Hello again, from a new surfer girlie.

My plans in Bali did not go as originally intended. Initially, I had booked a chill AirBnb with yoga classes and a pool in Ubud in Bali. A quieter retreat where I could focus on my writing and read a couple of books in solitude. But then I got an urge for adventure and a targeted ad on Instagram for a surf school in Bali. Have I ever surfed before? No. I have lived in a landlocked state for almost my whole life.

So the vibe of the moment? Surfing, obviously. Let’s get into it.

I figured I’d give the whole surfing thing a whirl, and I’m so glad that I did. I can’t resist another expensive hobby, you know? I signed up for Kima Surf Camp in Canggu for their learn to surf school. It was an amazing experience. Being able to stand up on a surfboard and ride a (baby) wave to the shore on day one felt like such an accomplishment. The camp was amazing, the guides were amazing, my room was great, and it was actually quite affordable. Also, the food at the camp: top notch. I would highly recommend Kima Surf Camp for anyone who is interested in learning to surf, and they have multiple locations in Bali and in Sri Lanka. Also…the people. The guides. The other guests. The locals. Everyone I met, I loved. 

It was also one of the most active weeks that I’ve ever had. During my seven days at the camp, I did: 1 surf pool session, 2 surf clinic/workout sessions, 1 pilates class, 3 yoga classes, 5 surf lessons in the ocean, and numerous attempts at pop ups on my own.

Another gem about Bali is the massage and beauty treatments. They are so, so cheap. While the massage isn’t as intense as a Thai massage, it was still quite lovely and each one was about $12. Facials were even less, and hair spas and treatments for the dryness caused by the sea/pool were about the same. I got 4 massages, 2 hair spas, 2 facials, and 1 pedicure. All for about the price of just one shitty massage back home. Incredible. I miss it already.

Here’s a breakdown of my experience at surf camp and the various stages of learning (feel free to skip this if you have zero interest in surfing or whatever, just scroll down for some photos):

Day 1: I arrived in the evening after about a six hour flight from Bangkok, so I had a late dinner, met a Dutch gal who got in at the same time as me and was also doing the surf school, then fell asleep very fast.

Day 2: This was my ‘day 1’ of Kima’s Learn to Surf camp, for those like me who have never attempted to get on a surfboard. Damn landlocked states. I took the van over to the beginner beach and the guides all introduced themselves and I met some of the other students, all women that day, in the beginner camp. Everyone was super nice and super stoked. 

We all did a warmup, which was a short run followed by a few more cardio moves and some stretches. Then they went over the basics and we all practiced our pop ups before all just getting in the water. Well that was quick, I thought. Time to give it a whirl. When I got out there, I was nervous, but I did end up able to pop up, albeit for a short amount of time, on my first try. After several more tries, I was able to ride a baby wave to completion to the beach. It was so satisfying. We all spent a little over an hour in the water for day one. When I got back to camp, I did more mingling, laid by the pool, then took an evening yoga class.

Day 3: On day 2 of surf school, I woke up after sleeping hard and I was quite sore, but I pushed through. We did a similar warmup, got back out on the water for a little over an hour, and I was able to ride a few more waves to completion. It felt satisfying. The guides told me and my Dutch friend that we should join the ‘1 star’ session (a step above the learn to surf session) in the afternoon. 

We ended up joining the session, but I forgot my ear plugs. The first day at surf camp, I bought some surf-specific ear plugs because my ears are kind of shit and prone to infection. They are made to where they stay in but you can still hear and they don’t mess with your balance. They were amazing. I attempted a few waves, realized that I didn’t have my earplugs, and went back to the beach because I didn’t want to risk too much exposure. I was also absolutely exhausted.

Day 4: I woke up more sore than I remember ever being. Holy shit. My entire body was sore. Muscles I didn’t know I had. Worse than an intensive pilates class. Seriously. I ended up not going to the day 3 that day and I figured I would push it out. I went to a chill yoga class and had a spa day. Great decision.

Day 5: I woke up feeling a lot better and went to my day 3 learn to surf session. On the agenda for day 3: learning frontside turns. For me, I ride goofy so with my left foot as my dominant side (because I am goofy in snowboarding I figured I’d keep it goofy with surfing), the frontside turns were to the left. I was able to pick up on it surprisingly easily. Turning ain’t no thing, I thought. At the time.

