Glass bottom boat and anniversary

Yesterday we went snorkelling on a glass bottom boat. The wooden boat was pretty basic with a couple of glass boxes covered in algae which prohibited much of the view. And I wasn't impressed when we were more or less crammed in with 50 other people, but all was forgiven after we arrived at our first snorkelling site. We were diving in the middle of the ocean between two Gili islands, dragged a bit by the current. We followed our guide, who was expert at spotting turtles on the bottom that I couldn't spot. He would then dive down 20 or 30 feet to nudge the turtle, who would slowly swim away. What a thrill to swim with the turtles. Sometimes they would swim to the surface to catch a breath, and one time John was able to touch and then swim with one of them. 

We went to two locations before lunch and two places in the afternoon. At two locations we searched and found turtles, who rest deep down on the seabed. The other two times we saw some spectacular coral and fish. The coral was more varied in shape than our last snorkelling trip in Thailand. Whereas much of the coral in Thailand reminded me of big brains, here near Gili most of the coral was more like crisis-crossed miniature trees, all different colours from pink to deep purple. It was more like the coral I've seen on documentaries. John was getting good at diving, and liked to swim down into the coral canyons to get a better look at the fish underneath the coral.

This morning, before we checked out of our hotel, we met our neighbour. He was a Canadian from Toronto, who was two months into a year long trip around the world with his two sons, aged 8 and 10. It was sad to hear that his wife had passed away two years ago. He was retracing some of the places his wife had visited when she did some travelling years ago. It was interesting to hear his travel plans. He had already been to Australia and New Zealand to visit family and planned to visit much of south east Asia before moving on to Africa and Europe. 

We certainly enjoyed our time on Gili Air. It was a very small island in the early stages of developing a tourist trade. Some things were rudimentary, but that just added to the charm for the most part. Catheleen and the kids especially will miss the many cats we met on the island. In front of our hotel room in the bushes we meet a tabby mother cat with a kitten. The kids would coax the kitten out of the bushes to pet it, much to the nervous dismay of the mother. The sales approach here was always low key, and I liked the international feel where the tourists were from everywhere. Nothing against Australian Legian and Kuta at all, but I do like to see a mix of tourists from all over. 

We took the fast boat today from Gili Air to Candi Dasa this afternoon, on the east coast of Bali. The boat was more choppy this time than when we took it to Gili Air. On this trip the bow of the boat would occasionally become airborne and then come down in a teeth shattering crash. Catheleen and Elizabeth enjoyed their time on the top of the boat, watching Bali appear in view through the mist. John and I preferred to be below. 

We're now in our new location, more of a resort than just a condo rental. It's very nice though with nice views of the ocean and easy access to the pool from our rooms. We took the room above and the kids are in the room below. It's more of an older crowd here than previous places we've been. We got a kick out of the '80's music they were playing at the pool this afternoon. 

So today is our 19th wedding anniversary, and we've had a great day today, spending time with each other and the kids. Thank you Catheleen for 19 wonderful years and here's to many more to come, full of adventure and wonder I'm sure. I love you very much. 

Here's are the kids at lunchtime on our snorkelling day, happy they found a big sea shell. 

Galloping ponies and Thanksgiving

The seafood has been great here in Gili Air. Yesterday we had excellent fish tacos, and the night before Catheleen had Mahi Mahi in a garlic sauce for dinner which she said was good. Today before the sun had set we went out to get some gelato ice cream. Along the way we saw today's catch on display for dinner at one of the restaurants. The seafood included multi-coloured parrot fish and bright red grouper fish. We've done some snorkelling off the beach over the last couple of days and I'm pretty sure we saw similar fish while they were alive. Catheleen said she wasn't interested in eating the fish after seeing them swim among the coral, but don't think I mind. 

This afternoon we witnessed how some of the fish are caught as we sat on the beach enjoying lunch. About six men, each with 25 foot poles, waded out about 100 meters through the shoals up to their waists and cast their lines into the deeper blue water. This is the same place we were snorkelling earlier and the fishermen were sharing the space with other snorklers. 

Today's activities were pretty low key after we slept in. The kids could barely make it for breakfast at the hotel before breakfast ended at 10:00 a.m.  I could barely return the bikes we rented yesterday before they were due at 9:30 a.m. I think this place makes it hard to get going. I mean, I could go running, but ...meh. We tried to go snorkelling today on a glass bottom boat but we were too late for today's outing, so we scheduled this activity for tomorrow. We'll somehow need to make it to the rendezvous tomorrow morning before 9:30 a.m. I'm not sure we're going to make it.

