day 5

Omelette,fruit and watermelon juice brekky and packed up the shopping.

Driver on time, not our booked John Made but his dad.

interesting building going up in candidasa

lagoon candidasa

lagoon looking toward beach

 So far so good, but holy crap when we got out of CD, he turned into Bali’s worst driver. Sat on the centre line, overtook anything and everything in front of him, held my breath a few times. Then on a straight stretch did this weird fast slow fast ,then slooow thing , I swear he was falling asleep, I looked in the rear view mirror, but ,you know how when you’re not sure, you don’t want to say anything? That was me. At one point I jabbed my hubby in the front, and they are both like..what? I said ..nothing..sorry. I said to hubby, oh, do you want to stop for a drink? Thinking at least the guy would get a walk around a bit, but he said…… I have water here….argghhhh…But the shock of me poking hubby for no reason seemed to do the trick, and he drove slightly better,but my heart was in my mouth the whole way. So ,if you use John made, driver, he is great, but if he can’t take you, don’t settle for his dad.

families off to ceremony

off to temple

mile stones

glad he was the pillion passenger not the driver

on the way to ubud, hard to capture with my camera and jack brabham driving

village supermarkets,so cheap

outskirts of  Ubud, very pretty

We are staying at Ubud bungalows, checkout here is at 12, we arrived at 12,so our room wasn’t ready. So,we went for a walk. It’s on Monkey Forest Rd,so lots of shops to look at.We walked a bit and came to the top of a hill, there is noooo way I would be able to walk back up, so hubby went down and I went back to find a restraunt that we had passed to sit and wait. Feet aren’t doing that well, so I’m walking short spurts and resting, go back to hotel and then start again when they’ve settled. Unless I cab it, im not going to see much more than an 800mtr stretch of monkey forest rd near the hotel lol Hubby is being very patient and helps me up and down those weird footpaths with the ‘ramps” at the end. Ha it’s the only time he will hold hands !!

Had some lunch at Sagittarius, a pizza, was really nice , and for the pizza we shared, a banana milk shake and 3 soft drinks was under 100k. nice 

 Came back to the hotel, settled in our room, which is large, nicely appointed, but no tv, so for us oldies that don’t do night life, we need dvd’s to watch on the laptop.

path in front of rooms

room ten, Ursie was next door!!

Went for a swim, well I dipped in, got wet, cooled off and got out, hubby was in for a while.

Went back out again, changed some money, the rate is much better here, 10.850. The difference is mad. Couldn’t get any better than 10.100 at Candidasa.

I have a small novel size pack of pamphlets from spas that were handed out as we passed, prices are good here for massages, facials etc. Going to get some “work” done here girls  should I risk a hair colour at one of these salon/spas?

Hubby at it again, found a moroccon lamp shop. Some nice things in here, so we have two hanging lamps to bring home now lol luckily material not glass. Very pretty though. Some really nice lights in this shop, though oddly there is a coloured penis lamp, wonder how many they sell?? I made my first purchase, my nickname is Bee and my new baby granddaughters middle name is Bee  so I bought little painted tin Bee’s one for her and one for me. They will rue the day they chose that name, haha, all my gifts to her so far are Bee related haha

Got some DVD’s buy 10 get 2 free for 100k, sadly transformers 4 and Malefecent are “bad copies” so they put them back on shelf and told me to choose something else. Who do they “allow” to buy them, people they think aren’t nice ? LOL

Put some laundry in over the road, $3.20 for 18 pieces, bargain. Lucky, I was down to last pair of undies haha

Decided to eat again at Sagitarious, silly us got burgers, they were nice, but they were never going to measure up to Yaris! 2 burgers, 4 soft drinks 130k. food prices much better here!

We haven’t stayed in Ubud before, only done the markets,wood carving and silver drive..oh there was that famous Babi Guling place….hubby doesn’t like to talk about that , he had a messy few days after it. We have found it busy, lots of people about, many cars and bikes, but not bedlam.It’s pretty lit up at night, and I can see us enjoying our time here.

Now enjoying a bintang in our room and going to watch 1 million ways to die in the west, preview look hilarious,so looking forward to that.

Night all 

Day 4

lazy lazy day today.

forgot to turn alarm off ..again... 4th day in a a row its gone off at 7am.......reminds me I should do it now.... of course it was other side of the room and i had to get up and turn the thing off haha, back to bed zzzzzzz till 8 :)

the rain was gone by the time we got up :)

chose the banana pancakes today, i'm nothing if not predictable! hubby thinks they do them better over in Legian.

Still a bit stiff and sore today and felt a bit off, so I decided to , well, do nothing :) I alternated between the bed and the verandah and read books and chatted to the kids on facebook/

Hubby, ,The cute honey haha went up to change some money ,a bit better rate today, but not much.Still, over 10 so all good.

