Slept in a little again this morning.
I never seem to do this at home, maybe I'm more relaxed or maybe it's the really heavy "block out" drapes. They're pretty effective as it takes me ages to convince hubby it is really daytime.
Late breakfast by the seaside as we check emails and plan the day.
We need to get the phones sorted as neither of us can make phone calls etc and I really can't understand the Indonesian message that replies every time I try and make a phone call. Figure we may as well do this at Discovery Mall as that's where we bought the sim card and hopefully they can explain what the messages mean.
Might as well try and find one of the fixed price shops in Tuban (Jenny) that people on TA mention while we are down this way, which means I better reschedule our massage at Briella Spa for Saturday.
We grab a taxi to The Ramayana as I want to check out the "Poolside Cottage Rooms" which our neighbours are staying at later in their trip.
I can see Trevor's face fade as I give the taxi driver the address. "Not more hotels to look at...."
Sorry hun, but we need to find somewhere to stay for our last 4 nights and as I often get "whatever you choose is fine by me" then I still need to do my research, it's not like I have TA in my back pocket, (although that would be handy all the same).
We are shown the upstairs room, (3rd from the left of the next photo from their web site). I really liked the cottage rooms but all that is available for our dates is an upstairs one and I think I would break my neck if I had to go up and down those stairs too often.
We viewed a Resort Club Room as well as they wanted to show us this, but it didn't do a lot for me.
We wander down towards Discovery and decide to walk through the Bali Gardens to see what the grounds and pools are like as we've heard there is one for adults only. It's so much busier than the KP.
Up to the phone booth at Discovery and find out that our phones are out of credit, I'm sure I have only rung my friend Sandy twice and sent 3 or 4 txts. I don't know how one can survive with only pre-paid mobile credit, I certainly wasn't doing very well in a foreign country.
Phones sorted we decide to have a refreshing drink at Sugar Mamas, I choose the lemon & mint drink, really refreshing but all of a sudden I could almost taste the missing pieces - lime (not lemon), white rum and soda. Mmmmm.....Mojitos!!!
I could hear this little voice in my head saying "its 5.00pm somewhere in the world"
Nope still too early in Bali, maybe the sun might come out today and I can sip on a Mojito while watching the sunset.
Now that is something to look forward to, especially if I can find a little frog like this to go with it.
We continue down towards Jenny's shop, I remember reading it's opposite the Santika or Dynasty, so we walk along that side of the road hoping we can find it. The potholes haven't improved over the last few days making it a little difficult to look to the left while walking forward. I really am going to end up breaking an ankle the way I'm going.
We see a sign showing "Jenny" just ahead but we decide to look through the Santika rooms first.
I didn't realise there are two reception areas at the Hotel Santika Premiere Beach Resort and we head to the middle one asking if we can view a Premier Deluxe room.
Following the porter he turns in the other direction from where I expected to go and we are off to see a Deluxe room instead.
We are shown a ground floor room that looks great, is nice and clean and close to the pool.
The rooms are as per the website
http://santika.com/bali-premiere/accommodation.php
We get back to reception and ask if it's possible to view a Premiere room as well.
This is when we find out about the two reception areas.
I think the one for the Premier rooms is referred to as the Lobby, its on the left as you walk down the driveway and is more of an open lounge type area with a desk.
The Premier rooms are just beyond it and we view an upstairs room on the 3rd floor. We took the stairs but I know there is a lift as well. Again a nice, cool, clean room with a sofa inside as well.
For some reason it reminds me of the Patong Merlin in Phuket but I have no idea why.
The bathrooms seem to be getting smaller the more hotel rooms we look through, not sure if it's because our bathroom is so big at the KP.
I was quite impressed with both rooms, but I would only like to stay on the ground floor if we stay here.
Back to the Lobby to inquire about availability (I know they have Premier rooms) and I nearly fall off my chair when told the price. It was way more than I was expecting.
Thanking them for their time we skedaddle out of there with me muttering that it's much cheaper when I checked the price on-line.
I'm starting to think I should have titled this blog the "Lee's hotel reviews or similar", as it's all we seem to be doing, so I must apologise.
I already know how much Trevor enjoys it "NOT"
Over to Jenny's shop now for a look and hopefully some shopping (not for me either).
