At Kuta Beach in Lombok, Indonesia

Many people both locals and what few tourist are around spoke about "the perfect beach" called Kuta located in sountern Lombok - about a 2 hour drive from Senggigi Beach where I was staying. So I teamed up with a German couple and we split the cost of a driver and car for a day ($40) and we were off to Kuta Beach.


in terms of snow white sand and pristine waters and occupied by only a few locals - Kuta was indeed perfect. But this time of year it is incredibly dry in southern Lombok! The surrounding area was parched - like central Mexico AND there was. Only one vendor in the entire area selling young green coconuts.


There were some beautiful young girls around - almost all Sasak whose religion is a mixture of Hindu, Islam, and Animanisn. They were very friendly - this is a pic of me with a girl named Sante - "Nancy" in English. Her striking hazel eyes made her stand out - she was gorgeous - we talked and played in the water for a couple of hours.

Indonesian Diving & Food

Photo: A typical Indonesian beef sata with wrapped and unwrapped sticky rice.

Today's diving trip was kind of a bust: visibility was restricted to about 25-30 feet (I prefer Belize's 100'), most of the coral was dead, and like snorkeling yesterday, few critters to be seen and those that were present were predominately small with a few medium size here and there. There were a considerable number of turtles that I was happy to see weren't being eaten by locals. Exhausting day because of the considerable time spent commuting between dive sites in choppy seas in a small, dugout with bamboo outrigger pontoons - like the one in the background of pic 160 below. Anyway - that's about all there is to report re dives - so on to something more interesting.

The people of Lombok Island are known as Sasakss. They even have their own dialect which is unique to this island (as do the people of Ball).

One of the common foods eaten here are "sata" - pronounced satay. Like Thailand, these are beef or chicken pieces skewered on bamboo sticks and grilled on small charcoal grills. Unlike Thailand, pork sata's are not available - because Indonesian is an Islamic country.
Satas are served on the bamboo sticks with this incredibly good sauce. made of shredded young coconut meat mixed with a little chicken fat and cooked for 4-5 hours - it has a distinctive meaty taste. This is totally different from Thailand,'s satay sauce which is peanut based.. The Indonesian sata sauce is not thick like the Thai satay sauce. Instead it has the viscousity of a cream-based soup or bisque. It's delicious!

Also, unlike Thailand, Indonesian satas are served with sticky rice rolled up & intricantly tied in coconut palm leaves, and then boiled. The skewered satas are cooked on tiny charcoal grills. When served, you unwrap the rice which holds its shape (bc it's sticky rice) and dip it in the sata sauce. Satas are available on the beach - sold by vendors in fixed locations. Once and sometimes twice a day I go to my favorite beach sata vendor.

Photo: me and 2 of my beautiful beach buddies I befriended (with my "boyish charm") enjoying our lunch satas at my favorite vendor's site on the beach. When eating, you sit on straw mats laid on an elevated platform in a very communal atmosphere. Great way to meet and interact with locals - few tourists frequent these places. I hope that you can see and note the beautiful smiles of my beach buddies - Indonesian women are dark-skined, have silky/long/straight black hair, most have gorgeous white teeth, and their predominantly almond shaped dark eyes make them stunningly beautiful women. Again - I hope the attached pic brings out these striking qualities.

The Picture Says it all

Well almost all - doesn't really capture the bright reds of last night's sunset - but I thought I would pass it along anyway.

By tthe way - here sunrise occurs around 6AM and sunset about 6:30PM.

Lombok to Gili Islands, Indonesia

I spent the day going from Lombok to Gili Islands. Gili means island and there are 3 small islands off Lombok called Gili Air (smallest), Gili Meno (the middle and in-between in size), and Gili Trawangan (largest of the 3 Gilis). This pic was taken along the Lombok coastline as we road a powered dugout with pontoon outriggers on both sides! Note the dramatic coastline - that's an isolated thatched hut fishing village on the beach and volcanic mounts in the background. Incredibly picturesque - well it is in person!

We stopped in several places around the Gili's to snorkle. Reef was in sad shape - but fishes were plentiful in the medium/small size range. Strange was the fact that there were sea urchins!?! This pic was taken on Gili Meno where we ate lunch at a beach side restaurant. I had BBQ snapper with a sweet/sour sauce - fresh and delicious especially for just $2.50!

The Gili Islands have terrific white sand beaches and small accommodations - some but few with AC. They have no wells or cistern systems. Therefore, there is not source of fresh water for bathrooms and showers - they all use saltwater. for these purposes. If this had not been the case, I would have stayed there - but showering in saltwater bothers me too much. One benefit of not having any fresh water is because of its absence, there are no mosquitos!

