Surfing on Bali

This is my fourth day in Kuta on Bali. It's frenetic, it's warm, and too touristy, but I like it as my first touch with Southeast Asia. The main reason why I wanted to come to Kuta is its beach, which has the best surf on Bali for beginners. And indeed, I have tried surfing here. It was heaps of fun, and not at all as hard as I would have imagined. I hired an Indonesian instructor on the beach and practiced with him for about 3 hours. It's real work out, I'll tell you. I never imagined it would be so energy consuming to get out there again once the waves have given you a ride to the shore.

Kuta Beach sunset.

Sadly, I won't be able to surf again on Bali. An unfortunate fall off the board due to a huge wave made me accidentally hit the side of my head on the board. As a consequence I now have a small perforation in my left ear drum. I can't swim or surf until it's healed to prevent infection; doctor's orders. And the worst thing is that it can take weeks, up to a month, for the ear drum to heal by itself. So until then, not only do I have to refrain from surfing, I also have to live with reduced hearing on my left ear, which is quite annoying. I'm disappointed, but such is life.

This just means I have to change my plans regarding my time on Bali and do something else. I'll probably travel to the less hectic cultural centre of Bali, the overgrown village Ubud, and take a lesson in Indonesian cooking.