Trevor is looking at some shorts and is standing in front of the ones with size 36 on the rack, when Jenny calls out "you need bigger, you need 38."
Trevor stood there with his mouth hanging open until she said "always need bigger size in Bali, too far to come back and exchange later" with a laugh.
Glad I'm not looking for anything in particular, I'd hate to hear what size she thought I would need.
I chatted to a lady in there who was stocking up as they were heading home the next day, OMG was she a shopaholic!!
Trevor finally got his Bintang singlet and a few shorts plus some for my stepson (we chose size 36 for him), all the while hearing Jenny's comment ringing in our ears.
We grab a taxi and get him to take us back to Legian, but not to the KP.
You guessed it - one more hotel to look at......
Legian Beach Hotel has been on my radar for ages.
I booked a Deluxe Garden Bungalow via Expedia for our last 4 nights approximately 5 or 6 months before this trip, but once I read about the restaurant renovations I contacted the hotel and after much contemplation chose to cancel.
The restaurant was meant to be re opening on March 31st, but I know how slow building can be and the idea of a makeshift cover for breakfast didn't appeal especially if the weather was bad.
We'd wandered though the hotel grounds a couple of days ago and liked the area where bungalows 30 & 31 were situated (to the right of reception) as they seemed to get some breeze, but as we were dodging showers we didn't stay around to view the rooms.
Unfortunately we were shown a Deluxe garden bungalows to the left and behind reception, right next to the pool pump plant. I think it was number 37.
It was very hot along here and we felt the bungalows opposite were too close and would allow no privacy.
The bungalows were in groups of 3, the middle one had a double bed only and the ones on either side could be both twin or double with the beds pushed together.
The bathroom was very small and in the mirror reflection I could see Trevor miming "its not even big enough to swing a cat" and although that's not meant to be funny, I got the giggles big time and it was very hard to keep a straight face while the reception lady was giving us her rundown of the rooms.
Back to the KP for a swim, finally able to contact Sandy and make arrangements for a catch up at their villa in Sanur tomorrow arvo. We relax by the pool for a while before the daily question of "where are we going to eat tonight?" flows into the conversation.
I'd had enough of wandering around today so we decide a pizza at the KP "Ristorante Italia" suited us nicely. I think Trevor was secretly pleased.
Again no sunset but the wind & waves sort of make up for it.
I find it relaxing sitting here with the waves crashing across the road and the cooling breeze stirring the leaves of the trees above our heads.
Unfortunately no Mojitos on the menu either, but their Margaritas aren't too bad.
Our pizzas were quite good and we were treated to a Legong Dance which was beautiful to watch.
I even thought I had managed to get a recording of it, but there was nothing on the camera when I checked it later.
Oops, maybe too many Margaritas........
Friday - Day 5
Another lazy start to the day, I can see a pattern staring here.
Following breakfast we head out with our washing. Turning left from the KP entrance there are two laundries to choose from
- one on the corner diagonally opposite and down the lane
- the other a little further around to the left heading towards Jl. Double 6. Opposite and parallel with the KP driveway. The entrance is just off the street and down a short hall way
Wandering back down Jl. Werkudara towards Mugshots we have a browse around the shops near the Kodak money changer.
I had been chatting to a couple of ladies at the KP who had both bought the same dress in the shops near the laundromat.
Good job they weren't both wearing it at the same time. It was quite nice and a little different from the ones I saw everyone else wearing.
Eventually, I find a nice dress that doesn't look too bad even though I don't usually like animal prints, but I couldn't find anything else that fitted or looked ok.
Of course it will be cheaper if I purchase two, yeah right!!
I have to laugh at how the shop owners call your partner "daddy" and like to make sure they get their opinion as well.
 | |||||||||
| My nice dress |
While we are out shopping I ring Sandy, and as they are feeling a little tired after a late night, we decide not to head over to Sanur till around 3pm. We can stay and have dinner over there.
Now that we are in shopping mode it was good to keep going.
Neither of us had any idea what was the average price of goods as I hadn't checked PLTT's shopping guide for ages.
We stopped at the group of shops behind the Jayakarta and really never got much further.
