BALI

We’ve made it to Bali!  This time the experience is much different.  Rob and I are prepared!!  We find a good price on a Taksi (taxi) and no one tried to take our bags! :-P  As we make our way into Seminyak (at midnight)… There’s no real system to driving, the mopeds wiz by, everyone is driving wherever-- there are no real traffic lanes.  The person that cuts you off has the right of way—try to figure that one!!  We stop at a light and children are out on the street asking people in cars for money or food, let me remind you that it is 12:30am…  They sit on crates at the light and as soon as the traffic stops, they run up to as many cars as they can.  It’s quite sad, yet I’m grateful to have been made aware of this truly tough situation these children/people are in. (much more to talk about this when we return) We continue to drive through the city which is filled with poverty, dogs and cats amongst the people running through the streets just looking for somewhere to go; something to eat.  Aside from these observations, the city is truly beautiful.  The night life is alive and before you know it we arrive at our hotel.  In our Lonely Planet book, it says that any “good” hotel will have security…ours does and has to search underneath the car before entering.  Everything is serene inside our hotel area; we are whisked away on a golf cart to the concierge desk and deep into this beautiful area with fantastic greenery and a pool.  Our room is lovely; the “bell man” is smiling and extremely helpful showing us everything that we need to know.  Rob and I quickly get situated and head to bed.

The next morning we wake around 9am to grab some breakfast and begin the relaxation!!!  We grab a couple of poolside chairs and begin reading our books and relaxing in and out of the pool. J  It’s so hot and humid, but such a nice way to begin the day.  Around noon we hit the streets of Seminyak and I start some shopping!!  We make our way up to Ku De Ta and watch some people surf.  It gets cloudy around 4pm—we haven’t experienced a sunset yet…  So we enjoy some appetizers and BinTang on the beach!  It’s a fantastic way to end our first day!!

Tuesday morning starts the same way J  and around noon(again) we grab a hotel taxi to Kuta and once we’re dropped off we walk to the beach(along the beach) and then quickly get lost.  We brought a map with us, but if you’ve ever been to Bali, the streets are not really marked sufficiently.  We probably walked about 6 or 8 miles(most likely in a circle that we were unaware of) before Rob accidentally fell into a gross alleyway sewer pit…YUCK!  (Lord only knows what was in that…) In his defense, he was trying to avoid a moped and lost his footing, but needless to say that ended our adventure of finding Kuta Square and STARBUCKS!  We grabbed a cab and headed back to the hotel so that Rob could clean himself off.  Later in the afternoon, we decide to hire a driver from our hotel for half of the day to be able to get to Ulu Watu.  It takes about an hour, so we’re glad that we were not on a taxi meter! J  It’s SO worth the drive though.  We enjoy (a small, cloudy) sunset at the temple of Ulu Watu and watch a beautiful traditional dance.  On our way back we stop off at New Moon restaurant on Jimbaran Bay.  We sit right on the beach and enjoy the seafood right from the Indian Ocean!!!  It’s a fantastic way to end our busy day!

Tomorrow we’re off to Ubud!  More to write soon… hope everyone is well!  Love you!! XOXO

hanging out at the hotel pool

Hanging out at the hotel pool (with my cappuccino) :)

Drinks at Ku De Ta on the lounge chairs--behind me(taking the pic) is the Ocean...so imagine that beautiful view from our loungers...ahhhh

The monkeys were so funny at the temple in Ulu Watu!

We had to wear these sarongs when entering the temple. (Rob too!)

Waiting for the traditional dance performance to begin!

Beautiful, cloudy sunset.

Yep, there they were...we had to pick 'em, then they'd cook 'em!

BINTANG!

Our dinner on Jimbaran Bay!

Right, Left, Right

Always look right, left, then right again!! haha  We had to remember that often whilst crossing the road.  I thought a post about some other "aussie" slang and things would be fun, so here are a few favorites:

~Pepper(green, red, yellow) is called Capsicum.
~If you had lots of fun, aussies actually say "heaps" instead of lots.  "Aww yeah mate, we had heaps of fun!"
~Ordering coffee is a lot different too.  You can't just say that you'd like a black coffee, there are actually many different types.  IE: "long black" (for black coffee), "flat white" (for coffee with milk/cream and froth).
~You say "Cheers" for thank you.
~"brekkie" is the word for breakfast.
~"bathers and thongs" --swimsuit and sandals
~"I'll give you a bell." means to call someone.
~a stroller is called a Pram.
~"how you goin'?" means how are you doing?
~"sunnies" are sunglasses
~"jumper" is sweater or fleece.

Last day in Australia...it's kind of surreal actually.  I feel like this week went by extremely fast!  Russ was an amazing tour guide, we can't wait to share all of the photos with you!  We're spending the day in Perth city and seeing Kings Park/Botanical Gardens during the day.  We'll soon be off on our next Adventure in Bali!!

