Heading to Gili Air
It seems, that tourists and restaurants in Kuta are more interested in having dinner and holding never endig parties, than having a breakfast offer. Especially not before eight in the morning. It was fun to see the exact same streets totally empty, that were so much packed with people the night before. The town was waking up slowly as if it was sick. And it is sick, as I see it. Undeniably it is not a place for me. I walked about 30 minutes to find some places being open, and suddenly I detected a café, that actually looked like a café. Sure, I suspected, that it is not a proper new wave coffee place, but the barista deep inside me didn’t let me passing by. A good espresso machine, a fine menu including espresso macchiato and capuccino, a good intention with the weight and the timer. How they fight against the humidiy – I have no idea. It was not a bad experience at the end just becuse I did not expect much. It was heartwarming to see this side of coffee as well, not only the kopi luwak marketing. Whatever they say, I keep my rule: I just don’t drink shit, even if it is designed and positioned well.
My transfer to the harbor was great. I guess I’ve seen more of the real Bali during this 2 hours drive, than during my stay so far. The Bali, that is not masked to serve the western needs. It has some charm, that we, western people come here in hords, we choose Starbucks, eat hamburgers and order ham and eggs for breakfast, but it doesn’t feel right. Maybe I’m not any better with my new wave coffee trial?
The harbour in Padangbai is just great. No signs at all, and only the old ladies selling food and bevereges to turists have some ideas about the whereabouts of the fastboat companies. The schedule is a mistery for all. But at the end all is sorted out.
Well, the fastboat trip, hm, where to start? I have a serious motion sickness on most vehicles, except airplanes and usually trains, but ships are defenitely not exceptions. A couple of years ago I had a really popular facebook post of marveling the beauty of the Indian Ocean while puking it all over. I hoped not having the need to refrase that post to fit the Bali Sea.
Now I’m really greatful for sharing the room with four indonesian girls, who could not stop giggling until late, and started to prepare loudly for the day around 6 in the morning, not letting anyone sleep in the room. So, while I was heavily concentrating on preventing the catastrophy, suddenly I woke up seeing Gili T getting close, where 80% of the passangers leave the boat. They are the party people, while the rest of us chose the more relaxed island, or Lombok. Gili Air is just a second from here, so soon I was walking towards my hostel.
Gili Air feels more real, than the Bali I saw so far. Not too artificial. There are only dirt roads, no cars, and you either walk, take a bycicle or catch a horse-drawn carriage. Of course many constructions are ongoing to serve the growing number of tourists coming to the island, and I’m sure it already changed a lot since I first heard about it more than ten years ago. Well, a fast internet connection is still not secured on the island, and it is pretty funny, as after sunset the people staying in the hostel sit around the pool with their mobiles in hand and are cursing in unisono, because the wifi is down.
After sunset there is not much to do here. It is pitch dark, only the guest houses and resorts have some lights on, so even I do not leave for a discovery walk. On the other hand it is really a unique experience to listen to the muezzin, mixing up with the blues tones played in the hostel, and the chatter on several languages around me.