Taman Sari Villa & Spa Jimbaran

... Northern Territory. Maybe that's why people are a bit grumpy over there ...

Anyway, after spending quite a few hours on different flights, we arrived in Bali The Beatutiful Paradise Island. Will tell you more about Bali and Lombok once we have consumed a few rijsttafels and dived another site or two (or three) (or ten) and checked on some of them white sandy beaches (and maybe even take a surfing lesson!)!

Take it easy!
Ivo & Annemieke

... incense stick as a sign or respect to their gods.

Unlike Islamic Java, the Balinese are Hindus by faith. This cultural difference has sparked tensions between the two sides over years which partly played a role in the 2002 bombings in Kuta, Bali.

The first day we checked into our hotel in the beach resort area of Legian on the southwest coast and headed to the airport to meet Paula's sister, Sarah, who was joining us for 2 weeks after her work ...

... car. I think it's crazy how many people are in Ubud and how many tourists come here to visit, but there is absolutely zero nightlife. Yes, more of the tourists are older, and the younger ones are mostly just couples, but still. I was glad I never wasted my time wondering about a nightlife here before. It was good for us to go out and try, but we turned right back around and came home. It's more fun for us to just talk amongst ourselves at home.

... her as a present, as a tip for her always cleaning up after us and at our house and for an early birthday present since we knew her birthday present was coming up. It really wasn't much for us to spent on her, but we knew it would mean the world to her. And she had been telling us for weeks now about how much she loved bike riding and playing sports and all of that, so we knew that she would be capable. So, it would be her, Suzanne and me going on this trip. Our ...

... liability thy name is Jonno who decided that it would be really cool to jump off the 1st floor balcony and into the pool. Dumb or Dumber???? Another wonderful hangover day which involved a little bit of shopping, ended in the 7 of us going for dinner at a Mexican restaurant. A very odd experience for Jess and I who are used to dinner just being the 2 of us. How sad!!! It was good fun though, Jess managed to order the freshest apple juice on the planet which ...

... bait without getting hooked themselves. But sometimes you get lucky. I caught 4 little guys the first day! Who knows what kind they were - nobody here cares, they eat it all, regardless - but 2 were red and pretty. The staff prepared us a lovely dinner that night, featuring our fish. We tried our luck again the next day (tally: Cara-3 Fab- 3) and donated our catch to the staff/fishermen. For us, it's fun. For them, it's a way to feed their families every day. It was ...

... cost me a good 35 minutes to paddle be washed right past the cave you paddle out from, and back around the inside point. I was so happy to be in the water and surfing. Surprisingly, the line-up wasn't full of just surfers who save up for their once a year trip, there were a lot of first-timers that didn't usually surf at home, so it made for a kind of chaotic crowd. A few rippers and locals that could beat the inside section without looking ...

... across the Indonesian archipelago, Latin America and South Africa. The park is divided into regions that recreate the natural habitats of our birds, complete with indigenous plant life and traditional artefacts for authenticity. Experience the original Jungle birds of Bali and encounter the world's rarest bird, the Bali Starling. Discover the exotic birds of Papua and one of the most comprehensive collections of Bird of Paradise in the whole world. Travel to Far ...

... ze hier deden en de bamboeplantage achter de compound. Ook de opbouw van de compound zelf werd uitgelegd (keuken in het zuidoosten, daar een familie, daar een familie, daar een tempeltje voor de doden, daar de heilige tempel) en Darma beantwoorde geduldig al onze (en mijn) vragen. Daarna reden we weer verder en kwamen we nog langs meer tempels, veel rijstvelden en ook een houtgraveur die bezig was enkele tempeldeuren te maken. Toen we aan het eind van de afdaling kwamen en de ...

... same routine as back at the market. Empty the water out before you weigh it... that's only a head, there's no body on that one, etc... She also tried to determine the sex of the crabs before selecting them. Not sure how that worked out for her; I was fine either way. Then we walk to the beach to select our table. All of the tables next to the surf are full. Gangsters don't sit near the toilets in a nice restaurant, and we don't sit away from the surf if we're eating on ...