‘I was unprepared for the heat and humidity of Bali’

Earlier this year my husband and I were invited to a friend’s wedding in Bali, Indonesia. We had both travelled quite a bit, but had never been to Bali. In fact, neither of us had ever attended a beach wedding before either. We were both keen to go, thinking it would be quite a unique experience and we could tick both things off our bucket list in one trip.

We’d received the invitation at short notice, which didn’t leave us much time to investigate airfares and accommodation, which also gave us concerns about how much money we could save for this trip. However, we decided that if we could manipulate our budget in any way, then why not go!

I left it to my husband to crunch the numbers and research flights and accommodation. He was happy to take control and there were some savings to be had. We learned that we could save quite a lot of money by booking a red eye (overnight) flight. However, at our age, I wouldn’t recommend it. Being 70 years old, I prefer to by in my own bed at night rather than sitting uncomfortably on a plane. Hindsight is a wonderful thing and we wouldn’t travel that way again.

After a six-hour flight and a short taxi ride, we arrived at the Sun Hotel and Spa located centrally at Kuta in Bali. I was exhausted and struggled with the heat, the humidity was 85 per cent and it felt stifling!

Our accommodation was three-stars, which we accepted because we were travelling on a ‘beer budget’. It was reasonably priced. The staff were friendly and accommodating. My only disappointment was the breakfast menu, which meant every morning we ventured out to one of the many surrounding food outlets and purchased a hearty breakfast that included bacon, eggs, fried tomato and good coffee.

Anyone who has ever travelled to Bali before will know that the cost of most things there is very inexpensive. Our breakfast each day came to the princely sum of AU$5.80 for both of us.

The hotel had a pool that we made good use of. We even went for a night swim before bed. It was a surefire way to cool down from the heat and humidity around us. At times it was such a relief to get inside to the cool air of our room.

Though I struggled, it would appear my husband — who remained a ray of sunshine throughout the whole trip — was unaffected by the weather. He once told me to “toughen up”, which I was unimpressed by, as the wedding would be held on Legian Beach.

As beautiful as the wedding was, I feel the same could have easily have been achieved had it been on one of the many beautiful beaches in Queensland (or anywhere in Australia for that matter).

After four days in Bali, we returned to Australia. I often wonder how long it would have taken me to adjust to the extremes of the temperatures they have there and enjoy the sights on offer.

Have you travelled to a destination and been shocked by how different its temperatures were to your home? How would you prepare for overseas travel when the climate is different?

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