Snorkeling at Nusa Penida

My retreat package doesn’t include any weekend activities so I do a snorkeling excursion to Nusa Penida with a couple other girls from the retreat.

We have to be up at 6 am for our car ride to the ferry but I wake at 3 am for no reason. I lie in bed for about an hour trying to sleep then eventually turn the lights on to catch up on some research. After about fifteen minutes I start hearing buzzing from a very large flying bug. It is annoying but really likes the light. I’ve got the mosquito canopy so I am sort of safe for now. I soon hear more buzzing. It is almost like a bunch of eggs have hatched many of these things in my room. I count 6 during one count. It is time for me to get ready and they are everywhere: One on my backpack, One one the shirt I want to wear. They are scary looking and I have no idea if they bite or sting. I open my door hoping they will fly out with no luck. I eventually manage to get all I need for today. I lock my room and decide to deal with it when I get back. Fortunately when I return that night only one is left and he just hangs out at the light so I leave him alone.

Our driver picks us up and takes us to the ferry that will take us to the island of Nusa Penida, where we be snorkeling today. The traffic is terrible trying to get to the ferry. Our driver is going to be with us all day. He parks his car and directs us to the ferry. I am glad he is there because all the ferries look alike to me and I would never know which one to get on. Our guide sits in the back of the ferry but us three girls pick out a row. I grab the window seat so I can have the breeze but offer it to the girl in our group that gets sea sick. She refuses but I know her pain. I have taken my medicine so I should be ok for the ride no matter where I sit. Traveling out for a day at Nusa Penida is a crapshoot this time of year. It is the rainy season so the waters can be uncomfortably choppy if the weather is bad. Fortunately rain isn’t expected until later today so we seem safe.

The ferry ride is about an hour. We can not only see Nusa Penida in the distance but we also see a mountain. We try to determine which mountain it is. We get to the island and the boat backs up to the shore. We are not getting off at a pier; the way off is through the back and into the water. Because I am short and clumsy I have a slight fall exiting the boat and end up getting wet in the lower half of my body. One can stay on this island overnight but thank goodness I am not trying to haul my heavy backpack off this boat. I am sure all my things would end up getting soaked.

Our guide takes us to the snorkeling shop where we try on fins and pick out our lunch choice. We are to get our other equipment on the boat. We are waiting around a long time to start, it appears they want a larger group. I use this opportunity to apply sunscreen.

Our main guide tells us he will meet us later and we go to board the boat. Luckily the group isn’t too large where the boast is overly crowded. The water is beautiful. We use the opportunity to take a few pictures before snorkeling destroys our appearance.

We have 4 stops today. The first is the furthest away Manta Bay. The guides warn us the the seas will be rough on the way there (on the boat and in the water) but the reward is that we will see a manta ray. They didn’t lie about either. I start to feel nauseous on this part of the tour even though I had my motion sickness medicine this morning. The boat is rocked around. When we enter the water to snorkel it isn’t much better. The waves cause me to swallow what seems like gallons of sea water. I am constantly emptying out my breathing tube (no I don’t know how to “blow” it all out like the professionals). There isn’t much to see at this location since the fish are scarce and the coral isn’t impressive. At some point when I am underwater I look over and a Manta Ray that’s diameter is longer than me comes swimming toward me. It is partially scary and partially amazing. He kind of looks like he is smiling at me. He glides by without touching me. I pop my head up and tell my friend to go look down right away so she gets to see it as well. Unfortunately there are no photos of this event. We get back on the boat soon after.

The second stop is probably my least favorite, Crystal Bay. The beach area looks beautiful and we see some fish but I am not impressed.

One of the girls with me notices that some of the girls on our boat that are choosing to snorkel are not able to swim. Why someone who couldn’t swim would attend this is beyond me but what happens is that they hang out in their life jackets and hold on to this raft and scream and monopolize the fish guides the entire time with their drama. They also get the best photos from the guide as evident at the end when our trip photos are sent to us all.

