Bali!

Bali was the first stop on our journey through Asia, and we stayed in Kuta, which is known for being extremely chaotic yet very touristy. The majority of people are Australian bogans getting trashed, as Kuta is to Australia what Magaluf is to England. We stayed at a hotel where there is a bar in the swimming pool so spent quite a bit of time drinking Bintangs in the sunshine. The streets surrounding the hotel are so intense with people everywhere saying hello, trying to sell things, even shouting some quite rude things and grabbing our hands. After a couple of days we got used to this and began to relax a bit when we ventured outside the hotel. The humidity has been easier than I thought it would be to deal with, although can get a bit too much when in bars and clubs. We found a great reggae bar where we could enjoy Indonesian covers of reggae classics whilst smoking flavored Shisha. (The strawberry tasted like the smell of 'My little pony'!)
We had massages in the shade on the beach, drank cocktails, and sunbathed. Living the dream!

It is very cheap to hire drivers over here so we went on a few trips. We saw some traditional Balanese dance called Balong; it was great fun. They acted out a story which at times was quite hard to follow but they gave us a piece of paper letting us know the basics. We then went to a place where women made the most amazing pieces of art on material using batik. I wish I could have taken photos but cameras were banned in the shop which is a bit of a shame as they were so beautiful but quite expensive. We also stopped in to see the surrounding gardens of a temple which was absolutely beautiful. I wore a long skirt, but was worried I was going to offend people as I still had my shoulders out. The guide said that it wasn't a problem though as we weren't actually entering the temple. Jess was given a sarong to cover up her legs which we were allowed to borrow for a small donation. We washed our faces in the holy water which on one side is meant to give you youthful skin, and on the other good luck. I washed my face in both so hopefully I will remain wrinkle free and lucky!
Another place we went to was a coffee plantation where we got given samples of loads of different coffees, cocoas, and teas. We also drove to a mountain where we had a beer looking at the amazing views.
We went to see 'monkey forest' where there are loads of monkeys you can get close to and feed bananas. This was fine until one mother monkey got stressed out and bit someone, then soon after one jumped on me. I have had my rabies shot, but I'm not  willing to test it out!
It is so cheap here - a nice change from expensive Australia, and the food is amazing (although I had a bit of an upset stomach today I don't know if it is the food or the beer).
We fly to Jakarta tomorrow, which is apparently less touristy so will be an adventure.