Day 62: Homecoming Day

DID: Must be time to go home because woke up with a tight jaw for the first time in two months. Stress already and we hadn’t even left Bali!

Jason headed out to a cooking class at 7am – real dedication for him. Said it wasn’t as hands-on as previous courses he’s taken this trip because there were 12 people, but he enjoyed what they made. Hoping for some satay, fish in banana leaf, and other Indonesian-inspired delights when we get home.

GnR and I packed up and hit the pool for the day. Gavin discovered the fun of jumping in the hot tub, then the ‘cold shot’ pool, then the big pool. He must have made the rounds at least 20 times by the time Jason returned in the early afternoon.

Jason returned to squeals of 'Daddy Home!!' from Rhys. This is his new thing - when any of us leaves the room even briefly we are treated to this very enthusiastic welcome upon our return. So cute!

Room tab didn’t give me quite the heart attack I was expecting. Helped by the 20% discount on all goods/services when staying in a club room – thanks Mom & Dad!!!

Gave myself a tight back to go with the clenched jaw when adjusting Rhys’ lounge chair. Don’t know what I did but couldn’t really walk or stand up straight. Sitting in an airplane for 10 hours was a real party. Did cajole Jason into pushing me around in an airport wheelchair while on a layover in Singapore (with Rhys in my lap). It’s a crazy feeling being wheeled around like that! Especially while wandering the aisles in the duty free shops, I was sure he was going to ram me into a display at every turn – but he was a good driver.

Flight from Singapore to Sydney was on an Airbus 380. What an absolute beast. 3-4-3 seat configuration and the window seats are not even close enough to the window to lean against the wall. Nice in-seat features such as a power outlet, 11-inch tv screens at every seat, usb and internet cable inputs, loads of movie/audio/games from which to choose. But why on a midnight flight did it take them 2 hours to turn out the lights????

ATE: Hyatt meals all the way. Breakfast at the club. Lunch at the pool (grilled ham & cheese sandwiches). Snack 1 at the club – birthday cake compliments of the hotel. Happy hour drinks/nibbles at the club – beer (+ ibuprofen for me), plus mini-meatballs and pork/chicken fried wontons.

Dinner on flight 1/Singapore Airlines – beef over noodles in a soy-based sauce with Chinese greens. Acceptable.

SLEPT: Not much.  Boys didn't sleep at the same time and I was really uncomfortable because of the back injury. Universe's messed up way of giving me a reason to look forward to the comforts of home, I guess...

Day 61: Birthday + Last Night Celebrations

DID: Woke up early but so did Jason so plans to decorate foiled. Boo. Gavin made him a card and I bought him a pair of cufflinks in Bangkok (easy to hide/light to carry!)

Back on the 10am shuttle to the Grand Hyatt, this time hoping to charter a boat to do some snorkeling.

Before heading out on the boat, we walked out to a huge freighter that ran aground at a 10 minute walk from the Hyatt beach (at low tide, water never more than knee deep). While we were out there, met a couple of surveyors coming off the boat who told us it’s been there for about a week – they are trying to figure out how to get it back out to sea. Apparently there was an unlucky combination of wind, wave and current which caused the boat to get stuck. Saw a few starfish crawling around on the way back, that was a new one on me!

Snorkeling was kind of a disaster. The plan was for me to snorkel first with Gavin while Jason waited with Rhys in the boat and then we’d switch. But the water was really rough so Gavin didn’t enjoy the snorkeling at all, and then Jason was feeling really seasick while waiting on the boat. (I did tell him when we anchored that he should just get in and float rather than wait on the boat for that very reason, but whatever!!) For my part, the snorkeling was pretty awesome. The boat driver gave me some bread to feed the fish, so I was totally surrounded for a few minutes. Wished I had an underwater camera, but in a way it was nice to enjoy it rather than worry about getting the perfect shot.

Caught the boat in Benoa Harbor (where we had dinner on Tuesday night). Can’t even begin to describe the number of boats crammed into and zooming around this little harbor – seems like it’s the only launch point for water sports on this part of the island. Parasailing, banana boats, fishing boats, glass bottomed boats (like the one we were in), kayaking, and some crazy thing that is a big inflatable raft attached to a speedboat which becomes airborne as the boat picks up speed. I’d say a huge reason that the water in the snorkeling area was so rough was boat activity rather than wind conditions.

