Bali - Part 1

We just returned from our trip to Bali!  Oh, boy, do I have a lot to say.  There are so many small and large things that I want to capture and remember.  Sorry if I seem to ramble on a bit.  I've been writing this blog post in my head for days.  I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around all of this.

So, first, a bit about our logistics.  We left Singapore early on Saturday, September 24th.  Lily has a school term break for 2 weeks and we wanted to take our first excursion.  We had a taxi pick us up at 7:00 am and take us to the airport.  We flew AirAsia to Despensar, Indonesia, the capital of the island of Bali.

Here we are, waiting for our taxi.

So, Bali is an island in Indonesia.  It is unique because most of Indonesia are Islam, but Bali is about 94% Hindu.  It is a unique form of Hindu called Balinese Hindu that blends local beliefs with Hindu influence from Southeast Asia.  Bali has somewhere near 4 million inhabitants.  It's biggest industry is tourism.  It is famous for its art and culture.  Please read more about Bali here.

Our plan was to spend 4 nights in Bali.  Our first night, we stayed in a beach town called Sanur. Then for the next 3 nights, we stayed in a remote location on the side of Mt. Batukaru.

We arrived in Bali at about noon.  We had to go through the normal immigration and customs.  Bali requires that tourists purchase a 30 day tourist visa upon arrival (about US$25 each). After standing in line to purchase the visa, you must then go over to the next line to have the immigration officer put the visa in your passport and check documents, then you can go to baggage claim and then to exit.  Whew.  From the plane, the airport looked like a few little single story buildings.  It was very old and in need of some repair.  It had the feel of a less developed country, compared with Singapore.

When we exited the airport doors.  There were literally hundreds of people standing behind a fence looking at the arriving tourists.  Some were holding up signs with either names of hotels or names of people.  Some were wearing somewhat official looking clothes offering to help you with your luggage (for a tip of course) and others were standing behind little tables selling water or snack foods or some trinket.  Oh, by the way, you can't drink the water in Bali.  You can get something they call Bali Belly, I think it's similar to Montezuma Revenge (Mexico).

So, we found the man that was holding a sign with my name and we followed him to his car.  We were proud of ourselves, we packed very light.  Just two carry on suitcases and two backpacks.  Not bad for 5 people, 5 days/4 nights!  On our drive to our first hotel, we saw many shops lining the streets.  They had all kinds of stone and wood carvings.  Furniture shops, ornate yard ornaments, temples.  Some shops sold colorful clothes, some had fresh fruit and groceries, yoga studios and spas and tons of hotels.  Intermixed with these shops were sections that were unfinished.  Some were just concrete pads with some debris.  Some looked like somebody was working on it trying to turn the space into something.  My point is that I don't think there is strict city planning happening in Bali.

In about 20 minutes, we arrive at Segara Agung.  Our hotel in Sanur.  It was lovely, especially for the price.  It was only about US$35/night per room!  We had to have 2 rooms.  The staff were very kind and we met a nice Australian family that was staying there.  They had a pool and it was about a 5 minute walk to the beach.  Just perfect.

Here is the front door to (one of) our room(s).

The view from the front door.  There was a lovely garden that the kids just loved running through.  Several water fountains and ponds.  All of the rooms had a lovely outdoor sitting area. 

Another view down to more rooms.  We were greeted with fresh juice upon arrival.

This is the pond and fountain in front of the hotel restaurant.  The restaurant was lovely, open air, for breakfast.  The woman in this photo is pouring water from her pot.  My girls were quick to notice that she is topless and her little statue friend is naked and spraying water out of his heheem.  Yeah...

First thing first, get on the bathing suits and jump in the pool.  Our kids were really great on the plane, but they all had wiggles they needed to get out.  Swimming pool it is!  Scott and I were both really hungry, so we kept it to a shortish swim and then convinced the kids to head down to the beach.

We asked our new Australian friends where a good place is to get a bite and they directed us to a little beach front patio that had great food and beer.  They even served french fries, so everybody was happy.

Every time we passed a new place I was invited to come in and see the shop or I was handed some brochure about what spa services were available.  There was a definite tourist hustle going on.  Over lunch, I told Scott that this part of Bali, to me felt like a Hindu Mexico.  Instead of seeing the Madonna and Jesus everywhere, I saw Elephants and flowers and prayer temples.  The same floral pattern dresses and sarongs were for sale and all kinds of little trinkets, hair clips, etc.  Everyone was friendly and everyone wanted us to come and see what was in their shop!

After lunch, I was enticed to have a manicure at the first place that offered me one.  After all, I did just stop biting my nails AND it was only about US$5.  So, really, why not?  While I was being pampered, Scott and the kids took a swim in the ocean.  Then they came back and met me.  Scott decided to try a famous Balinese massage and I wanted to explore the boardwalk.  The kids and I didn't get very far before I again fell victim to the tourist hustle...  These sweet ladies braided Lily and Madeline's hair!  We got to sit on the beach and there were 4 of them working on the 2 girls.  It was really pretty quick, but I think I was taken on the price.  Oh well...  I just don't have the heart to haggle over price when already it seems so little to me.  

The girls were thrilled about the braids!  They felt like princesses.

Next we walked back to our hotel and got cleaned up for dinner.  This whole time, I am quite taken by all of the flowers and beauty in Bali.  The Balinese people are beautiful, their gardens and homes are beautiful.  I learned that every Balinese Hindu family has an alter at home to honor the gods.  They must make offerings to the gods every day (twice).  So, that is why we see flowers and little baskets placed everywhere.  It is how/when they pray!

We ate dinner on the beach, right next to the water.  There were lovely lights in the tree above us.  The food was delicious.  We could feel the ocean breeze and it was quite cool.  There was a band playing at our restaurant.  Then when the band finished, the restaurant next door had a show.  We watched a bit of it.  There were fun costumes and singing and chanting.  It was very exciting!  We walked back in the dark and after the kids were in bed, Scott and I sat on the porch and had a drink to reflect on the day.  Lovely.

On Sunday morning, my girls had to dress in their newly acquired Bali dresses (I'm a total sucker at those shops!).  Complete with flower hair clip crowns.  Silly girls.  Scott and I each had a massage at our hotel before our driver picked us up to take us to our new destination.  Are you catching a theme here... massage...  everyday....

The drive to the Sarinbuana Eco Lodge was about 2 1/2 hours from Sanur.  We had to stop along the way for a potty break and to pick up some groceries.  It was really pretty neat to drive around in Bali and to really get to see something of where the people live, away from the touristy parts.  

Most of our drive was on a highway.  It was a 2 lane road in pretty good shape.  However, the last 14 km were on a very bumpy and twisty road.  I was nervous that Lily (who has a history of car sickness) might not do well here, but all was fine.  We stopped to take this picture in front of a large rice field.  

Next up...  Sarinbuana Eco Lodge!