Indonesia...

These are two emails that I wrote that I didn't get to send as we didn't have internet for the first little while. I wanted there to be pictures but we are having trouble getting them there with public internet. We will post them later...Enjoy

We’ll we have not been anywhere lately where there is internet so I am writing this email before I will be able to send it. We arrived safely in Indonesia with all of our luggage and were so tired that the issue with porters who steal your bags and then want you to pay them for “carrying” it was almost enough to push me over the edge. After a great supper meal and a good sleep and wonderful
breakfast I was feeling a lot more human again!

We are very much enjoying our time here on Gili Air and I can’t think of another place that is more peaceful and idyllic. There is no vehicles, no industry, just people and ocean waves crashing on the shore. It is ridiculously hot here and clothing seems to be excessive. I have taken to wearing sarongs and loose shirts or the sarong as a dress as it is much cooler that way. Even at night it is so hot! Last night it got a bit windy and was a little cooler but just enough to feel
comfortable. The locals all had long shirts and long pants on and said it was
cold. We got to talk to one guy the other day that said that he had never seen
snow but some tourists had brought a post card of a snowy scene and he thought
it was beautiful. He laughed and said that it’s all about perspective. North
Americans think that white beaches with palm trees are the epitome of beauty and
they think it is normal and think that our snowy white wonderland is more
beautiful. He of course took a long to time to communicate this to us, as he
didn’t speak English very well.

Our little hut that we are in is wonderful. It is two levels and the bottom floor is completely open except for the bathroom. It has a small table and a couch that is screened in. It’s all made of bamboo and the walls have woven grass for wallpaper. The upstairs is the bedroom and a patio. It is all very nice!

Anyways, I’m about to go snorkeling now. Who knows when I will actually get to send this but know that we are having a great time!

Andrea (and John too!)


Today was a very interesting day. We have been having a great time here. I cannot think of a better way to completely relax and just veg than to be here. It is so relaxing. We found a place with Internet on the island and it was fairly cheap 15 minutes for 5000 R (which is about 65 cents) however it was really slow and so we only sent a short email to our parents so they would know we were safe. We really
love it here. The people are so fun and interesting. It’s an ongoing debate of
what is the nicest way of telling the merchants that we are not interested, in
what they are selling, that we already have a hotel, that we don’t need a ride,
that we don’t want a cold drink… It just goes on and on. They tell very
interesting stories and even bold face lie to you. I’ve been enjoying just being
around them and seeing their life.

The part of the day that was interesting was snorkeling. For about $10 you can go on a guided snorkeling trip to the three islands. The part that caught my eye was the sea turtles. We booked a trip even through I had found that I did get a little sea sick just snorkeling on our beach the day before. I took some gravol before we left but to no avail I woofed every cookie I had for the benefit of the fish. Word from the wise, it is not easy to throw up underwater… anyways I finally asked to be taken to shore as I could not take it any more. Needless to say I don’t think I will do anymore snorkeling. Unfortunately I really was enjoying all the things you get to see
underwater here. I did get to see turtles before I went to shore as well as many
other fish of so many colors, shapes and sizes. John has been snorkeling every
day so far. He loves it. We also got a chance last night to take a traditional
horse cart ride. That was very fun and sometimes scary. I thought for sure the
cart was going to tip or we would lift the poor little pony right off the
ground. To explain what I mean a horse cart is a one-axel cart pulled by a
little pony and the cart is held from tipping over by attaching to the pony.
With three people in the back of this cart it pulls really hard on the horse.
The roads here are just sandy paths so the ride was quite rough also. At one
point we drove off the road and onto the beach and the beach was much smoother
than the road…for a while.

Tonight we are going out for supper with some people that we have met here; two girls from Germany and two girls from Holland. Poor John will be outnumbered but oh well.

Love
Andrea and John

I thought it would be good to write things down as we go rather than try and remember later so those were two takes of our time on Gili Air. :)

Andrea