11-15-19 - Welcome to Bali
/Day 152. Kyle and Leanne joint blog. Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia.
Scalloped potatoes as oozy and cheesy as they get. In fact, the best we have ever had. Leanne is clearly feeling better stomach wise here at the hotel breakfast buffet, but Kyle woke up queasy. Kyle blames the queasiness on the fact that he had western food at the Hard Rock Café instead of his usual local food. Given it’s a travel day, we all must push through any malady in order to get to the next scheduled destination.
Today we leave Cambodia. We leave with wonderful memories of exploring the impressive temple complex of Angkor Wat from the 10th to 12th century that the world is trying to help Cambodia restore. We studied the Khmer Empire which covered much of Southeast Asia at its height. What a wonderful few days being here especially during the very special time of 2019 Water Festival.
Cambodia is a place that is still healing from the atrocities of war and the millions of lives brutally taken under Pol Pot. Poverty, displacement and corruption have led to other societal pain like human trafficking and land mine accidents. That said, you can see the strength, pain and pride in the people who know they have endured much and continue to do so. You’d be hard pressed to find a family not impacted from its tragic past. Governmental corruption has made just a very few Uber wealthy as most just survive. It’s a story we hear again and again in countries we have visited of late.
As tourists, it’s important for us to seek well beyond the normal tourist attractions to get a real sense of the place. Here in Cambodia we had that chance too. We leave knowing a ton more than we did a week ago.
Today is a travel day as we go to our 28th country of Indonesia. We fly most of the day to get there (no direct flights). We fly through Singapore and while the kids beeline to Subway and McDonald’s, Kyle and Leanne opt for Phostreet, a Vietnamese chain for our lunch. Kyle is a changed eater now!
We leave the ancient Khmer architecture of Angkor Wat for the white sandy beaches of Bali, Indonesia. However, this stop will not just be about resort fun. This coming week we have reserved for giving back by volunteering teaching English and environmental conservation to local school children. But first we have 2 days to rest up on the beach in Nusa Dua.
Upon arrival, we take two taxis from the airport to the hotel. Kyle’s taxi driver is Eka and they hit it off right away. He learns that Eka worked on Carnival Cruise (our favorite cruise line) out of Miami and New York and has been to all the major islands in the Caribbean. Eka also worked for cruise lines out of the Mediterranean and has been to most countries in Europe. Kyle is surprised that the Indonesian taxi driver is giving him a run for his money in terms of number of countries visited. Eka now drives a taxi and says he makes a lot less money but he gets to be with his family. Working on the cruise line, he was away 9 months of the year and worked 12-14 hour days, seven days a week. Eka proceeds to give Kyle a lesson in Bahasa Indonesian language and the local dialect of Balinese.
We arrive at our beautiful open air hotel in Nusa Dua that blows away other places we have stayed. We are only here two nights but we will make good use of the pool and beach! The relaxed and happy Balinese people make us feel right at home immediately.
