April 29th: One More Rest Day
Day 198
We planned to leave for Gili Meno as soon as Chopper picks up his visa extension, which will be ready tomorrow. The Indonesia visa extension was quite a long process and during the time being we were trapped in Kuta. The traffic, the aggressive street vendors and stifling heat kept us in our little sanctuary – our hotel room. We tried to be proper tourists by going to the famous surfing beach in town, and we were not inspired to join the surfing crowd just yet. Chopper got dirty stares from the local guys hanging out on the beach, probably mistaking me as a local girl being lured away by the white man.
The good thing about being stuck in a populated place in Asia is the infinite choices of cheap food. We found a little street stall selling egg, scallion, and mushroom stuffed deep fried pancakes, as well as thick dessert cakes topped with condensed milk, sugar, butter, chocolate chips and cheese. Needless to say we had enormous calorie surplus from this meal.
All the crowding and hassles made us excited for our getaway to Gili Meno. From what we have learned, among the three Gili islands, Gili Meno is the smallest and most quiet one. Without the party scene and huge tourist crowds, the accommodations are cheaper and the pace of life is slower. Before our flight to Darwin, Gili Meno would end our journey in Asia on a high note.