Hi Padangbai!

Six years ago I stayed almost 10 days in Padangbai, they have two really nice beaches here and really awesome snorkelling. I went back to Mahayani Losmen where I stayed last time, and I was happy to find the place was still there and just as cheap as before!..
Last time I was here, sitting on the veranda of the temple-like front of the rooms reading a book, some lady walked in, asked about room prices, wrote something down and was about to leave again. I did ask her if she was from the Lonely Planet, and it turned out she actually was. So i checked a newer edition of the Bali Lonely Planet, and sure enough: Mahayani was added.
Strangely enough Wayan, the owner, didn't even know! Probably the place is just too hard to find, since it's in some really small back alley. So I urged him to make some signs showing the way and pointing out that it's recommended by the Lonely Planet, let's see if this gets more people to come..

I really do love it here. I'm having a great time with Wayan's three kids (the fourth one, a Legong dancer, left home already) who absolutely love playing with all my electronic and mechanic gear. They can shoot pictures and movies with my camera for hours, and also my cigarette rolling machine is hugely popular. So is the flickering lighter i got in Kuta and ofcourse the iPod. Yogi, the third one, 11 years old, plays some mean chess, although he tries to cheat all the time he's still way better than me! ;-)
Yogi and Sina, the smallest girl, showed me the dance performances they learned (ofcourse I had to pay them 10.000 rupiahs each! ;-), they're pretty good already.
Today i went snorkelling, and i was relieved to find the coral here is still as beautiful as it was six years ago, the fish seem even more varied and amazing than back then. I snorkelled for 4 hours and time just flew by, i must've taken 300 pictures (ofcourse, most of these will be deleted, but you just can't see if the picture is good underwater, so you just take lots and lots!). I saw Trumpet Fish, Parrot Fish and loads more I don't know the name of. For a second or so I even saw Nemo (Clown Fish) inside some branchy coral, unfortunately I didn't find him again.




Shock of the day: Nothing beats the adrenaline rush of snorkelling in waters where you saw actual live sharks six years ago (no man-eating ones, but still sharks!) and suddenly hitting a floating cactus with your foot....