Back at the Grand Hyatt, more waterslide fun, then we let Jason sunbathe in peace. GnR and I rented bikes and rode down the shoreline path. The Hyatt had bikes that were ever so slightly large for Gavin but he did a really great job once he got the hang of it. I was kind of nervous because it only had a hand brake (his bike at home has pedal brakes), but he did fine. Rhys was in a baby carrier on the back of my bike. Slight bit of trouble when we hit a sandy spot, I tried to help Gavin push through it and ended up dumping my own bike (with Rhys on the back) in the process. Few tears but no lasting ill-effects (I don’t think!) Rode in all three available directions, concluded that the Hyatt resort is far and away the nicest compared to its neighbors (not that I had any doubts).

Rhys is doing something funny to get his way – he will say something like “go park?” and then smile and nod his head yes over and over again until you agree. He knows it’s impossible for me to say no to that cute face!

Headed out to Jimbaran for sunset drinks and dinner, more on that in ATE:. Perfect way to spend Jason’s bday and our last night of the trip – not ready for the real world just yet!

ATE: Breakfast – Hyatt

Lunch – Poolside @ Grand Hyatt. GnR had chicken nuggets, I had a chicken burger, Jason had a steak sandwich. Yummy.

Drinks – The Rock Bar at the Ayana Resort. Bar is at the bottom of a cliff-face on Jimbaran Bay. Lobby is at the top of the cliff, you wind your way down through the resort to the top of a cable car which then takes you down the cliff edge to the bar. Very cool. Experience confirmed that possibly it’s resort culture (rather than traditional Balinese) that is best enjoyed on the south part of the island.  Lots of daybeds and lounge chairs from which to enjoy the views and excellent cocktails. I had something flaming, peppery and citrusy, Jason’s was lemongrass-y and coconutty. GnR were treated to a Sprite. Wow factor all around.

Dinner - Sangkar Restaurant at the Bvlgari Resort (http://www.bulgarihotels.com/en-us/bali/bar-and-restaurants/sangkar-restaurant/sangkar-restaurant.) I can’t even think of words to describe this place. Exclusive, secluded, romantic, ultra-luxe, sleek, don’t seem to do it justice. I think the security team was trained in Afghanistan – two rounds of bomb checks in/around the car including the trunk and under the hood. Lobby 1 at the top of the hill is basically just a fancy (VERY fancy) security entrance (pyramid shaped building, everything black and low-lit except for white cushions on low-level seating and billowy white curtains). From there you are whisked by golf cart to your destination. Cool but also necessary because the resort is steep, like top of the roller coaster steep. Couldn’t see much because everything was so dark. Restaurant was at the edge of a cliff with a beautiful view of ocean and stars. Almost wish we’d had sunset drinks here as well so that we could have seen the resort in the light of day.

All I kept thinking was whether or not we were going to have to re-mortgage our condo to pay for the dinner, and the slim likelihood that it would be the sort of place that would have chicken nuggets. But I needn’t have worried. Appetizers were $25, mains were a ‘reasonable’ $35 (outrageous for Bali but not for Sydneysiders!) and they even had a kid’s menu. I had the ‘ultimate nasi goreng’ – fried rice with wagyu beef satay and steamed lobster. Jason had pork ribs. Gavin had spaghetti, Rhys had fish and chips. Dessert was a chocolate/raspberry sacher torte decorated for Jason’s birthday (and the staff sang happy birthday to him). Definitely a meal/experience worthy of the occasion.

Day 60: I Like to Move It Move It

DID: Back to the Grand Hyatt for more waterslide action. This time on the 10am shuttle. Very convenient and comfy (it’s a 16-pax bus). 

Brought inner tubes for additional thrills on the slide. With it, Rhys could ride just ahead of me, and felt like he was on his own. He was singing ‘I like to move it, move it’ on the way down, made me giggle every time.

Went over to Geger Beach in the afternoon (just outside the gates of Nusa Dua, about a 15 minute drive from the Grand Hyatt.) Nice, simple beach with a few restaurants, lounge chairs/umbrellas for hire and beachfront massages. We were there just for a change of pace for lunch (we’ve eaten nearly everything off the Hyatt menu!), otherwise not much reason to go there (Hyatt beach is nicer, less crowded – plus the taxis on the way back rip you off. It’s either them or a verrrry long walk and don’t they know it!)

