1 U.S. dollar = 8,800 Rp
Flew China Airlines from Vancouver- Taipei- Jakarta
Jakarta arrival: on time 1:30 pm
Purchased Visa On Arrival: $25 US
20,000 Rp bus to Gambir station and then 30,000 Rp taxi to Jl Jaksa where I got a room at Memories Hostel: 80,000 Rp with bath and fan
Sample prices:
10,000 Rp for big bottle of water
13,000 Rp for strawberry shake
18,000 Rp for berry bang (juice with ice cream)
30,000 Rp for big bottle of Bintang beer
10,000 for dinner: sota ayam (chicken soup with white rice)
Bought one-way ticket to Denpasar from Emerald Lines Tour & Travel near Jalan Jaksa on Lion Air
600,000 Rp (credit card)
140,000 Rp taxi to airport
40,000 Rp passenger fee
18,000 Rp for cup of coffee in airport
Kuta
Arrived in Denpasar (one hour flight) and took a ride from a motorcycle toot to hotel in Kuta for 40,000 Rp
Stayed at Ayu Beach Inn
180,000 Rp / night 3 nights
Big room with bath, fan and patio
Full body Massage in the evening: 50,000 R
Enjoyed 4 full days of beach bum life, spending one of them walking from Kuta Beach to Seminyak Beach and back, exploring the neighborhoods on the way, and the beach on the way back.
Took shuttle to Ubud for 50,000 Rp
Ubud
Hotel: Brata 2 Homestay
110,000 Rp / night
River rafting (Class 3 & 4): amazing trip with 2 wimen from Santa Fe
Walk through rice paddies and had pumpkin soup and a glass of red rice
wine at sari organik restaurant
Dinner at cafe
Chicken & avocado sandwich
Booked a half-day tour (7am–2pm) with GoBike, which starts with a breakfast in an open-air restaurant that overlooks the 1771-metre-high active volcano, Mount Batur and its crater lake. The 40 km ride is mainly downhill, but is amazing for its route through small rural villages, with a stop in one village where the residents showcase their wood carving skills. Once back in central Ubud, I took a walk past the Palace toward the rice paddy fields, stopping at Sari Organik's open-air restaurant, Warung Bodag Maliah which is located in the middle of their own fields and gardens for a bowl of pumpkin soup and a glass of red rice wine. Afterwards, I met up with a couple of gals from the previous day's tour for appetizers and dinner, first at artsy Kafe (Jalan Hanoman), and later at lively Cafe Havana (Jalan Dewi Sita).
Gili Trawangan
Early the following morning, I headed out in a pre-paid minibus to Padangbai, the coastal town in east Bali where one can catch a fast ferry to Gili Trawangan (400,000 Rp), one of the three Gili Islands that are very close to Lombok. The ferry ride itself was not so pleasant, as it wreaked of petrol fumes the entire way, and felt quite cramped, but at least it made it to the island in an hour and a half. Gili Trawangan turned out to be one of my favorite spots on the trip, with its white sand beaches and sparkling light-blue water. Secured hotel: No Name Guesthouse; 125,000 Rp / night. I undertook a walking tour around the entire island, which took about 2 hours, and then went for a swim. There is no shortage of funky restaurants in the evening–the toughest part is choosing which one to eat in.
Lombok
Took boat to Bangsal, Lombok (30 minutes); shuttle bus from Bangsal to
Kuta Lombok (ridiculous delays, including a ludicrous stop in Mataram). Kuta Limbok itself is a small, unattractive town. Stayed in a bungalow at Segare Anak Cottages with swimming pool which cost me 90,000 Rp / night for bungalow; more for other rooms. Took a walk around the town, and along the beach at low-tide. Very few people during this stroll.
Next day, I took a shuttle bus to Senggigi and secured a room at Made Home Stay for
100,000 Rp / night
Went for swim first day (beach day)
Went for long walk towards waterfalls following day; no water at the
waterfalls due to lack of rain.
