After Bali, the boys and I spent two nights on the Gili Islands, an archipelago of three small, largely unknown islands off the coast of Lombok.
I promise those are all real names of places, yet I myself still don’t know if it was reality or an elaborate two day dream.
We spent our first night on Gili Meno, the quieter of the two islands, in a bamboo house. My parents were some of the first few foreigners to visit the Gili Islands, having been there in 1986, so naturally I had to visit the resort they stayed in and sure enough, it was still standing. It was cool to see how the island hadn’t changed too much since their visit. Locals slept in outdoor shacks, and there still wasn’t a single motorized vehicle on the island- it’s nice to see that places like that still exist in the world.
After one night we realized that we are creatures of comfort and prefer private bungalows to bamboo huts, so we moved to the larger party island and went directly to Sunset Bar.
The days all blended into each other and none of us ever wore much more than or swimsuits, but I’ll do my best to explain what it was like.
Imagine a place where the colors of the sunset are more vibrant than anything you’ve ever seen. Where the only mode of transport is either horse carriage or bike, and the roads are lined with beautiful beach bars, one after the other. Imagine swing sets over water that ripples in color like gasoline reflecting in the sun, vibrant house music that constantly pulses around and through you, and soft clouds that dance above you. And lastly, imagine a place where everyone is just vibing out, happy and at peace.
Sounds unreal, right?
Welcome to Gili Trawangan.
It was a place to lose yourself, only to pull yourself back out and reconnect with all that you’re made of, which was fitting because exactly a year ago I had completed the Camino de Santiago- which as you may know, was one of the main shaping factors of my life to date.
Bali and the Gili Islands were a very welcome break in our fast pace, but now it’s time to keep rolling. We’re flying to Kuala Lumpur for a stopover on our way to Bangkok, while a man with a ukulele serenades the flight.
Looks like it’s going to be another great day.
