Two Hundredth Posting!

And to think I still have words left...this is my 200th posting. Hooray!

First week of school is almost over. Abby's waiting to find out if she's in drama or not (drama queen needs an outlet) and Matt just signed up to play drums for band. Abby's PE teacher just found out that our daughter is quite a fast runner. It'll be interesting to see if she does anything with it this year. Matt is still hoping to join after-school hiphop. A friend of mine is training to be a Jazzercise teacher and so I got to practice with her this morning...it's a little similar to hip hop with a thai Bo twist.

Tris needs a bit of prayer. His shoulder muscles have atrophied a little bit and there are gaps in his shoulder where muscle should be. We have been spending a lot of time at the hospital lately while he gets a variety of treatments (usually 1 1/2 hours per visit...lots of waiting), and he does quite a few stretching and strength building exercises at home and at work. His muscles fatigue very easily and so by 10 am he is ready to lay down (the best form of relief for him) but still has at least 5 more hours of work ahead of him each day.

I am back to my schedule of trying to find a schedule. Who knows what is in store for this year, but I am looking forward to it.

Thanks for reading.

These Are The People In Your Neighbourhood

I went for a walk early this morning with my phone and mp3 in hand, but had no need for the music. It was just before everyone starts leaving for work and it was so lovely and quiet. The breeze was cool enough to be pleasant and the birds were singing high in the trees. There are some frangipane trees around and they've become my favourite flower because of their incredible scent. Lately I've been picking up ones that have dropped from trees and sticking them in bowls around my house. These frangipane flowers have been my motivation to head out in the mornings for a walk, and it worked today. Usually I walk with someone, but today I was alone. It didn't matter, because I felt like I was walking on Sesame Street or Little House or something, with all of the people I ran into even in the early hours.

As I was walking I ran into my friend's driver, Selamat, and so we walked and chatted for a bit. Once I was on my own again three ladies from the local village beside Lippo greeted me and one yelled "Canadian!" Not sure how she knew but she had a huge smile on her face. I vaguely remember chatting with some ladies in that area a LONG time ago about where I lived, etc, so it was probably her. When I heard them mention America I made sure I told them 'Not America...Canada is above." Gotta get that geography lesson in whenever I can. Further on I passed by a friend, a teacher, on his bike. It's really neat walking around and greeting people everywhere. A little reminiscent of Truman on "The Truman Show," now that I think about it.

Thanks for reading.

Hols are Over...Back They Go!

Holidays are over and the gang is back to school! Check out these photos and compare this year and last. I was using the lines on the door to see the difference in the kids' height. Tris hasn't changed too much, except for the tie and the sling. I am curious to see how much they've grown next year (if there is a next year here).

Some things just don't change and the fact that our kids love to pose will always be the same. Here's their 'catalogue' pose just for you.


Thanks for reading!

Last Day of Summer Holidays

We're on the last day count-down of summer. Tomorrow is the first day back for the kids. Matt doesn't know who is in his classes yet and is desperately trying to find out. Abby found out she's in Mr. Steven's class (he's the guy we came over from Singapore with...he's been in our earlier blogs). Most importantly to Abby, her 3 closest friends in grade 6 are in the same class. I think it's time to go back to school...the kids are getting a little stir crazy. I've just had them run the entire taman and do 10 push-ups each, just to get rid of some of their um...energy. Case in point, as I was writing that last sentence they came downstairs in weird get-ups, holding a guitar and a feather duster. They were calling themselves "Nerd Guitar Players," but unfortunately wouldn't let me take a picture. Thankfully we're going bowling in less than an hour.

I've been rereading our blog entries from last July onwards. It's time to organize the posts and get them printed and bound for the kids. Quite the emotional rollercoaster, I must say. It's hard reading your own writing; sometimes I sound whiny and at other times I sound arrogant. Hmm. Maybe these are areas I need to work even harder on. Reflection is so difficult!

