Flashback Friday is a picture series where we “flashback” to some of our memories – from either from our prior travel or from home. We hope you’ll enjoy some of our remembrances!
We’ve been experiencing some nice sunsets here in Asia, so naturally, we remembered some of our other nice sunsets from the road. During our self-drive safari in Africa, we saw some amazing sunsets almost every night. We shared some of those in a flashback Friday post. We were in Africa for only 6 weeks and came up with 11 photos we just needed to share. We were in Europe for much longer and saw much fewer nice sunsets. However, there were 14 pictures we wanted to show you. Enjoy some awesome sunsets!
“The greatest sunset in the world” in Zadar, Croatia
A closer shot of the “greatest sunset in the world” in Zadar, Croatia
Sunset over the Adriatic from the walls of Dubrovnik, Croatia
Sunset over a mosque in Mostar, Bosnia Herzegovina
Berat, Albania
Tirana, Albania
Delphi, Greece
Nafplio, Greece
Fethiye, Turkey
This one was so good, we had to show you two! Fethiye, Turkey
It has been far too long since we’ve found a good Zumba class. In Phnom Penh, we found a semi-equivalent which was even better in a couple of ways!
We had read/heard that almost every evening, many Phnom Penh residents gather in different parts of the city to do aerobics classes. The Lonely Planet recommended the Olympic Stadium as one area where you would be sure to find several groups.
We made sure to head that way one evening. We arrived as the air was cooling and the sun was starting its descent. As we approached the stadium we saw all sorts of people of all ages and genders! Some were playing volleyball or soccer, others were walking or running, and still others were just enjoying the sights and chatting with friends or family.
soccer by sunset
We entered the stadium and found not one, but at least 4 different groups of dance aerobics. Each led by a young male instructor and rocking to the beat of loud Cambodian music. We watched for a few minutes and then picked a group that seemed to be suitably high energy.
It was similar to Zumba, though a bit less choreographed, so it was quite easy to jump right in. It was a lot of fun to watch people of all ages doing the dances. There were older to middle aged to young women. There were also several men of most ages as well.
We danced for about 30 minutes before there was a break. During the break, a local woman came up and tried to chat with us. Her English was a bit difficult to understand, but her smiles and friendly shoulder taps were unmistakable.
A little later, a young man joined us as well. He was a student and tried to explain a bit more about the evening events. He explained that they do aerobics every night and then a short pause and then the “dancing” would start. We were perplexed what the difference could be, so we waited around to see.
When they started dancing again, it seemed as if everyone already knew the dances. Our young man friend explained that some were traditional dances. Then we started doing line dances! There were several, including one that seemed like it was almost the electric slide!
We absolutely loved this experience! There was something really special about a huge community coming together and dancing together. People were not self-conscious or worried what others would think! Instead, they all just moved together, people of all different ages and backgrounds. It was fantastic!
We were so enthusiastic that we made a point to go again when we returned to Phnom Penh for just one night before flying off to Laos. We were so disappointed when we got to the stadium and the dances weren’t happening!! Our only thought was that it was cancelled because of the Chinese New Year. Many shops and restaurants were closed as well. So disappointing! =( But we still really enjoyed the first experience!
On our way from Bali to Cambodia we had about a 12 hour layover overnight in the Singapore airport. A short amount of research led us to believe that there are few better airports to have to spend time in! The Singapore airport is like a mall and resort (and airport) all in one.
There are free movie theaters, free video games, free internet. There are gardens, indoor and out, fitness centers, and even a pool. There are also free foot massage chairs all over! There are also some very nice transit hotels. We thought about paying for a bed during our overnight stay, but it just seemed too pricey so we decided to go the old fashioned route and just find some chairs to sleep in. We were in luck there too, because Singapore airport has some of the nice sleeper chairs.
We arrived late into Terminal 1. We walked by one small area with sleeper chairs, but there were only two left and they were not close to each other so we passed it up, sure we would find something else. We headed into the main Terminal 1 area and found a sign that pointed to a “rest area” on the second floor near some restaurants. We headed that way, but it was full! We were starting to worry that we would end up having to sleep on the floor or across some bench seats just like at any other airport. Boo. We decided to keep looking and walked all the way to Terminal 2 where we saw a sign for the Oasis lounge. We headed that way, and were in luck! Two sleeper chairs right next to each other in a quiet area that was darkened. Perfect.
Sleeper chairs… In the morning after everyone else had left
The Oasis!
We actually got amazing sleep for being in an airport and 6ish hours later, we woke semi-refreshed. The only issue had been feeling cold overnight (why are airports always so cold??), but we had both remembered some layers to keep ourselves warm.
We also ate breakfast at one of the great food courts in the the airport. It had a variety of Asian food and we were excited to have another bowl of Singapore Laksa before our time there came to a close.
We were slightly disappointed that we didn’t get to take advantage of all the other awesome things that the airport had to offer! I guess, we’ll have to hope for another long layover there in the future!
