Birthday boy

Yesterday was Will's 30th birthday... For my 30th birthday the best thing in the whole world was being able to ride my horse, after all, who would have believed he would still be around when i turned 30...and looks like he'll still be around for my 35th!!! yay.... anyway... for Will's 30th birthday his dream day would be surfing Uluatu, eating his body weight in food and lounging in an infinity pool overlooking the ocean...oh yeah, and maybe a complimentary foot massage thrown in, and perhaps an Uluwatu T shirt to remember his amazing day... and perhaps a photographer on hand to photograph him pulling into a barrel (see attached photo, one of many!!)... and perhaps this could be topped off with a few Bintangs as the sun goes down.... well guess what, this was how Will spent his 30th birthday, it's a hard life!!

So we have just spent our last evening at Blue point as we head off tomorrow. This really was the most amazing deal, we ended up paying about £15 each per night and of course we had the free room upgrade to the two story villa which should cost £200 per night...unbelievable. It's also brilliant having the Warungs winding down to the sea to take you back into the real Bali every day.

I was chatting to a guy at the pool yesterday who thanked us for staying at Blue Point, I explained that this was a luxury and that we were eating in the Warrungs to save money and he said that was fine because all the money from the Warrungs goes back into the village so everyone benefits if we eat locally which made me feel better. I think they share all the money around the village and are very pro tourism.

Anyway tomorrow we head to Changgu or maybe Balian which are spots up on the East coast. I spent about a million hours (only slight exaggeration) trying to find us an equally brilliant deal and eventually came up with another Villa, 2 story, this time with 2 bedrooms and a view of the ocean...but Will says we should wait until we get there and see what we can find!!! Grrrrrr it's so annoying spending hours on the internet trying to find places to stay only to be shot down at the last minute (deep breaths).

Tomorrow Nyoman, the lovely driver, is picking us up from the hotel to drive us the 2 hours to Changgu. Not sure if I said before but this is how tourists get around in Bali, you pay a driver and he will take you from place to place. Nyoman drove us to Blue Point and we will use him to get around whilst we are in Bali as it's the cheapest option (other than a moped which looks lethal) we will also use Nyoman for our day trips when Jess gets here Yay!! Can't wait for Jess and Al to arrive.

So, will update from new place (wherever that may be (hopefully the place I found)). In the meantime enjoy the picture of Will's 30th birthday wave!!

Ketchuk dance...

Well we are still living in the lap of luxury and our day goes roughly as follows. At about 6:30 Will gets up and goes for a surf, which is a 5 minute walk down the cliff to the sea. He has to paddle out through a cave and then over lots of coral reef until he gets to the wave. I wake up in our gigantic bed about 7:30 and do a bit of yoga and whatever needs doing on the internet (if we can get access). I usually do this on our terrace (see attached pic).

Will gets back at about 9:00 and we get Sam up and go for breakfast in the amazing restaurant which overlooks the sea, the cliffs and the infinity pool. Breakfast is a buffet and consists of: Bacon, noodles, rice, chicken, pankakes, cinnamon toast, freshly made omelette's, chocolate croissants, other pastries, fresh juices and coffee. Me and Sam usually have a selection, and Will ususally has the lot! Then we walk back to the hotel room, through the gardens with gorgeous flowers with amazing colours and past the natural pool (which is just outside our room and noone goes in so is like a private pool!). When we get back Sam does his school work (see picture attached) and Will has a rest/reads etc.

Then we head to the infinity pool where Sam spends the next couple of hours, mainly underwater. We think he is practicing his swimming and holding his breath, but he says that he is checking out the ladies bums!!! After a while Will goes in for a second surf ans about half an hour later Me and Sam wind our way down the cliff path, past the small stalls selling T-Shirts and into a warung which overlooks the ocean. We order a jaffle (which is a toasted sandwich - usually to share and have bacon, honey and peanut butter - I would prefer banana but Sam won't have it and insists on bacon!!) we also have a fanta and a coke and the whole thing comes to 40,000 rp (£3:00). We sit here and play cards and watch Will surf for an hour or so.

