Surf's Up!

Hello out there!


I am sorry it has taken me so long to update, I have just been having WAY too much fun and enjoying myself immensely.

When I last left you I was in Yogya (pronounced Jogja, which I am sure makes things way clearer he he) and was headed to walk through the twin trees. I did not make it. Apparently my heart is not pure and my hopes and dreams are not destined to come true, in Indonesia anyways ;). It was such a riot. We had to stand about 300 meters away from the trees and got blindfolded, spun around, made a wish and just started walking. The first two times I tried I veered very sharply to the left, then right and end up perpenticular to where I started. The third time I ended up between the trees facing the one of the left and had to choose to go right, and through the trees or left and back the way I came. I chose left....doh! So much fun though and there were all sorts of people there doing the same!

Also while in Jogja I went with Rossi and Siska to see the palace where the King used to house his mistresses. A lot of it was destroyed from a big earthquake a few years ago but there was still lots to see. There were underground tunnels, a reported secret passage to the sea so the King could visit with the Goddess of the Sea (who he is hot and heavy with) and a pool where the mistresses would go and bathe and the tower where the King would stand and watch and then choose which one was lucky enough to sleep with him that night. The gate was locked into the pool/bath so a little girl showed us how to climb the wall and I was able to take pictures from there, it was way fun.

One afternoon Vicky and I went to a silversmith studio and we made jewelery! I made a really pretty ring that looks like a snake climbing up my finger and Vicky made a really pretty thick band one. It was neat we got to heat the metal, shape it, stamp it and clean it and even got to keep the ring! So currently I know I am unemployed but I may look into silversmithing when I get back, the guy told me I was better then he expected ;) he he.

So now I am in Pangandaran and have been here since Sunday June 21, 2010 and have no real plan on when I am leaving. The first night Vicky and I got into town we stayed in a big hotel for a few nights. There is a little homestay, which reminds me of a b&b that is a hit among backpackers but you can't make resos and everytime we went to see if there was room there wasn't. So we found a cute little place close to it and the beach called Villa Angela and it was only $10 a night. So cheap, or rather as I am learning it is more polite to say: Good price. We stayed there for 5 nights. I am now in Rinjani homestay and go over to the popular backpackers place to meet people, internet and breakfast. I heard there isn't clean sheets and rats there...so I chose Rinjani instead, plus it's only $7 a night. GOOD price :) I am upstairs with a balcony and the bed is nice and big. Only drawback is well there is no sink....Indonesia is so weird. Errr different, lol.

Our first night in town we went wandering and found Kurnia, a surf instructor. He agreed to take us out the next morning. I even negotiated a better price. I then woke up early and spent the next four hours in the water. It was incredible. I had been thinking surfing, it's gotta be like snowboarding and wakeboarding which I have done both before so thought ahh it'll be easy peasy! NOT TRUE. Its so hard, but the satisfaction of standing up on the board outweighs all the hard work it takes to get there. That first day I probably only really stood up twice, but the thrill!!! So amyzing ;) Vicky was too tired and didn't surf.

Of course having spent that long in the water on a sunny day and then deciding to sit in the sun for a little bit and read, with Vicky, while I dried off, resulted in a very red like complexion. Very red. Thankfully my surf instructor and his friend took pity on Vicky and I, she was way more sunburnt then me, and throughout the next few days massacred several aloe plants to ease our pain.

As we were very red, the next day we were advised to not go in the sun so they brought us on a day trip. We started at Green Canyon which is well a green canyon. The water is green, the walls are green with vegetation, it was really neat. There was an opportunity to go swimming but it was really crowded (I was a celebrity again he he) and so we declined. We then went to a turtle sanctuary, I got to hold two! A little baby one and a grown up one, SO awesome! In Indonesia they collect the turtle eggs and keep the turtles safe and fed until they are about 14 mnths and they are then released into the wild. The thought is that the older turtles will have a better chance of survival then teeny babies. Makes sense to me. For lunch we stopped at this restaurant that was built out on a lake, so it looks like it is floating. They then caught our fish from the lake and bbq'd then right there. SOOOOOO good. Afterwards all the food we didnt eat, rich, fish bones, everything is just tossed into the lake and the fish that didn't get caught go CRAZY. It was fun. After lunch we headed to green valley which was way less crowded so I went swimming. I even jumped off the waterfall and went through the waterfall to the cave on the otherside. SO cool. It was a great great day.

Soccer worldcup is on right now and everynight thats all anyone wants to do here is watch it. We have been getting drinks and sitting on the beach, with a tv. lol. Its pretty funny, or converging in one of the beach bars. Its really funny here, they have Bintang which is a real light beer, Heineken, another light choice and Guinness. Nothing amber or inbetween. It's awesome.

OH the other day Vicky and I were on another beach having a beer picnic with some friends we made and there was an earthquake, SCARY. Luckily nothing happened afterwards. One of the locals was saying that there are close to 400 earthquakes in Indonesia every year. I can't imagine how scary that would be when there has been such devastating consequences. I was jumpy as it was.


So on Monday, Vicky headed back to Surakarta. Yes that means I am here alone, and guess what? I am loving it. I am getting to do exactly what I want, when I want. I have now gone surfing five times, today I even got to use a smaller board...eeek. Yesterday I went out all by myself, no instructor. I picked my own wave, paddled fast enough and even managed to stand up and ride it to the shore. It was incredible. I did more falling today, as the smaller boards are harder to balance on. I may have even whined to my instructor that I wanted the big board back. He said no. Grrr.

I have no idea what the next few weeks hold for me. I may or may not go and meet up with Vicky in Surakarta. I found someone here who has connections with the Immigration and can help me extend my VOA without having the leave the country and come back. It is expensive but in the long run I think it will be less expensive then leaving and coming back. Although by not leaving I am missing out on visiting other countries. But by leaving I am missing out on Indonesia. I have another decision to make. I think if I don't leave the country I will start to slowly make my way east and catch the ferry across to Bali and then also see the island of Lombok and the Gilli Islands which are supposed to be just beautiful. I supposed I am not going to get a chance to see everything but I want to! What exactly is the point of having cake if you are not allowed to eat it? I met some travellers who are headed to Bali in the next week or so as well so I may tag along with them or at least exchange info and see if we can't meet up somewhere's along the way. Hopefully if I don't see Vicky before she heads to syngapore will meet up in Bali. The break I think will be good for us.


So folks in summary: I love my life and I am so not even close to regretting my decision to come anymore. There have been some rough patches that I won't go into but I made the choice not to make them my problem and it is incredibly liberating. I love me. I am so happy.

So, so long from Pangandaran and who knows where my next blog will come from! I sure don't he he

Lots of love,

Amy