One thing I realize is that some posts are ridiculously long and not very exciting at all. That'll be my new resolution for the upcoming school year posts: shorter posts.

Update on Tris: his shoulder is healing quite well. He's going to physio for basics and then comes home and does a more aggressive rehab from some things he's researched online (from reputable sites).

One of the things that I wanted to add to our reflection over the past year is: two of the funniest questions I have been asked since I came to Indonesia.

Question 1: How many caribou (buffalo) do you own? This was an honest question asked by a buffalo herder. He then asked me if I would consider adopting his youngest son.

Question 2: Is the Cannibas leaf the national symbol of Canada? Hmmm, that one got me pretty good. It was asked by an Indonesian national.


Thanks for reading.

Our Backyard in the Summer

It doesn't matter where you live, you can always have fun with a little space of grass, some paper and some twigs. Our backyard isn't that big and to tell you the truth, it's not that attractive. We've manicured a few of the stubby bushes that came with the house, planted a few leaf stalks of our own, and had the lawn replanted with mini gadja grass (small elephant grass). As I mentioned earlier, the kids worked for hours digging the hard clay and "planting" bricks in a line. If you look at the photo, we are slowly filling the dirt pit with white rocks. Why slowly? Because when we take our new car to the small roadside shops and try and buy bags of rocks, the prices skyrocket. When our driver buys bags of rocks when he's riding his 40 year old Vespa (really cool machine, really) he gets a hugely reduced rate. He is bringing them to work little by little. When the rainy season hits, we'll no longer have mud splashing us when we go outside.

When Dale O came for a visit she brought a huge bag of marshmallows and it's been sitting in our fridge, crying out for attention (ants would attack it in the cupboard). I've just recently cleared out our file folders and had some papers that needed to be burned. The kids got some sticks, made pointy ends and roasted some marshmallows over their little fire. They even got our driver, Haris, involved. He found some more sticks to burn and enjoyed a marshmallow or two with them. I loved the smell of the smoke because it reminded me of camping. I was going to get Tris to stick his head near the fire so I could smell the campsmoke in his hair later, but since he doesn't really have much hair I nixed that idea.

While the kids were in the backyard, Casper the friendly rabbit from across the street came for a visit. He's awesome, and even comes when you call him. When he heads our way we usually feed him a snack (but he doesn't like green beans) and then he heads home.

We are now thinking that it would be fun to have some chairs in the backyard even if only to enjoy on a Saturday morning. One thing at a time!

Thanks for reading.

A Year In Review

Today, Friday July 17th, 2009, is the first anniversary of our arrival in Indonesia.
Over the last week our family has discussed some of the highlights of our one year adventure and what they mean to us. Following is our year in review. Ironically, today is also the day when both the J.W. Marriott Hotel and the Ritz Carlton in Jakarta were bombed, with the intent (supposedly) to harm foreigners. At this point in time, nine people are known to have died. With this in mind, we know that although it seems like we are living in a dangerous place, we believe that this is where God has placed us, and we are thankful for the experiences we have had so far.

This photo was taken July 16, 2009. Check out the growth of the kids!!!

Some of the highlights in terms of travel for us are:
-spending time in Bali, especially on the beaches-Christmas in Lombok (an island east of Bali) with Kim's parents (Jim & Beatrice)
-Lombongan Island (tiny island you can visit when you head to Bali)
-Tris' conference in Tokyo
-Kim's history trip to Singapore
-several trips to Puncak in the mountains
-Jogjakarta (once with another family, once just Kim and Dale O)

Personal highlights:
-meeting some incredible friends here and living in an international community
-Tris feeling revitalized professionally
-Tris finishing his Masters in Educational Technology (MET)
-Kim deciding to apply for a Masters of International and Community Development (online)
-Matthew finally feeling like he is getting some roots here in Lippo
-learning and speaking a new language, even if it is just in basic conversation
-Matthew teaching himself the guitar
-Tris lives where there are palm trees (a dream of his)
-Abby loves school and has a good friend, So Young, who she is going to Harvard with one day (their dream).

