I couldn’t wait to dive back into the culture, beauty, and magic of the picturesque and enchanting Southeast Asia archipelago made up of over 18,000 islands – that is now plagued by plastic waste – and make a difference!
Mojo Surf has created surf camps across Indonesia where surfers of all ages can come and experience a fun and special side of Indo, while giving back to the community with beach clean ups and village humanitarian work!
During the adventure we visited Bali, Lombok, Java and Lembongan.
PALUA MERAH “RED ISLAND,” JAVA
Red Island reminded me of “Bali Hai” from the film South Pacific. It is like Bali 20 years ago with it’s quaint huts, smiling locals, long desolate beaches, colorful fishing boats, and a perfect A-frame surf break.
…and unfortunately tons of plastic…
Mojo helped to organize the first ever village beach cleanup.
And after the little local groms showed us how to rip Red Island style.
NUSA LEMBONGAN ISLAND
Lembongan Island is an island about a forty minute boat ride off the coast of Bali and is the only other island in Indonesia to share the same Hindu culture.
It is a magical island both above and below the water…
…and has incredible waves for all levels.
…and seaweed farms where locals make about $5 per kilo to ship it off to countries like China for use in cosmetics.
BALI
Bali is near and dear to my heart as I spent much of my childhood learning Legong dance with the village kids and playing with the monkeys.
We decided to dive into the culture by heading inland to Ubud for some monkey business at the sacred Monkey Forest.
…the face you make when you just lost half your banana
This day was ultra special for me as I got to return to the village I grew up in, Nyuh Kunning, and introduce the group to my Balinese family…
Here are my “Balinese parents” Made and Ayau throwing an impromptu birthday party for one of the girls on the trip at their little restaurant “Warung Coconut.”
The statues in the monkey forest were carved by Made and his brother Congtit.
We were fortunate to see a dance by the village kids and had fun talking with them about keeping the oceans clean for the fish.
LOMBOK
Lombok is a land of waves that we accessed each day by boat:)
I fell in love with the village of Gerupuk years back and made a film about a little, very talented girl named Mila.
And now five years later it was special to return and reunion with her family!
Nat, owner of Mojo Surf, brought a whole new quiver of surfboards to the local groms and I’m not sure I’ve ever seen such big smiles!
Looking back on this trip I have nothing but gratitude and appreciation, not only for Mojo surf and their invite to be a part of a new initiative to change the world, but also of how much I have in life. Many of the villagers we met own a chicken and a shack the size of a shoe box but they were happy and excited to share their stoke with us.
Hope you get to experience the MAGIC of a MOJO surf adventure as well…here is there website if you would like to check it out!
Sampai Jumpa Lagi!
Alison
