Surfin' Bali

i never thought i'd get to say this, but i did it! i surfed! i surfed bali! ;p

all rhei and i wanted was to check out the beach in bali and compare with our beloved boracay. (our verdict is same as that of our filipino friends, who have gone before us, our fine white-sand beaches esp. boracay and palawan are way more beautiful than bali's ;p ) but we came home with a bonus, the best experience ever- we surfed the waters of bali!

we didn't have any plan surfing except when we got there and saw the brochures. even then, no decision was made. the idea was just there at the back of our minds. but the night before we left, we agreed it would be a shame if we didn't try it out. so we called up wayan, the travel agent and booked ourselves for surfing lessons first thing in the morning. at first, wayan won't agree to an earlier sked. he said pick up was at 9. we will start the lessons at 10 and will end at 1230 then the driver will take us back to the hotel.

i explained that our flight back was at 2pm so we had to be at the airport an hour before. so with his sked, it was too tight. he has to have us picked up at 7, start lessons at 8, finish by 1030. that gives us enough time to play by the beach and head back to hotel to wash up before going to the airport. he said, that's the school's sked, we have to follow. besides, there were no waves that early.

i did not give up easily. i pleaded and told him to arrange something. i said it would be a shame coming to bali and not trying to surf. the magic words. he said, ok, i'll make a call. (to the waves?!!) so we agreed that our pick up was at 8, our lessons will start at 9 and finish by 1130. we'll wash up right there at the beach/school. we checked out and brought our luggage so we can go straight to the airport. the beach was 30 minutes away from the airport, assuming traffic was light.

surfing day came and rhei and i were so excited. we thought the mini van was cool.

with our group are 3 australians. only rhei and i were first timers.



i was intimidated by genna. she said she's been surfing since she was 5! although friendly, her toned body bespoke of her prowess. same for her boyfriend. and while rhei and i brought our handbags, she just brought a small pouch where she put her voucher for the surfing program.

we were given rash guards, boardshorts, booties and helmets to wear. after some lectures and exercises, it was time for the real thing. our instructor said,we did well. hmmn, let's see if i can do that in the water, with waves and all. so, we boarded the boat and headed to shore where the waves awaited. 3 more expert looking students joined us.

when we got to the spot, the surfer dudes were throwing the surf boards to the water and we're supposed to swim to it. the thing is, even if i know how to swim, i'm scared to dive in deep waters. even in pools, i have to check how deep it is before i swim. i noticed, they were not handing us lifejackets. what if i drown? we were in the middle ofthe sea, too late to back out, so i faced my fear and jumped in the water and grabbed my surf board #37.

whew! i got on it without drowning, yey!

lying on our boards, we paddled to another spot. my worry was that i didn't know how deep the water was beneath me. what if i fell, how do i get back. i don't i remember the things they said about eskimo roll etc.

i realized 2 things, it's not easy to paddle while lying down. and it's difficult to maneuver the huge beginner's board. i relied heavily on the kindness of my instructor-partner, ketut, who most times asked me to hold on to his leg rope while he paddled hehe. despite that, my arms hurt the next day and the next 3 days after. maybe it was not out of kindness, but out of frustration. he said i was doing it wrong. haha!

anyway, shortly, getting in the water, a wave came and ketut told me to get ready. and when he shouted, stand, stand up! i did it!

i was surprised myself. i got to perform the maneuver - lying down then standing up. i got it! but i still i kept saying, oh no, oh no! when i was half-standing. and i completely forgot that they were taking my pic from afar. i'm surprised i managed to smile afterall as the pic showed.

it was amazing, feeling the wave underneath my board, surging me forward. and then i lost my balance and fell into the water and gulped some of its saltiness. after that, i felt proud and wanted to do it again and again.

i was too eager. even when ketut said, roll, i stood up and rode my board. twice or thrice i did that and twice or thrice, i got thrown off. i apologized later and told him i will listen and obey hehe. poor guy, everytime, i got thrown off, he will come and get me and paddle while i held unto his leg rope. it was fun, for me. sometimes, i'd try to paddle to show i want to help somehow.

anyway, he was so choosy with which waves to ride. if it were up to me, i'd ride all that came along. haha! i never sawhow high the waves were because we were taught never to look back to keep our balance.

i only got to ride 4x, but in one instance, i didn't stand. it took me awhile to stand then i took it was too late so i just lay there so i fell. in the last one, rhei and i went together. one hotshot girl surfer was right in front of me, and i was trying to maneuver the board away from her (like i can) and then boom, to my right came rhei and her board hit me on the jaw. it wasn't painful but i had bukel, a few hours after. ;p

all in all, it was fun. we had an amazing time. and we want to do it again!