Trevor bought a few t-shirts and boardies, but really wanted some "cargo shorts" which then became "shorts with lots of pockets", but no one seemed to have anything similar even though they had heaps of other shorts.
Then the guy we bought the T-shirts from comes back out of his shop and says he has what we want, (no idea where he got them from), but in we go again. He presents 3 pairs of "Billabong" cargos in Trevor's size and asks the most ridiculous price. Lots of laughter later everyone walks away with a smile knowing someone got a good deal, but not really sure who. Each one has what they want and that's all that matters in the long run.
Off to Mugshots for an Iced Chocolate as shopping really isn't my forte and I really needed one of their ice cold towels to cool me down.
Free WiFi means we stay here longer than I anticipated.
Feeling refreshed we decide to head down the the beach via the Gang that runs between the Niksoma & the Maharta (trying to sneak a look into the Maharta through the fence along the way, but it was hard to see anything worth mentioning).
This Gang also joins into the Niksoma car park and entrance from the beach road, so we decide to check out a Deluxe room at the Niksoma while we are passing. Never miss an opportunity, I say!!
We are shown a deluxe room on the upper floor, I didn't notice the room number but it seemed to be the first one as you alight the stairs.
Not much of a view (you looked over the other buildings), but we could see others that had a much better view as they faced the sea and the one we were shown faced north.
Lovely looking pools and nice atmosphere around the hotel. Staff were very professional and free WiFi included in the price of the room. I could be tempted for our next trip in October.
Just as we get back to KP I remember I want to go for a walk up the beach path towards Seminyak and see what is along here, so Trevor heads back to our room with all the shopping.
Crossing over Jl. Double 6 or Jl. Arjuna, I pass Coccoon and wonder if this might be worth a visit at some point. There was something on the following Sunday afternoon so I'll keep that in mind.
Wandering past a massive building site peering through the gaps in the fence, I'm glad we are not staying nearby as its very noisy and really only in the initial building stages.
The building noise we sometimes hear at the KP is so minimal compared to this.
It wasn't till later on when I looked at a map I realised it was the old AJ Hacket Bungy Jump site which I remember reading closed last year.
I also read they are building apartments here, it looks massive from what I could see.
The walk from Legian to Seminyak is different to walking from Legian to Kuta.
The weather is still overcast and it's pretty windy. There's virtually no one at any of the beach shacks and bars.
I walk past the Crystal Palace, but I'm really hoping to find La Plancha.
But I could see nothing like the photos I've seen of La Plancha below.
There were no colorful bean bags or umbrellas, although I did see a few Air Asia ones.
I pass a hotel which I now know is the Puri Saron, and I'm sure I'm near, but it's beyond me and I'm running out of time.
La Plancha is now like the elusive sunset I'm yet to experience, but I'm determined to find it one day.
http://www.laplanchabali.com/
I really need a swim once I get back from my hot and fruitless walk.
Trevor decides to try on the boardies he bought at Jenny's only to discover they are a size 32 and definitely far too small.
Bother, that means another trip down that way either Sat or Sunday to change them.
GROAN!!!
What was Jenny's comment about exchanging things.....? Lucky we haven't left Bali yet.
It was so nice relaxing by the pool we forgot what time it was and didn't end up leaving for Sanur till after 3pm.
OMG, it is so hard to get a taxi at this time of day and we end up walking all the way to Jl.Padma before we manage to grab one that someone else was alighting from.
Of course she decided to argue loudly with the driver about the fare before getting out and the poor man seemed quite flustered when we first drove off.
The traffic was pretty scary driving over to Sanur at 3.30pm on a Friday afternoon and I was sure we were going to make mincemeat out of one or more scooter riders.
We were traveling behind this small truck and tailgating it so closely I felt we were going to slam into the back of it every time he braked, yet 2 or 3 bikes would zig-zag between us and the truck every time our driver hit his brake pedal in response. Too many trips like this and I'll need to find a hairdresser to cover all my new gray hair.
We get to The Lazy Dog Villa around 4pm and I can see why Sandy & John love it so much.
It really is just as beautiful as the photos on the web site. Had to include one of the pool.
http://www.thelazydogvilla.com/en/Gallery.html
We feel so relaxed the moment we step through the gate.
