Enjoyed our trip from Ubud to Lovina, stopping at Lake Bratan at the temple there and travelling through Singaraja. Our driver Made told us when he arrived to collect us that he had not been able to drive anyone the day before as there was no petrol. It turned out that there had been a delay in petrol getting to the petrol stations. When it does arrive Made says the queue can be a kilometre long! We drove past one station in Singaraja that had a 'no petrol' sign still out. I gather this is not the first time delays like this have occurred. Imagine having your day's wages wiped by some bureaucratic blunder in maintaining a fuel supply to an island!
Stopped at Pacung on the way for a meal at a restaurant that overlooked a valley of rice fields and a hotel with lovely gardens below us. I did the tourist thing of taking a range of photos I can print out and stick together to create a big panorama-was the only way I could capture it all! Buffet meal was okay but a bit pricey for what it was. Toilets were European but substandard hygiene-wise. We left hurriedly as there was a German family beside us with the most appalling children, the two boys especially. They were loud, and their antics dominated the whole room and destroyed the feeling of a peaceful enjoyable meal. When the kids started to do some mock-vomiting, with sound effects, laughing at each other, I thought the parents would step in for sure and tell them to quit it, but nope. They were so noisy we could not actually hold a conversation with each other, so we left.
Driving through Singaraja we were struck by how different it was. The main shopping area was very much a city for locals, not tourists, (displays of goods and signage not directed at tourists) and the streets were wider and houses and buildings more European in appearance. The air seemed hotter and drier too. Bruce had lived in Papua New Guinea about 30 years ago for a while and said that the appearance of Singaraja reminded him very much of Port Moresby there.
ANGSOKA COTTAGES, LOVINA
Arrived at Angsoka and decided to upgrade from a 200,000/night room to a Family Villa for 400,000 night. Bruce wanted a fridge and a bit more room as we would be there three nights. I also did not want the disquieting view we had when we arrived - of two 'older' european gentlemen cavorting on their front porch (diagonally opposite ours) with two young balinese women. When one of the men physically picked up one of the girls and carried her a few steps as he made some kind of joke to his friend, the look on her face said it all.
Angsoka has a nice feel to it. The grounds are pretty and well-maintained, and the layout includes rooms and cottages of a variety of standards, nothing really flash. Pool is nice and the whole place feels like a well-maintained holiday park that has been popular with several generations. We found the staff friendly and helpful. Massage ladies will come to your room or you can get a massage by the pool, which turned out to be just on a lounger right by the pool, no separate area - bit public for me! Plus they talk to each other as you are getting a massage, which always bothers me as I like to go into that trance state to make the most of a massage. She knew what she was doing, though...it was a good massage technique-wise. The family villa we got had TV with local channels only. Front porch had a fan as well as a light. As you walk in there is a double and a single bed in the room, and a dressing table, and a low table between the beds. Then you walk into an area that has a wardrobe, cupboard and fridge on the right and the door into the bathroom on the left. Large vanity bench in the bathroom, good toilet, shower over bath, expelair fan, large bucket for doing laundry etc. Beyond the wardrobe area is another room...the kitchen! This has a back door to a very basic laundry tub outside. The kitchen has a few high cupboards with mesh over them, a hot plate, one pot and jug, and a table with two chairs. We did not use the kitchen. The first night we were there I heard a rat walking over some wrapping paper around my paintings sitting on the drawers in the bedroom. (We have had pet rats - I know the sound). I sat up slowly in bed in the half-light and then watched as a full-grown rat walked across the white tiles of the bedroom floor. Got up and startled Bruce, who had been asleep, by lifting all the covers off the bed and opening the door to let it out if it wanted to go. The next day I worked out that it must have got in by squeezing under the gap under the back door in the kitchen, so after that I just left the door to the kitchen shut at night and no more problems. Poor thing must have been hungry as I later discovered it had chewed the corner of a plastic-wrapped piece of soap...could see the teeth marks in the soap.
Woken next day early (about 7am!) by a very noisy Dutch(?) family in the unit next to us jabbering away to each other. Mother had the loudest voice of all and she was outside on the front porch ordering all the kids about as they got ready for the day!
Eating in Lovina...
We really liked Lovina but found some eateries were disappointing. Did enjoy pre-dinner drinkies at the Tropiz Bar on the beach. Bought some sarongs from the ladies on the beach who hovered nearby, and paid a bit too much, by choice - it is very quiet for them now. Then I bought a pearl necklace that had pearls the shape of tictacs alternated on a string in a zig-zag style. The man swore his brother actually dove for the pearls...yeah, right! But I paid a good price (checked out in a shop the next day when I saw the same necklace there, and the 100,000 I paid had been a good-for-him, good-for-me price. He had started at 250,000!).
One thing we noticed is that there were very few kiwis/aussies around in Lovina. At every table in every restaurant we found ourselves surrounded by French/German/Dutch dialogue. By the way, while on language, we have found on our trips to Bali that if we ask for the bill in a restaurant the staff do not always understand us. (Bruce and I have a journalism background and tend to say 'bill' with a more English accent, rather than 'bull' like a lot of kiwis would). We finally clicked that if we asked for the bill with an Australian accent in any restaurant we would instantly be understood - so we took to asking for the 'beeyill' and sure enough, it worked every time!
In the road that leads to the Dolphin statue on the beach we ate ate a restaurant called Maliuku. The menu was absolutely hilarious to read with all the english mistakes - very entertaining. The seating, up two very steep flights of stairs and right at the corner of the room overlooking the street, was a great view. The food was mediocre. Bruce's seafood 'special' could have been fantastic, but was overcooked in old oil and lacked the zing and style it could have had. The toilet was awful.
