The day i almost died...

That early morning , my pathologist Mum needed some of my blood, after weeks of postponing,resisting and wise reasoning throwing all kinds from logical to illogical excuses just to get off the traumatizing idea of having my skin pierced with very very sharp objects finally had me surrendering for it was my last week already before returning to Italy 2 years ago..here u see Dad recording it all not to prove how age can still bring out the cowardness in me but evidently demonstrating that his second son(me) is really and still 'un-doubt-ly' terrified of needles..

Honeymoon gone disastrous?

Aaron: Hati-hati , jangan terlanggar orang !!
Driver: Hehehehehe..inggak..

Aaron: Kalau terlanggar, apa terjadi ya?

Driver: Kalau melanggar, bapak masuk penjara…

We were in a rather busy wide and narrow street as our chauffer with one hand on the wheel and the other sms-ing , madly manoeuvring the van overtaking and same time avoiding coming and incoming cars and bikes at speed of no less than 80km/hr..flashing my memory back during the very dangerously skilled tricycle scooter driver in Bangkok 4years ago almost had me thrown off the canvas roof (not mentioning the very low side-railing that supposedly to keep passengers ‘inside’in case of sudden missed curvy junction or fast swift turns from knocking down another pedestrian crossing suddenly from no where..)

If you think KL maniac driving is sickening to your stomach, guess again, you’re wrong !!. Wait until you see Bali. There are more motorbikes here than the combined hours of blackout in Sandakan of over the past 30years. (That also explain why only after 3 days here I began to finally figure out then why I see many vodka bottles filled up with ‘urine-ish’ liquid found sold by the road sides,.-they’re actually petrol for bikes pula).hah!

Aaron : Maksud kamu, kalau langgar orang, bapa yang masuk penjara?

Driver: Iya, bapak masuk penjara.

Aaron: Kenapa bapa yang masuk penjara pula? sedangkan bukan salahnya?

(Already this don’t make sense to me..how ridiculous I thought.. as I explained to my wife who was seated behind.)

Aaron: Honey, he said that if we knock down someone, the father goes to jail instead.. that’s insane!!

Cathy: Noooo…(already LOL) you go to jail… ‘bapak’ means ‘you’in Indonesia lah….

Then there was a burst of laughter in the van after I explained my confusion to the driver..hahaha..

Wedged between the Java sea , Flores sea and Indian ocean, perhaps it was unsurprising that the world took awhile to notice this little island of 2million people.

This is a land that draws thousands in fact millions of adventure and romantic seeking tourists from every city and sleepy parts of the world.

3 months has gone by since we had our honeymoon in Bali. This year’s new year preparations was planned ahead carefully as early as December of 2007 after I got engaged. So that had surely given me so much time to prepare and plan this romantic adventure escape with my new bride.

Arriving at Ngurah Rai international airport on new year’s eve few hours to countdown, we had no plans but to join the thousands that swamped the Kuta-Legian beach, which we got lost for 2 hours on foot earlier in mazes of confusing narrow-ish streets and blocks that looked almost the same as the rest, especially if its your 1^st time..(Once, I even got very lost riding a BMX when I was 16 years old first time in Tuaran town that had my new friend (Foo Siaw Vui) really impatiently worried waiting outside his parent’s shop)..As midnight reaches it peak, the whole city had gathered by the beach welcoming the new year, dancing, singing, performing religious ceremonies, and for most tourist like us, we flocked to the plenty of hot spots in the resorts, hotels, clubs, bistros and cafes along the stretchy beach to excite ourselves with the spectacular stunt performances and musical extravaganza by various famous entertaining artists. As the sounds of trumpets and horns fills the air, stunning fireworks lit up the skies in massive bright colourful explosions wowing the city, kisses flying and wishes thrown everywhere greeting the new year with joy and better hopes for many in 2009, we realize that it was our first new year after two years together and adding that to my personal count of nine years celebrating new year outside Malaysia..(think I’ll make it ten years lah then I go back kk for good..)

This island therefore boast a still balanced man-nature relationship despite of all the fast mushrooming development in tourism industries here which is the main economic income for most of the two millions Balinese. Due to the recent economic crisis the world is sinking in now , prices here are not that cheap as one expected if you plan to eat, travel and stay in nice luxurious place.. But the warm welcome from the nice and charming locals here makes you forget awhile about the prices, heat and getting lost again. This is a further reason to come back to Bali a second time.

