Last Day in Singapore

February 13th - We woke up and went out for a western brunch at Robertson Quay where we ate along the water. We then headed back to Joe's and watched back to back the Bourne Identity and the Bourne Supremacy. These are Joe's favorite movies and I've never seen them. Also Joe bought a new TV with a blu-ray player which made the movies really life-like.

Then we went out for chili crab! Joe organized a big dinner for my last night in Singapore with some of his friends. The chili crab and the pepper crab were delicious. You use mantou to dip the sauce. We also had prawns and squid as well. Yummy!

Chili Crab

After dinner, I headed to the airport. Not excited about being in the cold weather again, but it will be nice to be home.

Joe and Olive have been incredible hosts and I have enjoyed my time here. The most amazing parts were seeing and meeting Joe's friends and Olive's family. My experience was not touristy at all and truly genuine. This vacation was therefore very special.

See you all soon! I miss you! I'll be on a plane for 20 hours!

Back in Singapore

February 12th - I had an early start to the day. The hotel arranged for breakfast and Bina, my temple driver, arranged for transportation to the airport.

I took AirAsia back to Singapore and headed back to Joe's place.

When I got back, I was starving as I had not eaten since 6 am. So I went to the neighborhood food center and had mee puk (fishball and dry noodles) and a teh tarik.

Joe and I relaxed at home for a few hours and then we went to Joe's friends' bbq. It was a surprise birthday party. His friends were all so great! They want me to move to Singapore! But alas I told them I probably could not withstand the tropical weather all year-round. I broke out into heat rashes in Bali and in Singapore!

I left the bbq early to meet Olive and her family. They treated me to soup dumplings and noodles near Chinatown. We tried to go here 2 weeks ago but the restaurant was closed for Chinese New Year. It was delicious and I got to meet Olive's sister's boyfriend who's name is Justin. Olive's family has been incredible on their efforts to make me
feel so welcome and included.

Olive and I then went to meet her middle school friends at a bar on Club Street and chatted for hours.

I then took a cab home and went to bed!

Things I Learned About Bali

February 11th -

So today is my last full day in Bali which was spent on the beach and poolside, and eating at the hotel. It was nicer than yesterday as there were less kids and the beach was cleaner. The night before yesterday, there had been a lot of rain and there were a lot of leaves and etc on the beach. My day was relatively uneventful except for the Russian who tries to talk to me, but can't speak any English and the squirrel that started dropping nuts on me and some Europeans while we were relaxing poolside.

To recap, a few things I learned about Bali:

1. The Balinese are so spiritual and everyday they put out offerings and pray for what they need and for what they are thankful for. I need to remind myself of this when I'm back in NY.

2. Anger or frustration is a strange concept to them. There is such a level of calm. This is probably why everything runs on island time - about 30 minutes behind and they don't react to nor understand your frustration (i.e. When I was forgotten at the airport). In most situations, there is no point in getting angry while on vacation or back at home.

3. As Bina, my temple driver, and I watched farmers picking rice, he says he reminds his 3 kids that each grain of rice is handpicked and takes a lot of hard work. Therefore food and other necessities should not be wasted.

4. If I ever come back to Bali, I should consider renting a motorbike. Much easier to get around then walking on makeshift sidewalks and maps that make things appear closer than they really are and do not show the hills. Matt, Ri's husband, had suggested it but I was too scared. Seeing 12 year olds with no helmet and the fact that the congestion results in 10-15 mph speeds, I may consider it in the future.

5. 7% deet just isn't enough to fend off mosquitos! I should have brought my 100% deet bottle.

Off to bed soon as I have an early day in heading back to Singapore!

Bali Rice Terraces

Melia Benoa

February 10th - I woke up and finally had breakfast that's included at my hotel. Due to the early pickup time for scuba, I missed breakfast the past 2 days and ate only granola bars for breakfast.