Our next stop, Gamat Bay, is the most impressive so far if you ignore the Manta Ray from the first stop. You can see some nice coral here that hasn’t been bleached out. The fish are plentiful. The guide gives me some bread so I have a cheat with the photo moments. I think this is my favorite of the day so far.

The tour advertised online three stops but we have four today. I am getting tired of getting in and out of the boat and the previous stop is good so I think about skipping this stop. In this stop, the Wall, we are told that we swim up to the wall and let the current take us down to view all the good stuff. I decide to go in. Again they did not lie. This is a tie with the third stop of which is best. There is plenty of coral to see as well as colorful fish, with not much physical effort. I am glad I got off the boat.

We head back to shore after this. My only complaint about this tour is the last time I snorkeled in coral areas I not only got some photos of myself but also some photos of interesting fish and coral taken by the underwater photographer. There were no such photos such as these. I would have at least liked photo proof of the manta ray because he was so dang scary and cute at the same time.

When we get to shore our guide meets us along with another gentlemen who I guess is the driver on the island since we didn’t bring a car with us. They take us to a resort for our lunch.

We are directed to a shower to use that looks kind of like a bidet hose and not very sanitary so we all decided to stay drenched in seawater. In retrospect this should have been a red flag. There is a pool nearby and one group of girls jumps in while we wait for our pre-ordered food. It takes a while. My chicken curry comes out with a plate of rice and some raw vegetables. The curry is more like a chicken soup, flavorless, but I eat it anyway. I am smart enough to not eat the raw vegetables but as you will find out later I am not sure it made much of a difference.

We get back in the car and drive for a while. We end up at the viewing area called Kelingking Beach. The beach is actually a 45 minute hike down the stairs but we are not doing that. We are here for the photo opportunity. The place is a madhouse with “models” and tour groups. If you have been following my travels for a few years you will hear me complain constantly about influencers or instagrammers and how they are totally destroying travel. Today we contributed to that just a little bit. If I was on my own I would have taken one look at the crowd and said see ya but our driver was very eager to take us to the best places to take pictures and somehow he knew how to avoid the long lines. I still didn’t like 50% of my photos because I have body image issues but I appreciate what he was trying to do. The only part I didn’t like is when he had us practically running uphill, in our sandals to get to another spot. When we had a moment to enjoy it was a great view though. We made good time because it starts storming as we are leaving. That driver deserves a tip for rushing us.

We then drive down broken road, which is a REALLY broken road, to broken beach. At that location we see the arch from earlier when we were snorkeling. We also see the Angel’s Billabong that is an interesting rock formation. We rest here for a few minutes then start heading back toward the ferry.

We have to hop back into the water to get on the ferry and it is once again very awkward for me. My bottom half gets wet because I am short and clumsy. Also we are fighting the waves while trying to step in onto a swaying ferry. The ferry takes us back to the main land of Bali and then the van back to our retreat.

Swim out to the ferry for us short people

We decide to order dinner out as a group because there is an order minimum anyway. I order a so-so pizza and mango sticky rice. Soon it is bedtime because I am exhausted from the day’s activities. I sleep well … until I don’t. I have some nightmares about high school – very bizarre.

Bali Belly Strikes Again

It is Sunday I don’t set an alarm. The only thing I have scheduled is a 9 am massage today so I do my version of sleeping in. My finger is still weird and I don’t feel the best. It seems like that pizza last night has not agreed with my stomach. It feels a little like a hangover with out the drinking. I bravely try breakfast.

I find it really hard to eat. I know I need to eat but food seems disgusting at this point. I do as well as I can then I excuse myself because I am increasingly nauseous. I walk up the stairs and realize I am not going to make it to my room. I throw up my entire breakfast all over the beautiful lawn of the retreat. Luckily there is a hose there that is used by the surfers. I try to hose away evidence of my mess but it is too much and more is coming so I warn the guys who take care of the facility, apologize and run to my room for more.

