Wednesday, January 01, 2003
15 memorable bali experiences in order:
1. Surfing
Learning surfing from the first surf school in Bail, situated in Kuta, Hard Rock Cafe which also houses a hotel. The whole shebang holds rock memorabilia from guitars to platinum records and large size album posters such as The Sex Pistols Never mind the bollocks and The Clash’s London Calling. Very chic. Its man made beach pool laid with soft brown sand flanked by cabañas makes it a very beautiful and classy beach resort.
The two hour beginner’s course costs US $39. By the time we commenced, it was already pouring madly. We started at the HR pool for about 15 minutes learning to paddle and surfing basics plus how to swim back to shore if we are washed away by strong undertow.
We proceed to Kuta beach and tried to apply what we have learnt which is not easy even though it was only a few basic steps we need to adhere to. Paddle and wait for waves to come. upon feeling the force of the waves, stand up with the taught steps and try to balance oneself. Sound easy innit?
I managed to stand up a few times but consider those times more lucky than skills. I need to brush up.
2. Stung by a jellyfish
I curled my toes and moved away hastily when I felt my feet touched something soft on the ocean ground. A minute later, it stung my right feet. Damn. no one around me. Luckily there were no waves though the water was just below my neck. I swam quickly towards shore and tripped a few times. The burning sensation feels like a flame throbbing and moving in my blood vessels.
I reached shore safely and told John about the sting. We went to the coffeeshop at the beach to have a drink and avoid the rain. All the time, I lamented at him that we need to do something fast as my feet started to grow red and sore. We went to the local police stop. The policeman poured some alcohol on my feet while some helpful locals advised us to get balsamic cream.
Coincidentally, this was the trip with most pains. John was suffering from a back pain caused by packing our luggage before the trip. He complained that the bed didn’t help matters.
3. Sanur Beach
Sanur Beach (also known as Sindhu Patai) is currently undergoing a conservation project in which parts of the beach will be separated by protruding breakwaters from the shore. A very ugly sight. Plus there are no waves to speak of. Undergoing construction causes sight, noise and air pollution while some revelers insist on basking under the sunlight. The beach also boasts a street of art markets and cafes/ restaurants which sees poor business. Stalls sell souvenirs to manicures, pedicures, massages, temporary tattoos and even beaded hair. Some hotels along the beach looks beautiful. The Grand Bali Beach Hotel for instance is the largest resort along this way with a helipad.
4. Kuta Beach
We saw the beach first a night and can’t tell much about the beach. The second time, we witness it on its low tide which wasn’t impressionable. I was stung by the jelly fish this time. We were there again on our third visit on its middle/ high tide and I overcame my fear of Kuta. Many people were there this time around and when I saw people learning surfing from afar, I decided to enroll for the course. I visited the beach again for my surfing course.
Its a relatively crowded beach with good waves for surfing and swimming (comparable to some of the better beaches in Australia) though it is dirty with garbage when the waves comes in. You can conveniently buy drinks, rent straw mats and bodyboards/ surfboards from makeshift stalls along the bay.
5. Ulu Watu
Ulu Watu is reputed one of the island’s best place to dive and surf. We went on this excursion on a sunny afternoon. First stop is the ancient temple perched on the top of the hill cliff with wild monkeys running around while waves crash against the boulder.
Afterwards, we went to the resort side of the hill and saw some people trying to surf on this water which has a rocky and coral seabed. Didn’t see much as it was probably low tide but the view from the hill top is magnificent. Apparently, one has to make one’s way down by stairs and rough sands and rocks to get to the water. Beautiful scenery.
6. Pondok Ayu
Pondok means beautiful whiel Ayu means small. We stayed at Pondok Ayu, a boutique hotel boasting 4 rooms situated in Sanur. The guesthouse is a quiet respite from the chaos. We need to walk 2 through 2 side roads and one small lane before we can get to our hotel. Our neighbours are basically indonesians. Pondok Ayu staff, gooday (hope I get his name right) told us that the French holiday house adjacent to where we were staying was responsible for the dance music blaring out of their high walls. Otherwise, we spent quite a few hours in the oasis.
