There are no accomplished golf tour operators in Indonesia, so a golf holiday there is a do-it-yourself operation. But don't let that deter you.
— Raymond Bonner
Think Indonesia and tourism, and the first thing that comes to mind is probably Bali. Think golf holiday, and most people would dream of Scotland or Ireland. But Indonesia harbors one of the best-kept secrets in the world of travel: it is a golfer's paradise.
I loved the sound of the ocean, the breaking surf, the vastness, but still didn't feel terribly comfortable in it.
When one thinks of golf and Scotland, the first thing that comes to mind is usually St. Andrews, especially the famed Old Course.
Golf in Indonesia has something else to offer: ways to make you forget the last four hours and take away the aches. Nearly every course has a spa - hot tub, cold tub, sauna and massage.
Sydney's most famous beach is Bondi. At its southern end is Bondi Baths, an eight-lane, 50-meter saltwater pool built into the cliffs.
Rock pools, so-named because they have been hammered out of rocks at the ocean's edge, are one of Sydney's defining characteristics, along with the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, though not as well known.
The Philippines is a country in which a man of morals can't be president, in which a politician who hasn't been linked to any wrongdoing isn't assumed to be honest, but merely better at hiding his corruption.
I'm not the only foreigner who took up golf while living in Jakarta.
I've gradually gained more confidence swimming for distance in the open sea, but I still return to the rock pools.
If you don't like Scottish weather, wait 30 minutes, and it is likely to change.
The Philippines, it might be said, is a country in search of an identity.
