Just home from another holiday in beautiful Bali. After months of planning, our Bali holiday began on October 24th when 11 of us left Perth on Jetstar - these numbers increased to 19 over the next the next few days as more of our family and friends arrived. Our group consisted of 3 couples, three thirty ++ year olds and 10 twenty ++ year olds (our kids). Two days before we were due to leave we had a phone call from our travel agent whom we have dealt with for the past 14 years - our hotel, the Bali Mandira (which we had booked in April) had overbooked and we could not stay there. The travel wholesaler (New Horizons) wanted to send us somewhere we'd never heard of but our travel agent said that if they did that to us they would no longer deal with them.
So...... all of us were sent across the road to the Padma and put up in the deluxe garden villas. Although a bit disappointed at first that we couldn't stay at the Mandira again (great location and not too big), we soon got over it - although it is very big, the Padma is a beautiful hotel, the pool is huge and was perfect for our large group and we never had a problem getting a lounge regardless of the time we went to the pool. The rooms were large, very clean and the bathrooms probably 3 times the size that of the Mandira. The gardens were beautiful, the breakfasts were great, the staff were wonderful - there was nothing we could fault and it was a great introduction to Bali for the first timers who were travelling with us - a little bit of tranquillity within the madness that is Legian / Kuta, and we all enjoyed our time here - in fact I would be more than happy to stay here again. I am the first to admit that when I go on holiday I like to stay somewhere nice, and if I am going holiday on a tropical island I want to stay somewhere where I can see the ocean and know that I am on a island. We also changed most of our money at the hotel (a first for us as they were offering basically the same rate as on the streets - RP8500 for A$1 most days. Made it so much easier and convenient to change our cash before we hit the streets.
Our ten days passed quickly, with most people doing their own thing during the day and we would all meet up around the pool in the afternoon or on the beach at about 5pm, at Wayan's beach bar, which is opposite the Legian Beach Hotel. We all went to dinner together every night of our stay however we did tend to book most places in advance just to give them some warning. The young ones kicked on a few nights but on the whole we were all back in the hotel before midnight most evenings. Some of the organised things we did included a trip up to Kintamani (Mount Batur) via Ubud on the Monday, although 5 of the younger ones opted to catch transport back to Legian after Ubud. On the way to Kintamai we stopped to view the rice terraces as Tegallalang - this was my 6th time to Bali but the first time I had seen these and I thought they were pretty amazing. Mount Batur is still pretty awesome, especially for the first timers however the ambience is a little bit spoiled by the relentless hawkers. Our trip home was made more interesting by watching our driver struggle to keep his eyes open, a little bit scary when you're travelling down the mountainside - my husband who was sitting next to him wasn't much help either as he was asleep for most of the trip so it was up to the rest of us to keep chatting & asking questions etc - an experience I wouldn't like to repeat.
Some of our group did the Safari Park and loved it, (I had been last year so opted not to go again) and most of us went to Waterbom Park - the first time for many of our group and the first time since 2000 for our family. Had a great day enjoying all the rides including the Superbowl and the Boomerang - can't believe I actually went on that twice but had my eyes closed the first time so had to go again to see what I had missed. The food and drink prices at Waterbom are very reasonable and the cashless bracelet system is great. All the guys and my eldest daughter (11 in total) did the quad bike activity and all enjoyed it thoroughly. Some of them had done a similar thing when we all went to Kota Kinabalu in 2007 but all agreed this was much more fun. My husband organised it before we went and because it was a large group they received a fairly good discount. Although we had planned to go to Uluwatu, Tanah Lot and Echo Beach it doesn't take long to slip back into 'Bali Time' and we found we were more than happy to shop for a few hours, and then spend time together around the pool in the afternoons, so we will have to save these activities for 'next time'. Briella Spa still have the best hair cream baths and the new Carla Spa on Melasti Street, just near the intersection of Garlic Lane do great massages and the staff are wonderful.
My eldest daughter had arranged to visit the 'Seeds of Hope Children's Home' in Dalung, about a 40 minute ride north west of Legian, so before we left we collected a large amount of reading and writing books, pens, pencils, games and clothing from friends and family which we divvied up for the plane trip. Once in Bali we went to the Hypermarket at Bali Galleria and purchased rice, soaps and shampoos, toothbrushes, exercise books and a soccer ball - we also gave them a cash donation. What a humbling experience to visit with the wonderful children who live here and the beautiful people who run the place - not all the children are orphans, some have been placed here because their parents can no longer afford to support them. Despite their circumstances the children were friendly and appeared content. They performed a mini concert for us, playing traditional musical instruments of Java and then proudly showed us their rooms, which although very bare by our standards were spotlessly clean. After a number of photos and lots of hugs we sadly had to leave but this experience had left a lasting impression on me and next time I am in Bali I will visit this wonderful place again, as well as urge any of my friends to do the same.
We ate at many restaurants including Zanzibar, (nice food, so so service) Gosha's (always go there for the seafood kebabs) and we actually met Mr Gosha - his father started the restaurant many years ago and named it after his son, Yutz (great steaks), Bali Beach Shack (not as good as last year and didn't really enjoy the show they now have there, especially with a number of young children in the audience - we left before the end), Bianco's (great satays), Rosso Vivo?? on the main beach road (great food and band) and Ultimo's. After all the rave reviews about Ultimo's was just a little bit disappointed - the food was nice but the servings were oh so small and with 7 strapping young guys with us it was just not enough for them. But the setting (outside) was lovely and the white chocolate cream Brulee was delicious.
We had a late flight back to Perth (10.45pm) and a 2pm checkout from the Padma so went back over to the Mandira where they stored our luggage, provided us with pool towels and we spent most of the afternoon around their pool. They also provided all of us with bath towels and soap so that we could shower before we left - they did feel pretty bad about mucking up our booking. Had all our laundry done on the 2nd last day so came home with hardly any dirty clothes - great when you are back at work the next day.
So another trip to Bali has been and gone and once again we didn't get to do everything we had planned to do - it's so easy to slip into Bali time and before you know it the day has passed. The people are still as friendly as ever, the traffic as bad (if not worse) as ever - sometimes easier to walk than take transport, the streets are a mess where they are replacing the footpaths, the beaches are a lot cleaner, most of the dogs look a lot healthier, the food has improved so much since our first trip 14 years ago and the shopping is still great value for money. The weather was amazing, clear skies and hot, hot, hot (which I love) Each time we come back from Bali we say we will try somewhere new next time (and we have - Kota Kinabalu, Phuket, Singapore) but somehow Bali seems to weave her magic spell and although it is not all palm trees and paradise it is a great place to go to unwind and forget about all the hassles of everyday life back home. Our group is now talking of making this an annual trip, so God willing we will be back again. Sorry to ramble on for so long. Any questions please feel free.