"Nice sarong Mr Kieren"

Kuta Beach
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After some less than glamorous accommodation recently we decided, as Indonesia is ridiculously cheap, we'd splash out on a bit of relative luxury.  For about a tenner a night (for two of us) we were picked up at the airport (these 'luxuries' mean a lot when you've been backpacking for 7 months), and driven to our air conditioned hotel room complete with pool, cable TV and continental breakfast (a choice of curry, noodles or prawn crackers - different continent I guess!).  Everything here is cheap largely due to the weak Indonesian currency.  We withdrew 1,500,000 Rupiah from a cash machine - and had spent it all in 3 days!  The smaller denominations (ie coins) are made of plastic but if a shop can't find you one of these for your change it's customary to give you a little sweet instead.

Nice Sarong Mr Kieren (note the beer t-shirt to reinforce sexuality)
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The following morning we ventured out and immediately realised we'd been dropped into another world - chickens were running around in the street, hundreds of mopeds (some with as many as four people on them) zipped along the roads and the paths and tiny, yet intricately beautiful offerings to the Balinese Gods had been left along the street.  The afternoons are very hot but just before sunset all the families stop what they're doing and head down to the beach to splash around in the sea (often fully clothed however the kids are nearly always butt naked), play a game of football or pray (we witnessed a well attended and very ceremonial sprinkling of crematorial ashes into the ocean).

As the sun came up over the mountains, Kieren did the honourable thing and asked Charlotte to marry him.

Cremation Service on... guess where... Kuta Beach
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Traveling　north we headed to the town of Ubud.  Around there we walked through amazingly photogenic rice paddies to get to giant rock carvings and ornate temples. To get into the temples Kieren had to wear a sarong which, selflessly, for you - the readers of this site - he has allowed a photograph to be published on this site.

The following day we went to another temple, this time to watch a traditional dance ceremony.  Kieren, feeling more comfortable - sexy even - in his sarong, walked past the ladyboy that worked at the hotel (did we forget to　mention her?) who proceeded to look dreamily at Kieren and drool "Nice Sarong".  We returned from the dance (a blend of chanting, costume and fire walking) for the ladyboy to come round and offer to fix the shower (at 9.30pm!) which, objectively speaking, didn't need fixing in the slightest.  It was going to be a tough night's sleep from then in!

And again
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For our next stop we headed via the Indonesian island of Lombok to three tiny white sand islands collectively known as the Gili Islands (Gili Air, Gili Trawangan and Gili Meno) for some sun, sand and snorkeling.  The journey to these picture postcard islands is worth a mention alone.  When we arrived at the first ferryport the ticket office was closed (despite the ferry still being in the dock) so we had to bribe the security guard to allow us to run for the boat (only two leave per day).  After 5 hours on the worlds slowest cockroach infested boat (we could've swam faster - scratch that - Stephen Hawking could've swam faster!) we had to haggle for a minibus to take us to the port of Bangsal in the North of Lombok.  Bangsal has it's own little section in the Lonely Planet Guide  entitled 'Surviving Bangsal'.  So after avoiding most of the scams and annoyances that Bangsal is famous for, and only having forked out about 80p more than we needed to (mostly a 'tip' for unrequested yet necessary 'interpreting services'), we sat and waited for the boat to leave.  And waited.  As the boats from Bangsal only leave when they're full (4 hour waits aren't uncommon) you have to sit... and wait... as the ticket office infrequently reminds you how many tickets are left to be sold before the boat is full (hence the need for an interpreter).  After around an hour we were shepherded, with our rucksacks strapped to our backs, into waist deep seawater and onto what's best described as an oversized canoe with a couple of tree trucks on the side for balance.  After the prerequisite 20 passengers struggled on board , any remaining space on the 'boat' was crammed with crates of beer for the bars that supply the tourists on the Islamic Islands.  After the 40 minute sailing we again waded through the (now beautifully clear yet torquoise) water and took a horse and cart along the beachfront to pick the beach bungalow of our choice.

Picking rice
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The Gili islands have no police (any crime is reported to the village head), no banks and no motorized transport (hence the horse and cart).  Our accommodation on the islands was invariably a bamboo bungalow just set 30 yards or so from the beach with a fan, western toilets (so important!) and mosquito nets (pretty important too!).  Cost for two people (including breakfast):  About three quid.

A typical day would normally start with breakfast on the beach chatting to the locals, followed by a saltwater shower (no rainwater = sticky showers) in the open air bathroom at our bungalow.  We'd lounge around on the beach, cool off by snorkeling around the amazing coral reefs surrounding the islands (Charlotte saw a baby shark and freaked!) and then have lunch (again at one of the beachside cafes).  The afternoons were too hot for the beach so we'd find a shaded hammock and wait for the sun to go down.  Life's a beach eh? (Sorry!)

Indonesian hod carriers
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And we didn't really do much else on the Gilis.  Except on one morning we got up just before sunrise (the local mosque's call to prayers served as a very effective alarm clock) to try and see the dolphins that live off the Islands.  We didn't get to see any dolphins but, as the sun came up over the mountains, Kieren did the honourable thing and asked Charlotte to marry him.  She agreed; so we're engaged.  The ring may only be a temporary one (due to budgetary rather than any other reasons) but, needless to say, we're both very happy.

Backpacking can be tough you know!
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And finally, we arrived back in Bali and proceeded to check into the hotel which we stayed in at the start of our time in Indonesia.  Unfortunately, despite our confirmed booking, we arrived to find the hotel overbooked so, in an event that's unusual to us, we were upgraded to their sister hotel next door.  It was very nice.  So nice in fact that even people who haven't been backpacking for 7 months might consider it elegant!  A perfect end to a perfect destination.

Indonesia's been amazing.

Temple in Ubud
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Crazy Tokyo next...