This is one of our Budget series of posts to give you an idea of how much we spent traveling around the world. Here we will look at Bali. Check our posts to see what kind of activities we did and where we stayed!
In Bali we used the Indonesian Rupiah. We converted to US dollars using the current conversion rates at the time of our visit. It was approximately 12,500 Rupiah to $1.00.
Total Spent (7.5 days): $757.32
Accommodation: $224.37
We stayed in two Airbnb apartments which Phill paid for and we paid him back for through food…
Activities: $98.21
This included entrance fees for a lot of temples. The largest expenses were for a dance performance, massages, and a tour guide for two days in Ubud.
Alcohol: $0
This is misleading – we did drink in Bali, but we never purchased alcohol on its own. It was always with meals or other food…
Food: $264.85
We ate out for lunch and dinner every day. We purchased one breakfast from Payogan Homestay and the others from the grocery store. There was also alcohol consumed with most dinners!
Miscellaneous: $32.76
This includes one postcard… and a large airport exit tax. blargh.
Transportation: $64.15
This includes several taxis as well as a day we took a car and driver around near Seminyak.
Visas: $73.67
We purchased our visas on arrival. We should have paid in Rupiah as it would have been cheaper than in dollars. Oops.
This divides out to $100.98/day which is just about $100/day budget! We were expecting that we might go a little over in Bali as it was a special occasion and we were traveling with others. We have to give a HUGE shout out and THANK YOU to Phill and Izaak for being understanding and supportive of our budget. Thanks!
Here is a new video in Della Dances Around the World. The Sid Shuffle is a good stand by and you should expect a few more versions before the end of the trip. This one is the Greece and Turkey edition!
Step 1: Stay at the wonderful Payogan Homestay with amazingly gracious host Ketut. You can find this place on Airbnb. It is slightly outside the town of Ubud and is within the complex of Ketut and his family’s home. Ketut makes sure that you are comfortable and well cared for! He also is an excellent tour guide for sights surrounding Ubud. Make sure to ask for his special pancakes for breakfast! Payogan Homestay is not to be missed!
Our wonderful hosts. Ketut is in the middle
Delicious breakfast
Our homestay
Step 2: Accept Ketut’s invitation to visit his village temple’s “birthday” celebration. The Balinese calendar has a 210 day year, so every 210 days, the village celebrates the anniversary of the temple. It is an amazing celebration with big processions, tons of offerings, and great music. The celebration lasts for several nights, with a large “dance show” on Thursday evening.
Procession
All female Gamelan
Procession
Procession
Offerings
Gamelan
Offerings
Step 3: Dress in appropriate clothes for the temple. This consists of a covering your upper arms, wearing a sarong (for both men and women), wrapping a sash around your waist, and donning appropriate headgear (just men).
Head gear
Sarongs
All ready!
Step 4: Shyly hang around in the temple for an hour or so waiting for the promised dance performance. Look awkward enough that many of the villagers attempt to make you more comfortable by giving you good seats or letting your sit right next to the orchestra (Gamelan) while performing. Make sure and enjoy seeing your host Ketut perform, but also make sure to wait for the second Gamelan to come in with very elaborate and fancy instruments: they will add a keyboard, bass guitar, a didgeridoo, and a tambourine to the traditional ensemble.
Ketut performing in the Gamelan
Sitting awkardly
Sitting right next to the playing gamelan
The new band – with a didgeridoo!
Step 5: Enjoy the Titanic song My Heart Will Go On as people from a neighboring village process out and Payogan villagers get ready to pray.
This dog is waiting too
Step 6: Watch and listen as an entire village gets together to pray and be blessed together.
Prayer
Blessing
Prayer
Prayer
Step 7: Settle back as the promised dance performance finally begins!
Step 8: Begin to get a little confused as the dance performance seems to be primarily geared toward humor with two little boys inhabiting costumes of a monster and a monkey playing together. Become even more confused as two clearly male, but dressed as female, dancers comes out and dance quite suggestively before doing an apparent comedy show for the audience. Everyone else will laugh a lot… You will laugh because they are laughing, but will understand nothing.
Step 9: Continue to enjoy small snippets of dance and song in addition to the comedy show. Relax as the dancers pick on another foreign couple – asking them a lot of questions.
Step 10: Panic when the male of the aforementioned couple refuses to come to the stage and as they spot you in the crowd.
Step 11: Think “shucks, I only travel around the world once… YOLO” and approach the stage along with your friend who also thought he was being pointed out, simultaneously.
Step 12: Watch your friend learn to dance Bali style which means waving jazz hands, wiggling fingers, and standing on one foot.
Step 13: Stand up to learn and perform your part of the dance, which basically seems to be doing a deep squat (frog style??) and hopping around like a monkey… for a very long time. Try not to pass out as your thighs begin to ache.
Step 14: Smile as the crowd goes wild! Return to your group of friends and have Ketut congratulate you on a job well done.
