Another easy ferry ride. You would think we were somewhere else on a different ferry system it was so nice. We found a great resort in Candidasa, The Bali Shangrila (Seascape) Beach Club, for $20/night and would stay for 5 nights. Our room was in the corner facing the pool with a great view of the Indian Ocean. The second night there we met a couple of Ozzies, John and Maxine, and would spend a few days hanging out with them. They rented some snorkeling gear and a private boat so we could head out and see some of the fishes and coral just off shore. We had a great time with them and I know our paths will cross again, somewhere. There were several options for food in the area so we just hopped around trying different dishes.
We have a riding mate in the UK, Nigel. His wife and two daughters happen to be in Bali at the same time we were. Melanie texted Debbie to find out where they were and they just happened to be two doors down. One of the evenings we went over and had dinner with them just to say hi. It was fun seeing them.
The next stop for three nights was Sanur, just 50 kms down the coast. The Puri Gopa Hotel, US$20/n, is family owned and surrounded by traditional Balinese architecture. It is just 100 meters to the Ocean where either direction was street food cooking fresh fish and other Balinese dishes. Just on the other side of the pedestrian waters edge walkway were tables and chairs directly on the beach. This was a perfect place for people watching and dining.
On our second evening there we walked to a restaurant called The Clubhouse. This was a “biker clubhouse” and offered the best steak and burgers in the area. They had several old bikes on display and had a pretty good vibe.
We were just leaving when I got a DM message from a mate from Australia, Ed Surman, and a photo of our bike at the hotel. Seems him and his partner were walking back to their hotel and saw the ADV stickers on the panniers. He recognized the bike and we met up with him at the corner Japanese restaurant. We had met Ed years ago at our first Horizons Unlimited event in California and was one of the people that inspired me to start traveling the world.
He was on his world ride. We were camped along the fence line, just in awe of what we were discovering, international overland motorcycle travel. Ed was just doing his thing. Morning yoga, playing his didgeridoo and ukulele. Little did I realize how this chance encounter would affect us.
Years later I still think of those days. I now carry my ukulele around the world and hopefully inspire other to go, just like we did.
The next morning we hopped on the bike to explore an area at the bottom of Bali called Nusa Dua. This is an area of extremely high end hotels and has a Disney World feel to it. We were on an old big bike in our dirty jackets (travelers, you know š). After being stopped twice by security officials, (a first for Indonesia), we just decided to leave. We then rode across the peninsula to Uluwatu Temple. The views of the cliffs were great, like the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland, but the temple wasn’t much, a little disappointing. We rode back to the hotel and headed to the beach area. The beach here was a bit dirty with a lot of trash in the water, something we hadn’t seen on Bali. In front of the resorts were men with big scoop nets trying to clean the immediate area for the guests.
The next day we would head to Ubud and check out the area. We still have about two weeks left on our Visa before heading to MotoCamp.
Cheers,
2WANDRRs
2WANDRRs 
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