this is my first jbr on this forum so i may not be good! went to bali 1 nov - 22 nov. had a gr8 time. first off, about the voa. i got off the plane, headed straight to pay it. no hassles. got my backpack, then straight to bakungsari hotel. i booked to stay there for 7 nights. just lazed around the pool, no need to shop, will do that on my last week. rented a bike for a wek, was fantastic, riding around. booked shuttle bus to padang bai, stayed there for 2 nights,then on to the ferry to lombok. not many tourists on the ferry, was ok. left a little late, they had to cram trucks, buses, cars and motobikes on board. i spent my time practising my indonesian i spent a year at tafe learning. was great, talking to families about everything. the ferry took about 4 and a half hours. arrived at lombok, transport was waiting for me, took me to a cheap homestay (35,000rp) to stay for the night. next morning was picked up, taken to small boat, then on to gili trawangan. was a great boat ride. arrived to find only horse carts and bicycles. fantastic! no cars or motorbikes! went looking for a room, found one for 35,000rp, just fan and cold water. i went to walk around the island, took me about 2 hours. next morning i went snorkelling, was the best day i had, there were plenty of fish and coral. wandered around to find a place which had individual platforms where you get up and sit, had televisions which were playing movies. heaven! sat back, had a great meal and just a few binnies and watched a few movies. next night i found another pub, which had a big screen and served cold binnies and popcorn. okay, after 5 days, decided to go back to bali. after a hairy ferry ride, finally landed back at padang bai. stayed for 3 night there, then headed back to kuta. found a cheap hotel, 50,000rp, met many aussie backpackers like my self. rented a motorbike, got a deal for 20,000rp a day. finally decided to go and do some shopping. finally it was time to leave. after spending 3 weeks there, i had a great time. it was my 14 trip to bali, am already looking forward in 3 months when i go back again.
this time i will stay longer in gili trawangan.
cheers!