Back in the Water

Ok first, some pics of the monkey forrest residents from the earlier Ubud posting.  Sorry folks, internet is sketchy and it takes forever to upload photos.

 Monkeys in Monkey Forrest, Ubud

Two more monkeys in Monkey Forrest

Rice paddies out the backdoor of our homestay in Ubud

Ok so i finally got back in the water.  Had a nice small day with U'i at Padang-Padang (the left).  I was very proud of her, she got comfortable on some 2 footers that were very shallow and hollow.  She sure has come a long way!  My boards are done now (5'10, 6'2, 6'8).

Scored Geger Beach on the east side this morning.  It felt so good to get back on a wave after 40 days out of the water.  No pics yet, its too far to shoot from the beach.  Surf pics coming soon, promise. 

Mike left yesterday - very sad to see him go.  We had such great times and memories!  More later on that.....Internet time is running out now.  Until next time....

North Bali and Ubud

Our Villa in Pemuteran

Private Pool

Another view

The inside

 View from the lanai looking Mauka

 Coral

Giant Clam

 Cool coral and yellow reef fish

 Underwater gardens

 Starfish

Our party continued along the north coast of Bali through a number of small towns until we reached Singaraja, where we turned south and headed up the mountains.  I took over driving since we left Medewi, and have become accustomed to the traffic and driving manners.  I actually enjoy driving through Bali.  You go into a trance, exercising your peripheral vision as much as normal sight.  The temperatures once again dropped as we climbed several thousand feet on the small, windy mountain roads.  We passed several lakes and stopped for lunch at an old golf course restaurant.  Heading down the hill we passed through Bali's only strawberry farms.  Finally, we crossed east until we reached the artist's haven of Ubud.  U'i and I found the same homestay where we crashed over 2 years ago, and rented a room for us for the night.  We walked around town the next day, stopping in at the small art shops and took Mike on a walk through Monkey Forrest.  We checked out around noon and made it back to Uluwatu within 2 hours.  U'i and I walked down to the surf break in time to watch the rising swell (Temples was 6-8ft Hawaiian, Race Tracks around 4-6ft and perfect).

West Bali

As you may have noticed, our blog has been far too quiet lately.  Our neighbor back in Hawaii, Mike, came to visit and we have been, well, distracted.  For his first couple of nights in Bali, Mike rented a luxury bungalow called Mu Bali, located on the cliffs above Bingin beach.  The property is owned and operated by a French couple who over the years turned their oceanfront, limestone covered land into a secluded oasis, with architecture and landscaping influenced by Balinese and European cultures.  The rooms were constructed from natural coral and/or white stone, with dark Indonesian wood trimming, vaulted wooden ceilings and thatched roofing.  An infinity pool looked out over the Indian Ocean.  While it was only about 200 steps down to the Beach, we spent most of those first days lounging by the pool, soaking up the rays and enjoying Bali life outside of our normal budget.  

The coast from the Bingin Beach Cliff

Mu Bali infinity pool

U'i and her plants, outside Mu Bali

 

 Spot checking Bingin

On Mike’s second day, we decided to brave it into Kuta by moped.  While only 20 miles from Uluwatu, Kuta might as well have been in another country.  To reach it, you must navigate the narrow rural roads of the Bukit peninsula, drop down the hill into Jimbaran, and merge onto the heaviest traveled “highways” on Bali.  I tried to explain to Mike how intense the traffic in Indonesia becomes once you exit the countryside, but nothing could prepare us for the reality of motoring through the chaos first hand.  I remember my first time in Bali, sitting in the back of a Taxi cab as we weaved between scooters and busses, closing my eyes every few seconds and sinking my finger nails into the vinyl seat covers in desperation.  Sitting on the moped, about to make the left turn onto the By-pass road which races past the international airport, my heart sped up and then abruptly stopped.  It’s now or never, I thought to myself.  It felt like jumping into a river during spring melt.  Suddenly we were 5 lanes deep (on a 3 lane highway), scooters on both sides, their foot pegs inches from my spinning spokes, and my mirrors inches from the tour bus towering above us, flying along at 60km/hr.  Seasoned motorcycle drivers with apparent death wishes blew past us, somehow knowing that the cement trucks would leave 18 inches between their tires and the guard rail.  Every time the traffic stopped, we asked whomever was next to us the way to Kuta, as the signs did little to keep us going in the right direction.