There you have it! 14 steps to have one of the most unique cultural experiences of your life =)
Eric got his first ever massage during our holiday in Bali! What were his ultimate impressions?
I had never gotten a massage before. The closest I had come to getting a massage was our trip to the Turkish hamam in Fethiye, but that was a bit rough. It’s not that I actively dislike them, but it didn’t seem like something that was worth paying for.
During the second half of the week while we were in Ubud, Phill and Izaak decided they wanted to visit Jaens Spa. I certainly wasn’t going to sign up for one of the long treatments, but under some general pressure from the others plus a bit of curiosity, I decided to sign up for a 1-hour traditional Balinese massage. Della loves getting massages, so she agreed to join me.
The experience started off with a nice welcome drink as we filled out some paperwork. We could request a certain level of pressure, and I went with “Light” since I was envisioning the hardcore treatment I had seen in Turkey.
We were then taken into a back room and given a quick foot scrub. My feet were pretty sweaty and gross after having walked an hour and a half to get to the spa, so I was feeling a little self-conscious about how bad they must smell! I think that’s one reason I don’t like massages: I assume it must be weird for the masseuse to have to deal with someone else’s body. But in my head I told myself to get over it. At this point we also chose our oils for the massage. I went with a frangipani-scented oil, which they said was good for relaxing, while Della went with a ginger-scented oil for energy.
We were then lead into a massage room with two different massage tables. On each table was a shrink-wrapped piece of underwear, that was basically just some black mesh with elastic – seriously the skimpiest thing we had seen! We squeezed into these and hopped up onto our respective tables.
Our attendants then came in, draped towels over us, and began the massage. I have to say that the time flew by! The hour was up before I knew it. It was definitely a full body massage – head, shoulders, back, legs, feet and hands. There wasn’t really any improvisation in the massage – I could hear Della’s masseuse and we had the exact same things done to us at the same times.
It wasn’t as awkward as I had thought it could be. The back portion of the massage did go a little lower than I was expecting, but nothing inappropriate.
In the end, we got to take a quick shower and then relax with some fruit while we waited for Phill and Izaak to finish their spa treatment. At the end, I felt very calm and relaxed, so I think the massage did its job! I’m not sure if I am going to make getting a massage part of my normal routine, but if I see a cheap one I may just consider it!
Flashback Friday is a picture series where we “flashback” to some of our memories – from either from our prior travel or from home. We hope you’ll enjoy some of our remembrances!
This week we have been reading about big snows all over the US! It made us remember some of our big storms in Denver. This one happened in the first winter since moving back to Denver. Eric wondered what he was getting himself into!
During our holiday in Bali, one thing we were quite excited to visit was Pura Luhur Ulu Watu. This is a very important temple in a gorgeous location, perched atop cliffs on the edge of the ocean. The temple itself was lovely, with a lot of intricate carvings. The view from the temple was even better as the clear blue waves crashed on the rocks below. Wonderful!
Sun shining over the ocean
Lovely view
fun carvings
good friends and good views
Ulu Watu Jelfie!
However, the real attraction is not the temple, but the monkeys that live along the coast near the temple. We had been forewarned- the monkeys are mean! They will steal anything.
As we walked along the path we saw monkeys guzzling juice, stealing flip flops off a tourist’s foot, drinking (and dumping out) stolen hand sanitizer, and viciously eating stolen sunglasses.
Guzzling juice
Eating sunglasses
Chugging hand sanitizer
Realizing (correctly) that hand sanitizer is probably not good for eating and instead dumps it out
We kept our hands on our valuables and stayed away from most of the monkeys. And, we admit it, laughed a little bit at the people silly enough not to heed the warnings and get things stolen! Ha!
After an enjoyable time observing the monkeys, we breathed a sigh of relief, and headed back down the path towards the temple, and our car ride home. Oops. Far too soon.
As we were walking back, we started to relax. Izaak put his sunglasses back on his head. Mistake. From out of nowhere (literally, he somehow came from below us, over the edge of the cliff), a monkey appeared and grabbed Izaak’s sunglasses before Eric (who was slightly behind and witnessed the whole theft) could even issue a call of alarm!
We then had the distinct pleasure of watching the monkey examine and then promptly gnaw on the sunglasses, bending the frame irreparably. Now, we have to admit, this was kind of funny, especially as Izaak informed us that the sunglasses were not expensive and relatively easily replaceable. We watched and giggled for awhile, and then left, leaving the sunglasses for lost.
Good bye sunglasses
Izaak posing with the thieving monkey
However, a few minutes later, one the guards (there seemed to be a plethora of guards along the path for exactly this reason), chased after us and handed Izaak his crumpled and tooth-marked glasses. We never did figure out how the guard got them from the monkey!
Izaak posing with his returned but broken sunglasses
So, while we lost a perfectly good pair of sunglasses, we gained an even better story!
Globe Gazers 