Bali 2010

Jun 2^nd

Hello Bali….

Sanur Beach

The flight to Bali was a little turbulent but not too bad – I must be coping better with the flights.

Getting off the plane was a great relief – warm and humid. The airport was full of Aussies, and the line up took a while.

When we got outside the door we were swarmed by taxi drivers. Having read the lonely planet book, we knew not to take the first driver that came along but to walk out of the airport and try to get a local driver. 300,000 Rupiah in the airport – 100,000 Rupiah outside. 

I have never seen so many scooters before in such a small area. There were up to 4 people (dad, mum and two kids) on one bike, some with helmets some without. We drove for about 30 mins to get to Sanur, and in some areas you could be mistaken for thinking it was Fiji.

 The Sanur Paradise Plaza Hotel was beautiful and every bit as glamorous as they showed on the internet. The staff were lovely and our room 379, which was one of many, was also great. The surrounding tropical gardens were beautifully looked after.

We had dinner in one of the restaurants, and had surf and turf on kebabs with three different sauces – very nice!

Thurs 3rd

After a much needed sleep of about 10 hrs in a great king-size bed, we ventured down for breakfast. There was an abundance of food to choose from which satisfied our every whim including vanilla and caramel coffee – not sure how they did that but it tasted great.

Just before lunch, we caught the shuttle bus into the busy part of Sanur. It was a large open mini bus which gave us an opportunity to take photos along the way. We were dropped off at the department store where everyone tried to sell you anything. After being harassed enough, we walked down the road to a nice Warung (Café), and had lunch for about one third of the price you would pay in Oz. I had tuna steak and Phil had Rendang beef curry.

We kept shopping and bought a pair of bathers for Phil which he/ or I unfortunately forgot to pack and some perfume and aftershave for Nikki and Shane until the bus from the hotel picked us up in the late afternoon to go back. We had a swim in the pool which was warmish and perfect to stay in for a long time, until it was time to shower and think about tea. We walked across the road and ate at a yummy place called Oasis Café. We needed transport for the following day to the next hotel but it was too late and we couldn’t be bothered sorting that out until the next day when we had worked out where else we wanted to go.

Fri 4^th

We got a driver in the morning from the front desk and decided to go to Bali Safari Park so that I could finally hold an Orang-utan and Phil could pat a tiger. The driver was happy to wait for us in the car park and I made a joke, saying he could sleep and he said - No he had to watch the bags in the car. I’m not sure why, because people leave everything outside in the streets like their motorbike helmets and some of their shop goods so I’m guessing that there is very little crime here.

I am amazed by the number of ladies that ride side saddle on the scooters and sit there comfortably without holding on to the person in front. Either they have an amazing sense of balance or their butts are super glued to the seat. The traffic is bedlam, but it manages to somehow flow without any accidents or anger, which would not happen in Oz.

 We arrived at the Safari Park at about 10.00am and started our trip by a Bus ride up a steep hill to the main animal area, where we could walk around at our own pace. Our timing was pretty good because we managed to arrive at all the places for feeding or performance time. We first saw the piranhas getting fed, and I certainly wouldn’t want to put my hand in there considering the rate they demolish a chicken carcass.

 The next stop was the baby orang-utan. It was so cute and mainly interested in eating the leaves and fruit that the handler gave it. You could see that the handler was gentle with the baby because it loved him and wanted to go in his arms all the time. It got a little irritated at one stage and bit a little girl because it looked like she was going to take its fruit away.

It was quite hot in the park and they had fine water sprays everywhere to cool everyone down.

The next encounter in the park was a couple of elephants that you can feed carrots to, and pat. The handlers were bathing them in the water to cool them down. 

After walking further we found the tigers. There was a beautiful white one which you could see through the glass and they were patting a normal one. It was quite exhilarating patting this big pussycat. You had to follow the strict rules and only walk around the back of the cat slowly and we could see that the cat was getting sick of sitting in one spot so it would stand up and turn around in between pats.

The next show was an elephant show where the locals put together a play with the elephants to show that man and elephants need to live together. It was well done and the elephants are very clever. We got to go up on stage after and pat the elephants after the show.