Somehow we made it, and putted into the dirty, snarled mess of Bali’s tourist trap.  T-shirt shops, surf shacks, scooter rentals and trinket stands extended for miles in all directions, an International Market Place on steroids.  Mike was instantly turned off, and shared our disbelief that many travelers spend their entire time in Bali on these streets.  We stayed only long enough to eat lunch, settle our nerves from the drive over, and mentally prepare for the drive back.  We instantly got lost, heading in the wrong direction on a maze of one-way streets.  Eventually we got going in the right direction, and with the help from numerous local motorists passing by, we continued south toward the Bukit.  Somehow we missed our turn and ended up on another fast moving highway, this time taking us to Sanur.  We squeaked across the ever flowing stream of vehicles and made a west-bound exit onto a junction towards Nusa Dua.  I knew I could get us home from there.  Suddenly I saw a sign for Uluwatu, and we pulled onto a smaller highway which brought us to the base of the Bukit hill.  Even looking at a map today, I can’t figure out where we went.  We got home as darkness was settling over the island, and exchanged excited and frantic recounts of what had just transpired, feeling happy to be alive.  I do expect that anyone can grasp the intensity of driving in the cities here without doing it.  It’s like explaining color to the blind.  The next day, feeling confident and possibly possessing superpowers we previously had not been aware of, we decided that we would rent a car, and drive up the west coast of Bali.  We enjoyed our last day at Mu, secured our Toyota for an early morning departure, and returned home to pack.

The kids at our homestay, happy to have us back alive

 U'i packing up for our trip around the island

In the morning, after a short discussion, it was decided that Mike would drive and I would navigate.  While a vehicle provides inherent safety from its size and closed structure, it is by no means easier to operate in Indonesian traffic than a scooter.  For starters, traffic drives on the left side of the road, which means the stick shifter is controlled with the left hand, the blinker with the right hand, and the rear view mirror can be found by looking up and to the left.  Enter into the situation that our blind spots are also reversed, and the judgment of distance between our car and the wave of scooters surround us is thrown way off.  Lastly, consider that some red lights mean go and some don’t (often optional regardless for scooters), and roads are rarely labeled (both on the map and on the street), and some suddenly become one-way (again often optional rule for scooters).  This became a hair-raising combination of new experiences for poor Mike as the pilot, for me as the navigator, and for U’I, who helped to spot for bogeys or oncoming trees that got too close (less than 6 inches).  After several near misses the inevitable finally happened.  A young woman on a scooter was driving at us on our left (the wrong side of the road for those who are catching on).  A vehicle was passing a slower car in the opposite direction, momentarily coming into our lane.  We squeezed tighter into the left side of our “lane” and smacked the scooter with the passenger side mirror (where I was sitting), which folded in against our car with a loud crack.  Panicked and fearing the repercussions of any discussion with the Indonesian police, we kept going without looking back.  We all agree that the woman was not injured, that we had made mirror to mirror contact (judging by the yellow paint on our mirror), and at worst had removed hers from her scooter.  Nevertheless it was the topic of repeated conversation for the remainder of the day.  U'i got the whole ordeal on video - watch for a post soon.

We continued North past Kuta, successfully navigated the streets of Denpasar, and exited the city towards Tabanan.  Upon reaching the small town of Antosari, we turned right at the fork and headed north into the mountains.  The temperature began to drop as we climbed through rice terraces, cocoa farms, and clove plantations.   

