Picture the most perfect, pristine white sand beaches that stretch as far as the eye can see, with warm turquoise/ blue water, chilled out beach bars and restaurants with loungers and swings dotted along the waterfront…you are picturing the Gili Islands. Well, Gili Meno and Gili Air at least. I can’t speak for Gili T.
Having flown into Denpasar late the evening before, we crashed at a guesthouse a short walk from the airport. It was gone 11pm so we had assumed dinner was out of the question, but luckily there was a “street food stall” still serving just around the corner. A simple affair, just a man with a small structure on wheels, a frying pan, rice, vegetables and spices. We ordered my first Nasi Goreng (fried rice) and sat at his trestle and ate the tasty dish. The next morning, our transfer arrived bright and early and after collecting one other couple nearby, drove us for about 15-20 minutes to the port where we checked in for the boat to the Gili’s. Here our luck ran out on the food front. Their restaurant was closed as it was a holy day, and there were no other options in the area, so we sucked it up and looked forward to lunch instead!
There are a number of companies all offering the transfer in varying degrees of comfort and prices, but having had a bad experience with his brother years ago on a cheaper option, Tim chose Gili Getaway. The boat was high spec with air con, comfortable seating (including a personal pillow), a film playing with individual earphones for everyone, regular sweets and a cold refreshing flannel toward the end of the journey. We were pleased with the quality although think we ended up paying far more than we should have, but better safe than sorry. It may be cheaper for the same thing if you book in person / last minute although you run the risk of it being fully booked. A few hours later we arrived to Gili T, the busiest of the islands. Although Gili Getaway continues on to Gili Air and Lombok, it doesn’t include Meno in its itinerary so we had to sort our own onward transfer. We had decided against spending any time on Gili T after hearing how busy it is these days and were relieved when we disembarked.
Poor exhausted and overheated horses dragging overloaded carts trotted along the path with tourists on bikes weaving between them. The shore was packed with crowded restaurants and locals all offering the short 15 minute boat transfer to Meno at hugely inflated prices, claiming the alternative was a few hours wait. We decided to take our chances and politely declined before walking over to the public harbour where we found that contrary to their advice, a boat was departing imminently for half their quote. Pleased, we paid our passage, boarded and were on our way to Gili Meno, the smallest of the Gili Islands.
We had selected Putri Homestay located in the middle of the island. The path to the rooms had an arch of colourful bugenvila which you could admire from the little table and chairs outside your room or from the raised daybeds that sat opposite the rooms. Having just a few nights here before one of my best friends Zoe was flying over from Australia, we settled in. Although there are snorkelling and boat trips available we figured we would be doing this once Zoe joined us and having already had some incredible experiences of both, instead decided to just enjoy relaxing whilst here. To walk around the entire island it only takes about an hour so after taking a lap on the first afternoon we selected our favourite spot for the next few days. Both being past our sun worshiping days (plus already sporting a pretty good tan from general daily sun absorption over actual sun bathing the 5 months of traveling) we opted for shade during our time on Gili Meno.
Loving the sea as he does, Tim would head on out in to the water, fully submerging himself every hour or so, whereas I like to pop in and out very regularly, only rarely going in past my bikini bottoms. Even in the shade you can feel the heat reflecting off the sand and just in the air, and I am not a huge fan of that (hence loving having a pool wherever possible!). The beach itself was stunning and as I know I’ve already said at a number of points on this trip, I found myself looking out along the sand and incredible blue water thinking how lucky we are to be experiencing all of this. Admittedly it may be a little too slow paced for some, prior to this trip I may have placed myself in that category too, but there is something so deeply calming about just hearing the sound of the waves lapping against the shore, enjoying the slight cool breeze and recognising how truly beautiful nature is.
Our homestay room included breakfast daily and on our first day we were pleasantly surprised to find it was a lavish affair. The menu included 3 sections from which we selected one item initially, intending to share, only to be told we each got one from each section. A fruit platter, a pancake and eggs of some description each or you could opt for a fruit juice instead of any of the above. So Tim stuck to pineapple pancakes whilst I tried those and banana pancakes and we had egg, fruit and juice between us each day. We continued with our new staple diet of at least one fried rice or noodles a day along with a curry. This time we ventured to try a few more traditional dishes; Olah – a bit like a vegetable curry but with no curry powder, Gado Gado – boiled veg with a peanut sauce, and our personal favourite, chicken satay – no description necessary. There are plenty of Warung’s to chose from, all at really decent prices but for one of the nights, we opted for one of the islands better known restaurants; no. 5 star. To eat here, you not only need to book in advance, you also have to select your dishes the day before too. We made the mistake of ordering whilst very hungry on our way to dinner so ended up over ordering slightly, with a starter, two mains and a salad. Tim pointed out it was no more than we would usually order in a London restaurant so perhaps we have just got used to eating less out here? Anyway, it was all very tasty although we decided to stick to the cheaper Warung for our final night.
The quick transfer over to Gili Air was very straightforward. We had booked the day before and were at the departure point 15 minutes early as instructed, we waited patiently as more and more tourists joined us in our attempt to shelter from the sun. We watched a boat arrive laden with all sorts of produce including drinking water barrels, prawn crackers, big heavy sacks of who knows what, and plants in plant pots. Only then did it strike us that they must have to import so much for life on the island and to cater for the tourists all flocking to the Gili’s. For some reason I had thought the beautiful flowers adorning our homestay must be very common to the island, admittedly, I had also felt quite jealous as I would love to have them covering our pergola in London, but this too may have been a labour of love to bring it and nurture it here.
