JAVA the movie

A journey across the island of Java, Indonesia ending up in Bali. October 2015.  From Jakarta to Badung to Yogyakarta to Borobodur to Surakarta to Prambanan to Batu to Mount Bromo to Sanur.
Get your popcorn ready.....

duration 0 hour 35 minutes

Journal http://traveltalesfromanywhere.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/java-bali.html

youtube video link https://youtu.be/OhnKbC8Vwu4 

flickr photo album https://www.flickr.com/photos/johnbrand/albums/72157660616051755

Yoga, bikes, beach

26 Oct 2015

A 7am yoga class to start the day, my first ever class but fortunately for me I've got elastic arms and legs and find I'm able to nail the full variety of contorted positions.  Enjoyed it actually and we were invited to join a session tomorrow on the beach which we will do.
After yoga we were in time to wave goodbye to Elson and Evelyn as they go off onto another tour and just catch Cornelia, Steve and Andri too as they're leaving to say a second goodbye.
Usual Indonesian breakfast of rice and noodles and then Bec me go hire bikes out to explore a bit of the coastline and chill for a while on the beach.  That's it for today really, it's all winding down now. 
We went out with Amanda for tea as the last remaining members of our travel group and fortunately for Bec and me Amanda still has some money left and was able to bail us out of not being able to pay our meal bill.  My bank haven't unblocked my account for overseas like I asked them to and so we're stuck without money and relying on credit from Bank of Amanda to survive.
I've sorted it now though but that will probably be an extremely expensive call to telephone banking.  Another downside to this means we can now afford to pay for our airport taxi and departure tax and will not be stranded in Bali.

Hangover city

25 October 2015
Bali

Yeh so after last night I woke up at 11am ready for the yoga class at 7am, oops, oh well it was never gonna happen was it?  We've rearranged for tomorrow morning instead though.
Had a lazy day at the beach with Amanda, Cornelia, Bettina and Steve recovering from last night's party which enabled Bec to get some long awaited sun bathing done.
Some of our new friends are leaving today to move onto somewhere else or set off home.  It's strange really, as we do hugs and goodbyes with Bettina and Cornelia we're waving off good friends but then we only met 10 days ago.  Andri our tour leader is a nice guy too, I guess he has to do these goodbyes every couple of weeks.  We've missed some of the others who've already jetted off whilst we were out but Steve and Amanda are still around so we go out for food, drinks and live music at night before saying our goodbyes to Steve our big super happy Canadian buddy who is getting a boat out to a nearby island in the morning.  Right ok yoga at 7 in the morning, I think I can manage it this time.....

Bali! and the punky Bintang party

24 October 2015

A short flight over to Bali to stay in Sanur.  It instantly feels different to Java, more tourist focused with bars, restaurants and gift shops but it's a chilled out vibe so feels nice.  It's Hindu here and lots of places have offerings and incense outside on the pavement, our hotel room even has a shrine next to the toilet presumably so you can pray while you poo.
Bec and me are staying in Bali for a little while yet but our tour group ends in the morning so it's the big last night out tonight.  We all kit ourselves out in Bintang gear from the gift shops and sign each others shirts after eating.  Out in the bars it's beer and dancing, must have been throwing some crazy shapes because I managed to rip a big hole in the back of my shorts, I think that's what you call tearing up the dance floor.  What a great bunch this group has been, it's not quite proper backpacker travelling doing a tour like this but it's a great way to make new friends.  I kept going until 5.30am which means the yoga class Bec booked for 7am in the morning.....well, what do you reckon?

slumming it up

Off we go to Java, Indonesia soon, starting in Jakarta and ending up in Bali.

Along the way we'll visit Borobudur, the largest Buddhist sanctuary in the world; Prambanan, an ancient Hindu temple complex; climb Mount Bromo, one of many volcanoes in the region, and on my birthday whilst in Jakarta..... a back street slum tour I've arranged with a community charity foundation.  I feel we need to earn the Bali beaches before we get there.....

I will try and write up some anecdotes along the way to post up on here later http://traveltalesfromanywhere.blogspot.co.uk/

And hopefully make an incredible award worthy short film to rival the one on India from 2012 as seen here.....