Bali with the Williams

Everyone dreams about being able to travel to an island paradise with those you call dear friends.  This is exactly what Chris and I got to do last week.  For 6 days we went to Bali, Indonesia with Skyler and Kristin Williams.  Chris and Skyler grew up together in Fort Collins, and like us, Sky and Kristin met at CU.  Over the years we have been able to share many wonderful memories together, life in college in Boulder, a trip to Costa Rice (where they got engaged), our wedding (sadly we missed theirs while living here in Cambodia), camping, hiking, and skiing in the mountains, and many more Colorado memories.  Even more importantly we have been able to share lives with one another, to grow in our faith together, and to learn from one another.  So all in all it was a blessing beyond belief to have this wonderful vacation with them.  Here is what we did...

We spent a few days in Ubud, the small artsy town in the middle of the island.  Intertwined within the homes and art galleries are bright green rice fields which we were able to enjoy while eating almost every meal.  We visited the Monkey Forest, which was more of a panic attack than enjoyment as aggressive monkeys sneak up and circle around you looking for food.  Sky got his hat stolen by a monkey, which led all of us in an epic one hour hunt down that had me and Kristin running around the monkey-over-taken temples in fear until we could finally leave. We also took a bike ride north of the town to visit some of Bali's biggest rice terraces.  We would all agree the bike ride was more than we asked for so a massage was next in line (and well worth all highly priced $4 of it). 

After Ubud we took a taxi, and small boat to a smaller island off the coast of Bali to get away from the tourist crowds that flock to Bali.  Nusa Lembongan was one of the most spectacular sights we have ever seen.  Shades of blue mixed together everywhere you look, and waves bigger than I could of imagined.  I guess that is why the surf spots are named, Lacerations, Shipwrecks, and Devil's Point.  We opted to hang on the beach, eat in restaurants overhanging the ocean, and enjoy our bungalows.  We took one morning to go snorkeling and once again it was more than we bargained for.  The boat ride out to our first stop was nothing shy of nerve racking as the giant waves crashed against our small boat, run by one Indonesian man who spoke no English other than "cold like Bentang" (Bentang - the countries main beer).  The snorkeling was filled with bright colored fish that we all have never seen before, and coral that gives the Caribbean a good run for their money. 

Our final stop was Kuta, and only for a day, so we could squeeze in some surfing.  This was the second time surfing for all four of us (first time was the trip we took to Costa Rica), but everyone picked it up quickly and was able to ride a few waves in.  The beach was crowded and the city was dirty but the day on the beach chatting with good friends and surfing in one of the world's famous surf spots was once a again a moment of realization of how blessed we are to do what we do with the people we love.

Now they are here in Phnom Penh with us learning about our life, our ministries, and the city we call home.