Physical issues:
-Tris dislocated his shoulder and will be out of commission (no basketball, swimming or ultimate frisbee!) for at least 6 weeks, up to 6 months (depending on Doctor's orders)
-Kim got dengue fever in January
-intestinal issues
Considering we've been here a year this is quite a small list. Thank the Lord!

Unique Experiences:
-eating spicy food and learning to enjoy it over time (we all are still pretty lame, though)
-riding all modes of transportation: all sizes of planes, horse drawn carriages, becaks (man cycles behind the carriage), motorbikes with drivers, scooter with Tris driving, small boat where we have to carry our luggage through waves, skinny wooden outriggers, bus, taxis galore. We have walked an incredible amount, too.
-having a live-in helper who does our dishes, our laundry, the cooking and the cleaning. She also shops and makes sure our yard/driveway looks good.
-having a driver 1/2 time (3x per week), who, when not driving us around or doing errands, polishes our car to a shine.
-being surrounded by the islamic call to prayer daily.
-standing out in a crowd, even in the local mall.
-being able to eat out way more than in Canada
-hosting Grandma Bea & Poppa and later Dale O in our "new" country
-experiencing a 'mass exodus' of people in June: some moving to their home country, others just going away on a month holiday (usually to their home country).
-we have a lime bush...tiny limes that are used in sauces but a lime bush nonetheless.

Around our home:
-geckos (cicaks): in our dirty dishes, in our dishwater, on our counters, on our walls, dead in our microwave motor (2x), under our pictures. Their poop sticks to walls really well!!
-one snake, one bat (seems to be a permanent resident outside Tris' and my room), at least 3 lizards in our yard.
-one absolutely incredibly friendly bunny named Casper who comes when you call his name. He lives across the street and is adorable.
-thankfully, no spiders around our home to speak of.

Things we appreciate:
-God's direction and protection
-our driver and helper
-our new friends
-friends and family back home keeping in touch
-inexpensive teak and mahogany furniture that can be made to order
-time to enjoy life
-each other
-good international food
-incredible travel opportunities
-an outstanding Christian education coupled with International Baccalaureate curriculum

Things we've learned:
-adults CAN and DO get bored...just don't tell our kids that
-eating green jelly offered in the slums is NOT a good idea
-it's better to meet people and know they may be temporary than to keep to oneself and be alone.
-it's not easy moving away from your home, old life, family, friends, church and nature.
-a good attitude can get you far. A bad attitude stops you in your tracks making you unable to move forward.
-salt and vinegar chips are hard to find but delicious when you do!
-eventually, with patience, time and sometimes a good chunk of money, you'll eventually find what you need in Indo. It may not be when you want it but it'll show up.


I know that later I'll be thinking about this posting and think of a gazillion things I missed. Maybe I'll update later. However, I want to add a few recent photos before I sign off.
We don't know what, if any, child labour laws are like in Indonesia, but we do know that there are no family services here. Therefore, we've decided to assign hard labour to our kids before they go back to school. In this photo they're digging a small trench for some bricks to fit into. When it rains in our backyard the exposed dirt turns to mud and being clay-based it is extremely slippery and difficult to get off the walls when it splashes. We're filling the exposed area with rocks. Matthew is sitting on our 'deck' supervising Abby at this point. The dark slimy green line in the above middle is the water mark from our a/c; we don't know how to get rid of it. The racks are our clothes dryers. We've planted a few plants in the back to make it feel more like home, amongst some bushes that were already there. What you see is the majority of our backyard! A few days ago they were each assigned a bush and they were allowed to trim as they saw fit. We were quite impressed with their finished products.

The next photo, of crazy Abby, is to show you Abby's bump in the middle of her forehead. It is now almost 2 weeks old but still quite green. She got it while she was doing laps in the Olympic pool. Without her goggles she misjudged the side of the pool and hit hard (she swims fast...way faster than me!).

