First night in Padangbai we braved the hairdressing salon. A bit nerve racking for me trying to communicate when we speak different languages but it is better than it was! Then tucked into lots of good food, fried potatoes, just can't go passed them. Next day we hired a motor-bike and went about 100 km up & around into the hills & checked out a few tourist places & Hindu temple. I found the whole motorbike ride quite stressful, the traffic has increased 10 fold & uncomfortable on the bike. And seemed so fast. But Trevor did ok managing to weave in & out of the traffic & not get lost. Very noisy & everyone here wants your money. Got stopped by a policeman & had to pay him $10... They stop all tourists on bikes, policemen are known for being corrupt in Bali.
Next day we headed off on our bikes and decided to get off the busy coast road so headed up of course. 4 km of busy rd then 10 km straight up. Actually managed to get a pic of Trevor pushing his bike, I must have been in front... You know it is a big hill when you can not hear the motorbikes, they just come around the corner coasting down the hill. Bali is picturesque, the Hindu shrines, flowers, tropical plants & lush bush all stand out after the dry islands we have been on. The houses are quite ornate & obviously the tourist $$ has lifted the standard of living for some.
A massive climb with a bit of pushing involved & I was at one stage wondering why I had been so quick to stop my bike going overboard on the ferry??
Finally made it to the top, quite cool, our shirts were dripping with sweat & we actually started to shiver in the shade. Ate at the top in a quiet little village then an awesome downhill ride almost to sea level, then up through the rice fields through a pass and down to Jemeluk. We found a lovely place right on the beach. So 60 km. Apart from the hill really felt like we were riding our bikes rather than just sitting like lumps of lard melting under the Sumbawa sun! Think I just needed the 1000km training. Arrived about 2 pm then snorkelled straight off the beach. Then got talked into a massage, right there on the beach recliners, $6 for an hour. Pretty good. Dinner sitting right on the beach as well.Great day!
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