Bali
January 1, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ 30 °C
Frida and I arrived safely in Bali. Hearing the Balinese traditional music and seeing the cultural decorations, it really triggered a sense of exhilaration in the both of us, realizing that we are actually now in Bali! I had a contact waiting to pick us up, recommended to me by someone on Couchsurfing. His rates were cheap and he was there waiting for us. He put our stuff in his trunk and we headed off into the night towards our hostel. Going through the empty and dark streets of Bali, I noticed that they have a lot of tall and beautiful statutes based on Balinese mythology and sometimes Hinduism. We were told by our driver that there were hundreds of languages and that Bali is one of the few non-Muslim islands in Indonesia. He was able to find and drop us off at our hostel. It was already very late so I took a shower and headed straight to bed in our dormitory.Read more
Bali II
January 2, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ 31 °C
We woke up and got ready for the long day ahead. I had a shower and ate breakfast below, delicious fruits and pancakes. Frida was our designated driver, we were using a scooter to go around Bali's hotspots but the first order of business was getting some cash exchanged. It was quite a bumpy ride as Frida wasn't used to driving a scooter anymore, we had a lot of close calls and I'm sure she was quite stressed. We went to Tegallalang Rice Terraces first, it was blistering hot and we used my anti-UV umbrella which really saved our skins.
We went to Tirta Empul Temple next, we had to wear sarongs, a colorful fabric to wrap around our waist, to enter the place. Some trees even had them. Tirta Empul was a huge complex featuring pools of water and numerous temples around. It was a very spiritual area and it was our first encounter with Balinese culture. We walked around for a long time making sure we didn't miss anything. We saw people praying together and people cleansing themselves in the pool. When we got out of the place, we were recommended a restaurant by one of the guys who touched Frida's crystal necklace. We then went with him and we ate one of the best traditional Balinese meals I've had in front of a rice paddy field. It was truly one of the best meals with the best view.
Next up, we drove to Gunung Kawi. Here, it also had its own rice terraces. But more than that, there was also a rainforest, waterfalls, and caves. There was a temple complex deeper inside as well as carved sculptures on the mountain walls. We had to take our shoes off to enter the holy areas but the energy in this place was simply divine.
As they day went on, traffic started to get bad and Frida was getting too nervous driving around such tight spaces. We had to get off and walk towards our next destination, the Goa Gajah aka the Elephant Cave. It was quite small to be honest, but the surrounding area was very fun to explore.
We went back to our place to rest for a bit, surprisingly unscathed. I was chilling by the hostel's second floor balcony on some beanbags, talking to this girl who was eating some food, she came to Bali to do some yoga. We exchanged stories about our plans to go to Gili Trawangan. From there, we walked towards the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, the were hundreds of monkeys, some were quite naughty, destroying motorcycle seats. The sanctuary itself was a temple complex situated inside a forest that's inhabited by hundreds if not thousands of monkeys. With both culture and nature mixing, the experience of the place itself made it one of the best highlights of Bali.
For dinner, we found a quaint restaurants and I had some delicious Nasi Goreng, Indonesian fried rice. There were indeed a lot of bugs, and giant geckos. Such is the island life.Read more
Pandang
January 3, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ 31 °C
Frida and I booked a service that takes us from our hostel straight to Gili Trawangan, but first we had to go to Pandang to take our ferry. We had to pick up some other people before heading to the port. We stopped by another place and a couple went inside. They were very friendly, especially the man and conversations flowed very easily. We exchanged introductions with Michael and Laurence. They were on a vacation, totally in love and already consider themselves husband and wife though they are not married and don't have plans to. We got along very well throughout the drive, enjoying the views. Arriving at Pandang, Frida and I went to get our tickets and waited at the pier where we ran into Michael and Laurence again. Michael was once again pretty much just chatting up everyone, and he even bought as all some Bintangs, Indonesian beer while I went ahead to buy some chips. A vendor also offered us free bracelets when Laurence bought some stuff, but later took them back when she realized we weren't interested in buying from her. Soon it was time to board, and though the boat ride made us both seasick, seeing the island and getting off really got us excited again.Read more
Gili Trawangan
January 3, 2020 in Indonesia
Arriving in the island, we got together with Michael and Laurence again and went with them so that they could drop their stuff at their place. We then went to have some lunch by the beach, we ordered some pizza. Afterwards, they also decided to go with us while we dropped off our things at the hostel Frida picked. We saw the hippie beach where there were stands selling magic mushroom shakes, and one of the guys manning the stands named Sam called us and we talked for a bit. It was a bit of a walk and it took us deeper into the island, where there were less people and more vegetation. There was quite a disparity between the outer borders of the island where it was particularly geared towards tourists and the inner island where the actual island's inhabitants lived and carried out their lives. A huge contrast, I would say in terms of standards of living.