That's our year in a nutshell, plus a little more.




Thanks for reading!

Last Week of Holidays ends with a Crash

Last Sunday Tris headed to the coast with Bruce and another SPH teacher for a day of body surfing. I was hanging with Judy when we got a phone call saying that they were on their way home, Tris had had a bit of an accident and that he wasn't doing that great. I met Tris at our local hospital (Siloam) and waited 2 1/2 hours for him to be able to go under general anesthetic (he'd eaten and so couldn't go under immediately) in order for the orthopedic surgeon to relocate his right shoulder. While I was there I was needing to fill my time, so I wrote a bit on a scrap paper. Here is what I wrote (please remember that this is coming from a wife who experienced a year of my husband undergoing 2 back surgeries and the pain that came before, during and after these operations AND that we are now living in a foreign country where medical treatment isn't always trustworthy). I read it over a few days later and I sound so dramatic, but hey, I was traumatized. Here goes:

"Last week Tris and I watched "Nights in Rodanthe." Not only was it a stupid movie but it planted a seed in me and now that planting seems to be taking root and growing. The story is partially based on a surgeon who is charged for negligence in the death of a woman having a simple growth removed. The line I remember is when the doctor is talking to the husband of the dead woman, explaining that 'I've done the research and I don't know what went wrong. Deaths due to general anesthesia are one in 50, 000.' Now why would I remember a line like that, especially me, who is so unlikely to remember anything to do with numbers and statistics? As I sit outside the operating theatre, that line comes back to haunt me. What a STUPID thing to remember!

Tris went surfing at 4 am this morning, and I got a call around noon. He'd taken a tumble with a wave and a coral reef and figured he'd dislocated his shoulder. I met him at the hospital about 3 pm (he was 2 1/2 hours away when it happened); he was what I called "back surgery yellow," and had no shoulder. When he was initially injured he had Bruce's driver take him to a local clinic where he received x-rays, painkillers and a clean bill of health. However, even I could tell from the x-rays that the shoulder bone was NOT in its socket.

So, now I sit, waiting amongst a bunch of people who are in a variety of states. They all seem to be waiting for results for the same person. I'd say that there are about 35 people here. O, new ones have arrived. Maybe 45 now. The ICU next to the operating room lets one person in at a time with a visitors pass. I'm curious to know if they all expect to visit this man that security calls Bapak Ede (Mr Eddy).

To take my mind off of things I'm trying to people watch. Some things I've noticed are that there is a party atmosphere here outside of ICU. Curiosity has got me because even within this atmosphere there are people pacing and rubbing their hands. Another is that young guys have taken the chairs while the older ladies are made to stand. My final observation: my feet are HUGE compared to some of these teeny ladies' feet.

Tris will have to stay overnight because of the general anesthesia and I am praying he is not sharing a room with someone with a family as large as this!I tried to get him a VIP room (nothing too good for my husband) but they are all full.

As I sit here I remember the verse that tells me that every good and perfect gift comes from the Lord. Also, the verse that tells me to think on the things of God. I am remembering things that I have learned over the past year, over the past 5 years, and even 10 years. I know that we have had some trying events in our lives, individually and as a family, and rarely do we come out of it unscathed. However, with hindsight, we do come out a little stronger, closer and hopefully a little wiser and kinder.

Tris is still not out of the OR, but I'm not worried. When I live a life directed by God I know that our lives are in His hands. Rather than dwelling on the lines of that movie, I dwell instead on the lines of God's Word. He will keep me in perfect peace as my mind remains on Him."

Tris came out of the OR only an hour after he went in; no surgery was involved, only a little pulling and pushing, I'm sure. It's now 3 days later and he doesn't have a lot of pain, only discomfort and trouble finding a good sleeping position.

