Quiet Bali

It happened that the hall of the my chosen villa was full of French and Quebecois people, including a couple who live nearby. They know all the best restaurants so we got on a flock of motorbikes and had an excellent lunch. Much of the afternoon we stayed at their place, a big house filled with Balinese art, and a pool in a tropical garden.

The town of Ubud uses to be a sleepy artist colony, but now it's strangled by thunderous traffic. A disappointment. 

Back to Bali

I seem to be having a lot of connectivity issues... Catching up.

Diving on Gili Air, and enjoying the mellow atmosphere of the island that is so sadly missing on Gili T. Then on to a couple more days on Bali - but not in those frenetic southern towns, but in a villa out in the fields. I don't expect to be doing much at all, other than some fine Thai dining. 

Gili Air

The idea was to head east, but since the weather is turning rainy (and tropical rain means serious business) and the forecast east is just awful, I am turning west. When my connections didn't work out and I got stuck in Lombok for many hours, my moto driver turned out to be a professional guide and too care of me. Saw many interesting places, including an ancient cross-faith palace templp. In the end I even met his family and a happy crowd of local children. 

If I hadn't insisted, he wouldn't even take a fee. So if you ever find yourself east of Bali, give Rahmat a call: +62(0)81917946551 (also WhatsApp), or rahmatragel75@gmail.com. A good friendly guide can make all the difference if you want to see more than just tourist photo opportunities. 

Anyway, Gili Air is like Gili Trawangan was ten years ago: just the right mix of barefoot Beach promenade, pretty restaurants, and pretty little resorts (mine is the Orong Village). Had a red snapper for dinner, grilled with lots of garlic by the fisherman who had caught it hours earlier. 

Sumbawa

It takes time to reach Sumbawa - a boat from the Gilis to Lombok, the crossing Lombok to a harbor on the other side, then a ferry to Sumbawa. I arrived at the Yoyo's Resort at 2 o'clock at night, after many hours in a very crowded minivan. A guy with a flashlight was waiting for me.

Yoyo's is very unlike Gili. It has most of a large bay to itself. Lots of green space ringed by steep forested hills. There's almost no people in these parts. It's a place to sit on a bean bag, read books, and hope for Wifi. The weather appears to get worse the farther I go east though, didn't see much sun today.