We arrived at our supposed hostel, it had a very hippie vibe but at the same time it also didn't feel exactly safe. Seemed like a druggie hostel actually. It took a while before a pregnant woman showed up and showed us our room. It was small, old, and dim. It had a wooden bed and little to no ventilation. To be frank, it was horrible. Frida and I put our things on the bed and left to explore the seaside with Michael and Laurence. I was quite troubled as I did not want to spend a night in that horrible place, it was cheap for sure but at what cost? We went back to Gili Bong, where Sam was, and Michael ordered a drink while I had some banana juice. I shared to Michael my concerns about how I didn't want to stay there and I later approached Frida about it. I was relieved to find out that she shared the same feelings and that she was looking for another place to stay as well. I booked a place at My Mate's Tom, a party hostel while Frida booked a room all for herself at one of the other places that was actually pretty near my place.
We went back to get our things and I hurried off to my hostel, I checked-in without problems and it looked like the pre-party was already starting. The people had their own groups and I had a free welcome drink. I approached a group in the back and asked if I could join them. I was welcomed warmly and they all turned out to be from New Zealand. After the pre-game, it was time to head to the Jungle to party. I went with the group and we danced the night away, as the drinks and cigarettes flowed, the fun really started to pick up. Even though it was raining, everyone was still dancing. I decided to call it a night as I was already tired from the day's trip, drinking and dancing.Read more
Gili Trawangan II
January 4, 2020 in Indonesia
Day 2, in Gili Trawangan. I woke up and got my free breakfast, fruits and pancakes. Something I can never get tired off traveling around South East Asia. I ate what I could and headed to the beach to Gili Bong, where Sam was. Sam's such a kind and funny guy, his vibes were so good. That's why I decided to go with his magic mushroom shake. He gave me a discount and gave me 4 grams worth. I drank it all and proceeded to sit by the beach bench. Anxiety started to kick-in as the come-up started and I started to worry that my skin was gonna get super tanned because of the sun and the ocean wind. So I went to Sam to borrow some sunscreen, and he did lend me some with a perplexed look saying it was very cloudy today. The trip started to kick-in hard, I was getting mad closed eyed visuals. I let Sam take care of my bag while I went swimming and then back again. Frida also planned to take hers but I took mine as I was quite impatient and wanted to get started. I started to gain such intense euphoria, I had to go back to Sam and ask what do I do with it and he told me to go out there and throw it in the ocean so I did just that and went to have a swim. I enjoyed playing in the sand, like a little kid.
Michael and Laurence came by while I was still coming up and I enjoyed Michael`s company while he had a drink. They were biking around the island. At the same time, I was tripping too hard and was absolutely floored. There were other people in the area having fun with me, I met my friend El, who offered to take me to see some sea turtles. I was afraid I would drown so I backed out much to my regret now. Seeing turtles would have been hella dope. There was another guy tripping with me and he mentioned Spongebob which made me laugh my ass off while I was sitting on the floor playing with the sand. I had also made known to Sam that I wanted to buy some E for the party.
I went back to the water for a bit where I finally saw Frida. She was laughing at me and I encouraged her to join me so she went to the Sam`s while he brewed her his concoction. Michael and Laurence finished their second round of biking and came by again, but this time I was tripping too much and was excited and gave Laurence a hug but ended up getting a lot of sand on her. Fast forward, now both me and Frida are tripping, she was happy and laughing at first, I was enjoying it a lot. The next time, I saw her, she had tears in her eyes but I was too far gone to understand what was happening. She had to go back to her hostel she said, and I let her go. Meanwhile, I ended up in the far end of the ocean and some of the people I met while tripping tried to get me back to the beach by I was just getting annoyed and wanted to be left alone so I proceeded to go even further while it stormed. Suddenly, I entered pure tranquility. Despite the waves, the rain and the wind, I could hear absolutely nothing. Complete silence and stillness of time. It was a moment of pure bliss and profound peace. I later found my way back to the beach as they said Frida was calling me only to be found out I was tricked but for my own good as they didn`t want me to drown.
