Heavenly Bali..

I think I've loved travelling since those days back in Uniten. Though at that time the most adventurous travelling that I've done was with Azah, exploring Singapore - Takashimaya included.. hehe...

On board the train to S'pore with Azah back in 1999...


The thing is, opportunities, money and time will always be factors that would hinder me from doing so. Hence, when I was given the opportunity to go to Bali for an all-paid-for conference, had some bonus money left to cover for some HRC t-shirts, fridge magnets etc and some time to kill.. I thought...what the heck.. just go for it larr..

Bali has always been one of the places that I'd want to go to...especially after having read Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat, Pray, Love (which by the way is simply a superb book for all women out there)...

Sidetrack jap - About the book: Eat, Pray, Love is a humorous account of Elizabeth finding herself after a bad divorce by spending a year in Italy, India and Bali.

Eat represents her four months in Italy, filling her void with food (pastas and pizza in particular) and pleasure (friendship and companionship) while learning Italian.

Pray is the four months spent at an Ashram in India in meditation and worship.

Love is her four months finding peace and love in Bali.

Though I was on an official business, I can't help to feel a little bit excited to do some exploring on my own. Did some research on the net for must-go places in Bali as well as asked Azah and Zett for some tips..

My overall review for Bali would be:
1. Places to AVOID - Kuta - the town is too busy and crowded.. the beach there, just skip it laa... u won't miss much except for checking out the surf dudes and chicks in skimpy bikinis.. so if you are on a honeymoon or something, STAY AWAY from this area coz then your other half would be thinking about romance but not necessarily romancing you... :p

2.Accommodation / places to stay - Hotels..villas...are abundance in Kuta and the whole of Bali for that matter..the hotel in Kuta that they put us up at, was just 4 star but it was pretty cool...nothing to complain.. of course if you have the moolahs, and you want to stay at somewhere happening in Kuta, then some options would be Ramada Bintang, Kuta Paradiso or Kartika Discovery.. I was lucky to also been given the chance to stay at a 4 star villa in Tanjung Benoa, Nusa Dua... the villa is REALLY nice...felt more like 6 stars to me... my recommendation: Nusa Dua and Seminyak should be the area for you to stay if you want some privacy and some peace of mind...

3. Shopping - I only shopped in Kuta... Quiksilver, Roxy, Billabong like bersepah kat situ... so, if you are like the surf dudes and chicks, takyah la bawak banyak baju to Bali and just beli je kat sana. I did'nt really manage to check out Seminyak... only passed by the strecth of boutiques which looked much classy than the ones in Kuta... ingat nak beli some Uluwatu stuff.. but in the end like tak sempat and then totally forgot about it...

4. Food - SUPERYUMMY SEAFOOD with romantic setting by the beach... Go to Jimbaran beach - Menega Cafe in particular... sedap and murah... tapi sebab ramai sangat orang, you might have to wait kinda lama for the food to come...Restaurants to check out - Sarong at Jimbaran..Asian Cuisine yang amat sedap.. wanted to check out Ku De Ta tapi tak sempat...

5. Beautiful beaches - yes, if you go to Nusa Dua - no, if you go to Kuta or Jimbaran --- these 2 beaches would be like PD revisited tinggal just campak like hundreds of surf chicks and dudes kat situ..

6. Spa - Did'nt have much time to scout around..so tried the one at Ramada Bintang, Kuta...hmmm... totallly mind blowing...very very nice... but forgot to take pics of the place la..though lepas tu rasa macam nak tido aje...

7. The pics that I think could pass as Bali Tourism website material.... check them out...

Was brought on tour/sightseeing to Karma Kandara Beach Resort in Jimbaran...a very private and posh resort on a cliff...would cost about RM3000-4000+ per night if I'm not mistaken.. that white Villa behind me is where Julia Roberts stayed at when she was in Bali for the film Eat, Pray, Love..

The private beach at Karma Kandara... to go down to the beach you need to go on this thing called 'The Inclinator' .. (you can see the rail for 'The Inclinator' on the left side of the pic)

Jimbaran Beach - just putting this pic to show the contrast between this beach and the one in Karma Kandara...

The Bali Khama - the Villa where I stayed at.. cool huh...

It's also by the beach...

Just nice to lepak... termenung or read a book... ;p

8. The overall feeling for Bali - Nice and would definitely be remembered! :)

p/s: Zett, if you are reading this, I finally ordered Krispy Kreme on Air Asia..will post pic as proof.. could not find it pulak.. only those 2 flavours haaa? (had vanilla and peppermint with choc)...