Bali – Day 4 (15 November 2013)

From my previous post I already mentioned that I only planned on getting a tour guide for a day which lead to two haha, originally I planned on spending Day 3 and Day 4 going to yoga class and exploring Seminyak on my own. And so the 2 days went down to 1, nung umaga I wasn’t sure if I could go to class because 1\ my attempt at finding the studio during day 1 miserably failed and 2\ I was afraid that my tummy wasn’t feeling well because I didn’t have lunch yesterday. But I said to myself I wouldn’t leave Bali without meeting Olop and attending his class.

Morning went well, I was able to have breakfast without throwing up, which usually happens when a get a case of the acidic stomach. I put on some sunscreen and headed to the beach just to chill. I saw some lounge chairs with umbrellas but they were for rent and not free for everyone to use, they charge IDR 50,000 I don’t know how long you could sit there for that fee. I was tempted but decided against it and just walked the long stretch of beach.  Before heading back I wanted to see the St Michael’s church because I wanted to hear mass, adventure na naman ito dahil away from the major streets yung church. It was easy enough to find problem is hindi pala catholic church yung St Michael but it was gorgeous nonetheless.

The road leading to St Michael's Church (left), St Michael's Church (right)

For lunch I went to Skooby Doo, I had Indonesian food for 3 days already and wanted something familiar that’s why I decided on Skooby Doo. It’s near Bintang Supermarket, you won’t get lost. They offer burgers and hotdogs with fries and the usual drinks. I ordered a Bratwurst, a side order of fries and Milkshake!!!! Total damage was something like IDR 75,000. It’s not a proper restaurant where there are servers, it’s more along the line of soshal na street food haha parang yung mga lumang burger joints here where you just sit on stools where you could see them cooking.

So after a half day of doing nothing I went home and watched some TV, class was supposed to start at 4:15 PM so I still had time. Before I left I felt a headache coming so inunahan ko na with an Advil. I headed out to where I believe the studio should be along Jalan Drupardi. I was standing outside No 7 Jalan Drupardi, this time the same iron gate was open but wala akong lakas ng loob to just enter. Buti na lang an elder couple came and so I asked if this was the yoga place, the woman asked me in turn “Olop’s? Yes this is it” jackpot!

No 7 Jalan Drupardi, the gate to Olop's Studio right across the elementary school

I followed them inside and I was transported to my lolo’s farm back in the day. Puro halaman at puno and I could cocks cooing. I was lead to an open air wooden studio just like what I saw on the internet. I was in awe of the place, it was the perfect country side studio.

I changed and soon a lot of people were coming, I was seated next to some Australian kids, and there were some people speaking Russian and then there were French and Japanese students. Most of the people in class were newbies and were experiencing yoga for the first time. Puno kaya yung studio but we all fit. Weird lang they had a dog roaming around the studio sniffing people as we practiced haha, katakot kaya takot ako sa aso so I was always on the look out. I must say I was at home the whole time, I have a strong Iyengar background so the class was nothing new to me.

Before class started Olop went around asking new people’s names and where we came from, when he came over I told him my name, which he couldn’t figure out he kept on saying Eric so in the end I just conceded and became Eric, the story of my life! I told him that I was from Manila and that I studied with Rina whom he knows. I guess Manila came out as Malaysia so at the end of class he was asking me directions to the Iyengar Yoga studio in Kuala Lumpur.

Ang bilis ng oras, after some time we were winding down until he finally asked us to go into savanasa. Nakakatawa so I was in Savasana, remember that this is an open air studio I almost screamed when I felt something fall on my arms, akala ko yung aso na yun pala Butiki.

I forgot how much I paid for the class, something like IDR 700,000 or 800,000. I was so happy to have attended that class, there’s nothing like practicing outdoors close to nature, there’s nothing like studying yoga in Bali and I told myself that I’d have to do that again. I stepped out with a smile on my face.

Next I headed back to the beach, madilim na and I decided to have dinner there on one of the beach side restaurants. I decided on eating at the Juice Bar, ordered Fish Curry (masarap!) with rice. Also, I noted that when they say fruit juice it usually means fruit shakes to us pinoys, this I learned on my last day haha.

