As my lovely husband naps I decide to grab a coffee to kick start the day. Completely unable to sleep I head to coffee shop as soon as its open, and a much needed part of my daily routine wherever I am in the world. 

In the alleyway where we are stay I am greeted by a cat, looking majestic and completely unperturbed by my conversation with it and obliging as I took a snap of it. 

The coffee at “Coffee Cartel” is really good. Bali has come a long way since my first visit in 2011, where all you’d be lucky to get is an International Roast. They certainly have adapted to the changing needs of Aussie tourists. 

As Matthew stirs we lazily decide to head out for a wander and a bit of street shopping. I’d promised to return to see Kath and got myself a new pair of sunglasses and a beach dress. She no longer bothers with the high price haggle as she has learnt over the years I will always get the price down and of course she is grateful I have kept coming back year after year. Now she calls me her sister. 
​We meander down some laneways and return to a shop that caught Matthew’s eye yesterday, a custom guitar shop. Being a guitarist himself he was intrigued what was inside. 

He chats away with the man there who proudly shows off his work. The intricate detail in which they have is impressive, showing Matthew guitars he has made from 1 piece of wood, and a piece made entirely of copper. This made Matthew wonder how you don’t get electrocuted when it is plugged in, but the language barrier left that question unanswered. 
It’s amazing how quickly the time passes, so after a chill out in the open air loungeroom we realise our stomachs are telling us it’s lunch time, and we decide to head not far to a regular haunt “Chapter 2” whose menu is extensive and has a great people watching spot at the front. 
We order and begin to be approached by many of the street hawkers selling all kinds of things. One guy, Eddie, soon worked out we weren’t going to buy any of his vapes, dexes, valium or kids toys and opted for a chat with us instead. I love this part of Bali, always taking the time to be kind in declining their wares, but getting to know more about them and the culture. 

We enjoy a delicious lunch and head back to the villa, as Matthew is almost 100% so he hangs about at the villa while I head out to get my hair braided for our day on the boat tomorrow. A necessity for the day to tame my hair for the wind and the water. 
You never need to venture far to find a place to do that, and I walk in and start chatting with another young English girl getting a pedicure. She was at week 5 in Bali and had another 4 months of travel ahead of her in other parts of Asia. She was 25, and it got me thinking how do kids fund this type of thing? I will probably ask next time, to satisfy my curious mind. 
I return to find Matthew having a luxurious nap, only to be woken when I know we need to head off because tonight will be sunset drinks on the beach. One of my many happy places here in Bali. I cannot wait to show it off to Matthew. 
We jump in a cab with a taxi driver who’s English isn’t well practiced, but between my broken Bahasa and his broken English, we make it work. He, like most of the Balinese, has a warm smile and a friendly vibe about him.
We arrive at “B9B” and scored a front row beanbag as the sun begins to set. The staff here are always fun and enjoyable to interact with. 

We order some drinks and are approached by the many Balinese looking to sell us something. We are intrigued when a man selling canvas prints has an ID hanging around his next. It seems Bali is regulating sellers and he tells us that if he is caught being pushy or rude he could get into trouble. But we did noticed not everyone had these, so again, I will have to ask more questions next time. 
The entertainment begins and the lead singer looks like a Balinese Slash, complete with top hat. They are awesome, and I can see Matthew is completely relaxed and starting to get a sense of why I love it here so much. I decide to go up to the stage, leave a tip and ask them to since Ed Sheeran’s Perfect. They oblige, but first with a disclaimer they’ve never played that song before. Well, I can tell you, you’d never know by the way they performed it. It was……um…..perfect! It was a special moment as Matthew and I soaked up the atmosphere and the sunset.  

It’s a beautiful night so we opt for a leisurely stroll home and order in some food from a local warung. We stop quickly for some supplies for tomorrow’s day trip on the boat. Our food takes less than half an hour and the dinner bill tonight $89K Rupiah ($8.90AUD). So incredibly tasty. 
I cannot wait till the sun rises and we head out for a day in the sunshine on my favourite boat, Bali Rizio!