motorbikes, warungs, beach cocktails

oh how do I even begin. Friday morning we woke up to beautiful sunshine and had our delicious breakfast of fresh juice (orange, pineapple or watermelon), coffee (tea for Sarah) and toasted baguette with local honey and papaya jam. then we headed to the beach and walked for almost an hour until we found the perfect little spot amidst the many eager Balinese men trying to solicit us their chairs and umbrellas to lounge at for the day. the Seminyak beaches are unbelievable. the waves are huge and gorgeous and there are surfers everywhere you look. we played in the ocean and managed to get ourselves too much color... that's for sure. then had lunch at this adorable place called La Plancha.. a Spanish spot on the beach. delicious. then we moseyed back to lounge about by the pool. we have this gorgeous infinity pool and a rooftop bar and it's basically heaven in here. after a cold Bintang on the roof we went out to eat at a traditional Indonesian warung and both had the Nasi Goerang. traditional meal of fried rice and veggies with a fried egg on top. and only IR 15,000 ($1.50). unbelievable. yesterday was not quite as nice out so we explored the streets of Kuta, Legian and Seminyak and managed to find accommodations for tonight through weds night in one go. only IR 12,000 total for a room with a double bed and it's own bathroom... that's nothin. and we are right in the heart of beautiful Seminyak. then I had maybe the most awesome massage of my life at the hotel... free because we stayed three nights but otherwise only IR 70 k... that's $7. I felt like I could melt away and I was just covered in delicious coconut oil. it helped the sunburn too. I heard that the beach was the hot spot in the early evening so we made our way down for cocktails and my god I have never seen a sun so huge or red. there were loads of locals playing soccer and running about and all kinds of people enjoying a drink on the hundreds of bean bag chairs set up on the sand in front of the cafes and bars with little tables in front of them. I had something called king fuel which absolutely tasted like petrol... and Sarah had a mango daiquiri overflowing out of a martini glass. speaking of petrol, the way they sell petrol here is on the streets in absolut vodka bottles cause they are a perfect liter measurement. there are little stands all over! we moved down to the next bean bag lounge area and had dinner and more drinks, and this time there were these unbelievable umbrellas with tassels and fringe hanging off of them above the little tables, and there was a boy named Pagus playing guitar and singing the likes of John Mayer and other popular American music. he was actually fantastic. [a lady just walked by me at the hotel with a box of knives balanced on her head trying to sell them.] after the music and drinking we walked home and had a beer and chatted with an Aussie lady we met at the hotel and then promptly passed out of exhaustion. it's been a crazy and eye opening first few days. the Balinese are so kind and just beautiful people, and the city is busy and interesting and full of smells and sounds and it's very very touristy down here. Bintang has already started to taste like water. there are motorbikes everywhere and taxis beep at you as they pass to let you know they're free to drive you somewhere. today we move our things into Neds Hideaway and then hop over to the beach! xx h

bali at last

we have finally made it to Bali, safe and sound. our layover in qatar was semi painful, but the flight from there to singapore was easy as pie. we discovered that the airport in singapore is easily one of the most awesome that either of us had been to. there were these stations that looked like apartment mailboxes but all had chargers to different kinds of products inside, so I put my iPhone in, locked it, took the key and then retrieved it right before boarding our last flight . more places should have those probably. they also had approximate amount of time that it would take you to walk somewhere posted on the respective signs. then a bit after seven we touched down in Denpasar, Bali, proceeded to get our visas in under five minutes, then wait 25 for our luggage to come through. and we were literally the last two bags seeing as we have been traveling since Tuesday so they were probably shoved way in the bottom of everyones things. our very nice Island Hotel pick up guy was happily waiting for us just outside the customs area and we also drove a woman who works at the hotel back from her vacation with family in Jakarta. we were whisked away though the busy streets of Bali. it smells and feels humid. everything is open air and noisy and there are people all over. restaurants and spas all over, each one claims it's the best. Sarah and I are exhausted from the endless traveling so it's off to bed after a fresh cold glass of oj (our welcome drink). our cute little room overlooks the courtyard and gorgeous pool. hopefully I'll sort out how to post a picture on here so I can give some illustration for the words. goodnight (good morning to you all) xx h

Qatar

after an accidental turn into the mens room at JFK and making friends with some adorable kids, we made it safely to Doha, Qatar. The flight went very smoothly and, to our surprise, flew by. It was hardly full so it was really relaxing ( well excluding the fact that airplane seats are not so comfortable)..the Tylenol pm probably helped with that.. food wasn't half bad, service was awesome. I'd recommend Qatar airways to anyone. probably the best economy class flight I've ever had. anywho just another six hrs in the airport.... then flying to singapore then Bali!!!

job! money saving!

sarah and i just found out that we got accepted to work on a farm/retreat center in bali for the month of november!  http://www.jiwadamai.net/location.htm  there is the link to the place, it pretty much seems too good to be true!  we will be the only two volunteers on the property, working with all balinese people and the owner who is german.  apparently this position is in very high demand so we are super lucky to have gotten it.  we will be fed three meals a day (mostly vegetarian and organic from the center's garden!) and we are also provided with housing.  we will be living in these things called lumbungs (pictures on website) which are loft-esque places surrounded by mosquito netting and with open air bathrooms!  i cant begin to explain how excited i am for this.  we will be working 30 hrs a week, weekends off, and will be about 15 minutes (driving) away from the city of Ubud which is the cultural center of bali (super awesome).  anywho thats the latest. we leave on tuesday woohooo

i hear blogging is pretty hip

howdy y'all. this is my test run so that i know im going to be able to continue blogging upon arrival in Asia... Sarah and I leave the states october 4th and arrive in Seminyak, Bali, Indonesia on october 6th around 745 pm (745 am your time).  we will be living in the laps of luxury at a beautiful (and miraculously affordable) hotel right in the middle of Seminyak.  ill update as frequently as i can! xxx