Last night in Bali! From top left going clockwise juice bar, dhyana pura street, seminyak beach at night

Malamok sa Bali, so I never head out without mosquito repellent. For this trip I relied on my favourite Human Nature Citronella bug spray which smells really nice, I had friends tell me amoy spa daw ako haha.

And so that ends my wonderful time in this island, I went back to the hotel to pack. 

Hayyy dreaming of my next vacation!

Bali – Day 1 (12 November 2013)

The Plane Ticket

So I dilly-dallied before I bought my ticket, I only bought it like 2 or 3 weeks before I left. The idea of Bali actually just came up, I was set on going to Siargao because I haven’t gone to Mindanao just yet. I wanted to see the island famous for surfing, do a side trip to the island province of Dumagat Island then make my way back to Manila via Surigao. Going to Bali proved to be the better decision as Visayas including Northern Mindanao got pummelled by super storm Yolanda (aka Haiyan). The first time I checked Cebu Pacific’s site, the tickets were listed to be at Php 999, which came up to about Php 7,000 both ways after all the other charges but I didn’t buy the tickets just yet, I wanted to secure a hotel and a tour guide first. So I got busy at work and forgot all about my vacation, the next time I checked the ticket prices were blown up to Php 1,999 which totalled to Php 9,000 both ways after taxes and other charges, I bought it right then and there whipped out my card and entered my details. Ticket done!

The plane actually left on time! Cebu Pacific has been getting good at keeping their promises, we were supposed to fly for a little less than 4 hours but got there earlier, I think the airlines are padding the actual flight time so as to have a buffer and keep their performance indicators in check.

Changing Money at the Airport/The Taxi Ride from the Ngurah Rai Internation Airport

The main airport in the island of Bali is located in Denpasar, it’s one of the cities of the island. The airport is actually named Ngurah Rai International airport. FYI there’s no time difference between Manila and Denpasar. The airport is nice, it’s so much better than NAIA. Immediately you’ll get a preview of the architecture you’ll see on the whole island. The airport is new and well maintained. Process of getting out is a breeze, it’s not one of those airports that you’ll have to tail fellow passengers to find your way out. I immediately see a lot of tourists, most of the other airlines parked in the airport were Air Asia, mostly from Australia, there was one airline that I was not familiar with NordAir I think it came from Europe.

After the exit doors are 2 banks that changed money, one to the left and one to the right, I decided to go with the one on the right. My research told me to hold off changing all my money until I find a suitable money changing service i.e. not at the airport. Airport money changing service were supposedly known for having low exchange rates, so I changed USD 100 of the USD 400 I brought with me, I needed just enough to pay the taxi to the hotel. My USD 100 got me IDR 1,100,000 , yep I was an instant millionaire in the island! I’ve never held so much monetary value in my hands before. I found out later that this exchange rate was competitive at best with the other money changing services in the island.

So off I went to the taxi bay, first thing I noted were the color of the taxis, they were all blue. This didn’t come as a surprise since I did my sleuthing prior to the trip but I still got a kick out of actually seeing them. Next thing I noted were the taxi drivers knew simple Japanese phrases, apparently a lot of Japanese tourists come to the island, one driver even greeted me in Japanese which was weird because I was mistaken to be a local the whole time I was there. Taxi rates were fixed, you’d see a board where they publish just how much they charge per locality. I think I got charged IDR 150,000 to the hotel, which was along Jalan Abimanyu. The taxi ride just took about 30 minutes.

The Hotel

The hotel I chose was the Fave Hotel – Seminyak (pronounce Fa-pei), I chose the Seminyak regency specifically because I wanted to be near the Yoga place where I’ll be attending classes. They said Kuta is a party place where the beach was hawked with sellers and Seminyak is the younger more hipster cousin, haha you got me at hipster! I booked my room directly through the hotel’s website; I found it cheaper than booking via booking.com or agoda. They do not actually charge you the whole amount upon booking (or was it just a reservation?) although you’ll need to enter your card details including card expiry and CVC. They need this to check whether your card is really a valid one, you’ll get charged once you check in or once you check out, I swiped my card upon check in I just thought it was much less hassle that way.

