Gili Meno and Gili T, small Islands off of Lombok, Indonesia

From a North American perspective, the amount of scooters in Bali is really astounding. You feel like you have an escort wherever you go (because of all the scooter surrounding your vehicle). When we went to Gili Meno and Gili T it was a 4 day break from the busy traffic; there are no motorbikes or cars on these islands, just pony carts (Cidomono).

The beginning of our trip started with a 6 am pickup from this van, the one Marije is trying to climb out of. We originally were told we would be picked up at 7 am and then told, because of our location, that we would be picked up earlier. The last we heard, the pick up time was 8 am. Due to the confusion we got out of bed at 5 am, ate breakfast, and made sure we would be ready for our ride anytime it would arrive.....and the transport arrived at six am, 2hrs before they specified. After loading into the car the driver drove for 15 minutes and then parked and left the van, we were not too sure what was happening. We sat for about a half hour while Marije tried to climb out the window and waved at a little girl across the street. Once the driver returned we continued on the journey....the next stop was at a villa and we picked up three Russians, and 2 Balinese surfers. The Russians, 1 male and 2 females, climbed into the van and the male, with a boombox on his shoulder ( I am not kidding!!), sat down in the middle seating area and played electronic music, no idea of specific genre, the whole hr ride to the fast ferry terminal. I really wanted to take a picture but I was not brave enough. You will just have to imagine a tall Russian with skull necklace, skull bandana, and skull baseball cap with a large ghettoblaster/boombox on his lap.

Once on the fast ferry to Gili T, with the Russian still playing his music, we looked out the windows in the hope we would see dolphins. Apparently, you can sometimes see dolphins on this route but we were not so lucky. Next time I hope. But, the bright blue ocean was lovely- wow! ( Note, trying to use a small bathroom on a boat is very challenging)

The fast ferry delivered us to Gili T. It is known as a party island and that is what it did seem like, with first impression. There were a lot a lot of hippie tourists, pony carts, small hotels and restaurants, and many signs for magic mushrooms..... and a lot of garbage lining the one main road. When initially planning this trip we did not plan on staying on this island and after taking a tour around Gili T we decided that heading to Gili Meno was a good idea, we wanted somewhere quieter.

......in the next post I will talk about Gili Meno...kind of tired and I have already said way too much.