Day 9: The Freedom of A Motorbike in Nusa Penida, Indonesia (Saturday, May 20th, 2023)

Today I woke up early to meet Wayan (The driver) to go to the ferry in Sanur. I woke up at 5:30 to meet him at 6:00. This seemed excessively early to me since the ferry was at 8:30 and it was a 1 hour drive. But he was worried about traffic. He told me he could also get my ticket, which sounded convenient. 

Once he picked me up, traffic was a breeze. We made it to Sanur by 7:00. But since it was early, we caught the sunrise which was beautiful. 

This also gave us time to get the ticket. I followed Wayan to the ticket office and gave him my cash for the ticket while I waited outside. I thought when he said he could get me a ticket, it would be like calling a friend to make a reservation or something. I could have walked into the office myself to get a ticket. But I guess this was convenient since he's a local and speaks the language. 

I had also asked Wayan the night before which harbour the ferry goes to, because there are two harbours on the island. Nusa Penida and Banjar Nyuh. He had said Nusa Penida, so that's where I booked my hostel. 

At this point, I had a little bit of time before the ferry and thought about getting breakfast, but I was also concerned about getting sea sick, because I had heard horror stories. So I opted to take a sea sick pill and just wait until I got to Nusa Penida to eat instead.

Once on the ferry, I was one of the first people on board and picked an aisle seat towards the back. That way I had leg room and the back of the boat would be more stable. The ride was easy though and the seas were calm. Once we arrived, it was the wrong harbor. It was Banjar Nyuh, not Nusa Penida. I probably should have asked to confirm, but it seemed obvious. Everyone got off and they unloaded all of the luggage. Okay, I thought, I'll get breakfast while I figure out what I want to do. There was no reason to get upset, mad, frustrated, etc. Because that's a waste of time and emotions and doesn't help me figure out how to solve the problem at hand. 

I walked down the main street while avoiding the loads of men asking if I needed a taxi. I found a cute open air restaurant that looked like a good spot to eat breakfast and figure out my plan. I ordered a coffee and some breakfast. 

I looked at where I was relative to my hostel. Banjar Nyuh harbour was on the northwest side of the island whereas Nusa Penida harbour is on the northeast side. Looking at the various sites, they were mostly all on the southwest side of the island. So I had two options. 

     - One, take a taxi to the hostel that I had booked in Nusa Penida harbor. 

     - Two, cancel that reservation (and lose the nights payment) and find a hostel here instead.

I opted for the latter since most of the sites were on this side of the island anyways. I was only spending one night on Nusa Penida, so it didn't make sense for me to take a taxi to the other side just to rent a motorbike to come all the way back here. 

So I checked hostelworld and found a few options that were available tonight. One, was just down the street but didn't have great review (6.5 stars) and the other was a few miles away and had better reviews (9.0 stars). I decided to go for the hostel that was closer since I could walk there when though the reviews weren't as good, it was only one night. 

After breakfast I walked down to that hostel. It was empty with not a soul in site. I dropped my bags off at the front desk and wandered around looking for someone. The upstairs "lounge" area was filled with broken chairs and odd furniture, obviously not used. The rest of the hostel was strictly dorm rooms. Eventually, a man came from across the street.

I told him I was looking for a bed for the night and he walked around the dorms to check. He said the last one had room. Another guy also showed up, who he said was the owner. I had no way of verifying either of their identity. They said it's 100,000IRD/night ($6.71USD), which was fine. That was even cheaper than listed on hostelworld. 

I gave them the money and "checked in." Although I say that loosely. I paid them and they gave me a bed. They didn't ask for my name, contact info, nationality, passport, or anything. 

I told them that I wanted to rent a motorbike to drive around for the day. The guy told me that motorbikes are hard to find but he would try to find me one. While he went out, I unpacked a little and got settled. He came back not too long after saying that he found me a bike. 

The bike was another 100,000IRD ($6.71USD), which seemed like a good deal. The bike was low on gas, but he told me it was hard to find petrol. Which I believed, so far I hadn't seen proper gas stations. Just random people on the street selling jugs and bottles of green and red stuff labeled "petrol". 

Once I got the scooter, I was off!!! I was a little nervous at first about driving on the left. But I felt more comfortable here than in Bali because there was no traffic. So I hyped myself up and reminded me self "stay on the left". I felt like Dory from finding Nemo singing to myself "stay on the left, stay on the left". 

My first destination was Klingkling Beach, which looks like a dinosaur! It was about 45min by motorbike and fairly straight forward. I pulled over every now and then to check directions as necessary. 

But driving felt amazing! "This is freedom" I thought. Being where I want, going where I want, when I want, with no obligations, just the wind in my hair. 

Once I arrived at the beach, it was made into a total tourist destination with shops, restaurants, tours, etc. Why I ever think things can be "just a hike" or "just a beach" - I don't know. 

I wandered around the cliff side enjoying the views. It was absolutely beautiful water and the site of the "dinosaur" too. 

Upon further investigation, it seemed that people were walking to and from the beach. Which was a LONG ways down. I figured I should eat first to fuel up before a strenuous hike. I stopped at one of the restaurants, and once again got fried noodles with eggs and vegetables. 

When I started on the hike, it first seemed like there was a line waiting to go down, but it turns out that everyone was just in line for a photo opp. I passed everyone and continued down the stairs. 

It wasn't bad, at first. The stairs were really tall, but they were nice concrete steps. But that only lasted so long. Maybe 25% of the trail had nice steps. The next 25% used to be nice steps, but were now just piles of jumbled concrete.

About halfway down is where it got really interesting. The stairs of any form ended and the nice wooden hand railing turned into sticks and rope. 

