"Eat Pray Love" to "The Beach"

Ubud, what a town.  So many artsy shops and, although we didn't get to see any because we were only there for one night. rice terraces.  The whole time I was there all I could think about was the book "Eat, Pray, Love."  Our room overlooked a race field and in the cool night we got lulled to sleep by frogs and crickets.  Why did we only plan to spend one night there?!  Now we're in Krabi and all I can think about is "The Beach."  Our room is an updated (no so scary) version of the same room Leo stayed in (we actually though about staying in the guesthouse that was in the movie).  The town is relaxed and once again the people very friendly.  Thais seems like a fun people.... I think we may like here.

Day 11

A cave we saw from the road

Quick sequence of events:
Left Gili on fast boat back to Bali. Caught free shuttle to Ubud up in the mountians of Bali. Stayed one night. Beautiful town. Taxi to airport in the morning to Phuket thailand. Landed. shuttle bus to south Phuket to Kata beach on a suggestion. Overpriced and dirty. We didnt like Phuket. Left the next day via ferry across bay to Krabi Town on the mainland. love it. Cheap hotel( about $6 a night) and cheap food. day one was spent traveling. On day two we rented a couple scooters and discovered the town by ourselves. Beaches and waterfalls. This is day three in Krabi, we'll see.

Day 6

Thank you JJ. Gili was a great idea. Full of young people all traveling the world. After 4 nights here I am sad to be leaving tomorrow. Today was my favorite. We wanted to spend a day discovering Lombok, which is the main island that the Gili Islands shoot off from. The guy who cleans our room overheard this, and called his friends in Lombok and told them to meet us at the harbor. after a 10 minute boat ride for a dollar, we arrived in Lombok to be greeted by our 2 travel guides for the day. They took us to their homes, a beautiful waterfall in the mountians, and the monkey forest. An all day jaunt that would have been impossible by ourselves, which was our original idea.

The day before was spent bouncing form the different islands, Gili Trawangan, to Gili Meno, to Gili Air, snorkeling in between. The day before that was spent scuba diving with sea turtles. And every night, per usual, was spent eating and meeting new people. My favorite so far was Rubin. A Very High Energy Spaniard(Valencia) who loved women, partying, and scuba diving, in that order.

Gili

Wow! What a wonderful piece of the world. No motorized vehicles, just carts driven by mini horses, and cats... tiny little cats everywhere. We are now on a the Gili Islands - Gili Trawangan - the largest of the 3 and dubbed the "party" island. despite the fact that when we got here a torrential downpour started, it was still booming with life... back packers coming and going and most not minding the rain which cooled things off a bit. Just a couple hours by fast boat and we're in a whole different world from the tiny, cliff-side community of Bingin. The beach, white sand, the water a clear turquoise blue and the vibe, still slow, but definitely down to party. If we're not hearing bob marley, we're hearing house or the latest rhiana or an Indonesian version of comfortably numb. This place might be hard to leave...

what time is it?

I have no idea and it feels wonderful. To the Balinese it seems that there is no such thing as time, and it's contagious. The people are nice and the food is so good. This is only day 3 and I've already forgotten about the fast paced life I just left behind. Bingin Beach is where are now and just down the beach is a place called Dreamland where a large resort sits and awaits bus loads of tourists... only if they knew about the little piece of paradise sitting quietly that's just a short walk down the beach. Tomorrow we head to the Gili Islands, no motorized vehicles are allowed on any of the islands and we hope to get a beach front bungalow for just half the price of our room now. Not sure when we'll have internet again...

Day 3

After 3 days in Bali I look like a lobster and feel like fried chicken. I'm sore all over from attempting to surf, and can barely sleep because of the time difference. Our room is on the beach, and at high tide the waves crash against our balcony. Which is amazing most of the time, except for the fact that high tide is from midnight to 5am.
All that said, this is Paradise. Dramatic 40 meter cliff walls meet the ocean, and at high tide it is hard t0 believe a town is hidden there somewhere. A town lightly populated with nice locals, surf bums, and some of the most delicious, cheap, and fresh seafood I have ever had.
Dinner every night has been a beach side table with snapper, shrimp, and squid cooked over an open flame with a side of rice, veggies, and the spiciest condiments i can find.
The days are spent trying to catch a wave, or just wading in the ocean watching the waves go by in the warm turquoise water of the Java Sea.

Hong Kong

The dreaded 14 hr flight from San Fran to Hong Kong surprisingly went well, thanks to our friends xanax and ambien.
Besides the different languanges saying the same message over the PA and the few people walking around with masks on their faces, this aiport looks just like any other airport in America. Looking out the window makes me wonder what these cloud covered mountains are that sourround us.
With bellies full ramen and udon we sit and wait for the last leg of our trip to commence to finally bring us to paradise.
Rory is jittery with excitement while mine comes on slowly, maybe because it has yet to hit me or maybe because my ambien friend has yet to wear off... either way we are now on the other side of the world with nothing, but our backbacks, a guide book (which I hope to lose along the way), our western sense of curiousity - here's to living a dream.