Sandy shows me around and my eyes are popping out of my head. It's absolutely divine. I love the board on the wall with welcome messages for new guests.
The pool really is gorgeous although it does get deep quick.
We meet Ray who is related to the owner of LDV and have a conversation about our search for accommodation for our last 4 nights and you can see the wheels turning as he's trying to think of suggestions.
Sandy and I are chatting about the Bali Emerald Villas and that we might like to stay in Sanur for these 4 nights and next thing she has arranged a quick visit to check out a villa that is available.
WOW, I thought I was getting pretty good, but she totally wears the crown.
They sent a driver within 10 minutes and after viewing the Villa B17, we felt pretty confident that we had finally found somewhere to stay.
Ray had also spoken to the owner of the villa next door to Lazy Dog ("The Frangipani Villa") and arranged to show Sandy through the next morning, so we may have to choose between the two villas.
Talk about feast or famine!
After a few more relaxing drinks we wander up to Cafe Jepun for dinner.
It is a very pleasant walk, so easy to wander along chatting. The more time we are spending in Sanur, the more I'm enjoying the contrast between the west coast and the east.
I really feel this would be a good place to spend our last few nights relaxing before heading home.
Food at Cafe Jepun is good too, although I note the restaurant is pretty quiet compared to what we we've become use to in Legian. Sandy suggests we stick to beer as the cocktails are a bit tragic, but I decide to try a glass of Hattens Aga White as I can't drink a lot of beer, it was ok.
The artwork on the walls here is amazing.
Sandy and her family had been in Bali for over a week and the weather had been a bit hit and miss during this time.
Her daughter had only just got back from The Gili's after staying a few extra nights due to no boats being able to make the crossing from the Gili's to Lombok or Lombok to Bali.
Trevor kept joking about the weather for the upcoming week and how it would be terrible if we had to transfer to Nusa Lembongan during a storm as we had done this when crossing from Krabi to Phuket a few years ago.
Another bad trip also flashed before my eyes and I daren't make a comment about it in case I jinx everything, but I know he's remembering it too.
Damn Pest!!
Sandy and John had spent 2 nights at Candi Dasa earlier in the week and they were very impressed with the restaurants they dined at.
We were originally heading to Candi Dasa for Nyepi but had changed plans when friends had been hoping to join us. Unfortunately they never made it and by then I'd fallen in love with Sandy' photos of The Point in Lembongan.
Oh how I wish we had more time to go everywhere, even though I know it's our first trip and we can't fit it all in.
Maybe another option for our next trip.
The night seemed to go far to fast and before we know it we are jumping in a taxi to head back to the KP. We'd had a great night catching up with our dear friends after such a long time.
Saturday - Day 6
Overcast again, is the sun ever going to shine.......?
My gaze wanders over to the beach and I see some guys out surfing this morning.
One of the things I'd noticed during my walk up to Seminyak yesterday was nobody was in the water. Although there were heaps of guys riding around on bikes with surfboards hanging off them, no one was venturing out.
Maybe the weather is improving at last. Now hold that thought!!!
After dropping off our clean washing we head down to Jenny's shop to change Trevor's shorts.
I had seen a row of ATM's from the taxi and we walk back towards where I think it is.
Well after another 5 or so minutes I'm starting to think I imagined them (well Trevor is anyway). The stubborn pig headed person I am is 99.9% sure I saw them.
We walk up and down a few more times and give up in disgust, I also wanted to head back to the tourist info place we visited last time we were down this way as I had picked up a great map and I wanted to get another one for Sandy.
Surely this would be easier to find...? Nope, can't find that either.
Eventually I found both, but they were much closer to the Stadium Sports Cafe and Flapjack's than I had thought. I always say I have no judge of distances and I just proved it yet again.
Over to Discovery for some A/C comfort and a cool drink.
We decide to go up to the top floor as we haven't done so before and it is so hot.
I managed to find the shoe department of SOGO (I think).
My absolutely favourite Charles & Keith dress thongs which I bought in Singapore airport 5 years ago decide to break 2 days before we leave Perth and I'm devastated.
I'd read about a Charles & Keith shoe shop somewhere in Bali, but if it was at Discovery I couldn't find it and considering I'm Imelda Marcos' twin I will cry if someone tells me it is.