I think I have it all out of my system for now. I have no idea what I am doing for lunch but I decide to make my morning massage appointment. There can’t possibly be anything left in my stomach. As the day progresses so does my symptoms. I sleep most of the day and spend a good amount of awake time in the bathroom. I officially have Bali belly. I have had this before last time I was on the island. It is not fun but sometimes it can clear up in a day or so. There is not much I can eat so I try to wait it out.

Hopefully this is a 24 hour thing and I feel better tomorrow.

Day 2 Surf Retreat

Today’s surf lesson went much better. I had almost the whole beach to myself. It probably isn’t a great beach for experienced surfers but the waves were just the right size and the ocean bottom is sand so I am not worried about slicing my foot as all the others have done. Where the waves break is shallow so I do land on my knee and twist my ankle but nothing major to report, but ask me tomorrow.

This beach is also cleaner, missing all the trash that existed on the beach yesterday. I am not worried about stepping on a syringe; yes I saw a syringe on the beach yesterday.

I got enough rest and also proactively took pain medicine so I am not uncomfortably sore. I also feel stronger so I have more confidence. Dadi, my instructor, is very patient with me. He found me all the easy waves. I surfed but only for seconds. I did many tries of trying to get up and then falling. I don’t have the balance yet. I am happier more than ever that I scheduled a full week here, even happier that I have a weekend in between my session. After our lesson he showed me some sea turtles that were being protected nearby.

Some retreat signs that tell us the plan each day

When I arrived back at the retreat they were cleaning my room so I took the first dip in the pool. It is nice. I really want a shower but it will do as a temporary substitute. I shower and return to the common area for a very nice lunch. The satay and sauce is amazing, I am happy to have some veggies too. I haven’t been eating too many of those lately.

After lunch I take a siesta of sorts. Web surfing is ok but streaming isn’t good so I give up trying to sneak in a tv show. Soon enough it is time for Yin Yoga, the one I’ve been waiting for. It’s different from the yin yoga Ive done in the past but the concept is the same. Hold deep poses/stretches for 3-5 minutes. At kitten comes up to me at some point to head butt me into the correct form. I notice a finger is strained. I don’t remember injuring it so it must be from overuse holding onto the board today. I am hoping it will be better by tomorrow.

After yoga a group of us rush out for dinner reservations in Canggu. We run a couple errands first but realize the restaurant is further than we thought. The roads are congested with bikes and cars and there are almost zero sidewalks. It is a very scary walk to the restaurant. We are all sweating and relieved when we finally arrive at the place. Grab on the way back is definitely in order. No way we are chilling in town tonight.

I order a nice bowl of hand made noodles with chicken. It’s good and the first dinner I’ve had in two days. There are no restaurants in close walking distance to our place and I’ve been too lazy to take a car or order in so I’ve been sort of fasting in the evening. I like having dinner tonight though.

Tomorrow I head out early for a snorkeling adventure. Wish me luck that the weather is good. It really is the luck of the draw lately.

Back to Bali

I am heading to Bali. My arrival is uneventful and I have a car coming to pick me up. No one asks me for proof of vaccination. The world is healed I guess.

My plans for Lombok and the Gillis didn’t work out as planned so I at the last minute I joined a surf and yoga retreat for 8 days in Canggu (pronounced Chawn-gu not can-ju like I keep erroneously saying). I had tried surfing once before in Bali but the way things worked out I only had one real day of surfing and that was not enough. This time I am staying longer where I get 5 days of surfing lessons. Hopefully by the end I’ll be an official surfer right?

The retreat I am at was on my radar years ago when I came to Bali. I didn’t choose it because the fine print of the retreat has some wording about warning if you can’t keep up with the group or something about holding back others from their lessons. I felt like I wasn’t strong enough and I didn’t want to be a burden so I picked another retreat. This time around I am older, in worse shape, and the wording is still there. The difference is I don’t care anymore. I am going to pay my money and try anyway. I still sort of care what people think about me but maybe not as much as I did before.