Dinner/early evening in Benoa (peninsula stretching north from Nusa Dua). More of the same tourist stuff, lots of big resorts here such (ie Conrad, Club Med). Resorts nice, outside resorts not so nice.

Headed back to Sanur for dessert and a mani/pedi. Spas are open until 11pm so can maximize daylight hours at the pool and save pampering for the evening. Went into one that was a bit sketchy looking but very popular. Spa has a ‘Dr Fish’ tank in the entrance – huge aquarium filled with little fish that like to feed on dead skin and bacteria on your feet. For the hour and a half I was at the spa, the fish were fed constantly, four feet at a time. Tried to get Jason to try it but he wanted no part of it. Rhys put his hand in and got totally freaked out, it was funny. I didn’t get a chance to test it out, maybe later this week…

Tried to find balloons/party decorations to hang up in the room for Jason’s bday but came up empty. Might have to get creative with toilet paper!

ATE: Club breakfast, we’ve got our ordering system down now, just the right amount of food for breakfast plus a few snacks for later.

Lunch,  @ Geger Beach. Gavin had fried rice, I had mie goreng (fried noodles) with chicken, Jason had a mound of grilled shrimp (for $5!), Rhys had a grilled cheese + fries. Shrimp definitely the big winner, fries were also excellent (but overall a very decent meal).

Dinner – Bumbu Bali Restaurant 2. http://www.balifoods.com/Restaurant opened by a former Hyatt chef (might as well stick to the Hyatt formula, it’s working so far!) Reviews said menu focused on local/seasonal ingredients. Didn’t get that sense when we were there (menu didn’t appear to change) but had a really hard time deciding what to order because everything looked so good. Unfortunately the meal didn’t live up to expectations. Although flavors were pretty good, pork and beef dishes were tough and no one cared for the chicken dish. (We ordered beef stewed in coconut milk, baby chicken in banana leaf and spicy soy pork.) Thumbs down.

Dessert – Ice cream at Café Batujimbar in Sanur (same restaurant as 2^nd night in Bali.) Festive atmosphere (salsa dancing and a band on the front terrace) and the big glass dessert case drew us in. Good stuff.

Day 59: Eat, Drive, Love

DID – Day trip to Ubud, about an hour’s drive NW of Sanur – city of Eat, Pray, Love fame. Of the three places she went in the book (Rome, a yoga retreat in India, and Ubud), I had a feeling this one had the most potential to have undergone significant change as a result. (Rome isn’t going to feel a few extra tourists, and she intentionally never mentions the name of the place she went in India). It’s certainly not the quiet, simple, un-touristy place that is described in the book, but I’d say it can certainly still hold its title as the cultural heart of Bali. Lots of temples, a palace and other traditional-style buildings (dark stone construction, typically one story, with ornate carvings, lots of statues of religious figures, tiered cone-shaped roofs, and very short doorways/arches.

Did some shopping at the central market - deals not even close to being as good as Thailand/Vietnam/China. Lots of carved wood, crazy patterned textiles and incense. Every shop has a small square paper tray of ‘goodies for the Gods’ – usually consisting of flower petals, small crackers, incense and a few other random things. All the stuff to make the trays was on sale at the market (new trays are made daily).

Visited the Sacred Monkey Temple. Loads of monkeys around, one swiped a bottle of Sprite right out of my purse. Cheeky!! Very lively little things. There was a bath in the center of the temple grounds with a tree serving as a diving board – they were having a ball jumping in and swimming. Had to hold Rhys back from joining in.

Went in pursuit of a shop mentioned in the Luxe guide near the Neka Museum. As usual, we followed the guide with the hope of finding a good area to walk around/shops to our taste, but not necessarily the actual shop mentioned. And again as usual, we never found the boutique but it was a great place for a wander. Definitely if coming back to Bali I would consider staying around here, nice small hotels, good looking local restaurants, away from the tourists but still easily accessible, nice views.

