Our honeymoon, organised by Audley Travel, consisted of a couple of weeks in the glorious sunshine of Southeast Asia. We began near the artistic town of Ubud in central Bali where we relaxed in our private pool villa on the edge of a tropical valley and explored varios parts of Bali. We visited temples, lakes, mountains and turned down a lot of taxi drivers.
We then flew on to the small tropical island of Lombok. Our first port of call was the magnificent Mount Rinjani volcano that dominates the skyline at 3,726m, the second highest peak in Indonesia. We trekked past precariously hung shrines and temples before camping under the stars at the crater rim. Following this exertion we had some time relaxing on the white-sanded beaches and exploring the rest of the island (above ground and underwater), before rounding off our Indonesian experience with a day of pampering (and pummelling) at the Oberoi spa.
To finish our honeymoon we had a change of pace with a brief in Singapore. We explored the urban jungle, skipped the extensive shopping, and sampled some of the food of Asia's culinary capital. Finally, we enjoyed a couple of Singapore Slings at the renowned Raffles Hotel, to toast a fantastic first trip together as a married couple.
We woke up on our first morning as a married couple, to the sun streaming in through the curtains, sound of the hotel dogs playing in the garden. After a delicious breakfast in our room, and some wedding cake that Caroline sneakily pocketed the previous night, we picked all the confetti off the floor (it's amazing how much finds its way into folds of clothing) packed our things into the car and checked out of the hotel. A short sunny drive took us back to 'Berwyn' for some lunch (leftovers and more cake), a quick catch-up with the various stragglers hanging round the house (were they still there from the previous night?) and to read through all of the wonderful cards and messages that people had left us.
After our leisurely morning, it was time to dash back home in Leatherhead, manically throw a random selection of clothing, shoes etc into a suitcase (well, actually three suitcases, it.s not easy to pack light in a hurry!) and head off to the airport and settle in for our overnight flight.
After a transfer in Singapore, we were given a huge celebratory cake and some champagne on our connecting flight, so we arrived in Bali slightly tipsy and with rounded Buddha bellies. After ascertaining from airport staff that our lost bag would be arriving tomorrow, and that our broken bag would be replaced, a long drive in the darkness took us to our hotel near Ubud where we were greeted with club sandwiches (that Asian speciality), a beautifully turned down bed, and a bath filled with fragrant flowers. We wasted no time in sullying the bath, messing up the bed, and devouring the club sandwiches, before dropping off to sleep.
This morning, it wasn't sun that woke us, but the sound of the tropical rain that was to continue for the next 4 days!
Our hotel, the Ubud Hanging Gardens, is precariously located on the side of a forested river valley, with fantastic views of the opposite hillsides and the nearby temple. The rooms are individual "traditional style" thatched huts, each with its own veranda and infinity pool. We also had our own private kitten, which insisted on sitting outside our door for the first 3 days and yowling every time it heard us move. Cute.
We spent our first day lounging around at the hotel, relaxing in our room and by our pool. The day was rounded off with a blow-out meal in the hotel restaurant. Huge compliments to the chef!
More rain. Today we ventured out of the hotel on a chartered tour of some of the sights of Bali. Our first stop was a theatre showing a Balinese dance/show, which was amusing even though we didn't understand what was going on! After the show we asked our guide if we could stop somewhere for a snack, so he immediately stopped at the nearest posh restaurant and pointed out a variety of what can only be described as "gateaux". He was a bit perplexed when we promptly wondered off down the street to the nearest warung (roadside food stall) and returned with freshly barbecued sate sticks and rice crackers! Hunger satisfied, we set off to the mountain region of Bali to see lakes, temples, markets and a reptile park. After one drenching, we took pity on our shivering guide and let him sit in the car whilst we wondered around. Despite their penchant for cranking up the air-con as far as it will go, the locals really don't like the cold!
