Indonesia

Jakarta, Indonesia / July 27
Dirty, polluted city with a few sights. Aggressive and somewhat creepy men line the street, hasseling women as we walk by. Harmless I'm sure but that combined with the city itself and the underwhelming backpacker area, I decided the night I arrived to fly out the next day. Note, that was the first night I felt the need to use my silk sheet sleeping bag. I wouldn't even touch the sink faucet or anything in the bathroom without holding toilet paper. Yes, it was one of the better places I found with air condition without paying more than I wanted. Whatever, it was one night. I pulled the silk bag up over my head to avoid the linens and fight off the swarm of mosquitos. On the plus side? 1) the sound of the muslim calls to prayer that played throughout the city, 2) meeting Lisanna from Amsterdam.

Bali
With guilt of having bypassed Java, I arrived in Bali the next day. I needed peace, quiet and relaxation which did not include buses through Java. Turns out that Kuta, Bali is not what I needed either. After a few crazy nights with Lisanna, I headed for the Gili Islands. A 13-hour journey including two buses and two ferry rides, I arrived on Gili T to find a guesthouse in the pitch black dark of night. With few vacancies, I ended up sleeping on the extra bed in the room of a couple I had briefly met before boarding the first ferry. They saw me on the streets and knew of the prior night without sleep and insisted I stay with them. I was beginning to think I would have to sleep on the beach or the shithole I had seen earlier which is the only vacancy I had found. And in case you're wondering...yes, there are many nights when I end up sharing a room with people I barely know to either save money or have company. You learn to trust your instinct. First things first the next morning, I found a new place. Turtle Bungalows was my home for the next two weeks with the exception of island hopping to Gili Air for two nights during the first week.

Allow me to set the stage. Gili T is the biggest of the three islands which lay east of Bali. (I'll call it Gili T b/c I can't remember how to spell the actual name.) 9km around the perimeter. Here one finds the bars and restaurants on one end and quieter life on the other end with shops and Warungs in the middle. Warungs are simple restaurants serving local food which sometimes consist of plastic chairs and tables. The food is delicious and cheap! One side of the narrow road is the beach. On the other are the bungalows and restaurants. The back side of the island is essentially desserted. White sand beaches full of broken coral with waves that can knock you over and a current that can pull you under. I wanted as much sun as my body would allow and as few tourists as possible. Many days consisted of waking, eating breakfast included at Turtle, moving to the beach, then watching the sunset from the back side of the island. People I had inevitably met at some point would find me but I would often times pretend I had previous plans to avoid their company. This is not usually the case but I simply wanted peace and solitude. One exception was Mona from Germany who turned out to be a plasure to spend a few days with, including Gili Air, before she had to go home for her upcoming theatre gig. She is one of those people you hope to meet while traveling. I usually spent my evenings with the staff at my bungalow. Nono, Andy and "my brother" Mr. Said (and some nights a few others) and I would sit in the front elevated bamboo huts. They would play guitar and sing a mixture of Balinese, Indonesian and American songs. We drank Black Wine (rice wine) at night and played cards. Generators are not able to support the increased demand and therefore, we were without electricity for a couple hours, sometimes four times a day. Activities like playing cards, showering and maneuvering by candlelight added to my latest perception of what is really necessary in this world. I discovered favorite Balinese music and foods, which is my favorite so far!

One morning I jogged around the 9km island. In my unexpected motivation upon waking and wanting to get going, I forgot to take water and had to stop on the opposite side of the island and ask a bungalow manager to spare some water for free. Ended up chatting for a half hour about how few Americans travel before I continued on around. Another thing to note: The cold water showers were indeed refreshing from the heat but the water is pumped from the sea and therefore showers are...salt water showers! My skin and hair cursed me every day. I was so relaxed I didn't care. The sunsets were breathtaking. The Lombok coffee delicious. A little piece of paradise. The islands are expensive. I spluged. Shockingly, there is no ATM on the island...so they can charge a 10% fee to use credit card. Fortunately, staying a while at one place and making friends affords privileges. Nono took me on the local boat (for 1/4 the price of the tourist boat) to Lombok island. We spent the day on his motorbike, driving around the island, including climbing a waterfall. He surprised me by going to the family of a friend in a small village where not many white people have been. For the hour I was there, 20 village kids stook at the windows and doorways, staring and turning in shyness. We made faces at each other, played the winking game and smiled all while I tried to converse with the muslim family seated before me. The 10-month old son was then placed in my arms to take pictures of me and the baby. Lunch was served and we ate with our fingers. Success! They watched me carefully to see how I reacted to the flavors and various dishes. They loved that I mostly ate the spicy foods...and peanut sauce. Hugs were exchanged and we were off...but what I really wanted was to engage the kids in a few games and laughter. This may sound strange but it's a wonderous experience to be the extreme minority. On our return we had to wait for enough passengers to arrive for the local boat to be full. I sat and waited for an hour with the locals while all the other Westerns looked in curiosity. Who knows what they were thinking but times like those are what I'm here to experience. I was sad to leave Gili although my bank account sighed in relief. I must say though that Gili Islands are still cheap for anyone seeking a destination/vacation...just not cheap for those on a year long travel budget. Leave I must though...friends from home were to meet me back in Bali for my birthday!

P.S. Will add photos in a few days when I have the opportunity to download/upload.