The next stop was lunch time. There was a large pavilion where several chefs cooked the dish you wanted. We certainly had no problem with Balinese food, it was excellent. On the way to the next stage of the safari bus ride, we passed a woman letting you handle a parrot so we both had a hold of the parrot who was interested in checking out what was under my fingernails.

The bus ride took us through many different animals, all living in their natural habitat, with lions, mountain goats, wilderbeasts, moon bears, gorillas, ostriches and zebras etc. separated only by trenches, cattle grates and electric floor wires. All the animals seemed perfectly content except for a zebra who kept trying to stop the bus by lying down in front of it or rolling into the side of it. All in a days work for the driver, who wasn’t phased at all.

When we got back to the entrance the driver was waiting for us ready to take us to our second hotel called Tjampulhan Resort in Ubud, a stunning place built into  the side of a hill with a rushing river at the bottom and a spring fed pool. The bungalow was old style and stunning with no air conditioner, but it had a great ceiling fan. The mossies were abundant but the Rid spay worked well. It took a while to get used to the loud noise of the running river and the bats and frogs, but we soon didn’t hear it any more.

Sat 5^th

We got up early for breakfast and again had a lot of variety to choose from. The coffee was average but the food more than made up for it. Fruity muslie, banana pancakes, danishes, fruit and assorted hot food. The views from the restaurant were stunning, and the climb to get there probably made up for the calories consumed. If you went up and down to our room more than once a day, it would probably be the equivalent of a 30 min workout.

We asked one of the guys who cleaned the rooms, if he knew of a taxi driver who could drive us around the next day, rather than be harassed by all the roadside drivers. He quietly drew us aside and told us that his uncle drove people around, and I guess by that action, it means that he is not allowed to promote his own family.

We missed the shuttle bus into the main part of Ubud, so we decided to walk. I don’t know how so many shops and stalls selling exactly the same thing can survive next to each other, but they obviously do. It was not too hot, as most of the walk was in the shade but it was definitely humid.

 We made it in time for a procession through the street which was blocking all of the traffic. When we asked what it was for, a French woman told us it was the celebration of the birthday of the main temple in Ubud.

We kept walking and ended up at the Lotus Café for a coffee, which was on front of a beautiful Lotus water garden in front of a large temple. After the coffee and many “no thank you’s” for rides or buying goods, we finally made it to the main road that takes you to the Monkey Forest. 

There is a market on the corner and I have never been in such a cramped area with so much stuff, some good some not so good. The most common phrase is “take a look, come just take a look ,look at my shop.” We found a nice Warung down the road and had a nice lunch of tuna steaks before going into the forest.

 The monkeys are sacred and well looked after in this place and don’t they know it. They have free reign to jump all over you and pick your pockets and pull your earrings out if they can. I nearly lost my black pearls and managed to prise it out of the little blighter’s fingers just in time before he ran off.

It was a beautiful lush place with many attendants there to make sure that the monkeys or people are not mistreated.

We missed the bus again and decided that we didn’t have enough time to go back on the next bus as they were going to fumigate for mosquitoes between 4 and 6pm and we didn’t want to be there so we worked our way through the shops and café’s with fruit juices and beers until dinner time, back at The Lotus Cafe in time for a Legong dance performance.

 The meal was delicious and Phil got some good photos but we were a fair distance away from the performance.

After dinner, we were sufficiently refreshed to walk the couple of km’s back to the hotel and it was also a lot cooler at night. It was amazing, how many shop owners left some of their goods out for the night, which shows that there is little or no crime. Ubud streets are relatively quiet at night once you leave the eating areas. We went to a little supermarket across the road from the hotel to buy a bottle of water and the guy behind the counter tried to rip us off by not giving our money back. He was probably the worst we encountered. Most try it on in a humorous way but he was more determined.

Sun 6^th

Our driver was waiting for us in the morning to take us to the places around Ubud to artists, wood carvers and silversmiths and then the volcano. The first stop was a painting place where orphans are taken off the streets and taught to paint. We saw a couple of kids painting and they are very talented. I couldn’t resist buying a small frangipani painting.