I had to stop by the diveshop which is just down the street as Putu had to sign forms for my certification. He also burnt me a CD of photos from our Tulamben dive. Then I waited for Bina, my temple driver, whom I arranged to take me to the Melia Benoa. Melia is a chain of Spanish-owned resorts and they have a bunch in the Caribbean. They had a really competitive all-inclusive rate. It's in the Nusa Dua area which is on the southeastern coast and where all the big resorts are located. Technically, I believe the hotel is in Tanjung Benoa which is a peninsula just north of Nusa Dua.

I ate and relaxed all day on the beach and poolside at the hotel. It was nice to just sit all day. I even went to the gym for a little bit. At the hotel, they had a buffet lunch and I had ice cream as a mid-afternoon snack. For dinner, they had a "seafood grill" theme night.

In observance of the other hotel guests, all I have to add is, boy do the Europeans let it all hang out!

After dinner, I stopped by the "cabaret" show. I stayed for about 2 minutes - the sequins were blinding. I'm sure the Europeans loved it.

Today, for about the 4th time, I got the "you're American? But your face looks Chinese. Cynthia? That's sounds like an Indonesian name." Oh the predictability.

Another day of some R&R tomorrow!

Nusa Penida Part II and Last Day in Kuta

February 9th - So supposedly there was too much oil in Padang Bai which I suspected because the other divers using ProDive mentioned it. They say that some dive spots were ok though. So I am heading back to Nusa Penida.

Today I'm diving with an Austrian / Hungarian man, Andras and a Polish woman, Alina. They are a couple who had been living in Western Australia. After this trip they are heading to Brussels where the woman will be working for the European Commission. They are both advanced divers.

As I went to Nusa Penida yesterday, we are going to a different site. Yesterday I went to Elementary School point and Lembongan Point. Today we went to Manta Point to see manta rays and Crystal Bay!

On the way to Manta Point, I got sea sick. The ride out there wasn't as bad as yesterday but our destination was incredibly rocky. So they put me in the water as fast as possible since the boat makes it worse. I did not have a dive instructor as I'm done with my certification so I had a dive master named Agustus. He was kind of a jokester, but very serious when it comes to diving.

We saw one massive manta ray right away, but then just hung out for a bit - I practiced my neutral buoyancy waiting for more manta rays. Supposedly this is where they come for the "cleaning station" where fish feed off the dead skin and parasites on the manta rays. Then as we waited, we saw a wobbegong shark, or carpet shark, on the sea floor. My dive instructor in NY said I would be lucky to see a shark as it can be rare and despite Jaws propaganda, they do not like being around humans. Don't worry mom, I was a good 5 meters away and finned in the opposite direction. Plus carpet sharks hang out at the bottom of the sea floor and we were mid water looking for manta rays. Then we saw another massive manta ray! I'm sad we didn't see more but what are you going to do.

Carpet Shark

We headed to Crystal Bay for some lunch and to see mola or sunfish. Unfortunately, we did not see any as it is out of season, but the coral and other fish were amazing.

Then we headed back to Bali which is again about a 45 minute boat ride. After 3 days of diving, I've seen so many things! But am exhausted and looking forward to staying at a resort and relaxing on the beach in Nusa Dua.

Back at Un's hotel, I went to the restaurant and guiltily ordered a burger and ginger ale. I have eaten only Asian food for 12 straight days and was craving one after I saw a family at Poppies order a few burgers last night. I was also starving as I did not eat my entire lunch due to my sea sickness.

My mosquito bite count is at least over 30. It's really annoying. Some are from Malaysia and Singapore as well. Thank God they don't have a malaria problem here but I use OFF spray, sleep under a net, and have a mosquito coil burning and they seem to still get me. My dive instructors say it's because I'm so pale and that I need to get a tan. Something to work on when I'm hanging out at the resort!

After a walk to and from Kuta beach, I headed back to my room to relax. Since the tv channels in English are limited, I have been watching a lot of E!. Well, don't judge me, I'm on vacation...

Nusa Penida

February 8th - Dewi picked me up from my hotel and off we went. The weather was pretty rainy and cloudy from last night's storms.