It was narrow and VERY steep. There were people coming up and going down. Which often lead to waiting periods because of how narrow and dangerous it was. I debated not going for the sake of my knees. Especially after overdoing it in Australia. But I was here, it was beautiful, and I wanted to take the opportunity of the moment. So I decided I'd go, but slowly to make sure I have proper footing. I also heavily relied on my right leg to save my left leg. (I paid for this later). Ultimately, I ended up taking off my shoes and going barefoot as I trusted my feet to grip the rocks more than my shoes. 

Once I made it down to the beach - it was absolutely gorgeous! White sand beach, crystal clear blue water, and no more than 30 people. 

I found a spot off to the side and in the shade to relax. I went in the water once, but the tide was heavy and I was concerned about an under current. A lot of people were swimming and going in and out, but it didn't feel like a safe spot to me. So a quick dip was all I did. 

I reapplied sunscreen, are some snacks, relaxed, and watched influencers take photo after photo, for about an hour. Then, I wanted to continue on with my day as I had more spots around the island to explore. I mustered up the energy and started the climb back up. 

Although it was a slow and steady climb, it felt faster going up. People coming down often gave me the right of way and I was less concerned with slipping. Plus,  it was basically rock climbing for the first 50% of it. Which thankfully, I have experience with! I trust my hands and feet on the rocks to climb up more than pulling myself up by the railings made out of bamboo sticks and ropes. 

Eventually, I made it half way. Where the jagged concrete stair-like chunks were. I stopped here for a quick break, and to put my shoes back on. I continued up, and felt so accomplished! I wish I had tracked it on my watch to know the steps, ascent, calories, etc. What a workout. 

I stopped at one of the cafes afterwards to reward myself with an ice cold water and mango popsicle. 

Once I was cooled down and rested, I continued on. 

My next stop was Angels Billabong, about 30min by motorbike away. I had saved the various attractions in maps on my phone, but had forgotten what each one was since doing so. So I had honestly forgotten what Angel's billabong was or what to expect - which was also a nice surprise. 

It was a natural infinity pool overlooking the ocean! 

At first, I just opted for photos of it.

Then, I realized people were down in the pool taking photos. The tide was out, so it was below the sea wall and not coming into the pool itself. I hadn't thought about swimming here, although I hadn't thought about much because I had forgotten what it was. But I figured, I'm here, why not! 

So I swam out to the ledge. It was a little eery at first, because the pool has overhangs, where who knows what could be under. But I tried not to think about that. It was deep enough that you couldn't touch too. Once I was at the other side, it was a slippery ledge covered in algea. I thought, this would be an awesome picture. 

So I swam back towards the shore, and asked a kind stranger to take my photo. I told her that my phone was in the water bottle holder in my backpack. But once she took a photo she said "I think my camera is better, I'll use my phone". And so she did. I am so grateful for her kindness to not only use her time but also her phone to capture this moment for me. It's a nice reminder that simple acts of kindness go a long ways. The world needs more of that. 

Afterwards, we exchanged numbers and she sent the photos to me via WhatsApp once she had service. 

There was another guy swimming at the same time as me, and he did the same. A kind stranger took his picture to capture the moment for him. After swimming, I dried off and chatted with him for a little bit. We were both solo travelers. 

I headed back to my scooter to continue onto the next stop. But as I was pulling out of the parking lot, the same guy stopped me and said that broken beach was just down the road - which I had forgotten about! So I followed him and a few other people there. 

Once we arrived, it was a beautiful natural bridge that created a tidal pool. I walked around, and again watched influencers take photo after photo. It was beautiful, but I didn't stay too long because I wanted to make it to Crystal Bay Beach for sunset. 

I setoff on my scooter, and it took much long to get there than I expected. There was a "shortcut" that google maps was showing that didn't exist. So I saw the best sunset while I was on my motorbike. 

Once I arrived at the beach, I could tell I had missed it because everyone was leaving. But that's okay, I still wanted to see whatever I could. The views were beautiful and I bet the sunset was too. I didn't stay long because I still had to drive back to town and it was dark by now. 

Back at the hostel, I returned the motorbike, showered, and regrouped. Then, I went across the street for dinner at a local Indonesian restaurant.

While at dinner, I also looked into ferries for the next day because I wanted to go to another island, Gili Trawangan. However, since it was less than 24hrs in advance, I couldn't book it online. The same guy who had checked me into the hostel and rented the motorbike had messaged me saying that he could help me get a ferry if I needed. I told him I would let him know. But now, I messaged him back asking for him to get me one. I didn't know where the ticket office was or which companies went from Nusa Penida to Gili T. 

After dinner, I Walked around town looking for live music as I didn't feel ready to just go back to the hostel. Especially since there was no common area to hang out in. I was also still a little hungry, so I found a spot to get guacamole and chips with live music. Afterwards, I headed back to the hostel to go to bed. It was a long day and I was tired. 

Back at the hostel, I changed and got ready for bed. While I was sitting on my bed, the same guy from before came into the dorm room. I was the only person in there, except for someone else who was in the shower. He told me when and where to meet him in the morning to get the ferry ticket. But once we were done talking about logistics, he continued to chat, and then started rubbing my shoulders. I said "no thank you, please don't touch me". Thankfully, he respected that and stopped. 

But I was so uncomfortable with the situation. Staff at a hostel should never touch a guest, especially without permission. Especially a solo female backpacker who is sitting on her bed in her pajamas, alone. I wasn't even positive he was actually staff at the hostel. I tried not to let my brain run the "what if" scenarios. 

He left and I waited for the guy to get out of the shower. I told him what had happened and he told me if anything ever happened again, to yell for him. I felt slightly relieved at least I wasn't completely alone and had someone on my side.

I went to bed.