Bali good....(get it...very good)...
Trip Start
Jul 01, 2009
1
23
50
Trip End
Sep 20, 2010
Where I stayed
Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
We were so glad that we had a driver set up b/c there's a good chance that any taxi we would've got in, wouldn't know how to get there. Ellie's was in with the locals; there were no other accommodations nearby. However, it was perfect...a hidden oasis with a great staff!
Just after breakfast the following morning, I had a chat with the property manager, David. Glad I did, because he was set to leave for England later in the day. We hashed out a good itinerary and he set us up with a car and driver. My mom and I also leafed through Ellie's welcome booklet the night before and saw a great 3 day spa package. David sealed the deal when he said they offer a 20% discount for guests so it cost US $140 for two people to get served ginger tea, aroma therapy foot bathes, an hr and a half Balinese massages, foot reflexology massages, aroma flower bathes, facials, hair conditioning treatments, pedicure for me, manicure for my mom and a spa gift! For anyone that knows anything about pampering, that is an unbelievable deal!!! I happened to realize that I forgot the mosquito repellent when I repacked from Cambodia and David gave me a spray bottle he had behind the counter (bonus points). One place David recommended, which I regret not going to, is the Rock Bar at the Ayana Hotel (Google it). When I came back to Singapore, I saw it being featured as one of the most exotic bars in the world...it is an open air bar which sits on top of a cliff, hovering above the Indian Ocean. I will go back for that!
Ubud was high on my list of places I wanted to visit so our first day was filled with adventures en route to the eclectic art village. We visited Goa Gajah Elephant Cave Temple, the rice paddies of Tegallalang, shopped and had lunch at Kafe (delish food!) in Ubud and saw the sunset at Uluwatu (a famous surf break). There were a few other temples that we stopped by and all of them required us to wear a sarong, unless you had appropriate clothes on, which they still made you put a belt wrap on (for donations of course). We finished the day at Bali Refresh for our first 75 minute spa visit.
The next day, we visited Tanah Lot, the wonderful boutiques in Seminyak, had lunch in the overcrowded tourist area of Kuta (where the bombings took place...there were security officers on guard at all the major hotels), and revisited the spa for 2 hours. On the way back from the spa, we were riding back with two Singaporeans staying next door to us so we got to share travel stories. Since we were tuckered out, we lounged in our room watching "500 Days of Summer."
We had half a day left before we had to catch our flight back to Singapore and we spent it well! Three hours at the spa and we were in such a rush to get to the airport that we forgot our free gifts, so we never found out what the gifts were!? We had a great time in Bali!
Bali is beautiful where investors took the time to enhance it's attributes and dilapidated just about everywhere else. It seems that everyone one has their own shop selling wood carvings, jewelry, kites, furniture, paintings, lanterns and just about everything else under the sun. My mom's not a huge fan of the sunbathing, so we didn't do too many beach activities. No worries though as I'm sure Steve will want to go surfing and I'll soak in the rays then!
...W
