A brief JBR from a brief Holiday / Golf binge this October, 8 days on the ground. Flew AA, ex Perth into Bali at midnight, its so easy now with no more VOA and those arrival forms to deal with. Immigration was a breeze thankfully. My luggage was golf clubs in a travel case and a carry on back pack. My driver was at the lobby, somewhere. Once located the trip was just 5 min to the Hilton Garden Inn at the Airport, check in easy and tucked in for the night.
The hotel breakfast is very good, but I opted for cheap Nasi Goreng at Warung BOSS around the corner which I found on a longer visit to this hotel, with a local store attached for your basic Water, Beer, snacks, toiletries the pricing is local and a fraction of the in-house shop at the hotel.
Transferred to the Nesa Hotel in Sanur at noon, picked up by Mr Putu, a very nice guy who has become a good mate after numerous stays at the Nesa. Once set up, I went down to my favorite spot on the beach, Warung Pantai Indah for my fix of Chicken Satays and Steamed Rice and a Bintang or 5. The local traders Norma and Jenny are a couple of wags who can drive you nuts, but they are just trying to scratch out a living. I bought them a drink as there is no shopping this trip (they don't sell golf balls that float). Dinner at La Playa was excellent, fresh grilled Squid with Garlic Butter, perfect. Drifted down to Casablanca for a Rock fix with Andi and Putu from the Nesa then Onion bar to crank up the vibe.
Graze at the Maya for breakfast is always good and I just love the fixed breakfasts from multiple nationalities, 100,000 rp average, includes Coffee and juice. Consistently good quality. 18 holes of Golf in the afternoon at Bali Beach, Sanur. Massage later at Greisha, nothing flash but kept me loose.
And that was the pattern for the week, with a couple of mates Pete and John dropping in to play mid-week, perfect company for a few beers and heaps of laughs.
Crazy Horse played at Bamboo Tuesday night, which was very good. A bit lower volume than the time I saw them at the Blokesworld Bar a few years back, but still TOP MUSOS.
Other notable meals were at White Orchid and Star Café, both nearby to the Nesa. La Playa again was spot on and we also had great time at Lilla Pantai, on the beach with a funky vibe, the food was great and we enjoyed the open kitchen. Money changer down past the Jati with Laundry near by, (over the road from Peneeda View)makes life easy.
As my time at the Nesa came to an end I reflected on why I love this small, friendly hotel. The rooms are clean, spacious enough and the pool area very nice. The crew are good fun as you get to know them over time. I like this central Sanur location as well and it just keeps drawing me back. I just need to find a trader who has golf balls that float, go straight off the tee or at least bounce off the tree and go down the middle of the fairway another 50 metres or more.
Transferred back to the Hilton Garden Inn for the last two nights.
Did the 20 minute walk to the beach at Pantai Segara, a couple of beer stops down on the beach and a cab back as it was getting dark. The local Taxi Mafia have got on the front foot with signs all around barring Grabcab &Uber. My dinner was at Warung Mufu, near Anika Cooking School, a nice roadside place, with a great Pork Rib meal combo and Nasi Campur. Oh yes, Black Rice Pudding, yum.
Breakfast at the Hilton Garden Inn was a good option after enduring the marauding stampede of a Tour Group from China at 1.15 am. Yelling and banging until about 2.30am got me worried about my sleep quality for the following night as I had a 4.00 alarm set for my 7.00am flight. But, to the hotels credit after a chat with reception before breakfast, they said they would speak with the tour operator and sure enough, the sleep quality was great this night, with my neighbors behaving. Also walking all day, the delicious dinner at the hotel and a trip to the cocktail menu may have helped!
AA 7.00am flight was smooth, with breakfast at Last Wave as usual, bonza. Got into Perth at 10.35am.
A brief Bali Holiday, I just love it.