"And just remember, don't breathe." With these wise words from Jaqui, we waded knee-deep into clear water and jumped onto a longtail boat. It was 10am on the Indonesian island of Gili Air.I had woken up at 6am to catch the sunrise and grab some breakfast. "One banana juice, a double espresso and chicken nasi goreng," I requested. The Gili Air breakfast of champions.
An elderly Australian woman sitting near me asked me what day it was. "Thursday," I replied. "Fancy that," she retorted.At 8am, I took a short stroll to Blue Marine dive school and met Jaqui in the classroom.The boat dropped us off roughly halfway between Gili Air and Lombok, with the majestic Mount Agung on Bali silhouetted in the distance. We both wore wetsuits - unnecessary in the 29°C water - fins, masks and snorkels.Gili Air is geographically further east than the other two, but fits between them in terms of character: enough activity to satisfy those who want some, while relaxed enough to feel like you're on a tropical island.
The wonderful thing about all three of the islands is that there is no motorised transport allowed. In addition to the ubiquitous bicycles, the small paths on the islands are trodden by horse-drawn carriages pulling supplies and the occasional baggage-laden tourist.Waking in time for sunset was important as we had Bintang beers that needed to be drunk. For this, we joined others at the unofficial viewing spot on the west of the island, sipping on an icy brew with feet in the sand.
On our bike ride to dinner, we bumped into two friends we had made doing stand-up paddle yoga the previous day. They joined us at our favourite seafood barbeque spot for grilled dorado and fresh spicy sambals. More Bintangs washed it all down.
I saw the Australian woman at breakfast the next day. "It's Friday," I smirked. She smiled back as I realised how easy it must have been for Jaqui to perpetually delay her departure from this veritable paradise.
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