Swimming with dolphins in Mexico!!

Dolphin swimming, surfing, paddle boarding, good food, pinatas and sun.

We’ve been here aldready for two and a half weeks but we still have a few of days to go before we head back home. Yes, that would be back home to Finland, that cold and dark place on the other side of the world. Luckily we’ll stop over in Cali for a couple of days (to ease the transition) before the final destination. Eva’s not too exicted about going back to the cold even though we’re both happy to see all of our friends & family.

Even though it’s warm here, it’s not as warm as it is in Bali. The biggest difference is the water temerature and you need a wetsuit here if you want to be a long time in the water. Well, this was something we didn’t think about too much  and it ended up in a pretty lame thing…  Kalle got sick and was in bed for 5 days. This included New Years Eve and Eva’s birthday, fortunately he’s all good now so we get to enjoy the last days to the fullest. Eva’s been studying Spanish every day in a school called Costa Verde in Sayulita. Other than that we’ve just been relaxing and enjoying the end of our trip.

Here’s some photos of Eva’s dolphin swimming!!

We’d like to give  special thanks to Lalo, Johnny and everyone at Vallarta Adventures for hooking us up and letting Eva fulfill her lifelong dream of swimming with dolphins. I think everyone who knows Eva can imagine how her face light up like a Christmas tree when she found out she was about to swim with dolphins. Thank you very much!!!

Bye Bye Bali!

The last couple of weeks have been super busy with all kinds of happenings and things to take care of before we leave Bali: thus the late update. Eva’s cousin came just a few days before we left; we had the final exams (which went well) and the closing ceremony at school; and we even squeezed in a short trip to Gili Trawangan with Henna. Between all of this we’ve also had to take care of heaps of practical things such as paying electricity (not as easy as it sounds!), fixing the house, packing our stuff and getting our boards sent to Finland etc.

Firstly, we warmly recommend paying Gili Trawangan a visit if you’re planning a trip to Indo. Trawangan is mostly known for being a party/romantic/diving kinda place but in the end it’s what you make of it and in our opinion it’s just simply beautiful.  The girls (Eva and Henna) had decided they wanted some chick time and went one day ahead of Kalle. Trawangan is getting busier and busier and the girls were reminicing the times they were there back in 2005/2007 and comparing it to how it is now and how it has grown. So if you still want to see it somewhat mellow you better hurry. Unlike the Kuta beaches, the Gili beaches are clean from rubbish and the water is clear and turquoise. We went snorkeling a few times and managed to see 4 sea turtles! Those creatures are awesome!! Eva and Henna even saved a big turtle from getting tangled in an anchor rope. We also bicycled around the island which was kinda cool, ate a lot of delicious local ice cream and went to a cool lookout spot on the west side of the island. All in all it was a nice quick trip.

After the Gili trip we had the final tests at school and the final ceremony. We also went to a goodbye party that was held at the same crazy “Zoo Villa” that the Halloween party was thrown at. The final ceremony at Udayana included a traditional Balinese dance performance, though this time students were also welcome to participate. We chose not to (boring, yes, we know). After the dance we were handed our school certificates and it was time to say our goodbyes to our fellow students.

Everything good comes to an end at some point and we’ve reached that point for our time in Bali. It has been an AMAZING 7 months with new memories, new and old friends and a time ful of events and travels worth more than we can put to words. Surely, we’ve had our down swings such as  feeling home sick or feeling annoyed with the “shadows of paradise” but we still feel like Bali is close to our hearts.  It has almost become like a second home for us and we’ll certainly miss it. Saying goodbyes to friends and places is always difficult and sad…the good thing to know is that one can always return. Now it’s time to look ahead and enjoy the last leg of our trip which includes a three week trip to Mexico and a few days in Cali. What’s left to say is SAMPAI JUMPA BALI and TERIMA KASIH!!!

More pix; 1. the Freedom shop crew 2.Kalle and his board that Fudin painted, thanks Fudin! 3.Dinner with Kimmo & Farrah 4.Our home we’ll miss… 5.Henna and Kalle on the beach 6. Anni in the pouring rain

Sri Lanka III

We slowly started making our way toward the north along the coast and had planned on stopping in Midigama, Mirissa and Hikkaduwa. We were actually a bit disappointed on the waves and the places themselves. It seems like the tsunami did massive damage and although most of the places are getting on their feet they still need a big infrastructure facelift.

