Hotel Puri Rai Padangbai

Uf*em W*eg vo B*li uf Lombok h*emmer in P*d*ngb*i *en Zwuesch*estopp ihgleit. P*d*ngb*i isch *es chliis*es Fischerdoerfli mit Str*nd, *es p**r we****e Reschtis und d*e F*ehrh*f*e.
Ih ues*er*e Unterkunft h*emmer wieder m*l Glueck gh* mit d*e Zimmermitbewohner.. pro Obig h*emmer 2 K*kerl*k*e z'bsu*ech gh*. Aber d* mir ih d*e K*kerl*k*ej*gt inzwuesch*e routini*ert sind, h ...

... plate included in the price.

We ate at the Puri Rai--both ordered fried noodle with vegetable and tempe. It was very well done, 25,000 rp each.

Got up early and caught the Perama shuttle to Lovina (160,000 rp.) The ride took us through Ubud, where WW, WM, and our new traveling friend Marloos from Holland had fruit shakes. WW had pureed fresh mango, easily the best of three delicious choices. 15 ...

... we approached Penida. The boat, while motoring full speed, was literally travelling sideways as we moved across the channel into the bay. I was beginning to wonder if the driver would be able to actually get across the channel and imagined being swept away to Australia!

I jumped off the boat in Toyapakeh, and had a quick look around the town, and couldn’t find anywhere to stay! I was also being stared at like I had 3 heads – they don ...

... the coral and Sarah managed to scrape her knee so not in our top ten snorkel sites for sure. And the usual hoard of beach towel to beach towel salesmen to boot; not somewhere we’d rush back to.

We’d arrived with the aim of going straight on for several days on the Gilli Isles off Lombok but after various folks that had already been there telling us it was way too busy and expensive, we decided on an interim ...

... Way out of our budget. David was running short of cash so we went to the ATM to find that none of our cards worked, and it was the only ATM in the village. We now definitely could not afford to dive. With only about 20 pounds, we had just enough money to stay that night and eat, but that's it. So we booked the first bus to Kuta in the morning. We hadn't particularly wanted to go to Kuta because it is a ...

... cheaper (20%) on a rafting trip tomorrow so i couldn't resist and ended up booking despite having no money on me (going to the beach) SO off i go tomorrow. The beach (chicken bringers) I found the beach to be Alright, kinda dirty, to no fault of the bali people i think the blame is more so the chicken bringers... Portuguese expression for the people with no class who liter on the beach, coz they usually show up and cook chicken on the beach.

Third night here and the heat is still fierce (as evidenced by our sweaty mugs) but we're battling on, in between mammoth snoozes. Saw a Balinese dance called the kecack monkey dance in a beautiful old temple followed by the ritual fire dance which consisted of a guy in a hobby horse outfit kicking flaming coconut shells about with his bare feet ...

... it was a hard slog, and the worst bit is the middle bit, just making sure you get past half way so phsychologically you won't give in. Strangely, the steepest bit, the last third to the top, was the easiest - maybe it was because it was cooler, - who knows, but the climb was worthwhile, and it didn't take so long coming down IN THE DAYLIGHT - which of course then shows you what you were tramping up in the dark. For those who ...

... get their own private diving instructor! So, you decide: how many dives and when. Of course, we do not choose that early: 9h is good enough for us. We get our own dedicated instructor: Arie. Although, we are happy to give the local people a job in 3rd world countries, it is a disadvantage to have a none native English speaking dive master. It is not so easy to understand their accent and often their English is not good. We go and discover ...

... colourful fish that swarmed around us, and a current that rivaled those Olympic training pools. Not to sound too over-the-top here, but we must say that Gili T was one of THE most beautiful places we have ever been in our lives - it was absolutely breathtaking from the moment we woke up to the end of the night. Travel Award: Most Beautiful Paradise!