Then we went to the diveshop office and did a switch-a-roo. Dewi and Putu were going to Tulamben and I joined a man named Jim to go to Nusa Penida. Jim works at the FAA (Federal Aviation Authority) and is from Texas. He's been to Bali about 10 times and was lent by the FAA to the UN and has lived in Thailand, Jakarta, and Burma. He's about 60 years old and currently manages all the test pilots in the US.

We took a 1 hour boat ride to Nusa Penida. It was incredibly bumpy due to the huge swells. On our way we stopped at Lembongan Island to pick up Wayan, my dive instructor for the day. The diveshop has an outpost there and we picked up equipment from there. Wayan is a common name because it means the 1st. Balinese usually are named 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and so on. My hotel shuttle driver in Ubud was #3. After we picked up Wayan, we finally arrived at Nusa Penida which was about another 20 minutes. We did 2 dives and I finished my certification. I am now certified for the open water! Of course there are more advanced certifications and specialties, but this will do for right now. The testing, at times, stressed me out.

We saw trumpet fish, lion fish, puffer fish, lobsters, cleaner shrimp, and so many different types of coral and sponges. There were so many schools of fish. At one point, I maintained neutral buoyancy in an upright position and was swarmed by fish. Amazing!

For lunch, they brought nasi goreng and coca cola. They dropped me off at the hotel where I showered and headed out to explore Kuta. I had already seen much of Kuta as we have to do a loop and only take one way streets to get to my hotel.

I ventured to see Bali's version of Ground Zero where the bombings in 2002 took place. There is a fountain and the names of the victims are on a wall, sorted by nationality. The security at the hotels are pretty high and noticed it even more so at checkpoints when we dropped off other divers. The bombings are fresh in the memories of the Balinese as their economy, heavily dependent on tourism, has only returned to normal recently, or so I have been told.

Then I headed to Poppies Restaurant. Recommended highly by my guidebook and the same location of the hotel I originally wanted to book, but was sold out. This is also where Katie stayed when she was in Bali.

I had Soto Ayam, an Indonesian chicken porridge dish with glass noodles. It was quite delicious, especially with the sambal pepper sauce. I must have been hungry because I downed it prior to taking a picture! So unlike me!

I then ventured back to my hotel as I have an early start again for scuba. We are heading to Padang Bai. This time there will be no skills testing, just a leisurely dive.

Tulamben

February 7th - I woke up to the same breakfast as before and had nasi goreng. I closed out of my room and waited for my dive shop to pick me up. They came right on time. I picked this one because it's an Australian chain / franchise and was 5 star certified by PADI (professional association of diving instructors). I later learned it is Balinese owned as part of the Australian franchise.

My instructor is Putu and the driver is Dewi. The drive to the Tulamben dive site took about 2 hours which is on the eastern coast. It's the dive wreck of the USS Liberty from WWII. The boat had been torpedoed by the Japanese and dragged to a harbor in Bali. After a few volcanic eruptions, the ship slipped into the water and is relatively an easy dive as it is a shore dive (no need for a boat) and only about 12 meters deep.

Coming upon the bow was quite amazing. We saw so many types of fish and there was a lot of coral and vegetation growing on the wreck. I look funny in the pictures as my left mask lens got foggy.
After an hour, we came up to surface for lunch of fish and fishcake with rice and then headed back in for some skills testing and viewing the coral garden. I would look up and see schools of fish. Saw so many angel fish, clown fish, and other tropical fish. We even saw a large snapper. Luckily Putu has a better underwater camera than I do and will give me a copy of the photos later. After an hour of diving we surfaced again and got ready to head back to Kuta.

Another interesting observation were the porters who help carry the dive equipment down to the beach. In a traditional way, the women will balance a tank on their head and carry another and I can barely carry one! Putu explained not many Balinese scuba dive because of the expense and many do not even know how to swim. Reminds me of Trinidadians!

The drive took about 2.5 hours and my new hotel, Un's hotel came as a recommendation from Matt, Ri's husband. It's clean and again I have a Balinese bathroom. They ran out of a single occupancy so they gave me a family size room (room #10!). Can't beat that for $30 per night. The diveshop is also just down the street. Cyn for the win!

