well,another trip to beautiful bali has gone unfortunately.
my wife and i along with 2 other couples stayed at the besakih hotel in sanur for the first 3 nights and sanur is rapidly becoming my place of choice to spend an entire visit.
This was a quick visit courtesy of jetstar $500.00 return tickets from melbourne.
The besakih is still spending money on renos but the place has still got that warm,comfortable feeling it has always had,ans is still ,in my opinion in the best spot on Sanur Beach.
The path along the beach hasn't changed much except for the demolition of a few of the little shop/stalls along one stretch near circle K. If you have visited before,these are the shops where SHREK dvd was. There are new villas being built on this spot.
He now has another shop in the sindhu beach markets.
Ate at Mangoes which was a bit dissapointing. The food was ordinary.
Also ate at Bonsai which was very nice and good quality food.
Prices havn'nt changed a lot,possibly a little bit dearer but still around the AUD $40-50 per couple with drinks (including arak sunrises and margaritas. Would be cheaper if sticking to beer i guess but hey ,we're on holiday!
We also ate at Warung Kama Sama which was good (lunch)
We had booked with Wayan from Bali Baik before we arrived in Bali and as last year it was a fantastic day eating breakfast at Kintamani and visiting the coffee plantation and then riding approx. 24 km to arrive at Wayan's beautiful compound where his wife and staff had prepared a veritable feast for lunch.
His hospitality and energy is fantastic and i would highly recommend this trip to all.
This was the second time we have done this ride with his company and cannot speak highly enough of the experience.
The next 4 days were spent at the Rama Beach Hotel in Tuban.
Although we had experienced some "hickups" with room mixups and transfers here before,this time all went smoothly.
We were actually all upgraded to Villas, so a good start!
They even have bacon back on the buffet for breakfast every second day after removing it a couple of years ago!!
We spent an afternoon at Uluwatu,watching the surfers and enjoying lunch on one of the clifftop warung.
With the requested DVD shopping out of the way,days could be spent relaxing,having massages and talking to the people in Gang Samudra we have known for over 10 years now.
The general feeling on Bali's economy is good and business is going well courtesy of Australian's visiting in numbers again.
Around Tuban we ate at
Poppies Kuta- lovely food and good service
Pantai-excellent food as usual and the place looks better than everafter some renovations and with the reclaimed eachfront.
SA Cafe- good lunch,although a lot quieter these days.
Green Garden- (resort restaraunt) great food and service
Thai restaraunt (can't remember the name) near Il Cielo on Kartika Plaza. good food and the best dunnies in Bali!! not telling why,it will spoil it if you happen to visit!!
Bubba Gumps -wouldn't touch the food but the 500ml maragaritas are the go!!
Mini Bar- for spring rolls and more margaritas.
All in all,a good quick trip.
The new Indian restaraunt near the entrance to The Dynasty Hotel was flat out. Very popular. (didn't eat there though.)
Observations-the price of mixed drinks has risen dramatically.
A main meal is cheaper than a mixed drink on most occasions.
There seems to be a lot of renovating and new buildings popping up,probably due to the record numbers of visitors over the last few years allowing money to be spent.