What a whirlwind few days it's been! We have been looking forward to Mel and JLows visit since we arrived in Bali and as the days crept closer we began rushing around trying to get all the last minute boat jobs done so that when we left the Makani Kai she would be in good shape. We hired a couple of local boys to give her a good wash and polish and we attempted to empty out freezers so that power would not be an issue while we were away. We have pretty much everything that opens and shuts on this boat and when we are not travelling and relying on the motors to recharge the batteries we tend to rely on running our generator for a little while each day. Unfortunately we didn't get the freezer emptied out, looks like we overstocked in Langkawi for our trip, we'd actually made better time than we thought we would.

JLow and Mel were due to arrive in Bali on the 8th of May and we were to go and meet them at the villa they had booked in Sanur. We had already been to see the villa and were excited at the prospect of spending a few weeks on land. In the midst of all this running around we received a message from JLow saying that they had mixed up their flights and that they were actually arriving a day earlier. The frenzy of activity aboard the Makani Kai increased a couple of notches in a bid to get the work done and the thought of seeing our friends a day earlier had a positive effect. We had organised with the management of the villa to go to the airport to surprise them, this of course involved going to the villas to speak with them personally and following it up with a couple of phone calls to make sure that this was ok, the response to our questions was positive.

On the day of their arrival we went across to the villa early to drop off our luggage before going shopping for some of the essentials, alcohol and nibblies. We stopped by reception to confirm the time we were going to the airport only to be met with a firm, 'No! Cannot!' Turns out that the face to face conversation and phone calls were for nothing, the booking agent had organised the transfer so we couldn't go. After being shown to our villa and meeting Komang, who would be our maid for the next week, we realised that we were in a 3 bedroom villa. They seemed confused when we told them that it was only supposed to be a 2 bedroom villa and organised to lock up the 3rd room. After we ascertained which room was the master bedroom we stowed our luggage in the other room and headed off to shop. Returning with our purchases, Komang helped us put away our goodies, happily chatting to us as she worked. With nothing left to do but wait we headed down to reception and the bar to have a beer and watch the footy with the barman. Text messages were sent back and forth to JLow and Mel who were stuck in the longest customs line imaginable but soon we heard a van and stood up to see their smiling faces and their hands madly waving in the air. We got the formalities out of the way and they were keen to get to the villa. Not long after arriving in the villa the doorbell went and Mel rushed off to answer it, she came back and told Jay it was some Indo guy for him. We thought it was the barman as we had left without paying the bar tab which we had assumed would go on the room. A few stunned moments of silence ensued before the dulcet tones of Mrs Gemma Truman could be heard. I muttered a few expletives of disbelief before dashing off to hug Paul and Gemma who had come along to surprise us! Aahh, now it all falls into place, not being able to find a booking for Mr Jason when we asked, the mystery of the 3 bedroom villa and the caginess of Mel and JLow on arrival. If we had have been able to meet them at the airport the surprise would have been ruined!

Over some welcome beers in the villa, (which we had under catered for not expecting the arrival of Paul!), we found out that they had been planning this surprise since Christmas and we marvelled at the fact that they and everyone around them had been able to keep it a secret. Let the games begin! The first day was spent around Sanur, there are a few surf breaks out the front and Jay had already sussed out some local boats that take the surfers out to the breaks in the days leading up to the guy's arrival. The girls and I wandered around Sanur getting our bearings and checking out restaurants for our potential patronage. It's taken so long to get Gemma to Bali but she seems to love it! Today we discovered our new favourite brekkie place while the boys took off to the Bukit Peninsula to surf some crowded waves. We finished the day with dinner at Telaga Naga, a Chinese restaurant attached to the Hyatt Hotel, a little pricey and not overly impressive but in true style the boys made a spectacle of themselves. Tomorrow the sightseeing begins!!