A bit about us, I'm 51, with rheumatoid arthritis and hubby is 60 with a new hip. this is our 4th trip to Bali and the longest.We live in south west nsw, where its been a freezing winter with all the snow dumped in the alps not that far away. So we are feeling the humidity when it hits.It's been pretty good with lovely breezes, but every now and then it stops and the air goes dead, and next thing you can't cross your legs because the top one slides off.

This is going to sound stupid, but i haven't had a swim because the water is too cold and the breeze too fast LOL but it has been heavenly just to sit and watch the ocean and the boats coming and going.i'm going to miss that.

Hubby went for a swim, while i vegged.I went out to verandah to have a smoke (yes i know filthy habit) and here he has this nacho hat with 2 bottle holders, and a bintang in each, there's a tube that you can drink from lol He brought it from home, its some hangover 3 promotional thing lol funnily enough we don't normally drink much....

There is a group of hang gliders staying here at the moment, and so we were treated to some hangliding. Hubby wants to learn to fly now.............

Got picked up by Legong Restaurant for dinner, they had been so nice when i was overwhelmed yesterday, that we booked dinner. the lovely Alora, had told us she would be doing a dance and to please come back, so we did.

This is only a smallish restaurant, on the street, but nicely appointed.

On arrival you are given cold towel, some rice crisps and a ginger and lemongrass drink in a small glass. it would be a lovely cordial i think but too strong on its own for my taste. service was a little slow but a party of 16 people arrived at same time as us.

We both had sate's on the little burner with plain rice, 2 soft drinks each and fried banana and icecream., and the free 'show" price was 279K. I'm finding the prices a little dear. we are averaging about $25 for meals with 2 drinks each.we will be eating nasi goreng everyday by the end of the month if this keeps up.

While waiting for dinner hubby went across the road to an 'antique" shop, there was a tiny puppy 2 weeks old , kept him there a while . the price of things there was ridiculous and he asked about a blow dart. 1.2 milion ...what the? they are not very big. must have been dipped in gold....

The guy would not bargain, so left it there......will keep looking.

Back to hotel to get these legs up again, hopefully this will settle again tmz.

One thing about Candidasa is the lack of hawkers or pressure to buy, yes a few people sing out to invite you into the shop, but its friendly banter and you don't feel at all pressured. same for the transport guys, there are no taxis here that i have seen and so its transport vans that you look for.with the DK number plate ,its 20k up and return to your hotel.

Tomorrow is our last day at the lovely Candidasa, Tomorrow we are off to Ubud for 5 or 6 days. we have never stayed there either, only gone to the markets on a previous trip.

omg this was a lot of waffle for doing absolutely nothing all day!!!!!

day 2/3

Day 2/3

OMG we had the best burgers in 30 years at the Ari Home Stay & Hot Dog Shop!! we had read about it on the forum at some point,so Thankyou Thankyou to whoever posted. I died and went to hamburger heaven LOL seriously ,I don't even bother to buy them anymore, they always disappoint and at half the price for the two of us than our local pub it was also a bargain. cheaper than any fast food in australia too.

unassuming kitchen

waiting waiting

looks ready

rustic decor

taking selfies hurts??

I think the other pic was better haha

THE BEST HAMBURGER IN 3O YEARS SERIOUSLY!!

aaargggllaarrgh 

We had a walk around Candidasa, hubby ever the buyer of large things to send home, found a large winged woman goddess,

yes the fire is on we are back home and freezing

 and organised to buy it. Is it only us that get the chuckles and "ohhh more big shopping" when we get out of our transport back at hotel? he tells me he was told it is a limited edition, a one off and he's only ever seen small painted ones..i said "yes dear in this country of "antiques made to order" hahaha he assures me its true....now I'm a smartarse !!

didn't really walk far when my arthritic feet gave way, and rang for the driver. i feel like a bit of a stick in the mud this trip, but hubby said he doesnt mind.

The foot paths here are up and down not level, its a bit hard on these archless feet .

Came back to hotel and watched a dvd, we borrowed from front desk, haven't seen anywhere here to buy any. watched half of 12 years a slave as last person scratched it.....so will have to buy that one now, Malefecent is really good, loved it. very funny to see people stand up to head to loo while you are watching the dvd...

some banana splits ( hmm was chopped banana and ice cream lol)via room service and an early night,

day 3

up at 6 this morning, nice cool mornings, we have the evenings muggy from about 5pm, the days have been lovely with nice breezes. its raining now at 11pm, its been threatening since we got here on friday.

awake at 6, too dark,too sore, back to bed, till coughcough8.30...omelette again for brekky, I don't ever want to go home and cook again.

had a leisurely chat with an older couple while overlooking the ocean,then back to the room and watched a movie as still a little stiff today.

went to The Dining Room to watch the footy upstairs. our driver not available..soooo....omg omg a lift on the back of the managers motorbike. hubby went first, and then me, i was terrified but excited. hubby swears he is greyer than when he left haha it was fun and I can see why my daughter loved being on a bike , but its not for me, just too exposed and I'm glad she sold her bike and got a car.

