The Adventure Tour

Love it.

Our New Umbrellas!

Seth: I talked to Gran yesterday, and mentioned the monsoon and our resulting wetness. She asked why I didn’t have an umbrella and I told her that the only times we see them for sale are in the middle of a storm. Since prices fluctuate according to demand, umbrellas cost much more during wet periods. Econ 101, right?

Anyway, Gran said that we should buy an umbrella, on her, as a Christmas present. So during a brief dry spell (15 minutes) this morning, we found a store that sold umbrellas at a fixed price. As you can see, I clearly got the better one. Erin complains that it’s not big enough to keep me dry (because it’s a baby umbrella), but she’s just jealous. On the brief walk from the umbrella store to the internet cafe, SEVEN Balinese smiled and said “Nice umbrella” or something to that effect. I’m not aware of any Balinese people commenting on Erin’s umbrella. She could’ve picked a badass tiger-elephant-of-death like me, but she erred. Look how much happier I look! Oh well, live and learn.

Erin: We’ll see who has the more badass umbrella when we’re wandering around a new town with our backpacks on, looking for a place to stay while monsoon rains are pouring down. I still believe that I will have the last laugh…

Seth: So thanks, Gran! Together they cost 39,700 rupiah, which is about US$4.50. I’ll take an IOU. Merry Christmas to us! Especially me, with the better umbrella.

PS – If anyone else wants to pay for things along our trip, we’ll take a picture and blog about it too!

The Last Time We Saw The Sun

The first night we got here to Ubud, we saw this amazing sunset. We haven’t seen the sun since. Is this what the sun always looks like? We forget…

My Christmas Present To Erin

I told Erin that I’d trim my Osama-beard for her Christmas present, as my whiskers were going up her nose when we kissed (which coincidentally was becoming more rare). Here she is “improving” my present, as my trimming apparently left something to be desired.

Merry Christmas from Bali

Merry Christmas! This photo was taken during one of today’s brief dry periods. I think I’m getting better at these self portraits…

Thanksgiving Feast

Seth: Happy Thanksgiving! We celebrated it with pizzas (half-price pizza day!) in the grass next to the parking lot we’ve been staying in for the last couple of nights. It’s right on the beach, where a lot of travelers stay while working in the orchards nearby to fund the next leg of the trip.

We know we’re way behind on blog posts. In about two weeks we’re going to be in Wellington for a little bit staying with some friends. While they’re at work during the weekdays earning the money they’ll need to buy us drinks/dinner each night (just kidding Andrew/Nuala! Sorta!) we’ll completely catch up.

Hope everyone is feasting and enjoying the Cowboys’ 34-3 victory.

Ropes Course Release Form

Seth: We drove down the east coast, and then around the south coast through an area known as the Catlins. It’s a quiet region without a lot of people but with lots of native wildlife.

One of the highlights was a ropes course set in the middle of the forest. This sign was the only warning or attempt at risk mitigation that we found. No fences, release forms or lawyers swinging from the trees.

The Smartest Sheep of All

Erin thought she’d navigate the sheep-proof gate herself.  I started videotaping her noble effort, but she thought I was taking a photo, hence the long, awkward pose and embarrassed laugh afterwards.

Hitchin’

Couldn’t pass this sign without the obligatory photo. Fun fact of the day: both prostitution and hitchhiking are legal in New Zealand.

Kiwi Traffic Jam

Seth: The closest thing we’ve seen to a traffic jam here…definitely more amusing than what I’m used to in California…

Campervan tour: 3 of 3

Seth makes dinner in bed. As you can see, we store all the rest of our stuff under the platform that supports the mattress. Of course, our campervan only serves the classiest boxed wine.

Campervan tour: 2 of 3

View from the bed through our awesome skylights, which open slightly to allow fresh air to move through the van. I think this must be the “Super Extra” part of our van’s name. We have curtains on the side windows that we close at night to give us privacy and keep some of the light out in the early morning.

With the campervan, we’re able to just pull into a campsite for the night and already be set up. It’s comfy, convenient, and a great way to see some beautiful places that would be a hassle to get to if we had to rely on public transportation. We pay between $12 and $28 per night for a site and generally have access to kitchen facilities, restrooms, and sometimes showers.

Campervan tour: 1 of 3

A view of the interior and the bed. We bought a nice warm wool duvet and new sheets since the ones that came with the van were pretty scrappy.