Bali, Truly a Paradise

Kuta Beach, Bali

I promised myself, "I will definitely be back next year!"

And I will stay for more than a week, three days was not enough. 

I have to see, feel, and enjoy Bali again.

Wibisana

Thanks to the change in my flight, I had to stay only in Bali for less than three days. 

After a day's stay in Singapore, I boarded my connecting flight to Bali. I arrived in Bali, past 4 pm and I immediately went to Gong Corner Guest House in Kuta, Bali and checked-in.

Gong Corner Guest House

Phone 081999700356, 082-147051475, (0361) 8781996 / Email - gong_corner@yahoo.com

www.gongcorner.com

Good thing the Bali airport was fifteen minutes away from my hostel. And I immediately inquired about the tours Bali offers to its visitors. Fortunately, I met someone (April Dippy) at the front desk  and she was kind enough to accommodate me in her tour. She was the one who arranged our tour and again I'm thankful for her kindness and hospitality.

April (my tour partner) and Parta (tour guide)

The following morning, we were fetched by our ride and our tour guide for that adventure. April was able to hire the tour for 375,000 Indonesian Rupiah (now, 45 USD or 450,000 IR).

Parta Bali Tours

www.partabalitours.com

fb page - Bali Destination Holiday

+62 85237237777

Our first stop for the day was at Wibisana for our water adventure. But April and I were not in the mood that day for water sports and marine adventure. We wanted to see and explore the beauty and grandeur of Bali. 

Wibisana Marine Adventures at Tanjung Benoa, Bali is the place to go for the best scuba diving, water sports and marine eco-adventures in Bali.

We took souvenir pictures at the beach and bid goodbye to Wibisana... for the meantime. 

After 20 minutes we reached our second stop for the day - Padang Padang Beach! 

While April was busy tanning and enjoying the serenity of the beach, I explored the beach. I strolled towards the northern part of the beach and enjoyed the scenery.

  Bali is simply amazing! 

The powdered white beach, pristine waters, spectacular view, world-class accommodations, rock formations and the rugged cliffs were breathtaking. 

  

Bali is a sight to behold!

Bali is indeed a paradise!

After staying for more than two hours, we decided to go to our next destination. There are other great beaches in Bali such as Uluwatu and Pandawa. And there so may tourist spots in Bali such as Gilis Island, Komodo, Ubud. Mt. Butuk Volcano, Kanjur and Sanur. But I have only two days to roam around in Bali. There will indeed be a next time (soon!)

After 20 minutes, we reached our third stop - Dreamland Beach!

Dreamland Beach is one of the best I have seen in my travels. It is a must that you should see this beach. Padang Padang Beach and Dreamland are totally different from each other. While Padang Padang has rugged cliffs and spectacular views, Dreamland's white sand is better and there are no rocks along the beach. It has a very long and wide coastline.

What a view indeed!

I walked along the coastline and admired the beach!

 Even the foreigners were enjoying the view and the pristine waters.

We did not mind ourselves being tanned by the sun....

We took our lunch at Dreamland Beach  and stayed for two hours. Afterwards, we went back to Kuta for our souvenir shopping. Thanks to Parta Tours for our ride!

 The market place in Bali is one of the best spots your souvenir shopping needs and they come at a very cheap price. You just have to be street smart and always ask for a discount. 

Before going to Kuta Beach for our sunset viewing, we went back to Gong Corner Guest House and placed our stuff. We rested a bit and continued our adventure. We reached the beach after 15 minutes of walking.

We waited for a couple of minutes, and there we have it - Kuta Beach Sunset!

After the sunset, we went back to the hostel. We were able to reach the hostel after getting lost again for the second time. But I did not mind the hassle, I enjoyed every minute of it. 

Thanks April for the shared adventure. 

Thank you Bali! 

Some Indonesian words/phrases 

Mahal - expensive

Mura - cheap

Trimakasi - thank you very much ( amust that you should learn this!)

Selamat pagi - good morning

Chanti - beautiful

Selamat datang - Welcome

Brapa? - How much?

Selamat jelan - Goodbye

Tida padas - no chilly

Maap - I'm sorry

Bagush! - good

Babi - pork

Sapi - beef

Ayam - Chicken

Tida suka ayam - I do not like chicken

kambing - goat

Makan - eat

Brapa barga? How much is the price?

Brapa banya? - How many?

Permisi - excuse me

Babi Guling - suckling pork

Ubud, Bali, Indonesia

going to Ubud

Given only a half-day before my flight, I opted to tour Ubud 

after 2 days of roaming around in Kuta, Bali.