The next stop was a wood carving place - one of many and I’m sure the drivers get a commission for taking you to a particular carver. We bought a small carved elephant.

The next stop was the holy water temple Gunung Kawi at Sebatu. There were hundreds of Balinese people taking a holy bath in the flowing spring water coming out of different ornate holes in the wall. In one area you could see the water gushing out of the sandy ground in one of the pools. Each place we visit is surrounded by stalls selling the same items everywhere. – Take a look, take a look, look at my shop! I got conned into buying a bunch of bananas by the woman literally putting the banana in my hand, peeling it and shoving it into my mouth. Just as well, I like bananas.

The next stop was a coffee plantation where we got to try biodynamic cocoa, coffee, ginseng coffee, lemongrass tea and ginger tea. All tasted good and we bought ginseng coffee. 

 Their speciality was Lawak coffee – beans that had been eaten by the Lawak and pooped out and then roasted. It is the most expensive and we opted not to taste that one – Eeww! I also bought vanilla beans in the hope that I could get them through customs.

Next stop was Kintamani, where the Mt Batur volcano was. There is a restaurant perched on top of the mountain next to the volcano and you can have lunch and look over the lake and volcano. It was very beautiful. You could see where the 1963 eruption left it’s lava flow down the side which was now being used to make black sand and the rocks used to build walls etc. When we got back to the car, the driver had disappeared and we had to wait for him to come back to the car.

Next stop was the rice terraces which I had seen in all the blogs on the internet. This was the worst place for hawkers and they don’t take no for an answer, but the view was worth it.

There was an older guy with baskets over his shoulders who we thought was a genuine harvester, but later found out, was only doing that to be a photo prop.

We were ready to go back to the next hotel but the driver insisted on taking us to a silversmith which was interesting, seeing how they make the filigree jewellery by hand, but not really my taste or style. We were also taken to a fabric place which didn’t interest us as they were only interested in selling rather than explaining how they make the fabric. Each time, the driver went off and we had to wait for him to return.

Last stop All Seasons Hotel. It was modern and a bit funky, but nice. We were exhausted so we decided to eat in the hotel restaurant. The pool looked nice and we were definitely going to have a swim the following day.

Tues 7^th

After a yummy buffet breakfast, we went in search of the beach which was just around the corner. The beach was ok and a surfie favourite, and there were hawkers galore, but not too pushy. We walked along the beach to Kuta and passed many resorts along the way.

 We found a Starbucks along the way which had Wi-Fi and it finally worked. We wrote a couple emails. We walked further down the road and made it to Discovery Mall. I have to admit the place is highly overrated. The stalls on the streets with the pushy hawkers are much cheaper and the quality is just the same. After that long walk, we caught the taxi back to the hotel and went for a swim in the pool which was nice and refreshing.

We went for another walk around the block and braved the hawkers and found a great pair of leather sandals and a couple of my favourite brand Fox tops. We also semi got lost in the back streets but it was fun finding our way back to the hotel. After showering we found a place to have dinner and didn’t have to walk far, because there was a place called Three Brothers Inn almost next door. They had a great pool out the back and also did accommodation which was a lot cheaper but looked just as nice only much smaller and more traditional in style. We have noted that one for future stays in Bali. The meal was great and very cheap.

Tues 8^th

After a leisurely breakfast we rested a bit as Phil was starting to develop an ear ache. Just before lunch, we set off down the street again to get a couple of extra t shirts for Sam and myself and to find a free Wi-Fi place for lunch. There seems to be free internet at a lot of cafes and restaurants around the place which is great. We were running out of steam and a bit of flight anxiety was creeping in for me again as we had to be at the airport at 11.30pm check in. Phil and I have both developed sore throats, I think it is due to the air-conditioning, at least it is at the end of the holiday.

We now have a few hours to kill because we need to vacate the room by 6.00pm and we have a pickup booked for 9.00pm at the hotel, so we left  the bags at reception and went for a last long walk around Legian. Phil is having dinner but I opted not to on account of my nerves. We feel sad to leave as we have had a great time here, and not looking forward to the cold again.


                                  Goodbye Beautiful Bali!