John liked to swim in the pool while I buried myself in the bathtub for hours reading and playing with water.
The room is sparsely decorated, coloured in sand wash matt with two paintings on two opposing sides of the wall. Same picture but one smaller than the other, it was a Balinese woman carrying a basket on top of her head. Quite a common sight here, besides the motorcycles and the number of people it carries.
We had American breakfast for about 6 days. We tried something else for 2 mornings. 3 female staff work during the day and Goodday looks after the house with hsi wife who works for another nearby hotel. At night, security is beefed up with a guard who arrives on a motorbike at 10 pm.
We were the only guests for the whole 8 days and were well treated with personal chit chats and goodday offering to drive us to our locations.
7. Day Trip in Bali
We went to a couple of places. Memorable ones include the hot spring which was really hot yet refreshing. We also went to Lovina Beach resort for lunch which was covered with a stretch of black sands. We also went to a lake in a mountain that also houses a small theme park. Then, there were also the padi fields when we route back.
8. Hard Rock Cafe
Good ambience with fast food. Ordered their natural veggie burger for 40,000 ruppees on both occasions which comes with a salad. Love the rock memorabilia. Need I mention more? Liked the Elvis Presley tinted glass background at the first level of the restaurant/bar though the large screen was rather dark for music videos.
9. Hard Rock Hotel Pool
10. Hard Rock Hotel Lobby Bar
11. Hard Rock Hotel Changing Room
12. Shopping
T-shirts, souvenirs and DVDs. not many new CDs. An amazing array of woodwork, many of them quite sophisticated crafted and not too expensive. requires bargaining skill; You can often haggle for a discount of more than half the starting price. Especially in Kuta, the shopping and guesthouses is horrendously chaotic and repetitive.
13. Sari Club
Bali’s October 12 bombing created a tourists panic though we still see a large number of tourists from Europe and Australia (maybe it would have been busier if not for the incident). Shops also sell “Fuck Terrorists” and I Love Bali” T-shirts to commemorate the incident.
We managed to find the Sari Club on our second try. It was already torn down and fenced up. The neighbouring shops were already undergoing some form of construction. Some Balinese were doing some form of ritual when we were there. It’s easy to see why the bombing caused so much destruction. The roads in Kuta and most parts of Bali (save the main roads) are very narrow and cramped. Shophouses and shopping centres are very close to one another.
May there be peace again on Earth and such monstrous incidents never happen again.
14. Denpasar
Denpasar is the capital city of Bali. It’s noisy with cobbled stones and dirty walkways. Crossing the streets is hazardous. We disliked it immediately and went to an air-con shopping complex to do some shopping and afternoon snacking. Missed the museum and other markets.
15. Irritating Flies
They come out to play during the mango season!
Summary:
We were touched by the hospitality of Pondok Ayu’s staff and some of the good food in certain restaurants. Hard Rock staff were friendly. Owner of Chatterbox cafe, close to Pondok, also struck up a conversation with us. They didn’t charge us for my vegetarian meegoreng when they cooked it with meat. They had it replaced of course. Flying with Garuda wasn’t bad though there were no inflight entertainment. Perhaps it was due to our short flight and hence made no entertainment tolerable. Take the blue taxis. We were lucky that gooday ferried us to some places charging us near market rates. Though 8 days in Bali is a bit too long for us.
