We are now in Indonesia!

We flew in to Bali and I had a real culture shock straight away and totally freaked out after going to the toilet in the airport and losing George!! The airport was so busy and it was so ridiculously hot and humid at 11pm!! We then had to barta for a cab to take us to our hotel (a whole £5 for a 30 minute journey!) where the driver went from driving along incredibly busy roads, full of cars and mopeds, to blacked out empty streets where I thought he might be taking us to die!

It's safe to say, I was being a bit dramatic as we arrived safely at our hotel in Kuta which, for £10 a night, was pretty posh! We had a big modern room with a gorgeous bathroom and a flat screen tv with all the movie and sport channels!! An absolute dream! After a good night's sleep in our massive cosy bed, I felt much better about our Balinese adventure!

We spent the next two days exploring Kuta and Seminyak. We ate like kings for about £10 a day and did our best to adjust to the heat and the humidity. We briefly visited the beach but were totally unimpressed as we'd just been spoilt rotten in Western Australia! It was all very touristy with lots of chavvy Australians about but still pretty amazing! We will go back at the end of our trip to see a little more.

Our next stop was Ubud- the cultural hub of Bali. We stayed in a homestay which was totally different to the hotel but equally as brilliant! We were right in the centre of Ubud but our little bungalow felt very tranquil. Just off of the busy main road, down a quieter street then through the gate to a little oasis! A family run business which consisted of 5 or 6 little semi-detached bungalows which looked authentically Balinese. All we had was a bed, a fan, a sink and a shower hose. It was extremely basic but all very well kept and clean. The mother of the family made us breakfast of Balinese pancakes or banana toasties and brought us fresh fruit whenever we sat on the balcony. Papaya and avocado with a squeeze of lime!! Yummy! If you ever go to Ubud, a homestay is definitely the way to do it.

We booked 3 nights there but it wasn't enough so we will go back in a couple of weeks to do the bits we missed. While we were there, we watched a traditional fire dance performance, wandered around the markets, ate like royalty (again!) paid £4 for massages, manicures and pedicures (!!!) and visited the bloody terrifying monkey forest where I sat in monkey poop and got scowled at by a wild monkey!! We took a hike through the rice fields and met the cutest Balinese man who sold us a fresh coconut for 10,000 rupiah (50p!) and taught George how to climb a Palm tree! We took a Balinese cooking class in the rice fields and I learned how to cook some of the amazing feasts that we had eaten so far. George is convinced that I need to apply for 'Come Dine With Me' but maybe I'll try the recipes out on friends and family first!

It's safe to say that I absolutely fell in love with Bali!

We are now in the Gilis (the islands just off of lombok). We took a fast boat from the mainland which took about 3 hours. Not the most pleasant experience as they packed so many people on and there was no air getting in so it was just so hot but it was TOTALLY worth it! We are currently on Gili Air - paradise!!!

There are no cars or motorcycles. Just bikes or horse and cart. We are staying in the cutest little garden bungalow, 1 minute from the beach (if that!) and it's cheap, cheap, cheap!! All day we swim (in the very warm(!!) ocean), snorkel, read and eat!! The food's not quite as good as in Ubud but I can definitely deal with that! Then we come back to the bungalow and shower in our outside bathroom then find somewhere nice for dinner and drinks. It's the best holiday I have ever and probably will ever have!!

Today we spent the day walking around the entire island, stopping to snorkel and swim and eat! We've been here for three days and have just booked two more. I don't know where we'll go next. Maybe to another of the gilis or back to the mainland. Not sure yet! We fly out on 25th May and we need a few more days in Ubud. I could stay on Gili Air forever but I would definitely get fat and lazy!!

Tomorrow I've booked an introductory or refresher dive to give it another go. I spoke to my dive instructor and he was very understanding and says he has lots of patience (let's hope he's telling the truth!)!! I go at 10am for a session in the pool which he says can last as long as I need then George and I are going to dive together in the afternoon. I'm hoping I don't freak out this time!! Tonight we are going to go and have a few drinks, some dinner, maybe watch a movie! Who knows?! Life's a beach ;)