day 7: lombok

day 7: december 29

this was just one of the best days ever.  we decided to take a boat

out to the gili islands.  there are three gili islands and we went to

the smaller two which are less crowded and have better waters for

snorkeling.  IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!  i'm so sad it's over. so sad.

the boat ride was about an hour long.  it was very choppy but lovely.

maria, jon and our adorable guide ogank

our captain.

this is the view of gili air from the first island we were at.  clear waters,

clear skies and the most beautiful beds of coral.  we snorkeled here for

maybe an hour, then headed over to the gili air for lunch and even better

snorkeling.  it was so incredible.  just amazing. 

ogank.  what a babe.

i bought a beautiful bracelet from the kind lady.

YUM!  club sandwich.  it was so good.  i hadn't

had a real sandwich in three months before this.

needless to say, i scarfed it down.

the view was as good as the food.

these were our dining hut/tables.  annie and family in the far one.

i feel like i was born to live on the beach.  it's so great.  you don't have to

shower and you can literally wear the same thing every day without anyone

commenting on it.  oh ocean.  i love you so very much.

after our filling meal, we rested a bit, then went out to snorkel more.  i really

wished i had an underwater camera.  we fed the fish some bread and i could

not believe my eyes.  there were hundreds and hundreds of colorful tropical

fish surrounding us just inches away from our eyes and our bodies.  i had never

seen anything like it before.  i wish i could have captured it with a picture.  just

unbelievable.  we snorkeled for the rest of the afternoon and right before we

had to get out of the water to head back to lombok, guess what we saw.  a huge,

gorgeous sea turtle munching on some coral.  it was sooo cool!  there were a few 

other snorkelers there too and we just floated around the turtle and watched in

amazement.  we followed it around for awhile, then had to head back to the boat.

what a great day.  we ended the evening at a very very tasty italian restaurant

called cafe alberto.  the owner was italian and it was lovely listening to him and 

serena talking.  i had spaghetti al pesto and it was the best thing my mouth has

ever tasted.  we also had a pizza as a starter and that was amazing too. yum yum.

lemoncello! toast to a great day and a great meal.