I actually managed to find a pair of replacement thongs and a pair of strappy sandals in SOGO and paid around $28 for both of them, which I was happy with.
After stopping for a cool drink at our favourite spot we grab a cab back to Mugshots in Legian.
It's become easier to use the free WiFi here than buy time at the KP as it's quicker and more reliable.
I can't believe we don't have another hotel to look at.
I've rung & sent an email to the Emerald Villas booking manager and Sandy rang and said The Frangipani Villa is lovely, very different to LDV in design but very clean and spacious.
But they don't have a generator if there's a power failure, so we'll hold off till we see Sandy's photos on Monday.
We wander over to Briella Spa at 3pm and sit there wondering what our head, neck and back massage will entail.
I have to admit I have never had a massage in Asia till now, even though I have been to Thailand 3 times. Trevor had one in Koh Samui and he said the Thai lady was very strong, so I've been very reluctant to try it. Not sure what I was worrying about now.
Trevor decides to book a Reflexology/foot massage for the next day once we are done.
Feeling very relaxed we float back to the KP to get ready to meet another TA member Kathy and her partner Jim at the bar.
They have been in Bali for about a week staying in Ubud and Candi Dasa and have one night in Legian before flying home the next day. Kathy and I have chatted on TA since 2006 when we were both planning a Phuket holiday, and had made tentative arrangements months ago to meet tonight when we realised we were finally crossing paths in person.
It's funny trying to imagine what someone will look like when you have only seen a few photos of them on the computer. We were walking into the restaurant from the hotel side when a woman wandered back the other way and I stopped for a second and wondered......but as she was unaccompanied I thought keep going.
We got a drink and sat at a front table eying off every couple in sight (well I was anyway).
I noted a single bloke sitting a couple of tables away with two drinks on the table and wondered again......??
I didn't have to wait much longer as his partner came and joined him and of course it was the woman we had passed on the way in.
We catch each others eye and laugh, already knowing that we are both looking for each other.
"Hi are you Kathy?" "Your Lee" and the awkward moment that one dreads when meeting someone like this never happens.
We join them, offer introductions and the boys soon realise that it's much easier to have a conversation about anything other than holiday planning.
Shortly after we are joined by Glenys and Nick and after another drink we're ready to head to Mozzarella by the Sea at The Maharta for the Beatles Tribute band "Facebeat" who are playing there tonight.
We actually have two bookings, one for two people and one for four. Amazingly both tables were next to each to each other, so we helped rearrange them to accommodate us all and ordered our first of many cocktails. Glenys has been trying Lychee Martinis so I think one of those to start with will go down nicely.
Actually they were very nice, but after two I was happy to switch to Mojitos.
I still think they are only half measures of alcohol as I would be on my ear if they weren't. Trevor was having his usual Long Island Iced Tea so we made him sit out a round or two.
The food was great, although maybe not quite as good as our first night here, but still delicious all the same.
As for the band, they were absolutely brilliant, especially if you love the Beatles.
We were guessing which song they'd play next and then trying to pick our favourite Beatles song. There were so many I hadn't thought of for years.
I was keen to get up and dance but the pseudo courage one gets after a few drinks hadn't set in, so I was happy enough to stand and gig around next to our table. There were plenty of others on the dance floor anyway.
I managed only one photo which is pretty grainy, Trevor took a video with his phone which isn't much better unfortunately.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6jpchd_-q8&list=UU9UmshFQiY2iRpu-r8QoHdw&index=1&feature=plcp
The wind has been pretty strong all night, but we hadn't take a lot of notice of it.
Too busy enjoying ourselves as were many others.
The crowd had thinned out somewhat by 10.00pm and not long after the band came back on to perform their encore. We felt a few drops of rain but nothing much to worry about.
I think they were playing their 3rd and last song when all of a sudden the heavens opened up and we were grabbing our possessions and diving for cover.
The wind and rain just came straight off the sea and it was soon apparent that "being undercover" wasn't doing shite. The waiters were trying to get everyone to move toward the stage away from the seafront.
It's almost a blur what happened next....