Rice terraces on our way up the mountains

 Mountain tree tunnel

The road began to narrow and winded like Tantalus into the sky.  23 miles later we reached the ridge roads through Pujungan and Pupuan.  From here we could have continued to the north coast of Bali, but instead looped back down toward the south-west coast on another small mountain road, which deposited us in the isolated coastal community of Medewi Beach.  The surf here is renowned, however, the long drive from Kuta (about 2.5-3.5 hours) usually keeps the crowds to a minimum, with local surfers typically out numbering tourists.  We pulled in and were greeted by a low-tide, medium swell day.  Left handers wrapped around the point.  The beach consisted of large, round, perfectly smooth stones, deposited by a nearby river.  The water color was a darker, brownish color, reminding me of the countless California point breaks.  As the tide began to fill in, the waves got bigger and broke for well over 300 yards.  There was one guy out.  As the tide continued to fill in through the evening, the crowd grew to a maximum of 10, and everyone was getting waves.  U’I jumped in on here bodyboard and proceeded to get several sets (though I only captured a few of the smaller ones with my dying camera battery).  West of the point break, a black sand beach break was producing some nice barrels.  To the east of the point, a long fast right wall was reeling down the coast.  Several other rideable waves could be seen in the distance.   

Low tide Medewi, showing the playing field

Inside section

U'i dropping in

 U'i cruising

U'i weaving through the crowd

U'i on inside section

Rising tide means bigger sets

 Some fun ones

We elected for a cheap room in a nearby homestay ($7 for Mike, $10 for U’I and I).  The full moon that night provided a spotlight on the waves, and one could easily have surfed for hours on the high tide.  Mike and I hung out by the water till midnight, watching about 20 native fishing canoes depart into the night.  A couple of Bali cows wandered by chewing their cud, while U’I caught up on some sleep back in the run-down surfer room.  The next day, U’I was up at the crack of dawn, eager to get back in the water before we pushed out.  The swell and tide combination wasn’t providing waves as big as the day before, however, she still got several fun rides.  We loaded up the car, and I took my turn driving as we pushed west.  We reached Gilimanuk, where the ferry takes vehicles across the straight to the island of Java.  While a vast jungle awaited on Java, it wasn’t in the plan this trip, and we continued around the tip of West Bali into the diving village of Pemuteran.  A community reef restoration agreement has created an underwater sanctuary and some of the best diving on Bali off the shores of this North-coast town.  The backdrops were stunning, the people friendly, and the atmosphere relaxing, making for a good place to stop for a few days.  After stopping in at a few of the roadside accommodations, we found Amertha Bali Villas, a cluster of luxury resort homes on an ocean front parcel.  Our jaws dropped when we saw the room available.  It was a two-story palace, with a private pool, outdoor kitchen, and outdoor bed, surrounded by koi ponds and native foliage.  The inside boasted luxurious flooring and trim, cold AC, satellite TV, and a King size four-post bed.  We decided this was our time to splurge.   U’I successfully negotiated the rate on this Master Suite Villa to $100USD per night, (which we split), and we booked for two nights.  We have been living it up the past two days.  The snorkeling out front is spectacular – it’s straight out of Discovery Channel with vibrant corals, healthy reef fish, and a multitude of creatures I’ve only seen in pictures.  Tomorrow we push out of Pemuteran, and will continue only the north coast (heading east). 

Mike Arrives!

Yesterday we went back to nusa dua (east side of the Bukit Peninsula) and explored a little more north.  We found even more right breaks.  These being further up the coast, I assume the wave energy was dissipated some as they were about half the size of the Geger Beach breaks previously discussed.  Very nice, hollow runners, maxing out around head high.  Really perfect waves.  Also found a great long board wave which i think i will try out first when i get back in the water.  The wave are u'i friendly, and really rippable at the same time. 

 New right break we found

 Another right, shoulder - head high and hollow

 Yes, Bali even has longboard waves...think Queens, pre-contact.

Speaking of ripable, Uluwatu has been going off, never bigger than two feet overhead, averaging about shoulder to head high, and very nice conditions.  Crowds are minimal.  The sun has been shinning hard for two days straight now, and the winds went completely dead.  We hear the volcano has been erupting up on Java (far far away from us), and the winds this time of the year push the Vog towards us.  In the mornings, Ulu's looks like mokuleia on a kona wind day.  Green balls has been pretty epic looking.  A clone of Quarries right in my opinion (best wave on the NS). 

