Once again this was written prior to Saturday night and is unchanged, as I do not want this atrocity to 'flavour' my positive feelings for Bali.
In doing so I mean no disrespect for those who have been so devastatingly impacted by this tragedy, I sincerely apologise if this the case.
Day 7, today we are having friends over for lunch, these are long time Bali visitors, this time over for their Sons Wedding.
They had recommended us the Besakih for our first visit, and wanted to take the opportunity, along with sharing a delightful lunch, to have a look at the Griya by comparison for future reference, also to catch up with some of their Balinese friends in Sanur.
Prior to their arrival we take the opportunity to wander north up Jl Danau Tamblingan to see what had changed, and to look for some cushion covers, having seen lots previously but having not found the right ones!
I had thought the bright purple ones with the sequence elephant sewn on looked OK to me, but then I'm a mere male what would I know! {;o)
Anyway found a little shop, on the dogleg corner just before you get to the Sanur fruit and veg market, specialised in cushion covers and table runners, lots of good stuff here, unfortunately the presence of 'mere male' is off-putting, so it is decided that the Mrs C will return on her own to make the critical decision.
Just on what was the Sanur 'locals' fruit and veg market, it now appears, from what I could see from the other side of the road, to be full of 'Tourist' type stalls, just what they need moor stalls, when they are having such a hard time at all of the other markets.
In talking to the stall ladies at the Sindhu and Sanur Beach Markets during our stay, they tell me that the tourist numbers are down, which is not born out by the hotel bookings, in that the Griya had 100% occupancy rate while we were there, and a number of times I overheard them turning away people that had rocked up on spec, indicating that most of the hotels in Sanur were fully booked!
I think what the problem might be, which is giving the stall ladies the impression of not many tourists, is that many are not leaving their hotels, at ours for example I noted a number of our German cousins that arrived at the same time as us never appeared to move from their sunlounge other than to swim or eat!
This would seem to be corroborated by the Bali Tourists Paper, in that the numbers of visitors to the end of August were the highest since the heady days prior to 9/11 and the 'Bali Bombing', yet the $ spend per Tourist / Day was at an all time low!
Anyway our friends arrived and during our look around I was able to point out the beautiful orchids growing in the trees in the grounds of the Griya.
These are grown in semicircular containers made from what looked like coconut husk type material, formed into shape and bound by some type of dark brown resin, which are nailed to the trees at about head hight in which the orchid is growing.
There were latterly dozens of these spread throughout the grounds, all different colours and shapes, there is such a display that we decided that we had no need to visit the Bali Orchid Garden as we had planned to do, unfortunately for them.
After another delightful lunch we took our friends to Hardys to look at the paintings on the top floor, they were looking for a painting, and just wanted to see what was available and at what price at a 'fixed price' store, so as to get an idea.
After they had left it was in for a swim and a drink prior to dinner which was to be at the Griya's 'Seafood Beach BBQ', which they put on a couple of nights a week.
Now I know its not the sunset at Jimbaran Bay that every one raves about, however being on the beautiful (clean) sands Sanur beach with the sound of the waves breaking on the reef, the moonlight shimmering on the still waters of the lagoon, and the sky bursting with stars, well what more could you ask for.
Try starched white linen table cloths and napkins, free welcome cocktail, free salad bar including garlic chipped potatoes, and a good selection of seafood at reasonable prices, and NO rip-offs!
We had the 'Seafood Combination' which consisted of half a Bali Crayfish, Tuna, Mahi Mahi, and Squid, almost half a kg of mixed seafood for the princely sum of 65K Rp, why anyone would pay the Taxi fare to and from Jimbaran Bay when you can get this at Sanur is beyond me.
Mind you I must say I would probably drop the Bali Crayfish next time, they are so small with not much meat, I've had bigger Banana Prawns, having said that it was still an experience that I can recommend.
To be continued, regards BJC.