We arrived on Bali on Wednesday, and stayed in Kuta. Kuta is the most touristy place on Bali, and is popular for surfing, shopping, and partying. The Indonesians speak much better English than most of the Thais, and are way more friendlier. We have noticed it is part of their selling tactic here to befriend you, and then offer you their product or service. In Thailand rather, they would get more in your face and were much pushier when it came to selling. This makes it much harder to avoid or ignore the Indonesians as they use manners and ask you questions about yourself, and let you know about their life, before selling. Kuta Beach was a little too busy for our liking, and the beach was polluted with garbage washed up from sea. I really wanted to start some sort of Kuta Clean-up, but it would take a team of people to really make a difference, and garbage cans would need to become readily available, as we did not see very many on the beach. Dustin and Kevin rented surf boards for $8 each, and I rented a beach chair and umbrella for $2. But it was difficult to even relax on the beach and read a book or nap, as their are locals trying to sell you anything from a massage, ice-cream, jewelery or bow and arrows. Dustin hit his head on his surfboard on his first wave and saw black spots and almost knocked him out, the surf was messy so they are going to try again in a few days.
Our place in Kuta was really nice, and there were geckos that would come out from the walls and run around the walls and room. There was also a pool with poolside massages, we spent the day at yesterday. The bathroom was huge, and all the fixtures were blue! Exactly like the ones of mine and Dustin’s Debaren apartment, so it had a homey feeling 🙂
Everything in Bali is so beautiful and fancy, all of the buildings have so much artwork sculpted into them it looks like it would take years to make. There are also Muslim shrines and temple like things everywhere, they are every 20 feet, many even inside stores. In front of these you will see many square palm leaf weaved boxes filled with offerings. These offerings usually contain many flower petals, and sometimes crackers or food. These are seen all over the sidewalks and outside stores and buildings, and even inside some paces. You have to be careful not to accidentally step on them or kick them.
It is rainy season in Bali right now, so it rains almost everyday at some point. Sometimes it is late at night, or sometimes in the afternoon, but it is usually quick to pass, and then the sun returns. It is very humid here, much more than Thailand, and the water temperature is warmer as well. We are now below the equator, a first for me in my life! There are also many magic mushroom bars that sell magic mushrooms in shakes, cocktails and even omelette’s, and the walls are colourfully decorated with trippy designs.
As Kuta was a little too busy for us, we moved today to Sanur, a beautiful, peaceful beach on the east side of Bali. We checked into the Bali Mille Home Stay, and it is gorgeous. The ceilings are super high, and it overlooks two temple shrines. It is unfortunately missing Wi-Fi, but many restaurants around have free Wi-Fi. There are geckos inside this place too! So cute. We want to catch one but they are just too fast!
xo
Jade
jadeinasia 