, like alcoholics, as they explained it. They were also quick to judge our previous lives. Is there some irony there?
Anyway, it's so good to be back, so please enjoy the pictures. We're in Shanghai now, but we've got to update you on Matt's second half of his vacation. That means Hong Kong. From there we need to go to mainland China, where we've been for 10 days now.
Until then.
Much love and admiration,
S&P
No comments:
Post a Comment