to all who share such great information. We have always described our Bali holidays as 'Bali Magic', so it was with great anticipation that we headed off on the 12th March looking to re-discover our own bit of Bali Magic. Thanks to all the great information gleamed on the forum we were better prepared than we had been on previous trips.
As QANTAS no longer fly to Bali we took a Garuda flight - not too bad - not too great. Immigration entry was a breeze - no queues and no problems. Paying the VOA was basically straightforward although we were quietly amused at the number of different counters we had to go to when one would suffice - Oh well keeps people in jobs I guess. We always use the porters - their frantic scurrying for bags certainly lets us know we are back in Bali. We then stepped out into the hot humid night looking for a taxi to take us to Legian, - we were in luck we got a metered taxi with friendly conversation thrown in.
We have had several trips to Bali and stayed in various locations including Sanur, Tuban, and Jimbaren. This trip we decided to check out Legian and the Padma Hotel. What a disappointment - we paid for the deluxe garden chalet -.not worth the extra. Firstly the room wasn't ready even though we had a 9pm check-in - then the air conditioning didn't work. We made the most of our time at the Padma but definitely would not return there. The only redeeming feature was the breakfasts in the Bella Luna. Sanur and Tuban are much nicer places to stay. We re-visited the Kartika Plaza Hotel and were very impressed with the renovations they have made - we have stayed there at least six times and would certainly go back there on our next visit.
We did the usual holiday ‘stuff' of shopping, swimming and eating. We also meet up with Scooby Do who is not only a great driver but a really friendly person whose company we enjoyed on several occasions.
One of the special highlights of this trip was a visit to the Sembung School and a meeting with the children we sponsor. We headed off early one morning with Scooby and of course got lost. After stopping several times to ask directions and taking numerous wrong turns on narrow dirt roads, we eventually found the school. We were met at the school gate by a crowd of laughing, giggling children with the biggest smiles in the world. Words can't describe the feeling of welcome and friendship we experienced by the teachers and children and their welcoming smiles and thanks crossed language barriers with ease. Agung from the Rotary Club in Denpasar meet us at the school and acted as interpreter and provided us with lots of information on the project and the school. It was certainly a shock for us to see how poor and ill equipped the school was - they are need of the most basic of equipment including sporting goods, books etc. The ‘Bali Kids' Project is certainly worthwhile and I would like to encourage other Bali regulars to consider helping out.. We took gifts for the school - mostly books for the library- also balls and bags of balloons also some small gifts for the children we sponsor - mainly clothes. Bali has always been kind to us so it is great that we can give something back - small as it is. We took photos of the schools and kids - happy to share the more general photos of the school.
My husband did the cooking class at the Casa Luna and thoroughly enjoyed it. The classes were held at the Honeymoon Guesthouse in Ubud. The course covered an explanation of all the herbs, spices and other ingredients used in the preparation of Indonesian cooking. The class then participated in the preparation of several dishes, supervised by Nyoman (head chef at the Casa Luna) the best bit was the sumptuous lunch at the end of the class - highly recommended and great value for money at 200,00RP ($28 AUD) and ...we have even had a wonderful ‘bali dinner' since we have been home.
We also enjoyed a day at the Bali International Lawn Bowls at Nusa Dua. This club is owned and operated by John and Belinda Same - a couple of Aussie ex-pats. The clubhouse has a great bar area on the ground floor and a wonderful restaurant called The Verandah on the top floor.
A few tips to pass on
Helgi - what a nice guy. We emailed Helgie our DVD order and he delivered this to the hotel along with a DVD player we hired from him. The few movies that didn't work, Helgie happily replaced. This is a great way to get your DVDS. No problems with customs bringing them home. They didn't even ask as they were more interested in wooden items etc.
Geneva Handicrafts is certainly worth a visit and the cheapest place to shop we found. Things were cheaper here than the markets without the hassles. Found some great home décor ‘stuff' that would cost a lot more back home.
Restaurants - tried heaps - these were the best:
Ketaput in Kuta - wonderful Indonesian food
Poppies - of course
Drops in Legian
Bubba Gumps in Tuban
Tailor
We used a tailor in Legian in Jalan Padma who was recommended on this forum - we had several items made including a men's suit (total well over $200) everything they made was a disaster - we asked for the clothes to be ‘fixed' but they are still no good - I was really disappointed as I took my own materials - I also passed on her details to another guest at the Padma who was also disappointed - she said she would throw her suit away. The lesson from this to really check things out for yourself and be sure of what they are going to do. An expensive lesson for us.
As we have been to Bali before we didn't do any trips to the ‘touristy' places. Probably the biggest change we noticed is the negative impact of tourism on the local people and how ‘commercial' they have become - a shame to see - but if you spend the time to get beneath the surface of this ‘gross commercialism', you can still meet some truly wonderful people. We certainly found our own Bali Magic