Bali, Gili, Nusa

Hello!
I'm writing from a cozy bungalow by the pool at 10pm on a little island called Nusa Penida. Obviously there is a lot to catch up on.

My experience since arriving to Bali in early November has been nothing but magical. My volunteer organization, North Bali Reef Conservation, is so structured yet open, local yet internationally rich that I feel I have everything I need here. I've extended my stay by two weeks and now I will be flying to India on December 15. The organization's English school, Yayasan Widya Sari, is truly one of the most wonderful places on earth. From the day after I arrived, I have been teaching two one hour long classes of 8-10 year old Balinese children, 4 days a week. My students are so purely happy to be learning English and their excitement makes it impossible not to walk into class smiling every day. Wednesdays are culture day, when me and the other volunteers put on our sarongs and join the kids in a local cultural activity in place of classes, such as making offerings with coconut leaves or collecting and burning plastic on the beach. When I'm not in class, I'm sitting at the big outdoor table with my friends and playing card games or Catan, talking, watching Etienne make friendship bracelets and eating the delicious meals that the organization's cook makes with love 3 times a day. Maya, Etienne, Bastian, Jules ("Baltsi"), Emma, Sarah, Julia, Alica, Charlotte, Saskia, Yael, and more have made amazing friends. No matter what the time of day I can always find someone to talk to and possibly crank out a quick game of Swedish poker. The volunteers from all around the world have built their own weekly traditions. Sunday is poker night, Tuesday is karaoke night, Wednesday is when practically the whole organization takes a few taxis to Wawawewe beach bar in Amed. Every night there, the same band plays a live set of American dad rock music. These little traditions have made me so many incredible memories with my fellow teachers. It's not only the teachers at the organization that I've gotten to know, though. Some ten meters away from the teacher table is the camp of "the Marines" (the volunteers who work in reef conservation). There's a sort of friendly rivalry going on between the two volunteer groups, but I love the marines. Elias, Mees, Mike, and a lot more whom I can't remember are like our friendly neighbors. We keep to ourselves except for on Wednesday nights of course, and on the marines' volleyball court during the current volleyball tournament that Elias is organizing. Me and my teammate Ryan, who is a Yayasan student related to the camp cook in some way, have won the first match and are moving on to the next round. I could go on and on about the beautiful little things about life at camp, and so I think I will.

Over every three day weekend, most all of the volunteers leave the camp for a weekly excursion outside of Tianyar. Last week, I went with Jules to Gili Trawangan. The Gili islands are a group of three islands off the coast of Lombok. On Friday morning, we took a 90 minute ferry from Bali and booked a cute little hotel on the island. Immediately, I was hit by the signature Gili vibe. A blog I read called Chatelaine put it very nicely, so I'll paste it here:
"Gili Trawangan, one of three Gili Islands off the coast of Lombok, Indonesia, is a strange place to be. It’s a place where you awaken at the crack of dawn to a mullah’s call to prayer and fall asleep to the sound of techno beats. It’s a place where the locals wear hijabs and the tourists are clad in skimpy bikinis; where the only mode of transportation is a horse-drawn carriage, but where the locals sit under trees sending their friends instant messages..."
This was my first weekend excursion since arriving at the organization, and for the first time I really appreciated how free I felt despite being commited to one place 4 days a week. Jules and I enjoyed the food of Gili's main street on the beach, rented bikes and explored the bumpy dirt roads, and went snorkeling in the crystal clear water. By the time we were back I was more than ready for another week of card games and classrooms.

One week later, and here I am in Nusa Penida with two more amazing friends. Yesterday we got comfortable and then took another short ferry to an even smaller Nusa island: Nusa Lambongan. There, we rode in the bed of a taxi and explored the islands beaches, where Emma and I made a little town out of sand and coral. We had to dig a giant moat in front of the town after it was devastated by a large wave or two. In the afternoon, our taxi driver recommended we see the Amarta sunset point. This was a luxury tourism experience, with patio sun beds, an infinity pool with a bar overlooking the ocean, and high quality service and food. All of this came at the price of about 8 Starbucks iced coffees. Munching on my Nasi Goreng (fried rice) and watching the sunset from the pool with my friends was a spiritual experience. I feel so indescribably grateful to have access to experiences like this. Today, we woke up at 9 and have been sight-seeing ever since. We hired a tour driver to take us to all the best locations where we took too many photos. At the last stop, my disappointment by the fact that the snorkel rental place had closed was almost immediately diffused when I turned around and saw a circle of happy Balinese men passing around three guitars and a cajon and playing rock, blues, and reggae on the beach. When I approached them to compliment their music, they ushered me to sit down with them. Naturally, after listening for a song or two, I joined in (when I knew the words) and even did some beat boxing. There was nothing but pure joy and love around that circle, and tourists from all over the beach came to watch them play and give them tips. Everyone nearby was singing with no shame and wide smiles across their faces. My group of 3 even made 2 more friends, Jimmy and Florencia, with whom we had dinner when the music was over. Today was one of the most memorable days of my time in Indonesia, and tomorrow I'm happy to return to Bali.

Everything for me is in balance here. I'm eating healthy, getting plenty of exercise, writing, relaxing, having fun and putting in work. I have the ability to meet so many new people and decide what kind of people I enjoy spending my time with. I even went down to Ubud last week and met up with my good friend Lily from Colorado! We drove around on her scooter for hours and got tattoos together at Bali Bagus studio. Seeing the streets of Bali and feeling the crisp air blow past helped me decide to rent a scooter of my own. I make music, I do yoga, I talk to my friends back home, and make new ones. I play games, write stories, go on runs and eat cake on the beach with Saskia and Charlotte. I cannot possibly be more grateful to Nova, Sukma, and all the organization's taxi drivers for making my time here just about perfect. I think balance is one of the most important things for me during gap year, and that is the exact reason why I've extended my stay. From the dirty yet adorable dogs that roam around the camp looking for food to the spontaneous water gun fights across the table to the love and hospitality I receive consistently from the Balinese locals, I think this place loves me as much as I love it. I will never run out of all sorts of things to say about Bali, and I will only be doing more exploring and learning in the near future. Expect to hear more soon!

Peace and love,
Jonah