Today we saw one of the horse drawn carts galloping along with a couple of tourists in the back. Where were they hurrying too? The gelato place? They're not running out of ice cream. I saw a sign today that sums up the feeling of this little island for me, "Beer is not the answer, it's the question. The answer is yes". It might be tough to get back into that whole work thing after this trip is over. 

We ended up at my favourite spot from two days before, where we again staked our claim to a bamboo platform under a tree next to the beach. We rented our snorkelling gear from the guy next door and enjoyed the day snorkelling and relaxing. Elizabeth spent most of the day on the beach catching crabs the size of her thumb nail. They blended in with the sand, but she would walk around to get them to move, and then she would catch one inside an overturned shell before releasing it.

We stocked up on cash before we arrived at this island, which turned out to be wise move since the few ATMs here don't want to dispense us anything. While at the ATM today trying all our cards we saw a posted note from some dispirited traveller saying that the machine didn't return her VISA, and asked the operator to return it to her. Next to this note was another note from a different traveler that said she had the lady's VISA and provided her an address to pick it up. There were no other notes but I hope it all worked out. I can imagine it must be very tough to lose your card, especially if it is your only source of cash. That's a cautionary tale for all travellers - always have a backup plan if your card is swallowed. 

So this weekend is Thanksgiving in Canada and it makes us think of home. While I understand the weather is a little cold and wet in Ottawa this weekend, it still would be nice to spend time with family and friends. Catheleen and I reminisced today about past Thanksgivings at the farm in Mayo, Quebec, where we enjoyed the hospitality and company of family, enjoyed the farm and surroundings, and experienced the fall coloured leaves. We'll need to have something for dinner tomorrow night in celebration. No turkey here though so we'll need to stick to Nasi Goreng (fried rice with chicken), and perhaps pretend it's turkey with stuffing. Or maybe we'll just have the fish. 

Here's a foot selfie.

Gili Islands - relaxing on a mile long patch

Tuesday evening John and I went for dinner by ourselves and listened to some Singaporeans perform a Karaoke version of "Sweet Caroline" by Niel Diamond. The whole place was getting into the groove with its catchy (or kitschy) "Sweet Caroline, Ba, Ba, Ba...". All the while we watched the Just for Laughs show from Montreal where pranks are pulled on Montrealers, without any speaking or commentary. I wonder whether this show is popular elsewhere. It seemed to be popular here - everyone was watching it, including the local staff. I always get a kick out of the Americana and sometimes Canadiana on display when I'm abroad. Yesterday in a convenience store I heard a couple of Balinese girls who were minding the till sing along to an Avril Lavigne tune. They hardly spoke English, but that didn't matter - they liked the song.

Wednesday morning we took a fast boat to our next stop, Gili Islands. I was a little concerned when the staff offered anti-nausea medication to everyone in the waiting area. I think this is the first time I've been offered drugs as part of a transport service. I declined, since Catheleen had her own stash of motion sickness medication, just in case. After the boat started up, I took one from Catheleen just in case. This was a fast boat which holds about 20 people and took only two and a half hours to travel around 100 kilometres. As it turned out the sea was relatively calm and nobody felt ill, which often happens on this ride. So we were able to sit up top and enjoy the thrill of going fast, white water splashing up the sides of the hull, all while watching the volcanoes, mountains and shoreline of Bali pass us by. 

After a stop at a slightly larger Gili island, we arrived at the little island of Gili Air, which has a diameter of about a mile. The brochure for the speed boat said that these small atolls are a favourite paradise island escape from Bali. Which is odd, because I thought Bali was supposed to be a paradise escape. I must admit though that we did want to try a more remote and basic place with modest accommodations and small hotels - a vacation from the vacation so to speak

So here we are in Gili Air, a pretty basic island locale indeed. My first clue that things would be different was when the boat beached itself so we could get off from the bow of the boat, since there is no wharf.  Our hotel was only 100 metres away, so we carried our luggage off the sandy beach and rolled it as best we could along the sandy cobbled roads to our destination. Along the way we gave way for a few bicyclists and horse drawn carts to pass.  With no motorized transport allowed on this island, this is how people get around, although I have noticed a few silent electric scooters - they kind of sneak up on you. In any case, the lack of regular motorcycles especially makes for a more peaceful and stress-free time. Something in short supply in most of the places we've visited in South East Asia. 

Even though it's off season, the tourist industry is booming everywhere we go in Indonesia. This place is no exception, with a number of new buildings going up in the vicinity. On this island I regularly see men carrying bags of concrete from the boats across the shallows, up onto the beach, and into the waiting horse carts. I regularly see these horse carts going back and forth with rebar and other construction supplies, all pulled by small horses or ponies. This morning I saw men loading up garbage onto a boat for transport off the island. I'm glad to know the garbage isn't being piled up or burnt in the middle of the island somewhere.  I also saw a large fishing boat being constructed out of long 2x4 and 2x6 lumber. The locals were making the hull using standard construction tools one might use to construct a deck or shed. They were making the hull flat and wide. This makes sense since the tides are big, and the boats are often stranded on their sides during low tide. 

