The time has finally come to say good bye sucky winter blues and say helloooo to paradise! The thrill of escaping the winter chill after a tough year into the arms of Bali's tropical warmth never loses it's charm but this time is slightly diffferent. This time we are celebrating a milestone birthday so this time I hope an uber ultimate journey is in store... I hope :D
You never know what is around the corner in life, what heart breaks will crush your soul, what health crisis will take you to hell and back or what financial or economic crashes might render us barren. I feel very lucky that up to now we have stood the test of time and are in a position of decent stead, therefore I feel a strong responsibility to make the most out of the extraordinary opportunities of this earthly experience, even if they are only just within our reach, before these precious experiences potentially fade away. As they say we must seize the day fully by creating our own reality and strive to design a life we love.
On arrival at my home town airport we perused the local rag to pass some time and came across an article that read 'Bali, Heaven on Earth.' This basically sums up my feelings of Bali. Over the years I have come to realise that Bali is my happy place. For me it represents creating happy memories and living life to the fullest while helping others along the way. Bali is a place where I can feel joyful and free in a supremely lush and culturally wonder-ful environment because of this Bali is my fountain of youth. In Bali I have climbed, treked, cycled, canoed, swum and certainly indulged in the classiest of places but also experienced the down to earth remote areas. Bali Fever must be responsible for these active adventures as most people who know me would say that they are quite uncharacteristic of my usual dignified simplistic and quiet everyday life.
Even if you aren't going to Bali any time soon I hope that you manage to soothe your Bali cravings temporarily through my JBRs. For the lucky ones, I hope that you gain a tip or two and experience some very special Bali flashbacks of your own like so many of you have done for me. This is my way of giving thanks for those who have paved the way for me.
Enjoy... please
I had visions of being whisked away leaving the city chaos and congestion behind and settling straight into my peaceful tropical oasis in Amed and jump right into holiday mode. But reality was about to change all of this. A sudden change in flight times meant that we had to change our plans significantly so my dream had been compromised even before I landed. Our plans were in turmoil yet again as well as we discovered that the airport was being shut down for the dignitaries of the APEC conference which delayed our flight. Being told that we could be circling for another 45mins to find a landing slot right at the end of the flight with other competing planes was not music to my ears. Kudos goes out to the Virgin team who as always seemed to have a good dose of humour and were quite open about it which was hugely comforting. Thankfully it did not take long before beautiful Bali was revealed as a dense sheet of glowing lights twinkling like a Christmas tree. I do love the feeling of finally arriving in Bali. It is like entering the gates of Disneyland which are flagged with palm trees and volcano peaks during a sugar rush after being on a loooong and arduous bus ride. Ah I finally made it home.
We got lucky and were through the immigration and visa line in 15mins. As everyone says the longest wait was for our bags. The confusion began as three flights arrived at the same time and we had no idea which conveyer belt our luggage would magically appear on. There were no signs. We kept a close eye on the cabin crew who also awaited their bags and were left guessing with everyone else. We got to our hotel at 10 o'clock at night and were well and truly exhausted.
The most sensible thing to do was crash in Sanur before high tailing it up to Amed so we could get back on track for our fully sick extravaganza. In reality we just needed somewhere to crash for the night but since this was our first night in Bali I still wanted it to have that welcome to paradise feel. I was chuffed to see that the Mecure in Sanur with its large grounds and resort style pool right on the beach had very reasonable rates. Although the service wasn't reported to be the friendliest or the room the most polished it was ideal for our brief pit stop and unload our ZZZZZzzzzzzzs :P.
The Mecure has Hyatt overtones with a few budget kinks. From the outside it looks beautiful with its grand majestic huts and beautiful tropical gardens. However, I'm not so sure that I would be so delighted with this hotel for more than one night. The first room we were given had a noisy aircon rattle that would have driven me batty all night long. The door to the toilet also became stuck locking hubby in there for a few short panic-ey seconds. At least there were no mosquitoes. The request to change rooms was handled well by the staff. The upgraded room without the extra cost was much more of what I had in mind. It was a very nice large room with a garden with good air con and hot water that took some time to heat up. Now this was more like it. Unfortunately though it still fell a little short as the bathroom needed a makeover, the bed wasn't that comfy and the mirror was a nightmare to do my make up in. The reception staff were friendly enough but still couldn't mangage to find some extra water for us. I just had to remind myself that I was only there for a very short time. The hotel has its merits but also some short falls which should be expected in that price range.
Sunrise is the best time of the day in Bali, especially in Sanur. The Mecure is situated at the southern end of Sanur, it is an area that I had not really had much of a chance to nosey around before so I could not resist a morning adventure of exploration despite our time crunch. Ahhhh so much to see and do in so little time!! Everyone says the other northern end in Sanur is the place to be, and they are right. The tide was well and truly out and the beach was littered with rubbish. There were very few creative artistic touches along the beach to charm us unlike the north. At least I know where Kesumas is now. I guess that this section of the beach path had a more down to earth no frills feel about it. Even though I was not absolutely delighted about my Sanur morning adventure down this section of the beach this time but it was still worth getting up early to check it out.
While my first venture back to Sanur didn't quite go as I had imagined with my usual welcome to Bali blow out it could have been a lot worse. Sometimes things get a little bumpy so that we can recognise and appreciate the smooth and glossy things that come along in life. OK so perhaps Bali isn't exactly always heaven on earth but it was still pretty damn good :D
Check out my photos at
http://smedley.id.au/Bali2013/Day1
TIPS:
Buy a plastic look a like wine glass from a second hand shop. Wine doesn't taste as good out of a cheap plastic cup :P
You can buy a SIM cad from the stall directly in front of the airport door just before the barrage of drivers with their signs.
The taxi stall is to the left of the exit out of the airport. Turn left and keep walking straight.
Get up early before the heat strikes and see the local morning activities of the locals and the tourists.
Semoga harimu menyenangkan :D!!