Bali

First of many temples in Bali - amazing architecture!

This entry will be a photo montage of Bali.  It is a marvelous place and photos hardly do it justice.  I think one would have to go to Bali and stay a month to experience it properly.  We barely dipped our toes in the water even though we spent 2 days touring around with Made, our private guide.  He is our room stewards brother and we went with one other couple, Trish and Mike.  The first day was a loooong day and we didn't get any shopping in! <Agast!>  So the 2nd day, Made returned and we went to the local market along with a few other stops - the post office being one and the other, the Bali version of Costco! 

B with Mike & Trish in Balinese Costco-like store LotteMart

LOL!  Enjoy the pics - I may write more later.

B, Trish and Mike board private car

B and friend

Bali waterfall and tourists

visiting Traditional Village with Trish and Mike

Balinese man in his garden - I adore this pic!

Roasting corn like home - coconuts and durian also available

B attempts right hand side driving...look out!!

Mt Batur - 1 of 2 active volcanoes in Bali

Tasty buffet lunch overlooking volcano

I like the contrasts in this pic of the volcano

boys on a bench at Mt Batur

The people of Bali are wonderful, especially the kids... 

She wanted to sell me a fan, but was willing to strike a pose for a photo...No fan, but I tipped her a dollar - lol!

they're playing with a phone

view down from a temple after climbing all these stairs

an inviting trail for all my hiking friends

Trish touches a snake for the very first time - check out the tattoos on the handler Wow! 

Traditional Bali dance show

These next 2 pics show a part of Bali that we never saw - looks like the resort area and they were taken from the ship as we relocated to anchor.

These textiles in the market were so colorful!  T-shirts, scarves, pashimas, dresses, on & on...

Lombok – Snorkeling

We are in Singapore today after 2 sea days, so I will pick up where I left off: headed to Lombok, Indonesia and snorkeling on Gili Trawangan & other gilis (islands)...

We had to get up early – ugh! 8 am and meet up with our small group. Turns our B had a harem today as we were a group of 5 and he was the only guy. We met our guide just off the ship and he drove us to his boat. It was an outrigger and the typical vessel used in this area. When we arrived he gave us our snorkeling gear and we got in the outrigger.  

The journey to our first island took about 20 minutes but was quite pleasant. The water was shimmering, and the scenery was lush and green. 

  He beached the boat and directed us to the best reef for viewing. With the fins on we propelled ourselves easily across the water. The reef was full of sea plants that were undulating and waving at us. The colors were a bit muted but nice. We saw about 10 kinds of fish, nothing very big, but there were several small parrot fish and angel fish. As a group we probably snorkeled about 30 minutes there. The trip was planned as a day of snorkeling around the archipelago visiting several spots. The next spot was a bit larger island but still remote and included a tiny resort where we had lunch. B & I opted to eat lunch and relax even though we heard from the others that the snorkeling was really good there. I ate tasty calamari, which is fried squid and B had breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast, then ordered garlic bread. Dining was in an outdoor tikki hut and there was an Asian family enjoying the atmosphere with us. 

I chose to lounge in a chaise after my meal and nap since I had to awaken so early...lol! 

After about 2 hours we left there and cruised onto 2 other islands. B didn't snorkel again, but I figured since that is what the trip was for, I should go one more time. It was really not worth getting wet, as there was not much to see. Snorkeling in Indonesia is only so-so - the Caribbean, Hawaii and Mexico are much better, but overall it was a fun day and there was no mall involved! LOL!

It's been a long day and tomorrow we are off the ship, so I will try to catch up soon as we begin the 2^nd leg of our journey. Have a great day today and a better one tomorrow.

So the driver said he would take us to see the "red bridge" - here a pics - lol!  

This was actually a quarry as they make red bricks there...

the whole family works the field

Out of Touch

Just a quick note to let you know we will be out of touch for the next 4 days.  We have been snorkeling in Lombard and seeing amazing sights in Bali, but no time to catch you up till Tuesday or Wednesday... have a great day today and a better one tomorrow

Surabaya, Indonesia

It is Sunday in port and the last day of Chinese New Year celebrations. One of the recommendations of the EXC guides is to explore the Arab Quarter here in Surabaya. It is an open air market – one street sprawling with mostly clothing shops and food stands. The shops are small inlets with men's print and embroidered shirts and fancy, sequined but modest dresses hanging from floor to ceiling. Alternating with the posh clothing were shops with the traditional Muslim hats called peci pronounced “peji” in a variety of colors and prints. B suggested he get one of those to cover his bald spot and finally decided on a blue one that he paid 50,000 Rupiah for (about $4)...

