2012-07-11T15:41:00.001-07:00

Woke early as usual and headed to the beach for a quick walk before breakfast. Came back and 2 of the girls were just sitting down so I joined them. This morning the 3 of us had fruit platters & juice followed by mie goreng.

This afternoon I had planned a trip up to the Bukit Peninsular with my driver friend Wayan. One of the girls at breakfast was keen to come with Roomie & I, so we had 3 going so far. As we weren't being picked up until 3pm we had the rest of the day with no plans as yet.

The 3 of us discussed over breakfast what to do for the day. We were all keen to buy some bean bag lounges. A few days before I had started asking prices from a few different shops & the cheapest one I found so far was in Jl Legian.

The girls had been going to Carla Spa on a daily basis & there were shops either side selling the lounges. So as these shops were closer than the one in Jl Legian, we decided to go up after breakfast & check them out.

The shop opposite Mugshots & next to Merry's Leather seemed to have more variety, so we went in for a look.

Can't get this pic to turn right way...


Checking out the styles & colours

There were quite a few shapes, sizes & colours to choose from.

C'mon... if we buy a few each.... Surely you can give us morning price!

My friend started asking about prices & we were told some crazy amount. I told him I could get them elsewhere for 'x' amount & he agreed to the price straight away - damn... probably could of got them a bit cheaper, but hey! we were really happy with the prices.

I ended up buying 2 bean bag sunlounges & 2 armchairs. From memory I paid 800K (about $88) for the lot. One of the girls bought 5 armchairs & 2 footrests, the other bought 2 armchairs & Roomie went back the next day & bought 2 sun lounges - no wonder this fellow was grinning!

These are sooo comfy!

The bean bag chairs weren't all in stock & had to be made - he told us it would take 3 days & we were a bit cheeky in saying we were leaving the next day - guess what?... he'd have them ready by tomorrow afternoon!

Back home with the bean bag chairs & lounges

Just thought I might add that when I returned home & it came time to buy the beans I first went searching through the TA forum. I remembered someone posting info on the number of bags needed to fill the lounges. Now I don't know if the poster's bags were bigger than mine.... but the post said 5 bags for the small ones & 10 for the long sun lounges. Target had the beans discounted so I calculated that I would need 30 bags.... Yes 30! The store assistant thought I was nuts! Anyway, I started putting some in a trolley & could only fit about 4, crap... this will be a time consuming exercise, paying for them, taking them to the car, coming back, getting more.... so I arranged to have them taken to parcel pick up.

After paying for the 30 I went around to parcel pick up & they were all piled up on a crate. The pile looked enormous! The guy helping me get them in the car asked if I needed them for a shop - maybe for a Xmas in July theme! We managed to stuff 16 bags in my station wagon - it looked ridiculous, & I could only see out of the side mirrors! I would have to come back for the remaining bags another day.

Hubby helped me fill a sun lounge that night & it only needed 5 bags - could probably do with another 1/2 bag to top it up. The armchairs took 3, again could probably do with another 1/2 bag to top up. (In the photos I have only used 5 & 3 bags). So I didn't need to use the other bags I had paid for. Luckily one of the other girls hadn't bought beans for her bags yet - so I didn't need to get a refund.

After paying a deposit, we went next door to Merry's Leather. The girls had placed orders & wanted to check on their progress. One friend's leather boots were ready & she was very happy with them. My other friend had ordered a leather jacket & it was ready too, however it was a little too big. Luckily we still had a few days left so it could be altered. Once again this year I couldn't be bothered ordering a leather jacket - in hindsight I should of found one in a magazine at home for them to copy, so I figured if I saw one I liked & it fit perfectly, I'd buy it.... Didn't find one.... But I did find a lovely studded clutch in grey suede.

Next the girls were keen to find some Vans caps for their kids. We headed up Jl Werkudara stopping in a few shops, but none of them had the styles they were after. We passed the shop I had ordered my sandals from, so I stopped into see if they were ready - they were & I was really happy with them - they even matched the new grey clutch I'd just bought from Merry's!

