HI all, Its taken me a long time to get back here after our wonderful holiday in Bali in August... I guess Bali blues sink and you cant face it all, anyway, its been so long I have had to change my username...but here I am...please excuse my writing...and also thankyou to everyone who helped me with my questions before we left.
When my hubby and I and our 2 daughters finally got on the Virgin plane out of Brissy in August 09, we all breathed a sight of relief. It had finally come and we had survived the many bouts of swine flu that was going around. I had even kept my girls home from school the week before as some of the kids had it or may have had it..anyway...it was worth the wait to see my daughters excited faces as they ventured on their first overseas trip to Bali.
The flight was smooth and uneventful,( I would fly Virgin again no worries ) but we were late on taking off which meant when we arrived, so did lot so other aircraft..and so began the wait at VOA / etc.....we didnt mind though, as we were all in excited mode..but after 2 hours in a que in the heat..it began to get tiring..anyways, after that, and because we were so late, our driver from the Bali Garden wasnt there.......Mmm, we had lots of offers of drivers etc.....and I did start to get worried at one point when one guy led us around the front of the airport and there was no-one there......we then found a guy who would take us to the Bali Garden Hotel...his van was old- no seatbelts and he drove like a raving lunatic around corners / back alleys/ dodging chickens , dogs, motorbikes , all the time laughing.."hahaha".....the girls eyes were popping out of their heads - their first experience of Bali !!!!! Something I will never forget......but credit to him, he got us safely to our hotel..and boy were we glad to be there......Bintangs for me and Hubby and cokes for the girls were on order !!!
Bali Garden was great....we really enjoyed our time there. The breakfasts were great and the gardens and surrounds are beautiful. It has such a nice feel to it. Also in great distance to the Dept stores and waterbom park is just over the road ( a great day out ).....we spent a wonderful 5 days there.......We also went to the Bali safari park, the girls loved it and my youngest daughter spent all her pocket $ on a huge stuffed Orang-utan ,( who she called Wayan ) we got some funny comments about him...and it was funny pulling him out of the suitcase for inspection at the airport on the way home . it was the first time I had seen the customs officer smile all the time we were there !!
We spent afternoons on the beach in front of the hotel talking to the locals and met some wonderful people- and we were lucky enough to see the preparation of a mass cremation ceremony, and find out more about the Balinese culture....
Then we ventured up to Ubud to stay at the Tegal Sari....a new experience...
Thanks for reading...I will write more soon..hopefully.....its only taken me 4 months..Cheers everyone.
( happytrace )