Reluctant Goodbyes to Bali

Breakfast at Cafe Havana with Don & Mary K with Che looking over our shoulders.

Our stay in Bali was made so much more enjoyable by meeting expats from the US. We were fortunate enough to meet Don & Mary K who we enjoyed great conversation over food and visiting them at their home in Ubud. Al had wonderful philosophical, psychological and spiritual discussions with Don, who is studying Vedanta, the soul of the Hindu religion. Playing chess was also a fun aspect of their new-found friendship. They will go on playing chess via the Internet. Rhonda was also fortunate to get to know Mary K, the out-going Rotary President. One of the most pleasant, intelligent and fun people that you could possibly meet on a trip like this, who knew how to network and connect us with other people.

Talking about other people, Danielle and Rich from Colorado who live here part of the year, will also be everlasting remembrances of our stay in Bali. They were so much fun to be around. They are the creators and leaders of the Bali Water Project for Rotary Ubud. The project brings water to villages in the dry eastern part of the island.

Through Mary K we met Jon and became good friends. He has been living in Bali on and off and is a former airline pilot who had been teaching aeronautics and living in China a few years back. Since China is in our plans after Borneo, he was of invaluable assistance in helping us plan our trip and contacting his English-speaking Chinese friends to expect our visit.

Rhonda had several Balinese legong dance lessons and is planning to have a dance company as soon as we hit San Miguel.

On to Singapore for one week and then Malaysia Borneo!

Our bungalow in Ubud, Bali

We've been at Swan Inn #8 for the months of May, June & July. In the mornings we listen to birds and watch them make their nests; nighttime is cacophony of frogs and geckos.

Komodo Dragon Trip 4

Fresh snapper for lunch on the boat.

Resting on the boat, exhausted from the intense heat and humidity.

Returning to the harbor at Flores.

The next morning before flying back to Bali, we went through limestone caves that had once been under water which was why we saw a turtle fossil (below).

Our guide through the limestone caves.

Komodo Dragon Trip 3

The female komodo lays 15-30 eggs at a time and buries them in holes such as these. She protects her cache for three months, the incubation period is nine months.

A young monitor lizard wanders in the camp.

Our guide.

Komodo Dragon Trip 2

We left the bay of Labuan Bajo the following morning for a two-hour boat ride to the island of Rinca, which is in the Komodo National Park. We had a greater chance of seeing the Komodo dragons on this island, rather than its neighbor, Komodo Island.

Arriving at the Rinca port.

The boat crew were Melanesian from the island of Flores and tended to be small in stature and had a more Aboriginal appearance than the Indonesians we have met so far.

Here we are, Must Ado About Us and the Dragons!

These guys are big, the young are 2-3 feet in length, the adults are 9-10 feet. They are the largest monitor lizard in the world, found only on these two islands but were originally seen but no longer found in Australia. They are not prehistoric; they are carnivores and eat their own; they eat water buffalo, boar and other wild animals on the island. Not only do they kill their prey with their powerful jaws but the bacteria they carry in their mouth will slowly kill over a period of weeks.

Komodo Dragon Trip 1

An hour flight from Bali is Flores Island, 250 miles in length and first inhabited, they think, by pygmy-like hominids 12,000 years ago. It was colonized by Portuguese in the 1512 and then by the Dutch in the 17th century until 1907.

On our first day we took our boat to Angel Island for great snorkeling

in crystal-clear waters.

Rhonda doing her Titanic impression.

We finished our day by viewing one of their remarkable sunsets from the beach at our hotel.

Pura Tanah Lot, sea temple

Pura Tanah Lot is the most visited, photographed and venerated temple in Bali and can only be accessed at low tide.

This couple was unable to walk on water and couldn't make it to the temple.

Ubud Parade

This annual Ubud parade with marching bands is part of the Balinese New Year's celebration.

These are caricatures depicting historical Hindu religious figures.

Colorful marching bands with Balinese instruments.

We were overwhelmed by the beautiful young Balinese women and

their clothes created by a local designer.