This includes Nusa Lembongan pictures through the end of our trip in Bangkok, Thailand:
http://umass.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2139219&l=1634b&id=9111623
Monday, August 27, 2007
PICTURES!!!
Here are some more pictures.
The first link is the perhentian islands in Malaysia, Taman Negara (national park), Malaysia, Singapore, and Malaysian Borneo.
http://umass.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2139170&l=6d496&id=9111623
The second link is Malaysian Borneo, and Bali & Lombok up through Sanur, Bali.
http://umass.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2139195&l=81821&id=9111623
See most of you soon!!
Brittany
The first link is the perhentian islands in Malaysia, Taman Negara (national park), Malaysia, Singapore, and Malaysian Borneo.
http://umass.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2139170&l=6d496&id=9111623
The second link is Malaysian Borneo, and Bali & Lombok up through Sanur, Bali.
http://umass.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2139195&l=81821&id=9111623
See most of you soon!!
Brittany
Padang Bai, Gili Islands, Sanur, Nusa Lembongan, and back to Legian
John and I stayed in the Bali area for about 20 days. After leaving Tulamben (a town in Bali, which is an island in Indonesia), we headed to Padang Bai where we spent the night so that we could leave in the early morning for a full day trip to get to the Gili Islands. The Gili Islands are off of Bali's neighboring island Lombok. Even though the Gilis are in between Bali and Lombok, the journey requires a really round about way of getting there unless you are willing to pay a staggering $40-60 a person to go straight there. HAH. Now that I am back in the U.S., it sounds funny that I was unwilling to pay that, but when traveling in Southeast Asia travelers can make their money go farther by adapting to a different price scale. Instead, we paid $10 each, a price we bargained down from approximately $15 from a company sitting on the dock in Padang Bai. This price included a ferry from Padang Bai to one port in Lombok, a shuttle bus up the coast, and then a small local boat to the island. It is pertinent to note that when taking this trip, you will have to either book a trip back through the same company when reaching the small boat or you will have to put up with their distaste for you if you choose not to book. We booked it. We stayed on Gili Trawangan, known as the party island, though it was still really quiet. The reason I believe it is considered a party island compared to the other two Gili islands is that there is a bar open every night and the other islands are EXTREMELY quiet.
We spent 3 days snorkelling and hanging out on Gili Trawangan, which was very beautiful though a little pricey compared to where we had been in Bali thusfar. We left to return back to Padangbai and then took transport to another coastal town called Sanur. I thoroughly enjoyed Sanur as we decided to get massages on the beach every day (they only cost $7) and to stay at the most expensive place we had stayed at so far ($20 a night). It was a really cute place that had a little pool in the middle and resembled a garden. It's owned by Australians and thus, had the western idea of cleanliness in place. I liked not having moldy pillows for once:)
A couple days later we headed over to Nusa Lembongan, a small island belonging to Bali, to do some diving. We were on a quest to see mola molas (pacific sunfish is their other name), huge ugly fish that look very prehistoric-check them out online http://www.oceanlight.com/html/mola_mola.html
We were also trying to see Manta Rays. Unfortunately, we saw neither, which only means we will have to return some day to try again. Some of the people I was diving with did see the Mola Mola, which was sad that I did not see it as well. Manta Point where people can see the manta rays was unreachable due to strong currents. The diving here was a lot colder than anywhere I had dived before so I used my air up really fast, probably because I got nervous when I went through the really cold patches of water. Nusa Lembongan was cute and quiet. There was pretty much nothing to do at night, which was fine for diving. An interesting note is that the people here harvest seaweed, which is the reason for the strong smell that hovers in the air. Also, people on the island are very concerned about the build up of plastic bottles from tourists, so now sell purified water to refill water bottles.