Drive back took us by many temples and terraced rice paddies. Our driver (Guday) was so good, he stopped everywhere I wanted a photo, he backed up against traffic when we passed a shop I belatedly decided I wanted to go in, he suggested and brought us to places to find some things we were looking for (you would not believe how difficult it is to find a sticker of an Indonesian flag!), and along the way educated us on everything from why temples are decorated in yellow/white/red/black (has to do with spirits to the north/south/east and west) to what people do on their birthdays (get dressed up, have family parties, eat cake). He was so great we ended up keeping him for another 6 hours to take us for more shopping, dinner and back to the hotel. The best was when we told him we wanted to go to a bbq restaurant on Jimbaran Beach for dinner – he brought us to the place his wife used to work. We didn’t actually realize we’d veered to a table in the restaurant next door so he came to rescue us and in the process introduced us to the owners. :)

Rhys is getting a kick out of stepping on the back of our heels to make our shoes come off. Little prankster!!!

Great day, Ubud is good.

ATE: Breakfast at the club.

Lunch: Spit-roasted pork at Ibu Oka, across from the Palace. Very simple menu: meat, meat + sausage, meat + sausage + skin, meat + sausage + skin + rice. Communal tables. Someone from a restaurant down the road tried to sway us away towards their restaurant (he pretended like he was an employee of Ibu Oka, said the restaurant was full and it would be a really long wait but he could recommend a place down the street.) Ha!

Snack: iced coffees and ice cream across from the Neka Museum. Still no good coffee in the land of Java but ice cream was good.

Dinner: On Jimbaran Bay beach. Very casual/fun with candlelit tables in the sand and random fireworks shooting off. Rhys built a sand mountain while we waited for our meals. Calamari, grilled shrimp, grilled snapper, rice. Calamari was a bit crispy for my taste and didn’t come with lemon, but the grilled shrimp and snapper were insanely good. Both were prepared with a similar secret sauce – Jason tried to get the recipe out of Guday figuring that his wife must know it but no dice. Super tasty.

Only bad thing was that the wind was blowing all the smoke from the restaurants out onto the beach – our clothes and hair smelled like a fishy firepit when we got back to the hotel. Showers all around!

Dessert: Room service chocolate cake. Gavin said it was ‘lovely’. Good value too, two slices plus fruit and whipped cream all for $5 including delivery. Tempting enough to make a bad habit of it.

Day 58: Swimming Shopping and Pancakes!

DID: Lazy Sunday. And by lazy I mean l-a-z-y. Late breakfast, followed by pool. We didn’t even walk out to the beach today, we were that lazy. Played a few rounds of bocce but stopped due to safety concerns (Rhys just wanted to run up and down the lane and Gavin wanted to peg the balls at him). Tried to play ping pong but the wind was interfering with gameplay. Hit the playground for a bit, also ‘played’ a bit of super-sized chess (and by that I mean the boys set up and then knocked over all the pieces, using a pawn like a bat), and had an impromptu music lesson from the bamboo pipe players. Nice day.

Small diversion from the pool to set up a driver for Ubud tomorrow. Cabbie who drove us around in Seminyak Saturday night was friendly, spoke good English, drove a nice car, and could be hired for $50/day. Sold.

Then went shopping for bathing suits. (mine is atrocious and an embarrassment but I haven’t had time/inclination to find a new one, plus Gavin’s rashie has lost all elasticity). Went to Kuta on the advice of the concierge. The Luxe guide (and everyone else) said avoid, avoid, avoid – and now I know why. But I won’t complain too much because I have a new cozzie, Gavin got his rashie, plus t-shirts for GnR. My suit is kind of funny though – it’s exactly the same as my old one, just a different brand. Bought under similar circumstances (desperation) – it does the trick but it is just a black suit. Was hoping for something more fun. Also the prices here are the same as Australia pretty much, so won’t be doing too much shopping in Bali!

Rhys has taken to saying ‘carry-you!’ when he wants to be picked up. He’s reached that phase of utter confusion over you vs me, so cute. He also loves to say ‘let’s go!’ and then promptly walks out of the room, ready or not. Locking the door has become top priority!

ATE: Regency Club breakfast. Same-same, as they say here – good stuff!

Lunch – Lounge chair delivery, poolside. Today I went for a grilled ham and cheese, GnR had fish and chips, Jason had a burger. Mine was great, the boys was even better, Jason’s was so-so.

