A brief intro: Myself, Jill 29, 8th trip to Bali and David 33, 1st trip to Bali. Departed Perth boxing day and returned 2 weeks later on the 9th Jan. Stayed 10 nights in Kuta, 2 nights in Amed then another night in Legian.
Sorry for the delay in doing part 2)
I thought Bali was very quiet when we first arrived, but as the days went by I sensed more and more tourists arriving towards New Year - Nothing like the busy times years before. I must say that there were heaps and heaps of Asians visiting Bali, and Europeans. I was a little apprehensive about the terrorism threat between boxing day and New Year only because there was so much publicity before we left. Our media talked about kidnappings too and talking to locals they actually had no idea about it. After New Years I really relaxed and stopped thinking about it. We're not into going to clubs or late night pub drinking so after dinner we tended to head back to our hotel, watch a dvd and drink our duty free. The security wasn't as good as I thought it was going to be. We only got metal detected at one restaurant the whole time we were there. Yes, they had them at entrances to the big shopping centers but there are still plenty of side entrances that are not manned by security.
New Years Eve: Went out for a nice meal at Fat Yogies in Poppies 1 (there was only us and one other table) then back to hotel. I wasn't comfortable going out into the streets for midnight so we stayed at the hotel and had a nice time in the foyer area with the staff, overlooking the street below and watching all the people celebrating as they walked by. It was a noisy night in the pool area that night !!!!
Weather: I thought we had good weather considering it is the wet season. It rained mostly in the evenings and at night. We still had days were the sky was blue and the sun was shining and even days when there was no rain at all. I think we only had one or two real down pours during the day.
Coin Bracelets. Again, this is something I've never done before. Ordered them through Lee at Bali Aussie Pub - (advice from forum.) I got quite a few for friends and family. All made with our names in them. They look fantastic. So far they haven't changed colour but David got a ring made and that's already started going green. Because I was organized, I had the $2 coins already but David decided last minute to get a ring and didn't have a coin - maybe that's why his is going green? I don't know if they actually use the coins to make the bracelets but whatever they turned out really nice.
Restaurants, Wow - so many to choose from. David only eats western food and he was delighted with the selection available in every restaurant. I was also in heaven with being able to eat whatever asian food I wanted and we could eat at the same restaurant !! Every time I go to Bali I always have the Tepanyaki at Tanaya's Japanese restaurant on Jl Legian. It expensive for Bali prices but still so much cheaper than Aus. Very enjoyable. Other restaurants worth a mention are Fat Yogies - we ate there twice, Warung 96, Indo National - I had the best Prawn Mornay with rice. I loved it so much I went back the next day and had it again. Plus I am a fan of Bali cider and not many places sell it, but Indo National does. I wanted a serving of Lobster Thermadore so we went to Surya Candra Seafood Rest on Jl Legian. It was very average - disappointing. Paid 210K. I think the Lobster at Indo National would have been better and it was a lot cheaper. One night it was raining so we ate at the hotel (Barong) and i had spaghetti bolognese. It was actually really really yummy. We sat there for ages playing Uno and listening to the rain. A great evening in !
We changed our money at Kodak shops and never had a problem. Rate was floating around 7100. I paid a few bills with my visa card. Their print outs had ALL my card details printed on it so I just scribbled out the expiry date and a few other numbers. Only one place had a problem with this and that was at Tanayas. Once I explained it I think she was ok. We've been back a few weeks now and nothing has been put through untoward.
We also went Ten Pin Bowling. This place was difficult to find. It is right down the back of the lane that is next to Bubba Gump restaurant in Tuban. We went at about 3pm and there was only one other couple there bowling. It is also a massive pool hall, so maybe it gets busier later in the evenings.
Amed to follow....