In our last days, we decided to head back towards Legian stopping at a few places on the Bukit Peninsula that we had previously missed such as the temple on the cliffs (Pura Ulu Watu) and a famed surf spot (Dreamland)-though there were no waves the day we were there. We returned to the same hotel we had stayed in our first days in Bali, and spent our last two days surfing on Legian Beach, which was fun and left me with some huge bruises. I didn't quite get up on the board, but I tried really hard, which is all that counts, right?! :)
We spent 3 days snorkelling and hanging out on Gili Trawangan, which was very beautiful though a little pricey compared to where we had been in Bali thusfar. We left to return back to Padangbai and then took transport to another coastal town called Sanur. I thoroughly enjoyed Sanur as we decided to get massages on the beach every day (they only cost $7) and to stay at the most expensive place we had stayed at so far ($20 a night). It was a really cute place that had a little pool in the middle and resembled a garden. It's owned by Australians and thus, had the western idea of cleanliness in place. I liked not having moldy pillows for once:)
A couple days later we headed over to Nusa Lembongan, a small island belonging to Bali, to do some diving. We were on a quest to see mola molas (pacific sunfish is their other name), huge ugly fish that look very prehistoric-check them out online http://www.oceanlight.com/html/mola_mola.html
We were also trying to see Manta Rays. Unfortunately, we saw neither, which only means we will have to return some day to try again. Some of the people I was diving with did see the Mola Mola, which was sad that I did not see it as well. Manta Point where people can see the manta rays was unreachable due to strong currents. The diving here was a lot colder than anywhere I had dived before so I used my air up really fast, probably because I got nervous when I went through the really cold patches of water. Nusa Lembongan was cute and quiet. There was pretty much nothing to do at night, which was fine for diving. An interesting note is that the people here harvest seaweed, which is the reason for the strong smell that hovers in the air. Also, people on the island are very concerned about the build up of plastic bottles from tourists, so now sell purified water to refill water bottles.
In our last days, we decided to head back towards Legian stopping at a few places on the Bukit Peninsula that we had previously missed such as the temple on the cliffs (Pura Ulu Watu) and a famed surf spot (Dreamland)-though there were no waves the day we were there. We returned to the same hotel we had stayed in our first days in Bali, and spent our last two days surfing on Legian Beach, which was fun and left me with some huge bruises. I didn't quite get up on the board, but I tried really hard, which is all that counts, right?! :)
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Fire Dancing and Shipwrecks
We left Legian-Kuta with Sara (our Swedish pal) and headed to Ubud. We spent the first part of the day at Gunung Kawi, a beautiful area with rice terraces and ancient stone carvings in the rock. Then we headed to the Monkey Forest in Ubud where a monkey proceeded to sit at Sara's feet and chew on her skirt...slightly frightening and cute at the same time. The monkeys were pretty aggressive-i saw one try to climb up a guy's shirt-hah...i thought it was funny. He did not. We went to a Balinese dancing show that night where they acted out a myth and then at the end a guy walked through a fire containing coconut shells. Very interesting. There was no music, except for the voices of 100 men sitting around the scene, who made different noises throughout the dance. There are nightly performances of Balinese Dance in Ubud. It is not hard to get a ticket. Again it is worth trying to bargain for a better price, especially if you are going to buy more than one.
While Sara continued back to Kuta, John and I stayed at the Lecuk Inn, which we ended up liking so much that we stayed for 3 nights. The room had a bathroom with an open ceiling and a balcony facing the woods, which was perfect for reading. That's where I finished Hillary Clinton's book A Living History. John just read it as well and found that she has a lot more experience than most people give her credit for. It's worth a look anyway.
We went from Ubud north to Tulamben, which is a small strip with no nightlife and not much to do, but it has great diving right off the shore. John dove about 1 hr after we arrived at the wall. He said it was gorgeous. Then we tried a night dive on the shipwreck that night where John saw huge parrot fish and I ended up going up early since I could not relax...it was a bit eery under there in the dark. Night diving is not for everyone. Some people enjoy it immensely since you see different creatures than you would in the day time and can see the glimmers of gold plankton that show up when you run your hands through the water. However, others find it hard to adjust and sometimes suffer from the inability to tell which way is up to the surface.
The next day was a lot better for me when we did two beautiful dives at the shipwreck. The corals were pretty and there were tons of different types of fish. The town has a group of people that have organized to carry tanks down to the beach and back for the visiting divers. You will see women with two tanks balanced on their head which is quite impressive. They pool their money and divide it equally. It's really great for the local economy. We stayed at a nice spot their called Puri Wirata, which was really cheap and nice. The activities in Tulamben are limited to diving, so if you are uninterested in diving, it is probably better skipped.
While Sara continued back to Kuta, John and I stayed at the Lecuk Inn, which we ended up liking so much that we stayed for 3 nights. The room had a bathroom with an open ceiling and a balcony facing the woods, which was perfect for reading. That's where I finished Hillary Clinton's book A Living History. John just read it as well and found that she has a lot more experience than most people give her credit for. It's worth a look anyway.
