Bombings, Bali and Malaysia

Bombings-

As I'm sure most of you already know on Friday July 17th the Ritz Carlton and JW Marriott were bombed by terrorists. We were preparing to leave for the airport for our trip to Bali when the bombings occurred. We only live just down the road from where the bombings took place and we frequent the Marriott for breakfast and area often so needless to say it hit way too close to home. It saddens us to think of the security guards we always see and all the smiling faces of the workers, not to mention all the people eating breakfast in the dining room (which is where the one suicide terrorist set his bomb off) We last heard 9 people were killed and over 50 seriously injured (4 of the dead were foreigners who have still not been identified) We couldn't wait to relax on the beach but also wanted to keep a low profile as Bali is the site of the largest terrorist bombing in Indonesian history, something like 200 foreigners were killed in 2004) We noticed a serious increase in security by the time we arrived in Bali. The gate to our hotel was guarded by 10 men with machine guns. It is also standard procedure to have every car stopped by security and it is checked in and out with bomb sniffing dogs and a team of security. This settled our nerves enough for us to have a great time while we were away.

Bali-

We stayed in Seminyak this time at Grand Balisani suites. Our hotel was beautiful and right on the ocean. The area was perfect for relaxing and much quieter than Kuta where we stayed last time. The first morning after we arrived I had the best surprise ever...Travis had arranged for me to make pottery at a local pottery studio!!! We both ended up painting bowls, it was great! The local artists had their pottery for sale and we purchased a Balinese tea set. After that we spent most of our time walking out to the beach and laying around sipping margaritas while watching the most beautiful sunsets on earth! Of course we devoted 1 day entirely to shopping...they have some of the most amazing hand made things there. After shopping we ate at a local cafe and even had a chance to witness a local funeral parade.

Once again Bali had worked her magic on us and we were relaxed and rejuvenated and ready to return to the hustle and bustle of Jakarta.


Kuala Lumpur-

8 days after returning from Bali and 2 trips back and forth to Bandung we were off to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I needed to renew my visa which means leaving the country again so we stayed in Malaysia just a few days.

The city was large and reminded me a bit of Jakarta, but much nicer. We met up with one of Travis' friends Soni and walked around town and ate from street vendors. The colors and smells were something to experience for sure!! Bright signs and the smell of spices were everywhere. Later we hit up a local bar and an Iranian Dance club which was quite interesting. We also had a chance to take a tour of the famous Petronas towers the following day.

Malaysia was beautiful and left me wanting to come back for more. Nxt time I'd like to hike to the caverns located near a large Hindu temple and maybe take a helicopter over the islands.


Back to Jakarta-

For now we are back in Jakarta. We just had our first Patient Appreciation Day which was a big success and Travis is preparing his first "Hour to Health" presentation which will be next Thurs. We already have 20 people signed up to come! We are both looking forward to seeing everybody when we come home in Sept. and to eat some yummy Wisconsin food (we are both currently on Detox programs but will be ready to indulge when we return :))