Mike got in late Tuesday night, and is renting a palace right on Bingin.  Infinity pool, coral and limestone cottages, etc.  We cruised hard, shared some Bintangs and stories, and stayed for an epic home cooked dinner served family style.  There were about 16 people at the table from all over the world.  The food was very good, fresh grilled mahi, a squash soup, peanut curry, steamed rice, vegetables, and a strawberry cup dessert (and it was all you can eat - i'm hurting again this morning). I sense a lot of relaxing in the days to come.....

The Hawaiians holding it down...

Bali Smiles on the Bukit

The Balinese people who live on the Bukit peninsula have the warmest smiles, and happiest dispositions.  After such a heart-wrenching and challenging experience in the Philippines, it’s been such a breath of sweet air, literally, to feel at ease about so many things, like having less grip on our personal items.  As I’ve noticed on our scooter travels around the Bukit peninsula, the majority of the people live quite simply as humble farmers of seaweed or vegetables.  Many fresh vegetable stands line the streets.  We often pass by small food carts which are barbequing scrumptious chicken skewers, known as satays.  There are a number of small stands directly outside of family homes that sell small quantities of petrol for scooters (always in glass Absolute Vodka bottles) and offer a variation of snacks to make a few extra rupiah.  Parents get their children ready in the morning for school, dressing them in a different colored uniform for each day of the week.  Monday is red, Tuesday is blue, Wednesday is brown.  Wealthier Balinese have a land base where they construct their home and several other smaller cottages that surround the property to provide for guests.  These are called Homestays, which Ry and I are residing in.  Other Balinese families have established their own Warungs, or restaurants that provide simple Indonesian delicacies like Nasi Gurang (fried rice with choysum and an egg) or hot black rice pudding covered in cream.  The Warungs have their own take on Western classics like the “Beef burger,” with avocado, sweet tomatoes, a slice of cheese, and fresh, crisp lettuce and “Spaghetti Padang-Padang,” which is angel hair pasta covered in a butter cream sauce, slices of fresh ham, and mushrooms.  The prices at the Warungs are relatively cheap.  A whole bowl of spaghetti was  $3.00 - 4.00 USD, and in the United States, the same bowl would be close to $10.00 USD.    Almost all Balinese are dedicated Hindus, placing offerings several times a day outside of the steps of their homes or on homemade constructed alters with utmost perfection.  Their offerings symbolize the connection to the land and the elements of nature to ensure the balance of life.  Quite remarkable actually.  The diverse colors of flora and fauna in one offering to the array of fruits (banana, dragon fruit, tangarines, apples) in another are so different and unique.  It is a cultural practice that has occurred through the generations and all respect the religious protocol in everyday practice and also in the larger ceremonies. In fact, Ry and I missed a very important festival here in Bali by one week, although remnants of the ceremony are apparent in the large colorful floats that line the roads around the peninsula.  Some are a bit frightening, but they are all telling a special story.

A little on surf: 

A multitude of orange and white monarch butterflies crowded the abundant purple crown flowers that lined the cement block road that led to a “more secret” left-hander near Greenballs.  It wasn’t as “secret” as we thought.  There was a very close knit group of surfers crowding one peak.  Ry and I spent about half a day finding different spots as mentioned in our previous blog.  Out in the water on a windier 2-3 ft. day, Greenballs felt a little like Cliffs at Diamondhead.  As the water receded with the tide, the reef felt more like lowtide at any of the Ala Moana spots.  Later on in the week, Ry and I went back to check this same spot.  As we peered down the cliff, the sets seemed to have tripled in size.  Walking down the 500+ steps and looking out into the surf at a better level, Ry and I were amazed to find heavy glassy, peeling 6ft. right-handers.  It reminded Ryan and I of Quarries, Mokulei’ia North Shore with its little sections and fast bending wall.  The river current on the inside was like Himalayas, North Shore, not something to get caught in.  It just killed Ryan to watch these beautiful sets roll in as just a handful of surfers rotated turns catching the ride of their lives.  The left side of Greenballs looked a little more mushy than the right, but of course still had major size.  I definitely wasn’t going out. 