One final observation that I made while sitting outside the OR and ICU...people pick their noses a lot here. In Canada, I know people pick their noses because I have seen it as they drive by me in their cars, but here there's no shame in it, and it's a public sport!!

Thanks for reading.

Holidays Part III(back to Bali)

So, Part I and Part II are a little out of order, but read on a maybe I'll be able to fill in the gaps. While I was in Singapore with Judy, our husbands and children headed to Bali and had a few beach days before we got there. Tris bought a few body boards and so my family spent many hours in the sand and waves (sometimes both at the same time). Upon arrival Judy and I, on the other hand, spent more time under the umbrellas and in the shops than in the ocean. Our first stay was in Legian, which is where I would recommend if you like good surfing, good sand (some of Bali's beaches are white or black sand...Legian is great for castle building), good shopping and good restaurants. If you want peace and quiet, go elsewhere.

After Legian and Lombongan Island, we parted company with the Comries and headed to Amed, northwest Bali. Talk about quiet. We knew that ahead it was quiet, and brought along some books and dvds. The tv was teeny tiny but if we all huddled on our master bed we'd be able to watch. Speaking of the bed, the view from it was incredible. We'd part the mosquito netting, open the front doors and could see the rising sun. The sunrise shot I got was actually taken from outside and it's evidence of the first proper sunrise I've ever see in Indo. We were too busy reading and eating to take many photos, but trust me, it was lovely. A few things occurred at the boutique hotel (Anda Amed) that we stayed at that weren't quite up to par, but I won't use my blog to vent. Overall our experience there was great and we'd definately return to Amed if we were looking for a quiet, romantic Indo getaway.

No matter where we go, we always say amongst ourselves "I wish we could show this place to so-and-so (and you've all been named at one time or other!)" so hopefully you get a sense of what our experience has been like so far.

Our final destination was a place called Benoa, which is near Nusa Dua, the place where the Comries stay part of their time in Bali. We weren't impressed with the hotel at first...it's huge and seemed to be filled to capacity. There were naked people all over the place and a lot of them really, really liked each other. Needless to say we kept our kids away from the pool/beach area after dark...We didn't stay long, but near the end it seemed like about 2/3 of the hotel guests had left and so the atmosphere changed quite a bit.

We saw a wedding on the beach and that was nice. The photo is of the gamelan players (a traditional Indonesian instrument) who played during the ceremony. It was an Australian couple and they added a few Balinese touches.

Nothing much happened here except we finished a few books and we celebrated Canada Day here (all wearing our Canada Day shirts, mom!). We spent some of our time with the Comries in Nusa Dua, where the kids and the dads sailed a Hobiecraft in the afternoon. Again, Judy and I guarded the beach chairs with enthusiasm.

I think that although we took over 900 photos total, the ones here depict the general idea of our Bali (-Singapore) holiday. I hope that by checking out the last few posts a travelling seed may have been planted in some of you... (?)

Thanks for reading.

Holidays Part II (Singapore WWII tour)

Life is good. I just spoke to my good Scottish friend Ruth on the phone, which has inspired me to put on my Scottish bagpipe cd and sit and write my blog. Obviously Tris isn't here, or my bagpipe cd would not be on....he's gone on a day trip to the coast. He and Bruce Comrie and another fellow teacher have gone surfing for the day, possibly into tomorrow. The kids are upstairs asleep (after 9 in the morning! We are now in the 'teen stage' of life) and so it's just me, my music, my Epicure chai tea and the computer. Oh, and the cicaks running across the floor.

For my last post, I skipped the first leg of our Bali journey and went straight to my favourite part of the trip, Lombongan Island. Here is a rundown of the first part of our trip, which actually started with me heading to Singapore on my 39th birthday. I went with Judy Comrie and a bunch of grade 12 grads. When we got there we did a WWII tour of Singapore, mostly just highlights but I'd like to go again and do it even more thoroughly next time.