Dinner – Room service. Had originally intended to go to a place in Jimbaran after shopping in Kuta but shopping went late and Jimbaran is another 30 minute drive in the opposite direction of the hotel. Tried to eat near the shopping but nothing looked great. We did actually sit down somewhere but I had a bad feeling about it and after 15 minutes of no service we bailed. Ended up with room service back at the hotel but could only order from the late-night menu because it was after 10pm. GnR had pancakes which were “legendary” according to Gavin (they were pretty good!). Jason had duck fried noodles, which he also enjoyed. I stole a pancake from Rhys.

What will be truly legendary is our bill when we check out. I don’t think we’ve ever charged this much back to the room ever!

Day 57: Another Day, Another Hyatt

DID: Took advantage of reciprocity benefits at the Grand Hyatt Resort in Nusa Dua (free shuttle between hotels, and there are two waterslides plus several pools and beach). Hotel is gorgeous, very dramatic views right from the entrance. More modern than our hotel but still Balinese-y with color tiled roofs and everything is open air. Nusa Dua itself is not to my taste (and is the prime reason we didn’t stay at this Hyatt). It’s a peninsula created solely for tourists – there’s security/bomb check on the way in to the Nusa Dua complex, and then it’s all hotels plus a souvenir shopping complex. It looks like a fancy, tropical military base/university campus. Blah.

Boys LOVED the slide (and me too!). We must have gone down it at least 50 times by lunch (my legs were feeling it after walking up the steps so many times!) By the afternoon Rhys could hardly walk up anymore but that didn’t stop him from wanting to go again (and again)! The only way we could get them away was to drag them over to the hotel playground. This one is a bit newer than the one at our hotel, and in addition to the slide/climbing/swing set, they’ve got a big trampoline and a kid-size basketball hoop. Jason showed off basketball dribbling skills I didn’t know he had, guess he was telling the truth all these years when he said he was the center on his school team.

Headed over to Seminyak for dinner and a walk around. All the books/guides/blogs said this was the best area so I had high hopes. Boutiques were very nice, restaurants looked good (and the one we ate at was very very nice) but everything seems like its for-expats-by-expats. Having said that, comparing it to Sanur (where we are staying) I guess given a choice purely on location I’d pick Seminyak. BUT, knowing that the south part of the island isn’t that appealing to me (so far anyway), having benefits at two resorts is a huge advantage – so if the option was there again I’d definitely pick one of the two Hyatts.

Back at the hotel Jason and Gavin made a visit to the concierge to find out what else there is to do outside of the Hyatt world on the island. Afterwards when they were telling me all about it, Gavin was expressing his enthusiasm for doing everything (fishing! snorkeling! waterpark! safari park!) When Jason said to him that he just likes to do everything, we have to pick a few favorites, Gavin’s response was ‘well, I don’t like shopping!’ Well said, Gav.

ATE: Breakfast – Regency Club brekkie. Eggs, chocolate cereal, toast, fresh juice, fruit etc.

Lunch – Lounge chair delivery service poolside at the Grand Hyatt Nusa Dua. GnR had chicken nuggets + fries, I had a chicken wrap + fries, Jason had nasi goreng (fried rice) with chicken satay. Good stuff and we were starving after all that sliding.

Snack – banana split and iced coffees at the pool bar. Ice cream didn’t have a chance to melt before it was gone (except for the stuff smeared on GnR’s face and hands after the race to eat it). Coffee here is surprisingly terrible considering we’re in the home of Java. This one tasted like they had drip coffee left over from the morning, left it on the burner all day, then added ice and milk.

Dinner – Sardine in Seminyak. Top setting overlooking a rice paddie. Lots of mossies though, good thing I had the spray in my bag. Seafood menu, French-influenced with Bali ingredients. Gavin slept through dinner, Rhys was perfectly ok with eating both of their portions of fish and chips. Chips were waffle cut – nice touch! I started with a crab tower, Jason had scallops. For mains I had had snapper in beurre blanc (enjoying all the non-Australian butter I can get!) and Jason had hamachi with a soy-based mushroom-y sauce. Dessert was black pepper ice cream with jackfruit and strawberries. Really weird (spicy) but good. I also had a cocktail called an ‘Arak Attack’ – arak with orange juice and sprite. Learned afterwards that arak is a local whiskey. Drink was a chugger, too strong to sip and enjoy for me!

