Bali Trip Nov 2013 - DAY 4

Hi again all... So this is my 4th day in Bali....

3 Nov 2013 - ( Ani's Villa, Ubud Market, Campuhan Ridge Walk)

After a few days of fun and uhmm... a little partying in Kuta, hehe.... it was time for us to move our butts to a more quiet and relaxed place... Where...? Ubud of course. So around 10am, we checked out from Hard Rock Hotel Kuta and went straight to the Plus Priority Kuta Lounge to board our 10.30am free shuttle to Ubud... Do refer my previous post on this shuttle service here ---> Bali Day 1. It took us around 35 mins to get to Ubud from Kuta.... The Plus Priority Ubud Lounge was exactly nearby the main entrance to Monkey Forest but we asked to be dropped nearby Ubud Market since it's nearer to walk to our accommodation in Ubud from there.

So we finally arrived at Ani's Villas in Ubud. Our home for the first night in Ubud. Phew it was quite a walk! Haha it seriously seemed nearer when I viewed the walking distance from Ubud Market to the hotel in Google map! :P Plus the fact that all of us were carrying our bags which were already filled with some new stuff bought the days before didn't help! Haha I was scorned by my friends for not arranging to take the taxi. That walk made us decide to rent motorbikes from the hotel right away! :D

NOTE TO ALL: If you're interested, Ani's Villa is situated exactly in front of the Bridges Restaurant right after the bridge on your right if you're from Ubud town. Bridges Bali Restaurant is on Google Map. Most hotel sites do not describe this so it is hard to find this place just based on their incorrect location on map of the hotel sites like Agoda etc...

Nice...

We took the villa which had an outdoor living area, outdoor dining area, a kitchen and 2 bedrooms.
The villa had 3 queen beds so it was perfect for the 6 of us. The villa cost exactly Rp1.200.000 per night.
Only USD 120.

The villa is built facing the stream down below...

Nice bed and rooftop. Check out that baby cot! Perfect for families. :)

The seating area just beside the pool. Another villa (that door) is just in front of the pool.

Really love the area. Perfect for relaxing after a few hectic days in Kuta. :)

More view of the pool area and beyond... Hehe. Oh there's a temple under renovation exactly
in front of this hotel facing this pool area so currently the view is a little uninviting. Should be
beautiful once the temple renovation is completed.

Ani's Villa is situated exactly in front of the Bridges Restaurant right after the bridge on your right
if you're from Ubud town.

One of the areas for breakfast. Oh yes the daily price includes a set breakfast. You can choose from
a few set choices mainly egg cooked to your liking with bread, fruit salad and a glass of juice.

The view of the villas and the currently on renovation temple right across.

So after a short rest in our villa, we immediately jumped into the pool for some needed cooling off. It was a really hot afternoon! Especially after our almost 600 meters walk carrying our heavy luggage going to the hotel hehe. The pool was really clean but was also deep! Think it was 2.5m at the deepest end.

We then went to look for some Halal food for lunch on our cool rented motorbikes! Woohooo! Luckily we had just enough brave boys who were willing to 'drive' the motorbike for the rest to ride hehe. So off we went. Btw the motorbike rental was Rp50.000 per day.

The Bali gang... :)

Me & my rider...

We found a Halal place to eat named Putri Minang...of course that sells Padang food. And delicious too. This restaurant is just along the main  Jl. Raya Ubud. When Ubud Market is on your right, go straight ahead along Jl. Raya Ubud until you reach Jl. Hanoman to your right. Do not turn right. Just walk straight ahead for another 50-100 meters and this shop will be on your right. There is another Halal cafe beside this restaurant. 

The usual selection of great spicy yummy Padang food.

My lunch with brown rice. Errr not liking the brown rice hehe. Tasted too healthy.

After lunch we went straight to Ubud Market... Ubud Market is quite huge. I would recommend at least 3 hours here for you to cover the whole area. Paintings though are cheaper in Sukawati I & II (there are 2 Sukawati markets nearby each other) so go to both and explore if you have the time... I did not go this time around but my friend did and bought a few paintings at Sukawati II..

Cool fancy colors!

A lot of shops here selling all kinds of paintings...

Ubud Market...

Ubud Market...

Good combination right?

Seriously a lot of tourists here...

After testing our bargaining skills, we went to Campuhan for the Campuhan Ridge Walk. Please read the Campuhan Ridge Walk in TripAdvisor and there will be hundreds of great comments and tips and how to go on this walk. We did not follow the walking route as we had our motorbikes so we rode straight to the other end of the walk from Karsa Kafe. I highly recommend doing this walk if you really came to Ubud to experience the quietness, greenery & scenery. When I was there we could only hear the sound of the river below, the birds and the grass caressing each other in the late afternoon breeze. Loved it. Just don't start walking too late in the afternoon or you will be walking back in total darkness hehe. Better to arrange a transport back at Karsa Kafe if you happen to be there after sunset. Early morning is the best time of course.

This is the path coming from the other end of the Campuhan Ridge Walk...