I left the girls still looking for the caps & headed back to the hotel. On the way back along Jl Werkudara, I saw a sign for Guru Shashi - a tarot card reader. I took a photo as it had a website address & I thought I'd check it out later. I was looking around wondering where he did his readings when a guy sitting inside Oregano Greek Grill asked if I needed any help. I explained that I was interested to find out about the tarot card reader & he told me to follow him through the restaurant & upstairs to meet him. I had a quick chat with Guru Shashi & organised an appointment with him for tomorrow.

Walking back I stopped in a shop to buy a few DVDs - it was just around the corner from Merry's Leather. When I asked if the ones I'd chosen were good copies, the guy put them in a DVD player to check.

After that I ordered a coffee from Mugshots & made use of their free wifi. Roomie spotted me & came in for a chat. We were feeling a bit peckish, but didn't feel like the food on offer at Mugshots, so after my coffee we went next door to Sammy's.

Another friend walked past so we called out & she joined us for a bite to eat. While we were waiting, a guy came in selling Paramao Root oil. I asked to have a look and he rubbed some into my shoulder - the smell reminded me a little of dencorub. His starting price was 250K. Thanks to the TA forum, from memory I'd read someone had paid 25K so I offered this amount & he was ok with it. The other 2 girls also bought some.

Paramao Root Oil

We all ordered nasi goreng & really enjoyed it. We were discussing our afternoon trip & our friend decided to also come... so now there were 4 going.

Full from lunch, we headed back for some relaxing around the pool until it was time to get ready for our afternoon trip to the Bukit.

Wayan arrives 15 mins early & I spend some time in the lobby with him while we are waiting for the other girls to get ready. I have a bag of clothing for his wife & 4 daughters - he tells me they will be thrilled. I also have a few surf tees & boardies for him - every time I come to Bali I fill my luggage with clothing my family has outgrown or no longer wants. It's very satisfying to see someone really appreciate it.

The girls arrive and off we go for our afternoon out. First stop I wanted to show the girls Bingin - none had been before & it really is a special spot. We stop in at the Temple Lodge - the place I have stayed at on my last 2 family trips. We walk through & I say hello to Cristiana the owner. She doesn't mind me showing the girls around. We take a few photos..

Looking south from the Temple Lodge to Impossibles surf break

They set dinner up here... simple stunning at night all lit up!

Looking north from the Temple Lodge towards Dreamlands

Next we walk past a villa I was telling the girls about... It would be a perfect villa to fit a few families. I'd been keen to check this place out the last 2 trips, but it had always been occupied. This time when I walked past the gate was open, so I sneeked a peak and there was a fellow watering the garden. I asked was anyone staying there and he said no, so I asked could we please have a look through... No problem! He let us walk through & the place was amazing....

It's called Nivarna Biru. My dentist stayed here about 3 years ago and I've been fascinated with it ever since. So excited I finally got to walk through and have a good look at it..... Would love to stay here with some family friends next year!

Outdoor area Nirvana Biru

Walking towards this covered outdoor area I queried the care taker about something I'd seen in a you tube video... there had been a pool under this roof & now there was a deck with bean bags & a coffee table. He said 'yes, pool under here'..... 'what, under the deck' I say.... 'Yes'! I still couldn't quite work out if he meant it was still under the deck... or used to be under the deck? Anyhow, it still looked like a relaxing place to sit and while the day away.....

Can see myself sitting here!

