Bali Livin' 2

Sorry so long to get back to finishing the story. So here goes.....Days came and went and now time to leave. I get all packed up and through my shtuff together and head out the door to back my B.A.B. (Big-Ass Bag) on a my S.A.S. (Small-Ass Scooter). However, upon my check out Dwee says to me "Where you going Mr. Neal?" "What do you mean", I ask them. Then she tells me they now have room for the rest of my friends so we stay at the Ayu for a couple more days.one hour before they had no room now they had two rooms. Funny how that works when they see you leaving. So I cancel the other place and stay for the rest of the time.
"Kill Trees for Baby Jesus" Eve, has arrived and My good friends the Schwartz family are to arrive around midnight. So i get some things together to make the evening right and fine. Beers! The Bintang was good to us. I arrived at the airport with a driver from the hotel and I had him hold a special sign. This is a picture of Noyman waiting for Ken and Rhonda. It was not a planned sign but thrown together with a black ink pen and a empty cigarette carton box. But still fun to watch them laugh coming out the doors.

It's hard to try to retell the who story of the break obviously but I will try to piece it together the best I can. We decided to go visit a place called Turtle Island, which turned out to NOT be an island but just around the corner from where the boat was put in. Anyway, it was a small turtle reserve with a couple a large turtles use to help repopulate the sea turtle species. These turtles were anywhere from a couple days old to 76 years. It was quite amazing to be around these wonderful creatures.

After the trip back from the turtles we decided to head up to Lovina. It's a nice little village about 4 hours north of where we were staying. Up that way is a good wildlife park and some great snorkeling. Once again we arrived at another great stop along the way. We came across the Pura (shrine) for fertility. NO i am not planning on anything so don't ask. We say some nice things while in the village. Food, clothes, spices people and just good relaxing feeling. Completely different from the south. Here in the north people move at Bali speed. Which is about like crawling. No worries, no cares just taking it easy. It was the perfect way to spend the day. Shopping for some bowls made of cinnamon and coconut that smelled so good. I wish I could reach through the screen and pull you through to take a whiff. I really didn't need anything on the entire trip but always can use some nice knick-knacks for the table. And of course half the fun of the traveling or may all the fun is watching for local traditions and things done different from those around the world. As my buddy Cole Schwartz said about this woman, "it's not corn on the cob but corn on the head". That boy is funny i tell you. I hope to be around him when he is older.

Bali Livin'

I just spent the past 3 weeks in Bali, Indonesia. It had to be one of the most relaxing times of my life. It's hard to start writing about a place like this. Especially when you travel alone. But, the best thing about traveling solo is the PEOPLE. I get to meet some new and special people from all over the world. Iian & Jody or Julia or Kylie and I can't forget Dave and Nat and Gabrio and Irena. I spent a lot of time with these people at Bali Ayu Hotel. And of course I would never forget my great friends The Schwartz Family.

I guess I start at the beginning and go where my mind leads me. I left Tokyo for Denpasar, the capital of Bali. The day before I left I hadn't yet booked any rooms. I figured I would live the adventurous life of traveling without plans. Turned out to be the best way. However, after a night out and thinking I might need a place when I arrived at midnight I decided to book a room the night before and I was lucky enough to find Bali Ayu Hotel. I arrive at midnight after a nice 6 and a half hour flight all rested and ready for my first night in Bali. Luckily, I am one of those people who can fall asleep anywhere in any position on a plane, train or pretty much anyplace. Getting into Indonesia is relatively easy. Pay 25$ dollars for entry fee and then that's it. NO bag checks, NO search, Nothing. Just come on in and enjoy yourself. But, it's Bali and not Jakarta so things are more laid back. Walk out of the airport ignore the sign overhead about hangings and negotiate the price for a ride to my hotel and finally agree with the second guy who offered to take me there for only 80,000 Rupiah. Don't pay more than 100,000 if you go. Twenty-five minutes later on empty Balinese road that reminded me of Poland's finely constructed roads with narrow lanes and pot-holes the size of bathtubs. There I was about to walk into my room at 1:30 am.

My hotel room was amazing. High pitched ceilings with beautiful carvings. One of the best rooms I have ever been in. Room rates run you anywhere from 450,000 Rupiah to 270,000 Rupiah. Oh yeah that is right! Wait, you need the exchange rate. 10,000 Rupiah is equal to 1 US Dollar. So, do the math. I hope you can do it, Kevin. I know your are as smart as a sack of hammers. Make sure when you go to any place you negotiate the price of anything. You can get a better deal and they are willing to drop quite a bit. But, after while you get tired of haggling for one or two dollars. It is really not worth it and your vacation will take a change when you realize the money doesn't matter when it is small amounts. Plus, the workers make nothing there and if you can get a little extra they are happy. Well, at least that is how I feel about it. You can save all you want if you choose to do it but honestly you feel like a tightwad after a while.

