Nusa Penida, Indonesia

Amy
Mar 31, 2019
4 min read

Updated: Aug 19, 2019

NUSA PENIDA, INDONESIA

22nd - 25th March 2019

YAY! We finally made it to Bali, Inondensia and to be greeted by our beautiful Mummies!!!!!!! It was beyond exciting to see them, a few tears were shed too of course!

We stayed in Hotel Segara Agung in Bali, located in Sanur on the Southeast coast.

We spent the evening by the pool and then of course some cocktails later on. It was so hard to believe that we were finally able to see our Mums after nearly 3 months! Definitely something to celebrate!

We also had an interesting breakfast... literally an omelette, with a slice of cheese on the top...

The following day we caught a ferry for the 20 minute journey to Nusa Penida, an island off of the Southeast of mainland Bali. The excitment started straight away when everyone got drenched trying to even get on the boat as we had to enter from the beach and the waves were rough. Laura in particular got soaked head to toe (of course it would happen to her haha!)

Although the ferry ride was extremely rough, we finally made it to beautiful Nusa Penida! It was a lot less touristy than Bali itself and very picturesque. This meant that we could really get immersed in the local culture.

We of course headed straight to a dive centre and organised to dive the following day - with the hope to dive with Manta rays (spoiler!) They had some gorgeous puppies there too that we couldn’t help but say hello to. When in Indonesia, it would be rude not to dive so we decided to make the most of it!

Now for the main attraction, where we stayed. Known as Bill’s House, we stayed in a beautiful house near the centre of the island right on the hills which overlook Nusa Penida and Bali in the distance. This really was an amazing place to stay, very tranquil and peaceful, with an infinity pool too! It had a traditional Balinese style in the way it had been built with outhouses and the architecture was stunning. High wooden ceilings, quirky colourful toilet doors - it had it all! (Except signal or WiFi haha)...

We made the most of the pool whilst we were there and got some incredible views of Mount Agung, an active volcano on Bali.

The above photos show a passionfruit from one of the many plants around the grounds, it was absolutely delicious!

The last photo shows an offering that is traditional in Balinese culture to leave out for the spirits roaming the area. Throughout the trip we have seen offerings left anywhere and anywhere, only made by the women of the families.

The food at Bill’s House was amazing. We had a local lady from the village come and cook traditional Balinese meals (which tended to be quite spicy) and they were beyond delicious! We had lots of Tempe and noodles, as well as some green pancakes with coconut and sugar in for breakfast. Much better than the food in New Zealand for sure!

We even had a little resident cat staying at the house that made itself very very comfortable on one of the beds! Which one is the cat?

The second day of Nusa Penida was our day of diving. One of the most exciting days of the trip so far! We got to see Manta rays, turtles and even a little seahorse too! Amazing for Megan who saw Manta rays on her first dive EVER - if that doesn’t get you hooked I don’t know what else would! Being under the water with such giant creatures (although initially I thought would be scary) was such a calming and incredible experience. They were so peaceful. However the boat trip getting out to Manta Point was far from peaceful. We were constantly being thrown around by the waves to the point everyone was feeling seasick (NOT IDEAL)! We found out later on our trip that the day after we dived they stopped running trips because the water was too rough and two boats capsized. LOL! So, lucky us!

(more diving photos to come when I can get them off my camera haha!)

To relax after our busy start to the day we made the most of the infinity pool with the volcano in the background. Crazy to think that after months of hostels we were then suddently able to stay in a completely private house with its own infinity pool!

The following day we visited a temple. Pura Goa Giri Putri Temple is situated in a limestone cave on the east coast of Nusa Penida and is used for ceremonies and prayer. It was beautiful inside the cave, however because it was so dark it was hard to capture on camera. We were lucky enough to witness a small ceremony. Although we’re not sure entirely what it was for, there was chanting and bell ringing whilst they burnt incense and chucked flower petals.

Here, please enjoy photos of us struggling to get in and out of the only enterence to the cave. Pretty awesome indeed! Disclaimer: not for those with claustrophobia or those who have eaten a few too many cakes! The rest of the cave opens up luckily when you get further in. It is crazy that such a big cave and temple exist which is completely invisible from the outside.

We decided to also visit Atu Beach which is a popular tourist destination known for its steep bamboo steps right on the cliff face. However our driver took us to a different side so we ended up having to trek our own way down the cliffs on a track that was barely walkable - bit of an adventure really! We definitely weren’t wearing sensible footwear for it - flipflops and Birkenstock’s haha! Although it was very touristy on the beach (not our usual scene) it was still very beautiful and worth the hike down!

Due to the time of year, on Nusa Penida we got quite a few thunder and rainstorms, some of which several individuals got stuck in haha! One night (apparently as I was asleep for the entirety of it) the house was actually shaking from the thunder cracking above.