For the Chinese New Year weekend, me and a bunch of friends decided to take a ferry to Bintan, Indonesia. If you told Freshman Kat that she would soon be lounging on a beach with the only worry of a coconut falling on her head, she would think you were crazy.

For just $20 a night you can stay at a resort overlooking the beach with spas, free breakfast, and many water sports like snorkeling and kayaking. The food is great and for 50,000 Rupiah (about $5USD) you can have an entire meal. Places like this make me wonder why I haven’t come to Southeast Asia earlier.

We went into the city one night (Tanjung Pinang), and tried some of the local food. When we were served they came with a plate of some snail like creatures. We all figured “When in Rome” and tried it. There are many things in SE Asia that would be hard to find back home because of their obscurity, but are, in reality very good. Squid chips. Who knew?

Location: Bintan, Indonesia