Rottnest Island

We woke up early on Friday morning to catch the 9:30am ferry to Rottnest Island.  It's about a 20/25 minute ferry off the coast of Fremantle.  If anyone doesn't like being on water, you would've hated this ferry.  It's extremely choppy, but all of us were fine!  When we arrived on the island, we rented some bikes.  It's quite large to walk the entire way around, we only made it about half way around the island even by bike!  It has about 60 beaches and 25 bays.  About 100-300 people reside on the island year-round, but during winter when Aussies are on break from Uni, it can inhabit thousands--kind of like a resort.  We stopped off at Little Salmon Bay to lay on the beach and read our books.  Russ and Rob went snorkeling for a little while--it was glorious!  Whilst biking we came up on some Quokkas!!  They came right up to us, of course wanting food, but it was soo cool!  They are so cute!  Over the weekend, they had a Rottnest Channel Swim contest from Fremantle to Rotto (about 18k) and the first person across the finish line made it in 4 hours and 27 minutes!!! They all celebrate on the island afterward.  Side note on our journey to Rotto~~~always make sure to put sunscreen EVERYWHERE!!  You will find out where you've missed...needless to say parts of our body are red with hand prints of where we stopped with the sunscreen...my nose got quite red. :(

Friday night we headed to a local restaurant in Mount Lawley with some of Russ' aussie friends!  Very fun--they were a riot! :)  Saturday morning we had breakfast with  Rob's friend Annabel and her boyfriend Steve.  They are extremely nice and we had such a great time that we planned to meet them for a barbie later in the day.  We spent most of Saturday in Freo (Fremantle) checking out some shops, South Beach, the jail--that just recently in the 90s became a museum, and local tourism things.  We saw where Russ used to live--very fun day, but lots of walking!  I don't know, but I feel like the sun and the walking just tucker me out!  I'm usually ready to pass out by 8 or 9pm, but I manage to push through! haha

Saturday night we picked up some food at the IGA (grocery store) and walked over to Annabel's house.  We had lots of great food, threw some shrimp, chicken, and steak on the barbie--it was a really nice relaxing way to end the day.  It was the only day that it rained, and by rained, I mean 20 minutes!  Their house was really fantastic!  It was neat to see what you can get for a house/condo in Perth.  Just another great day... 

Rotto Island and Freo

Rob and Claire on Rotto Island

A Quokka hanging out on the bike paths

Enjoying Downtown Freo!

First Few Days in Perth!

Dinner and and beers at Cott hotel overlooking the Indian Ocean

Beautiful sunset in Perth

Claire petting one of many roos at Caversham Wildlife Park

Rob again lying with a roo (this one's for you klex)

Claire petting a Koala!!!

Russ overlooking a point at City Beach (cool shot!)

Perth skyline from King's Park (the black building is still under construction)

Sunscreen & Sand

So it's hot and sunny here all the time (in case you didn't already know) and because of that you must wear and reapply sunscreen a lot. Almost every restaurant or shop you visit, there's a jug of sunscreen on the way out that you are welcome to use. And sand...sand is everywhere. You go to the beach once and somehow you can never really get rid of it, but let's face it Australia's a desert. :-) It's really funny actually because every time I put sunscreen on my arms/legs, etc. I end up with sandy sunscreen filled hands. We've done a lot in the last couple of days. We visited the WACA where they play cricket and actually watched a match. We stopped over at Murdoch University and met some of Russ' colleagues and took a tour of campus. We visited a Bunnings, which in the states we'd compare it to Menards. We enjoyed a breezy evening watching Russ and his friends play volleyball--Rob even jumped in a little! And went to a local pub favorite of Russ' and had some great food and beer!! Today was especially fun because we got to go to Caversham wildlife park and pet the kangaroos and koalas!! We even saw a mommy with her Joey in the pouch !!! :) VERY fun--lots of great photos! We visited a few wineries(in Swan Valley) and ate lunch at feral brewery--excellent food! Rob and I soon started to realize how expensive everything can be though. Lunch entrees on average can be anywhere from $18-$40/plate! But excellent food everywhere we've been so far. We stopped off at the chocolate factory where they're actually making chocolate pretty much in front of you. We also did a little walking around Guildford and checked out the history of the city. Very busy day so far! Russ and Rob are currently napping and later we'll stop off at Kings Park for a look at the city skyline at night!!

First day in Aussieland...

As we head to Russ' apartment I'm getting sleepy, but Rob and Russ force me to stay awake. I had only slept about 5 hours within the last 48 so it was tough, but I listened! Ha! We made it to the apartment and it is so beautiful. Russ has an amazing view from his balcony and it's just a quaint little neighborhood. We had some delicious lunch, which helped to revive me. We changed and were headed on a walk through the neighborhood of mount lawley! :) we sat at a cafe and had an iced coffee--the first coffee in 30 hours!! The.best.feeling. Then we headed to cottesloe beach--absolutely breathtaking!! It was windier by the beach, which felt nice under the hot sun! Rob and Russ ran straight into the Indian Ocean while I observed this great body of water. I dipped my toes and Rob pulled me in. I was afraid the waves were going to eat me so I quickly ran back to shore!! Haha it was amazing though to lay there watching the sunset listening to the waves roll up... Russ said that the beach gets windy in the afternoon which causes a bit of a sand storm so needless to say we were covered in sand by the time we left, but I didn't care--I'm in AUSTRALIA!!! A little while later we washed off at a beach shower and walked up to the Cott Hotel Restaurant to have some beers and pizza and watch the sun set into the ocean :) it was absolutely spectacular!! We got back to Russ' apartment at about 8:30pm and I was dunbar! Out like a light!! After 10 hours of blissful sleep, I feel amazing!! Onto day 2...