Our first stop was a POW cemetary called Krangi Cemetary. It's where the Japanese gave permission to the POWs to bury their dead. There are also over 24 000 names written there to remember the unfound dead. There were names from Canada, Scotland, South Africa, India (so many names from India...), Australia, Britain and so on. These men and women were Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Hindu and probably some unnamed religions. Being a Canadian, I have grown up so far from the tangible results of war. I have seen a small plot in cemetaries set aside for veterans who have passed away; I attend Rememberance Day services faithfully, cried even (partially because of the bagpipes at these services), yet have no idea what these men and women experienced. Being at Krangi made me appreciate even greater things like freedom of speech, freedom to worship, and the right to vote. There were a few things that really stood out to both Judy and I, and they were that there is an incredible respect in Singapore for the WWII dead. The cemetary is immaculate and very well-tended, even 60 years later. It is obvious that families in years after the war were able to come in and identify their family members. In doing so they were able to leave words to their loved ones on the white identity cross. One in particular caught me and made me cry. It was simple, but the family had written "He died that we might live. My son, my son." That particular lament, out of all the hundreds there, really hit me. One final observation was that most of the men (and a few women) were younger when they died than I am right now. I have outlived most of the lives represented in that cemetary. This kind of reflection always makes me think "what is it that I am doing with my life that will leave my mark on this world?"

Our second stop was to the Changi Chapel, which is a museum dedicated to the memory of the people who survived and those who died in the Changi camp. It wasn't a POW camp; in fact, it was more like a camp that, if there ever was a war here in Indo, my family would be put into. It held men in one area and women and children in another. If you've ever read James Clavell's "King Rat" this is the camp he is writing about (actually, he writes of the POW camp nearby that housed up to 50 000 people, but over time the name Changi has become synonymous to both). If you haven't read it, I recommend it to those who want insight into this kind of forced life. James Clavell was a survivor of this camp. When Singapore surrendered to the Japanese, all ex-pat civilians who remained in Singapore were put into these camps and held there for 3 years, until the end of WWII. The area used was originally built by the British to house 600 prisoners (pre-war prisoners) and ended up housing up to 3000. When boys turned 12 years old they were sent from their mom's prison camp over to the mens' side. I have a feeling most of these boys never saw their moms again.

I was such a geek going through all of these memorials. I had my camera at my side (which I was unable to use in the Changi museum) and my pen and notebook in hand. When I look at my reflections, I think that what most impacted me was the loss of lives and the brutality of the Japanese. Food was beyond scarce and forced labour was the norm. Many of the men in this particular camp were sent to even worse places where they were made to work until they died. There is a movie called Bridge over the River Kwai that is a popular Hollywood version of the building of the Burmese Railway. In the building of this "death railway," if I remember correctly, over 80 000 civilians like those taken from Changi camp died as forced labourers {aside: I've read other books on this event and the Hollywood movie version isn't all that correct...but it's still a good story}. If you are interested in the Southeast Asian side of WWII, these are some good names to Google.

Finally, we ended our tour at the Battle Box, where some of the ally bigwigs conferenced and finally decided to surrender Singapore to Japan. This particular military location was built as a bunker, into a hill. It was all underground and well-hidden. It was pretty awesome to be in "THE" room where it all happened. There were some incredibly life-like wax figures that sat around the conference table, where a re-enactment of the final decision-making occurred. Our small gang of students was quite impressed by the display, as were both Judy and I.

Hindsight is interesting. Imagine if Singapore didn't surrender to the Japanese. Would thousands of lives have been lost? What we learned during the tour is that although Singapore was in difficult times during the Japanese attack (they've always had to import their food and even water supply), they could have held off the Japanese. The Japanese General later admitted that the Japanese invastion of Singapore was a bluff; the number of Japanese soldiers to British was 1:3, and Japanese weaponry was low. If only the allies had called their bluff, who knows what turn the course of history would have taken?

