After a glorious day spent relaxing at the villas, it was tough but we managed to pry ourselves away to explore the island. We were hoping to spend the day at the beach and try some snorkeling but as luck would have it, Bali was observing a 'silent day of the sea' which meant you weren't allowed in the water. Instead we rented a scooter from the villa and set off, with Dan driving (for the first time I might add!) and me clinging on for dear life.
It was absolutely terrifying driving along the roads leading out from our end of the island as they were basically dirt tracks with broken up bits of rock everywhere. Once we'd made it to smoother ground, a few minutes later we realised that the back tyre was flat! Thankfully we were a short walk away from a garage, so in the blazing heat we were able to push the scooter there and get it fixed.
That anti-climatic mishap over, Dan drove us around and up to the other side of the island where I finally felt able to loosen my grip and enjoy the ride. The first pit stop we made was at the cliffs labelled 'Panorama Point'. The view was incredible and once again I was blown away by how the beautiful scenery in Bali and how it's islands seemed to get better and better.
We carried on further until we were at a quiet spot of the island not too far from the Mangrove forest. Hopefully it wasn't quiet because we weren't actually meant to be on the beach!
What do you do when you see an empty boat on the sand? Take a cheesy photo of course...
Part of Nusa Lembongan's charm is it's a lot less developed than mainland Bali so it feels a lot more authentic.
Exploring in the middle of the day in Indonesia means that it doesn't take long before you need to seek refuge in some shade and cool down with a fresh watermelon juice. We scootered off back in the direction we came and followed the signs to Dream Beach.
Unfortunately it was closed due to the silent day of the sea but visitors were still able to take some photos of the beach.
After taking some snaps, we noticed that the hotel overlooking the beach had a pool. Not just any old pool, it turned out. It was an infinity pool, with an incredible view and of course, I couldn't resist getting a poser-ish snap in it ;-)
After splashing around in the pool for a bit, we had worked up an appetite for headed upstairs to have lunch. It really isn't hard at all to dine with a view in Bali!
The day had flown by so soon it was time to scooter back to the villa to shower and try and catch the sunset once more. It was our final night in Lembongan island and we were very sad that we had to pack our bags and get an early ride in the morning to Gili T. We made a promise to ourselves to come back one day and I hope that day isn't too far into the future!
I would really recommend coming to Nusa Lembongan. It isn't always high on the usual lists of places to visit but that's exactly why you should go - it's a little off the beaten track meaning you can escape the hoards of tourists and experience paradise.
There's still a couple more Bali posts to come from our time in Gili T and Ubud, so stay tuned!
xxx