We decided for our first adventure, we hired a driver from the tour operator not far from our paradise-like hotel that eventually has assisted us in all our adventures for the following days. A van veered in front of our hotel and a smiling man in dark batik appears. His name is Wayan, (also same name as the taxi driver from the airport)

‘Tanah Lot’ (bukan Tonsi Lot aah..!), a must place to go is like the Eiffel of Paris, Colosseum of Rome, Liberty of Big Apple, Tianammen of my ancestors, Taj of Spicy land, Hulk Hogan of Hollywood or the Jambatan of Tamparuli…. Wait.. I don’t see where am I going with this ?..... any how,..back to the disaster part..

Landing on this isle. One will not expect to see high rise buildings(no taller than temples),

modern infrastructures, supper mega monuments, but eyes will be amazed and mesmerized by the beauty of every particular details of traditional Balinese crafts-ship and carvings found on almost every inch of whatever, may it be in form of building walls to windows, roofs to doors, floors to gardens, lamps to furniture, stairs to ceilings, .. I personally cant even distinguish between a house to temples, schools to museums .. get what I mean?

Nowadays, the young generations seems carefree and disinterested in arts and history. Forget your dreams coming to Europe or the middle east in this case then..

A popular tourist attraction, Tanah Lot’s fame was aided part by its appearance and location just off the shores reachable by foot only during low tides. Just looking at this wonderful ‘floating’ temple with waves sweeping down it’s feet, spiraled steps leading up to the ‘shrine’, one would think it was made by nature itself rather than man. This is a not to be missed spot if you are here first time. Hundreds of visitors flock this fairly remote area by the seaside to witness this magnificent sight of Bali.

There were also scores of souvenir shops lined along the streets by the entrance, making some not to regretfully coming here.. it was packed with people and one can hardly take a steady clear photo..must’ve been also because it was the height of tourist season (advice is don’t shop here-go to Denpasar City)

Hitting the road in Bali might not be on most travellers’s plan as it’s relatively little-known. However , it’s definitely classified as a pleasant surprise, we had some very adventures driving cutting the countryside passing many villages. Which amazed me again seeing acres of sprawling rice fields. It was again my first time experiencing when our driver stopped for me to get down just to see closely the rice terrace which could be hundreds years old, learned that they‘re carved out of mountain side with nothing more than rudimentary tools and their bare hands, these breathtaking rice terraces are a marvel of engineering and a testament to Balinese people hard nature. I didn’t get tired looking out the window enjoying the pillowy green countryside rolls, watching passing villages huddle around rivers and animals graze happily in fields, while Cathy was already fast asleep.., couple of hours later, we arrived at Uluwatu. Rising over 100 feet where we stood is the famous Uluwatu cliffs arranged along the sandy coastlines. This is part of Uluwatu’s magical appeal and it can be felt as the sun sinks into the Indian ocean. It was a breathtaking landscape in what sixty seconds can surprise you from blue skies to sudden blown away deep orange clouded by red and yellow. Being at that altitude only to be rewarded with a impressive view makes you appreciate life even more.. admitting it was kinda romantic for me…shhhhhy lah..

On the way back to our hotel from late dinner at Warung Jogia,we stopped by a massage parlour for a relaxing foot reflexology.

Our fascinating next day we began at mount Kintamani. It stood in the heart of the island. We now have a guide and an experience Formula-One driver to navigate the hilly terrain. But before embarking on the journey to see my first volcano close up, we were earlier entertained 1hour plus by the Barung Dance performers. The show was fun especially coming from the rows of men seated playin live traditional musical instruments making it more alive, exciting and very dramatic.. thumbs up for them..

Oh my! I cant believe my ears, they begged for tips sweetly whispering to me while taking photographs after the show.. ,so I tipped. .. and that was the 1^st tip of the day. Wished also all Bali tour brochures warned all tourist that people live on tips here. (Shud’ve gone to Mount Fuji..)

Since Ubud region is famous for its batik making, we thought we’d pay a visit to a batik centre. There,we get to see how batiks are weaved using the passed down to generations traditional weaving machine and the process of hand print.Our guide which was quite annoying sometimes, which I need not his explanation for batik processing,(we learned in SRK oredi lah) kept goin and goin until I started doin the speed walking disappearing trick..(and it runs in the family)hehehe.. he didn’t join us into the gallery, remembering telling him that we’d take 10minutes only where we ended up spending more than an hour shopping lots of original baju batik, purses and scarves.( and let me tell you, the people can tell the quality of the batik.. I get lots of compliments on the street ..hehe .. what a show off..) while being attended at the cashier and the ladies who packed our batik stuff in nice gifts wrappers, cold cupped mineral water served, us seated on in-house sofa like we were VVIPs, had me again momentarily thought if the boutique personnel that came to our 1hour assistance should be tipped or not..? quick thinking., Another speed walk as I thanked them all…swoosh!! (as usual wife left trailing behind) hehehe.