We stopped in Midigama where we looked for places to stay and Kalle borrowed an old board from a German tourist to surf. He caught one wave, then we had lunch, and decided that after seeing overpriced (not so nice) hotels,to head north towards Hikkaduwa. We managed to get a ride for free from a taxi driver who had dropped people off in Midigama and was now heading home to Hikkaduwa. Pretty crazy, but really nice. We spent a night in Hikkaduwa and weren’t too impressed. I think the problem was that we had really high expectations, and Lonely Planet really recommended many of the places we didn’t really enjoy.

We got on the train again and made it to Colombo after which we spent a couple days in Negombo (town near the airport) and then headed home. As you can tell from the photos, we really enjoyed our trip and saw some amazing things although we were happy not to have traveled with surfboards because the most beautiful places we saw were  far from the famous tourist beaches. Maybe it’s cause we’ve been in Bali so long that we really enjoyed being away from the beach and up in the mountains. Regardless, it was a super fun trip!

Here’s more pics!

Sri Lanka, Part II

So after Ella, we went down towards Yala Park. We had planned on going to Arugam Bay, but since we only had 8 days in Sri Lanka, Arugam would have to get skipped.

In Yala Park we felt like we were in Africa. In a beat up jeep we spent 4 hours cruising around the park, with a guide of course. We saw elefants, wild pigs, monkeys, crocodiles, peacocks, and many different types of birds.

After Yala we were in a hurry to start making it up the coast so we got on a taxi and went to Tangalla. It was only by coincidence and lack of time that we ended up in Tangalla, and although we only spent one day and one night there, it was one of our favorite places in Sri Lanka.

The place we stayed at, “Starfish Hotel” , was a beautiful little hotel right on the beach. Amazing fish dinners and a really friendly staff. The rooms were cheap and clean also. We loved it.

…..to be continued. Here’s some pics!

Sri Lanka, Part I

 

Sri Lanka is one beautiful country to say the least. Nature’s variety is incredible; there’s mountains, beautiful long white sand beaches, jungles and rolling hills with tea plantations. We wanted to make the most out of our 8-day trip to Sri Lanka and see as much as possible which is why we took the cab to Kandy from the airport right after we landed into Colombo. Our trip to Kandy wasn’t the eastiest due to Kalle’s sore stomach and fever that had suddenly started the day before in Singapore, but we made it.

When we first arrived to Kandy we were a bit worried since the town didn’t look that nice and it seemed as if there wasn’t much to see at all. We drove up a hill to check out some guest houses for vacancy but they all seemed to be either full or a bit too shabby. We were going to drive down to the main centre to look for cheaper accommodation when Eva spotted a guesthouse by the name of Castle Hill. The house was on top of a hill with a beautiful garden. It had a big lawn, with heaps of trees, flowers, butterflies and birds flying around and a majestic view over the lake……the works. The place was magical….but it seemed to be a bit expensive. As Kalle went in to ask for the rate Eva walked into the garden to look at the amazing view she fell in love with the place immedeiately. Well, the guesthouse wasn’t the cheapest, but it was well worth the money. Since we were only staying for two nights we opted to take it.

Staying at Castle Hill turned out to be one of the highlights of the whole trip. A really nice lady who owned the house cooked us traditional Sri Lankan food both nights. We got to know a lovely couple, who also stayed at the house; Roland & Beno, with whom we had the some of the funniest yet interesting discussions we’ve had in a long time. We went to see the Buddhist temple and the walked around the town, but our fauvorite attraction was the Botanical Garden. It was simply gorgeus; tall trees, beautiful flowers, plants and amazing plantations, gardens and so much more. You don’t need to be a gardener to appreciate the beauty of this place, it is just amazing. Neither one of us had ever seen anything like it. We almost felt like Alice in Wonderland .

After two nights in Kandy it was time to move on. We had tried to get train tickets to Ella in first class with the help of the butler (!) from Castle Hill but unfortunately only got tickets in second class. Luckily, the difference isn’t really that big……..except for the fact that in second class you may not get seats, which can get a bit heavy on a 7 hour trip. We only had to stand for about 50 minutes until we got seats, so it wasn’t that bad. The train ride to Ella was yet another amazing experience with beautiful sceneries changing before our eyes; tea plantations, rivers, hills, jungle, forest, mountains etc. When we arrived to Ella we went to see the waterfalls and after that called it a day.

