Hi all,
A brief review of our recent holiday to the Isle of smiles.............
Myself, wife and 2 boys, aged 8 and 9, set off on our sixth trip in a row at around this time of the year as a family ( wife and i have been before kids, to this and many other parts of the world, but
kids put the brakes on long sojourns to faraway places.....)
Not to say i don't think much of Bali though.......i love it!
Anyway, this trip was primarily for my sisters 50th, so many family and friends went along for the ride.
We stayed at Villa Coco, in a 2 bedroom garden bungalow for 11 nights @ 190usd p/n. We had other friends and family stay in Villa Coco, my sister got an upgrade for most of the trip to a 2 brm pool villa ( usually about $350usd p/n), no i wasn't jealous.......she did have to put up with mum and her girlfriend for the duration of the holiday ;o)
Many a night was spent partying there..............
Beautiful gardens, great staff and a great location.
We flew out with AA ex Perth on the 04:50 flight.....great, we'll be in Bali by 8.30am !!!, but with a sleepless night before, we might as well left at a reasonable time of the day and at least enjoyed the rest of what day was left in Bali, instead we were like zombies and home tucked up in bed by 8pm !
We did however have dinner at Tekor on the beachfront at the bottom of Jln 66, the indo food there is just lovely and prices were very reasonable.
The next day, we got our supplies from Bintang, hired a scooter for the rest of the stay (40,000rp per day).My wife rang her regular tailor, who popped over and did her fittings, she always provides her own material. she had about a dozen items made for about $200+, i think it worked out at about $18 per item...all skirts and dresses.
Wife and i booked our babysitter and headed out to the new resto, Ginger Moon, next to Ultimo in Seminyak, food was delish, especially the Ayam Betutu.
The next day, we did Waterbom park with the boys, always a fun day ( the boys remind me it is THE BEST day in their Bali trip). Afterwards it was time for my sisters 50th, she had booked the Tequila bar on Jln Pantai Kuta, where she had organised an Indo buffet and put some $$$ over the bar, they provided a separate area for the party, a resident band played alongside a DJ, plenty of drinks consumed and dancing had by all, i think it ended around 2am-ish.....
The next few days were spent with family around the pool(s), catching up with friends who live in Bali, getting massages and shopping. My wife and i are suckers for the boutiques along Jln Seminyak and beyond, yes the clothes here are more pricey, but still 50% less than comparable stuff back home, i bought dress shirts for $25-30, that would easily be $70 here in Aus. Shorts for $30-40, that again, would be twice the price in Perth.
One day, i spent the day with my boys and our Bali friends down at Jimbaran bay, where there was the perfect size/shape waves for me to teach my oldest son to surf...he loved it!, meanwhile my wife did the Chef Deans Cooking class in Seminyak.............an all day event, which she just loved.
The next day, my wife and i decided to take a ride up to Batu Belig, Brawa, Canggu way to see what all the fuss was about, we found some cute little shops, beach bars and Resto's on the way.....along witha million Villa's !
we stopped for lunch at a nice cafe called Watercress and low and behold, who turns up...the big man himself, Micheal Klim with his better half.........i have been told he is married into Balinese royalty, but don't quote me on that.........
On Saturday night, we did the Beatles night at Mozzarella By The Sea, all enjoyed by the family and friends, with many dancing the night away, even mum (72) and her girlfriend (82), they also loved the food, my mum commenting "isn't it nice to have normal food".....most meals come with Mash, and steamed Broccoli and Carrots...LOL :o)
The next day, Sunday, we did the Sunday Brunch at Boneka, St Regis, Nusa Dua......595,000rp
per person, including cocktails for the first hour, my god, these were damn good cocktails, you had a choice of about 5-6 different ones, i think i had 4 in the hour, but could have more if i'd liked, because every 5 minutes we were being offered more!.
The Food, did i say food, geez, just so much of it and of high quality too. You could eat from the buffet and order off the menu........i gave it a good nudge and everyone of the group thought it was good value.
Next day, it was off to High tea at Biku.....just had to take mum.......and she was not disappointed. That afternoon, i left my phone in the taxi (after the missus had used it.....but who's blaming who ;o ) and i started to feel the effects of the dreaded lurgy my wife had bought from Oz....it wiped me out for the rest of the day and i was a little soft for the remaining 2 days of the holiday, although i soldiered on like the trouper i am ;o)
On the 2nd last evening, my wife and i dined at the upmarket Merah Putih in Pettitinget, wow what a stunning venue, the drinks delish and the Indo food was fab......cost about $100 with 1 cocktail, one beer and 2 glasses of US pinot noir + food.
On the last evening, my family had organised with Villa Coco a surprise birthday BBQ for my mum, cost was about $25 per head, which i thought was a fair price, if not a little exxy. We got Steak, fish, chicken jacket potatoes, corn on the cob salads, rolls and condiments, plus sausages for the kids (who ate for free). They decorated the place beautifully, they also provided a surprise birthday cake for mum ( that morning), so we had that for dessert.
It was a great way to spend the last night together, we still had duty free to knock off.....and it was done dutifully so. :o)
So another great holiday had in Bali, but before i sign off, a few last words on Bali:
Weather: Perfect, always is at this time of the year...no rain whatsoever and low humidity:
Taxi's: not once did we have to ask for the meter to be put on, no matter what company we used.
Currency rate 9500rp to 10200rp by the time we left.
All the roads and footpaths around the northern part on Legian have been repaved...and what a difference that makes !
Sampai jumpa lagi......
S