Imagination is the voice of daring. If there is anything Godlike about God it is that. He dared to imagine everything.
– Henry Miller
Tuesday, January 9, 2014 (DAYS 675 - 677)
Just as there tends to be more appealing and sexy countries or specific locales just by uttering their names–especially in the minds of leisure American travelers, such as Costa Rica–uttering the simple words, Bali, tends to create dancing images of an exotic paradise of relaxation for both the body, and the soul. Before departing for the small island, which also happens to be the smallest province in Indonesia, I’m preparing to bunk down for my fourth overnight airport stay in Singapore’s Changi International Airport. Unfortunately, at the moment I can only recall the other two, which were in Guayaquil, Ecuador (March 2013) and more recently Seoul, South Korea (Nov 2014). I know this is going to keep me up all night trying to remember the third, but I digress. After arriving in Singapore only hours earlier and dropping my larger backpack at my friend Rommel’s apartment, I’ve found a nice comfortable bench at The Coffee Bean in the departure hall to catch up on some writing, and later, when I’m ready to try and catch some sleep this bench is long enough with some padding to stretch out on. The reason I didn't crash at my friend’s apartment, which I know many of you are asking, is because he was away on a business trip in India and since he has three other roommates I didn’t want to impose, especially since I will be returning to stay with them for a bit of time after returning from the Southern Hemisphere.
Just as there tends to be more appealing and sexy countries or specific locales just by uttering their names–especially in the minds of leisure American travelers, such as Costa Rica–uttering the simple words, Bali, tends to create dancing images of an exotic paradise of relaxation for both the body, and the soul. Before departing for the small island, which also happens to be the smallest province in Indonesia, I’m preparing to bunk down for my fourth overnight airport stay in Singapore’s Changi International Airport. Unfortunately, at the moment I can only recall the other two, which were in Guayaquil, Ecuador (March 2013) and more recently Seoul, South Korea (Nov 2014). I know this is going to keep me up all night trying to remember the third, but I digress. After arriving in Singapore only hours earlier and dropping my larger backpack at my friend Rommel’s apartment, I’ve found a nice comfortable bench at The Coffee Bean in the departure hall to catch up on some writing, and later, when I’m ready to try and catch some sleep this bench is long enough with some padding to stretch out on. The reason I didn't crash at my friend’s apartment, which I know many of you are asking, is because he was away on a business trip in India and since he has three other roommates I didn’t want to impose, especially since I will be returning to stay with them for a bit of time after returning from the Southern Hemisphere.
Excited to have the opportunity to visit and stay in the most recent number one ranking of world airports in 2013, after taking it away from Seoul’s Incheon International that claimed it for seven-years in a row (from 2005–2012) and is still listed as number two on the list, as a traveler I am a bit disappointed to learn after speaking with several staff members of Changi’s tourist information desks that most of the incredible amenities are only available within the terminal departure halls. When I inquired about the rooftop swimming pool in terminal 1, I’m once again disappointed as I’m told that it is closed for renovations until the end of February of this year (2014). Since I’ve been fortunate enough to visit and spend time in the number one and number two world’s best airports, I am planning to write a blog about the pros and cons of each in the future, so don’t get your frowny-face going quite yet. (Photo credit: Flickr user Lip Jin Lee)
Getting in to a bit of a groove with writing, even though the onset of fatigue is beginning to creep in around midnight, I notice an older gentleman that is trying to move my carefully balanced power adaptor and converter, from Walkabout Travel Gear, to charge his tablet. You would be amazed that while I am still successfully able to charge electronics while in use, the size or location of these outlets can be a McGyver-esque task. After coming to an agreement, since I have an open USB port on my adapator, his electronic device is charging. While he waits, he sits down on the bench next to me and strikes up a conversation with a girl that was sleeping peacefully. Soon this chases the young girl away and my new friend stretches out on the bench but has his bare feet a bit too close for comfort. Like my sister, we both share a disgust for feet and I’ve learned that personal space tends to be nonexistent in other countries. Ignoring this, I continue to do some more writing, but when it’s time to get some sleep myself I have to wake him and ask him to move down since he has close to four feet of empty space near his head and I can barely lay down without placing my feet on his chest. His understanding of this, is moving about two inches or maybe it was millimeters. My additional attempts and requests fall on deaf ears as I give up, but before doing so I had to take this photo in order to show how much space there was further down on the bench and how close his feet are to my bag, which is directly next to me when I’m not even laying but sitting, and to my other side is the wall. Frustrations and exhaustions friends, it’s all part of the travel experience and not every day is an incredible photo at the beach.
Waking up after what I wouldn’t even call a power nap–about two-hours of tossing and turning–it’s just after 7am and even though my flight is not scheduled to depart for another three and a half-hours, I tempt my luck at trying to check in early to obtain that highly-valued boarding pass to obtain entrance to the terminal departure halls' list of free amenities, such as; one of the two free movie theaters, online gaming areas, massage chairs, sleeping lounges, and more. I might as well have been Charlie Bucket being handed the golden ticket when I was told by the woman at the counter that she would do this for me, while at the same time wishing me an early birthday. Exhausted and sleep deprived, I feel like a zombie as I pass through security in search of a place to grab some breakfast. In order to stay awake, I look to see who is active on Facebook and notice that my younger sister is, and try calling her. No answer. But, after a few minutes she calls me back and we are able to talk for about 15-minutes before I have to board my flight. This friends, is yet another reason why I’ve asked you all to download the free Facebook messenger app, because if you haven’t then we can’t call one another and I know you’re always dying to hear this glorious voice that many have called it to be, the songbird of my generation. What can I say? But I sound good.