SOUTHS WON YAY good game, but they outclassed the Knights.I Didn't have any bintangs because of the stairs haha Lunch there was nice and not exxy.

Did a bit of "grocery" shopping, i am still amazed at getting 2 packs of smokes, lge pack baby wipes,shampoo and conditioner and some snacks for less than the price of one pack of cigs in australia!!

Legs gave out and heat got to me at legong restraunt, the staff are wonderful there, brought out cold towels and sat me under the fan and turned it on. we are having dinner there tmz night now LOL

transport home again.

Hubby says he has had a good day, his team won, he got his large goddess and got tipsy on two beers hahaha we are such lightweights, there is a couple outside right now, who have been going all afternoon and still standing hahaha well sitting anwyway if we hear a splash we'll know she fell in the pool on the way back to the room haha

off now to facebook to see if the kids are freezing at home :)

Day 1 /2This is Paradise

day 1 

01 August 2014

We scrimped and saved madly for 2 years, which on a pension means no haircuts,makeup new clothes, no takeaway,no movies, no mobile phone,no trips to family even 4 hrs away, hardly any meat and no alcohol LOL but we did it!!

Staying at 2 and 3 star places so we can have a whole month away .we decided not to pay more than $50 au a night including breakfast but each place is lovely with that old Bali charm not modern and streamlined. We also decided to split our time and see a bit more of the island.

We left southwest NSW at 2 am with a chilly 3 degrees and rugged up against the cold, caught the train to Sydney and after a bit of a misunderstanding in direction, caught a cab to Isbis airport hotel from Mascot station, this turned out to be a much cheaper option than the train to airport and shuttle bus. Stayed overnight and up early for the shuttle bus to the airport.

We were first in line at 6am and so got our window seat we were after, no problems checking in, payed our OA and made our way up to wait...

Plane left on time, lovely Garuda flight, seems we ate and drank our way to Bali and with the movie selection it went quite quickly. A little bit of turbulance but nothing dramatic and a good landing. always a plus :) immigration done on board,

Bussed off the tarmac, straight to wait for bags, which seemed to take ages. Looked and looked for our name in the sea of faces, couldn't find it, couldn't figure out the free wifi to contact the hotel, and decided to go out the front as we could see a few drivers waiting there and first name i saw was mine :)

I think it was about a 2 hour drive to Candidasa where we are staying in a beach bungalow room at Puri Oka. its away from the main drag, but what a gorgeous little place this is. Our bungalow is an ocean view and overlooks the pool and a little veranda overlooks the ocean. It was bliss to hear the waves rolling all night. the staff here are lovely and nothing is too much trouble, not that we have asked for much, but you know, you can tell lol

Puri Oka

les

                       

Me

Les waiting for brekky

                                           

view from brekky

entry from pool area to rooms

                                             

view from patio

We just settled into the room , had dinner here at Puri Oka and had an early night as the last two had been interrupted for travel.

Brekky here is nice, the usual omelette or pancake, tea/coffee, juice and fruit platter. thoroughly enjoyed it.

Day 2

We had a driver this morning take us out to Jasri to the soap and chocolate factories.

monkeys by the roadside

the children were practicing for september 17 Independance day celebrations

 Nice people out there, friendly. An old lady who looked to have been chewing beetlenut her whole life, was really friendly, but sadly we couldn't understand her, our indonesion is limited and she had no english. she also had a pretty friendly goose,who was very vocal in telling us what he did and didn't like in the way of petting lol

the aforesaid goose ,the elderly lady wouldn't stand still

the chocolate is nice and we got ourselves some bali crunch and the equivalent of nutella only it is cashew not hazelnut.i don't like nutella, but the nuterisa is really nice.

Hobbit house!!!

choccy factory

such an intersting buildings

the Bali crunch factory work!!

soap

we watch the small demonstration

high tech gadgetry 

the view at Jasri is just beautiful

some Bali schoolgirls who were having photos taken on the swing

the swing

not me, ropes too wide for arhritikkety me!

We did some shopping in a little village on the way back and it is so much cheaper than the 'tourist' area supermarkets. Got my simpati card so i could text the kids we're alive, got 3 giant packets of the incense used in the offerings, 50c each.

Hubby decided he wanted two of the cock fighting bamboo cages to send home, our driver bought them for us and we payed him back, way cheaper that way. They are huge, we ended up giving one to our waitress,who said her husband was going to be very excited. We'll post the other one home. Just vegging now, hubby went for a swim, too windy for me, i'll freeze haha its actually much cooler than i imagined, which is good for me, not such a shock from the minus temps and big frosts we've been having at home :)

view from our room

writing up my Trip Advisor and BTF posts

view from the bed

view on the bed haha

now off to the no nasi goreng burger and hot dog shop :)