"Don't go to Bali!"

On the arrival, in Denpasar, you'll know that you are on a different planet, even if we already had travelled a lot in South East Asia, here everything is so different.

From the first glimpse through the windows of the hallway to the exit, you'll see wonderful crafted statues and you feel something special in the air, you can't define it, but it's present, and will be all your stay. It will only take a couple of minutes in a swimming pool to forget about the long journey to the island.

On the first day just relax and head for the beach, enjoy a ride on a surfing board, or try the body board if you are not sure. Then, after that, start exploring all that the island has to offer. We only saw a little bit of it, and it took us 18 days to do it.

A visit to Besakih, a moonlight dinner at Jimbaran, a stroll in the streets of Ubud, an excursion to the volcano, ... so much to see but so little time. The cultural is also omnipresent, Gamelan orchestras rehearsing, Kris dance, and music is everywhere. We even had the chance to attend a cremation, this is an amazing experience, you have to see it at least once.

I could spend hours trying to describe our life on the island, how friendly the peoples are (I could provide you the name of our cab driver, he knows some incredible places), how that trip has affected our lives, but you have to figure it out yourself ...

So, then, why do I say, "Don't go to Bali"? Simple, because now I bought an extensive collection of Gamelan and Suling (bamboo flute) CD's, and I really feel bad when listening to them, because I'm 15000km away from our hotel room ... and I really miss it. We think about it at least once a week, even after more than 6 months.

Anyway, we loved every second of it and will be back, oh yes, we will.

Oliver Van Loo