Bali: Forever After

[Author's note: Sorry for the delay.  It's our last few days in HK and there's been too much to do!]

Leaving Ubud, Nicole and Jesse actually departed Bali in a planned trip to the Gili Islands.  Situated a little over two hours west of Bali by boat (closer to Bali's sister island, Lombok), the Gili Islands are said to be extremely isolated, almost deserted little patches of palm trees and sandy beaches.

The trip to the Gilis offered some beautiful views of the Balinese coastline, and our boat was lucky enough to spot dolphins in the open sea (although they eluded our camera).

Gili Air - our paradise

The Gilis are a set of three almost identical islands that have evolved three micro-cultures as far as tourists are concerned.  Gili Trawangan is the largest island, and is a hedonistic attraction for backpackers doing the Asian loop.  It's full of bars and clubs, and is the most populated of the islands.  On the other end of the extreme is Gili Meno, which is smaller and almost deserted.  A few sleepy guesthouses and a couple restaurants are all that's around.  Based on a recommendation, Nicole and Jesse had decided to spend their time on Gili Air, which lies somewhere in the middle; still fairly quiet and remote, with a few good restaurants to keep things interesting.  The islands are so small that there is no motorized transport allowed.  No cars, no motorbikes, no trucks - nothing.  The only way to get around are on horse-drawn carriages called 'Cidomos' or by foot.  This generally works out well because, like most other islands on Earth, no one seems to be in a big hurry on the Gilis.  In other words, the Gilis are a perfect example of a remote tropical island.

The only transportation

The travelers had booked a week at the Coconut Cottages, a group of private huts just removed from the beach.  Nicole and Jesse enjoyed their own cottage, a stilted house with a large porch under a thatched roof, an open-air shower, and (much to Jesse's liking) a very comfortable hammock.  The place also had a more than OK kitchen, which came in handy on some of the rainier days.

Traveling in low season really meant that there was a lot of private time for strolling the white sand beaches and exploring the island.  It only takes two hours to circumnavigate the whole island, so that's just what the travelers did.  'Low season' is worthy of its own explanation because it (perhaps unsurprisingly) coincides with the rainy season.  While December can be hit-or-miss when it comes to rain, 2010 was definitely mostly rainy.  Fortunately, the first few days on Gili Air were mostly sunny, or cloudy, so there was still time to spend on the beach, or in the water.

Snorkeling gear could be rented for only a $3 for a whole day, and the reefs surrounding the islands are teeming with incredible sea life.  Although Nicole and Jesse had seen some spectacular aquatic life in Malaysia, the reefs in the Gilis were much healthier, and were home to many live corals, and huge populations of tropical fish.

Surrounded by fish!

Graceful Sea Turtle!

On their third day, Nicole and Jesse chartered a boat and guide for the day to see some of the Gili's best known snorkeling spots.  One of the coolest features of these islands is that they are home to a huge population of sea turtles, who both lay their eggs on the beaches, and thrive in the warm seas in the region.  On this day, Nicole and Jesse saw nine sea turtles up close!  It was awesome to swim next to these docile and graceful sea critters, who were more interested in snacking on soft coral than paying attention to us.

Our intrepid guide would swim ahead of us and scout out interesting things for us to see.  He found rock lobsters, spotted clams, and starfish, but his best find of the day was a puffer fish.  After scooping the little guy out from under a rock, the fish became alarmed and triggered its defense mechanism: self-inflation.  It literally puffed up like a ball and rose to the surface, where Nicole and Jesse could handle it.  Although we were alarmed at first when the fish failed to deflate itself, after a few minutes it disappeared again, presumably to its puffy undersea boudoir.

Puffer fish

Now for the romantic part of the story!  The very same day of the snorkeling tour, Jesse had arranged for a special dinner for the couple at Biba restaurant - a place specializing in authentic Italian cuisine with fresh local seafood, situated right on the beach.  In their own private cabana, with soft candlelight and good food and wine, Jesse proposed and Nicole said yes!!

Newly Engaged :)

Jesse had cleverly concealed the ring in his carry-on luggage and kept it hidden from Nicole throughout the trip...everything went perfectly, and the engagement and impending wedding are a massive source of excitement.  It was really the icing on the cake for this whole amazing adventure.

The next day was spent trying to relay the exciting information to friends and family back home on Gili Air's unreliable and frustratingly slow internet connection.  And just when all parties had been informed - that's when the skies opened up and the torrential rains set it.

Escaping the rain on a boat filled to capacity

The rain in the tropics can be remorseless, and despite the glowing couple's best endeavors to make the most of their time on the island, the rain stymied almost all of their attempts to leave the cottage for the next two days.  With little to do on the island, and with more excitement than they could contain, Nicole and Jesse decided to depart two days earlier than planned for their next destination, Seminyak.

The trip off the islands was long and tedious, so you will be spared the frustrating details.  Arriving in Seminyak some six hours later, Nicole and Jesse sought out some nice accommodations and hunkered in for the final four days of the trip.  It rained for the majority of this time, so the travelers had to find ways to beat boredom and salvage the trip.

Fortunately, it doesn't matter if it's raining when you're surfing!  So they signed up for two days of surf school.  While Nicole excelled at this new sport, Jesse took a little bit longer to catch on, but by the second day, both of the pair were catching waves and doing basic turns.  It was a ton of fun, and a great work out, as both Jesse and Nicole were a little banged up and sore.

Great food is another popular distraction from bad weather, and there is a lot of it to be found in Bali.  While many of the restaurants in Kuta and Seminyak cater to the 'redneck bar-goer/broke backpacker' crowd, there are a few real gems.  Nicole and Jesse enjoyed the amazing sunset over some great cocktails and fantastic food at Ku De Ta on one night, then had some fantastic Italian at La Luciano the next night.




And so, well fed, well exercised, and well ecstatic from their engagement, Nicole and Jesse left Bali to return to Hong Kong for Christmas.  Despite the weather, it was really an amazing trip, and certainly a trip to be remembered for many reasons - who am I kidding?  We're getting married!