Nusa Lembongan and Villa Rumah Kami .. Paradise Found
We had booked for the 4.30pm Scoot Boat to take us to Nusa Lembongan , with them picking us up from outside the S'Cape Apartments. We'd all decided that we should leave some of our luggage with Wayan as we had far too much to take over with us. Just as well, as even after offloading what seemed like most of out gear, there was still a ridiculous amount of cases and bags to go. The wine and the Bintangs and all the nibblies left over from the last few days didn't help.
The tip over was fast and reasonably smooth, although a few passengers were looking pretty pale. One young Indonesian guy went from a lovely warm brown to totally white, poor little bugger, I've never seen anything like it
We arrived at Jungutbatu and Komang from the Villa Rumah Kami was waiting for us on the beach. He must have thought we were staying for a month with all the stuff we had, thank goodness we'd left the rest of the bags behind. We piled into the Scoot Boat's smart little truck with all the gear and headed off with Komang leading the way on his motorbike. The fella driving the truck was a real comedian, and was busy entertaining us through the loudspeaker. Pity we couldn't understand a word he was saying, but it was still hilarious.
We arrived at the villa after a short bumpy trip and so began our stay in paradise. The Villa is lovely, and very private. We were the first people to stay there after a bit of painting and other work being done.
I really can't say enough about the beautiful villa, the location and the attentive service of Komang and his staff. With everything combined it comes together as a very special holiday destination.
We spent pretty much all of our time in the villa upstairs in the living area which has magnificent panoramic views across to Bali. The fridge is stocked with ice cold beer and wine (very reasonably priced), which we managed to make a big dent in every day. It operates on an honour system and you just write down what you have each day. All too easy.
During the day you can watch the comings and goings of the day tripper boats and all the activities off in the distance, and after the breathtaking sunsets and nightfall the twinkling lights of Bali make a magnificent back drop.
We had most of our meals at the villa. Komang and Ayu do all of the cooking and every meal we had was beautiful. The prices are very reasonable and the menu is varied. We decided to eat at the Café Wayan one night which is a short walk straight down to the beach from the villa and we regretted it. The wait was long and the food was no where near as good as what we ate at the Villa. It was also more expensive.
We felt really spoilt at the villa. Every night Komang would set the table with flowers and candles and bring our meals to us. It was just so totally relaxing and such a nice way to be on holidays. Mind you, it did take a while to get used to all of the pampering. Komang refused to let us do anything, he would just say: 'You are on holidays' It really was paradise.
We had a lot of fun on the island. We hired motorbikes for the whole of our stay which gave us lots of freedom. We explored both Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan little bit by little bit. Got lost a couple of times and made some discoveries along the way. One discovery was an Aussie Surfer who we met at Dream Beach Café where we stopped for lunch. Great food with a view to the beach that is worth squillions.
We chatted to Richard the surfer for ages at the café and then talked him into coming back to the villa with us. The afternoon was spent relaxing with the view and the breeze and a considerable number of Bintang's. I discovered my new favourite drink, a mixed juice with a good slug of Cointreau and plenty of ice. Yum Yum.. One wouldn't go down too badly right now! Richard joined us for dinner at Café Wayan and a good time was had by all. That's one of the things that I love about Bali, the friendships that can so easily happen with both locals and fellow travellers. Richard also fell in love with the Villa Rumah Kami and plans to take his wife to stay there on his next trip to Bali.
Another one of our adventures was to ride to the Mangroves. The road to get there was a nightmare, I've never been on such a track. It was worth it though as the mangrove area is beautiful. We went on a boat trip with one of the local fishermen poling the tradition fishing boat along (against the current at times). The mangroves are really peaceful and the birdlife is prolific. Yet another special experience.
Before getting on our bikes after our little trip through the mangroves we stopped and had a drink at Captain Wayan's Mangrove Café. Just a little beachside café, but yet another piece of paradise. We sat and looked across a beautiful white sand beach to the aquamarine blue ocean, with Mt Agung poking his head through the clouds in the distance. You just can't get better than that!
We all wanted to go snorkelling so Komang organised a local fisherman to take us out for four hours to a few different places. He shares the work around amongst the fisherman so a different one gets the job each time. We headed off from the beach near the villa with a big esky Komang had organised for us. Inside was a selection of fruit and a selection of beers, Bintang and Bali Hai. We kept away from the beers until after we had finished snorkelling, and what a nice trip back we had with the boat slicing through the water, crystal clear ocean, warm breezes and beautiful scenery, topped off with a few cold beers. Ahh, paradise once again.
Our first snorkelling stop was at the mangroves which was just magnificent. I have never seen so many varieties of brightly coloured fish. There were so many fish that we found it hard to get out of the water to move to the next spot. It was in fact the best of all of the places that we stopped so we should have stayed a bit longer.
The next stop was at the wall. Made the fisherman anchored quite a way from the wall, and the current was running pretty strongly (in the wrong direction). We weren't too sure at first what we were supposed to be looking at but eventually Made got the message across that we had to swim over to the wall. Well... I swam and I swam and I swam a bit more. And I wasn't making much headway. Hubby gave up as he was having trouble breathing properly and headed back to Made. The others were heading in my direction so I struck out for the wall. I was a bit bothered by the waves smashing near to where I was heading but headed on regardless. Next thing I looked around me and couldn't see a soul. So I bravely freaked out and started heading back to hubby, Made and the boat, and carried by the current I was there in next to no time.
Of course the others eventually came back.. they had been there all the time, just hidden in the trough of a wave, and raved on and on about the hugggeee fish they had seen along the wall. Ah well, next time. And there will be many more next times. That'll teach me for being a chicken.
Our last snorkelling was to be at Crystal Bay, supposedly the very best spot. Made headed off from the wall, his expression getting more and more worried. The waves were getting pretty big and the current was getting stronger, still in the wrong direction. He suggested that we give Crystal Bay a miss as it was getting a bit dangerous. We were disappointed but .. it will still be there next time. We didn't really want to be lost at sea, even in paradise.
We spent some time with the mob at Nusa Penida (near the Quicksilver Pontoon) doing a bit more snorkelling to make up for missing out on Crystal Bay, but it really wasn't too good. Lots of dead coral and not many varieties of fish. It was still good to see though.
We were all very sad to leave Nusa Lembongan. It really has so much to offer as a holiday destination. Villa Rumah Kami and the staff made our stay one of the most memorable holidays ever. Our future holidays to Bali will never be complete anymore without a trip to Nusa Lembongan included.
The owners of Villa Rumah Kami are offering a special promotion to coincide with Jetstar's cheap flights from 28 Oct to 12 Dec. The Villa is available for AU$100 per night and up to six people can stay there. I wish I was able to go back and take advantage of this offer, I'd be there like a shot if I had the opportunity!
Next bit.. Kuta and the Kuta Townhouses. Culture shock at it's finest