It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…

Through our remaining time in Bali and onto Lombok happy times showered over us like the tropical storms – phew, as it was getting a bit hot at times for JJL. 

We’d made a detour South to Nusa Dua, searching for high speed internet access to enable Mum to do a little bit of work via video conference. You know you’re like a fish out of water in a hotel when you arrive and they say, “don’t you have any luggage?”.  Mum thought…”I agree he made me pack light”. Dad…”I’ve still got 2 unworn shirts, we could’ve packed less”.  Anyhow Baby Barrett was in for the treat of his life as we had been upgraded to a 2 bedroom apartment with a private pool! Let’s just say that BB wasn’t the only one to play fast and loose with his swimwear…

Work completed we sped over to Padangbai. We had in our minds a trip to Lombok and the fast boat departed from here. Plus it was a good place to go diving. We stayed at the Padangbai Beach Resort and commenced 72 hours of being treated beautifully by everyone at the hotel. 

We’ve mentioned before just how keen Balinese people are on babies. Well the people at this hotel were so lovely that we were able to go diving with our very own BB boat babysitter. Jantee (apologies here if Jantee is reading for the poor spelling) was doting on BB from the beginning and she was happy to assist. It meant that we got the chance to dive together for the first time since our honeymoon. Fun was had by all on the boat!

And so began the worst of times. BB got took down by Bali Belly – eek! He dealt with it like a trooper but it was a long 24 hours and we even departed Padangbai early to have a quick check in with a doctor in Kuta. All was well…for BB, but the same couldn’t be said for Mum and Dad. Each of us succumbed to the bug on subsequent nights. We write this tonight with spaghetti bolognese and French fries on order. We are still feeling a little delicate!

Somewhat amazingly despite this we made it over to Lombok but for a slightly shorter trip than had planned. Dad was a little disappointed not to have crossed the Wallace Line by boat in the footsteps of one of his heros, the Victorian naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace, but our revised method of transport (flying) was best for all. Lombok is lovely. A cleaner, quieter version of it’s big brother. It was made sweeter by our unexpected room upgrade (we’re starting to expect such treatment). Thanks to Maya at Sunset Lavinia Hotel for being so lovely to us and making our visit to Lombok so special.

We made it out for a trip to Benang Stokel and Kelambu waterfalls  catching some great rice field views on route and cheekily using BB needing a nap as an excuse to avoid traditional weaving demonstrations 😴.

We have some good news for those who like to pack light…Dad. We have gifted the buggy to the sister of our current hotel owner. BB is quite happy being in the sling and it was nice to pass it on to a new home. 

Next stop – Vietnam. Mum went there with Sian a few years back. We’re hoping it lives up to the happy memories. We’re also hoping that there is room for some new clothes to make up for the buggy we have donated 😉. 

PS. Dad says the buggy was a separate piece of luggage so doesn’t count…how about some of that hair product, surely Mum doesn’t need that many bottles?