After a shower and nap, I was planning on heading out in search of food. However I ended up zonking out and snacking. I was also demotivated as it's been stormy / windy all night.

Sidenote: People seem to really like my name. They say that Cynthia sounds like an Indonesian name. Also the dive shop and hotel seemed to get confused. With a last name Kim and saying I'm coming from Singapore and I show up with an American accent. To the point where Bina, my temple driver, sat next to me for about 5 minutes in the hotel lobby, because the receptionist wasn't sure what ethnicity I was. I explained to Putu, my scuba instructor, that I have an American first name and Korean middle name. He said he liked that because my parents still maintained the shell of the peanut. Whatever that means.

Off to bed as I have an early start for scuba tomorrow where we plan to go to Nusa Penida, an island off the southeastern shore.

Ubud

February 6th - I'm definitely getting use to bungalow living and the creatures that share it with me. I share my bathroom with a massive spider / tarantula and cockroach. I don't even scream anymore when I see them. I have become one with nature. ;-)

I woke up to a breakfast of fresh fruit, mixed fruit juice, tea, and a chicken porridge called Bubur Ayam. The porridge was quite delicious.

Then I booked my free Balinese massage. 2 women worked me over for an hour and I smelled like rose oil and looked oily all day. Absolutely relaxing!

Lynne met me at my hotel and we headed to the Monkey Forest nearby. There is a sacred temple inside and the monkeys are very revered. These monkeys were super smart and will crawl all over you if you feed them.

We then headed to Babi Guling Ibu Oka for some traditional Balinese pork. They roast only a few pigs a day and in the special, you get some sausage, fried pork, pork loin, and fried skin! Yum! Believe that Anthony Bourdain visited here as well.

We then crossed the street and saw the City Palace which seemed to be getting ready for some celebrations.

The afternoon was filled with walking in and out of shops and galleries in Ubud. I eventually walked home and went for a dip in the pool.

I met Lynne later at Bebek Bengil also known as Dirty Duck. The setting was surrounded by rice paddies in this very large, but serene restaurant. We both had "the original crispy duck". The restaurant name comes from the fact when the restaurant construction was near completion, some ducks came in from the nearby rice paddies and ran all over the restaurant. Also, I learned today that the owner of my hotel, Agung Raka bungalows, owns this restaurant and therefore got a 10% discount. And I had picked this restaurant from my guidebook! Cyn for the win!

After sharing a pitcher of bintang beer and stories, Lynne and I parted ways. She'll continue to stay in Ubud while I head to the western coast and surfer / trendy / backpacker beach in Kuta.

My last night in a bungalow and my first day of scuba tomorrow!

Bali Hai! (Warning: lengthy)

February 5th - Last night, my AirAsia flight was pretty easy and arrived around midnight. The flight from Singapore to Bali was about 2.5 hours with no time change. In my guidebook it had stated there was an increasing number of Chinese tourists which seemed very evident as one Chinese passenger had to help about 8 different passengers and translate departure / customs card instructions and tell them they can't just sit anywhere.

After getting my luggage, I walked outside. As I surveyed the name signs for pickups, I became aware of 2 things:

1. I could read 80% of the signs as they were Korean names / couples.
2. My hotel had forgotten to pick me up.

So I called my hotel in Ubud and they said there was no driver available and had thought the 1 way airport transfer was for drop-off (I later learned they use a 3rd party booking service who screwed up the arrangement). However, I had just confirmed this about a week ago and the correspondence evidences this. Unfortunately, I don't need a drop off as my scuba shop is picking me up on Monday and dropping me off at my Kuta hotel.

Fortunately, I did have the choice of 1 airport transfer, 2 days of motorbike, or a massage. I was going to get a massage in Kuta, but I guess I'll get one in Ubud! ;-)

The drive to Ubud is usually about an hour, but in the middle of the night it took about 25 minutes. I suspect this is because there is really only one road. This actually applies to everywhere in Bali.