Tomorrow I am doing 3 dives - and will be leaving the Blackberry at the hotel.

Lombok Island, Indonesia

I am staying at the Senggigi Beach Hotel on Lombok Island. It is located just 123 kilometer (about 72 mi) south of the equator and is really hot - but a constant trade winds makes it comfortable. Technically Lombok and Bali. Islands are the Java Sea. I have been here less than 24 hrs and am still getting settled. I will be staying here for a week.

1st photo: Me on the front porch of my Lombok Island's lodging - I say first bc I intend to move around while here. Bungalow has great AC, indoor and outdoor showers, nice front porch, very comfortable KS bed, refrigerator, and TV. Breakfast included.. Cost = $68/day including outrageous taxes of about 24%! And YES they have bacon! Not in the open at the breakfast bar - but you can order it and ham!

2nd Photo - the crib's landscaping is incredible - that's my bungalow to the right. That "mountain" in the background is a volcano - dormant for just 30 years!

The hotel beach - note perfect surfing waves - 2'-3', breaking perfectly from left to right, about 30 yds from shore. Many surfer dudes around – mostly Indonesians, but have also met some Aussies and South Africans.


me at the beach bar. I can't tell on BB if this pic is legible or not - I hope that it is ok!?

Arrived Safely in Lombok

Ends up that Lombok Island is in a different time zone - so the flight was only 1 hour 20 mins AND it was non-stop!Btw - I was wrong about smoking being allowed ANYplace in airports.

It turns out that you are allowed to smoke in any restaurant/coffee shop in the airport terminal - but NO where else! When I left the coffee shop with a lit cig in my hand I was descended upon by 3 heavily armed "policemen". Scared the s__t out of me! But they recognized I was yet another crazy westerner and let me go immediately after they took my cigarette away from me.

The incident was unnerving because Indonesians strictly enforce all their laws. For example - in bold, all upper case letters on their custom's form it states "Drug trafficing is punishable by death!" It's a little strange being in a muslim country again - it's been 15+ years since I was last in one for any length of time - and that was Turkey which is a very moderate Islamic country. For some reason being in one still makes me a little uneasy. I am looking forward to Lombok and Bali areas which are the only predominantly Hindu areas in Indonesia! I may even be able to get bacon here!?!?

Will get in touch again sometime tomorrow after I getting settled in at my hotel.

I've Made It To Jakarta!

I am now comfortably entrenched in my Air Conditioned hotel room near the airport in Jakarta AND data services appears to be working!

It was a long trip! I was told my flight was "non-stop" from HCM City to Jakarta - it was NOT! Instead it was a "direct flight" with a 1+ hour stop in Singapore!!!! At least I can add another country to my list of "been there done thats"!?
It's hot as blazes here - much more so than Vietnam. But my journey did cross the equator and I am now in the southern hemisphere! And technically I am on the island of Java.Jakarta is incredibly built-up. I am staying in a 3 star hotel because most hotels in the airport area are booked by 6PM every weekday! They drive on the left here - it was a little unnerving for a few minutes when we left the airport because Indonesia is primarily muslim - it will be a while before I'm able to get my bacon fix.

Maybe the black market will be a source!? I'm off to Lombok Island tomorrow!

A Big Mistake

At 10AM this morning, I decided I needed to confirm my flights to Indonesia. When I looked at the ticket I realized my flight left TODAY not tomorrow! I had less than 4 hours to pack, check out of the hotel, and catch a cab to the airport. And it takes 1 hour to get to the airport from my hotel!? AND you are supposed to check in for international flights at least 3 hours before departure!?!

I had also planned to meet with Linh and her father this evening to exchange gifts and say goodbye! I was NOT going to leave without seeing her! So, the first thing I did was call Linh who said that she and her father would meet me at the hotel before I left - which they did. Linh had made a wonderful gift, beautifully wrapped, for me she called "the bottle of luck and hope". It contains "lucky stars" and "hopeful birds" - stars for luck and safe journeys, and "hope" that all dreams will come true. She also included a beautifully written note. I shall always cherish both the "talisman" and her note.

Details re today's trip: I depart HCM City at 1:50PM on Garuda Indonesia flight GA869 arriving in Jakarta, Indonesia at 6:10PM. - a long flight! Because it was impossible to make connections to Lombok, I will have to spend the night in Jakarta
I depart Jakarta at 10:50AM tomorrow, Oct 15, for Lombok Island (Mataram Airport) arriving there at 1:40PM - another long flight!