This trip is for multiple reasons: to work on bucket list travel, get travel out of my system before returning to work, get out of my comfort zone, and heal. Today I had the feeling of being trapped. That is a scary sensation for me. Most of my life I have felt trapped in one way or another: rocky childhood, trapped by my emotions, trapped by family, trapped by marriage, and trapped by work. For probably the first time in my entire life I don’t feel trapped the majority of the time. In the past it may have been valid but now when it comes it is an irrational fear. Today I arrive at my retreat that I hastily booked and I feel trapped. I am far from town and I feel a little trapped at my location, not unlike my experience at my Silent Retreat a couple years ago (Note: I signed up for the Silent retreat again so there will be an update on how that goes).

Anyway it is just anxiety and the fear of the unknown. I am starting surf lessons again tomorrow. I tried once before and I could have done better. Now I am three years older and less in shape so there is a ton of anxiety around the activity. No sense in worrying about it before there is anything to worry about.

Tomorrow I wake up for breakfast at 6:30 for surf lesson at 7. I have a massage booked at 10:45 (part of my package), lunch at 12 and yoga at 4 (also part of my package). I may head into town for dinner. They run one nightly shuttle at 5:45 on weekdays. Unfortunately it is too far to walk to town otherwise I would use that option instead.

Surf lesson 1

5 of us head out to the beach for our surf lessons varying by skill level. Jack Johnson plays while the windows are down. Jack Johnson must be universal surfer music . I am nervous since this is only my second time trying (first time). I have no idea why I never tried surfing when I was younger. Today wasn’t much better than my first attempt. I bail out of the lesson a little early. I didn’t want to kill my shoulders on the first day when I have 4 more days to try. I am pretty good at riding a wave on my knees though. Just need to learn to stand and balance. Today’s lesson started late due to high tide. Luckily I still get back in time for my massage. I think I am going to need it. At this rate I am not going into town tonight. I think snack and early bed time is in order.

They were filming the group today since they’ve had a few days of practice. My footage is some knee surfing and falling off my board.

Today I am reminded about what I miss now that I no longer stay in hostels. Just to catch you up I am old as can be now, I need good sleep on a regular basis so sharing a room is no longer an option. I need my downtime, I need my alone time. I typically stay in boutique hotels, budget hotels, or any other unique lodging. On a rare occasion I can find a hostel with private rooms I will book it but they tend to be moldy and my sinuses can only handle so much of that. Here at the retreat where I am staying there are good number of women; I guess all lacking the social anxiety that I have so I am meeting lots of nice people. Everyone seems much younger than I but very nice. I’m going to hold off for now telling everyone how old I actually am because at some point do I become the weird old woman? I can’t help that I tend to get involved in activities that young people like to do like this surf retreat. Anyway I’ve already been invited for some weekend snorkeling since we have the weekend off of planned activities. I am hesitant to go but I have to remember there are so many things I don’t do because I’m solo. I should take every opportunity I can to do things with others.

Yoga went better than anticipated. Yes there is lots of sweating and moves I flat out can’t do but that’s normal for me. A good portion of it I could do good enough. I guess I have some muscle memory with yoga. Today is supposed to be the “hard” yoga day. I am glad I got that out of the way.

Tomorrow it looks like I get a solo surf lesson. They are taking me to an easier place. The current and waves are strong where we are today so it takes a good amount of power just to stay out on the water. I am happy that they are chill about my skill level. At the end of all this I may find that surfing is not my thing but I have to give it a try.

More Kuala Lumpur

I was originally going to visit the famous Batu caves temple on Sunday which is a Hindu holiday called Thaipusam. There is a big celebration that starts somewhere in Kuala Lumpur then a parade of people, estimated to be multi-millions of people, walk 13 km to the temple at Batu Caves. There are many things going on and chariots are carried up the colorful stairs. I have anxiety about crowds on a good day but I still feel under the weather. I decide it is a good idea to skip this celebration and visit another day.

