Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from 2014

Bali Cremation Ceremony

We were lucky enough to see a Bali cremation ceremony before leaving Nusa Lembongan.  We had read about these elaborate rituals that, like the Indian Hindus, involve sending cremated remains into the water. In Bali, they send remains into the sea. With all of our beach-going, we were really hoping to see one. The day we arrived, our host informed us there would be a mass cremation two days. We were stoked! You might be thinking, " Mass  cremation? What's up with that?" Let me explain.  

Fiery Sunset

Yesterday we were extremely lucky and were able to attend a Balinese mass cremation. Even though we are in Nusa Lembongan, and island Southeast of Bali, people here follow Bali customs and religion. Seeing a cremation was on our wish-list, so we were stoked. It being in a place we really like was the proverbial icing on the cake.

Eastern Bali

Last week we left Flores and Kanawa behind, and made our way to Tulamben, in Eastern Bali.  Toulamben is home of a volcano that was last active in 1965, USAT Liberty wreck just offshore, and black sand/rock beaches. 

Ombak Bali

We are back in Bali, and spending time hanging out with the two friends we made in Flores, Alberto, an Argintinian who lives in Bali, and Cynthia, who is from Olympia, Washington. Both are great fun, nod interesting people. We plan on keeping in touch with them.  I suspect that Cynthia may actually know our other friends in Olympa, Chrisanne and Webb,  as they seem to have a lot in common. 

Manta! Manta! Manta! -- updated

The view from our lounge chairs at the Komodo Resort (which is not on the namesake island) We left Kanawa Island Resort on a cold, rainy day. The Flores Sea was choppy and white-capped, which wasn't the best of news for us since we were taking a boat to Komodo Resort, on the nearby Sebayur Island. Lucky for us, on a good day  our boat ride was only 15 minutes by speed boat, as opposed to the hour needed to get back to Flores.

Shark! Jellyfish!! Turtle!!!

After my moonlit dip, I slept like a rock, as I often do when there's an ocean nearby. Unless there's also a fog horn. Or a mosque.  I woke up to use the bathroom and realized that dawn was just breaking. It was a gorgeous morning, so I decided to climb the Kanawa Island hill to watch the sunrise. It was beautiful.

Moonlit Beach

The beach view from our accomocations for the night, a bale-bale* I write this sitting on a secluded beach, under a full moon and a cloudless sky, listening to the lapping waves of the Flores sea. The sound of the waves is commingled with nearby crickets and the dull hum of a distant generator.  The air is warm -- perfect, in fact. A light breeze keeps the bugs at bay, and I am perfectly content in my tank top and shorts.

Seven Dollars

The port of Luanbajo This evening something remarkable happened. Tadashi and I went to the night market for dinner. No, that's not the remarkable part--you'll have to wait for that.  In Luanbajo, the night market is a bunch of food stalls set up along the waterfront promenade. We found a stall that looked good, sat down, and ordered dinner ( mie goreng  and goreng,  fried noodles and   fried chicken). The stall didn't serve beer, so I went to go buy some. Although it's totally legit to BYOB, finding the B turned out to be a little more difficult the it sounds. 

Snorkeling With Dragons

We've been in Luanbajo, Flores for three days. Most people come here to scuba dive or see Komodo dragons.  Us? we came here to get in a little beach time and do a little snorkeling on some (supposedly) awesome reefs, but mainly, we came here to try and see the quiet side of Indonesia. We had hoped that Ubud, Bali would give us that, but we were disappointed.

Eating in Hoi An

Buying fruit local style, including the squat and the bargaining I have been a foodie my entire life.  Even when I was a little girl, when my mother would ask me how my day was, or how camp was, I would give a rundown of the food I ate--including critiques of dry carrots, I am told. The same is true today. Indeed, I remember the exact moment that I discovered how salt can add flavor to a dish: It was at summer camp when I was about twelve years old; I don't recall exactly what I was eating, but I remember it was extremely bland so I thought, "Let's see what salt does to it." It was a game-changer.

Hoi An Love

I love Hoi An, and I'm sad to be leaving, but I'm also excited to be going to Labuanbajo and Komodo. Every time we visit Hoi An, we have a wonderful time, and this visit was no exception. Of couse, seeing My graduate from university was fantastic, and hanging out with her family was a lot of fun. We especially enjoy chillin' with My's father, Can. Add the beautiful, (relatively) cool evenings in the old town, and our stays in Hoi An are always relaxing.

Beachy Time

I  write this siting on a quiet beach on the South China Sea, south of the (in)famous China Beach, sipping Biere Larue, chilling  with Tadashi and our new friend, Pengodactyl. Our new friend's  favorite color is blue, and his favorite foods are trash and humans; trashy humans are the best of them all.

A Last-Minute Trip to Hoi An

Our trip had taken an unexpected turn -- for the good. Two weeks ago, we learned that our dear friend from Vietnam, My, was graduating from University with a Bachelors in English on June 30th. 

Graduation!

Less than two weeks ago, we learned that our dear friend My was graduating from university--ranked number 1 of nearly 800.   Yesterday we attended her graduation and it was fantastic to see her give the valedictorian speech. We are so very proud of her!

Temples, Palm Wine and Parties, Oh My! (Updated)

This is the third time I'm having to redo this entry (grrrrrr!), so it will be shorter than I originally intended.... We were lucky enough to be at Cozy Wayan Sueta for the bi-annual temple festival -- twice! The photos below are are combination of both nights.  Going to the temple means getting dressed in proper clothes, and Wayan and Ayu were kind enough to loan us some of theirs. 

New Friends and "Family"

Village Girls A small village West of the center of Ubud, Taman, has become our home away from home. Wayan and Ayu's place, Cozy Wayan Sueta, has been filled with humor, kindness, love, and drunken shenanigans-- not necessarily in that order-- since we arrived 13 days ago.

Bali Handicrafts

Yesterday was a shopping day.  We started with a drive to Mas to see (and hopefully purchase) wood carvings. The carving were absolutely stunning.   And waaaay out of our price range.  The starting prices for the good stuff was over 8 million Rupia, which means anything would have cost at least 700 US dollars. And that would be for the simple pieces that were relatively small.  Suffice it to say that we only left with photos.  And I was surprised that they let us take that!  Unfortunately the photos are on my camera, so I can't share them yet, but I will update with photos when we get home.  Some of the carvings were truly life-like. I truly cannot describe them other than to say we were awe-struck at the detail and beauty. Even at a clearance sale, we couldn't afford the pieces we wanted. Were I to win the lottery, I would head right back there!

Flora and Fauna at Our Home Stay

I have been trying to post a blog, and photos, for a week now, but there is precious little internet, and even fewer ways to post with my iPad. Our original intent was to use the camera wifi to transfer photos, but it turns out that doesn't work well at all.  Of spouse, it worked just fine when we we're home! Traveling extra light, we have no computer, and being in the remote countryside of Ubud, we have no unternet cafés. Blogger is especially troublesome on the ipad.  So I will just post a bunch of photos. I will tell y about the funeral we say today on another post, because it's bed time, and theses photos will take over an hour tonload. First world problems, right?

Bali Hi

After a 14 hour flight, a 3 hour layover and a 4 1/2 hour flight, we arrived safely in Bali, Indonesia.  Unfortunately, our waiting wasn't over yet: the line for immigration was two hours long!  The line extended so far that it nearly reached the entrance, Even the immigration security officer was surprised at how long the line was. It was a bit of a frustrating end to two long flights.