Midway through the session, the guides also got me onto a smaller board. The smaller the board, the harder it is to balance, but the more control you can eventually have once you figure your shit out. I was excited. The smaller board was actually great for me, and I felt even better and more in control. Balance wasn’t an issue. My instructor, Alvaro, who was my favorite of the trip, was my #1 cheerleader. He would high five me after every successful wave, cheer for me as I popped up and maintained my balance, and throw his hands in the air and scream ‘Adele!!!!!!’ when I made it to the beach without falling. He was incredible. Shoutout Alvaro.  

A couple of the other girls staying at a different camp that were in the surf school that day with me were also super complimentary of me, and I was really feeling myself.

“I couldn’t keep my eyes off of you out there, this is really just your third day?” one of them asked.

“It is, you looked great too!” I said, smiling. Ego unparalleled. Superiority complex growing. I am an elite athlete. Put me in Point Break 2 as a surf cop. Even a couple of the instructors who were not my instructor took the time to tell me how amazing I looked out there. I was thrilled.

Day 6: The day I got humbled. This was day 4 of learn to surf camp, where we would learn backside turns (so for me, turning to the right). It was also my video session, so I was a bit nervous for that. Backside turns ended up being much, much harder. Wipeout after wipeout. Fully “in the washing machine” as they say. The guides did also say the wind made the waves choppier than the day before when I was crushing it, but they were probably just trying to make me feel better. I asked if we could work on some more frontside turns too, and they were cool with that. I continued to feel good about those and got some decent footage.

I got back to camp, took another yoga class, and also took a pop up surf fitness class to work on my form. I also had my video analysis, where I realized that my front foot was way too angled out and needed to be more parallel to my back foot. That was a lot of the reason why I was falling on my backside turns. 

We ended up going out to ‘Old Mans’, a super popular bar in Canggu where the guides and some of the other camp folks were participating in a beer pong tournament. It was surprisingly serious and had prize money and everything. The guides from Kima ended up winning and we all cheered them on. I said I would only have one drink, but I had three. Shame on me. I also wore a 7-Eleven shirt over baggy shorts with my Denver Nuggets cap on. The opposite of how most girlies look going out in Bali, but I found it funny. See below for the photo.

Day 7: I woke up for my 5:30 a.m. session, but there were thunderstorms outside. I got spooked and cancelled my spot, which ended up being a good decision because the rain didn’t let up and people who did go out said there weren’t really any waves. I knew this wouldn’t be my last time ever surfing, so I was cool with it. I went to a pilates class and then a yoga class instead. I also got one last massage and facial. 

I sadly said goodbye to all of the lovely people that I met in the camp. Special shoutouts to Julide from the Netherlands (we arrived on the same day and learned to surf together), Angeni from Canada (who also quit her job and was on a similar ‘fuck it I’m leaving’ trip as me), and Hannah from Denver (we literally used to live within blocks of each other and are the same age – and now I have a new friend in Denver!). 

I also unfortunately came down with an ear infection (from that one afternoon I forgot to wear my ear plugs…) but the Indonesian doctors were awesome and were able to see me, prescribe treatment, and clear me to fly all within about thirty minutes. It was cheaper than one of my prescriptions in the USA. Go figure.

Here’s some surfing photos:

Here’s a couple of videos, including a wipeout:

And here are some other random photos of Bali, though keep in mind I barely left the camp/beach. Eat, sleep, surf, indeed. Ze photos:

Snack of the moment: A FRESH ASS COCONUT, HOLY SHIT. How delicious, nutritious, and hydrating after a tough day of getting my ass kicked. Behold:

Song of the moment: Badfish – Sublime

Why? Because surfing is giving Sublime for some reason. Feels nostalgic but beachy.

Featured lyrics:

Lord knows I’m weak

Won’t somebody get me off of this reef?

Okay, listen!

Thanks for tuning in, folks who made it to the end of this rambling post. I’m obsessed with surfing now, and once I’m able to swim again (I’m banned for a week due to my ear infection) you better bet I’m gonna find my next spot. I got the itch.

Next stops: Australia, New Zealand, then perhaps back to Australia for more surf when I’m allowed in the water…