Tag 1: Arrival on a fragrant island

The Bali airport makes us tired travelers feel like we're in a relaxation spa. Carpets, relaxing music, water sounds, curved architecture, and lush flower landscapes help gather all our strength for negotiating the taxi fare to the guesthouse.

The driver with the kindest eyes gives us a little Indonesian lesson during the ride, teaching us how to say Good morning ("Selamatsiang") and Thank you (a four-syllable word that I still need to practice) in Indonesian.

In Sanur, we move into a house with exterior walls so beautifully decorated that you wish Berlin's building management companies would also develop such dedication during renovation work.

After catching up on a night's sleep, we explore the surroundings. Many tourists gather in the city, but luckily there are few who walk around in swimwear with their portable speakers turned up to maximum volume.

Instead, the streets are filled with calls such as "Massage, massage" or "Look at my shop", trying to motivate us to buy a wooden elephant or batik pants. But other things are more important for now, like finally finding a delicious breakfast. On the way there, we dodge some Hindu offerings consisting of flowers, fruits, and sometimes a cigarette - basically whatever the people themselves like and therefore place on the sidewalk for the gods. The gods reward us with Mi Goreng (fried noodles with vegetables) for breakfast.