Changgu, a Surfer's Haven

It was an early rise in Malang to get a train to Surabaya and then my flight to Denpasar, Bali. Once I arrived in Bali I quickly realised public transport is practically non-existent so I looked to book a taxi to my hostel. While I usually stick to using the apps, I knew what the price should be so when the first hawker stopped me and I haggled him down to the price I knew was right, I got in. His name was Putu and he ended up being my driver across the whole island for the rest of the trip.

Changgu is a trendy tourist spot that is popular with surfers and has been commercially developed and heavily influenced by Western society to attract the Aussies. I didn't do much bar explore some of the coffee shops and lounge at the beach and hostel pool, recuperating from my packed days in Java.

I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have a surf lesson here and the hostel helped me organise a one to one lesson. I wasn't expecting much and was surprised that I managed to stay upright on a couple of waves, albeit they were baby beginner ones. I was blowing after about an hour and a half as the paddling back out to catch a wave after you surf in had me wrecked.

The hostel had a family dinner night on the second night to get to know people and then also had a night out the following night as Changgu is one of the livelier spots on the island. I didn't go too wild and was in bed by 1.30am as I was up at nine the next day for my day tour around Ubud.Read more