After a quiet night, day 5 was a trip to Ubud Monkey forest. As we entered we met a nice local who gave us a guided tour and told us the history of the area, explaining the temples and burial rituals in the forest. Everything was going great until he led us up to a dead end and cornered us for payment via the purchase of one of his small paintings (120000rph).Lesson Learnt. This day was a shopping free day, so I thought, but we ended up at the markets and the girls couldn't go past the "morning price" For me another lesson leart, women + shop = spend. After loading the bags in the car we continued on to the rice terraces and then a nice lunch at the volcano. On the trip back we stopped at a couple of local village stores to see if we could part with the money we had left.Back to the Hotel and time for a beer , so it was back to Galic Lane Cafe , yes the beer is cold and the food is great. Finishing off at centrestage, by this time we are starting to become locals and becoming very friendly with the band and bar staff a quiet night but very enjoyable.
Day 6 off to Sanur as my son decided he wanted something to remember his first trip , a tattoo from PJ's. I tried to convince him otherwise however I must agree it turned out ok. The comments he has recieved in Bali and back home have been unbelievable , people are stopping him in the street. Even the custom officers in Brisbane. If you are into tattoos check out PJ's. Sanur is very ,very quiet not to many people and the shops are struggling,some not selling for 3 - 4 days. We went and visited an old friend Watti who was happy to see us , greating us with the usual "I give you good price". In between visits to see how the "big boy " was handling his new art work , yes it made his eyes water, we had lunch under the trees at Mango on the Beach, again if you are in Sanur try it. Time to head back so we grab the Bluebird cab, must of been a relative of our early cabbie as we were within inches of a accident with a motorbike. Tonight was the night for some father/son bonding. The girls retired early and the boy's settled in for a 1 or 12 bintang, yes, at centrestage.
Day 7 THE 21st BIRTHDAY, my daughter turned 21 . Word had got around the staff at the HRH and waiting for her at breakfast was a small cake and the staff singing happy birthday. Then the surprise, after making a wish one of the staff proceed to smash the cake into her face, she was shocked , mum was surprise , dad had a laugh and little Bro thought it was hilarious. The day continued with a trip to French Leather in Garlic Lane to pick up the new jackets we ordered a couple of day earlier. Then back to Miss Debby for a final spend. Then back to the hotel so the girls could spent the afternoon at the HRH spa. The birthday night was celebrated at centrestage with all the bar staff, the band and anyone else that wanted to get into the spirit of occasion. It was a great night.
Day 8 Sadly it was time to leave. The first challenge was to fit the 100 + kg's into our cases , a challenge that was successfull. The flight back was only 5 hours 30 minutes and landed 10 minutes early
I hope I haven't bored to many but finally I would like to give a review of the HRH.
The staff from the porters to the cleaners , the bar and restuarant staff , reception and security were fantastic and we thank them.
There are facilities for all ages. I was told that if you are on the wrong side of 40 stay away, well thats me and I thought it was great.
There were families of all ages there. The pool is fantastic , bar for the parents , water slides for the kids, water polo , beach volleyball the list goes on. The kids can spend time at the kids club while the parents are in the chill out pool.
The spa was great and the centrestage was entertaining. The food good and so was the service.
Location is good, close to Kuta square and a short walk to Poppies 2 or waterbom park (opposite directions)
The rooms are clean, but a bit over priced compared to other places although the facilities make up for some of that.
The food and drinks are expensive for Bali but there are enough restraunts and bars in the area.
Thankyou to all those that read this and happy travelling.