As far as the eye can see. The ridge in between to valleys complete with rivers. It was Bali Kuningan
holiday hence the many people (all teenagers!) who were enjoying the serenity with us....

The Bali gang...

Private villas...

This is Karsa Kafe. Your bonus at the end of your walk. Seriously good shakes and smoothies here.

Views from Karsa Kafe...

My mango smoothie. Superb!

Us at Karsa Kafe...

Sunset at Karsa Kafe...

From Karsa Kafe we went straight for dinner. We chose the Halal restaurant right beside where we had lunch today. Please refer above for directions.

This is the Grilled Chicken (Ayam Bakar) with brown rice. What's with Ubudians and brown rice? Hehe.
This set comes with a glass of ice lemon tea and vegetable soup. Rp30.000.

This is my chicken cooked in coconut cream. Yummy! Just ate this by itself. Say no to brown rice! :P

Since we were in Ubud where there really were a lot of cool chick cafes to hangout at, we decided to just spend the rest of the night at this cafe simply named "Kafe". Seriously. Just imagine the confusion every time you are talking about going to this place with your friends. "Lets go hang out at Kafe tonight" "Which cafe?" "You knowww....the Kafe" "Uhmmm but which cafe????" "The cafe is called Kafe!" "Seriously man...this is not helping" "Dammit its Kafe with a K!" "Owhhhhh!". Well.... Anyways...the cafe is seriously cool and cozy with their wooden furniture and fluffy cushions. They offer a lot of drinks to choose from and quite a number of healthy drinks too! Food menu were quite interesting too. All of our drinks were really good. The cake too tasted great! I tasted the Brownies with Ice Cream. Very moist, sweet but slightly bitter chocolaty taste if you're into it. I know I am. And my drink was Banana Milkshake. So good the next day I ordered the same again! :)

They receive a lot of good reviews in TripAdvisor. And here's a link to their sort of website ---> Kafe, Ubud Oh if you fancy going here...it's at Jl Hanoman 44b...it's almost towards the end of Jl. Hanoman on your left if you are from Jl. Raya Ubud...

The 2 storey Kafe. :)

Cozy...

Some of the drinks menu...

Sounds interesting...

Yummy looking desserts!

Just love the place...

That's all for day 4 in Bali.... to be continued with day 5....see you again soon! :)

Bali Trip Nov 2013 - DAY 3

Hey hey heyyy! Welcomeee! This is my Day 3 in Bali...

Ok so since the Bali Plus Priority shuttle (refer Bali Day 1 ) that we had been using did not go to some of the places that we want to such as shopping in Pasar Sukawati (this is a must!!!), we had to look for a driver + van for 1 day to cover all that other places. We were lucky to have found a "supir" (driver + van) that still charges the normal rates as per 3,4 years ago. Nowadays most "supir" will charge a minimum of RP500,000 / USD50 but we got for only RP400,000 / USD40 for 12 hours of usage of the van + driver including parking charges and petrol. Without even negotiating mind you. He just put that price... I didn't even have the heart to try to lower down the price anymore... Feel obliged to help Bali's economy (Awww so kind of me hahaha!). So below is the contact for our "supir" if you guys are interested. The "supir's" name is Andi.

2 Nov 2013 - DAY 3 (Tanah Lot, Krisna, Pasar Sukawati, Painting Gallery, Klapa New Kuta Beach, Jimbaran)

We started our time with the "supir" at 9am. Went to Tanah Lot as our first stop. Tanah Lot is actually one of the attractions that the Bali Plus Priority shuttle go so since in my initial itinerary is to go to Tanah Lot using the shuttle on Day 3, we decided to include also Tanah Lot using the "supir" so we would not miss out on this very beautiful and picturesque temple located by the sea lined by cliffs overlooking the mesmerizing view of sunset (if you're there at 6pm)... If you can, try to organize your itinerary and discuss with your "supir" so that you arrive at Tanah Lot for the sunset. You will not regret it.

The view towards the temple from the viewing point. During high tide, the path to the temple will be totally submerged underwater and the temple will be an island for a few hours. :)

Please be cautious when trying to take pictures on the rocks right in front of the temple. It's very slippery and please be wary of the oncoming waves. When I was there some tourists got wet when huge waves came crashing at them. A little entertaining actually to be on the viewpoint watching those tourists scurrying away from the waves every now and then. Hahaha!

 

A closer look at the temple...and uhmm me! :P

The view towards the other side of the viewpoint...

There is actually another small temple at the edge of that protruding (seriously? protruding? haha) cliff.

The entrance that you will pass through going to Tanah Lot temple.

Right after Tanah Lot we were supposed to go straight to Pasar Sukawati, the must go market for great bargain for souvenirs and paintings. But our "supir" suggested us to stop by another indoor market first. Krisna. It seems to be the new must go places for shopping Bali souvenirs. Things are said to be really cheap and attract lots of people. And yeah it truly was from the buses of tourists flooding the place at just 11.30am. Items sold are truly cheap. You can get a t-shirt for only USD 2 and other souvenir items are also sold here although choices are a little limited. I think I still prefer the more traditional Pasar Sukawati or Pasar Ubud where you have more choices and can really bargain for your chosen items. By the way, Krisna is open for 24 hours and is just 15 minutes by car from Kuta.

