Indonesia: Balangan, Bali

December 30, 2016 - January 1, 2017

Balangan Beach, Bali

Balangan Beach is one of the Bukit Peninsula surf spots located just north of New Kuta Beach. With its clear blue waves, white sandy beach and easy access, Balangan is not as crowded as Kuta or other surfing beaches in Bali. It was the last few days of our Bali adventure, and we decided to stay for a couple nights at the Flower Bud Bungalows located on the cliffs above Balangan.  It was a 10 min. walk to the beach, so the location was convenient, and the grounds of the resort were very beautiful and serene.  It was the perfect  place to relax for a the last days of 2016.

Last family pic of 2016...this was New Year's Eve.

Loving every minute....so much gratitude.

Our bungalow. Home for 2 nights.

Our green and natural bathroom, the most serene shower I have ever experienced.

Heading down to the beach, we met this cow.

Surfers paradise, with surf boards everywhere.

Low tide on Balangan Beach.

Eva found her spot!

The serene pool at Flower Bud Bungalows.

Sisters.

Upside down, but still beautiful.

View of Balangan Beach from the cliffs.

Playing in the sand...entertainment for hours. Especially when you are in your own little cave.

Soaking up the last rays of sun for 2016. This was New Year's Eve.

The last sunset of 2016. It was the perfect end to a spectacular year! 

Indonesia - Amed, Bali

December 27-30, 2016

Amed refers to a long stretch of coast running from the village of Culik about 14 km eastwards incorporating the seven villages of Amed, Jemeluk, Bunutan, Lipah, Selang, Banyuning and Aas. The pace of life here is slow and the coastal scenery quite stunning making Amed a beautiful place to visit.

Stopping to visit some beautiful temple grounds between Ubud and Amed.

From the beach in Amed, there is a stunning view of Mount Agung (Gunung Agung) a huge volcano, and the highest peak in Bali.  The beach is made up of black volcanic sand.

We spent hours combing the beach for beautiful little seashells and sea glass.  There was so much sea glass on the beach, that we ended up with a couple bags full, and of course the kids wanted to bring some of it home!

Amed Sari Beach Guesthouse - right on the beach.

Most beautiful breakfast location with delicious pandan-banana pancakes, fresh fruit and coffee.

Breakfast location - doesn't get much better than this!

The walkway from our room to the beach.

The view from our homestay.

The people in Amed live from fishing, salt-making and tourism. The fishing boats go out to sea every morning and every evening.  The people of the town told us that they have noticed a significant decline of fish over the last few years, and they have to go further and stay out longer to make their catch. 

The homestay pig, and Eva's new friend.

Warung Osin, a small family run restaurant that made a variety of tasty local dishes.  

This is possibly one of the best places we have eaten on our travels. Some of the dishes we tried:  

Ayam nenas - chicken pineapple and cinnamon
Cumi cumi a sum manis - sweet and sour squid
Ikan kelap - mahi mahi with ginger lemongrass in coconut milk

It was so delicious we returned 2 nights in a row.

Diving in Tulamben Bay. Tulamben is a small fishing village on the north-east coast of Bali, not far from Amed. It is among the most popular dive sites on Bali since the wreck of the Liberty, a US Army Transport ship torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in 1942 lies just off shore.

We saw a wide variety of fish, including several turtles, garden eels and stingrays.

Our first time diving at a shipwreck.  It was really interesting.

After our day of diving, we spent a day relaxing and snorkeling in Jemeluk Bay. It was an absolute highlight, with loads of fish and beautiful coral formations accessible right off the beach.  We saw rock fish, a sea snake and hundreds of colorful fish of all sizes.

Leaving Amed, the coutryside was lush and green.  Breathtaking.

Driving from Amed to Balangan, we passed people gathering for some celebrations and offerings.