Hopefully this now posts part 2 as Mr Administrator gave me a heads up on my error (oops sorry)
For those that have read part 1 i have just started from midway through the eats section again.
Cheers!!
THE FLYING PIANO-Second best meal....this place is awesome.I love everything about it the food, hosts and entertainment and the arak attacks just divine.
We ate here alot as it is just a great place and not once were we disappointed.
I cant remember the owners name but him and his wife were fantastic and the night they had a 3 piece band on was one of the funniest of my trip. They would go table to table playing songs and when they got to ours they asked for requests. Of course i couldnt not think of a thing so they duly started with twinkle twinkle little star for miss ratty, which if you have ever heard with backing bongos is quite hilarious.prices ranged from 120000-240000rp depending on the night 10/10
GOURMET CAFE(owned by BCC)-lovely place on petitenget. had some nice meals and some horrible meals here so it was a bit love/hate and most of the prices were a bit ridiculous for a cafe.the breakfast was awful and what a waste of 50000rp but i did have a crispy prawn noodle salad for 32000rp many time which was fantastic 6/10
BIKU-this place was ok,i dont think it deserves the hype it gets.the cakes were dry and bland and the teas quite weak.atmosphere is ok to not really what i expected and i have been now but i wont return...waste of money 6/10
UNCLE NORMS-loved sitting here reading the paper most mornings.very relaxed place and i even managed to crack a pre 12pm Bintang here one morning which is very much not my style 7/10
LA PERGOLA(Bali A*u) great little place inside hotel.prices are up on last visit but they do have some lovely menu items.onion rings were a hit with miss ratty and i loved the beef burger.the 60000 seafood platter is humungous and well worth the money 8/10
MOZZARELLA-I was a bit disappointed with this place.food portions are so small for the price and the drinks i am sure they only fill 3/4.both sides of my fellow restauranteurs drinks were the same. the meal was nice but not exceptional.the atmosphere and lounge chairs you sit on are a nice touch though.the owner was a lovely man but honestly again its hyped up.i will say however that the cream brulee here was better than s**...and let me tell you..oh ok sorry forum forgot where i was for a minute :)
BONITAS-well wasnt this a strange place, atlantic salmon served on mashed potato WTF and some odd looking bean things to top it off.the salmon was ok spoilt by its accompaniment and the cranberry daquiri was like water...prices very high.
the staff here were horrible horrible horrible.very rude and made me feel like i shouldnt have miss ratty with me.she was of course the perfect diner and not a word(apart from pretty lights) escaped her lips. still they treated her with contempt.i couldnt wait to leave...hotel staff later told me it was mainly frequented by men and their boys and come to think of it there was a lot of male guests...oops oh well it was still horrible 2/10
WATERBOM PARK-food here really isnt that expensive and was quite nice.nanny had a nasi goreng which was huge and i had a great burger 6/10
BLACK CANYON-great coffee place in seminyak square with awesome smoothies. miss ratty had about one sip of hers but the staff were quick to make her a new one in a take away cup for the road...lovely 8/10
GlORIA JEANS-nothing special here...same as oz aprt from the nice cool towels, which most places in bali compliment you with now anyway 6/10
BALI BAKERY-seminyak- again an ok place...very attentive but nothing special 6/10
there were quite a few little warungs and places in kuta and out in the country that i cant remember much about and so many more i didnt get to.
I already have my list for may and the love handles are mad as.
ACTIVITIES
WATERBOM PARK-of course a proverbial favourite for many travellers with children.
Miss Ratty was in her element and Miss Snooty managed to smile for once and not grunt at me.Me i just loved the fact i could relax in my private bule whilst Iluh(nanny) did her job exceptionally well.
Miss Snooty did manage to coerce me down those horrible slides a few times which came with screams of obscenities in various pitch and tone whilst my tube negotiated corners better than michael schumacher. fun day had by all.
