Suck It Up Princess!: From Fever to Hypothermia

After scuba diving Darren still had the diving bug, but seeing as we already blew our budget with the diving, we settled for the much cheaper snorkelling. Surprisingly, the snorkelling was pretty amazing. You don’t realize when you’re just swimming about exactly what’s going on beneath you. Within a few feet from the shoreline we were yet again above another lively reef. Some of the fish just off shore we hadn’t even seen at the Japanese wreck. It could’ve been because the tide was in, and so the shallow waters are filled with more algae and other small things for fish to nibble on. We saw big blue/rainbow ones, we saw other big black ones eating little blue ones, and we were swimming with whole schools of tropical fish right at the surface. Swimming with tropical fish has yet to cease to blow my mind!




While the tide seemed to have brought in a little extra colour however, it also brought in some little extra jelly fish. Even while trying to put on my fins in the shallow end something stung me and I flicked off this tiny little squishy thing no bigger than a dime. We didn’t think much of it until Darren and I were both swimming and finding ourselves being stung by unseen predators! I swam to shore and asked the guy we rented the gear from and sure enough he told us they were jelly fish. Apparently they come in with the tide to snack on all the stuff that gets unsettled, but he said, “They just tiny. No problem. If you see big one, then you have problem”… comforting. So while Darren and I were swimming through trying to enjoy the beautiful fish, I couldn’t help but be a tad paranoid. The last thing I wanted was for Darren to have to pee on me. Yuk! With the tide also came a bit of garbage, and I freaked out at the sign of both plastic bags; and the dead chicken which made its way to shore wasn’t too motivating either (it smelled horrible!). So I left Darren to snorkel a bit on his own and I went to lie on the beach and read my book in peace, without being stung. If you’re expecting me to go on and tell you about a hilarious story where I got to pee on Darren, I’m sorry but we’re all disappointed there. The snorkelling didn’t really get any more exciting than little jellies and some colourful fish.



Later that day, I was so exhausted. We went in for an early lunch and I could barely keep my eyes open. The plan was to head to bed early so we could hike a volcano (and leave Amed by 1230am); so, I didn’t want to take a nap or I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep, but there was no helping it. I would have slept all day, but Darren woke me up after an hour to make sure that I didn’t sleep too long. When he woke me up I was boiling and still completely exhausted. While eating dinner we deduced that the reason I was so tired must be because I had too much sun. It wasn’t until later that night however, maybe around seven or eight that we figured out I was burning up with a fever. Not sure what it was from (I had a sore throat on and off for a few days) but I was hot… I mean, I couldn’t tell I was hot but Darren assured me that I was boiling up. All I knew was that I felt like crap. At one point in the night I think Darren got pretty nervous because my heart was pounding and I was burning up (he put two blankets on me to help break the fever) and I barely broke a sweat. Needless to say, our plans to hike a 3000 meter volcano in the middle of the night were postponed. With the help of Dr Darren, I did eventually break the fever and I spent the next day sleeping it off.



Because we had cancelled our plans the first night, we had to pay extra the next. Our guide works for an organization, but had booked the day off to take us up and consequently lost money at our no show. We didn’t mind paying the extra cash, but we (I mean I) felt bad and we didn’t want to flake out on him twice, so even thought it may not have been the wisest decision, we went the following night anyway.



So, they picked us up around midnight, we drove about an hour and a half to the “Temple Market” which is about 1300 m up the mountain (Agung). At about 2am we were on the mountain. Now, this wasn’t like any hike we ever did in China. There were no wooden foot paths or cable cars to take you up and/or down, and it wasn’t a two day hike where you walk up for a bit and then across for rest of the time. No, this was a hike straight up the side of a volcano. For nearly 2000 meters (I know that’s only 2 km) we literally climbed up rocks in the pitch black of night, with only our headlamps to light the way. The only remnant of a path was the occasional foot hole that may or may not have been a foot hole. It had rained the night before, so the rocks were moist, most of them loose, and all other terrain was basically hard mud. To top it off, this was not like the other volcanoes on the island that have visible lava flowing in their craters. This volcano, though active (it last erupted in the 60’s) was so high up that it was freezing cold! Between still feeling like crap (weak and exhausted), being cold and it being the middle of the night, the hike was tough… and all I kept hearing in the back of my mind was “Suck it up Princess!” Yes, Tanya, your voice somehow lingered into my thoughts, and whenever I started to feel really sorry for myself, in crept your voice “Suck it up Princess!”



So suck it up I did. I mean, how many times in my life am I going to get to hike a volcano?! Even if it was a tough hike and I wasn’t feeling a hundred percent, I was hiking a volcano in Bali! So, I took my time and went slow, but we still made it to the top about an hour before the sun was expected to rise. Without any sort of warning, our guide just stopped, nestled into a corner and lay down to sleep. It didn’t take Darren and I long to follow suit, and soon we had found a nice “soft” patch of rocks and huddled up to keep warm. The wind was blowing pretty consistently, and it was a cold wind (“Suck it up Princess!”). We lay there for about an hour before the sun started to make its appearance. We quickly got up and climbed the last five minutes to the top of the crater. I must say that the sunrise was absolutely breathtaking. At 3000 some odd meters, you are literally above the clouds (at least most of them) and to see the sun rise over the clouds like that is phenomenal! My hands were so cold I could hardly operate my camera but I did manage, of course, to get a half decent shot or two.



Our guide made us coffee (with what was now lukewarm water, but whatever, I’ll take it!) and fed us some snacks and soup (much appreciated). Once the sun graced us with her presence, we, with numb hands and feet, started our decent. The decent was probably harder in some ways than the climb. It didn’t require quite the same cardiovascular stamina, but the balance and muscle use just wasn’t there. It’s hard to manage on slippery wet rocks when you’re not even sure you’ve made contact until you jar your knees. We had a couple close calls, and Darren scraped up his wrist a bit, but we eventually made it down safe and sound.



It was quite the experience; though, not quite what I was expecting. One way or another, that’s one more thing to cross off my bucket list. Of the things left to do, I think ride an elephant just might come next! Otherwise, I’m still feeling a bit off, but the fever is gone. Nothing a few lazy days on the beach can’t cure ;). We’re in Lovina now and it’s not as quiet as Amed (or as cheap) but we’re in a quaint littler area. We’ve already found the restaurant we’ll probably eat every meal at for the next few days. It’s the cutest little warung run by the cutest little family. Their two daughters are adorable; and, not only did they greet us and introduce themselves (the youngest is barely a year), they also did the same dance over and over again almost the entire time we ate dinner. I know I’m sold on the children and the food was pretty fantastic and well priced, so Darren will be back for sure!



With the purse strings slightly tightened I think Lovina will be mostly uneventful, at least until we’re back on track. I definitely have no problem with doing nothing on the beaches for a few days. I’m just gonna have to “suck it up” I guess ;). Hope everyone back home is happy and healthy. We’re trying to send a little sun your way, hope it’s working!