BALI 2009: Day 2

BALI 2009: Day 2 30 April 2009
7:26am... Breakfast @ the resort's Gabah Restaurant... the resort's second swimming pool is right beside Gabah Restaurant... I didn't see any swimmers there during my stay, perhaps due to its proximity to the restaurant... but I think its good when parents can watch over their children and still can relax at the tables...
Yummy~
the other food items were pretty standard fare...
right outside the restaurant is a tiny portion of rice crops... quite a common sight in Bali...
7:58am... all set for the day's outing... my 15-litre Ocean Pack has served me well for many trips... I always bring this out for day-trips or water activities... packs 2-person's stuff... Neat.
8:28am... inside a mini-van... We booked for White-Water Rafting the day before... from Dewata Rafting operator. Pamplets stated US$75.00 per person. However, the locals practice target-marketing... the US$75.00/pax is meant for the Ang Mohs; the vendor offered us US$74.00 for both of us. Converted into rupiah, its approx. Rp 800,000 for 2 persons. Includes Hotel-transfers, coffee/tea, professional river-guide, Indonesian Buffet Meal, and Insurance coverage...

Pick-up was between 8:00am - 8:30am...
We arrived at the nearby Hard Rock Hotel Bali... and while waiting for the rest of the day-trip members (who are usually late), we hopped out of the van to have our photos taken at the front...
9:41am... the trip to the white-water rafting site is about a 90mins drive away...
the vehicle brought us through the Bali countryside where we get to see beautiful scenaries of rice-crop fields...
... palm trees...
... vast fields...... and mountains in the far ends...10:00am... we ascent higher and higher up the mountains...and slightly ahead of the white-water rafting site, we made a stop at this viewpoint for a photoshoot... breath-taking view of Mountain Agung and the rice terrace below...
... and we take turns to get the driver to help take our pictures...
Loved these rice terrace...
10:37am... @ the white-water rafting site... was there for the initial briefing and gearing up...
there's a rice-crop field beside the beautiful that gave us a beautiful green...
Further past the rice-crop field... the gushing white-waters... the group ahead of us are making preparations to head out...
10:58am... our turn to board the raft... its 4-persons per raft + 1 guide. Sandals or Booties are the recommended footwear here, cuz there will be some parts where we had to walk calf-deep in the waters, and slippers might easier get wash away... "Nike" brand sandals were available for sale there...
the water is icy cold... and the whole trip spans about 14-Km over a 2.5-hour journey along the Telaga Waja River.
Regretted not equipped with water-proof plastic-bag for my camera, so I had to had my baggage stowed away with the river-guide... Good thing the operators had camera-men standing-by to snap our photos... its Rp 40,000 for this piece of photo... worth it.
11:54am... we made a rest-stop near a smaller waterfall (the group ahead of us occupied the bigger and nicer-looking waterfall, unfortunately)...Everyone took turns for their photo at the waterfall...
These fellas are from Singapore too... heard they're Malaysians working here... the 8 of us shared 2 rafts...
I initially thought "2.5 hours is a bit too long, any shorter trips?". But I actually found the trip so exciting I couldn't get enough of it~! Oh before I forget, this river course took us through 2 water dams... the first one which we had to get off, let the rubber raft plunge down, then head down 2 long slippery flights of stairs and wad through calf-deep waters to reach our raft again and continue the trip. The 2nd dam was a 4-metres high one, but we sat in the raft, and braced ourselves for the plunge... so exciting!
My Girl~ (^_^)> The safe, fast moving water made the Telaga Waja River a class IV river.
Here's a video clip of the scene... The water is tamer here... but still as fast... I really wondered how the river-guide managed to park in the rafts...