I wandered around the village of Seminyak on a scooter I got for a nice price. I had this super cool red and black helmet that made me look real tough. Especially with my cheap glasses and flip-flops. The following morning I get up nice and early to a good breakfast and a nice talk with the locals at Bali Ayu. Jeremy, and Made pronounced (Ma-day) were very helpful and so was Abraham. Abe drove me all around to get a scooter and to look for hotel rooms for Ken and Rhonda coming later cause there were no rooms at the hotel I was staying for them. I had become pretty familiar with the area and stumbled across this nice little bar called Zappaz that is owned by Norman...something. His claim to fame is he was the bassist for David Bowie back in the old days. I saw the papers on the wall and the pictures. Pretty cool experience to talk with him. However, he is an extremely eccentric man. Plays the piano amazingly well and can really put twists on all sorts of songs from classical to modern. He talks to himself, makes duck sounds and looks at his hand while the other plans. Quite fun to watch him play a song he wrote that sounded a lot like Billy Joel's Piano man. After talking to him and asking about that song I realized it was a sore subject and it wasn't Billy's song. He proceeded to raise hell about how "The Piano Man" stole his music and made the lyrics fit his song, Piano Man. He seemed really pissed so I got us a round of scotch and all was fine after that. Funny that story came out cause I had just seen Billy Joel here in Tokyo a couple weeks before I met Norman. With stories and people like this I had to stay around this bar and see who else comes in. It didn't take long. Minutes later I end up talking to Paul from Murphy Oil. Yeah, Murphy Oil out of good ol' Eldorado, Arkansas. Paul, from UK living in Jakarta, and I tossed back about 10 or 12 beers wait, sorry mom I mean 3 or 4. Me on the Bintang and him on the Carlsburg. He told me, after I had drank 10 or so, that Indonesians use a lot of formaldehyde in their beers and gives you nasty hangovers. However, I must say still no hangover. I am trying to get one of those but they seem to stay away from me. I am happy about that. Paul and ended up being a good single serving friend. You know just that in Fight Club you get the beginning of the flight to the end. Well, with Paul and the others you get a couple of nights of good times and hope to keep meeting great people along the way. And I did.

Take for example Yumi, pronounced (YU-ME) not Yummy but that applied too. She was surfing on the waves and I couldn't help myself and she just happened to pose for me as she was coming in for a break. I really do love my life. Anyone want to join me?

I continued to go to Zappaz for a couple more nights and listened to the band play some music. At times it was very tough to listen to, especially when people from the crowd asked to sing after a few beers and turn a good local band into a band karaoke experience. Thankfully I won't play the lovely Blondie singing "I Will Survive" with lots of vibrato. But i have something else for you. Keep and eye on the guy with the light colored shirt. I was trying to catch him dancing like this all night when he was doing the dog.


Now, you all know I am not a smoker but i had to pick up these great cigs from the Mini-mart next to the bar. Yes, that's right. Fine cigarettes from the tobacco fields of....Kansas? Wait a minute. I lived in Kansas for 26 years before i left for the international life and I never saw a tobacco field. If so, everyone would be smoking them. Turns out they are made in Indonesia and some of they are some of the favorites by locals behind, Marlboro, Marlboro lights, Djarum Blacks, Djarum Vanillas, Kools Ultralights ( like smoking air they say), Camel Wides some Milds, which are cloves and some other brand where they combine all the half-smoked cigs from ashtrays and mix them together. So, I am sure this Kansas Cigarettes are quite good. I'll save these two packs for you when i come home. I am sure they will taste the same...if not better.

Enough for now. Off to bed and more tomorrow. Enjoy and look for Bali Livin' 2 soon.

Thanks Ola

I would like to tell you that tonight was one of the best nights in a long time. I have been living in Tokyo, Japan for 4 months and I have not had a Murphy's Irish Stout since I arrived, nor have I had a Murphy's in many months. But, it is hard to find a good Murphy's in the US or Japan. I find Guinness and others but no Murphy's. So last night I decided it was time to have one, the only one I have left.

Last night I went to the closet and pulled through the books and clothes that have been stuffed away and found what I was looking for. I knew that I was in for a good night tonight and wanted to be prepared if I needed something extra to help me out. I continued pushing and pulling shit out and finally, there it was. Looking at me. Cocked to the side against the dark, dry wall in the corner. It was a gift from an old friend. While traveling, she thought of me when she saw this beautiful can. She picked it up and packed it away and planned to give to me when she arrived back in Warsaw. When she gave it to me I was extremely happy and said I would keep it forever. The date was April 2005. Don't forget.
This can sat on my window sill in and out of the sun. Cooking, cooling, warming, freezing and collecting dust for months and years. It started in Ireland and flew in a small bag to Warsaw. It lay dormant for 3 years and then traveled on a boat to Tokyo. I was not suppose to send it in my shipment. But, it was something special. I took it from the shelf and rolled it up in a towel and stuffed it away. Deep in the bottom of a box it set waiting for Japan.

After months of traveling back home I arrived in Tokyo and settled in. The Murphy's was safe and sound. I placed it in the closet and left it. I walked passed it many times thinking Should I drink this or let it sit? Time passed and I realized today that it was was time to move on from my past. I was thirsty and needed something special. I thought about bourbon. Nay, doesn't feel right. Then I remembered that cant that was sittign in the corner... WAITING. It was like a drug that was begging for a user. It sat. WAITING. Until last night......
Until, I placed it in the fridge to cool down. Bringing it to the appropriate 42 degree temperature that is the desired drinking temp for a solid Murphy's Irish Stout. I arrived home after a good day of work, relaxing with some colleagues, drinking beer, eating sausages and a nice train ride home to find 4 Japanese beers in the fridge. And... one lonely Murphy's WAITING.
I drank 3 of the 4 Strong Seven beers from Japan's Kirin Brewery and decided it was time.

Click clack pop. The sound of a good beer being opened. You all know the sound and I don't need to provide a picture or video. I poured it into a nice tall pint and let the head settle. The layers of stout rolled to the top of the glass showing off it's dark muddy foam. Slowly calming down. Then, presenting itself in a glorious manner to....ME.

I took a good long drink and...