01.19.26
Our Exit Plan:
By the numbers:
> Set up 0400 ride for 0700 flight to Athens? Check.
> Get to airport in plenty of time, have smooth flight? Check.
> Arrive in Athens at 10:00, plenty early for a 1pm check in? Yup.
> Check to see if there is a TAXI STRIKE? Uh, no, didn’t do that, so imagine our surprise, after killing a few hours until we could go to our overnight room, and find out that Uber and Bolt have NO DRIVERS? And then, we’re told that there is a taxi strike—for the third day. And our room (for the night) is only 20 minutes away, but no way to get there unless we take several buses and 90 minutes of wasted time. Over 7 years of this nomadic travel, no strike has every affected us.
As is usually the case, it all worked out. We contacted our hotel, they called their private driver, and she was there in a jiffy. Still 25€ for a 20-minute ride floored me (oh, how different prices are in the EU!), we got to our room, and all is good. We’re using the same driver for our 0630 pickup in the morning so we can catch that lovely 11-hour flight to Singapore, but it is what it is.
BTW, why the taxi strike? The government is insisting that all taxi drivers only use electric vehicles starting THIS year…Hell, I’d strike over that, too. Taxi Union want to push these regs back to 2035, so we’ll see how long this standoff lasts.
Welcome to Bali:
XXX is NOT What it Used to Be (fill in almost any place here)
We’ve been in Bali for 2 days (3rd time in 3 years), and one of the most common remarks we hear is, “Bali is not what it used to be: It used to be cheap; it used to be less crowded and touristy. It used to be cleaner with less traffic.” And you know what? You could say that about almost anywhere in the world! I lived in Orange County, CA for 40 years, and that place is certainly NOT what it used to be, either. And even if Bali isn’t what it once was, it’s still pretty damn good!!
And what a breath a fresh air it’s been! Very warm, humid fresh air, and it’s nice to live in shorts and tank tops again! Daytime temps have been in the upper 80s F, nighttime in the 70s, but there’s been a nice breeze, and fortunately just a few drizzles, but no significant rain while we were out. So far so good. We’ve been in the city of Sanur—one of our faves– and stayed one extra day before we head over to the island of Nusa Lembongan for a month. It’s kind of cool going back to places where you know people. For instance, my good friend Sherman from Orange County California, has been living here for several years and picked us up at the airport on Saturday. Yesterday morning we had breakfast with a friend who I had not seen for a dozen years, also from the OC, and I knew him from real estate a lifetime ago! And at the homestay where we live, we were able to reconnect with some friends that we met last year from Australia, so overall we do not feel like strangers. Especially because we know the town so well, and know where to go for food, shopping, massages (had my first 60-minute massage today in almost 18 months. The price: $8.50 USD), and for almost everything else. One of the benefits of being a long-term traveler and returning to prior locations.
Overall we’ll be here for 60 days, then off to Vietnam for quite some time
