No shortage of watermelons here in Bali!

I’ve made the pilgrimage to the promised land of Bali, Indonesia, and I could not be more excited to be here! I haven’t been here in about eight years, and things have really changed! I’m staying in the Canggu area, which was pretty empty the last time I was in Bali. Now, it’s a hub for shopping, eating, and nightlife. The waves are fun over here, but we have had a lot of wind over the past few days, so I’m excited to get some cleaner waves over the on the Bukit side next week.

I’ve been able to meet up with a handful of different friends from home during the five days I’ve been here so far, so it almost feels like I’m at home! The trendy, healthy breakfast cafes remind me a lot of Encinitas, but there’s a healthy mixture of local warungs and street vendors, so it's easy to switch it up. My hostel has a very friendly, social atmosphere, and it's been so cool to talk to different types of travelers from all over the world! There are lots of other people doing a year or so of traveling, and I’ve gotten a bunch of advice on backpacking and hostels. I was super tired of carrying so much stuff around, so I sent about 25 pounds of stuff to a friend in Australia. I sent it through Indonesian sea-mail, so I might end up getting to Australia before the package does!

When I was surfing near Old Man’s in Canggu, I spotted not one but TWO other watermelon boards, with the exact same paint job as mine. Apparently they are two rental boards at a shop on the beach here, and the person who shaped / designed them saw my boards on social media, and was inspired by them... what are the chances?! I jokingly told a guy riding one of the watermelon boards that we were going to have to fight on the sand, but he didn’t understand that I was just kidding, so that was awkward. Whoops.

I’m looking forward to the rest of my week in Canggu, and if conditions allow, I might be heading about two hours up north to Medewi, a long lefthand point break! I’ve never been to that part of Bali, so it will be super neat to check out.

Written by: Stephanie Schechter