Hi everyone,
We were woken at 4am this morning by our friend calling us from Melbourne Airport - this was to be her first visit to Bali and she was scared to start with. We had no idea what had happened. It is a difficult decision for her to make - we still don't know if she chose to get on the flight this morning - I guess we'll find out later this afternoon.
We've been out on the streets this morning, it's quiet, but it's Sunday morning. We went to the Bali Bombing Memorial and lit some incense. The Balinese people ask us if we're staying - we say yes, of course. We've had a number of phone calls from worried friends and family - they don't understand us staying here. It's hard too as we have our 10 year old daughter with us. She's seen the images on the front of the newspaper and on the TV - they don't sanitise the TV here - so she's seen some shocking images. She was very upset, as are we all. We've explained what happened, but even we find it hard to understand let alone a 10 year old.
What I do know is that we love Bali, we love how we feel when we come here, how our family relaxes together and finds each other again after the stress and distractions of everyday life. We love the Bainese people, they're pragmatism and sense of humour. We love the Balinese countryside, the food, the culture.
Every person will have to make their own decision as to whether they'll come or not. If we were to leave from Melbourne today, I don't know what decision we'd make. As we're here, we'll stay put and enjoy the rest of our holiday as much as we can.
Thanks to all who contribute to this site - it has been invaluable.
Andrea