Day 7 & 8

We managed to get Isobella in the pool and she is starting to really like it!

In her new float - nice!

We went for an Italian one evening in sa coma and had a lovely walk back along the promenade, sun setting to the west and the moon rising in the east - here is a selection of the photos....

End of the day at Sa Coma beach.

Isobella and dad selfie.

Happy girl to be with mum.

Blue eyes is back

Levitating baby - no help (honest)

Family selfies

Moonshine 

Sarah's photographic expertise...

God save the stroller!

Day 6 Calla Millor

Another hot day and a 4 mile walk to Calla millor for tapas lunch which was delicious.

View from the tapas bar...

A rather large promenade to walk along:

Then back home in the intense heat, blisters gained for a nice bath and shower

Days 4 and 5

Just chillin......

Days 2&3 Friday and Saturday

Well I can't actually remember what we did on the Friday during the day, but we did have a very nice meal at cafe de la mar - nice open air terrace with a BBQ for steaks. 

On Saturday we did a 4km walk on the headline around the coast to sillot. It was very nice and hot and we stopped off for a tapas and beer at Bi BA Bo - very nice!

View from the beach bar

Spotty dress - very nice!!

Panoramic photo of the headland

Tapas at Bi BA Bo

View from the tapas bar

Sa Coma beach 

View from balcony at night

Saturday night we headed to a Spanish restaurant el Sol for steak on the stone and paella and some nice Portuguese rose wine. 

Day 1: When in Spain........

Isobellas first trip away from the green green grass of England.

We set off at 0400 to Newcastle Airport to find that the baggage transfer was not working and we subsequently had a I hour delay to the flight. Isobella was very very good and did not cry on the flight. A two hour transfer and we arrived at Sa coma - nice hotel with large apartment.

Isobella on a Boeing 737.

Chillaxing with a bottle of water on the transfer bus.

Now down to the business of holiday fashion - reto baby banz and a flash of my new knickers!

Family selfie at the beach bar. 

The beach bar was very nice and had nice views of the coast line - time for Sangria and a few beers! We then walked up into Sa Coma and had some food in the Happy bar and restaurant pizza for me and chicken for Sarah. Isobella stuffed her face with fresh bread - she loved it!!! Back to the supermarket for supplies and then off to bed. Nice end to a busy day. Goodnight.

Monkey Business

Apologies for being slightly late with this post, but just as I was finishing it, I hit the wrong button and it disappeared into oblivion (deep breath and begin)

So we packed our bags and headed north up into the jungle to the spiritual heartland of Ubud. This was around one and a half hours transfer from Nusa Dua by taxi and we waited patiently in anticipation. As we passed through the rice fields we stumbled across the thatched hotel reception where we were greeted by the hotel manager and a nice glass of fresh beetroot and ginger juice. He explained about the local environment including the ongoing village Hindu festivals, visiting monkeys and singing frogs - this place was truly wild and we were definitely in traditional Bali jungle!

We were then escorted to our thatched villa as we waited to see what it would be like with great anticipation - we were not disappointed. Here it is.....






Our pool was fantastic, the bath tub in the middle of a pond with hundreds of fish was also AMAZING - the architect who put this together had created a masterpiece.

We then headed to the restaurant and pool area to be greeted by some friends along the way...


Wild monkeys wondering around the complex looking for food and a bit of mischief. Now this is the first time we have seen monkeys at large and they were fabulous - jumping, swinging and leaping from wall to wall and onto the guests thatched villa roofs.

As I sit here I am being accompanied by a frog who is taking shade under some grass around our pool - the wild can do funny things to you as I just made a passing comment to him a few minutes ago, to which it replied...... nothing of course!

So, to the main pool area, here it is .....






Again this looked amazing as it appeared as if you were going to swim off a cliff edge into the jungle! Incidentally this picture was taken at 0600 this morning as we had read about the jungle mist rising upon sunrise. Then pool is rated as one of the best in the world and I'm sure you can see why from the photos above. There was also a Hindu festival taking place in a local village and the haunting sounds of Balinese music really added to the atmosphere. This takes place once every 50 years so we were lucky to be there at the time of the nine day celebration event.