I hired the same driver of Parta Bali Tours for our tour in Kuta, Bali. Fortunately, I saved the contact number +62 85237237777 and his fb page is Bali Destination Holiday (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100007467769225).  I paid 325,000 Indonesian Rupiah for the said half-day tour. 

entrance of the Monkey Forest

After 1.5 hours of traveling from Kuta, we reached Ubud. Our first stop that day was the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. 

feeding time for the monkeys

The Ubud Monkey Forest is a nature reserve and temple complex in Ubud, Bali. The complex houses approximately 605  The Monkey Forest is owned by the village of Padangtegal, and village members serve on the Monkey Forest's governing council. The Padangtegal Wenara Wana Foundation manages the Monkey Forest and serves to maintain its sacred integrity and to promote the sacred site as a destination for visitors. 

the various temples

The Monkey Forest of Padangtegal represents a sacred Balinese Hindu site. 

my favorite spot

The Monkey Forest contains the Pura Dalem Agung Padangtegal temple as well as a "Holy Spring" bathing temple and another temple used for cremation ceremonies.

I roamed around for almost 2 hours before reaching the end of the forest.

There was no time to visit the famous ricefields of Ubud and instead, I went to another famous spot called the "Ubud Market" and did a bit of souvenir shopping. 
]
Past 11 am, I immediately went back to the city proper to catch my 2 pm flight to Vietnam. Along the way back, passed the Chelok Village which is famous for its wood and stone carvings.

  

My Top 10 Southeast Asia 2013 Tour Pictures

Last October 18-29, 2013, I traveled in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. Along the journey, I took pictures of the best places in my tour and here are my ten best pictures:

Clarke Quay, Singapore

Dinner River Cruise in Bangkok, Thailand

  Elephant Trekking in Phang Nga, Thailand

Melaka, Malaysia

Merlion and Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

Jumpshot in Patong Beach, Phuket, Thailand

Patong Beach, Phuket, Thailand

Paragliding in Phuket, Thailand

SG Sunset River Cruise

Singapore

Batam, Indonesia

October 19, 2013
Batam, Indonesia
One-Day Tour

I was staying in Singapore for my yearly semestral break tour and I decided to go to Batam, Indonesia. The trip would not have been possible without the help of my friend Marian Gomez. She was the one who booked the tour at the below-mentioned travel agency. 

Kabayan Travel PTE LTD
304 Orchard Road # 03-26 Lucky Plaza Singapore 238863
Tel 6836 6768-69 / 6732 2511 / Fax 6836 6770 / Email: kabayan@singnet.com.sg

The cost of the tour was 59 SGD.

Assembly time for the tour was 7:15 am at Harbour Front Prima Ferry # 03/47 to collect our boarding pass. We checked our respective boarding passes for the name and details. 

There were four of us who joined the tour, namely: Marian, Maricel, Sheena Marie and I.

We were booked to board the Prima Ferries. Everything was in order and we were excited to go!

After that, we passed the immigration at Departure Hall at Level 2.
We passed the immigration in SG and went straight to the boarding area. We waited for 30 minutes before we were allowed to board the ferry.

We departed from SG to Batam Island by a high speed air-conditioned ferry. Along the 45 minute journey, we cruised along the islands of Riau Archipelago.

Upon arrival at Batam Centre Ferry Terminal, we passed the Indonesian immigration and custom clearance. We were greeted and escorted  by our tour guide named "Sastra" to our air-conditioned coach and proceeded to our scenic tour of the Batam Island.

Our first stop for the day - Chocolate House.

Then, followed by the 1st Factory Outlet (where one can purchase branded clothes like American brand Polo Ralph Lauren).

After, window shopping, we went to another spot - Souvenir House & Local Market (where one can purchase fresh food stuff, some local dried food such as Ikan Bilis, Udang Kering, Kerupuk Belinjo).

The best part of the tour was the Go-Kart Center.  The track is 395 meters in length, has 9 turns and 6 straights with access speed of more than 50 km/h.

We had to pay an additional 15 Rupiah for the kart for only 15 minutes. It was fun!!!

It was past 1 pm SG time when we went to Golden Prawn 555 Seafood Kelong Restaurant (12:15 Indonesian Time). The place is built with wood and bamboo along the seashore. It serves Indonesian traditional local seafood with a nice view of north eastern coast of Batam Island (from left to right: Sheena, Marian, Maricel and I).

Vihara Maha Duta Maitreya

After our sumptuous lunch, we went to Thoa Pek Kong Chinese Temple and Vihara Maha Duta Maitreya.  

The first temple is what they call as the small temple and second temple is the biggest and famous Chinese temple in Batam where one can pray for happiness and harmony!

After the temple visit, we proceeded to Batam Shopping Mall (the biggest shopping mall in Nagoya town which is famous for its souvenir shops, massage parlors, coffee shops, food courts, karaoke, hotels and restaurants).
We bought t-shirts, key chains, ref magnets.

Last part of the tour was the traditional Javanese Massage.

We had a one-hour massage and after that we went back to the Batam berthing area.

It was 6 pm Indonesian time (7 pm SG time) when we boarded our ferry back to SG. A one day-tour filled with happy and unforgettable memories of Indonesia!

Wonderful Indonesia! =)