 

 Swimming on a quiet sandy beach, south cost

 Later on in the day, after the rain subsided I asked Ry to go back to Nusa Dua.  His board shaper told us of a much mellower break called “Black Stone.”  It was a re-form on the inside near the beach that was supposedly quite fun.  Making the trek back to Nusa Dua wasn’t as long this time since we didn’t go off path to find other surf breaks.  Weaving in and out of traffic to Nusa Dua with the scooter caused me to be a nervous wreck, but Ryan is becoming well acclimated to the Bali traffic, and so I knew we would make it in one piece.  We finally made it safely to the entrance of Gaiger beach.  No wind on the east side of the peninsula!  Peering out into the distance were giant peeling right-handers, I would say 6-8 ft Hawaiian.  Boats on the inside were gearing up to take surfers to the outside breaks.  “I could just paddle out there, it’s any further than Hawaii Kai,” Ryan exclaimed.  I just looked at him and said, “Um…it looks pretty far Ryan, plus paddling through that white water?”  He finally did agree as he saw the boats whip way around the fringe of the reef and take the surfers to the peak of their choice.  The outside Nusa Dua break had a paddle and reef much like Hawaii Kai, but a wave heavy like North Shore.  Heading down to the left of the beach, there was a channel where a surfer was paddling back in.  “That’s where I would paddle out,” Ry said.  I agreed with him since that particular right-hander didn’t look as far.  At the very end of the beach to the left side there was an inside break.  It wasn’t a sandy break as Ry’s shaper explained to us earlier, but an outside reef break, with little pealing lefts.  The waves were a perfect head-high, glassy, and produced little barrels.  The line-up was crowded, but the crowd was really nice and not super intense.  The waves definitely reminded me of a mix of low-tide Ala Moana breaks, with a nice bend and curl.  Hard to describe…I had a lot of fun and was glad to find something more manageable, when Ry will be in the more heavier stuff.

Ry’s rib is still not feeling up to par to get back into surf.  I’m praying that soon he will be able to get into the water, but I am immensely enjoying this time together.  

We’re going to head to the “Museum Pacifika” today out at Nusa Dua.  I’m very interested in what types of artifacts there are in the Museum.  Will it be similar to Polynesia?  If we look back in history far enough Polynesians migrated from this very area, Melanesia.  Our linguistic grouping from Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia come from the Austronesian line.  Preparations of foods both in the Philippines and in Indonesia are very similar to Polynesian styles with the use of steaming and “grilling” with banana leaves and the use of coconut milk in various dishes.  Here in Indonesia as well as in the Philippines and Singapore, I have noticed an array of plants also found in Hawaii.

Noni : Indonesia

‘Olena with beautiful blossoms: Philippines

Pohuehue growing on beach:  Philippines, Indonesia

A variety of Koa, sickle shaped leaves, yellow flowers, no seed pods that I found: Indonesia

Wauke to make kapa: Indonesia

Haui/ ouwi: Indonesia (hardier/dense leaves, probably the medicinal one)

Crown flower along with white and orange monarch butterflies: seaweed farm Indonesia

‘Ohai ali’i flowers, yellow and red/orange: Philippines, Indonesia

Hapu’u fern: Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore (airport)

Mai’a (banana): Philippines, Indonesia

Niu (coconut), bright orange when young, off yellow when mature: Philippines, Indonesia

‘Ulu (breadfruit): Philippines

Kalo (4 varieties so far), Gabi in Filipino language: Philippines, Indonesia

‘Ape: Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore

Hao bushes, both varieties, green and multi-colored: Indonesia

Naupaka: Indonesia

Lauhala, hala: Philippines, Indonesia

Milo: Indonesia

I am quite amazed.  Many medicinal plants here like the haui grows abundantly.  Will continue to research what I can about this very unique place!