The trip subsided as the rain picked up, flooding the streets and I had to take my now wet bag from Sam and made my way back to my hostel with someone escorting me. I arrived at my hostel, still having enhanced visuals and color saturation but took my shower and had a rest in my room for long time. At night, I met up with Frida for dinner where she told me about her trip, she was reborn and was able to solve a lot of childhood trauma that manifested during the trip. I went out to get my superman pill from Sam and headed back to my hostel where they were already getting the pre-party started. I took my pill and tried hanging out with some people but I still wasn`t in the mood as everyone was drunk. As the pill started to work, and it worked quite well actually, I began to feel very euphoric and quite friendly and in the mood to talk to everyone. I ended up in the drunk Aussie group once again but this time they welcomed me with open arms. We did a lot of stupid shit to be honest. Soon it was time to head to the Jungle once again.
Everything was awesome, the lights, music, the people. I met Fran and two other guys who also wanted to roll with me. I decided to introduce them to Sam as well. I saw Michael and Laurence as well, again! It was a pleasant surprise and we danced together too. Danced the night away with some more alcohol and cigarettes, and after the drug wore off, I headed back to my hostel having some mild hallucinations and seeing my own thoughts, drifting off while my roommate was arguing with his girlfriend on the phone.Read more
Lombok
January 5, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ 27 °C
I wanted to try the mushrooms again in the same way Frida did, in the confines of her room because I felt that I didn`t actually get the trip I wanted, there was nothing spiritual or introspective at all. It was just very, very fun. I was lucky that I wasn`t feeling the comedown that much as well, as opposed to the one I had in Greece. Probably because I slept well and ate a nutritional fruitful breakfast. My plans were dashed because I received a text message from one of the ferry company we used saying that a major typhoon was on the way and the waves would make traveling impossible. So, I had to leave one day early, as in on that same day. This was really a bummer but there was nothing I could do except to rush and get tickets as soon as I can to get off the island. Unfortunately the place was closed, and I was pretty tired from running from our hostel all the way to the office. There was a lot of panic as I ran back to my hostel to get my things ready, I was able to chill for a bit while talking to Zane and some of the other friends I made during my stay in the hostel. After I got my things and laundry, I checked out and made my way back to the port again. The problem was I lost my ticket and I had to buy a new one, such rotten luck. Michael and Laurence came to say good bye, as I let them know my situation. They were truly nice people. Frida also came by and had lunch with me and imparted nice words. She is truly a good friend and I am glad to have met her. We said our good byes as I boarded the first boat bound for Lombok as we had to make a runaround from there back to Pandang.
The boat ride made me really sea sick as it rode the waves up and down. I remember talking to a girl from Scotland. We stuck around together from the bus going to the harbor, where we had to take a public ferry. On the ferry, we had different rows, I saw some familiar faces as well. The Aussie guy who frequented Sam`s Gili Bong. It was a long ride on the ferry, even with the sea breeze caressing my skin, I ended up very seasick for a huge duration of the ride. Thankfully, one of the passengers noticed me and she shared with me her pill to deter seasickness. It was honestly a godsend. I thanked her profusely. I decided to wander around the ship now that I had my bearings, I was surprised to see Hollik. Hollik was one of El`s friends who somehow knew be my name and I think he was also there while I was tripping on the beach. He called me and said El`s also on the boat. My friend, spongebob we called each other. I went with Hollik and saw El and another guy. It was nice to see a familiar face as it was quite a lonely journey back to Bali. They kept me company, shared with me their food and water, some medicine for my throat as I had gotten sick possible because of the immunosuppression effects from taking MDMA, same thing happened to me in Greece. I went with them to a prayer room for Muslims on the ship and had a rest but ended up getting restless and chose to wander around the ship some more, I was drawn to the roof as you can see the night sky and sea. We made landfall soon enough.
I got on the van and it dropped us one by one, me being the last all the way to the airport where I decided to just spend the night. Deciding against touring Bali some more as I was already quite tired. I made my nest on the metal benches, my bag as my pillow as it always has been. I wore my eye mask and ear plugs from Janelle, always a lifesaver.Read more
Bali III
January 6, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ 30 °C
My last day in Bali was quite uneventful but I surprisingly enjoyed it. It was relaxing, I got up to scrounge what money I had left to get brunch, some burgers. I spent the rest of the morning and afternoon watching Demon Slayer, which was surprisingly good while I charged my phone on one of the available outlets. I waited for a long time until I could enter the airport and check-in, finish immigration and get on my flight to Kuala Lumpur. I was craving for a shower.Read more
