Please excuse any spelling mistakes- cant be bothered looking up correct names! Took driver from sanur to amed- stopped at Ampalura orphanage on the way- phoned them before hand to see what they needed and their 'food warmers' had all died that week. A quick stop at Hardys where we bought 2new ones at $50 each, along with lots of snacks, shampoo, toothpaste, soap, etc- they had enough staples so just wanted treats for the kids. Well, along with our 70 kg of clothes, we received a very warm welcome. Ketut, husband and their 3 kids live there, along with 36 beautiful children.. They were so happy to see us and ketuts eyes lit up when she saw the 2 new 'modern' food warmers. We stayed and gave out all the stuff, had a look around and a short soccer match, before heading off. She does an amazing job, basically all alone, and the kids were gorgeous- well worth a visit! Also stopped at kings palace in klungkung and water palace in Tirtaganga? Both very interesting.
Finally arrived at Apa kabar in Amed! And no sooner, the rain came pouring down non stop for the next 24 hours! I was not impressed as the reason we went there was to snorkel, and we were basically stuck at our resort. Amed was a lot more baron than i expected- very dry and not green at all. Various restaurants and resorts scattered along the coast. Apa kabar was a beautiful resort- nice and small, cottage on the beach. Next day sun was out , and the snorkelling just off shore was FANTASTIC! Just like being in nemo- the colour of coral and fish was fantastic. We went and snorkelled the sub, but didnt realise, it too, is just off shore, so really there was no need to take a boat, but the fisherman were happy with our money! Found it quite hard getting drivers in the area and had to pay a fortune just to go 3km down the road- no taxis, and things quite a distance apart.
RESTAURANTS-Apa kabar, Pazzo, Sails, coral view.
By far 'sails' was the best- got picked up for free and had sensational meal with amazing views- other restaurants do not compare- a must!! Didnt speak to Ranga as there was a medical emergency with a staff member and didnt want to interrupt when she sat down to dinner with friends. All i can say is 'YUM!'
Amed- would i go there again? Probably not, been there now, and i did find snorkelling great, but a little isolated for me- dont know if that was cos of location of our resort, but been there now. Also, we were lucky enough to be there when a cremation ceremony of a village priest was going on. Amazing to watch and went on for hours, but a once in a lifetime event for us i'm sure!
Next JBR- K.P-LEGIAN- Helen