Another day

It’s raining. I am supposed to go to Batu but don’t feel good and dont feel like dealing with the rain today. I decide to rest and then make myself do laundry instead. I get dinner and then walk around a bit. I see the lively Jalon Alor as it wakes up. It is supposed to be a great place to go get food at night. Wandering around there is one street I call massage row. As I walk by dozens of ladies ask me if I want a massage. For the first time in a while I don’t. I walk past an area where there is a bunch of bar restaurants. I think about getting a cocktail but I still don’t feel 100% so I forgo and call it an early night.

Batu caves last chance.

I have one last chance to visit the Batu Caves and temple. Luckily I don’t feel as terrible as I had previously. I was going to take the train but the train would take me over an hour and I had to switch lines whereas grab was less than 30 minutes. Grabs being so affordable it was a no brainer. I get there a little after 8 am. The crowds are thin. It is finally not raining but it is humid. I take some pictures out front before I get all sweaty. I ask a lady to help me with a photo, in return she wants to take a photo with me – the weird looking giant (I’m 5’3). I start up the stairs. I am sweating for sure but I am not as tired as I thought I would be. Either the steps are not as bad as I thought they were or my traveling stamina is kicking in. There are monkeys everywhere. They find food where they can. There was a large Hindu celebration two days ago and not much of the mess has been cleaned up; or maybe it has but there is still so much left. The monkeys pick through the garbage to see what meal they can make of it. There are piles of sandals everywhere. There are temples below and two more temples at the top. Chickens roam the place. Once I get inside the top is open like an open air cave. You can hear the birds fly above as well as the chickens below. People walk into the temples to get blessings. Some carry bowls up the stairs which I believe are milk. I think about how crazy crowded this place must have been just a couple days ago.

After my visit I walk to the nearby train station. I am told that the next train isn’t for two hours. This is obviously a commuter rail system and not a regular metro or subway system. There is nothing to do in the area so I don’t want to wait for two hours. I call grab. It is so cheap it again is a no-brainer. I ask to be dropped off at the Islamic Arts Museum. I want some culture … and air conditioning.

The Islamic Arts Museum is a good visit. One exhibit talks about the history of mosque architectures and the differences in the different countries of Islamic peoples. There are good dioramas displayed. There are various old Quran books on display. There are some other books and inventions used by people of Islam. Finally there is a large exhibit dedicated to this one type of sword. Weapons are’t really an interest of mine but I do spend some time here getting educated on it all.

After my visit to the museum I walk by the mosque nearby and other interesting buildings as I head back toward my hotel. There is also a market I walk through.

It’s time to eat so I seek out the other place on my radar to try, Lai Foong LaLa Noodles and their spicy clam soup (LaLa Noodles). It is very good.

In the building that houses that cool bookstore I noticed a weird ice cream shop. Today I am in the mood to try some. I get some cheesy boozy ice cream as dessert.

That pretty much finishes off my visit to Kuala Lumpur. I didn’t see all there is to see but I did a good amount considering I felt pretty bad most of my time here. This is also a good example why I always try to schedule extra down days while I am traveling. You never know when an illness or transportation or whatever is going to take you down. Having padding in the schedule relieves some stress of it all. I need to remember to keep doing it.

Tomorrow I head to Bali where I am spending a couple weeks. I again have a little anxiety about the vaccine entry requirements. The websites say I need to download this app and upload my proof of vaccine ahead of time but the feature to upload the proof has been down for maintenance for over a week. I guess we will see what happens when I get to Bali.

Arrived in Kuala Lumpur

After a late morning breakfast I take a bus to Kuala Lumpur from Melaka. It is approximately a 2 hour ride. I have a food tour booked this evening at 5:30 PM so I hope I gave myself enough time to check into my hotel, rest and get to the meet up point. I am not feeling the best. My sinuses are acting up but I decide to power through the evening.