Then we head back to the pool for a short while and end the day with wither dinner and a bintang beer or a cocktail. Last night we went to the Uluwatu temple to watch a dance at sunset called the Ketchuk Dance. The temple is also set on the cliff and the dance is a nightly ritual. You are taken through the grounds and have to remove all accessories as the huge monkeys which wander around try and grab them. Then you go into a small circular open air area and sit on seats around the edge. A man comes and lights a huge candelabra and then as the sun goes down, 70 men with red, tropical flowers behind their ears use their voices to create an orchestra. A dance is performed to their voices and masked characters come in and out of the arena. It's more of a play than a dance and at the finale a circle of kindling is placed around one of the characters and set on fire, the wind catches it and for a second you think that perhaps you will go up in flames, but the barefoot dancers kick it away and the story goes on. There's no way that would passs the UK health and safety test. The dance itself was ok...it was a bit odd...it's meant to call up spirits so the 70 guys all look possessed and for a minute I wondered if my Nasi Goreng had been drugged. But it was worth seeing anyway.

Off to breakfast now

Faaaabulous Daaaaahling....

This is a big one so you may want to get a cup of tea and pull up a chair.

We arrived at the hotel and were given a tropical welcome drink as we checked in. 10 minutes later me and Sam sat in the infinity pool looking out to the ocean, and watching Will surf it all seemed worth it... the travelling, the crap places we have stayed, the night in Nicaragua spent with the scorpions...and now here we were as close to paradise as we had ever been. We were actually in the pool passing time until our room was ready and it wasn’t long until they called us.

We followed the porter through windy lanes, passing natural swimming pools, beautiful statues etc and all the while I thought, they are taking us to some shabby room at the back of the hotel but never mind... and then the porter took us up a couple of steps to a pair of double doors. As we walked in there were two largish beds with mosquito nets draped over them. Further investigation showed a TV, dressing table with hairdryer and a glass sliding door. Through this we found a huge, gigantic bathroom with a fabulous power shower, a jaccuzi bath and all the fun accessories. There was also a rickety spiral staircase, ‘Is this ours?’ Iasked the porter. He nodded and so me and Sam plodded up the stairs to a very small terrace – ‘what’s behind the door?’ I asked Sam. Gingerly we slid back the door and this revealed a massive terrace with a table and chairs a chez longue (is that how you spell it?) and a sink, complimentary water and tea and coffee...seriously we thought we had died and gone to heaven. There was one small problem you may have noticed, we only had two beds.

I walked back to reception and asked the man behind the desk about it...’Ah you have to pay an extra $30 per night for another bed.’

‘No I think you’re mistaken, I have the confirmation here and it clearly states three people.’ I waved the computer at him.

‘No you have to pay $30 for an extra bed.’ I could see he was not going to budge,

‘Ok’ I sighed ‘Well, we will just push the beds together then and all sleep together.’

‘Ok’ .

I wandered back to the room and we shoved the beds together. We had got a great deal on the hotel so I wasn’t too worried if we had to share the bed and once they were pushed together there was quite a lot of space. Then a though struck me and I checked the breakfast vouchers...Shit, they had only given us vouchers for 2 people. I stomped back to reception waving my vouchers and my confirmation. What happened next is too tedious to go into, but ended up with me rowing with two people on the desk, the head of the restaurant and the booking officer and speaking to the Balinese and the UK office of Agoda who we had made the booking with.

‘We have never had this problem before’ said the restaurant head.

‘Seriously, you have never had a booking where people have had a confirmation for three people including breakfast and then they arrive to find they have to pay an extra $30 per day even though their confirmation says nothing about it?’

‘Oh yes, all the time but usually people just pay the money.’

The thing is we don’t have the money,’ I said, ‘this is a real treat for us. We have been travelling for nearly a year and could only afford this because of the deal.’ I realised that I was talking to a Balinese guy who probably lived in a small room with his entire family and thought I was a right spoiled brat...but I only felt a little bit guilty. Anyway it ended up with us having to pay for 2 out of 7 breakfasts for Sam, so an extra $30 and we didn’t have to pay anything extra for the room as we would all share the beds.

So having sorted that I went and enjoyed the hotel and my day consisted of

1) Lying in the infinity pool with Sam

2) Reading my book on a sun longer overlooking the ocean

3) Eating in a little Warung on the side of the cliff

4) Having an amazing shower in the gigantic bathroom

5) Drinking a cocktail watching the sunset with Will (only spoilt by Will saying he wished his mates were here)!!!!!