Alohas-

U’i and Ry 

Lazy Day (+ tsunami update)

First and foremost, the tsunami has had no impact on us down in Bali, we are safe and sound.  We are on the southern coast of an Indian Ocean island, with numerous land masses between us and the Pacific.  We understand that Hawaii was hit, but damage was minimal and everyone is generally just fine.  Please send your thoughts and prayers to our friends down on the Kiribati Atolls, where the high point of the islands is a mere 5ft above sea level.  We have no idea how they fared, I hope to hear from them soon.  And of course to everyone in Japan and the rest of the Pacific.

The wet season has been wet thus far.  Each night we fall asleep to thunder and lightning and torrential downpours.  Up until today (Saturday) it has been dry and sunny throughout the day.  We have spent the last couple afternoons exploring on the scooter.  We are now thoroughly familiar with the Bukit peninsula.  Whoever said Bali was only the land of the lefts is certainly mistaken.  We have found more rights than lefts this week, many of which I never knew existed.  Uluwatu, Padang, etc. have generally been small and windy (although U’i got one really good glassy day).  The east side and south side with eastern exposures have been very good.  We finally found Greenballs, at the bottom of a long staircase sits an aquamarine channel flanked by two reefs.  A hollow left, and a long right wall.  They get good as the tide drops, and handle the winds better than the west coast.  U'i jumped in on the right and got some fun ones.  

 The beach at Greenballs

A smaller day showing the setup

After the wind picked up, but still good.

We began driving down long dirt and gravel roads to the east of Greenballs.  One took us through an abandoned quarry and down to a seaweed farm.  A number of waves were at the bottom.  There were a good 15 guys out, most of them killing it hard – obviously the “secret” spots that locals flocked to when the crowds got heavy elsewhere.  We ventured further down the dirt roads, taking side paths that ran south down the cliff (each of these represents about a 20 minute ordeal).  Every one that we tried revealed bigger and more remote right breaks.  Some shallow reefs, some points.  The last one looked pretty heavy, would like to return when I’m back in the water.  I have never seen a name for any of them, and they are just as good as Ulu’s, Impossibles, Bingin, etc. on an average day.

We also made it over to Nusa Dua, which reminds me of Hawaii Kai, but with actual consistent waves.  I counted at least 8 defined right peaks, long walls with barrels we could see over a mile away.  The breaks are far out on a fringe reef, much like Toes, Secrets and Snipes, and were forming like HK on its best kona wind days.  Sanur we are told, is home to even better right breaks.  We have yet to head up to Canggu, which we are told has been stellar as well lately.  Keramas has been decent, as has Medewi before the wind picked up. 

I finally decided on boards.  After looking through a number of shops, which had decent boards from familiar shapers, I was hesitant to pay $300 for a used stick, or $600 for a new one (or $1000 for a Resin 8).  I met up with Bruce Hansel, a shaper I heard about back in Hawaii.  He lived in Waialua (oahu) for years and began his career shaping for Country Surfboards.  He grew up with all the heavy hitters on the north shore when it comes to shaping.  12 years ago he moved to Bali and opened a custom board shop where he services many of the locals, some of the Brazilians, and many traveling Hawaiian’s.  He is Bali’s official shaper for Bushman and I believe Minami.  He is close with Wade (Tokoro) and knows his designs as well.  Bruce, like Wade, Bushman and others, began using a shaping machine a number of years back.  He has Bushman’s and Tokoros board shape programs.  I also found out that Tokoros are shipped out of Hawaii and glassed out here , there is a factory near Uluwatu.  I told Bruce about a couple Tokoro models that worked for me back home, and he said he would make them, but slightly modified for Bali’s reefs.  It’s this local knowledge that sold me, that and the price.  I ended up getting a 5’11” dumpster, modeled after the X1, a 6’2” shortboard, modeled after the “6”, and a 6’8” round pin modeled after the “5”.  Now I just need to figure out how to get these boards around with me.  There are very cheap custom board bag shops around here I will check out soon.  The boards should be done next week, perfect timing to let me continue healing.  I started stretches and light exercise and while the ribs are still sore, I’m feeling stronger – a huge relief.  The season’s first big swell is due to start hitting tomorrow, and should go for a while.  We hope the winds and rain dies down some so we can get a few days at Ulus, but if not, plenty of other options.