Hotel

My hotel is nice and new. The only problem is the plug is hidden in this compartment that doesn’t quite fit my adapter. I have to call the front desk for assistance and after 20 minutes we finally figure it out and I am finally able to plug in my gadgets, albeit awkwardly.

Chow Kit Food tour

I don’t feel great but I force myself out to the food tour. Doing a food tour first thing always gives me more confidence when I am out eating on my own.

We first stop at the market where we get to try some fruits. Many I have tried before but I am always happy to try them again.

We next stop for some roti and noodles. Some of the bread is filled with egg and accompanied by different sauces. We each get our try to make our own bread. It is harder than it looks so I leave it to the expert.

I learn about torch ginger which is an ingredient in many Malaysian dishes.

And we are to have cendol which I will not complain about. The guide uses this as an opportunity to get the group to try the durian. I am hesitant but partake anyway. It gets easier to handle each time I try it.

We stop next to get a Geeget burger. It is a beef burger that is halal and distributed to vendors who use interesting toppings.

We then try three different laksas (noodle soup). We are warned about the increasingly spicy of the choices but I find myself loving all of them and one of the spicier ones being my favorite. Have I developed a liking for spicy foods again?

I finally get to try Ikan Bakar (grilled fish). It is another dish I have been wanting to try but been too scared to order. This is a tasty mackerel.

My tour guide takes us to the last remaining village in the city. He doesn’t think it will be here long because it is getting forced out by new development. It is intact for now but the surrounding areas are all filled with luxury developments.

We try some satay. It is good but I feel myself start to get uncomfortably full so its hard to eat. We also try this fish paste in a banana leaf. I am not a fan.

Finally we try Nasi Lemak – fried chicken, rice, and sambal in a pandan leaf. I am excited about this because its been on my list. It is very good. We also have a mango shake and a dessert to finish it off. Everyone is very full after this so we take a walk and have a great view of the city.

I still do not know the way around the city yet since I just arrived. I’m pretty tired but I brave taking the free bus back to my neighborhood with a couple who were also on the tour. I don’t know where it will stop but its got to be a shorter walk than if I walked from where I am at ~ 45 minutes. I watch on google maps as we travel. It seems to be going in the correct direction then makes a turn away from where I want to be. I get off at the next stop with an anticipated 10 minute walk. The area I am in is very lively and crowded and I still don’t know where I am going. It takes me about 20 minutes to find my hotel but I eventually get to where I need to be. The area I am in sort of reminds me of a mini-times square. There are street performers and crowds. I am exhausted but try to have my wits about me because if there is an area to be pick pocketed, this is it. Maybe I’ll return when I have a ounce of energy.

The next morning I still feel like garbage. There is no coughing and no fever. Just this lingering sinus issue. I take some meds, get a quick breakfast from downstairs and decide that my grand plans for today are definitely not happening. I force myself out after around noon to visit some temples and get lunch.

That’s a tall thing in the middle of nothing.

I visit the highy recommended Mee Tarik Restoran to try the beef ramen. They hand pull all their noodles locally. My visit didn’t start well. Line is very long but seems to move pretty quickly and when it comes time for me to be seating they keep passing me by and seating people in line behind me. Eventually I get directed inside where there are no empty tables but as soon as one opens up they put another party there. I make a big deal about being passed up again and eventually they tell me to sit at this round table with four other girls who don’t seem to mind. As a solo traveler you are often overlooked even sometimes seen as a nuisance. It can be annoying at times.

The beef ramen is good but I find myself jealous of the girl at the table who ordered the braised beef ramen. That looks really good. If I return I will get that and an order of dumplings.

I walk around Chinatown a bit, visit a temple, and find a cute bookstore made from a repurposed theatre. I also see a couple more Chinese new year dragon performances.

Some hidden artwork pictures such as this Yayoi Kusama portrait.

My energy does not last though. Though I have no fever I am visibly sweating more than everyone else and just overall feel run down. I might be legit sick. Back to the hotel to rest. Hopefully a little rest now will keep me from being out multiple days of travel.