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Published: March 3rd 2014
Our Hotel and pool
Taman Sari Cottage llWell here we are in Bali. Hope everyone is surviving the wicked cold if you're back home. Think spring!!
We had a smooth trip down to Bali from Thailand flying from Phuket to Kuala Lumpur and onto Bali in a few hours. The first thing we noticed was the humidity compared to the dry heat we experienced in Thailand. Bali is on the end of the rainy season and rains often through the night but is clear and sunny during the day.
We're very happy with our Balinese style cottage hotel. The buildings and grounds are decorated in marble, carved wood and fancy concrete mouldings. The pool just outside our room is surrounded by lots of greenery and shrubs. For me it is paradise as I am a pool conisure! Our cottage is spacious, clean and decorated nicely. We really couldn't of asked for more. And to top it off we are served our breakfast on our patio whenever we get up!!
We decided to stay in one place for our month in Bali and do day trips from here since everything is so close. Packing up and moving every few days or week can get to be
Kuta Beach
Lined with surf boards for rent a hassle. We chose Kuta Beach which is the biggest, loudest, busiest and most touristy beach in Bali but we are finding it quite fun. There are lots of big fancy hotels, restaurants, night clubs, shopping malls and stores of all kinds. You see lots of high ends chains such as Polo, Quicksilver, Billabong etc as well as local souvenir type shops. The streets are full of tourists (many from China, Australia and Japan). It's hard to imagine the high season (May-July) as it's pretty crazy right now at the end of low season. Our hotel is only a block from the main drag and is only a quick escape to our quiet oasis and away from the mass tourism so we have the best of both worlds.
The streets and beach are full of local people selling everything you can imagine. The first few days we fell into the trap with a few purchases but we had planned to buy some things anyway so it was fun bargaining. Eventually after you say no thanks ten times they leave you alone! It was funny the first morning, Warren went out to buy a few supplies and he came back
with a manicure and pedicure! Then later the same day he went out for some extra water and ended up with a massage! The massages are really cheap ($5 for an hour full body) either in an air conditioned shop or on the beach. Needless to say we will be having a few of those!
The beach here in Kuta is quite unique. There's a lovely promenade that runs along the back in the shade. Closer to the water, the local people set up one umbrella and a few chairs for the tourists. They have big coolers and serve up ice cold drinks,beer and water. Some rent surf boards and give lessons. And that is how they make their living! There are literally hundreds of them along the 12 km of beach. It is disheartening when you realize what little money the people live on. After they pay their rent they don't end up with much. We have become friendly with a couple of people (Annie and Edwardo) who are in this business and they readily share what their life is like with us. The main goal each day is to make enough money to feed,cloth and school their
family. They cannot fathom our lifestyle. We sit at Annie's chairs each day and she is so thankful. She said we have brought her good luck and all we do is buy a few drinks and leave a tip. They are very bright, humble and grateful that they have a business. Annie told us her and her husband make about $150 each per month. Apparently 70% of Bali's economy relies on tourism so I guess we are helping a bit to support them. All the Indonesian people are so friendly and welcoming right from the young people working in the bars and shops to the older ladies selling their wares on the beach.
The only disappointing thing is the ocean itself. It's really suited for surfing rather than swimming but I do manage to get wet. It's fun watching the beginners trying it out on the relatively tame surf. The other negative thing is that occasionally you see chip bags floating in the water. Apparently in the rainy season when the streets flood rubbage from the streets ends up in the ocean. As the dry season approaches it will get better.
The cuisine here in Bali is wide
and varied. We can eat on the beach for couple of dollars which consists of rice, noodles, veggies and chicken. Some of the vegetables are different from ours but quite tasty (bean sprouts, cabbage, kale, tofu and other green things). We always like to try out the local dishes. Then there's A&W, KFC, Starbucks, Burger King etc. So we can always get comfort food. Dining out in the evening will cost more but still reasonable. Dishes are in the $5-$20 range depending on what you are looking for. We seem to spend around $8 for our suppers. There is always Indonesian, Asian and western food available. The only draw back is my red wine is expensive!! Beer is cheap, $3 in the restaurants and $1.50 in the store. There is lots of live music and concerts on the street which makes it a fun time for us.
The currency is crazy!! 10,000 rupees for 1 CDN Dollar. When we go to the ATM we usually get out 2.5 million rupees which is $250. We carry around wads of money. We are starting to get used to the big money!
Well that's about it for now. Hopefully I didn't
ramble on too much. We plan to visit a few other beaches this week and take a tour of the Ubud area next week. Until then . . .
P.S. Oh did I mention the weather? It's hot hot! I think hovering in the high 30's. But with a bit of a breeze, shade and A/C we're fine. Warren even sits in the shade much of the time. And no bugs to speak of.
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Linda and Maurice Blanchette
non-member comment
continue to have fun and try to keep cool