09/25/2009, Lovina Beach, North Bali
Once we packed up our few possessions which included our bicycles, we drove back up to Ubud hoping to avail of some peaceful mountain air and some luxury for 4 days which we discovered at a magical hotel. The bathtub for all 3 of us got a good use as did the big beautiful shower. We explored the surroundings with our ever faithful and much loved bicycles renewing the lazy muscles in our legs as we climbed up over hills much to the amusement of the friendly locals and down into the valleys.
Time flew by pretty quickly and in no time we were back at the boat and ready to depart the next day back over to Lembongan Island hoping to find some of Kara's friends for her upcoming 7th birthday bash. A 5 am a 40 knot wind brought us into the dark cockpit to see if the mooring balls would stay in place so close to the reef. In this excitement a super rain came over us like buckets and cleaned the entire boat. Our friends from SolSearcher radiod ahead their arrival to our anchorage during the morning hours due to huge waves and sleepless nights at Lembongan. So we had changed our plans again and stayed on in the rather polluted environment at the anchorage. The rain added tons of garbage and plastic into the water and weird stuff was bonding with the bottom of the boat. To jump into the liquid is out of the question. So we decided to explore once again the water slide park "Waterbom" in Kuta with Ray and Peggy, much to Kara's great pleasure to celebrate her 7th birthday with cake and ice cream.
Next day was departure for the 3rd time and this time we managed. The current between the islands are usually southbound, i.e against us, and can be 6kn. So slow progress. The next anchorage is a bay only 25 m north where we arrived in the afternoon. Typically the wind comes from the South East but this time it came from the east and directly into the bay with a few waves attached. A lee shore was not what we had in mind so we continued sailing into the night. After all trace of light went to sleep in this moonless night we sailed nicely 3m off the coast towards Lovina Beach on the North side of Bali. I had the privilege to sleep the first round with Kara in the aft cabin. Meanwhile Anne took over the skippers tasks. She noticed a ship on the radar crossing our bow and then came back towards us almost charging at us. Radio attempts are fruitless here as are most other forms of marine laws usually adhered to. She ordered me into the cockpit to see which procedure should apply-LIKE NOW! I was still trying to get my bearings and only saw a big yellow light with no position lamps coming at us FAST.Still under sail, Anne started the engine and out of the black came a big bow sprit, at the last minute I turned full throttle to starboard and this 100 foot wooden Indonesian ship, with many crazy guys yelling swooped by at full speed only about 2 meters on our portside. A shaking moment, let me tell you. I sent Anne to bed with a couple of valium to knock her out. She is a great and brave soul and we love her (but not to death). You know these almost crashes happen to car drivers all the time and nobody takes much notice but out here it has a different kind of psychological impact on the brain. A while later we were followed by another ship again approaching under speed. The radio was not answered, I changed course,lit the strobe light on top of the mast 5 times and the spreader lights 5 times ( what are your intentions? But nothing happened they passed and all went back to be calm. On the radar we notice objects but never saw what it might be until the day broke and we pass small man made reef floats. If you don't see it might be ok and life goes on. In the morning we arrived at our destination with nice water and finally we were able to jump off the boat the way we like it. The small town has lots of very nice welcoming people with lots of affordable restaurants. Cooking is something most sailors forget to do here because it's cheaper to eat out than in. At the dark sanded beach we end the days with the locals drinking something made of rice and mixed with 7up while someone plays the guitar and Kara is good friends with all of them. All together we change our departure from day. Our Swiss friends from Pachamama drove up here especially so kids are reunited and happy for another day.
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09/10/2009, Bali
Arriving in Bali we were rapidly transported from the languid pace we had been moving at and were enveloped by the heat and humidity, the sensual smells of smoking fish, local aromas, spiced cigarettes and the incessant crowds that flock to this island.
Mopeds ferrying entire families and cars speed by, each competing for space amongst the traffic into what can only be described as organized chaos.
Roads and streets form a hodgepodge of diverse construction lined with buildings both modern and charmingly ancient, and those that make it hard to decipher whether they are under construction or abandoned. You'd be hard pressed to find a street that has not been stained by trash and plastic. Cute little trays of colorfully decorated offerings in the form of flower petals and burning incense are placed outside most homes and storefronts each day to ward off the evil spirits, but acted as a magnet for my big awkward foot as I found myself constantly stumbling upon them and smashing the perfect little array into mush. Many tourists, mainly Australian it seemed, hover around a labyrinth of homogenous alleys at Kuta Beach (location of the Bali bombings) and its environs, stacked high with much stuff that you may need and even more stuff that you don't. Outnumbering the tourists are the ever persistent hagglers lurking at every step, tirelessly pitching a sale, usually in the form of transport or goods: "You need taxi", and "Good price for luck". And the surfers join in the pack at the beach famous for its surf waves.
The lonely planet mentions these hagglers as being the number one annoyance in visiting Bali, most certainly true. You feel like wearing a big "no" sign and just as you begin to regress and feel bad about it, you are accosted once again by a particularly persistant vendor, some of who attempted to lure Kara with toys.
One deal that we did avail of was the bargain of 29 movies for $20 at one of the saturated collection of movie stores; the paradox that is Indonesia where pirated movie stores show no ambiguity whatsoever as they issued us a receipt and a thank you very much. You could literally get carried away while window shopping, possibly becoming swamped up by the deep holed cracks on the pavements.
Our friend Robert from Australia who is quite familiar with Bali came to visit us for a week and although we had hoped to venture somewhere on the boat, we ended up hanging out, walking the streets under his lead and sampling the tasty delights of Indonesian and Balinese food. The oppressive moisture and heaviness of the air finds us sweating profusely and feeling lazy and lethargic.
After being here already over a week we just couldn't manage to get a feel for the images Bali is supposed to evoke.
Toward the mountains we went, to Ubud, the cultural capital of Bali for 2 nights, hoping to explore what we imagined would be a quieter taste of Bali, and while the hoards of people seemed to follow us, it felt like a slightly better source for the expectations of authenticity we had formed but failed to discover so far.
The scenery outside of central Ubud is quite breathtaking, as entrenched rice paddies shape the hills and valleys of the rainforest. It rained for our 2 day stay, the dark sky filled with moisture hung low and damp above us. We took a long walk up into the rice fields, the narrow wet trails dotted with modest little huts displaying the work of local artists who were timid and shy in their requests to just look. Nothing atal like those city slickers. The further we penetrated into quieter villages the closer we came to feeling our quest for the real Bali may perhaps exist? After Robert departed, we thought it would be a good idea to go back up there, this time with our bicycles as a foundation of exploration.
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08/28/2009, Lembongan (next to Bali), Indonesia
We're here in the island of Lembongan just a brief distance across the strait from Bali.
As we pulled in here, we were delighted to find our friends from sailboat Dandelion-children at last for Kara. We all rented motorcycles, the more typical mode of transport around with multiples of young and old piled on top. We traversed around the island, ascending and descending within the oftentimes bumpy terrain as it meandered into long sinewy pathways. Once outside the main hub of tourist activity, the island conveys its sleepy charm; interspersed with ancient and architecturally pleasing temples is the unmistakable scent from beds of drying seaweed as almost every modest household is engaged in its harvest for their livelihoods. Lembongan, famous for its surf boasts a few wild beaches where the waters meet the shore with mighty force. Cute little restaurants line the beach area, where on our first evening we enjoyed our first local meal served to us since Australia.
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