6) Eating Pizza in a little cafe listening to Bob Marley

7) Sat in bed updating the blog whilst Will and Sam argue about whether Will should be wearing pants

So that’s all for now, a bit long winded I know, but a tale worth telling.

Ulu Watu

Today we move from our little hotel in Legian to a swanky new hotel near Ula Watu. (Blue Point Bay Villas - have a look on the internet it looks AMAZING). In some ways it will be sad to leave our little hotel where everyone chats to each other around the pool and the people are super friendly, but in another way it will be good to leave the hustle and bustle of the streets and the hoards of tourists.

Yesterday we got a taxi to Kuta so that Will could buy his reef boots - The taxi took a long time to get there even though it was only a short walk away but the traffic here is horendous so it took forever. The good thing was that we got to chat to the driver, who is probably the first true Balinese person we have properly chatted to. He was telling us that there are thousands of Aussies here and they don't give themselves a good name (think Brits in Spain) the only difference is that the lovely, gentle, Hindu Balinese don't get cross when a drunken Aussie, steps in front of his cab and wees, the Hindus believe that the tourists are their masters and just look on with sad amusement. Kind of like when your Mum says, 'I'm not angry, just disappointed with you.' He also told us that the Aussie women proposition him but he is very happy with his Balanise girlfriend (who basically isn't a slapper!)

When we got to Kuta we walked down a little road called 'Poppys II' where there are lots of second hand surf shops. We were probably there for 10 minutes before Sam decided that he might puke! Poor Sam has been suffering with 'something' for the last couple of days and has spent most of the time in bed watching, you guessed it, 'Harry Potter.' But thank the lord, by yesterday evening he was back in the pool playing with Will and that evening ate a massive steak. I think it was just the heat and perhaps the food that effected him but thank god he hasn't got the dreaded Bali Belly.

We have just finished brekkie and are off soon to get a taxi for the hours drive to Ulu Watu. Pic attached of Sam in his work suite when we built Chris's decking. Will update later from our hopefully luxurious surroundings.

Legian

Bali is a mixture of lots of things, there are beautiful buildings, surrounded by balinese statues and each morning, the people leave offerings of small baskets of flowers and food for the gods, however, these are soon trampled by the hoards of people who walk through the streets looking for a bargain, a fake handbag or a huge, carved willy!!! The people who own the shops are desperate for your business and literally drag you in off the street, we walk along and they shout, 'G'day boy, howya?' it's wierd, they have a kind of fake Aussie accent. This is because there are so many Aussies here, Bali is the Aussie equivalent of Spain and as a result has a similar feel. A strange mixture of cultures. The shop owners leave their shoes outside their shops and the tourists trample through in their flip flops. There is obviously a lot of religious belief amongst the Balinese but again this is diluted by the Bintang Beer swigging tourists. Kuta is busy, super busy, the busiest place we have visited so far. The streets are far too small to hold the amount of tourists which are crammed into them.

But there is also something quite beautiful about Bali. Although the people are pushy, they are also incredibly friendly and can't do enough to help you. They are also very interested in where you are from and your relationship, 'Are you married? Have you only one son?' are questions we have been asked a thousand times, it appears the Balinese like to know exactly where you fit into their social structure. Being married is fine (we say we are) and having only one child puzzles them! The weather is beautiful and once you get away from the bustle of the streets it's magically peaceful.

Today Will went for a surf on Legian beach, which is a long beach which stretches for miles. As you sit there planes come over the water and almost touch the sea as they cruise into the airport. Me and Sam walked into a big resort hotel and sat around the pool, hoping no-one would ask us to leave. I walked to the attendant to get some towels. 'What room?' he asked. 'Ummmm 20,' I said thinking it may have only been a small boutique hotel, 'Ok, 325.' thankfully he didn't understand my accent, gave me the towels and Sam and I spent a nice couple of hours lazing around the pool in one of those swimming pools which overlook the ocean. Lovely. Then we went for lunch and all had Nasi Goring, which is rice with chicken and egg and a couple of drinks for the equivalent of £7. Finally we braved the streets once again as we tracked down a pair of trainers for Sam. He grew out of his a while ago but we have made him wait til Bali as it's so much cheaper here.