TURTLE ISLAND-this was ok....we all enjoyed the boat road there(except poor Iluh who was green the whole way) the guides are very pushy and you are "expected" to buy a drink and souvenir which is off putting.good for kids who love animals but very much a production line of animals.they also try and get you off the island quickly so you can an only sit and relax for a short time.
BALI SAFARI MARINE PARK- definetly the highlight in terms of activities. this place is amazing, the setup-animals-staff just everything.the elephant ride was a highlight for us and we cant wait until it is fully operational.we will be returning.
ULUWATU-spent half a day here taking some great pics of the landscape and trying to outwit the monkeys
NUSA DUA-pretty boring for me as Miss Snooty wanted to engage in some watersports and im not a fan so this was her day and i went along for the ride.
BIKE BAIK-now unfortunately i booked this but had tonsilitis the last week and couldnt go but Wayan is a lovely man and very very gracious.I will be using his service when i return.
unfortunately because i was sick the last week i didnt really have the energy to do much travelling or touristy things so was disappointed i didnt get to see more, most of the stuff was done the first week whilst miss snooty was with us and the rest of the time was limited due to miss ratty needing lots of beauty sleep.
Next trip is definete a jam packer as i will be childless :)
SHOPPING
KETUTS-as usual great great great....ketut is a lovely lady who has found a real niche in the fixed price market for those like me who have anxiety attacks over bartering
GENEVA-good for those last minute pressies for all those people who think they are your best friend just because you are going to bali
CAREFOUR-nothing special here that took my fancy
DISCOVERY-an eyesore....need i say more
MATAHARIS-same old same old
RIP CURL-miss snooty cleaned me out of rupiahs here but at least she was happy :)
SOUL SISTER-my love handles and i loved this place great extra roomy classy dresses.i was complimented every time i wore my pale blue purchase.
TATTOO PLACE-(cant remember name of place but if anyone wants to know i will try and find out the name...its in POPPIES 2) miss snooty got her own way as usual and managed to twist my arm for a long awaited belly button piercing...guys here were great place was clean and no infections in site 4 weeks later(which miss s is very prone to)
many other little places we shopped but my memory is fading.
PEOPLE
this section is a highlight, for the people i met and the ones that will remain my friends forever.
Firstly to Smudge and his wife Made....what a selfless man with a beautiful wife.
I met Smudge 4 hours post plane trip on the Beach at S&S. This meeting was to meet our Nanny-Iluh which Smudge had arranged.Not only was i hesistant and nervous but nearly backed out. My fears were unfounded, Iluh was just adorable and my Miss Ratty adored her.and i mean adored her.
I had the pleasure of meeting her darling daughter and had a tear in the eye when we left.
Iluh was kind enough to give me scooter lessons(which of course i am useless) but still what a great teacher.
When i was sick Smudge constantly messaged to see how i was and he and Made are just two of the most beautiful people.
Thankyou Smudge for everything and i cant wait to catch up for some chats in 7 weeks.
Also met at S&S Dennisc and another forumite but her name escapes me...lovely chick(hope your toe is better, you know who you are...lol)
Met some forumites at Legends for a dinner and what a great night....ended up with the worst headache known to civilisation but it was all worth it for the people i met, chris, doug, georgie, teagan, vicky, mon, brett sally and ken
Ed and all the guys at Billys you are funny people.thanks for all the great evenings of fun.
Ketut-what a great lady. if you ever have a chance to shop at her fixed price store...please do. her and her staff are just lovely. they supply u with free cold water when you shop and are just so nice. we spent lots of time with Ketut and she really is a beautiful lady.
Made,henny,wayan,charlie,wulan,wan wan,ketut...... my favourite people in the whole world.these are the staff from Bali A*u that myself and Miss Ratty spent most of our time with.These people are the ones that made me remember what Bali was about.
So thanks for reading and i am already counting down my 7 weeks until i return...oh and since being back in Australia i have booked my motorbike test bought a scooter and hope to be able to navigate the bali roads on my return...watch out fellow tourists :)