I am going to let you in on a little secret. I know I said Lombongan Island was my favourite part of the trip, but honestly, I so thoroughly enjoyed this day in Singapore that it may tie with Lombongan. I am excited to one day take my family back to Singapore and do the total tourist thing: climb into a bus, camera around my neck, water bottle at my side, and pen and paper in hand, touring all the historical WWII sites within Singapore. I did that partially, but I'm looking forward to doing it all.

Thanks for reading.

Longest Holiday Ever in our Lives

We are back! I figure by the time any "regular readers" come back from your holidays and check us out it'll have been a few months since you read our last blog. I haven't touched the blog for over a month and so hopefully I won't drone on and on. I'll try and keep it interesting and I will do it the best way I know how: through photos.

The first photo is of Matt and Abby at the front of a fiberglass outrigger, which we took (with a guide) to check out a few snorkeling sites. I haven't snorkeled before, at least not properly, and it was awesome. Figured I'd have to search out the fish and as soon as I jumped in I was surrounded. My euphoria lasted until the 2nd stop, where I was feeding a school of fish some dried bread and one really big black fish came and bit me. The little turkey drew blood! The second photo is in between sites, with "Pingky" our guide at the back (spelling intentional).

The best snorkeling took place on Lombongan Island, and I think the views were quite incredible, too. I can't say that there were any BAD scenes in Bali but Lombongan Island stole me. Tris and I, along with Bruce and Ben, rented some scooters and bombed around the island. We saw isolated white sandy beaches, abandoned (because of bankruptcy by Australians) hotel footprints in perfect locations, seaweed harvesting during low tide (used for cosmetics and seaweed jelly for consumption...blech), and finally, a beautiful sunset that I couldn't quite capture on my dinky digital camera. I love the background of Bruce & Ben's photo because of the layout of the squares of drying seaweed, the palm tree shadows on the road, the grass hut and the blue of the ocean and mountains in the background.



















Our villa was high on a hill, and the volcano photo you see is the view from our bedroom. We could lay in bed and that's what we'd wake up to if we kept our doors open. My favourite time in each day was when Judy and I would get up before everyone else and take a walk. One morning we walked through the lower village along the sea, and after that we found a road that took us into the upper village. Compared to where we normally live, the air was so fresh and "oceany," and sometimes we'd even get frangipane or some other flower on the wind.


In the seaside village we saw so many people harvesting seaweed; some were sorting it, others spreading it for drying. It's like the work was never done, because even at 4 in the morning we'd see lights bouncing on the ocean while families collected their weeds. In the upper village people it seemed like people were friendlier, and we're not sure why. Judy and I have a variety of theories relating to religious oppression in the lower village, prior idiot tourists passing through and just plain exhaustion from working all the time. Regardless, it was kind of sad.




















Our villa itself was great. The Comries had their own bedroom/bathroom and so did we. Because each room had only one double bed, we kicked....um....suggested to our kids that they camp out in the main living area, where there were two large day bed/couches and one foamie. They were quite happy to because technically, they were sleeping outside. There was a roof but no walls, and they could wake up with the sun. My one concern was not really that valid, and that was that they don't sleepwalk into the 5 x 3 meter pool that was in the front of the living area. Now, a pool in our living room was COOL!

It was a really difficult time for the kids...there was no tv and we limited movies. Unfortunately, all there was to do was to swim in the ocean, snorkel, collect shells, swim in our own pool or the public one below (each hotel has its own small pool), read, play ping pong, play games and talk. They were trying times but the kids were troopers.

Did I mention the option to sleep was also available? I think we napped 3 times a day on that leg of our trip. The photo of the girls and their big hair was probably taken around 2 pm, and they were still in their pjs!

There is so much more to share with you, yet I think that I'll just stick with Lombongan Island for this posting. The final photos are of us and our mode of transport to the island from Bali...we had to watch the waves and make a run for it, sometimes with a little help from the locals.

Thanks for reading!