The picture above is of us all in our finest clothes, dressed to the nines for our night out at Sydney Opera House!!

Bali

We have arrived in Bali in one piece, The flight was fairly uneventful (except for the lady who threw up loudly infront of us as we started to eat our lunch!). We were treated like royalty on the plane and were given a free fleecy blanket, toothbrush etc and treated to a hot meal when no one else was. The reason is that we are on the round the world ticket and this seems to entitle us to special treatment.

Getting out of the airport was a culture shock, the weather is hot and we found a taxi and loaded all the bags in and asked him to take us to the hotel in Legian which we had pre-booked, it's called the Sinar Bali Hotel and was well rated on trip advisor and the only place I could get for the three of us for less than $50. We drove through the streets which were filled with people on mopeds (hundreds and hundreds of mopeds) and the sides of the streets are filled with little shops selling shoes and souvenirs. Finally we pulled up a little side street and to our hotel.

The hotel is actually about 28 rooms all built around a large pool which has a bar in it. The rooms are a bit basic, small telly, air con and a bathroom, but it's a nice quiet location away from the hustle and bustle of Legian main street and the beach. After we dropped off our bags we went for a walk and got completely lost in the small windy streets, people come out and grab you and try and pull you into the shops to buy things and if they don't have what you want, they take you to their friends shop instead. After a while it's a bit wearing... So after a crazy afternoon adjusting to the new culture we finally found our way back to the hotel and had a quick shower. Now we are sat in the restaurant about to sample the local cuisine and hopefully avoid Bali Belly (keep your fingers crossed).

One fabulous thing about Bali is that it's so cheap. A main meal costs 30,000 RP which is the equivalent of £3!!!! A massive change after the expense of Australia where a main meal would cost £20!!!! So that's brilliant because we should make up the dwindling funds. We are booked into this hotel for the next three days and then we may head up to Semenyak which is a quieter area of Bali, this is super touristy and a bit too hectic for our laid back schedule.

So we are alive and well. We had a fab time with Charlotte and Neil and their lovely family and miss them already. Thanks again for having us guys and hope you can make it to Bali for a few days!!

Off to Indo

Tomorrow morning we are off to Indo - after 16 lovely days in Perth. I have just tried to check in on-line and the website won't let me. I hope that the airline hasn't messed the booking up as the flights are showing as confirmed on our tickets but there was a problem last time...keep your fingers crossed it all goes smoothly.

We are due to fly at 9:30 am which means another early morning. We have also packed our stuff and we are going to cable tie the locks as people can plant stuff on you on the way across to Bali and then there are pretty stiff penalties so we have made sure that the bags are extra secure so no-one slips in any unwanted items.

When we get there we have a hotel booked in Legian for three nights and then we will take it from there and decide what our next move will be. I'm nervous and excited about the next leg of the trip. Back to being in a strange country with a strange language etc. However it will be cool to see the temples, the waves and the friendly people and of course Jess and Al when they get there. Keep your fingers crossed it all goes to plan tomorrow.

Time for fajitas now - our last meal with the lovely Stone family.

Reflecting on Oz

Well I have a moment of peace where everyone is out of the house and we have a good internet connection so thought it was time for a bit of reflection. We are thinking more and more about home for a number of reasons. Firstly Bali is the last leg of the trip and we fly there on Friday so it's at the forefront of our mids. Secondly the tennents are due to move out of the house soon and so we need to sort out the deposit etc for them and thirdly it's fun to discuss what we will do when we get back. It's all very well packing everything up and saying 'see you guys, we're off round the world for a year' and another thinking, Oh good lord, we have to go home and re-build our lives again. But actually we are in a pretty good position as we have my job to return to. Will has work in the pipeline and the house will be empty and ready to move back in to.

Settling Sam into school is an unknown quantity but hopefully withthe right support from us and the school he will fly as he has learned so much this year and will probably enjoy being surrounded by kids again. He's certainly maturing, his legs are getting longer and he has started to act a little bit like Kevin The teenager, I read somewhere that teenagers are very selfish and they can't help it, it's a hormonal thing - well Sam is being uncharacteristically selfish and grumpy. Bless him, it's tough being a teen...although I didn't feel too sorry for him as he whizzed around the beach in Neil's car yesterday and then stayed up with us watching Gavin and Stacey videos last night as he didn't have to get up for school today... Infact after 2 hours of Shakespeare in the garden he's now taking a break and watching MTV, it's a tough life being Sam at the moment.

