six days of sunsets

Two weeks ago I emerged from my plane straight onto the Jakarta tarmac, still sunburnt and smelling of the sea, salt, and sand of the island of Bali. I was still carrying my sarong in my purse as I snacked on pie susu (one of my favorite Balinese treats), trying to hold on to the past week with all my might even after I had arrived home.

Bali is about a two hour flight from Jakarta but in ways it felt like a completely different country. We did not see islamic mosques at every street corner or hear the call to prayer radiate over the archipelago, but instead walked along side Hindu religious offerings on the streets and temples within the pasars (markets). I saw more foreigners and tourists in one week than I had in the past six months in Jakarta, and I wore shorts outside for the first time since I left Madison last August.

these hindu offerings are scattered across the streets of Bali

I went to Bali with a huge group of friends, including six YES Abroaders, one AFSer from Mexico, my two host siblings, my host cousin, and an AFS volunteer from Surabaya. We all stayed in Kuta, a touristy beach town near Denpasar, the largest city in Bali. Although after living in Jakarta (population 10ish million) for the past six months Denpasar felt much more like a kampung than anything. 

After spending our first day lounging at the beach in Kuta, we headed inland to Ubud, an area well known for being the setting of the book and movie Eat, Pray, Love (both of which I have read and seen). In Ubud we made the decision to enter the hutan monyet, or monkey forest, which I must say is not for the light of heart. I'm normally not scared of animals but let's just say after standing in a forest surrounded on all sides by fairly ferocious looking primates I am rethinking exactly how I plan on spending further "relaxing" vacations. Literally holding onto my camera for dear life and whimpering while grabbing onto other people's hands will not be included in future itineraries. That said, the monkeys were really cute and I did get some pictures which make it pretty worth it.

Kuta Beach

Emily R, Carly, Ellen, and I at Kuta Beach

Me, Ellen, Emily R, and Carly at the hutan monyet

While in Ubud, we also went shopping alongside absolutely picturesque rice fields. Rice fields have become my favorite geographical feature of Indonesia, and the rice fields in Bali are unlike any I have ever seen. Because of this I am really just going to let the pictures speak for themselves:

The next day we all piled into a van (six people in the middle row where normally there would be three) and drove north to Tanah Lot, a well known touristy site on the ocean. Tanah Lot is a well known and commonly photographed landmark in bali, and it is also featured on the 50,000 rupiah bill (roughly $5 USD). While we were there we went out on the rocks and watched the sun set over the ocean, one of six ocean sunsets we observed that week.

The rest of the trip was filled with snorkeling outings, shopping at pasars, and lots of relaxing walks on the beach. Being able to speak Indonesian gave us all a boost above other tourists and we were able to bond with the Balinese people and deepen our bond with the island and its unique culture. We made a friend on the beach one night who serenaded us all with his ukelele as the sun went down and we sang "3 Little Birds", "Hey Jude" and other beachy tunes together while other bule simply looked on. 

After only one week in Bali I was hooked, there's no doubt about that. I fell in love with this little island paradise and I hope to return again sometime soon and watch six more sunsets over the ocean. 

Until then, thanks as always for reading and supporting me. 

Sarah