Islands

Bali

Bali is this kind of island where everybody will find something to interest him (or her). It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Indonesia. Every year thousands of tourists come there, mostly to surf, dive, tour and party of course. Kuta is a place full of life for 24 hours seven days in week. Numerous clubs, restaurants and pubs are characteristic for that place. Seminyak is full with joints with live music (especially with salsa) and meeting places for minority and Bali's subcultures. Sometime it is difficult to guess the sex of a person sitting at the next table. Between Kuta and Seminyak we can find Legian, which has the most popular beach in this area. Fans of beautiful beaches, almost uninhabited ones, away from noisy Kuta, should go to the south of the island. After an hour travel by taxi you can reach Balagan Beach. White sand, palms, azure water, silence and delicious local food brought straight to the beach. It is worth to stay there for a night and fall asleep listening waves trying to reach the beach. The west coast is a perfect place for fans of luxury resorts. It is also a diving region as well. The north part of the island is completely different. The whole of Bali is green and flowery, but the northern part is the greenest place on the island. Thermal springs or waterfalls are what attract tourists next. For dessert you can visit the City of Artists - Ubudu - situated in the central part of Bali. A night here will prove to be an amazing time spent with a glass of wine listening to live music. There's also the very popular Monkey Forest in Ubud. The whole island is filled with numerous temples worth recommending. The Barong Dance show is also a spectacle that won't fail to entertain.

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Flores

Flores differs from Bali. It is hard to meet any tourists there. The island is over 600 km long. Because of its narrow and winding roads, covering this distance requires quite long time. Visiting Flores for few days and then coming back to Bali from the airport in Mau Mere is your best bet. During the trip you can see amazing waterfall, native villages, and beautiful beaches - from white and sandy ones to rocky and green ones. But the best impression makes the Kelimutu volcano. It has three craters, each one different than the next. The most effective one is azure crater which looks like something from the other planet. As we travel, we pass tropical forest and rice fields. Giant bamboos covered in fog, coffee and cocoa plantations, enchanting cotton trees, women doing the washing by the river, naked children playing in puddles, this is what brings us to another world, where political views, corporations, the rat race and fashion don't matter.

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Jawa

If we want to rest from Bali, we can visit Java for a one-day trip.

The airplane takes off at dawn. At the airport we can easily find a driver who for 50$ can show us the most interesting places, including Borobudur. Borobudur is a magnificent Buddhist temple situated on the Kedu plain. The temple is a reflection of the Buddhist vision of the world. Terraced construction surrounded by 72 bells with 6 km of tunnels leading from one structure to the next, each of which shows scenes from Buddha's life. It makes a huge impression for sure. It is believed that one of monuments of the meditating Buddha brings luck. Local guides claim that if woman touches Buddha's heel and man touches his finger they will be lucky. Don't be surprised if local citizens will want to take picture with you, it is because of the rarity of visits by European tourists here.

Pranbanan or sultan palace are next places worth visiting in Java. In the palace you can buy, at quite attractive prices, some interesting paintings showing scenes from a sultan's life painted on a silk. If you want to see the volcano too, it also requires staying the night in Java.

Late evening you can go back to Bali by a plane.

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