We went from Ubud north to Tulamben, which is a small strip with no nightlife and not much to do, but it has great diving right off the shore. John dove about 1 hr after we arrived at the wall. He said it was gorgeous. Then we tried a night dive on the shipwreck that night where John saw huge parrot fish and I ended up going up early since I could not relax...it was a bit eery under there in the dark. Night diving is not for everyone. Some people enjoy it immensely since you see different creatures than you would in the day time and can see the glimmers of gold plankton that show up when you run your hands through the water. However, others find it hard to adjust and sometimes suffer from the inability to tell which way is up to the surface.
The next day was a lot better for me when we did two beautiful dives at the shipwreck. The corals were pretty and there were tons of different types of fish. The town has a group of people that have organized to carry tanks down to the beach and back for the visiting divers. You will see women with two tanks balanced on their head which is quite impressive. They pool their money and divide it equally. It's really great for the local economy. We stayed at a nice spot their called Puri Wirata, which was really cheap and nice. The activities in Tulamben are limited to diving, so if you are uninterested in diving, it is probably better skipped.
Friday, August 3, 2007
Borneo ends and Bali begins
Hey all,
I am on the last leg of my 5 month trip away from home. I am now in Bali, Indonesia after one week in Malaysian Borneo. After Sipidan diving, which was spectacular, we spent one night two days in the Central Eastern seaboard area near Sandakan going to the Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary and then to the Kinbangtan River where we saw wild elephants, macaques (pig tailed and long tailed), a snake, and Probiscus Monkeys (really cool looking, long nosed and big bellied). We then returned to Semporna where we spent one day diving at Sibuan-where you can see Mandarin fish (really small, really colorful fish that hang out in the sea urchins), and then John dived again at Sipidan while I had to opt out due to a cold and snorkelled instead. John got to see a HUGE school of Barracuda swimming in a circular pattern as if to protect themselves even though they really are so large that they are only second to sharks in the area. He also got some cool pictures of himself right next to reef sharks and huge turtles. I saw a black tipped reef shark and many turtles snorkelling along with some beautiful neon colored fish.
We arrived in Bali on August 2nd. I think Kuta could rival most touristy places as one of the most touristy areas I have ever seen. The streets are fairly narrow and completely taken up with touristy restaurants, shops, and hotels. I am getting a little sick of how touristy it is so we will be heading off to a more cultural area tomorrow. We got to experience Kuta nightlife last night when we headed to a club that was having a foam party-interesting, though I ended up with bruises all over my legs since people decide that they can tackle you NFL style since there are so many suds to block your fall-ouch. The club was just past a monument to the 200+ people killed in a bombing at a club in 2002 close by to the one we attended. Very scary but I think we cannot let terrorists ruin our fun or we'd be staying inside and even then would we really be safe? Before travelling to Bali, I got nervous about the bombings that had occurred in 2002 and 2005....but then I realized that for some reason despite the issues that have been occurring in London-there are no travel warnings for London-interesting...and there were never travel warnings for NYC...interesting as well....just some words for thought. For anyone who this causes concern, we are now headed out of the area where they had problems in the past...but not recently...and off to discover different parts of the island.
Ciao,
Brittany
I am on the last leg of my 5 month trip away from home. I am now in Bali, Indonesia after one week in Malaysian Borneo. After Sipidan diving, which was spectacular, we spent one night two days in the Central Eastern seaboard area near Sandakan going to the Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary and then to the Kinbangtan River where we saw wild elephants, macaques (pig tailed and long tailed), a snake, and Probiscus Monkeys (really cool looking, long nosed and big bellied). We then returned to Semporna where we spent one day diving at Sibuan-where you can see Mandarin fish (really small, really colorful fish that hang out in the sea urchins), and then John dived again at Sipidan while I had to opt out due to a cold and snorkelled instead. John got to see a HUGE school of Barracuda swimming in a circular pattern as if to protect themselves even though they really are so large that they are only second to sharks in the area. He also got some cool pictures of himself right next to reef sharks and huge turtles. I saw a black tipped reef shark and many turtles snorkelling along with some beautiful neon colored fish.
