Goodbye Java, Hello Bali

I am only ever riding a motorbike with the following accessory. You do not have to ask why. (Please note fabulous American flag print sheets in background. They, along with matching curtains, were provided to us by Debby to make us feel at home.)

Very delightful grocery store. I love grocery stores. Taken from motorbike! I am getting so bra

My favorite grafitti artist on Jogja is LOVE HATE LOVE. He draws monsters.

Ironing in preparation from our trip to Bali. Really only because my shirt was still wet and Debby made me.

Sumpai jumpa temanku! (See you later my friend!)
Terima kasih! (Thank you!)



One of the few moments of clarity we had during the two days we spent alongside the rumbling active volcano of Mount Bromo. I wish we had sound recordings to go along with the images.

And so we leave Java, steering the ferry across the dark waters to the magical island of Bali.

Spoiling In Kuala Lumpur And Then Onto Spoiling in Indonesia

Our layover in Kuala Lumpur left us with very little time. We decided we would save money by sleeping in the airport, but while it was daytime and the buses were cheap, we would hop into the city and see a movie. We got to the theater in the mall under the Petronas Towers just before the Green Hornet began. In 3D! We had just enough time to get soda and a large salty sweet caramel popcorn. Delight.

Oh, yes. Then we walked around Little India. We went to a wonderful Hindu shop. Amidst the vast array of sparkly multicolored bangles, we found this:

After sleeping a few hours on the airport floor behind a make-shift fort of luggage carts and our backpacks, we flew to Jogjakarta, Indonesia. We bussed downtown to the post office where we met our lovely and amazing couch surfing host Deby. From the moment we met her, she began spoiling us more that we had already spoiled ourselves in KL. Watch out when we get back, we will be bigger brats than ever.

After some yummy home cooked lotek made by Deby's neighbor, we had a much needed nap. We explored the sultan's swimming pool and gorgeous grounds with stone carvings. That night we went to an art exhibit featuring textile arts and ending the day at an amazing restaurant where we dined on sweet and sour fish.

Another cultural event in the metropolis. We spent the afternoon at the Affandi Museum learning about one of Indonesia's most famous painters and exploring his Gaudi-esque treehouse home.

Remember those grubby poor traveler's that never spent any money and starved themselves? Yeah, well they are still grubby, but they now occasionally go to art shows and museums and trendy restaurants across from the university.

Last Moments in Sri Lanka

We left you last with a tuk tuk driving monk. We begin this time with a tuk tuk driving monkey! We did NOT feel comfortable going for a ride in this one.

"These travelers took the morning train..."
We left Ella for Haputale on the 6:43am train. Yep, we woke up early! It only happens in time zones other than EST. We shared the hour long ride with white-clad school-bound youngsters and obnoxious portly French tourists.


We paid for seats but instead wound up standing in the open doorways breathing in the crisp morning air and the vistas of lush green rice terraces turning into vegetable fields and then growing into steep tea plantations nestled in the morning fog. We passed along the same route we took to Ella Rock, and I was able to see the fruits of my "hard" rice transplanting labor. The entire field was now planted! No doubt that my contribution helped.

After we arrived in Haputale we took a 9km hike up the steeply winding roads that pass through the original tea plantations belonging to Mr. Lipton. We saw tea pickers dotting the fields in their brightly colored saris and climbing up the steep stone "shortcuts" between the switchbacks with their full 11kg bags of fresh tea leaves slung across their foreheads and down their backs. (We took the shortcuts, too, but only on the way down, and Avner complained of shin splints for days afterward.) At the top of the hikeis the "seat" from which Lipton would look out over his plantations. As we climbed, the clouds thickened and when we reached the top, the views were obscured by the cloud that surrounded us. Hence, no pictures.

Our last night in Galle, we had a lovely evening with both old and new friends. Australian Sam and Russian Asya had finally escaped the flooded north, and we shared some covert rooftop beers amidst the mosques of Galle. We shared a tuk tuk out of town and met up with Sri Lankan brothers Kumar and Ravi (left) and Chami (right) at the original Indian Hut in their neighborhood.

Afterward, we sped off into the night in search of mountaintop tea plantations. Actually, no. I just put on the helmet and sat on the bike to get a picture to scare my mom. I wound up scaring Kumar as well. He had no idea I just wanted a picture and kept saying, "This is new bike!" Ha ha ha ha ha...

We really did head for the hills the next day. After a long day of buses, we arrived in the mountain town of Ella, which was finally free of rain. The next morning we arose early to start a hike to the top of Ella Rock. This rocky point juts out over the town of Ella and the shear drop to the valley floor below. As there are not many roads through this landscape, we took the local "highway", the railroad tracks.

