By the time I finish this JBR, I will probably be on my way to Bali again...........
Woke early again & had some fresh fruit & yoghurt that I bought yesterday at the CoCo Supermarket. Decided to go to the gym again & walked there. Spent about an hour there but it is just too damned hot. That's it - gym is officially scrapped for the remainder of the holiday. Stupid idea anyway & I will address the fitness level when I get back home.
Lunch today was at the Kreol Cafe down on Jl. Drupadi. I walked there so was sweating profusely by the time I arrived. Fabulous little spot and beautiful food. I had the spinach & cheese borek with a salad and a couple of soda waters. The pastry was crisp, dry and free from oil. The cheese was nice & salty and balanced nicely with a good filling of spinach. The salad was lovely with shredded carrot, beetroot, some tomato & greens finished with a tangy dressing. They also had a great selection of cakes - the type I used to see when I was little & went to the cake shop with my Nan & Pop. I imagine their cakes/sweets would be very popular with the expat community. I would rate Kreol Cafe 9/10
After lunch I walked down to Jl. Legian and down to Double Six - it took a while but the humidity was not as high as this morning or earlier in the afternoon. I bought a nice pair of sandals in Cinta Tomato (unusual choice of name for a shoe shop - apparently it means 'love tomatoes'). I then wandered down to Diana Tara Silver hoping that they could fix a couple of pieces of jewellery I bought from home that needed repair. They don't do repairs but I had a look at their jewellery & bought a couple of pair of earrings.
I caught a cab back to Kuta Square and went to the Mayang Jewellery store - they did do repairs. They fixed my silver necklace and repaired a pendant for $30. I was quoted three times that amount in Melbourne. They also offered to clean my necklace, pendant, ring, earrings and bracelet that I was wearing for free. I also bought a lovely pair of onyx drop earrings that match my pendant & ring. Very happy with the service and would recommend this store.
I caught a cab back to Seminyak and it took forever - the traffic on this afternoon was the worst I experienced during my stay.
After a swim I ent for a wander to check out Mama San - I really wanted to go but it was full of couples and looked a bit romantic with the couples, the dark decor & candles on the tables so I decided to give it a miss. Wandered back down Jl. Laksmana but not much happening in any of the restaurants. There were a few people in Soho so I dropped in for a beer. They had a happy hour where if you buy 4 they give you 5. The waitress kept trying to get me to do the happy hour. Love - five beers will see me down a hole in the footpath, never to be seen or heard of again. One will do just nicely! The place started to get really crowed - mainly by large groups of Asians.
After my beer I walked for a bit & ended up in Bistro Batu Kali at the front of the Amadea. I ordered the prawn fettuccine - pasta cooked well and a very tasty sauce. But - three prawns. Three? That is a bit tight when you are charging a tenner for the meal. Not bad but lacks atmosphere so I would rate this place a 7/10.
The next morning (7th Feb) I am up at 8am and at Ku De Ta by 9am. I opt to sit in the covered part on the far right as you walk in, just behind the beach. It was disappointing to see the state of the fabric on the seats - covered in stains and bits of food stuck to them. Flies were everywhere and service haphazard. I ordered the set breakfast which offers you a choice of juices, eggs with mushrooms, tomatoes, baked beans & bacon followed by a fruit plate & a coffee or tea. I have a pineapple juice, poached eggs with the rest but not the pig, the fruit plate & a coffee. Fruit was nice - papaya, starfruit, watermelon, cant elope, strawberries and pear. Very refreshing. It was expensive, more so than La Lucciola and nowhere near as enjoyable. I would rate the Ku De Ta breakfast 6/10. The staff were all over you within the first five minutes of ordering but then MIA when you wanted to order. Three of them actually stood behind one family of four watching them eat - I think the parents found this quite amusing. It was also entertaining to watch to Asian men who were sitting on the sun lounges who started slamming down beers at 9.15am. Impressive effort and would have been interesting to see them by dinner time!
Returned to the pool for a few hours and in the early afternoon walked down to Jl. Kunti to try the Taco Beach Grill. I enjoyed a potato burrito with rice, refried beans, chilli and salsa. Bob, the owner who is from LA, offered me some of his special sauces - three fabulous chilli sauces, each of varying intensity. One of them was green & had one hell of a kick to it. Thoroughly enjoyed the meal, the atmosphere & chatting to the owner who has been living in Bali for seven years. I would thorough recommend this place - it is only tiny (8 tables) so get there early as it was full by the time I left. Taco Beach gets a 9/10 in my opinion.
I wandered back to the villa checking out the shops & bought a red wooden birdcage (not sure what the rationale was for this - I despise all things feathered but think it will look cool with a candle in it on the sideboard). I walked and walked & finally found my destination - Tambo beads. This place was recommended to me by a work friend who is a regular poster on this forum. It is an enormous store filled with an amazing selection of beads, both ready to wear or to make yourself. Managed to spend about $45 on four awesome necklaces and a whole heap of bracelets. I reckon some of the necklaces if bought back home would retail for around $50 so it was money well spent.
Changed some more money - the rate has dropped - and back to the villa for a few hours swimming & lying in the sun. This evening I caught up with the Australian lady that manages the rental of the villa I am staying in. A lovely person, a few years older than me who is running several businesses and has been living in Bali for two years. We went to dinner at Bistrot which is at the end of the gang the villa is in. Brilliant place. Fabulous decor with awe inspiring photographs hung on the walls. The toilets are something else & great to check out. We had the seared scallops for a starter and they were plump, well cooked and presented beautifully. My main was seafood penne - prawns (3), mussels (3) and clams. Three of each must be the unwritten rule all of a sudden. The sauce the pasta was in was very very good. We enjoyed a couple of glasses of wine and had a great time chatting about Bali and learning more about what it is like to live there permanently. I would highly recommend a meal at Bistrot and would rate it a 9/10.
After the meal I jumped on the back of my new friends scooter and we took off to Potato Head where I enjoyed a mohito and I was then dropped back at the villa where I promptly hit the sack. Really enjoyed Potato Head although quite a few posers there but that makes it even more entertaining. Good service, lovely cocktail and fabulous atmosphere.
Only two more days to go..........