I’m always caught in the #throwback situation.. And I only have myself to blame for not being a timely blogger.
Never mind that this post is 2 months overdue, Bali was still nothing short of amazing! It was a perfect combination of sightseeing, adventure, good food and just lazing our lives away on the beach. That’s why going for a beach holiday is on my to-do list every year 🙂 We found another enjoyable activity during this trip, which was taking a selfie shot with the selfie stick that Mister invested in before the trip. We loved taking those selfie shots so much until my food shots were largely compromised during this trip. My whole mind was preoccupied with taking that selfie stick and going “10..9..8..7..6..5..4..3..2..SMILE!”
Mister and the selfie stick
As always, we didn’t plan any itinerary for Bali because that is our travelling style – arrive at the destination, pick up some brochures at the airport and decide our to-do for the next few days just there and then. It worked well for our previous trips to Penang, Phuket and Taipei. And no surprise that it worked great for Bali too!
Villa
What’s Bali without staying in a villa and a private pool?
The pool that I always jump in no matter how cold it was
We chose Daluman Villa after peering through many tripadvisor reviews in January (yes, we booked our holiday a good 7 months in advance, but I have learnt my lesson not to be so gancheong anymore in case the airline cease operations again!)
The view that greeted us every morning during breakfast
Daluman Villa did not disappoint! The breakfast was surprisingly good, with some daily changes made to the menu. The staff was nice and friendly too! We wanted to go to the streets to get a taxi to the airport on the day of our departure and they actually stopped us and grabbed a taxi for us instead.
Sightseeing
One of those days, we booked this day trip from the tour desk of our villa to venture out to Ubud, Monkey Forest, padi rice field, Mount Kintamani and the traditional kecak dance! Very exciting day, despite the traffic jam along the way and the too-active monkeys which scared the hell out of me! My freaked out expressions are too classic to be shown publicly lols. I find the traditional kecak dance very interesting in fact. An ensemble of half-naked men responsible for the sound effects and some lead actors who speak no words and merely do actions. We spent a good half of the time figuring out which scene were we at, and then getting very pleased with ourselves whenever we see a familiar character that we recognise from the plot synopsis handout.
Monkey Forest
The young acrobatic monkey that I saw
Us at the padi field!
Mount Kintamani
Adventure
The only adventure we did was white water rafting at Telaga Waja River, which was my maiden experience at water rafting. Apart from some rashes due to the lifejacket, it was pretty enjoyable and less tiring than expected! We made friends with 2 German ladies who travelled halfway across the globe to be in Bali, and we actually bumped into them again in Kuta one of the nights. Well, this is fate! In short, water rafting is about getting stuck atop some rocks and then having everyone rocking vigorously to get ourselves back in the water – some good teamwork there.
The activity itself was fun, but my after-thoughts during lunch was slightly gloomy. Afterthoughts about the disparity between developed and developing countries in particular. Seeing the locals carry the deflated floats on top of their heads and climbing up the steep flight of stairs to get the floats to the starting point of the course. It is tough work (my legs turned jelly just climbing the stairs without carrying anything), it is dangerous (the steps are steep, narrow and wet) and all they have is a bare stick to support themselves in their ascent. I wonder how much they get paid per trip or per day, but shouldn’t there be a more efficient and safer way to transport the floats? Hmmmmm…
Food
Right now, all I remembered of Bali’s food was Naughty Nuri and its pork ribs. That was our first meal in Bali, and it set the tone just right for a week of pigging out.
Pork ribs at Naughty Nuri!
We ate other local delights along the way, like Pak Malen’s Babi Guling, barbequed seafood, but I think Naughty Nuri was the most memorable cause we ate 2 pork ribs that meal! Oh and that rotating pig on display in Kuta! And A&W in Kuta Discovery Mall too, where our childhood memories just came flooding back. As Singaporeans who grew up in the 90s, A&W meant so much to us! The last time we ate A&W together was in Bangkok in 2010. Oh mans, time flies indeed haha!
Beach
We were mainly at Seminyak Beach and also Kuta Beach briefly for our seafood dinner by the sea. If I am ever going back to Seminyak Beach again, I am just going to laze around at Amazing Bali Cafe, read my book, order glasses after glasses of watermelon juice for myself and beer for Mister, and eat some fries and finger food to keep our mouths occupied. I think it’s actually much more worth it than renting a sunbed on the beach. Another lesson learnt. I get beachfront views, I get food, and I get access to toilets too! It’s like the best of everything!
On that side of the island where Seminyak and Kuta lies, you can absolutely catch breathtaking sunset! I have this habit of chasing the sun everywhere I go. I caught the sunrise from my rooftop in Singapore. I chased the sun along PIE one random Sunday too. I camped for our first sunset together with Mister in Taipei and there I was, doing it all over again in Bali. The sun and its orange rays are just so magnificent, just so captivating!
My favourite sunset shot from this Bali trip
Wasabi and Ketchup
Bali 2014 – forever etched in our memories!
Bali was just so much fun for the two of us! And Wasabi and Ketchup too whom we brought along with us! Till the next time I step foot to Bali again, I’m counting my blessings that we have Paris upcoming next. And it’s 10 days now instead of the planned 7 days. Very much looking forward to our next trip! 🙂