To find our more info about Pondok Ayu:
http://www.pondok.com.au/index.htm
To find out more about Bali Hard Rock Hotel:
http://www.hardrockhotelbali.com/
To find out mroe about Bali Learn to Surf:
http://www.balilearntosurf.com/index.htm
Some Bali info:
http://www.baliforyou.com/bali/bali_travel/denpasar.htm
1. Surfing
Learning surfing from the first surf school in Bail, situated in Kuta, Hard Rock Cafe which also houses a hotel. The whole shebang holds rock memorabilia from guitars to platinum records and large size album posters such as The Sex Pistols Never mind the bollocks and The Clash’s London Calling. Very chic. Its man made beach pool laid with soft brown sand flanked by cabañas makes it a very beautiful and classy beach resort.
The two hour beginner’s course costs US $39. By the time we commenced, it was already pouring madly. We started at the HR pool for about 15 minutes learning to paddle and surfing basics plus how to swim back to shore if we are washed away by strong undertow.
We proceed to Kuta beach and tried to apply what we have learnt which is not easy even though it was only a few basic steps we need to adhere to. Paddle and wait for waves to come. upon feeling the force of the waves, stand up with the taught steps and try to balance oneself. Sound easy innit?
I managed to stand up a few times but consider those times more lucky than skills. I need to brush up.
2. Stung by a jellyfish
I curled my toes and moved away hastily when I felt my feet touched something soft on the ocean ground. A minute later, it stung my right feet. Damn. no one around me. Luckily there were no waves though the water was just below my neck. I swam quickly towards shore and tripped a few times. The burning sensation feels like a flame throbbing and moving in my blood vessels.
I reached shore safely and told John about the sting. We went to the coffeeshop at the beach to have a drink and avoid the rain. All the time, I lamented at him that we need to do something fast as my feet started to grow red and sore. We went to the local police stop. The policeman poured some alcohol on my feet while some helpful locals advised us to get balsamic cream.
Coincidentally, this was the trip with most pains. John was suffering from a back pain caused by packing our luggage before the trip. He complained that the bed didn’t help matters.
3. Sanur Beach
Sanur Beach (also known as Sindhu Patai) is currently undergoing a conservation project in which parts of the beach will be separated by protruding breakwaters from the shore. A very ugly sight. Plus there are no waves to speak of. Undergoing construction causes sight, noise and air pollution while some revelers insist on basking under the sunlight. The beach also boasts a street of art markets and cafes/ restaurants which sees poor business. Stalls sell souvenirs to manicures, pedicures, massages, temporary tattoos and even beaded hair. Some hotels along the beach looks beautiful. The Grand Bali Beach Hotel for instance is the largest resort along this way with a helipad.
4. Kuta Beach
We saw the beach first a night and can’t tell much about the beach. The second time, we witness it on its low tide which wasn’t impressionable. I was stung by the jelly fish this time. We were there again on our third visit on its middle/ high tide and I overcame my fear of Kuta. Many people were there this time around and when I saw people learning surfing from afar, I decided to enroll for the course. I visited the beach again for my surfing course.
Its a relatively crowded beach with good waves for surfing and swimming (comparable to some of the better beaches in Australia) though it is dirty with garbage when the waves comes in. You can conveniently buy drinks, rent straw mats and bodyboards/ surfboards from makeshift stalls along the bay.
5. Ulu Watu
Ulu Watu is reputed one of the island’s best place to dive and surf. We went on this excursion on a sunny afternoon. First stop is the ancient temple perched on the top of the hill cliff with wild monkeys running around while waves crash against the boulder.
Afterwards, we went to the resort side of the hill and saw some people trying to surf on this water which has a rocky and coral seabed. Didn’t see much as it was probably low tide but the view from the hill top is magnificent. Apparently, one has to make one’s way down by stairs and rough sands and rocks to get to the water. Beautiful scenery.
6. Pondok Ayu
Pondok means beautiful whiel Ayu means small. We stayed at Pondok Ayu, a boutique hotel boasting 4 rooms situated in Sanur. The guesthouse is a quiet respite from the chaos. We need to walk 2 through 2 side roads and one small lane before we can get to our hotel. Our neighbours are basically indonesians. Pondok Ayu staff, gooday (hope I get his name right) told us that the French holiday house adjacent to where we were staying was responsible for the dance music blaring out of their high walls. Otherwise, we spent quite a few hours in the oasis.
