To Candidasa: Agung Beach Bungalow

September 15, 2006

We are still going to bed early and waking up in the middle of the night, our internal clocks have not yet adjusted. At about 6am we eat some cookies we have left over from our flights and carry all our gear and bikes up the stairs and to the road.

Coming here from Kuta we gained about 200 meters in altitude, today we will lose all of those heading back to the Bali South coast. We have some nice flat or gradual down sections, but also several steep climbs where the road crosses rivers, deeply carved in the volcanic soil.

Traffic is still heavy at first, but as we get further East of Denpasar it eases a bit. We make good time, decide to bypass our original goal of Padanglai and head on to Candidasa. We usually use the first week or so to slowly ease into the tour. We randomly pick a nice place from the budget options in the Lonely Planet (LP), Agung Beach Bungalows, two rows of about 12 units facing a beautiful garden with flowers, palm trees, banana plants, water features and bats. At the end of the row is the ocean and luckily, our room for the night with a nice view. In case of a tsunami, we will be the first ones to buy it.

All the other rooms seem empty. The tourism slump has hit the Indonesian people hard. The beaches at Candidasa are not very good for swimming; high waves on the deep side of a T-shaped concrete breakwaters make going in unattractive, on the beach side is clear shallow water that work for quick dips. We refresh in the ocean, shower and walk further into town for some lunch. At a restaurant recommended for its pizza, we find the same people we spoke with on Wednesday in Ubud. A German woman traveling with an Indonesian guide from Kalimantan. In Ubud, he proudly showed us his name recommended in the LP guide. They invite us to join them at their table and we talk over lunch.

After that, back to the beach side bungalow to sit on the porch and enjoy the sound of the ocean and breeze off the water.