Scuba diving!

A group of the bigger kids here on Gili Air went for an introductory scuba course yesterday.
They had a great time! The kids are all plotting now to do a sea dive... Though I suspect we might stick to snorkelling on the reef for now.

The Unschooling Adventure has landed in Gili Air!

We landed on Gili Air yesterday, and all getting settled in, five families here now, and more arriving. The kids are having a great time, learning Bahasa Indonesia, working out the currency exchange rate, haggling and budgeting, and of course lots of running around on the beach and snorkelling. 

It's not too late to join us, there are daily yoga classes, a Bahasa Indonesia tutor for those who want it, local cultural homestays, and scuba diving and snorkelling on the coral reef...

Arrived in Bali

The first few families have landed in Bali, some are already in Gili Air!
It's not too late to book last minute tickets if you want to join in the fun :)

JetStar Deals

Jetstar is currently having deals from Australian destinations to Bali - they have a great page you can put in your departure location and destination and a date range and it shows you the cheapest prices every day for a whole month.
(Current example deals are $195 return from Perth, $450 return from Sydney)

click on this awesome gem of a link to find it: http://book.jetstar.com/lowfarefinder.aspx

And yes, the prices change rapidly - you can never tell if there might be something cheaper tomorrow, but the general rule is: if you see a great deal, grab it, because it might not be there the next day (or the next hour!)

Coming AirAsia Sale

Apparently, there are some very cheap flights out of Australia to Bali with AirAsia at the moment.
And I've just seen word of a sale starting on the 15th Jan
http://view.ed4.net/v/LJFGE1K/S384V/8XFI9HM/ACD62/
Keep a watch out - be aware that flying with AirAsia can be cheaper than other airlines that fly direct to Bali, but they fly from Australia to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and from there connect to Indonesia - this means travel time can be double what a direct flight would be. For some people, saving what could add up to a few hundred dollars is worth it, and for others reducing time spent in transit is more important.
Make sure you look carefully at connections and check the total flight time as well as transit time - often the cheapest deals are the ones that leave at 6am and include a 10 hour stopover!

Indonesian homeschool Adventure FAQ

I've updated the website a bit with a Frequently Asked Questions page - see the tabs at the top of this page, or click HERE

And I've included a gallery with snapshots from the 2012 trip HERE

Collecting coral at sunset

Home Schooling Trip to Indonesia

So... who's totally keen to go to the home school trip to Indonesia next year?

This trip really is AMAZING - we went this year, and it's an amazing island paradise - the island Gili Air is about one and a half hour speed boat from Bali, and the island itself is so small one can walk the full circuit in just over an hour. There are no cars or motorbikes, just bicycles and little pony carts. It's very safe and very kid friendly, and very cheap. The kids had a blast last time, doing snorkelling, and playing on the beach, learning Indonesian, and loads of edumacational stuff.

There's a huge range of accommodation available, from really basic, rustic rooms from $10-15/night up to luxury places with pools and cable TV and air conditioning for $50+ (last time we rented a little bungalow with two bedrooms, each with its own ensuite, and a really large balcony, that included breakfast and wifi in a sweet little garden right near the beach, for $24/night for both rooms combined. Meals in local places starting for about $1.50 for a basic fried rice or noodles, $2-3 for local curries, and going up to $5-10 in more expensive places - organic salad buffet and grilled fish went for about $10 at the organic restuarant (enough for two people to share).

It's seriously a home schooling fantasy paradise; the kids can play on the beach while us parents can lie about in bamboo salas sipping cocktails. And it's *educational!*

So... we want to book our tickets, who else wants to have the BEST TIME EVER!?!?

Note: though this is being organised by home schooling families, you don't actually have to be home schooling to join - just bring the kids for an awesome holiday :D

(here's my blog posts from the trip this year http://majikfaerie.blogspot.com.au/search?q=bali )