Indonesia: Gili Trawangan

“Lost in Paradise”

(Part I)

What was supposed to be a two-week stint in Indonesia, turned into a two-month, very unexpected, adventure of a lifetime. I explored the surrounding islands, Indonesian cuisine, and practically became a “local” in the Gili islands. Life is blissful when living in paradise.

So here I am arriving in Bali after a missed connecting flight in Kuala Lumpur, serves me right for waiting until the last minute to get to the boarding gate. Once out of the airport, a slew of taxi drivers tried to give me outrageous prices for a 20 minute ride. After low-balling them I found a decent cabby who wasn’t trying to rip me off too much (or so I thought, later on that). After travelling all day it didn’t even matter, I just wanted to get to my hotel and lay down. Note to self, remember to use UBER when in Bali, it’s the cheapest option. This was a case of live and learn. Once arrived at the hotel, I realized the accommodations looked much better in the pictures as opposed to real life. At this point it had a bed and an ac, plus it was for one night so I can deal. The plan was to stay here tonight and head over to Gili Trawangan for a week or two. After negotiating a price with the airport driver and booking a hostel online in Gili T it was time for bed. Next morning after breakfast the driver came late and on a scooter, he took me to get a ticket for the speedboat to the island on the way to the port. This is where I got taken for a ride, financially speaking, granted it wasn’t too much but I could have saved $10 (let him use it for his family, god bless). So the boat ticket shouldn’t have cost more than $20 round trip, this guy took me to an agency that charged me $30 one way, and they tried to sell me the return before boarding the boat, thank god I didn’t bite on that one. Still living, still learning. Remember always to haggle in Bali. It wasn’t that big of a deal as after a few months in Southeast Asia this being my only scam. It’s like a rite of passage in Asia, let this be my biggest problem in life, to over pay by $10/$20. After one of the most hellish boat ride of my life I thought my death was imminent and no one will even know what happened to me during the bumpiest ride imaginable, in addition to the speed boat stalling in the middles of the ocean. Two and a half hours later, we made it to the island safe and nauseated but thankfully alive.

Finally made it to the hostel, it was easy to find and a seamless check in process was much appreciated at that moment. I was just happy to arrive and be on steady ground. The rooms here were awesome, three beds per room, which is unheard of in the world of hostels and super clean. This place had a pool and amazing staff. Originally, I booked the hostel for only two nights, since it turned out to be a pleasant place to kick back I kept extending my stay on a daily basis. My purpose on the island was just to relax after running around Asia for the last few months. It’s been a hectic schedule to say the least, even though people do 4 countries in a month sometimes, but it is nuts in my opinion as every city is rushed. I prefer to get a feel for each city and country, but that’s just my personal travel style. Anyhow, after settling in I struck up a conversation with one of the guys who worked there, we will call him Alex*. Wanting some information on various activities on the island, in Bali and the surrounding islands as Indonesia is home to over 17,000 different ones. Also, through this convo is when the realization set in that I got a little gipped with the speedboat ticket. Alex* was very sweet and offered to take me to Lombok, a neighboring island, when he has a day off to see monkeys and waterfalls, “why not” I thought to myself as I always favor experiences from the local perspective.

On the next day I ventured out to explore the island. Wow Gili T, you are beautifully amazing in every way, shape and form.. I LOVE YOU! Everything from the beaches and its crystal clean waters, to the fishes and turtles swimming by my feet was breathtaking. The amazing local food in the beachfront cafes was delicious, however the biggest impression that was left on me were the people. I made friends for life on the island, locals as well as other travelers. There were times I literally lived like a local, at least it felt that way. It was an interesting experience; walking around the island bare foot and eating with my hands while siting on the floor. It was different and something that I was not accustomed to, however it was an incredible way to peek into the Indo culture and their way of life.

As for beachfront cafes, the island houses the Exile Sunset Café, where they have beanbags on the beach, swings and hammocks in the water, plus a live band playing the drums. I discovered this gem by mistake. My mission on that particular day was to walk around the island after hearing it only takes 2 hours, so I set out with that goal in mind. Quarter of the way around the island I stumbled on Exile and spend the rest of the day hanging out there, having beers, meeting random people and watching the gorgeous sunset. There are so many cool hangouts on the island but this one takes the cake. A few days later a bunch of guys from the UK checked into the hostel and seemed super cool. We got the talking and the convo clicked so I figured I would show them the island gem the next day. We spend the day chilling at Exile, we were having so much fun that we didn’t even notice how half of us got super sun burned. My burn was so bad that I was running a fever the next day, it was the most severe sun experience I have ever endured. Recovery process took a few days and with my luck I got a stomach bug from something I ate too, nothing that charcoal pills can’t fix. I swear by them when traveling and recommend them to anyone who travels. So once I got back to normality, a few of the English boys and myself went on an island exploration trip to search for an old World War 2 bunker and a hidden cave. The sites weren’t all that special, but the small hike and the view from the top of the mountain was beautiful, Lombok and Bali were both visible on a clear afternoon. It was a day well spent, just like any day spent in paradise. The next adventure is the exploration of the neighboring island of Lombok; stay tuned for part 2.

* Names have been changed to protect the privacy of the individuals

Dates of Travel: 1/14/17 – 2/22/17

Modes of Transportation: Bicycle, horse and carriage

Foods to Try: Ayam lalapan, sate ayam, nasi goreng, nasi campur, spring rolls, Luwak white coffee, mango smoothie, banana smoothie, strawberry smoothie