back to bali peeps...

bali. who would have thought the sweet scent of incense, cigarettes, petrol and grilled meats on a stick could have smelt so good? we landed a little over a week ago and have been blessed with amazing weather, a great group of peeps and an array of different activities to keep us more than occupied.

(i will fill you in on a little detail however, kurt is not able to surf on this trip as he under went knee surgery almost two weeks ago now, so having him by my side, tramping through smelly hawker stalls bartering for leather goods and clothes is somewhat new to me.)

it did not take us long to get into the swing of travelling and before i knew it, kurt had a scooter and was whisking me down side streets to the beach. this time round we opted to stay in seminyak (the swanky area of kuta, and it was fab) so most afternoons were spent lazing on beanbags in the sand and watching the sun go down, often with cocktails or bintangs in hand.

this trip to bali, we had tess libby, both on their second trip to bali and soph and peter both first timers and now newly engaged in toe – three words; fun, funny and funnier.  see pics.

one of the top things we have managed to do thus far was a 28km downhill mountain bike ride through rice fields and local villages above ubud. it began with breakfast overlooking gunung batur, an active volcano that erupted in 1917 (also in 1926, 1963 and 1974) creating a crater rim around the entire area as well as an amazingly beautiful lake. we got to walk around a traditional family compound and get to know a little more about their hindu beliefs as well as ride around a 500 year old bayan tree. this beautiful and unique day trip was topped off when local children would run out and high five us as we rode past.

with a week to go and kurt still debating over what he wants to do, stay tuned.

pics. chilling on the beach, seminyak beach,  sophie doing a spot of dvd shopping, one of the many hawker stalls selling fake ray bans and vans, kurt and i at ku de ta, on the beach at uluwatu, bintangs at uluwatu, libs and i at jimbaren bay and finally sunset at jimbaren while gorging on a seafood dinner.