Wet season makes for some really big mosquitoes!  No worries, no malaria or dengue....

Today has been a lazy relaxing day.  It finally stopped raining about an hour ago.  I’m close to finishing the book I’m currently working on, called Theft by Peter Carey.  Pretty good book considering the subject matter.  Look it up if you’re interested.  Next on the list is The Chosen, by Chaim Potok – surprised I haven’t read it yet.  Then on to Mark Twain’s The Innocents Abroad (mahalos Jim Johnson). 

U’I has been eating, napping and watching $0.80 pirated DVD’s.  We needed a day off the scooter after the 5 hour tour yesterday.  Speaking of scooters, the one we got is way too much fun with only one person.  It’s a newer 125cc model that goes 160kmh.  I’ve gotten it up there on some of the back roads (by myself everyone….by myself - and with a good helmet).  Our neighbor has a brand new Yamaha Supermoto I have my eye on.  It is throaty and well equipped.  I won’t tell you its top end speed, ‘cause I know mom will read this eventually.

Our daily fruit salad (melon, watermelon, banana, pineapple)

Also, I added a few new videos to the video bar on the right side of the blog.  They should be available for viewing soon.

Signing off for today.  All our best.  Ry + U’i

Bali Day 1

Ok, so Mamo Homestay didn’t work out so well afterall.  It turns out the construction was really disruptive, and the workers used our entrance as a path to the jobsite.  Also, the family pet, Rambo, a 100 pound Rottweiler, was teased all night by a pair of wild bali dogs.  Rambo decided to show his manliness by howling until the sun came up, then as if on cue he passed out as the first rays of morning appeared.  Apparently, he has no idea what clock his guests are on.  After much apology to our “family”, and a bunch of fast Indonesian chatting between members, we made our escape.  Next door to Mamo is a brand new homestay, run by Mamo’s cousin.  Even though it was family, we sensed some resentment from our move.  Oh well, not our fault that they were building a new hotel on their spot.  The new place is amazing.  The grounds are gorgeous, the room is huge, the bed is brand new, the shower spotless, and its cool during the day!  Our room at Mamo cooked all night long and was unlivable during the day.  We have settled in hard today and are very happy with our choice.  It’s only a little bit more per night for true paradise.  U’I and I set off today on the scooter to go exploring.  We couldn’t find Greenballs surf sport, which our neighbors said was going off today, glassy off shore and head high.  I think I now know my mistake and we will try again tomorrow.  We hit all the usual spots, Bingin, Impossibles, Padang.  By the way, for those who know the Bukit, they are building a new MEGA resort on the water at Impossibles, this things is gigantic, Dreamland size, probably 10 stories, just this massive concrete monstrosity.  The whole empty field where we used to park the scooters for the walk to Impossibles is gone.  Beach access is tight.  It’s really sad in my opinion.  I hate developers.  

All the spots were showing good waves and decent conditions, up to head high, as the tide started to drop.  U’I tried her bodyboard for the first time out at Padang Rights, and if I do say so myself, owned it.  Tomorrow I’ll bring the camera down for some shots of her.  We also have been hearing that Nusa Dua is firing, so we will check that in the coming days.  But for now, just in relax mode, settling in.  I’m stretching out my ribs, trying to get movement back.  Hopefully back in the water by next week.  It’s good just cruising with my girl and watching her surf.  Here are some pics of our new place.  Come visit!  The water is warm…..

 Entrance

 Dining Area / Bar

 Our New Home

 This place is 4 months old, beautiful

 What the girls need to see when selecting a homestay...

 The view from our lanai

 Our neighbor stopped by this morning