Day 5
Well it was going to be an early night, but we paid a visit to The Flying Piano in Rum Jungle Road. I had heard a bit about this place on the forum, so thought we would check it out. The meal was cheap (around Rp 500,000) for all of us. The staff were great, the roving singers from table to table was a great touch and the girls got up for a bit of a dance between the tables! The sang happy birsday to my son which was great! My son said that the chicken snitzel was the best he had ever had, and that's saying something for a child that refuses to eat anything! I would highly recommend this place for a more casual dining experience that is a lot of fun.
Day 6
Off to Amed today. Our driver Made was unable to take us due to Ceremony preparations, however we managed to get a driver from Jayakarta Hotel - Ketut.
The drive took about 3 - 4 hours but we had stops along the way. We had lunch at Candi Dasa and paid a visit to the water palace which the kids loved.
We arrived at Blue Moon Villas and had a three bedroom appartment villa. This is a small establishment that overlooks the beach. It was a terrific experience to stay in a fishing village, away from the hustle and bustle and shopping. We spent the day lounging around the poo, a few Bintangs and lime crushes helping us to enjoy a total "chill out".
We had dinner that night at the villas in the restaurant. The food was great and inexpensive. Unfortunatelu hubby was ill so he had an early night. I attempted to do a fill in on his behalf but couldn't quite make the Bintang drinking cut!
Day 7
The next morning was spectacular. I awoke around 5am and sat on the balcony and watched as hundreds of little fishing boats set sail. It truly was mind boggling to see so many boats sail out and then return once the sun had come up.
We had breakfast and then ventured out to check out the beach. This was a different experience for us, especially the kids. We did not come across anyone that could speak English, we saw pigs tied to trees, roosters running around everywhere and walked through a little family compound in our effort to try and find the path that led to the beach. The beach had black rough sand and the shore was lined with the fishing boats. This was a new side of Bali that we had never seen before.
We had lunch by the pool and then dinner at the restaurant.
The other family staying at the villas were from Ireland and the father was a fabulous guitar player and singer. The staff joined in and a sing a long carried through to the early hours of the morning. The part owner Komang is a friendly guy and the place was very welcoming.
Us girls did not make it to the end but we could hear the boys singing (or was that screeching) to about 2am. Hubby managed to fall into a hole on his way back up to the villa - but no injury other than a pair of mud soaked thongs.
Day 8
The next morning we awoke to rain that was new to us! We only stayed for two nights and we were heading back to Legian. We checked out and hubby tried to jump into the lobby and proceeded to skid onto his back. I thought he had broken his foot. I tried to bandage him through my tears of laughter. Isn't it awful when you see someone come a cropper and you can't do anything but laugh!
Ketut our driver arrived and helped pack up the van. The tiny street was manouvered brilliantly by Ketut as the rain pelted down. As we were driving we managed to lose a windscreen wiper which flew off. Ketut stopped and ran the 100 metres in the rain to retrieve it but it was beyond repair. Unfortunately it was the drivers wiper. Poor Ketut had to drive for 3 hours trying to look out the passenger side window.
We arrived to stay at our new destination - the Padma Hotel in Legian. We have stayed there many times and love this place. We thought we would give our friends the experience of Padma for 3 days. We stayed in the Deluxe rooms. We only had breakfast at the hotel as it was included and it is to die for. A great selection catering for the tastes of many.
Took the girls to Geneva today. A great place as items are fixed price and shopping can be done a lot quicker as a result of not having to bargain. However I do think that walking the streets, visiting the markets is part of the fun!
Tonight we ventured out to Happy Hour at Mandira and proceeded to stay on to have dinner. We just shared a few entree plates amongst ourselves which was nice for a change. The chicken satay skewers, pizza and spring rolls were more than enough! The lime crushes would have to be the best I have had, so well worth spending Happy Hour here if you love the lime crushes.
Finished the night off on the balcony and you guessed it, more drinking and more laughing.
Tomorrow off for a trip to Nusa Dua and to check out the new and improved Bali Collection......and a less than impressed dinner at Drops.