It wasn't quite so rainy today! Yay! We used the opportunity to venture into Ubud "the cultural capital of Bali". After a delicious lunch of roasted suckling pig at an eatery famous to locals and tourists alike, we went on one of the Lonely Planet Guide's "2 hour" walks around Ubud. The walk took us through the town (where we were harassed by locals) to the sacred monkey forest (where we were harassed by the monkeys), and then round the Ubud suburbs through rice-fields and residential areas. 4 hours later we arrived back in the town centre, just in time for dinner and some more traditional Balinese dancing at the Ubud palace.
Our last day in Ubud. We spent another day at the hotel, taking a short stroll through the surrounding forest, and sneakily exploring the newest addition to the hotel - a huge private villa that was near completion but appeared to be abandoned. Massive private pool, 4 bedrooms with beds made for giants, outside marble jacuzzi bath, wooden sculptures. Beautiful! Perhaps we'll be back for our 50th anniversary, when we're millionaires!
After lunch we treated ourselves to a pummelling at the hands of the hotel spa staff, known to spa aficionados as a Balinese massage. Despite the rain we were also determined to make use of our private infinity pool, so we had a swim for a few minutes before leaping out in fear of hypothermia!
A 4am start and a half hour flight got us to Senaru in Lombok just before lunchtime. We filled up on noodles, before setting of on a short "panorama waterfalls and ricefields" excursion. After a wonder round a "traditional sasak village", we set off to the first waterfall where children just out of school were letting off steam. After a little more walking along jungle footpaths we were instructed to remove our shoes and socks, and "didn't we bring sandals"? (the answer was no, because we were told to wear walking boots!). We then proceeded to cross several stony river channels in bare feet (or perhaps it was the same one over and over?), to get to a totally secluded 40m waterfall. It didn't take us long to change into our swimming gear and dive into the plunge pool at the base of the waterfall, where we relaxed for a while. By this time our feet felt black and blue, so the return crossing of the same stony riverbeds was agonizing! After a while, our guide reluctantly said we could put our boots back on for our walk back through the forest. But that wasn't the end of the adventure. When we arrived at a steep cliff face, our guide pointed to the opening of an irrigation channel in the hillside (a tunnel used to channel water through the hill) and said "we go through there". After looking at each other wondering if this was a joke, we realised that yes we really do go through there! So off came the boots again, and we both lowered ourselves into the channel and headed off into the tunnel for a 5 minute walk in pitch black darkness, up to our knees (and occasionally waist) in very fast flowing water! When we safely emerged at the other side, it was a short walk back to the village for a second lunch and a lazy afternoon soaking up the views from the hillside. And an early night.
Another early start and hearty breakfast meant we were ready to head off up the mountain by 8am.
On arrival at the camping ground just below the crater rim, we were let off to enjoy the views whilst our guide and porter expertly set up our tent, blew up our airbed (with an electric pump - now where on earth did that come from?), and got dinner on the go.
From the top of the mountain, we could see bits of Lombok coastline through breaks in the cloud (we were above the clouds - like in an aeroplane), and the top of the sacred volcano on Bali in the distance. A mug of hot sweet tea revived us enough to watch the sunset and eat our dinner (a banquet of rice and curry with a mountain of rice crackers, followed by fresh pineapple), before retreating to the tent to keep warm. A watch check just before falling asleep confirmed that it was only 7pm!
In the middle of the night, we poked our heads out of the tent to have a peek at a black sky thick with stars. If it hadn't been so cold, we could have stared at them all night.
After a fitful, freezing night, we emerged from our tent dressed in every layer of clothing that we had with us. A 20 minute climb took us to the crater rim, where we admired the breathtaking views and chatted with a few other trekkers. We were greeted back at the camp by the smell of fresh banana pancakes and coffee, which we greedily wolfed down. We then set off down the side of the mountain at an alarming rate, accompanied by a friendly dog that we'd met at the top. The speed of descent meant we were back at the base of the mountain by lunchtime.
After a long drive to the beach, we were greeted at our trendy, clean, crisp, cool beachside "boutique hotel". The staff there were obviously well trained and paid no attention to our sweaty, smelly, dust covered appearance! A long hot shower in the outside bathroom made us feel human again, and we spent the rest of the day lounging by the pool.
We weren't in a fit state to go anywhere today, so we sat by the pool, swam in the sea, walked on the beach and generally lazed around.