Planes, Planes, Planes...

Well we've made it!! I think the words interesting and exhausting are great discribing words for the start of the adventure. :) Our first flight was nice. We watched a lot of movies, read a little, and played a few games. Each seat had their own tv screen with a remote that doubled as an old school Nintendo controller--pretty funny. You could basically play anything from sudoku to a Mario cart-like game. There was also a USB connection to charge your phone or ipod/ipad. We had a Korean meal with seaweed soup, rice, tofu(I think), veggies, wine, and fruit. (Christy--I took a picture so that you could help tell us what the food was!) they even served you with real silverware! Neither Rob or myself slept well on that flight, but we had another 7 hour flight to do that on so no worries-right?! So we landed in Seoul at about 4:20pm and had an hour to get off the plane to catch our next. We didn't realize that we'd have to go through another security check but we made it. This flight was noisy. Nobody else seemed tired but us. Thank goodness for the sound canceling headphones that I got Rob for valentines day!! I was also not feeling the best--probably due to lack of sleep or just dehydration. I wasn't hungry and I couldn't find a comfortable spot to sleep. Rob was able to sleep for a few hours though which was good. We made it into Bali at about midnight. Our original plan was to get as much sleep possible on the flights and then we'd just try to stay at the airport to save a little $$. We had a 9 hour layover until our flight left for Perth, but I was exhausted and told Rob that we should try to find a hotel to get some solid sleep. Boy was that an eye opening experience!! Immediately as we got off the plane, it was hot & humid--very humid. A feeling that neither Of us were used to. We had to wait in a long line to obtain a visa just to be in the country and we had to get through customs. I was feeling fever-ish so the humidity and long lines were not on my side. Finally we made it through and as we were retrieving our bags out of now where these three men came and whisked us and our bags away. At first I freaked out a little inside--like "umm who are you? And where are you taking our bags?" but then I remembered that they just do that[to foreigners] it's their way of being friendly..?? Well it was all very nice until about 15-20 feet later they gave our bags back to us and asked for 100,000 rupiah!! Haha we learned our lesson quickly! The next step was finding a cab to get to a hotel. Now keep in mind that it's about midnight and we are not in our best mindset being tired and off of schedule. So I think finding a cab was probably the scariest part for me because everyone seemed so sketchy. They all seemed like they wanted to take advantage of us, being American. Luckily my fantastic husband read about this part in our Bali books and knew a little bit about how much cabs would cost. So he was able to barter with one of the cab drivers. Now that was all swell but we had no hotel booked so we really didn't know where we were nor where we were going to go. We didn't know the closest, cheapest hotel & we were relying on these men to take us somewhere, safely. Our cab driver seemed friendly enough and first took us to an alleyway hotel. Before you actually pay for a room, it's customary to show it to the paying guest first to ensure it's what they want. That's all swell but leaving the running taxicab with our luggage in the trunk was little unnerving. So this first place smelled of mothballs and the air conditioning wasn't working. Let's just recap quickly...it's about 12:30am, I'm hot, exhausted, sick & uncomfortable. On to the next hotel/villa!! We pull into this beautiful front drive--we walk up to the front desk(which is outside by the way) and the price for a very basic room was 900,000 rupiah (which is about $100USD). We typically would've turned it down, but we were both so tired, all we wanted was sleep. So there we were heading to our very expensive room that we were going to occupy for about 6 hours, but it was pure bliss! I had only been able to sleep for about 4/5 hours and woke up still not feeling well. I forced some sips of water and a granola bar which helped. Quickly we were onto our final flight--ahhh thank goodness! Bali's airport is pretty small so they shuttle you out to the Tarmac and onto the plane you go. This flight was insane!! It was filled with children who were loud and crazy! Haha we were lucky enough to sit in front of a screaming child but I had to keep remembering that I was on my way to Australia and that this ride would be over in 4 short hours(just like this blog!! Haha). Well friends, we made it safely to Perth and were greeted by the best resident--RUSS!! It was a gorgeous 90 degrees and felt amazing!!

"take off"

Our adventure begins on Sunday, February 19th at the bright and sunny 7am!  We head to Chicago (O'hare) to board Korean Air (for 13 hours) to Seoul.  We then jump on another plane (7 hours) to Denpasar, Indonesia and after a 5 hour layover, board one more time (4 hours) to our FIRST destination--Perth, Australia!!  It should be an exciting adventure and we'll let you know how our first traveling experiences are as a married couple (for 24 hours straight!).

Blog more when we get to our Aussie Adventure--week 1. :)