We arrived in Bali on August 2nd. I think Kuta could rival most touristy places as one of the most touristy areas I have ever seen. The streets are fairly narrow and completely taken up with touristy restaurants, shops, and hotels. I am getting a little sick of how touristy it is so we will be heading off to a more cultural area tomorrow. We got to experience Kuta nightlife last night when we headed to a club that was having a foam party-interesting, though I ended up with bruises all over my legs since people decide that they can tackle you NFL style since there are so many suds to block your fall-ouch. The club was just past a monument to the 200+ people killed in a bombing at a club in 2002 close by to the one we attended. Very scary but I think we cannot let terrorists ruin our fun or we'd be staying inside and even then would we really be safe? Before travelling to Bali, I got nervous about the bombings that had occurred in 2002 and 2005....but then I realized that for some reason despite the issues that have been occurring in London-there are no travel warnings for London-interesting...and there were never travel warnings for NYC...interesting as well....just some words for thought. For anyone who this causes concern, we are now headed out of the area where they had problems in the past...but not recently...and off to discover different parts of the island.
Ciao,
Brittany
Monday, July 23, 2007
Sipidan
We arrived two days ago in the place we have been told has the best diving around-Sipidan. Sipidan is an island off of the coast of Sabah, Malaysian Borneo (the eastern state of Malaysian Borneo). Noone is allowed to stay on Sipidan anymore since it is now a marine park and also has some political relevance since the Phillipines have been trying to claim it as their own. So now only military men live on the island, and others are granted permits (only so many per day which is why it's necessary to book ahead for snorkelling and diving) for the day for 40RM each or $10. We luckily got to go to Sipidan diving yesterday since some other people had cancelled. We saw reef sharks, many turtles (big huge ones), angelfish, and triggerfish. It was a great 3 dives-one was right off the coast of Sipidan where there is a really deep dropoff-the reef just drops for 2,000 meters not far from the beach. It's a beautiful island-and kind of nice to see from the boat the whole unspoiled side where there are no buildings or people allowed.
Semporna, the town we are staying in is very sleepy. There is not much to do despite the many tourists who come to dive famous Sipidan. We found a good place to stay with a tv which was probably a good call since there's little to do.
We were supposed to go diving today but woke up to pouring rain and cancelled-i know we're wimps but i just didnt feel like being out all day in the rain. Now we are looking into our options for exploring the rest of the region. I will be posting pictures later today.
Semporna, the town we are staying in is very sleepy. There is not much to do despite the many tourists who come to dive famous Sipidan. We found a good place to stay with a tv which was probably a good call since there's little to do.
We were supposed to go diving today but woke up to pouring rain and cancelled-i know we're wimps but i just didnt feel like being out all day in the rain. Now we are looking into our options for exploring the rest of the region. I will be posting pictures later today.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
the tiger
So apparently, that growl we heard in the jungle, was pretty much most likely a tiger. I talked to one of the guides on the bus back to Jerantut (so we could catch the night train to Singapore), and he said yeah that was prob a tiger. He said he was walking with two people one day and there were two tigers-one on either side of them. There's apparently not much you can do but wittle a stick into a sharp point and remain calm.
Well hah thankfully, I am still alive.
In other news, Singapore is a really cool city. It's so clean probably because chewing gum is not allowed, you can't spit in public, and the MRT (subway) has a sign that says it is $500 Singapore dollars for eating or drinking on the subway, and $1000 fine for smoking (it's 1.70 Singapore dollars to the US Dollar). Raffles Hotel is this classic, old hotel, that has such a Marilyn Monroe-esque glamourous feel to it. And Orchard Street area is lined with malls-I think Singapore and Bangkok have more malls in one place then I have seen anywhere else. There's also some really good Muslim-Middle Eastern food here.
Tomorrow, I have to catch a bus to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia so I can fly out in the a.m. the next morning to Malaysian Borneo. Until Later, Brittany
Well hah thankfully, I am still alive.
In other news, Singapore is a really cool city. It's so clean probably because chewing gum is not allowed, you can't spit in public, and the MRT (subway) has a sign that says it is $500 Singapore dollars for eating or drinking on the subway, and $1000 fine for smoking (it's 1.70 Singapore dollars to the US Dollar). Raffles Hotel is this classic, old hotel, that has such a Marilyn Monroe-esque glamourous feel to it. And Orchard Street area is lined with malls-I think Singapore and Bangkok have more malls in one place then I have seen anywhere else. There's also some really good Muslim-Middle Eastern food here.
Tomorrow, I have to catch a bus to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia so I can fly out in the a.m. the next morning to Malaysian Borneo. Until Later, Brittany
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