So...back to rainy Sydney...
Flew Jetstar with empty flights over. I was surprised at this. Good service (whatever that is these days :-)
Arrival quickly through immigration and baggage collection and off to Jayakarta Apartments (Jayakarta is a very large resort) at Legian booked through Suzanne Taylor. These apartments were very conveniently located and their manager checked in with us on a couple of occasions to see that all was in order. I would highly recommend these apartments for reasonably priced accommodation. They tick all the boxes for convenient location and comfort. The three large pools are about a 4 minute walk maximum and we had two children with us walking at a slow pace. It was no problem. The staff were extremely friendly and it's possible to use the shuttle bus to Kuta provided around 5 times daily at no charge. We stayed 9 nights here and I would book again if I needed somewhere in Legian.
Their pools are great and we loved evening swims especially when the Barong Dancers were serenading on stage while we swam around like limp mermaids!
I found the restaurant here at Jayakarta adequate but there are so many good places to eat just outside on the beach that are better value.
We liked:
Zanzibar - good food, good value.
Lanai - lovely food and very good service. They were fantastic with our toddler. We ate in peace for most of the time because they just played with him while we enjoyed their meals. Their breakfasts are wonderful at around $6.
Blue Ocean - seemed popular but our meals were all just a little bit average!
Goody's Pizza - good service, food was average.
Pantarei - at Seminyak - Great food (Greek menu with alternatives too!) and the decor was beautiful.
Tommy's - Rum Jungle Road. Lovely breakfast, great value and wonderful coffee.
kuDeTa - somewhat pretentious but a lovely setting and good for one cocktail at least!!!
This was a different holiday for me; first one with children. Last trip I spent most of my time in Ubud. So we did the more family oriented things like Waterbom Park and spending time on the (very filthy) beach and lots of time around the pool.
I must say, I was surprised at the enormous amount of trash on the beach.
One evening, we headed over to Jimbaran Bay for dinner (Langsam's restaurant - excellent) and I was aghast at the rubbish and debris strewn everywhere. I stayed at Jimbaran around 14 months ago and it was NOT in anyway as rubbishy as this trip. Wow...what an eye opener.
I also noted less hawkers on the beach; has something changed? Or did I walk around with my eyes shut last time?
Ventured up to Ubud for one night only (much to my dismay) to take in the serenity of one of my favourite places in Bali...Alam Indah. Set behind the Monkey Forest and a haven of beauty and nature. Flora and fauna surrounding me...no telephone or tv in the room ... bliss. The only company at night was the odd gecko or a stray monkey climbing along the wall or fireflies fluttering outside the room. Fantastic.
My daughter and I ate delicious tapas at Nomads (near the markets) and their Nomad cocktails are full of lemongrass, palm sugar, lime juice and that touch of Arak! Mmmm. Cafe Wayan on Monkey Forest Road is owned by the Alam Indah people and we really enjoyed their afternoon tea and cakes baked on the premises.
With advice from this forum, we took the lesson in mask painting at Museum Puri Lukisan which was enjoyable and educational. Well worth the 250,000 per person. Our artist teacher was a delightful guy who was patient and great with his instruction.
Ubud, for me, holds a special something that reinforces my love for Bali.
We spent some time at Briella Spa opposite Jayakarta for massage which was excellent most of the time.
For childminding we used Made who was also recommended by this forum and she was far more entertaining for the children than the childminding at Jayakarta. My email is open for her contact. We used her on three occasions. Wonderful!
I wasn't particularly impressed by Discovery or Bali Mall Galleria...not much to offer for me.
Leather goods made at Dede Leather who were more than helpful but I still feel Dolphin Leather in Garlic Lane gives better quality product in the end. I've used both.
Found Joy Jewellery in Seminyak and drooled. Spent days deciding whether to splurge and buy myself a necklace...yep...I did it in the end!!!!!
Finally, I never thought I would say this (I'm a bit of a cultural snob when I go away) but ... I LOVED Waterbom Park...what a great couple of days we spent there. Great value for the children and I was really able to let myself go and be a big KID for the day. The staff were superb, the food was excellent and couldn't fault both times we went. Paying for two days was better value than taking one.
Big smiles all round!
Can't give much more than this ...
Any questions...just ask.
Have fun in paradise.
JX