After a brief exploration of the complex, we decided to go for a 60 minute Balinese massage at the spa. This was the first time that I had been for a 'proper' massage and I was not disappointed - it was very relaxing.

Our attention then turned to the evening and dinner at the hotel. The menu was varied and we decided to go for the seven course tasting menu. I will not list out all of the courses but we have included a photograph below of one of them - duck egg on a bed of salt with haddock croquettes and asparagus - delicious!



This place has been pretty magical and we would definitely visit again. Now we pack our bags and take a five hour flight to Hong Kong on the 23rd for what will be a completely different experience. This is where we will send the next blog.

Location:Ubud, Bali - 21&22 May 2011

Seasick Sarah

After a nice lazy day by the pool in 90 degrees of heat on the Tuesday, we decided to jump in a taxi and head to Kuta which is the main tourist destination in the south of the island and once a Mecca for surfers. We did not know too much about this place except it's reputation for great sun sets and the place where the terrorist bombs went off in 2002 at the Sari Club and Paddys bar. A 1/2 hour journey and we had arrived - the place was chaotic, lots of bars and restaurants but nothing that really caught the eye. Security here was pretty unbelievable with guards outside every restaurant and bar. We headed to the beach in search of an amazing coastline but to be honest we were a little underwhelmed. We sat ourselves at a bar on the beach front and watched as the sun started to set and it became clear as to why it was worth the journey. Here it is.......






We settled down with a few delicious cocktails and food and that was that. Home bound just as the rain started. I could not help thinking about the chaos that must have ensued following the attacks in 2002, even more so than in New York. Bali simply does not have the infrastructure to cope and the stories on the Internet combined with visiting the actual place really brings it home as to what must have gone on that night. There is now a permanent memorial at the site of the bomb which is held in significance by both the Balinese, Australians and other affected countries.

The following day we were up early for an 0730 pick up at the hotel for a trip on a catamaran to Lembongan Island. An hour transfer by bus saw us arrive at the port, through security and onto the catamaran. Now this was a new experience for us both - a beautiful day, red hot and the boat was fairly modern with 22 people on board. A quick drink on deck and we were off. At this time the water was very calm we took seats up on deck where we could get good views. The captain then informed us that it would take two hours to reach the island ( one more than we we thought). As we got further out the waves got bigger and the catamaran started to move up and down more and more. It got to the point that every wave gave the sensation of going over the crest of a hill in a car where your stomach drops. At this point Sarah went very quiet. Then suddenly from nowhere, a big fat girl ran up to the side of the boat and started spewing for Bali - not very gratious at all as she flashed her big white knickers in the process. After 5 minutes Sarah admitted she felt sick and we headed to the back of the boat.

There were many sick looking people and the worst (of which Sarah was one) were asked to lie down while the Balinese crew performed anti-sickness massage exercises on them. "Christ" i thought to myself "this will be the last time we do a catamaran trip"!

Two hours slowly passed and we arrived. Snorkelling was first up and it was FANTASTIC - we saw angel fish and other bright coloured aquatic creatures and for over an hour we were bobbing round in the sea. Unfortunately we could not take photos but it was a great experience nevertheless. A quick lunch and bit of sun bathing and we decided to get the big boat home to avoid the outbound trauma. A great decision - half the time to return, a live band on board and beer - what more could you wish for! The picture below is of me onboard the Bali Hali supping a Bintang while listening to the Balinese interpretation of 'Living next door to Alice' by Smokey. "Alice, Alice, who the ?!&@ is Alice?






So back we made it back safe and sound and headed for tranquillity of the local restaurant for dinner. The next two days we would be based at the hotel for more R&R and enjoying afternoon tea by the pool before packing up and heading to the hills of Ubud on the 21/05. This is were you will read our next blog.



P.S. We got this photo off Facebook of Lizzie and Plunky taking the dance floor by storm at our wedding - we love it!




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Location:Bali - Indonesia 18th & 19th May 2011