On the way to Legian, we stopped at a place where they make silver jewellery so we could learn about the process. I was very surprised to learn that the silver is, in fact, imported from Malaysia, and arrives in Bali in the form of tiny little balls! These are 100% silver which is far too soft to make anything with so they mix them with copper to give them strength, making their products 92.5% silver, 7.5% copper. Once they have created the main design, any additional details are added using the balls and a temporary glue made from tiny berries! It was very interesting watching the man creating the glue and demonstrating its stickiness! We were then led into the shop which was absolutely packed full of silver items, it actually hurt your eyes a little bit as they made the room very bright! They were quite pricey and we had only really been interested in seeing how they are made, so we quickly made our excuses and left.
 
We arrived in Legian about two hours after leaving Ubud and the journey was very straight forward and comfortable . The only problem we encountered was when we arrived in Legian as the hotel turned out to be very tricky to find! After stopping and asking for directions, we turned down a very winding one-way alleyway (one way for cars, but apparently not for motorbikes, bikes...) before finally pulling up at the place we had booked!
 
We quickly checked in and dropped off our bags before heading out to find the beach and watch the sunset. To get to the beach, you have to walk along the main road which is absolutely packed with shops, bars and restaurants then turn off and walk through a big market. We were instantly struck by the noise and general chaos of the area, with people trying to get us to buy the various items they had available. This didn't stop when we reached the beach as lots of people have set up mini bar areas and there are people selling all kinds of things: bracelets, sarongs, hats, fruit... So there is no chance of relaxing! By now it was gone 6pm and the sun was quickly setting. Unfortunately, it was pretty cloudy so we couldn't get a very good view but the sky was a beautiful pinky red colour! I couldn't believe how busy it was on the beach, there barely seemed to be a single empty piece of sand and it wasn't even sunny?!?! This made me a little nervous about how crazy it must be during the day if it was that mad at night!!
 
From the beach, we walked along the seafront and back up along the main road before finding a restaurant to have some dinner . It became clear very quickly just how set up for tourists this area is, as the prices were much higher than anywhere else we have eaten and much of the menu was western food! Also, it was difficult to have a conversation as the 3 bars opposite were pumping out a real mixture of very loud music! The Kuta area is known for being a crazy place and perfect for people who want to get really drunk and party all night as there's so many different bars and clubs. Most of it looks pretty trashy to be honest but it's what you would expect from a place like this. Its no different to what the party places in Europe are probably like. On our walk back to the hotel, we spotted the memorial which was built in honour of the 222 people who died in the bombing of a nightclub just across the road on 12th October 2002. It was very sad to see as we'd heard about it but suddenly it was right in front of us. It especially hits you as you see the lists of names of those who lost their lives that night, which included 27 Brits and 88 Australians .
 
The next couple of days were spent soaking up the sun at the beach which was actually much quieter during the day than it was at night. We later found out this is because of the amount of Asian tourists who visit and hide away from the sun during the day and only come down for the sunset to keep their skin white. We made friends with Fix, one of the guys who works on the beach, and Matt hired a surfboard from him for both days, as he gave him a really good price, while Melanie and Andrée-Anne had their first ever surf lessons! All 3 of them did really well and are really improving! Matt spent hours in the water really trying his hardest but he does enjoy doing it. Much to Matt's delight, I actually got in with him and he helped push me off on the waves so I could practise jumping up, standing on the board and riding the waves in! After I'd had a quick go and we both had a little rest, Matt got back in for a last few hours. His timing worked out perfectly as it meant that he could surf until the sunset, which seemed a really cool idea as he'd never had the chance to do that before . 
 
They warn you in the guide books that this isn't the most relaxing beach as people will constantly hassle you to try and sell you something but we quite enjoyed this and played along! By the end of the 2 days, we ended up with more bracelets than I can physically fit on my arms and these little bamboo pegs that hold your towel down on the sand! They are an ingenious idea which I can't believe we haven't seen before, so simple but perfect for stopping your towel blowing away. We also enjoyed some of the fresh pineapple that they walk up and down selling. Before we knew it we had made friends with a person each selling their different things. Mr happy with his pegs and hats (yes he was a very happy man), Tina with her bracelets, Paula with her fresh fruit and of course Fix with the beer and surfboards. It was very funny as they all came for chats every time they walked past. While the others were off surfing, Fix kept me entertained chatting away and with some magic tricks, the first being a little box with money inside which was 'impossible' to open and the the second was a chain which you had to attach a ring to just by dropping it! After quite a long time trying, I eventually managed to work them both out so I was very proud of myself! 
 
The 2nd day of surfing was harder for everyone as they were all feeling the aches from the day before, especially Matt as he'd done about 4 hours on his own whereas the girls had only done a couple of hours of lessons . All 3 of them now had board rashes though on their legs and arms so it's crazy how the locals and the Aussies do it every day. They all tried hard again and did improve but after a few hours they all stopped for a rest and called it a day.
 
Eventually, the time came for us to leave Indonesia, we would have happily stayed longer but our visas only had a couple of days left on them! Our last task was to get through the airport without any drugs getting planted in our bags and we'd be safe. So we carefully packed then padlocked them all up and we kept a very cautious eye on everyone that came even remotely near them. Luckily, everything was fine so there were no life sentences or firing squads for us, thankfully!
 
After our initial concerns, we had really enjoyed our month exploring different parts of this country and the variety of activities each place has to offer. It was very sad saying goodbye to Melanie and Andrèe-Anne too as we had become really good friends after our 3 days on Rinjani turned into nearly 2 weeks together but I'm confident we will see them both again soon, wherever in the world that may be! Matt is also extremely thankful to them for finally making me speak lots of French as I was very out of practice and he even managed to learn quite a lot so it's been very amusing, all at the same time as giving us the pleasure of improving Andrée-Anne's English.