My bungalow at Agung Raka in Ubud is 2 story with a bathroom on the first floor. I have a lock for my bedroom and a lock for the bathroom. The bathroom is traditional Balinese (open air) and the bungalow is all thatched. Surprisingly it had air con. Throughout the night I could hear insects and birds, and in the morning the rooster crowed a lot. I definitely felt one with nature.

For breakfast I had nasi goreng (fried rice) with a runny egg on top, mixed fruit juice, and tea. All eaten in my open air living room on the 1st floor and part of the package.

My driver, Bina (found at tripadvisor.com) met me at 8 am and took me to Besakih temple, also known as Mother Temple. This is the most sacred and holiest temple in Bali. It's not the most beautiful, but as it was the most sacred, I specifically requested this be included in my itinerary. He also brought me his wife's sarong as it is customary to cover yourself. Bina knew the head tourism manager, Futu, who took care of me. You have to walk around with a local guide which costs 100,000 rupiah but supposedly they can demand more or be difficult. These guides work at the temple and clean it and only go home to their families once a month.

Besakih Temple

I learned later that Futu was the one who kept calling my guide on his cell about 5x to make sure he wasn't trying to cheat me or get me lost in the complex of 22 temples / pagodas. Roundtrip and up a hill, the walk is about 3 km. But Futu gave me a ride to my car via motorbike and refused to take any tip as he was friends with Bina. Bina said his past clients have gotten screwed by the local guides and therefore makes sure Futu is there for his clients. My driver basically "knew a guy." ;-)

At the temple I saw the different places members of the caste system and royal family prayed and parts of the temple that are still made from 1,200 year old stones. Some parts have been renovated with stronger stone due to volcanic eruptions. A large Balinese family came to the temple to pray and make offerings. One of the members took pictures of me. Like in India, the locals are excited to see tourists.

We then drove by Mt. Agung, the largest mountain but couldn't see it due to the fog / rain. We went to Kintamani for lunch to see Mt. Batur and again didn't get to see the mountain until we were leaving as the fog had cleared. We headed to a coffee plantation where I tried different kinds of teas and coffees including coffee from luwat. Luwat is a type of mongoose / cat that digests the coffee bean and then poops it whole. Supposedly the Dutch would only let the Balinese use the coffee beans on the ground rather than the beans on the plant. Only later did they learn the Luwat coffee is much better, smoother, and very expensive.

We then headed to Tampaksiring where there is holy water and then to Gunung Kawi which is the cliff side temple. There were hundreds of steps but really interesting. We then stopped to see the most famous rice terraces in Ceking Village.

Tampaksiring Temple

Returning to the hotel all sweaty, I decided to go for a swim. Just left of the pool are more rice terraces and to the right our bungalows. So pretty!

I made plans to meet a woman named Lynne for dinner in Ubud center. She sat next to me on the 18 hour flight to Singapore. She missed her connection to Bali due to our snow delay in NY. We started chatting the last hour of the flight. She's in her 50's and recently divorced. In a stereotypical "Eat, Pray, Love" fashion she spent 1 week at a yoga retreat and is spending 1 week in Ubud. We exchanged contact details and we agreed to meet. She's a nurse / case manager for Aetna and lives in Hartford.

We had dinner at Naughty Nuris in north Ubud that's famous for their ribs and as an expat hangout. The ribs were super tender and I had my first Bintang beer. We then bargained with a cabbie that drove us to the "best coffee house" called Tutmak. We ironically had teas and some mee goreng. Then it started to really downpour.

As Lynne's hotel was pretty far away and the cabbies were quoting an arm and a leg (by Balinese standards), I got my hotel shuttle to give her a ride. To my surprise, when I arrived I learned my hotel has an hourly shuttle to / from Ubud center but you have to confirm you need it. But tonight they offered to pick us up at the coffeeshop instead of their normal pickup points. This was so money considering the rain! Cyn for the win!

Now I'm in my bungalow about to fall asleep. I look forward to some more Ubud sights and food tomorrow!