John liked to swim in the pool while I buried myself in the bathtub for hours reading and playing with water.
The room is sparsely decorated, coloured in sand wash matt with two paintings on two opposing sides of the wall. Same picture but one smaller than the other, it was a Balinese woman carrying a basket on top of her head. Quite a common sight here, besides the motorcycles and the number of people it carries.
We had American breakfast for about 6 days. We tried something else for 2 mornings. 3 female staff work during the day and Goodday looks after the house with hsi wife who works for another nearby hotel. At night, security is beefed up with a guard who arrives on a motorbike at 10 pm.
We were the only guests for the whole 8 days and were well treated with personal chit chats and goodday offering to drive us to our locations.
7. Day Trip in Bali
We went to a couple of places. Memorable ones include the hot spring which was really hot yet refreshing. We also went to Lovina Beach resort for lunch which was covered with a stretch of black sands. We also went to a lake in a mountain that also houses a small theme park. Then, there were also the padi fields when we route back.
8. Hard Rock Cafe
Good ambience with fast food. Ordered their natural veggie burger for 40,000 ruppees on both occasions which comes with a salad. Love the rock memorabilia. Need I mention more? Liked the Elvis Presley tinted glass background at the first level of the restaurant/bar though the large screen was rather dark for music videos.
9. Hard Rock Hotel Pool
10. Hard Rock Hotel Lobby Bar
11. Hard Rock Hotel Changing Room
12. Shopping
T-shirts, souvenirs and DVDs. not many new CDs. An amazing array of woodwork, many of them quite sophisticated crafted and not too expensive. requires bargaining skill; You can often haggle for a discount of more than half the starting price. Especially in Kuta, the shopping and guesthouses is horrendously chaotic and repetitive.
13. Sari Club
Bali’s October 12 bombing created a tourists panic though we still see a large number of tourists from Europe and Australia (maybe it would have been busier if not for the incident). Shops also sell “Fuck Terrorists” and I Love Bali” T-shirts to commemorate the incident.
We managed to find the Sari Club on our second try. It was already torn down and fenced up. The neighbouring shops were already undergoing some form of construction. Some Balinese were doing some form of ritual when we were there. It’s easy to see why the bombing caused so much destruction. The roads in Kuta and most parts of Bali (save the main roads) are very narrow and cramped. Shophouses and shopping centres are very close to one another.
May there be peace again on Earth and such monstrous incidents never happen again.
14. Denpasar
Denpasar is the capital city of Bali. It’s noisy with cobbled stones and dirty walkways. Crossing the streets is hazardous. We disliked it immediately and went to an air-con shopping complex to do some shopping and afternoon snacking. Missed the museum and other markets.
15. Irritating Flies
They come out to play during the mango season!
Summary:
We were touched by the hospitality of Pondok Ayu’s staff and some of the good food in certain restaurants. Hard Rock staff were friendly. Owner of Chatterbox cafe, close to Pondok, also struck up a conversation with us. They didn’t charge us for my vegetarian meegoreng when they cooked it with meat. They had it replaced of course. Flying with Garuda wasn’t bad though there were no inflight entertainment. Perhaps it was due to our short flight and hence made no entertainment tolerable. Take the blue taxis. We were lucky that gooday ferried us to some places charging us near market rates. Though 8 days in Bali is a bit too long for us.
To find our more info about Pondok Ayu:
http://www.pondok.com.au/index.htm
To find out more about Bali Hard Rock Hotel:
http://www.hardrockhotelbali.com/
To find out mroe about Bali Learn to Surf:
http://www.balilearntosurf.com/index.htm
Some Bali info:
http://www.baliforyou.com/bali/bali_travel/denpasar.htm