Feeling a little less sore today, we were picked up on the beach by a small boat that transported us to Gili Trewangan, one of three tiny islands just off the shore of Lombok. The morning was spent travelling up and down the beach in a horse drawn carriage, snorkelling on the shore, and relaxing on the beach. We soaked up the chilled-out atmosphere and vowed to spend more time on the islands next time we visited Indonesia! After lunch, Caroline left J-P on the beach (the first time we'd been separated in 11 days) to try out the local scuba diving.
Strong winds meant that the boat ride back to the hotel was a little more exciting than the morning! Our guide sat miserably as wave after wave jumped over the side of the boat and drenched us all. J-P put on his snorkelling mask to allow him to see, whereas Caroline wrapped a sarong around her head and giggled.
Today we headed off into Sengiggi, the local town and tourist beach. After wondering the streets for a little while we found our way to the beach. It was a local holiday, so the beach was packed with children and families on a day out. We found a shady grass mat at a food stall and lunched on fresh coconut water and sate sticks, whilst chatting to the owner about mountains and football.
The afternoon was spent back at the hotel, lounging by the beach. J-P engaged in a spot of haggling with a few of the beach hawkers, buying some souvenirs and drawing quite a crowd - of more hawkers. At dinner, we were treated to a traditional ceremonial rice tower - a cone of yellow rice, with various dishes piled round the base.
Our last day in Lombok was spent at the Oberoi spa hotel. After checking into our beautifully furnished room we set off down to the beach. When we chose two deckchairs to use, two attendants miraculously appeared with huge soft towels, glasses of iced water, suncream and a flag to wave should we possibly think of anything else we needed. We were later treated to a scoop of raspberry sorbet wrapped in banana leaf, just in case we getting hot or dehydrated, or suffering from low blood sugar!
After a delicious lunch at the cafe, we checked into the spa for our "couples treatment" of a body scrub, massage and wrap. This involved numerous showers (in-between messy treatments) and several pairs of disposable panties (yes, J-P too), but left us both with skin like newborn babies. The treatment concluded with a warm bath filled with fragrant flowers, surrounded by candles and incense, and mugs of hot lemongrass (Caroline) or ginger (J-P) tea. The perfect luxurious, romantic way to end (well, nearly) our honeymoon.
For dinner, we booked a private table in a pavilion next to the pool, where we enjoyed more fantastic Indonesian cuisine.
Today we said our goodbyes to Indonesia and headed in the direction of home, but not without a final adventure exploring Singapore. Our flight from Lombok left us with most of the afternoon to wander round China Town, exploring the busy streets and making the most of the hawker food on offer. Fish head soup or pigs' entrails curry anyone? After spending a little time in one of the numerous shopping centres (mainly wondering around being lost rather than actually attempting to do any shopping), we rounded off the evening with a messy chilli crab feast (a Singaporean speciality) by the river. Caroline was hankering after something sweet, so after a stroll back towards the hotel, we had a coffee (for J-P) and thyme ice-cream and rose tea (for Caroline, never one to go for the traditional option) at a very cosmopolitan café near our hotel (Raffles the Plaza - an extension to the world famous Raffles hotel, but not quite as classy!). We went to bed with the window open to hear the sounds of the city, and the cheer and sighs of the crowds below as England dropped out of the World Cup.
After a gargantuan breakfast, where Caroline insisted on trying nearly everything in the buffet, we jumped on a "hop-on hop-off" bus to take in the sights of Singapore the lazy way. An early hop-off took us on a cable-car ride up Mount Faber (ha, more like Bump Faber!), for a buffet lunch surrounded by Singaporean families. Back on the bus we decided that the idea of shopping was too overwhelming, so we skipped Orchard Road and took our next stop at Little India where we wondered the streets for a while feeling like we'd been dropped into a different continent! Back to the Raffles Hotel where we enjoyed a long Singapore Sling in it's birth-place, the Long Bar, along with a few handfuls of peanuts. After a quick shower and a change back in the hotel, we were ready to head off to the airport for our long flight back to real life and our future together.