Yeah guess this can be the must go to place in Bali for souvenir shopping if you have extra time.

So next stop was Pasar Sukawati. BUT IT WAS CLOSED! For their Kuningan celebration! Arghhhhhhhhh! The actual reason why we got a "supir" was to go shop till we drop in Pasar Sukawatiiiii! Pity us. Huhuhu. So the "supir" suggested us to go to this one nearby painting or art gallery that he highly recommends (which of course actually means he is highly commissioned! :P) Since we were just given a slap to the face, so why not take another on the other side... Haha. 

NOTE TO ALL : Please try to avoid going to Bali during their Kuningan celebration since some shops will be closed. But not all though so still acceptable. Most importantly, do not go to Bali during Nyepi celebration since ALL establishments will be closed! 

So these are some of the paintings at the Wayan Art Gallery...

Simple...

Actually the paintings are of high quality but also highly priced...

Nice paintings...

Most of the paintings are no less than RP 1mil...

Some of the cheaper ones coz it's easier to paint the mountain. :) Forgot how much though... Huhu sorry.

I really loved this one! Close to RP 2mil if I remember correctly....

After visiting the art gallery we went to Natrabu Minang Restaurant which serves halal Padang delicacies. We asked the "supir" to bring us to any Muslim food and here is where we ended up. From our first impression of the restaurant, we imagined that it would cost us much but the price was actually very reasonable indeed. Really recommend all to drop by here for their Nasi Padang. Sorry I totally forgot to take the pictures of the food but don't worry they are all yummy! Price per dish is RP30.000 on average.

Very nice deco...

Only 1 other group also from Malaysia hidden on the left side of this picture... Place is clean and air conditioned.

Next stop on our itinerary is to Klapa New Kuta Beach... Klapa is actually a beach club situated on a cliff side just above a beach where the locals know as Dreamland Beach ( just mention Dreamland Beach to the taxi driver if he doesn't know Klapa and there will be signs to Klapa once you are about to arrive at the beach). It is very near Uluwatu too....it's around 1 hour from Kuta Beach...I was highly recommended by a friend who just went there a few weeks before my trip stressing that the views are truly amazing and the facilities posh. Well yes I absolutely agree. So the entrance to this Klapa beach club is Rp100.000 or USD10 and you will get a voucher of the same amount to be used for the food that you wish to consume in any of the restaurant or cafes in the club. If you wish to order more than the voucher amount then you can just add your cash to it. The use of the swimming pool is Rp30.000 and you can also deduct it from the voucher. Access to the beach is free of charge. Here's their official website for more detailed information ---> Klapa Official Website

The entrance to the beach club...

The view that awaits you once you step outside from the indoor area of Klapa beach club...

Gorgeous views towards Uluwatu cliffs...

Closer to the edge where there are stairs going down to the beach...

Multi levels of chill out areas...

Just rest and relax and enjoy....

Sun starts to set... Notice all the surfers waiting for their ride?

Nice...

Just before sunset we left for Jimbaran... I've read about the seafood in Jimbaran tirelessly and this time I came prepared! :) The last visit to Jimbaran left me and my friends feeling cheated. Hehe. It were our first time in Bali and without referring to any online material, we just went with what the driver had recommended (not knowing that they will only bring to the seafood outlets that they can get commissions to bring ill-fated tourists like us!). So we ended up paying Rp300.000 per person for exactly 1 piece of tiger prawn, 2 pieces of calamari rings, some slices of fish and some veggies... Boy were we all in silence when the bill finally came. All thinking what souvenirs we could've bought with the same amount of money I guess. That seriously soured our night for a few moments. But this time...not anymore! This trip, even after the driver talked highly of some Ganesha Restaurant, I still insisted to go to Made Bagus Cafe at Muaya Beach. Although not yet many reviews on the net, the ones that do, have only great things to say about this cafe. Jimbaran has 3 separate areas where there are a lot seafood restaurants built side by side. One of the area is Muaya Beach. If you want cheap but still tasty seafood, then you can try this Made Bagus Cafe. It's at the end of the row of Muaya Beach seafood restaurants on the right side when facing the ocean.

Take note of the number if you need it... Spot the lizard! :)

The view once you enter the beach side of the restaurant...

Some of the packages....Worth it!

Waiting for our food... :)

Actually the 2nd last restaurant at Muaya Beach... hehe.

We're full! Everything tasted great! We got enough prawns, squids, clams, fish and veggies to fill our tummies! All for only Rp500.000 in total for 6 of us instead of Rp300.000 per person during my last visit a few years back for less food!

Well... that would be all for Day 3 in Bali. Will continue with Day 4 soon! :D Take care all!