Being little islands, it is not uncommon to experience power cuts which subsequently result in lack of internet. Whilst out for dinner on our last night, the whole of Gili Meno had blacked out. Luckily, the warung was prepared and they quickly put up battery lightbulbs and with a head light on, the chef still prepared our meal. This did however mean we had no way of contacting Zoe to arrange an exact meeting point for the next morning. Upon reaching Gili Air we realised they too had experienced the black out so no luck in contacting her from here either. As luck would have it, when we reached Gili Air bungalows, our absolute heaven of accommodation, we saw on their little arrivals white board that she was also checking in. I had thought she had managed to book in the same place but couldn’t be sure so this was a huge relief. Whilst their internet was still down, they had a generator going which meant everything else worked and we decided it made most sense to just wait for Zoe here, assuming, having not heard from us, she would come straight to check in.
Again we had chosen a place roughly in the middle of the island which we later thought might have been a mistake meaning we would have to walk for quite some time to reach the beach but was not the case at all. Not only was it just a 5 minute stroll to the shore, but the little resort was just wonderful. It had maybe 6 perfect bungalows surrounding a gorgeous pool and smaller plunge pool with sun beds along each side. The room had a large king size bed with princess netting surrounding it and then the bathroom had an open air shower to top it all off. The pool was completely deserted and having had a quick peak around, we were fairly certain most of the other bungalows were vacant.
After a quick change into swimwear, we were in the pool, enjoying our welcome drink and feeling blissfully happy in our own private haven. The owners of our bungalows also have a beachfront restaurant called ChillOut so once we were all ready, we made our way over there for lunch and our first “chill out” session. We lounged in the sunbeds and took it in turns getting in and out of the water, it’s crazy how fast time can pass just chatting about everything and nothing as you bob around in crystal clear water.
Unlike us, Zoe was much keener to be in the sun so we chose our spots carefully with just enough shade for us and rays for her. We wandered around the island and found the swings that are so iconic from Gili photos and both Zoe and Tim ventured out with snorkels to see what they could see just off the shoreline. I decided to wait for our boat trip so left them to it whilst I enjoyed reviewing all our gorgeous photos and reading my book.
There are so many people offering the boat trip but we opted for a private boat that set off from just around the corner from our accommodation. Partly due to convenience and partly because they had a playful kitten that wandered out and kept us interested whilst Tim checked their price etc. Now by this point, I’d like to think we are boat trip experts pretty much, we have done our fair share of trips so believe me when I say this was a good one! Admittedly there were a number of other boats doing the same route which on other occasions has taken away from the experience somewhat (i.e. El Nido) but setting off slightly after the route started and having the boat to ourselves meant that we could have a little extra time in each spot once the others had moved on. Our crew consisted of 3 young boys, the youngest of which we decided was our trainee captain. He sat at the back steering whilst the others sat at the front, one on the roof, giving directions constantly by lowering his hand just below the roof and gesturing, and the third seemed to just be enjoying the ride most of the time, particularly when the waves got choppier!
Turtles have been plentiful during our adventure, in the Galapagos and at various points in the Philippine’s but this was definitely a different experience. We have generally always swam with them in shallow water where they have been gently making their way eating from the greenery below or going up for air. This time however, the water was a rich deep blue and the speed at which they propelled themselves was impressive.
Another key highlight was the ‘nest’ statues just by Gili Meno sculpted out of material with a neutral ph by British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor, to help create a natural reef. The finished product is an intriguing circle of couples, each with the woman standing in front of the man facing inward with her arm reaching back around his neck. At first all the couple’s look identical but when you look closely, each is moulded on different individuals, no two the same.
In the middle of the circle of couples there are a number of women lying down creating another circle within although they kind of look like their arms are tied holding them there which gives a slightly eerie feel to the dynamics. When we first approached the sculpture it was swarming with people but we returned to our boat and had them loop back round and that time we managed to catch it much more isolated. Perks of having the private boat!
Boat trip aside, the rest of our time was spent chilling in the beachfront spots, admiring the many many boutique shops that had both Zoe and I wanting to buy everything whilst Tim preceded to wait outside and the all important “arty film”. I say all important because we have found, the more backpacker / travel enthusiast an area, the more boho it seems to be. Queue countless yoga spots, vegan vegetarian healthy restaurants, whimsical shops with ultra chic floaty dresses and jewellery all just as expensive as if you were home despite being in the middle of an island in Indonesia. Baring that in mind, our “curry and movie night” with chic pea and lentil curries served in dried coconut shells followed by Wes Anderson’s “The Darjeeling Express” watched on beanbags and yoga mats should complete the picture for you. Whilst the meal was actually delicious, we would have quite liked to watch a blockbuster like Batman! That said, if the boutique shops come hand in hand with arty films, I will take it!
On our final night we discovered a fantastic italian restaurant (complete with brick oven) that served the most delicious pizza we had had in a while with the piece de resistance being the Nutella pizza for dessert. I don’t think Tim or Zoe were particularly bothered but both agreed to share it with me if I ordered it (as if there was ever a question over that!). Then just like that, in what felt like no time at all, our time in the Gili’s was over. Back to Bali mainland!
Dominique
thequayelife 