Last night John and I went out for dinner down the unlit road from our hotel. It was the first time I could see the real charm of this place. I'm sure if we ever come back things will not be the same, since more development will likely place by then. But being here at this time and place, it was special to me. I think it boils down to crowds (not a big fan), so the quieter the place is the better. We walked along a meandering path near the shore to the first place we could find with live music. Along the way we looked up to see the Milky Way in the sky, which was brightly illuminated this night. We experienced good music and good seafood, all within a basic restaurant/bar on the sand with tables, benches and lounging platforms made of bamboo. It reminded me somewhat of the first time we visited Koh Phangan in Thailand in the late '90's, when there wasn't much development and where we often ate at basic restaurants on the beach. 

This morning we walked around to the other side of the island, which didn't take long, and found a place to spend the day. We sat on a bamboo lounge platform, ordered some food and drinks throughout the day, and enjoyed our time walking the beach, snorkelling, and just relaxing. When we were snorkelling, we saw a lot of tropical fish among the coral, and a few small jellyfish too. It was a bit disappointing to see the jellyfish, but we just stayed vigilant. I don't think they were a hazard anyway; I'm sure I must have collided with a few but I came out of the water unscathed as did Catheleen and Elizabeth. 

I spent the rest of the afternoon in this spot, looking out onto the receding tide, with the jingling sounds of the odd horse drawn cart passing behind me. Bob Marley music was playing faintly in the distance, mixed occasionally with the distant call to prayer from a faraway mosque. 

Here's John, who showed up late in the afternoon for lunch, after doing some successful geocaching today. 

Snorkel till you drop

Last night we had dinner at the only restaurant in this small cove.  We took the dingy from our sailboat to the wharf, which consisted of two floating docks with a four foot gap between them. It was dark and at first we weren't sure how to cross the space. Elizabeth quickly discovered that there was a rope which joined these two docks, which she pulled to close the gap. So we all leaped over, with Elizabeth keeping the open water at bay like a little strong man. As we walked the remaining way along rickety decking, I imagined we were on an adventure passing obstacles like tests to be overcome.

We slept onboard in the cabins below, one in the bow and one in the stern. I don't think anyone had a really good night's sleep except perhaps for the skipper and crew, who were used to sleeping on a boat. I was told that conditions for sleeping were near ideal for this part of the world, with a fresh breeze blowing and the boat gently rocking through the night. I did find it very peaceful though to be lulled to sleep by the ebb and flow of the boat movement, with the sound of water lapping against the hull.

We started the second day on the boat with a morning of snorkeling and paddle boarding. We then slipped our moorings for our day trip to circumnavigate Koh Tao and return to the same place we started off our day. Our first stop was Shark Island for face time with the sharks, which were supposedly one meter long with black fins and not dangerous. As we snorkled around the small island, we unfortunately did not see any sharks. We did however have some difficulty crossing over one point as we tried to make our way around a rocky outcropping. As the small waves rolled in there was just enough room to float over the rocks to the other side. I should have turned around, but I didn't, and so we did get a few cuts crossing and then returning.  After feeling the sting of cuts in salt water, we returned John and Elizabeth to the boat and then Catheleen and I continued on. The coral life and fish are so varied and interesting it's hard to describe. You just have to see it for yourself. 

We stopped at a few other alcoves and beaches along the way around the island of Koh Tao. Mid-afternoon we stopped at the only town on the island called Mae Haad where the ferry crosses over from Koh Pha Ngan. The main street was bustling with activity as young backpackers made their way around, some looking for accommodations and some waiting for the ferry. It reminded me of Koh Pha Ngan years ago when it was filled with backpackers, Catheleen and I among them. 

We then stopped at one last beach before we made port for the night for more snorkeling. The skipper said we would snorkel till we drop today and we certainly had our fill. Catheleen and Elizabeth saw a large school of parrot fish and I saw a school of small fish which was so large and packed together it looked like a moving black swarm. I swam through schools of small fish today and it was interesting how they would divide up and then meet back together after I was clear of them. 

The skipper was then concerned that a storm was approaching, but after a few minutes it became clear that the storm would miss us. We did experience the remnants of the storm on the way back to our mooring with some gusts and big waves that made for a fun ride. John and Elizabeth rode at the front of the boat, which received the most movement as the boat rose and crashed in the rolling waves. The skipper had to turn around a one point so we were head to wind as a gust and wave approached.  It was quite a ride.