Infinity pool Nirvana Biru

Same outlook as the Temple Lodge

Looking back towards the villa

Lounge area - furniture all covered up as it's vacant

Foyer looking towards front door

From lounge looking towards outdoor area

Upstairs lounge area

One of the four bathrooms

The 'Green' Room

Found this footage of Nirvana Biru on You Tube... it shows the other pool that was covered over in my photo above... hope this link will work

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJpfPoTFv0k

Leaving Nirvana Biru we walked next door to Kembang Kuning Bungalow. The last 2 trips to Bingin we had dined in their restaurant a few times and last October they were in the process of building some new bungalows. They were due to be finished in March, so I was keen to check how they were going. It was nice to see they were completed. This place has the same outlook as the Temple Lodge & Nirvana Biru but without the price tag! When I asked prices last October, from memory it was $48 per night. The pick of the bungalows would be this one pictured below which is next to the infinity pool.

Front room at Kembang Kunning

Infinity pool with same outlook as the Temple Lodge

The girls weren't keen to walk the 174 or so stairs down to the beach so we walked back & found Wayan and drove off to our next destination.... Padang Padang Beach.

The last time I was here was back in the mid 90's.... my golly how had it changed! I'd come here with my then boyfriend and a bunch of friends and there were only a few small warungs. I don't even remember the big concrete stairs leading down to the beach.

Now there were warungs & small market stalls selling t-shirts & sarongs and people everywhere! It was still a nice spot to have a swim though. The water was calm, clear & warm.

Padang Padang Beach

The girls relaxing after a swim

Nothing like a Bintang on a hot day!

Ice cream anyone?

We stayed at Padang Padang for just over and hour then went looking for Wayan who had parked his van in the car park across the road. Next stop was Uluwatu.

My dentist back home who had stayed at Nirvana Biru, told me about a great afternoon he had at Uluwatu one Sunday. It was at a place called Single Fin which was next to Blue Point Bay Villas. On Sundays at sunset they have live reggae music. So this year I was determined to check it out.

Now for those that have already read my previous blogs, you might remember I had organised this afternoon out for the Sunday but Roomie was ill. I contacted Single Fin to ask if the reggae band played any other day other than a Sunday. They had written on their Facebook page that they planned to start having live music on Wednesdays. So we rescheduled our trip with our driver for the Wednesday. As luck would have it, the band was setting up when we arrived.

Perfect view from Single Fin, Uluwatu

We all settled in with a few drinks overlooking the ocean. The view from Single Fin is amazing, especially if the surf is good.

Ready for some afternoon drinks

Looking down on surf at Uluwatu

Looking over to Blue Point Bay Villas

Roomie & I had requests from our husbands for some Ulu's t-shirts, so we walked down some stairs to the warungs below to buy some. We ended up buying the kids some as well.

Looking down on the warungs at Uluwatu

When we walked back up to Single Fin, the band was just starting to set up.

Setting up for the band

Band playing cool reggae music

So beautiful at sunset

Friendly staff

As this was the first Wednesday the band had played, it was relatively quiet. Apparently Sunday afternoon sessions get really busy. We stayed at Single Fin until about 7pm then went looking for Wayan. The drive back to Legian was pretty quick as we'd missed all the afternoon traffic.

When we arrived back at the hotel, we went in search of the others. One group of girls had left about 4pm for Jimbaran Bay. They were keen to try out some seafood on the beach. I gave them the names of 2 restaurants I had read as recommendations from TA. They were Menenga Cafe & Lia's. This group weren't back yet.

One lady stayed behind for the afternoon on her lonesome & decided to chill out. Come dinner time she decided to just walk the few doors up to Hitana. As we dined here so often she felt comfortable going alone. She ended up meeting a group of Aussie ladies and had a ball with them.

So when we returned we walked into Hitana & met up with her. We ordered some dinner & sat back to watch a really good covers band playing. They sent out requests to all the tables.

Love the frangipani's hanging down

Our friend who went alone to dinner mentioned to staff that her birthday was coming up... not for a few weeks I might add. Anyway, they still brought her over a tiny cake!

The girls who went to Jimbaran for dinner came back & met us at Hitana.....


The 'Jimbaran' Girls

After dinner we all got up for a dance...

Lots of new dance moves tonight!

When the band finished it was time to call it a night. It had been a long day......

Day 7 .... Bean bags, Tarot & Bukit