Every trip has a story behind it and mine was no different. In spite of being in the ‘travel’ mode, I needed a push to make me book my flight to Bali (that’s when you get serious about a trip, isn’t it). So here I was, sitting in Chandigarh, wondering if it is time to start my job search again after an eventful backpacking trip to Cambodia. After all, it had been more than a month since I had quit my job.

Thankfully, the thought vanished as soon as it had come. With no intention to get back to the corporate world anytime soon and thinking about where I could head next, I got a call from my sister. Next thing I knew, I am on a flight to Hyderabad next afternoon to meet her, with a vague idea of hopping back to Delhi backpacking in different Indian cities once I am done in Hyderabad. But, as anyone would guess, that’s not what happened. A friend of mine, between jobs at that time, was visiting Bali for 4 days. He asked if I wanted to join and it planted the seed of going to Indonesia in my mind.

For me, a potential destination should have visa on arrival, affordable last moment flights and should be backpacker friendly. To add to these, Indonesia has a plethora of beaches to idle and multiple active volcanoes to climb. The very thought of hiking an active volcano meant that I was going to Indonesia for sure. It was just a matter of finding the cheapest flights from thereon. I did not have any specific place in Indonesia in mind to go to. Every place is worth exploring and I would rather spend my money on exploring a city than on a cramped flight trying to sleep and waiting to land.

As it turned out, Kochi had the cheapest flight out to Bali. This trip made me realize how widespread the international flights’ network is in some of the coastal cities in South India: Kochi, Chennai and Visakhapatnam to name a few. If you are flying to South-east Asia from India and are close to any of the cities mentioned above, you can be reasonably sure of finding cheap last minute flights to your destination. Air Asia and Malindo Air operate from these cities and came to my rescue: offering fares at less than half of what full service carriers were offering. Of course it needed a lot of hit and trial and flexibility in dates but after hours of research, I had a one way ticket to Bali in my hand with no idea whatsoever of what I am going to do in the island country. Though flying un-planned sounds very adventurous and liberating (which it indeed was), the fact that I had to figure everything after landing there was surely weighing on my mind (I had never done a trip like this before).

As with any trip that I have taken, things were bound to go haywire. In this trip it happened sooner rather than later (even before I had reached Bali). I had read some reviews about Malindo Air not being reliable and thus booked Air Asia (paying couple thousand rupees more) from Kochi to Bali. The flight was via Kaula Lampur and both airlines had nearly the same time for take-off and were supposed to reach Bali around the same time. But after reaching Kaula Lampur, I got to know that the Air Asia’s onward flight to Bali was delayed (initially by an hour, then two and post that there was no intimation about the expected time of departure). This reminded me of how we sometimes wait for trains on stations in India in fog hit winters.

As if to extract revenge on me for ignoring Malindo in favour of Air Asia, Malindo flight to Bali (which I would have been on if I had booked Malindo Air) took to the sky right on time as I waited for any information on my flight (and watched other flights take-off through the glass walls at the KL airport). Eventually, my flight took-off from Kaula Lampur after a delay of nearly 4 hours (at the time it was supposed to land in Bali). Nevertheless, it could not diminish my excitement: after-all I knew there was nowhere I had to be, I could stay as long as I wanted to, so a delayed flight could take nothing away from me.

For all travel addicts looking to learn a new hack: If you are thinking how I cleared immigration in India and got visa on arrival in Indonesia without a return ticket; Jet Airways came to my rescue. Jet Airways offers free cancellation (less a small non-refundable fee) within 24 hours of booking any domestic / international flight if booked through their website. So, before going through immigration clearance at Kochi airport, I booked the cheapest Jet Airways flight I could find (Jakarta to Mumbai). Armed with the e-ticket on my mobile, I cleared immigration and got on-arrival visa in Indonesia (all under 24 hours of booking the Jet flight). Once in Bali, I cancelled the flight to get full refund. Though visa in Indonesia took less than 30 seconds and nothing was asked or checked, I would still suggest to be prepared just in case (even today Indian backpackers need more documents as compared to their western counterparts to enter any country or get a visa).

Bali

Bali airport is a treat to land on. It is very similar to Lakshadweep airport, the landing strip has ocean on both sides and you get the feeling of landing on water. The first thing that hits you in Indonesia is the number of zeroes on their currency. You will end up paying in thousands very often. The cab ride to Kuta (around 20 mins) was ~IDR 95,000.