We have so many plans for when we get back (alot of them expensive) but it's fun to discuss them and we are all really looking forward to getting home and Will can't wait to get back and start digging holes again. So there we go - I'm sure there was loads more I was going to write but have a mind blank now. Pictures will be put online when I get my computer online, currently we are using Charlotte and Neils.

The North

Hey all. We are now back in Perth after a few lovely days up North. The North is arid and far and there is lots and lots of desert and not a great deal else... it's bloody miles away. We ended up in Monkey Mia where we were able to see dolphins (wild ones) which swam in to shore to be hand fed. They have to be careful how much they are fed otherwise the dolphins don't survive because they can't feed themselves and look after their young properly. The dolphins are amazing, they are super friendly and it makes it all the more special that they are wild... the place however is a bit rubbish, I mean the beach is beautiful, but there is a resort near by and so it's really expensive. The camping facilities aren't up to much either and you pay loads for a very small patch of sand.

The van however is amazing and the fridge works, the beds are comfy and the whole thing doesn't smell of sick. At some parts we were a bit worried about running out of fuel because it is so far between places. After Monkey Mia we went south again and stopped in Dongara with Charlotte and family. Dongara is um, well, i'm not sure I'd make the journey just to go there again as there isn't a whole lot happening, but we had a nice time anyway, walking, fishing and drinking wine. Sam LOVES fishing and caught a Bream which he cooked himself on the BBQ with some salt and lemon and we all had a try, it was fresh and delicious.

Today we drove back from Dongara to Perth and stopped off at The Pinnacles which are loads of stones randomly stuck out of the sand, there are hundreds of them and it's a really odd place, a bit like walking on another planet. They think they were formed in the ice age when the sand blew away the rock that wasn't as solid, leaving behind the pinnacles. Or it may be calcified plants which have formed peaks, either way it's a pretty spectacular drive. Then we stopped at Wedge Island, so called because it's an island shaped like a wedge. The beach was gorgeous white sand and Sam drove Neil's 4x4 across the beach. He thought it was the best thing in the world, however I had to get out the back of the car as it was a bit scary having Sam at the wheel, but to be fair he did a good job, didn't roll the car or run anyone over.

On Friday we head to Bali which we are really looking forward to. It will be great to be in a different culture again. However, as home looms closer we also realise that we have a gazillion things to sort out when we get back, top of the list is still the schooling situation, but also moving back into the house and sorting out the furniture etc. We will also have to tighten our belts in Bali as Australia has drained the funds a bit. Anyway fish and chips on the way so must dash... but we are all happy, healthy and having a great time with our brilliant friends here in Perth. My advice to those in Pert with a van, head South. It's much prettier and there is way more to do and see.

Quick update

Super quick update in internet cafe in Kilbari and is crazily expensive... we left Perth yesterday and have driven up to Kilbari which is a million miles away - well not really but feels like it as the drive is through hot desert and the sand is all red, it's the Australi you see in the movies, with red rock and sand storms and small farm houses with rickety old windmills outside and not much else.

Last night we stayed in Dungari (I think) which is where Will's friend has a house. After we got rid of the spiders and the frog in the toilet it was a lovely place to spend the night and tonight we will probably stay in Kilbari. This is a small coastal town with lots of fishing for Sam.

Anyway must dash before Will sees I am updating this and not checking bank balances etc....

Freemantle Jail

Perth is beeeautiful. The weather is hot and the beaches are lovely - this morning Sam and Will went surfing and Sam had a great time catching a few waves which is rilliant because he had started to lose his confidence over the past few weeks. Sam and Will currently have no hair as we took the clippers to them and got rid of the worst of the mop top.

