Tuesday Sept 12
We were off very early - 7:55am SQ flight to SIN connecting to DPS. The SQ flight was fine as always - we arrived at SIN and had to transfer to Terminal 2 where the regional flights depart. After a couple of hours in the SQ lounge we boarded our SQ flight to Bali on a newish 787-10 in the front row. The nearly 3 hour flight actually only took 2h6m - during which time they provided a full dinner service.
On arrival in Bali at 6:30pm we were met by our “Bali Fast Track” guide for which we paid over $100 - it turned out to be totally not required - having completed both our e-visa and customs declaration before we left we sailed through. Our pre-booked driver was waiting for us - to our amazement it took 45 minutes to get to the Anantara Seminyak Resort - the traffic was horrendous.
On arrival we were both “shot ducks” after a short night and a long day. The Anantara was a bit disappointing - being quite tired looking - but we hit the sack and of course things looked a lot better in the morning. Unlike many hotels in Bali the Anantara sits right on the beach and we had a large ocean front room.
Wednesday Sept 13
The day started off well with a very good breakfast on the roof top terrace - it was a cloudy but very warm day. After breakfast we walked to Ku De Ta (a bar and grill famous for it’s sundowners which we had loved on our trip to Bali some 15 years ago). It took us about 20-30 minutes and we checked it out - looked the same as ever. As far as returning for sundowners or dinner we were undecided as we would need a taxi to/from as we felt it too dicey walking at night dodging motorcycles and cars.
On the way back to the hotel we stopped at an ATM to pick up some money - there was a CommBank one which rejected our transaction and one from an Indonesian Bank which worked and even let me select checking account - amazing.
We had lunch at our hotel - a shared panini - ho hum.
We did another long walk in the afternoon - the sun had come out and it was certainly the hottest part of the day. There is a nice paved path along the beach which goes for many K’s - the beach is lined with innumerable beach bars ranging from shacks to fairly nice places - all have sun beds and tables and chairs on the beach. They seem to be pretty exxy - $3 for a beer or $4 for a spritzer.
We needed a rest upon returning to the hotel for showers prior to sundowners which we had at the bar/restaurant next to our hotel - Gado Gado - it was hip hop and happening but we managed to snag a good table where we had a couple of half-price cocktails while watching a lovely sunset. We rolled on from here and had dinner at Moonlight - the rooftop restaurant at our hotel - to our surprise it was packed but again they found us a table - dinner was chicken (prepared differently) for both of us - not at all inspiring. Then it was off to bed early - jet-lag !!
Thursday Sept 14
It was a bit of a rinse and repeat of Wednesday. After brekkie we walked along the beach walk to a big modern shopping center (Beachwalk Center) in Kuta - Google maps said it was a one hour walk (or a 30 minute drive) - we made it in 40 minutes. We did a bit of window shopping then walked back stopping at the Double Six (a newish 5* resort) for a light lunch - not impressed !!
Later we went for a swim in our resort pool - very refreshing. We had sundowners at Gado Gado again - these $6 cocktails are quite addictive; then had dinner at a Japanese restaurant at a Involo, a nearby hotel. The dinner was excellent - with enough not-so-Asian dishes to keep us happy - baby chicken and Teriaki salmon.
Friday Sept 15
Last full day here before setting off on our Aqua Blu cruise on Saturday. We were up early so had a pre-breakfast walk - lots of action on the beach - beach bar staff setting out their daybeds, tables, chairs and umbrellas (which they take in every night), walkers, yoga classes, joggers, personal trainers, and surfing lessons. After breakfast we had did a walking tour of the “high street” shopping area - totally unimpressive to say the least - the only thing which outnumbered the day-spas was the tattoo parlours - the only high end shop was a Polo shop where I snagged a bear T-Shirt for about $50 in a blue colour which matches my pyjama pant pants (blue and white stripes). Hot and sticky, we had a well deserved lunch at Gado Gado which was quickly becoming our all time Bali favourite.
After an afternoon rest we hit the hotel’s ocean-front pool to burn a few laps. We finished off the day with happy hour at Gado Gado then dinner at Moonlight (the roof top restaurant at our hotel).
Saturday Sept 16
Boarding day - we spent our last morning in Bali doing a final beach walk followed by showers and a late lunch at Gado Gado. We had booked a car & driver for 2pm through our hotel which only showed up when the concierge flagged one from the depot next door. The 30-40 minutes drive to the port, where we were to board at 3pm, took a bit longer as our driver got lost - Dieter saved the day with one of the trekking apps on his phone. Anyway we made it in plenty of time - we boarded, had a glass of bubbles (FC and cocktails) seem to cost extra here - we settled into our cabin and unpacked. Unfortunately I had developed a sore throat and was not 100% but in true trooper style I soldiered on.
We had a briefing and happy hour then dinner - all excellent. We started meeting some of the other guests who, to our great surprise, were nearly all South American (Chile, Peru, Brazil and Mexico) some of whom were on travel agent freebies. The exceptions were ourselves, a dutch couple, a German couple (with their 19 YO son) and a Chinese couple. Nearly all the South Americans spoke passable to excellent English.