~ Equivalent to US$7.5 (INR 500)

I had booked a hostel in Kuta as that’s pretty close to the airport and has a lot of options to stay. Kuta offers you everything you may want: beaches, surfing, massages, nice restaurants, pubs, etc. I personally got the feeling that it is too crowded and there are more serene places to stay in and around Bali. So I cut short my stay in Kuta and decided to head off to a nearby island: Gili Trawangan.

Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air — just off the northwest coast of Lombok, Indonesia

The islands are a popular destination for tourists looking for a remote island experience. Gili Trawangan is also called “the party island” whereas Gili Air is quieter and has fewer people. There are no cars or motorized vehicles on the islands. The preferred method of transportation is by foot and bicycle or the horse-drawn carriage called a cidomo. A leisurely stroll all the way around Gili T (as it is locally called) takes about 90 mins and gave me some of the best sunset views I have ever seen.

Sunset – Gili Trawangan

On Gili T, I stayed at a small homestay (Giyat Kodong). The caretaker, Habib, became a good friend and told me all about the island and various things to do. The island has a very good vibe. Indonesia has some of the best sites for snorkeling and scuba diving with amazingly clear waters. I could snorkel near the islands at a very reasonable IDR 1,00,000 (~US$7.5 / INR 500). This was my first time snorkeling and I was mesmerized at the flora and fauna that I could see just floating on the surface. For those who love diving, there are many agencies that take you for dives in the ocean at ~$30-50.

Trekking Mt Rinjani (An active volcano – 3,726m)   

My desire to hike a volcano was one of the reasons for me to come to Indonesia. And Gili islands offered a very enticing option – Mt. Rinjani. It is on Lombok island, around half an hour by boat from Gili islands. A casual walk around the island and you will see umpteen boards with Rinjani’s name on it. After gathering information and reading reviews online, I decided to go ahead with the agency ‘Ahmed’s Expedition’. The guy turned out to be a crazy Shah Rukh and hindi songs fan and kept singing ‘chainya chainya’. If you are in Indonesia, haggle as much as you can. Chances are that you could bring the price down by almost 25-40%. As I was traveling alone, I decided to join a group of 3 Dutch trekkers.

Mt. Rinjani

The 3 day trek was a great experience in itself. As there are no villages / homestays on the mountain (unlike Nepal base camp treks), we had to stay in tents overnight. It was a different experience altogether as this was the first time I went camping. All my previous treks were at places where there were arrangements to stay overnight along the way. As we went into day 2 and day 3, we realized how difficult the climb was. The nights were very chilly and our tents were hardly able to keep the winds at bay. Our toil was rewarded by spectacular views all along the trek. The highlight was the crater lake “Segara Anak”. Its views from up-top were mesmerizing. On the afternoon of second day, we actually climbed down to the lake and had lunch. The view was pretty breath-taking. On the second night, our crew had put up the tents where there was a little slope. Believe me, it feels pretty strange trying not to roll off while trying to sleep.

Segara Anak – The Crater Lake

By the third day, we were exhausted yet enthralled by what we had experienced. Climbing Mt. Rinjani was definitely the highlight of my trip. Add to that the opportunity to make 3 new Dutch friends and it makes for a perfect adventure.

With Suzanne – While climbing down on day 3

Padang Bai – The surprise package

After the trek, I was on my way back to Bali. The ferry terminal where you get dropped on Bali island is in a small town called Padang Bai. Tourists often miss how laid back and full of surprises the small town is and end up taking the ferry to the nearby islands. I stayed here for a day and it turned out to be a delightful decision. Exploring the small town on foot, not having too many tourists around and affordable accommodation were some of the positives of this place. The high point of my stay was when I entered a restaurant (associated with Bloo Lagoon Village Resort) and was spellbound by the view. The restaurant faced the ocean and through its circular layout, I got an amazing view of the ocean. I spent nearly 2 hours there satisfying my hunger pangs and chatting with the girl serving food about the sleepy little town and its hidden gems.

View from the restaurant

In these 10 days, I came across some mouth watering preparations which were not only luscious but a delight to look at :).

Juice (Trust me)

Samosa chat

Indonesia, like any other country, has a lot to offer. I could get just a glimpse of it in 10 days. I would love to go back and visit so many other destinations it has, specially Flores. I hope I will find myself there again someday, staring into the vast ocean and reading a book.