Well, trip number 17 now been and gone and loved it as usual. Flew Virgin from Adelaide on 28th Feb. Check in was painful, so slow. Took us at least half an hour. The flight itself was okay with meal and drinks included. Actually arrived half an hour early, through immigration in 5 minutes and then 20 minute wait for luggage. No visa on arrival for me but wife had to pay the usual $54. As soon as we walked out was approached by driver offering Legian at $20 for 4 of us with luggage so couldn't be bothered haggling. That's only $5 each so no worries.
Checked in to Adi Dharma cottages, lovely ground floor room as usual. Love this hotel with its delightful staff, pool and restaurant. On arrival received an invitation to a welcome back meal and party at the hotel on the Monday night. This is for people who have stayed here previously. A very nice touch as it was a great night, beautiful food and several free Bintangs which always go down very easily. It was very good to see the staff were also present and seemed to be really enjoying the occasion too.
First day caught up with many old acquaintances and walked along the beach to Discovery Mall with friends who were Bali newbies. Hot!! Was it hot and humid! Lost lots of sweat so of course had to keep the Bintangs up. Still very cheap by Australian standards. First night dinner with 8 of us at Mozzarella at Magani. Very good as usual and great to catch up with Sari, Eka, Anna and Sugi who greet you like a long lost friend. Also Made at green spa who does the greatest massages! Went there every day. Also tried several other spas for massages, some very good, others very ordinary. Decided to stick to the good ones I know.
Also ate at Bene Cafe which is always good and Warung Tujuh which is great food and really cheap. Eddie the boss is so friendly and very proud of his number 2 rating on trip advisor. He is so modest. Had a booking for 8 people who were staying at a 5 star hotel so he was very worried about that, however they loved it so he was very happy.
Took the others to Potato Head for a look on our third night. I don't think I'll bother again. I think it is very pretentious and over priced although beers were only $5.50. I seem to remember them being more than that last time. Walked along the beach to Ku De Ta and then decided to hire two cars from there to take us to Nirvana for Beatles night. This was quite funny as they said $5 per car so we said okay. Little did we realise it was only about half a kilometre away! We could have walked there in about 10 minutes. Now for anyone who hasn't been to see Facebeat, if you like Beatles music don't miss it! It was a great night and they are so good. Very friendly group too. The food was good and they sell Guiness for $3 a stubby. I had a few local wines which were okay too. The bill was a bit hit and miss when there are 8 of you but worked out okay. Of course a taxi back to Legian is a challenge at midnight, but we managed to cram 5 of us into one for $7 after a lot of good natured haggling. It is quite a long way.
The remaining days at Legian we did a lot of swimming and walking around the small gangs in the area. They always fascinate me to see how the locals live. Ate at several small warungs and loved the food and the prices.
On 5th of March we transferred to Royal Bali Beach Club at Sanur. Something of a misnomer because it is nowhere near the beach! However we had a free week here as it is a Karma Club resort. The hotel was great but the location can be challenging with a wife like mine who is very hesitant crossing any roads, let alone the bypass road. We survived. Had a suite at the hotel including kitchen which was very handy as Nyepi day was on the 9th of March. The hotel offered a day package of food and massage for US$50 which I thought was over the top so we went to Hardys and stocked up on food and drink for the day. Turned out a great day because you meet all the others at the hotel around the pool. We really enjoyed it and even scored a bottle of good Aussie red from one of the staff. The night before they put on a meet and greet for all guests with free canapes and wine. This was a very good night also.
I do love Sanur! Hired bikes for a few days at $2 a day and rode for miles along the roads and beach path. Had many memorable meals at Little India, Fire Station, Tities Warung, Wicked Parrot and Bennos on the beach. All were fantastic, just so much choice now in Sanur.
Another highlight was a round of golf at Bali Beach course with my pommy mate. This was so much fun with our delightful caddies. I've never been so wet on a golf course and it didn't rain! We were saturated with sweat! I love this course but it's not cheap at $150 odd for seniors golf. Speaking of rain we only saw 2 brief showers in 3 weeks and it's supposed to be the rainy season. All has changed according to the locals.
Another day saw 5 of us go rafting on the Telaga Waja river. Always great fun, but those steps are killers so paid a little more and went on one which goes further and has no steps!! Still only cost $35 despite the brochure price being US$80. I have become very wise with the prices after 17 trips. Massages at Sanur really good at the places I go. I love cycling around the area, but wife not so keen. She spent more time walking the bike because of traffic. Traffic in Bali gets worse every trip but that's progress I guess.
On 12th we transferred back to White Rose Hotel in Kuta. Now this hotel is really good for $60 a night. We had a great room, ground floor next to the pool. Breakfast here is fantastic! So much choice. Once again staff were lovely and couldn't do enough for you. I like the location behind the monument because you can walk everywhere. Once again some great meals, particularly at Uns, beautiful food and cheap wine. Many more good massages and lots more walking. Walked to Seminyak one day and back along Sunset road. A long way and very hot!
Taxi to the airport cost $4. They are so efficient now. Through check in and immigration in 10 minutes and left right on time wiyh daytime Virgin flight. Service and food this time was very poor. Had to pay for drinks (when available, which was not often) Don't know when this changed. Arrived in Adelaide 30 minutes early to be greeted by fairly curt and grumpy customs officers, but through with no problems.
To finish, Bali is still a favourite for me. Sure prices have risen slightly, but still very cheap by Aussie standards. Food has improved steadily over the years and those happy smiling people never change. It is a great value holiday and I can't wait to return, probably later this year all being well. Bali at this time of year is very hot and humid, probably why it was so quiet. But night time around the monument area, people come out of the woodwork. Seemed to be many Asian holiday people, which was good because they are very polite and well-behaved. Hope you enjoy the read.