We later went to the 'Little Bar' over the road...quite literally a small bar one room wide...until the band started up at the Poco Bar next door. We listened to three songs and decided not to punish ourselves further.
Found 'Jasmine Kitchen' in the lane that leads to Angsoka Cottages. Thai food to die for! Sat upstairs. So good we left a tip upstairs for the waiting staff and stopped by the kitchen downstairs as we left to tip the kitchen staff as well! Waiters were in silk shirts. Tables were decorated with these cute little pots with bamboo shoots growing in them. Elegant chairs to sit on, with cushions. Soft music in background, fans, candlelight. And the food! I had chicken satay and pad thai and both were superb. Could taste the lime and lemongrass in the food. I forget what Bruce had, but I copied down some of the menu they offer. How does this sound? Chiang Mai curry with chicken and potato cooked in a mild curry sauce with ginger, chillies and shallots 30,000. Prawn salad in a spicy orange and tamarind dressing topped with toasted coconut and crushed peanuts 30,000. White chocolate and yoghurt cake 10,800, Honey coconut cake 11,000. Chocolate mud cake. Home-made ice cream.
Ate at Kakatua which was okay. Good to be able to see into the kitchen. I had the most awful Nasi Goreng I have ever had anywhere in Bali, no flavour at all, soggy rice, at a place over the road from Kakatua and a bit towards the beach. Can't remember the name of the place but they had blackboards up around inside the building advertising their breakfast rates. Sure, prices were good, but the food was awful!
Had breakfast at Warung Nasi Goreng the day we left. Good value. Nice white tablecloths. American 19,500, Indo 17,500, Special 17,500 and Continental 12,500. Bruce chose eggs and the option of sausages/bacon or ham. He chose sausages. Later the waitress came out..sorry no sausages, choose again please? He chose bacon. Waitress came out again. Sorry, no bacon. Bruce chose ham, that being the only choice left. Ah, the magic of Bali! Food well presented. We would eat there again.
The day before we ate breakfast in the street one along that runs to the beach, it runs parallel to the dolphin statue road. Found little Italian place with purple and yellow tablecloths. Owner cooked our breakfast with apologies for delay as his wife was off to temple. Cute little boy. Nice breakfast and a lovely setting. I think it was called La Monde.
Outings from Lovina.
Our driver Made took us to his village and we met with his family, which was lovely. We also went to Singaraja to Hardy's, biggest store in town, a department store. (Different stock to the store in Sanur). Has a fascinating children's play area/amusement arcade and a foodcourt on the top....very noisy but a great indoor activity area to visit (to escape the heat of the day) for children of all ages. Made will not always eat with us but he did for lunch this day, and our nasi goreng istemewa from the foodcourt (at only 5,000 each meal) was a darned site more tasty than the European recipe fried chicken and rice Bruce chose from another food outlet there! We got a mixed juice there (3,000) and it was lovely! Fantastic view of Singaraja all around from this top floor. Bought a snorkel set in the children's department. Pretty young sales assistant went to snip the string tying a bunch of the packets together as Made held it, and as she snipped he pulled his hand back and pretended she had snipped his finger as well. She looked really concerned until we all realised he was teasing. While she was getting my docket ready I stage-whispered to her that he was 'belum kawin' (not married yet) and nodded in his direction. I am so wicked! (Ended up going back to Hardy's a day later as I could not get a ProXL topup cellphone card anywhere in Lovina. Driver from hell recrutied from the street, turned up in a car with ripped seats and the promised aircon being windows rolled down! On the way back driver toot-tooted as we came up behind some schoolchildren practising their marching for Independence Day - startled this poor girl at the back who broke step and glanced back anxiously. I was stunned, and then he guffawed and said not worry, it was his daughter! I just worried she would get in trouble for breaking step).
Air Sanih cold springs. This is a fascinating place. Bruce did not swim as his ear was playing up after an earlier swim in Ubud, but Made and I both brought our togs and went in. This is a series of swimming pools fed by an underground spring, right on the edge of the beach, the nearest pool to the sea being low and used for washing clothes in. This is where Balinese familes go for an outing for the day, bringing picnic food (and Mum obviously brings the washing to do if she wants to as well). Plenty of rubber tyre inner tubes stacked up for anyone to use. Water not cold-cold. I am a sook, and I went in - very refreshing! The changing shed reeked of pee, so when I got changed again I went into one of the toilets instead (squat toilet, but clean, and got changed standing on my sandals (it is an art, believe me!). The main pool has a sand-and-stones floor to it, which took a bit of getting used to. We were the only non-Balinese there. I am very pale and generously proportioned so I proved to be rather fascinating to the children who watched me gingerly step into the water and splash around. They gradually got up the nerve to say Hello in English, and I replied in Indonesian, and had a basic conversation with them, big smiles all around. I got a real buzz out of seeing Balinese families having fun together. So often we just see them working. Don't overlook this place for a family outing. There is a really shallow pool for toddlers too. Take a snack bag. There are open outdoor showers you can rinse off under. There is a tearooms/restaurant there also but we did not go there, so can't say what it is like.
Hot springs at Banjar.
You can also bathe here. They are supposed to be therapeutic. Water is milky jade green-interesting. Got a great photo of people standing under statues that spill the hot water from the top pool to a larger lower one. You can stand under the outlet. A Muslim woman was standing under one in full clothing and head-shawl, which looked really weird to me but probably felt quite appropriate to her.
You walk through a row of street stalls as you approach these springs.
Okay, that is Lovina...next stop the incredible Wawa Wewe II Cottages at Lipah Beach near Amed for three nights....our little touch of Paradise in Bali (tempted not to tell you about it and keep it all to ourselves!).