12:41pm... we reached the finishing point of the rafting trip~ and this beautiful rice-field greeted us...close-up...
Dark-coloured clothings are best for water activities, so your eyes doesn't get see-through from your wet clothing... keke...
then, its the dreaded 360steps of stairs up the mountain... the restaurant, changing room, our buffet meal, and the pick-up vehicle is right on-top... I never realise climbing stairs could be such a challenge... I had to stop like twice to rest and catch my breath before I could continue again... its actually more tiring than running a 2.4-Km. I could feel my heart pounding so fast I thought I was gonna die...
The steps were steep and there were no railings and hardly any stopping-points. Its also narrow, so you can't really stop anywhere you like cuz you're gonna block people coming up from behind... I climbed till this spot and really had to take a break...
had a breath-taking (pun not intended) view from up there... it was really high up there, but my camera didn't manage to provide the depth of the distance...
12:54pm... finally reached the restaurant up the mountain-top... 270ml Coke... shiokness after such a climb...
the view from the restaurant...
Here's the so-called Indonesia Buffet Meal... =_=
4:29pm... We went over to the Waterbom theme park near our resort... its a 10-mins walk... opens at 9:30am and cost US23.00 per Adult.
Right opposite the road, The Discovery Shopping Mall...
Long time no see...
The Discovery Shopping Mall is one of the largest shopping malls in Kuta area... you'll find everything there... it also faces the sea...
4:34pm... took a stroll along Kuta Beach... the sun is near setting in the horizon...
if there's something missing from Kuta Beach, its deck chairs for rental...
nevertheless, Kuta beach is beautiful~ the sand is slightly darker... kinda like volcanic sand...
Here's the panaromic view of the 3 photos above...Video clip...


The beach has very shallow waters all the way out...But the waves are very strong...
Perfect for surfing...
Caught a nice picture...
Long time no see Fa-Lun Gong Members...
5:02pm... We walked straight into Hard Rock Hotel...and mega guitar is a must-shoot when you're there...
Front lobby... the bands preparing for the evening's performance...
the exhibits at the hotel grounds...
We headed straight to the swimming pools...

Here's the picture from Hard Rock Bali's website. T

the swimming pool there is the largest free-form swimming pool in Bali...

features a pool-side bar...
and a unique sand island for volleyball matches and outdoor performances...
... and 22 pool-side cabanas equipped with tables, chairs and day-beds...
Went in to take a dip... xD
Dun laugh~
In case you dun know, you can hear music in the waters... yes they broadcast music into the waters... you can only hear them when underwater... and towards the sand islands, I really stepped onto sand in the swimming pool... pretty amazing...
6:18pm... Dinner @ Couple Bar (Jl. Kartika PLaza); Food-court looking cafeteria... wasn't really that hungry and already had a Massage appointment at 7pm nearby...
Bluefin Japanese Restuarant is directly across the road... target marked...
More retail shops sits across the road... the familiar Adidas and uardian Pharmacy... oh the "M" logo there is the minimart... its everywhere.
Flower on my table...
We loved coconuts...
Salt-fish Fried Rice~ nice~
Horse carriage...
Its pretty fast actually...
6:30pm... Headed to recce the area where we booked our massage (through phone)... and bought some Bali-made singlets at the shophouses below... 100% cotton. Good stuff. Just be careful of the price. Its selling at Rp 65,000 at the airport (approx. S$8.60). But its selling for twice as much out in the streets...

I bought these at Rp 100,000 each after much haggling... (thats before I compared the price later at the airport...). But they're beautiful anyways... and I've tested, the colours dun run after soaking in water overnight.
Oh there's one thing you should take note... the locals work in cohesion - we bought from one shop... another fella from the next shop helped us take our purchases. Then he told us to follow him under the pretext that he will get us a plastic bag for our clothes. Then he led us to his store, where he tried to sell us more stuff, while holding tightly to our already-paid clothes. We relented and bought some shorts... then the next guy from another shop took our clothes and grabbed my hand and led us to another shop~!We went deeper and deeper into the streets... like lambs in a street filled with hungry wolves... Finally at the 3rd shop, we stood firm that we've bought enough, and the shop fella merely gave us a plastic bag and our purchases and shove us out of his shop. I even had to put my purchase into the plastic bag myself~! Wtf~~~ I had to say "no no no~" to a fella who followed us all the way out of that street...

Take note of this shopping street; do avoid: Jl. Pantai Kuta No. 47. This is the place at Kuta Beach; you'll see KFC restuarant, and an ice-cream shop beside. Then followed by Dupa Spa which is on a second-floor up a spiral staircase. Avoid buying from the shophouses below Dupa Spa. 7:00pm @ Dupa Spa. Jl. Pantai Kuta No. 47. Booked a 2.5 hours top-to-bottom package here... Rp 185,000 for an Aromatherapy Massage, A Body Scrub (ouch), and Hair Spa...and I topped up our package with another 30mins Ear Candling session @ Rp 40,000. So that sums up to Rp 225,000 for a nearly 3 hours package... (approx. S$30.00)~ shiokness~