Took a short one hour flight to Surabaya, where I stayed at Hotel Samut for 146,000 Rp / night. This was really a pit stop on my way to Yogyakarta.
Next morning, took a bicycle ped to Budeng train station in Surabaya for 40,000 Rp.
Got lucky and caught train to Yogyakarta
9:08 (10:15) (supposedly train was at 2 pm according to hotel tour
desk!)
26,000 Rp (economy)
Stayed at Duta Cottage Hotel in the Prawirotaman area (geared toward
backpackers)
Rp 150,000 / night with breakfast and a pool
Spent 4 nights here
Yogyakarta
After six hours on the train, I arrived in Yogyakarta train station by mid-afternoon, and hired a becak pedicab to take me to Jalan Prawirotaman, one of the two backpacker areas of the city. Once in the area, I secured a room with bath at Duta Hotel (which has a swimming pool and free breakfast). This major city in south central Java is considered by many to be the arts and learning capital of the country.
The remainder of the first day in Yogyakarta was spent walking around the city centre, getting used to the layout and the vibe of the place. I have to admit that I really enjoyed the atmosphere here. I booked a tour for the following day to Prambanan Temple, had a full body massage (70,000 Rp), and a great dinner at one of the many restaurants on Jalan Prawirotaman.
Prambanan Temple
On my walk toward the city center, I was approached by a teacher (i.e., toot) who talked me into a motorbike ride around the city and out to Prambanan. We settled on 70,000 Rp for a full day of sightseeing. This started with a stop at a batik shop (and a look at the batik process in action), a stop at a silver shop (and its process), and a shadow puppet show (and its process). This was followed by a stop at the famous Bird Market, filled to the rafters with rattan bird cages, thousands of birds, and even rabbits, dogs and snakes, amongst other creatures.
Back onto the motorbike, and half an hour later we arrived at the 8th century AD Prambanan Temple complex (US $13 entry), which comprises 16 Hindu temples, around 3pm. The main temple is dedicated to Shiva, and its neighbors are dedicated to Brahma, Vishnu and other deities. About a kilometer away from the main temples are the temples of Lumbung, Bubrah and Sewa, with Sewa being the more interesting one. They make for a nice stroll, prior to exiting the complex through yet another market. Once back on the motorbike, we whipped around the exterior of the temple complex as a huge ball of orange sun set in the distance. Later had a nice dinner at Via Via Restaurant on Jalan Prawirotaman.
Borodbodur Temple
This tour by minivan (60,000 Rp) started with an early morning pickup at 5am. This massive Buddhist monument, also built in the 8th century AD, is 42km out of town and opens at 6am. There are several levels signifying the stages of awareness in Buddhist philosophy, and one can climb from one level to the next and walk around the temple in circles. On the lower levels you will find amazing carvings as you walk around, depicting many aspects of Buddha's life. It's difficult to get a sense of the structure when you're next to it; however, you can get a glimpse of its scope from the postcards (showing aerial shots) that the toots try to sell you on your way out of the temple complex. After a short breakfast, we stopped at a Buddhist Monastery for half an hour. Then it was back to Yogyakarta by 11am, where I was dropped off at Malioboro Street and did some window shopping before returning to the hotel for a swim.
Palace
Following a hearty breakfast at the hotel, I took a walk over to the Sultan's residence at The Kraton, a square kilometer that houses a number of stately buildings and pavilions, and which collectively comprise the residence of the local Sultan and his extended family. The main interest for me here was the shadow puppet show under one of the pavilions, which takes place on Saturday mornings throughout the year. It runs for about four hours. It was interesting to see the shadow puppets in action after seeing how they are created at a couple of shops the day before.
Following this, I headed back to nearby Malioboro Street to do some window shopping.
Next morning, flew to Jakarta on Lion Air, to catch my connecting flight from Jakarta back to Vancouver on China Airlines in the early afternoon.