I got things totally confused because my hotel reservation in Lombok didn't begin until Oct 15th! Stupid me!

Anyway, I thank God that I was able to meet with Linh before I left.
I made it to the airport on time and I am now waiting to board my plane.
I am assuming that I will have no data services connection problems in Jakarta and will check in with you then!

Saigon Hair Salon

I received several emails lamenting the fact that my haircut dispatch did not include a pic. So, today at considerable expense of time, effort, and VND (Vietnamese Dong), I re-created and captured the scene in a picture.

Regrettably, the pic is sans the attractive masseuse - who was taking a 3-day holiday. When the barber explained this - he also told me that she was his sister AND single.

Note that the pic includes the co-located restaurant in the background which is really located street-front. So, the barber is located deeper in the alleyway. Also note the tarps - the typical and only roofing for such establishments.
Btw - it was VERY difficult trying to explain to the barber what I was trying to do and why! I was his first and only "European" customer - so I guess he assumed that all the stories he had heard about "us" being a little nuts was true.
I. Hope you all appreciate the time and effort that went into re-creating and capturing this event in a pic!? Enjoy!

Vietnamese Haircut

The past few days have been "slow news" days. But I did have a "first time experience" today that albeit may not be truly news worthy - it was an interesting first.The last haircut I got just before I left the US - which was over 6 weeks ago. Needless to say I was getting a little shaggy around the ears. I couldn't find any fellow sojourners who had any Vietnamese haircut experience. There were several salons around my hotel that I checked - average costs around $6 - quite reasonable. I then asked my motorbike driver Hoang if he had any suggestions. I ended up going to his barber.

Found throughout most Vietnam, many barbers just set-up chairs and a stand with a tarp covering right on the street. The one Hoang took me to was in an alley and the space was shared with a pig intestine and ear street "restaurant" which had a surprising pleasant waffling aroma.Anyway - there was no electricity - everything was done with hand clippers. The barber had an attractive female assistant. While the barber cut my hair, the female assistant gave me a manicure and foot massage. He also gave me a straight razor shave which was followed by his attractive female assistant wrapping my face in a hot towel for several minutes and then her attending to the black heads on my temples.

The finale and biggest surprise/shock was an ear cleaning that the assistant did with a tiny, alcohol sterilized spoon! Duration = 90 minutes. Quality of haircut = not excellent but certainly Very Good. Total Cost = $1.50 but I also gave them a 30 cent tip - hey that's 20% by the way; the assistant commented on my clear, minimal black head complexion and clean ears! She and the barber really liked my mustache - many Vietnamese appear to be fascinated by it and comment on it. Although both the barber and his assistant wanted to trim my mustache - I made it very clear that only I did that!

Sorry I didn't get a pic - rain was threatening so I left the Blackberry in my hotel room - and yes it did rain.Well hey - what did you expect - I said it wasn't much of a news day!

Saigon Update

Hey everybody -
Some time has passed since my last dispatch and some of you have wondered if I had "disappeared"!? Rest assured - I have not.

Aside from the days I spent planning my Indonesian itinerary - I have spent most of my time hanging with friends here - primarily Linh's family (primarily her father bc she is back in school) and Hoang (and his friends) the motorbike driver.

Great news about Linh's internship paper (for which I provided minimal English editorial assistance) - she got the highest grade in her class! She was so worried about her grade. I hope to be able to celebrate her grade with her and her family this evening.

Vinh (Linh's father) works from 3PM to 3AM 6 days a week. He gets a 2+ hour dinner break each day - normally between 5PM and 7PM. During the past week, he has picked me up to spend this time together, sometimes with his family, eating and drinking coffee. Yesterday he picked me up early and had a surprise for me!

He treated me (and himself) to an elaborate 3-hr massage. It was quite an involved affair: 1) sauna; 2) hot feet soak (heated stones in ankle deep water - soak feet while sitting on benches); 3) steam bath; 4) soak in hot tub; 5) cold shower; 6) face massage; 7) cold green tea and fruit while sitting in massage chairs and; 8) topped off with a 1 hour full body massage by very attractive and friendly masseuses = total time just over 3 hours. I have had several of the classic 1-2 hour massages here - but they were nothing as involved as this experience. Total costs was about $22 each including tips. I picked up the tip tab for both of us - which represented only a small portion of the total costs - maybe 15%. Anyway - it was a terrific experience and I am very grateful for his generosity and thoughtfullness.

That's about it from this side of the world. I hope all is going well with you folks!