Fave Hotel Seminyak

For a total of 5 days I paid for about IDR 1,500,000~ which was approximately about USD 150, it’s honestly a steal because it also included free buffet breakfast. Before I left Manila I asked the hotel if it would be possible to check in earlier because the flight got to Bali at 8 AM, or if not possible if I can leave my bag with them and explore the island in the meantime. They said it was possible and if they had a room available they’ll let me check in early. A lot of tourists apparently leave their stuff with the concierge upon getting to Bali, I saw a room specifically for this purpose so you don’t have to worry about your bag getting lost. They had a room ready for me so I was able to check in early which was good because I had a headache then, check in process was a breeze, the staff were really nice and friendly (something that I observed the whole time I was there).

The room was not big, also not small sapat lang. The room was clean and did not have funky odors, although the comforter had some stains. The room came complete with a programmable safe where you can stow your valuables. The whole toilet area was clean except for the shower stall which showed some stains in between the tiling, in short medyo luma na you can also see it in the shower head. The only thing I would ask is for a fridge in the room.

My room was near a water dispenser which was heaven sent because I saved a lot of money by not buying bottled water in the island!

Check the hotel's website here.

Check the hotel's reviews on tripadvisor .

Exploring Seminyak

After I got settled in, changed clothes, unpacked and rested for a bit I went out because the sun was out and I was fearing rain because the weather forecasts told me of cloudy to rainy days so kailangan samantalahin ang araw.

Seminyak is a shopper’s paradise, the whole stretch of Jalan Seminyak is lined up with shops. Clothes, clothes and more clothes, a smattering of art galleries and more restaurants. The streets are also filled with small Hindu temples and little offerings to the Hindu gods, the whole island smelled of incense! You couldn’t go 10 steps without passing by a Hindu temple.

I was hungry and planned on going to Made’s Warung which was one of the most recommended restaurants in the area according to my research. The restaurant is easy to find, it’s right along the major Seminyak road. Turns out the whole place is not just a restaurant but it also had shops (even a bookstore!)  and a stage for traditional Balinese performances. I only had one thing in mind to eat, Nasi Goreng, I also bought bottled water which I refilled at the hotel the whole time I was there until the airport people asked me to throw it out at inspection upon my departure. Service was fast, and the servers all speak English.

Nasi Goreng (Nasi = Rice, Goreng = Fried)

After having lunch I went to see the Bintang Supermarket, it’s a grocery store where all, expats and locals alike converge to buy supplies. Renting villas apparently was all the rage in the island so the expats had a lot of grocery shopping to do. I also went there to change money because one of the more trusted money changers was just outside Bintang. I changed USD 200 more to last me through the next days. The lady manning the counter was very friendly and told me of the modus of the other money changers that promised higher exchange rates. Do your research before going to Bali, some of these dodgy places promise higher returns, make you count the money and ask it back for them to recount it, when they return you the stash it’s already less than what you counted it to be.

Next I did was try to find Olop Arpipi’s yoga studio, he’s an Iyengar teacher who’s quite famous in the island. His studio was supposed to be along Jl Drupardi, which was a side street and lead to residential areas. It was hard to find the studio, all I knew was it was #7 Jl Drupardi, I saw a steel gate with number 7’s written all over it but it was closed so I didn’t have anyone to ask if it was the place. It was near an elementary school and a football field, I went in and saw kids playing haha.

It was time to check out the beach which turned out to be a disappointment. First off, the hotel was quite far from the beach, google maps told me it was just a 10 minute walk from my hotel to the beach but it was not! The sand was quite dark, pasensya na I got spoiled with white beaches dito sa Pinas. The waves were strong so a lot of surfers were surfing and also a lot of students trying to learn. One thing though, the beach stretched as far as my eye could see, ang haba nya promise. I tried walking the whole stretch but I gave up. I think Seminyak shares the same stretch with Kuta and Legian.

I had dinner at the hotel because I was just tired and didn’t want to think of anywhere to eat pa. I think the hotel has Pinoy chefs because for one, the menu had Adobo in it, second I tried their seafood pasta which was tomato based – Pinoy style yung sauce haha matamis kind of like what you’ll have at a kid’s birthday party. Third reason, they were playing acoustic songs by Princess haha pinoy na pinoy!