First we came across transplanting in the rice fields.

Never one to shirk from hard work, Kate set off into the flooded fields to do her part. After all, we did eat rice and curry in Sri Lanka everyday for a month. All I did was pick a bunch and tie it up, and I was still given a nice hot cup of tea for my efforts.

The steep mountain sides were perfect places for tons of beautiful waterfalls. Perfect spot for beautiful photographers to pose.

If you lose your way, the monk will help you find it.
He will simply put you in his tuk tuk and drop you off deep in the jungle with a smile and a "quite alright".

Beautiful. But challenging to climb up and will leave you a bit sore the next day. Or days.

During our hike, the Wandering Jew met the Wondering Jew.

After many hours of climbing straight up hill and then straight back down and then up and then down again and again, we returned to our guesthouse which was famous for its vegetarian curries, most notably: garlic curry (center top yellow). Multiple heads of garlic cooked to melting consistency in a sauce of slightly sweet cardamom curry. Heaven. Ten other dishes including and sweet and sour eggplant with caramelized onions, fried thinly sliced bitter melon in an onion salad, and Avner's favorite: pineapple ginger chutney. SO much food you really need to arrive hungry. This was not a problem for us.

Escape From The Rain

This is why we came south. We knew they had sky in Sri Lanka, we just hadn't seen it in days.


Effects of the tsunami are still around in many places.

We had three delightful homemade meals at the "home", guest house room, of our friends Ivan from Switzerland and Jini from Portugal. Manfred from Germany also escaped the rainy north, and we were reunited.

"He came in through the bedroom window..."
We sang this over, and over, and over again. In fact, we are still singing it. We are very funny. So we think.

Outside the honeymoon suite at the Coppenrath in Tangalla. Bliss. With a few mosquitos.

Our latest cruise ship.

The only jellyfish in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan kindness at work.

Sri Lank is so unexpectedly expensive, Kate has had to find work as a manicurist. Naw, don't be silly, just hanging out with my new friend Savidi. Please note the lovely scrunchie, bracelet, and necklace she dressed me up in.

This is an alms day meal in honor of a grandfather who passed away four years ago today. This is our friend Ravi, the brother of Kumar who we met swimming at the beach in Galle. We are pretty sure we have been adopted, and we are very happy about it. We have been shown the amazing Sri Lankan hospitality, and are very grateful. In fact, we are very full in general. They have stuffed us with large quantities of delicious food.

South Coast Days Around Galle

An image to represent the speed of uploading photos in Sri Lanka.

The amazing photographer hard at work in Kotawa Forest. (Image taken by lovely assistant, not to be reproduced or used without permission.)

What was he shooting? Jesus Lizard! Also discovered by eagle eye lovely assistant.

When I say "lovely" assistant, I am NOT referring to looks. While the Smartwool socks are amazing, they do not help with the fashion in this case. However, even with such precaution, we were stopping every few feet and squirming as we flicked the creeping leaches off of our shoes. Avner had one in his sock at the end of our jungle hike which he had to pull off - lots of blood. Luckily, I escaped unscathed, or I surely would have fainted. I do remember having leaches once before. My Auntie Helen had a wonderful home in Vermont, and we would go to swim and jump in the waterfall in the woods. Is it strange to say that I think I prefer water leaches because they do not crawl about so much?

Such a slave to fashion, even at work.

My sweetheart made me this umbrella to protect me from the sun on our walk through the rice fields to the temple.

MY. FAVORITE. TYPE. OF. COASTLINE. EVER.
In the distance, you can see the Unawatuna dagoba. As we rounded the point from Unawatuna beach, still dripping with Indian Ocean water from our swim while rapidly forming new rivulets of sweat on our temples, this rocky coastline was still somehow able to bring forth a breath of New England and the windswept coasts of downeast Maine. Magic.

Eek! A million tourists. Oh wait, we are tourists, too. :)

Further east on the coast, we went to Hambantota beach. We didn't know anything about this area, but we soon found it was lovely and met many new friends...

They were all TURTLES!!
This one is an Olive Ridley and is only one day old. They will wait one week in the pools at the hatchery, and they will be released to live a long and happy life.

This guy is two years old and is a Green sea turtle. Next time you come to Sri Lanka, please visit the hatchery, they do very important work.

More dang tourists! Oh wait, this is us.

Soon after this photo was taken, we gorged ourselves at Indian Hut.
We did not consume pork, beef or liquor. We didn't care, we would have eaten rocks at this point.

Sometimes, people in Sri Lanka have a Fit.

Seriously. And he paid over TWICE as much as we did. Plus, our's is red, way cooler.