Indonesia, Malaysia & Singapore, November 2022 - Part 5

So we were off to an early start today. 06:00 wakeup call to shower and pack the last bits and pieces. 06:45 the bell boy came to collect the excessive anount of luggage we carry. At the reseption all good and we could check out with no problems. The kitchen had barely opened, so we had a breakfast pack that we took along, or what was left of it as we had most of it while waiting for the transport to arrive. We were the off, and about an hours drive later we arrived in Pelabuhan Padang Bai, where we were checked in and got our boarding passes for the boat. Getting to the pier, paying our harbour dues 5DKR/person, we could board the boat. Looked very much like the ones we used to get to Tioman, or to Bintang with Jens back in the day. Big difference though was that it was outboard engines... 6 x 250HP Suzuki outboards... They guzzle oil and gasoline as there is no tomorrow! The boat wasn't bad though, and the AC did actually work, to some quite comfortable level. We chose not to sit on the artificial grass topside and get a wet bum :-) The trip took about 1.5 hours to Gili Trawangan, which is the biggest and busiest of the Gili Isles, the party island we heard, then we went on to Gili Air, and then finally to Pelabuhan Bangsal, where we were met by the Resort driver.

The panorama backdrop towards Bali.

Once arrived at the Hotel we got a welcome dring, ice tea?, a flower necklace like in Hawaii, checked in and had to sound the big gong at the reception, and last but not least we had to join a WhatsApp group. It is a group with the resort staff and us, no other clients. The push all information to us, both practical and commercial information, and must say, not a bad idea at all. Then we were finally shown around the resort, and led to our DeLuxe Suite with plunge pool. Here we were met by the resort manager, who offered us the possibility to have a look at one of the villa with pool in frontline, and against all expectations he gave us the key to the villa! No complaints from our side!!!

Jannie kept up apperances for a little while, but then it was getting to the point where the question was: When can I finally unpack!

The resort is a bit rundown in the corners, but staff if doing their utmost to make us feel at home and super welcome, and in the end that carries a lot of weight, so so far we are very happy with the choice.

We also managed to get all the PADI paperwork out of the way, get a did in the pool to adjust weights and conclude that batteries in transmitters also need changing after a few years of inactivity... So all that done, and boyancy totally under control, we are heading out to dive at 09:00 :-D

After a bit of relax on the beach/pool it was time for a shower and then candlelight dinner on the beach. Grilled salmon for Jannie and grilled Mahi-Mahi for me... Mashed potatoes and fresh sauteed veggies... Absolutely fantastic...