This afternoon me and Sam and Will went to Freemantle where we went around the prison. It was really good to see the Australian History and to find out how the colonies started. We found out the difference between a convict and a prisoner. A convict was a prisoner brought from overseas (usually England) to help build the roads, prisons etc and a prisoner is just an Aussie prisoner. Once the convicts had served their sentences they were free to go and build houses and make a life in Australia and their families were also brought over for free. Better than a spell in a UK prison cell that's for sure. But actually life in the prison was pretty horendous. The cells were 7ft x 4ft and actually they had to make the cells larger as people suffocated. We also saw the solitary confinement cells, the gallows and the area where people were flogged, it was pretty grim and the crazy thing is that it was a working prison until 1991!!! and there were no toilets or water in the cells so the prisoners were still using a bucket for a toilet!!!

We are now back at the house and tomorrow we are due to set off in our whizzy van up the coast which will be brilliant. I'm also starting to plan the Bali leg of the trip which looks like loads of fun. Everyone is telling us how amazing Bali is so now we can't wait.

Perth

We are now in Perth with Charlotte and Neil and family. The trip was fairly uneventful, although it did entail a stupidly early flight which set us back a few hours and as Perth is two hours behind Sydney it confused us even further, but now we are in the swing of things and our new body clock has been set.

It's so nice to catch up with old friends and Perth is great because the weather here is amazing. We have been to the beach and had a surf and went to Sam's favourite restaurant yesterday so that he could eat Kangaroo steak.

Today we picked up our van from Britz (that's right this time we have landed ourselves a luxury model and it doesn't cost alot more than the crappy smelly van we had on the East Coast.) The only problem is that they wanted a $7,500 deposit which was not available on our credit cards... so we had to call Mum and Dad at 4:00 in the morning to see if we could use their cards. God Bless Mum and Dad they weren't even cross about being woken up, just a bit dazed and confused!! After we had paid the deposit we were shown our van and it was like a palace. The bedding isn't sticky, the fridge doesn't smell of sick, the handles don't fall off when you open a door. Infact everything works and it's an automatic so Will thinks it's amazing to drive.

The plan is to stay here until Monday and then drive up the coast, North towards Monkey Myer where you can hand feed the dolphins. Then Charlotte and Neil are going to come and meet us so we will spend a few days with them and then back to Perth for a few days when we fly to Bali on the 20th May. I love the West Coast, it could be the sun, it could be the company, it could be the long stretch of sandy beaches and the perfect waves for Sam but most probably it's a combination of all these things.

Right now Sam is doing his homework whilst Charlotte and Neil's 18 month daughter Sienna is colouring in and Will is making chicken sarnies. In a few hours I will call Mum and Dad back and apologise for the early wake up call (sorry Mum and Dad, you're the best).

Much ado...

What a marvelous day we have had. This morning the sun was shining and we drove to Manley beach where Will got some amazingly big waves. The waves were so big that as he got out of the van a guy asked if he was going surfing and warned him that the waves were really powerful and people often got into trouble out there, a good start... Then he endured Sam saying that he thought his board was too small for the big waves and he hoped that he wouldn't die. So, filled with confidence Will walked out to the beach and me and Sam watched from the comfort of a nice little cafe. As it turns out Will had an amazing surf and much to everyones relief is still alive to tell the tale. He got some great waves and although his heart was pumping a bit too fast for comfort he caught some of his biggest waves ever.

After the epic surf we drove back to Chris's house and had a quick shower and then jumped on the bus into Sydney. We walked to the opera house and Will and Sam went in to get the tickets whilst I waited outside. The reason is that the Opera house does a concession ticket for under 30's where you pay $30 and not $68, whilst this is true for Will and Sam we weren't sure I would pass for 30 so I had to wait outside (very sad). But isn't that a great price, £60 for the three of us to watch a play at the most famous opera house in the world.

Much Ado About Nothing was brilliant, it was 2hrs 40 (including interval) and I wasn't sure how Sam, or Will's attention span would last for all that time but after about 10 minutes of getting used to the Shakesperean works spoken with an Aussie accent we managed tune in and it was hilarious. Sam followed the plot and laughed in all the right places and we all had a fab time. It was a great introduction to Shakespeare for Sam and I think that now he will enjoy studying the play in more detail. The show started at 5pm and we left at 8pm. We found the train station and after a short train ride and three bus rides (one the wrong way) we ended up back at Chris's, by this time it was 9:15 and we quickly drove to the RSL for a hurried dinner and bed.

A fabulous day was had by all. Tomorrow we may head to the zoo if the weather stays fine.