Ella is more of a stop over city for travellers heading either west or south, with not that much to see. So, on the next moring we kept heading south to the national park, Yala.

To be continued…

Here are some photos from Castle Hill, the Botanical Garden, the train trip and Ella.

A.I. Memorial Paddle out

First off, we would like to apologize for the delay between posts, but we managed to squeeze in a trip to Sri Lanka for 10 days, and thus had no opportunity to update our blog. Many things have happened in the last 2 weeks and we will begin by what happened a couple days before we left to Sri Lanka.

Sad news hit the surf community a few days before our trip to Sri Lanka. 3 time world champion Andy Irons passed away from dengue fever, so we went to the beach to pay our respects to one of the best surfers the world ever saw.As a way for surfers and friends to show their respect for a deceased surfer, everyone takes out surfboards and paddles out into the ocean and creates a big circle of people holding hands. This is exactly what happened in Bali, where many of Andy’s friends and surfers who respected him as one of the best surfers in the world, got together and did the memorial paddle out.

Amongst surfers present were Betet, Rob Machado, Hans Hagan, Asher Nolan, Rizal Tanjung, Tipi Jabrik, Evan Slater, etc. It was a beautiful farewell to one of the best. Here’s some pics.

 

Halloween and the Top 10 restaurants (finally!)

Halloween isn’t really something the Balinese celebrate even though you might catch a few pumpkins here and there at the shops decorated windows, but that’s really the only thing you’ll notice. No small local kiddies walking around in costumes demanding candy, there are though a lot of local adults trying to get your money, but that’s just every day life – not Halloween.

To celebrate Halloween we had dinner at a nice Greek restaurant and from there went to meet up with a bunch of Finns at a Japanese restaurant. We chatted a bit with some friends and enjoyed a cup of green tea ice cream. After having paid the bill we went over to check out a big Halloween party that some of our friends from shcool were throwing. The guys that were throwing the party live in a really nice house complex where there are deer running around, there’s a nice swimming pool and there’s even a small area where there’s a crocodile. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to get costumes, even though Eva came up with the great idea to wear our brown raincoats which would’ve made us look like turds…. we didn’t. It was pretty cool to see everyone elses outfits and ideas!

Special mention to Love (yes, that’s his real name) from Sweden who managed to come up with the best outfit–a gay Robin Hood-. He borrowed his girlfriends tight black top, tight leggings and found a funny green hat and bow and arrow on the streets of Kuta. The cherry on the cake was that he put a cucumber in his pants for an extra added effect. Super simple yet super funny.

On another note, here’s finally the list of our top 10 restaurants in Bali! :

1. Zula- Hands down best restaurant in Bali. Healthy tasty food, their motto is “Nothing with a face or a mother”. Vegan heaven especially for us vegetarians, we go there at least 5 times a week.

*Try the mediterranean plate and the killer hot chocolate brownie with coconut icecream. (It doesn’t have eggs, dairy or sugar!)

2. Marzano- Italian food on double6 road. Nice ambience, tasty food.

*The Margarita pizza and penne pasta are a must try. Ask for some extra rucola with the pasta and you’re in heaven!

3. Made’s Warung – a big restaurant on Legian with live performances.

*The tofu burger and Mahi-mahi are delicious.

4. Chandi – an all organic fancy restaurant in Oberoi*. If we could afford to eat there more often we would.

5. The little green house – open for lunch only. A cute little café with tasty vegetarian food and great gossip reading material.

6. Echo beach restaurant – a nice seafood restaurant in Canggu. The restaurant is right on the beach with a lovely athmosphere.

7. Ultimo – another cool Oberoi restaurant were the prices aren’t skyhigh. Yummie Italian food!

8. Khaima – yet another Oberoi gem. Excellent Moroccan food.

Kalle’s choice for # 9. Warung Asia -Great Thai food, amazing desserts. Go there and you won’t be disappointed.

Eva’s choice for # 9. Ristorante Italia – As an Italian food lover this is yet another great place (not like Marzano, but almost). The restaurant is near the beach, there’s live performances and most of all delicious Italian food. Kudos to the Italians!

10. “The local Warung on Benesari next to Beneyasa” Cheap and tasty Indonesian food.

*Oberoi is a nice area in Seminyak with restaurants and shops a bit more on the expensive side.

That’s all for now folks, check out the pics!