Now we are 2 obvious Caucasian people, most likely Americans, walking through an Arab market wearing shorts, blue hair on me and a paci on B, wearing shorts and B's t-shirt reads “keep calm and think big”... How well do you think we blended in? LOL! Remember this is the Arab quarter in an Indonesian country and 90% of the women are wearing abaya (fully clothed wraps a bit like a sari) and he-jabs (head coverings). Folks were pointing at us, laughing and taking pictures outright and surreptitiously, and children often moved away from us & ducked behind their parents, while still shyly glancing at us. After taking my shoes off, I stepped into one shop and was dragged around by a 4' Grandma while her family followed and giggled after us. I asked about a couple of dresses, but they just giggled and said “no too big”... Now I have been called fat in more than one country in the world...lol! We had to take photos of these shopkeepers and then they had to take our picture.

B suggested we were probably the stars of Surbaya social media that day.  Here is B "dating" again...  I was amazed at the mounds of dates for sale...

The market street ended at the Mosque square and we decided to pick our way through an alley/restaurant – B has an unerring sense of direction, so I was only a tad worried about getting lost... We turned right, then left and ended up in a covered bazaar – I felt like I was in Turkey. It was a narrow isle with booths and shops on both sides. Mostly clothes again, but children's sizes, pajamas and even underwear. More paci were for sale and we saw a beautiful one in turquoise blue- I told B he could buy more than one, so we asked the price. We were told 10,000 Rupiah – B hesitated, bit his lip and thought about it, then said “all right, I guess I could pay 80 cents”...LOL!

Maneuvering out of the market we were on the lookout for a taxi to return to the ship. A really old man offered 2 rickshaws to take us back – he said it was about 5 kilometers and would be $5 each. B refused but I would have enjoyed the adventure... We ended up in an open door van which is used like a bus system – it costs twice as much as the taxi, but still was only $8. Our driver did not speak any English, so took us to an area where we could see the ship, but weren't sure we could board. Luckily a couple of the boys (crew) came around the corner fence and explained how to walk the 5 minutes back to the ship. About 15 minutes later we were back at the ship, because we were photobombing some of the locals pictures. Then they asked if they could take more pictures – we were quite popular here.

We had a sea day yesterday and have been anchored in Slawi Bay today so folks could visit Komodo Island a national park filled with Komodo dragons. We have been here before so have just stayed aboard ship writing, relaxing and eating. Tomorrow is snorkeling and the next 2 days are in Bali.

Have a great day today and a better one tomorrow

Semerang, Indonesia

The next 2 blogs were written on 19 Feb but this is the first opportunity to post

Oh boy Another Mall!

Another stop on Java and another shuttle to a mall. I really did not want to go to another mall, but preferred a handicraft or local market. So we rode the shuttle in, but ask about getting a taxi to the local market and maybe see a few sights. We did stroll about the mall just a bit and had a dragon encounter,

but shortly thereafter we returned to the bus area to ask about a taxi. Our EXC guides aboard ship recommended Blue Taxi service, but on our way out of the mall we were accosted by a lady who persistently asked if we wanted a taxi. We tried to ignore her, then said no and finally, rudely “go away”... But when we approached our guide to get taxi, she jumped into conversation in Indonesian and said she was a taxi, so guide said to go with her! LOL! Crazy... turns out her husband drives the taxi and she scouts for victims...lol She even got in the taxi with us...lol She tried to sell us all kinds of tours, highlights and sights but finally agreed to take us to a local market. When we arrived at the market, he parked the cab and she got out to shop with us... It was all unusual, but fun too. Her name is Tutti and she helped me bargain for a couple of items. I bought a teal long skirt out of travel material for $4, and an embroidered shirts for $5. Towards the back of the market were food stuffs, but we just admired & didn't try. It turns out Indonesians like to have their photo taken so these pics are some of the market visit.

Boy Scouts Indonesian style

Tutti and her cab driver husband took us back to the ship after the local market and the total cost for ride and guide was less than $20...

Let's talk a bit about our ship, The Volendam. It is one of the smaller ones in the fleet and hold about 1800 passengers. Last leg more than half of those were Asian, but since we changed over in Singapore, the manifest if mostly Brits, Canadians, Dutch, Aussie and American. The casino is very quiet – no poker players and only a handful of blackjack players. I entered the bj tourney again and qualified for the final table again so far – have to wait and see if anyone beats my score...

Our cabin, 1864, is in the bowels of the ship on Dolphin Deck and is an inside cabin with no window. It is actually a decent size and they have remodeled all the bathrooms by removing the tubs and putting in showers only... Our room stewards, Toyo and Komang, are TERRIFIC! Komang is from Bali and has even arranged for his brother to take us around the island when we arrive... I haven't managed to take the stairs all the time as it is a long hike from Deck 1 to Deck 8, but have been attempting to walk halfway and the take the elevator. I have managed to go to the gym most days and walk a bit about the ship. B is getting his exercise by playing shuffleboard and pickleball. We are both a bit disappointed in Holland America's lack of activities and sporting events. They have eliminated all games except trivia and no longer play Wii, golf or ring toss. I was told that HAL didn't want to be “summer camp for adults” anymore... oh well, I may have to find a new camp...lol!

All for now – have a great day today and a better one tomorrow