That was the Tropical Surf Escape 2015

We just got back from our Tropical Surf Escape. It’s the second time we’ve run it and yet again it was absolutely fabulous. Amazing waves and the great company of the lovely gidgets Poppy, Fiona, Deb and Jaz made for an awesome time in and out of the water.

Surfing Eat Sleep

When we arrived in Bali, the first big swell of the season hit which didn’t leave us with many options on our warm-up day in Bali as none of us was really up for surfing 10-12ft waves ;-) However, we got a sneaky surf in in Padang which would have been heaps of fun if it wasn’t for the crowds. That day we headed to Uluwatu for lunch. I’d never seen Ulus like that before. It was massive. Actually scary stuff.

Admittedly, in the big swell – we were all a bit nervous about the boat-trip to Java the next day. It turned out, no need for nervousness, it was slightly rocky but we were all knocked out by a good dose of travelcalm and made it in (seemingly) no time to Java.

When we arrived we were welcomed by 8-10ft waves in G-land and an injured Dylan Longbottom. He had stacked it on the reef. You could tell a lot of the guys who were hell-bent on surfing G-land had second thoughts when they saw what the reef ‘did to a pro’. Little did they know (but I did :-)) that all my favourite gidget breaks would be perfect in those conditions. Good size but not as crazy as G-land.

Day in day out we surfed perfect waves. Overhead high. Small crew. Loads of fun. All we did was surf, sleep, eat. Everyone of us caught great waves. We had a ball. At the end of the trip the swell dropped a bit so a few of us ventured out to G-land. Special mention and hats off to Poppy who managed to catch a wave at Speedies in G-land (for those who don’t know, it’s a super-fast, hollow, barreling wave) on a longboard! I also caught a wave there and got barreled for approximately one second before I got sucked over the falls and spat out on the reef. Oh well, at least I tried ;-)

Speedos at Speedies

Speedies also turned out to be a challenge to our eyes when we had to witness a bucks group running a speedos competition at Speedies. Pretty funny – watching guys take off on a pretty mean wave in nothing but Speedos (and honourable mention to the dude wearing a Borat swimsuit). In fact, from the boat it looked like they were surfing naked. Hilarious.

Cheeky Monkeys

Garry and his buck’s week crew was not the only entertainment on offer. Plenty of real cheeky monkeys kept us on our toes. Once I was rudely awakened from my afternoon nap by a monkey decided to open the door and help themselves to a banana while I was snoozing. At another occasion they tried to join our stretching routine in the yoga area. We had to be ‘rescued’ by one of the local staff and a broomstick. Oh well, that’s the jungle for you. Apart from the monkeys we very much enjoyed the serenity and tranquility of the jungle.

Goddess Gidgets

And, like all our Venus Goes Gidget trips, it’s not just about surfing but about connecting to yourself and to your inner (Surf) Goddess. In between surfs there was lots of time for relaxing – reading, afternoon naps, Bintangs by the sea, long chats. Many massages. Yummy Food. And the absolute pampering highlight at the end of the trip was our excursion to BodyWorks – an amazing spa in Seminyak. We treated our surfed out bodies to an amazeballs Hot Stone Massage. It was sooooo good. I also treated my locks to a cremebath treatment after a week of ‘jungle showers’ sans shampoo. Coincidentally, the cremebath treatment included another head, shoulder, neck massage. A dream for surfed out gidget arms. We also discovered the best chocolate I’ve ever tasted (and trust me I’ve tried many). So good I’m seriously considering importing it into Australia.

All in all it was an absolutely amazing trip. Thanks to gorgeous Gidgets Deb, Fiona, Jasmine and Poppy for joining me on this trip. It was fantastic having you there and already looking forward to catching up with you again some time soon.

Now, onto the next adventure for me – Gidget Gets Married :-)

Claudia x

PS check out instagram #gidgetsgojungle for your dose of jungle pics.

PPS if you are interested in the next Tropical Surf Escape, leave your details here and we’ll make sure you’ll be the first to know about the next trip.