Day 203 to Day 208
We could write a long detailed blog about how we loafed away the days like leaves of grass but all of that lying around would take a lot of pages. That is if we could even seperate the days into distinct periods between sun up and sun down. Our most stressing day involved moving 50 meters down the beach to a bungalow at Amber House that caught the rising sun and the ocean winds.
Following is an incomplete list of the things we did. We ukulelied and sang. We played many games of Chinese checkers, some of which I won. We ate cheap delicious pancakes, noodles, gado gado, urap uraup, and grilled fish at Yaya. We ate even cheaper sweaty lunches inland at a local warung run by a fit martial artist in his 60’s and his portly wife.
We swam in the ocean to cool off. We snorkeled where the steep morning light threw rods into the hard blue of a steep drop off. We snorkeled in the afternoon where the light soft and diffuse illuminated the swirling inhabitants socializing in their coral apartments; until a menancing barracooda brooding in the distance cleared out the city. We snorkeled in choppy waters and accompanied an enormous sea turtle nudging rocks and gliding over grassy plains searching for his evening meal.
We met Marco, a young gentle-souled Italian cyclist living with other down-to-earth travelers in a tent city. We chatted with the locals. We drank rice wine and watched the sun set. We read in a hammock and watched the sun rise. We drank coffee and green tea. We slept in. We showered to in our salt water shower, when the ocean was too shallow or too far. We read. We sang. We relaxed.
Just a few details. Many of the the cheap places on the sea will soon be replaced by more expensive places. This was Amber house’s last season as a budget hotel, as well as the place next door. Although the higher end places will bring in more money for the locals and better rubbish removal and sanitation. We hear a desalination plant in on the way. Most budget places have salt water showers. Hopefully the quiet will stay in Meno, and the party will stay at Gili T and and Gile Air. Nonetheless, most places are still very affordable and peaceful. We recommend it, and Cher states she could live there.