One minute we were laughing and enjoying ourselves, the next I was face to face with the lead singer and yelling at him to unplug his equipment. I couldn't believe they were still playing, but it really was less than 15-20 seconds time difference and the band actually had less idea than we did.
They madly started ripping out their cables from the amps. I felt so sorry for them.
Trevor found me and we had no idea where the others were. He saw them to his left and motioned to follow him in that direction. Then the power went out.....
Oh crapp, I can't see a thing other than body shapes in front of me, how I hate being short in times like these.
I need to focus.....he'd turned left so I tried looking past the shapes in front of my eyes when this light appears above and to the left. It's not Xmas so I hope I'm following the right one.......
Thank god I have a hubby that likes to stay abreast of modern technology and had installed an app onto his phone whereby it became a torch.
I moved in that direction and as he met me we heard this horrendous noise behind us as the wind ripped the blinds away and they flapped dangerously inwards.
One of the waiters was carried away to our right and I couldn't even tell if he was conscious. That was enough for me and I headed in the direction they went but couldn't see them.
By this time we were being herded left or right of the wall at the back of the restaurant and down the stairs to the safety of the buildings.
What did my head in were the young female waiters huddled upright against the other side of the wall crying their hearts out. We managed to get two of them to come with us as we were shuffled down the steps and turned right into the kitchen.
Kathy & Jim were with us, so I hoped Glenys & Nick had gone the other way and were safe. We were perfectly ok, just very wet and for me having lived in FNQ through 7 wet seasons (and a few cyclones) in the 90's, I felt as if as if a mini-cyclone had just passed through.
The young Balinese girls were so distressed amid the never ending thunder overhead and unfortunately unable to contact their families to let them know they were safe or find out if their families were ok. You could see it taking it's toll on some of them and I feel this is more upsetting than the storm itself.
I'm not sure how much time passed but the thunder and howling wind had died down so we thought it would be ok to open the doors and see what was out there......
I was holding my breath as we went out, storm damage is never pretty and it felt so much worse as we only had torchlight to guide us as well as being in unfamiliar surroundings. We had no idea what we would be facing.
The rain was pretty full on, but the wind had died down. The structural damage was obvious, the hard part was not knowing what else was damaged as there was no power and we could only see from torchlight.
The staff had done an amazing job, they had put client and staff safety first as we would in Oz.
Yes there would be costs involved to fix things but loss of life would cost so much more.
One of my biggest concerns was our dinner bill, as our table of 6 hadn't paid and I wondered how many others hadn't either.
We reassured the staff we would be back tomorrow to sort out the bill and crept our way towards the sea front to walk home. Kathy & Jim were right behind us, but in the dark we lost them, so I hope they just stayed with the staff for a little longer.
It was still raining heavily and although we'd sort of dried off in the kitchen at The Maharta, we were drenched within seconds.
We are walking home without any of the people we set out to dinner with, it's cold, windy and the last few hours events have left such a downer on what was a wonderful evening.
Wandering through the KP it looks like the damage I've seen in Cairns following a cyclone. There are branches from trees laying around everywhere.
I think the KP was running on generator power as many of the garden lights were not on.
Glenys and Nick's lights are off as we pass but I doubt they are back yet.
I try and ring Sandy to see if they are ok as I know her sister and friends were going to Sanur this evening and I can imagine how awful the drive back to Legian would be in those conditions. However my phone is not working (again), not sure it it's because of the storm or what as Trevor's wont work either.
After a hot shower we sit out on the patio of our room trying to put our visions of the night into perspective. I didn't ever feel scared, but it's hard to comprehend how sudden and ferocious this storm was.
Again I'm reminded of the fragility of life and the how much we take it all for granted.
Glenys and Nick must have come home when we were inside, so I'm thankful they are ok. Fortunately they went to the hotel area of the Maharta and were given towels etc, although a couple staying at the Maharta had heaps of water leaking from their ceiling.
We stay and chat for a while and head inside to bed. I can't sleep and I'm wondering what the next day's weather and daylight will bring.
For the first time, I'm concerned about going to Nusa Lembongan in weather like this. I'm starting to wonder if we should even be contemplating going over there at this time.
Eventually I fall asleep, disturbed by vivid dreams and awake in the early hours of the morning unable to shake off my nagging doubt.
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