Dinner 2 – Gavin woke up hungry just as we were leaving the restaurant, so headed for the main street of Seminyak in search of dinner. Ended up at the Café Seminyak where he had an omelet, fries and a baguette. Either he was really hungry or it was really good – either way his plate was clear in seconds.

Day 56: Hyatt Bali = Great, Regular Bali = Not Sure Yet

Happy Birthday Papa Butch!

DID: Some difficult decisions today. Pool or beach? Goggles or snorkel/mask?  Lunch served to our lounge chairs or at the restaurant? SPF 15 or 30? Drinks at the swim-up bar or in the Regency Club?

Water temperature much cooler than Thailand/Vietnam. Actually refreshing as opposed to bathwater-like.

Gavin took me to the hotel playground while Rhys napped. They have one of those swings for 2 people that’s like a see-saw, haven’t seen one of those in years!

Jason did drag us out of the hotel for dinner. Glad he did, but after a hard day of sun + swim I could have easily gone for room service.

Walk to dinner took much longer than it should have. Concierge said it would take about 10 minutes. Map showed a 90-degree bend in the road just before the restaurant. We walked…and walked…and walked…but no sharp turn was happening. Didn’t really mind the walk but would have taken the stroller had the plan been to walk this far. Started to think the concierge meant 10 minutes in a taxi. Finally we reached a market which Jason could see on the map was past where we were supposed to be. Hopped in a taxi, back-tracked nearly all the way back to the hotel! Walk back to the hotel from the restaurant took 10 minutes or less, so concierge was right after all. But that bend in the road was actually just a slight curve, grrr.

Didn’t see anything in Sanur that wasn’t just for tourists. Restaurants were mostly relaxed/casual but nice (they are definitely aiming for families and couples, not backpackers – if turning right from the hotel. Left leads to backpacker land). Lots of artisan workshops, spas, clothing boutiques, a few souvenir market stalls here and there. Prices about 10% of those within the Hyatt resort (ie a manicure costs $4 as opposed to $40).  I’m sure we’ll be walking this street again out of convenience but I don’t feel particularly drawn to it. Individual businesses are fine but it lacks overall charm/character/heart, feel like I could be on a Pacific island anywhere, doesn’t say BALI to me.

ATE: Free breakfast at the Regency Club. Great omelets, an interesting flourless sugar cane cake concoction in a push-up cone contraption made from palm leaves, coco-crunch cereal, fresh mango juice.

Lunch - Omanu Omanu Grill, poolside at the Hyatt. Fresh, partially DIY lemonade – they serve sparkling water mixed with lemon and a pitcher of sugar water for you to mix in yourself. Jason thought the best part was the sugarcane stalk-stirrer, he ate all four of them. Gavin had chicken nuggets with mashed potatoes, Rhys had a cheeseburger and fries, I had Balinese chicken satay (slightly spicier than the Thai version) and Jason had mie goreng (spicy stir-fried noodles with chicken). All very good but at Australia prices, so we won’t be doing this every day!

Snack – Happy Hour drinks at the Regency Club. Hot snacks of the day were galettes with tomato and basil and chicken tikka sticks. Other munchies included chips with guacamole, shrimp in salsa verde, cheese and crackers, mixed nuts, chocolate cake, vanilla cream puffs. Highlight was the live music, two musicians on bamboo xylophones. Stage sits on the other side of a small canal from the bar, was just waiting to hear the splash of Rhys falling in as he tried to get closer to the musicians. Got lucky today but I fear that one of these afternoons he’ll be in!

Dinner – Café Batujimbar in Sanur (www.cafebatujimbar.com). Mix of Indonesian and Western items on the menu. GnR had a grilled ham and cheese with fries. I had chicken marinated in Balinese spices plus greens that had been stewed in coconut. Chicken was good, greens had a touch of curry that I didn’t go for. Jason had beef rendang which was excellent. If he’d offered me a trade I would have taken it in a second! Overall nice restaurant for local flavors.

SLEPT: Internet is $17/day here. Booo. So what we’ve learned over the last 2 months is that the big chain hotels are the only ones in Asia who charge for internet. Must get away with it because their guests are mostly Americans and Europeans who are used to paying for it elsewhere. The gardens and pool/beach facilities at the hotel are beautiful, and designed such that you can feel you’ve got your own private spot.