Boarding the budget airline of Tiger Air flight RI-835, I’m excited to have been given a window seat and wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that the woman at the check-in counter actually noticed and mentioned my upcoming birthday. Which, by the way might be a great time for all of you that would like to shower me with extravagant gifts of golden lanolin–yes, like sheeps’ wool or other priceless items, there’s no need, but here’s the link to my PayPal if it’s all the same. I’ll just say some early thanks before the gold rush hits. So without further or due; cheers, gracias, kamsahmnida, suksema, arigato, blagodarya, grazzie, danke schön, hvala lijepa, dĕkuju, merci beaucoup, rav todot, khawp jai, solpayki, shukrān, spasibo, dakujem, mersi, tack så mycket, khwap khun maak, Falemenderit shumë, and finally thank you in advance! Also please enjoy the time lapse video I took with my iPhone 4 taking off from Changi Airport in Singapore (SIN) and landing at Denpasar in Bali (DPS).
Arriving in Bali around 2pm local time with the time difference of one-hour ahead from Singapore, I knew it would be hot and humid upon arriving, and I wasn’t disappointed from the second the cabin doors were opened. Disembarking the plane from the nearest exit, which happened to be the back of the plane, I walked down a series of metal steps onto the tarmac and already I could smell the salt in the ocean air. This reminded me of when I first began this journey and arrived in Belize, unsure of what I was doing or where life may take me, this was a pleasant reminder of all that I’ve seen and done over the past 22-months. The two-hour and 25-minute flight was most incredible upon the descent, as you can watch from the time-lapse video that has been sped up 500% in editing.
After paying for the visa on arrival in the amount of $25 in US currency, which I knew would be the case ahead of time by looking it up and made sure I had in order not to get ripped off from the exchange rate further, I received my entry stamp to my thirty-second country and looked down with a bit of pride at the new 30-day tourist visa now freshly inked on my passport.
Once I had cleared customs, I attempted to withdraw the local currency (Indonesian Rupiah) from an airport ATM, I was unsuccessful and a bit nervous, but thankfully I still had plenty of Thai Baht to exchange until I could sort out this hiccup later. Inquiring from several airport employees about a local bus to Kuta Legian town center, since English is common due to the high populous of tourists, I was told that this was not an option. Taking my time, I attempted to wait for other travelers or backpackers to pair up and share a taxi with, but it seemed that most people were staying at resorts in all directions and were either in groups or couples. After tiring of waiting amidst the heat, even in the shade, I caved and went to the taxi stand where prices were fixed-rates with a list of destinations. I knew that this time of the year is still considered peak season and that prices would be a bit inflated and took a taxi solo to the center of Kuta Legian for the cost of 70,0000Rp ($5.87) for the 20-minute ride.
At the recommendation from my friend Niklas from Germany that I first met in Bangkok and was reunited with on the islands of Koh Tao and Koh Phangan, I was in search of Island Hostel, which I later learned was actually named Island Hotel, but no one around town seemed to know of it’s super-secret location. Eventually I met a couple of backpackers from Sweden that had a booking at a place that was cheap and I asked to tag along. Unfortunately the hotel was fully booked, which again during this time of the year seemed to be the case. After another hour of searching I found a small hotel that was off one of the side streets of Jl Popies Lane II. From experience, I’ve found that selecting a place to stay upon arrival directly off of a main street not only has the possibility of being noisy at all hours, but generally is more expensive due to the location as well.
After doing some negotiating, even on a private ensuite hotel room at peak seaon, I am paying far less for committing to a three-night stay, and will be negotiating further possibly to bring it down less. After a nice shower from being in transit for the past 48 plus hours, of course I had to make the short five-minute walk to the beach that Bali is world famous for. Literally, within the first few minutes of being at the beach and walking down to the shoreline a group of teenage girls surrounded me and asked if they could take a photo with me. Smiling, how could I refuse? Typically, it’s the blonde-haired girls that are constantly being asked to be in photos with complete strangers, so at first I was taken back and then even a bit flattered. But, before I knew it they were gone down the beach and not even a, “can I buy you dinner.” Feeling used and abused, I took my walk of shame down the beach alone and just enjoyed all the commotion of the hordes of people soaking up the sun.
As I was walking the beach you can’t help but notice the horrendous amount of rubbish in the sand–bits of plastic, paper, Styrofoam, and other various objects just scattered all along one of the most beautiful beaches I’ve seen. Knowing that this will eventually get swept into the sea and wreak havoc on marine life, I wonder what many of these places will look like 5-years from now and how much worse environmentally damaging tourism will affect once pristine areas such as this? Extremely sad, but I also feel that this image is powerful, because it doesn’t show white sandy beaches with people smiling, but the true side of what many travel brochures or websites will not show when advertising Bali.
Even as I was contemplating the negative effects of mass tourism, I stumbled across a photo I feel as though I will always carry with me, even if I never again have this digital image. A father glancing down at his daughter sitting next to him on the beach as she stares out at the pounding waves–to me–this image shows that we are not all that different regardless of where we are around the world. Life goes on. People seek to be happy. People want their children to be happy. And, there is hope in this life and beauty and sacrifice, it brings us together and I was just glad to have captured it and can share it.
I hope everyone is enjoying the new format. I’d love to hear any feedback or suggestions. I’m trying to post more photos to go along with my writing as both Wi-Fi and time permits, while not wanting to get too fixated on living on my laptop, but the purpose is to experience the journey, again regardless of travel. So I implore you to find ways to seek the positives in life by truly living and not just flowing routinely through life, but find your purpose through soul searching and gain that happiness and vibrancy that you may have lost.
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