Little Footsteps in the Big World

Last time we were in Indonesia, we visited Lombok Island ( here are our tips ). This year, the kids finally managed to convince us that it was time to spend our holiday in Bali! With all of the TikToks they've been seeing and everything else filling their feeds, Bali has become much more appealing to them now that they're a little older. As for me, I still have a soft spot for quieter, more secluded islands like Lombok and Flores - but sometimes you must let the kids have their way! Boni Bali Restaurant overlooking the Tegalalang Rice Terraces I didn't want us to spend the entire 14 days in the same spot, so I decided to split our stay between three bases: Nusa Dua, Ubud, and Sanur - and in that order for a reason. This time, I wanted to skip Kuta. We spent quite a lot of time there in the past, but with the kids, I don't find it as appealing anymore. Instead, I wanted a holiday that combined adventure, cultural, great food and nature, while still leaving us enough time...

When we began talking about a Caribbean holiday, we didn't have a specific destination in mind. Since it would be a completely new region for our family, I did extensive research. I wanted somewhere safe and child-friendly, with good medical care (no extra vaccinations needed), reliable roads for renting a car, and, most importantly, great weather in October, when we planned to travel. We knew we wanted an island, and with only one week available, a direct flight was essential. Most recommendations pointed towards the ABC islands - Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao. Quite randomly, we chose Curaçao and booked a direct flight with KLM from Amsterdam. Geographically, Curaçao (a constituent country within the Kingdom of Netherlands) lies outside the main Caribbean hurricane belt. Coincidentally, during the week of our stay, Hurricane Melisa hit Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti, while the ABC islands, located farther south off the coast of Venezuela, were spared.  Upon arrival, we picked up our renta...

During our two-week stay in Indonesia in November 2023, we spent four days on the island of Lombok, part of the Lesser Sunda Islands. Similar in size to Bali but far less well-known, Lombok offered exactly what we were looking for - a calmer, more relaxed stay with the kids. It's an absolute tropical paradise and easily accessible from Indonesia's major cities. We flew in from Surabaya in East Java, where we had been staying, but you could also reach Lombok by fast boat from Bali. There are three main areas to stay on the island: Kuta, Senggigi, and Gili Islands. Kuta is a popular choice - though not to be confused with Kuta in Bali. Lombok's Kuta sits on the south coast and is especially loved by surfers. Senggigi is a bit calmer, while still offering easy access to shops and supermarkets. Gili Islands are small, car-free islands reachable by boats from Lombok. There are three to choose from, each offering a wide range of accommodation opstions.  We chose Senggigi as our b...

Being an Indonesian born, I never had the habit of buying travel health insurance. In the country where I was born, probably until recently, health insurance is an unknown concept for most of the people. The absence of an obligatory health insurance get the people used of the idea of sickness as a risk. If you get sick, you're going to need to pay for your treatment and medication. Period. Living in Croatia for over five years changed my point of view of health. Sickness is not a risk. Healthcare is a right of everyone. Take some percentage of my gross salary for health insurance, probably I'd pay some little extra money for an additional health services, I get sick, I go to public hospital, I get cured and I go home, without spending more money. So do we buy travel health insurance when we go abroad? Before we had our little one, honestly, we didn't. We would go out of the country with positive thoughts and that's it. Now we'd think twice because a baby is in...