Posted by Milt on Monday, 5. October 1998 at 22:17 Bali Time:
I just returned after spending more than a month in Glorious Bali. It wasn't my first time, but I learned some new things and I'll pass along some tips. These tips are based on my own experiences and not everyone is certain to agree with me.
Best Hotel: I have personally either stayed at or checked out some 50 hotels in Bali over the years. This year I stayed for sometime at the brand new Bunga Permai located in the quite village of Bunutan just north of central Ubud. What a great place! The rates are the best I have ever encountered for a small excellent facility...only U.S. $25 a night per single, including taxes and breakfast. The facility is small, only 11 rooms, but with wonderful views of the river gorge (ala Kupu Kupu Barong) and an excellent refreshing swimming pool. You can e-mail their marketing guy, Made at indah1@hotmail.com with questions or to make a booking (no deposit was required). I have never seen or experienced a comparable facility in Bali for less than U.S. $60.00, even with the current deals available.
Best Smoked Duck: Hands down and without equal, the smoked duck at Cafe Wayan in Ubud is the tastiest, most moist and generous sized smoked duck I have ever had. This needs to be ordered a day in advance and is well worth the wait.
Best Deserts: Overall and without equal, four gold forks go to Janet de Neefe and her Casa Luna Restaurant. Her bakery produces the finest sweets in the Ubud area and her restaurant has the best red bean soup I have ever had in my life. The only exception I could find was the white chocolate cheese cake at Ary's Warung...forget about dieting!
Best Martinis: Another hands down winner with no equal, the best absolutely perfect either Beefeater or Absolute martinis go to Naughty Nuri's Warung. This humble looking establishment is easy to overlook, but also easy to find as it is directly across the street from the Neka Museum (not gallery), just north of central Ubud. This place is run by an ex-NYC expat and he knows how we New Yorkers love our Martinis! Oh, and this is THE place to be on Thursday nights as the owner gets in a fresh yellow fin every Thursday for your choice of the freshest sashimi or most succulent tuna steaks you likely have ever had!
Best Driver: I never drive myself in Bali. In fact in my opinion, anyone who does needs their head examined. A good driver can be had for only about U.S. $5.00 a day for a solid 8 to 9 hours of driving you anywhere you want to go. The only extra charge is usually for gas, but that is only about $5.00 for a full tank! Being free to enjoy the sights and not worry about the perils that are commonplace on Bali's roads is well worth the $5.00 in my opinion. I used a great guy who speaks super English and really knows his way around all of Bali. His name is Jaya and he has a yahoo e-mail address: jayaagung@yahoo.com. He's the personal driver of a wealthy expat art dealer in the Ubud area who is frequently off island and so Jaya is able to take on idependent jobs then. When I wanted to shop for some stone and wood carvings, Jaya took me to some of the most remote and hard to find villages where members of the community carve the pieces you see in the pricy shops with the buses parked in their lots! Based on what I am certain I saved with my purchases in the villages versus the tony shops, my driver was free every day!
Well, there are a few good tips anyway! I could write a lot more, but I don't want to over do it! Enjoy yourself in Bali!