Meeting Fellow Travellers In Bali: We're Not So Crazy After All

THURSDAY

3:50pm - playing on the beach, waiting for our guests.

4:15pm – hmmm, maybe they are lost.

4:20pm – call from Going Anyway – we are here, where are you?

4:30pm – talk to a local and find out there are two different beaches with Seafood restaurants… we are at one, they are at the other.

4:40pm – call from Lemonade from Lemon’s stuck in Bali traffic.

5:00pm – we are all at the right beach at the right time and the fun begins…

Thursday evening we headed to the famous Jimbaran seafood BBQ Beach again. It’s our 4^th time, but we can’t help it. The sunsets are amazing, the atmosphere warm and inviting and the food… well it’s all about the company, isn’t it?

We were very excited to be heading there to meet two families we have had contact with online. We have found their blogs to be both inventive and inspiring and other then what will I wear and how will I recognize them, I was very exited to be able to meet them and pick their brains!

As I mentioned above Jimbaran Bay is actually quite extensive and it turns out there is a Bawang Merah Beachfront & a Kedonganan Beachfront. We were at Bawang & Going Anyway was at Kedongnanan. Thankful to the local who let us know this we moved from our beach and headed to the Kedonganan. This beach, although in the same bay is much more touristy. The tables have tablecloths and are not as close to the water, but it has atmosphere. There were live bands, plenty of corn sellers and boats. Boats on the sand, boats in the water, gorgeous. Oh and the airport is so close. You cannot hear any planes, but the blinking red and blue lights make a gorgeous display in the dark, as they seem to just hover above the dark water.

As we walked onto the beach I immediately spotted the two western couples with thousands of children. In reality there was only 6 children, but it seemed like thousands. We were quick to exchange handshakes and names. I am ashamed to say I remembered the adults name, but lost track of the who’s kids were who and their names, maybe next time.

What I do remember is that Joel & Cindy from New South Wales, Australia had brought 2 out of 3 of their children, 2 boys in black singlets. One with adorable glasses and the other with a mop of blonde hair. Chris & Gill from Perth, Australia had 5 children. 3 of them were running around playing, 1 in the most amazing wheelchair I have ever seen and the newest member snuggled closely to mum in his carrier.

My little Miss took awhile to join in the rambunctious play, but her eyes lit up when they started building a sandcastle. And soon 16 little hands were busy slopping wet sand and dry sand into a mound.

While the children were busy we all started talking at once. Where we were from, how long we had been travelling and where we were going. We found a restaurant suitable for everyone’s needs and sat down with a 40% discount promise. 

The food took a long time to arrive and was fairly staggered (Bali has yet to really grasp the concept of all meals arriving together), but the company was grand. We had a lovely time talking with other Australian’s and I was thoroughly enjoying watching my two children interact with the other kids and get fully covered in sand.

8 o’clock came too fast and my children were soon teary and crying. We had to make a move to get them back home to bed. We said our goodbye and farewells and thanked everyone for an amazing night. We look forward to bumping into them again somewhere around the world.

Find out more about our dinner party guests from their blogs:

Lemonade from Lemons

Joel & Cindy and their 3 boys from Australia. They have just started their journey, first stop: Bali.

Going Anyway

Chris & Jill and their 5 kids from Australia. They have already been on the road for 4 years. Their oldest daughter (quadruplet) is in a wheelchair and it’s really remarkable what one can do when they decide to just go.

SATURDAY

8:30am - decide to splurge and go to 4 Seasons Resort, Jimbaran for breakfast, cost a fortune, best breakfast ever!

10:00am  – decide to leave for Ubud, 1.5 hours should be plenty of time

11:00am – still in traffic

12:00pm – 2 hours later arrive in Ubud, hit the Ubud Deli and get some fresh bread made on the spot to take to our lunch date

12:30pm – over an hour late, finally arrive at the King’s residence in Ubud

Another eventful drive to visit some more amazing travelling families. We have loved reading A King’s Life blog and when they invited us to lunch we could not resist. With an hour drive ahead of us we packed some pillows, snacks & toys in the car and started on our way. Little did we realize Saturday morning traffic was horrendous?

When we finally got to Ubud, it’s like entering another lifestyle. Immediately the traffic and buildings fell away to be replaced by walls of greenery, trees, rice paddies and a massive drop in temperature. We stopped off at Ubud Deli for some fresh loaves of bread (they cook them 80% and then when you arrive they cook them the rest of the way for you). 

We found the King’s house relatively easy, parking on a road with loads of restaurants and heading down a pedestrian/motor cycle path for approximately 300 meters until we saw a whiteboard with ‘This is it! The King's Residence' written on it with our names and a familiar face… Cindy & Joel also had come for a visit. 

After apologies and introductions we all tucked into some amazing food. Pasta and salad from the King’s, fresh bread and feta from us and a fruit platter from Cindy. I haven't had a home cooked meal for 2 months and I felt like I was in heaven, everything was fantastic!

The King’s have two children, exactly the same age as our 2 children and with Cindy & Joel's 3 children, this time we totaled 7 kids. They swam in the pool, quickly showing my daughter how to swim without her floaties and she was joining the boys jumping in the pool on kickboards, no floaties. When she fell off she simply doggy-paddled to the edge, hoped out and went again. I am so in awe of what 2 months in the water have done to my baby and the good peer-pressure of fellow children.

The adults just talked and talked and ate and talked. The King’s had been travelling for over 2 years and were a wealth of information on where to go, what to pack, how to go. The place they were in was magnificent and they had decided to rent for the year. They also had a security guard and a chef. The chef introduced herself while we were there, she would be doing 3 meals a day plus snacks for $200 a month – all of a sudden I thought “oh no, we should be staying in Bali!”

The day went so fast and soon we were saying goodbye to Cindy & Joel who had also found a place in Ubud to stay for a while. The King’s were so hospitable that lunch turned into dinner and finally at around 7:30pm when the kid’s had all been worn out we said our goodbyes.  

With all this travelling and meeting people just randomly via blogs and Facebook forums we count ourselves lucky to count these guys friends and we know we will definitely hook up with them, their sweet American accents and gorgeous 2 children again soon.

The children were asleep within minutes of the car starting the journey home and thankfully the traffic was minimal and our 2 hour journey to Ubud was little less than one hour home.

A King’s Life

Sabina, Keith & their 2 children sold all their suburban stuff in order to live the travel dream. They have been on the road for over 2 years, birthing their youngest in Costa Rica!

After meeting all these other families travelling like we do, maybe we're not so crazy after all.