Bali

This weekend I took my long awaited first trip to Bali. It was indeed beautiful. Although, it was nothing like I had expected it to be. We stayed in the "tourist" Bali, aka Kuta and Seminyak. It was very busy and full of people and traffic. The beach was super crowded and also full of people trying to sell you stuff. Hmm...not exactly what I had hoped for in my relaxing beach vacation. But, there was a beach and for that I was very thankful! I went to the beach everyday and have the worst sunburn of my life (or at least since I fried in Hawaii 10 years ago) to prove it! Yes, I did wear sunscreen but, I did not put it on early or often enough. Yeah, I am in quite a bit of pain but, I am thankful I did not blister.
As with everything in Indonesia, Bali is super cheap. We stayed at a hotel for $30 a night. It wasn't great but, had clean beds, A/C, hot water and Western toilets. Bali is a place to barter for better deals. This is so not my thing but I did barter a little when I knew they were way overcharging me. It's so nice to say, "I live in Indonesia. I know that is too expensive. I should pay X amount of rupiah." It's also really helpful when you know to say "Koh't mahal!", which means "That's way too much money!". When you say that with feeling, they know you are a local.
Bali was great for seeing other Westerners as well. It was so nice to not be stared at for a few days. I met a lot of people from Australia. I had a great conversation with a woman on the beach who was trying to sell sarongs. I didn't buy one but she sat down just to chat. She was so friendly and nice. I met 2 girls who were from France and Spain on the way to the beach one day. The girl from Spain said they are always looking for native English speakers in Spain and that I should teach English in Spain when my contract is up in Surabaya. Hmm...tempting...

But my favorite part of the vacation was the food. Bali has a variety of restaurants that sell any kind of food you would want. After eating rice or noodles for the majority of my meals for the last month and a half, I really wanted a variety of food options. And, I was not disappointed! I had Mexican food, pizza, a bacon cheeseburger and fries, lasagna, and pancakes. And most of my meals were around $5! There's also lots of great Indonesian restaurants on Bali, for those that want a true Indonesian experience.

I also saw the memorial to the victims of the 2002 Bali bombings. It was very sobering in a very crazy and hectic place.