sunburn + board rash + aching shoulders = satisfaction!

Primary objective of holiday: Catch some waves.
Side Note: Try not to get killed or to look too stupid.

Day 1 = Lots of walking :P
Walked all the way from Tuban to Halfway Kuta to check out the surf. Then walked around Kuta Square a bit. Bought some board shorts and a pair of sunnies.

Day 2+Day 3+Day 4 = SURFING! (plus some other stuff which I don't really remember too well 'coz I was preoccupied SURFING!)
Arrived at Kuta a little too late in the morning on Friday. Tide was low and waves were pretty dumpy. Not too great for longboards and beginners (would have led to many nosedives and perhaps some broken noses), so we just went back to the hotel and chilled out the whole morning (i.e. I slept!).

SURFING!!! On Friday, my dad, my sis and I took a surfing lesson together in the afternoon. You can tell we had lots of fun!

Did I mention my dad's greatest ambition is to be a beach bum?

We did a little bit of theory and some jump up practice on land before heading down to the beach.

"Whoaaa! Those waves are BIG and SCARY!"

For the first day we just kinda stayed close to the beach and surfed in the white wash.

On Saturday morning, I headed out to Kuta on my own 'coz my dad and sis were too tired/lazy to go surfing early in the morning. I ended up spending most of the day paddling and waiting for waves. Was still good fun though.

Sunday was a totally different story! The waves were HUGE! My aim for the day was to catch as many big green waves as possible and practice catching them.. This meant a few embarassing wipeouts! Still.. It was AMAZING! I was having so much fun that I didn't want to go back! I ended up having to go straight to the airport from the beach to make sure I didn't miss my flight! It was worth the rush though.. The "Longboarder's Start-Up - A Guide to Longboard Surfing" by Doug Werner has this to say about catching your first big wave:

"This will happen:
You'll be screaming along at 75 mph, in control with
every eye on the beach on you...
Lookit that guy go!

You'll think:
WOW!
I'm standing UP!
On TOP of the water!
I'm SURFING!

We're talking moments here, but those moments will rank right up there with your first Christmas morning, first bike ride, first hit, goal or catch, first kiss, first home run (in or out of the park), first meaningful paycheck and first successful public speaking engagement.

Yup, the first time really is like that. For everybody."

He wasn't wrong.


"WOW! I didn't fall off!"

Many thanks to the guys at ProSurf - Bali, for their expert guidance and for making sure I didn't put a board through anyone's (especially my own) head.