I love paintings whether it be modern or classic,

I can just simply ‘transfixed’ my self at them for hours thinking what could have gone through the painter’s mind.

Our driver was kind enough to bring us to a nice gallery ,’Fine Arts Collection' http://uk.search.yahoo.com/search?fr=ffds1&p=fine+arts+collection+bali and my next trip to Bali would just be for my personal art shopping.In fact my room now has 10 frames nailed on all four walls, plus the 3 large mat-like world maps as well..

Famous for its wood carvings, highly skilled carpenters and builders, we also took the chance to visit ‘Karya Mas Gallery’ just to fill my curiosity about their so much talked about master wood art magic touch.

Before heading up to the mountains, last we visited the silver arts and making gallery, which I mistakenly thought that the building was a temple at first sight…

The ride out on the hills was magnificent, though it was long.We were amazed to see the restaurant by the side of the hill slope, it’s scary at first but you have to be brave and try not to get drunk on the platforms.

Rich emerald highlands, rising towards volcanic peaks,we found ourselves stood there by the balcony of “Danu Batur Restaurant’’ opened jawed, still unable to stay balance after the winding mountainous journey up. Having lunch was awesome just overlooking the valleys and lakes that covers the lower grounds of the Kintamani Volcano, the wind gently rubbing against our faces. Lunch was‘fulfilling’and fun for me if it was not for the thousands of ‘flies’ entertaining us with their diving suicidal feeds..given up,I allowed some to invade my ‘paid’ meal.(LOL)Lingering over coffee, we braved around the high terrace of the restaurant,and had Cathy forced to model..(not always maah!)

We drove pass many spectacular views of the mountain side. Hills seem like a giant field of mole hills and are everywhere. Some rounded, some jagged, others in all shapes and designs.

This took us down to the coffee hills. The ‘Bali Kopi Asli Manufacturer’( agrotourism ). We hiked up the coffee hilly grounds and enjoyed the beautiful panorama of the plantation terraces. Not trying out the various types of coffee ,wouldn’t have made my day satisfied after 8 hours of touring. And what more than to have a shot of the most Expensive Coffee in the world.. guess lah what?

‘’Kopi Luwak ‘.
What makes it soo pricey asked Cathy? ‘
’Well let me put in words of father-son talk’
’The mammal called Luwak, likes coffee but cant make kopi-O. So Luwak eat coffee fruit instead. Luwak tummy upsets, so Luwak make horrible stinky sticky messy shit in forest. Now, the husband(humans) very lazy, so wife angry at hubby, wife search for the Luwak pooh-pooh and get the coffee beans in shit. Then wife make good strong-aroma coffee and give lazy husband to sip..

Our last stop was the ‘Pura Tampak Siring’ (pura=temple). I had been very curious from day one to learn more about the temples here since reading about it in National Geographic. There, we saw many ponds, some with aquatic plants, some with synchronized colourful fishes shying away from cameras, some with smokey hot spring water oozing out and some had Hindu worshipers from all over world performing the‘holy cleansing bath’?I suppose lah..
The surroundings was beautiful,the air was refreshing,it was a pleasant surprise if I can definitely classify it.

Amazed to see too that in the temple grounds, there are these hundred flight of stairs leading up to one of Sukarno’s mansion guarded by Timorese (om-gere) soldiers in slippers.. (don’t ask where he got that wealth from)

After an adventures night in the city we had near our hotel,we decided to take the next day off to do some shopping around the city.

‘Discovery mall’ which is situated along the stretched Legian-Kuta beach was our first stop that morning.

I didn’t get anything there for I took the advise from our ‘annoying guide’ to do shopping instead in Denpasar city. We also took the opportunity to stroll down on the sandy beaches shooting freely with my lousy camera..

Denpasar city is the heart of the economy, trade and social of Bali. It’s a good place to mingle around with locals and to understand more of their unique culture and traditions.

The ‘Kumbasari’ 5 storey market is the perfect place to shop for cheap souvenirs from all kinds of arts, crafts, furniture or low grade batiks. Here you can also find wooden carvings stuff, Balinese kitchen utensils, lamps, frames and etc.. even 10 times cheaper than whats sold at Karamunsing complex ground level smelly-forever-black-drain entrance.

Back to our suite, we planned to have a romantic dinner along the plenty of chic-hip Balinese style restaurant-café-bistro.

We stumbled upon monument constructed in the crossings of junctions in the entertainment zone in remembrance of the tragic bomb attack which took the lives of many club-going tourist 7years ago.

Nights are mostly dedicated to shows put together and performed by very talented local artist in cafes, clubs, bars , bistro,open air restaurants and national’s own treasure.. the ‘kelab dandut..’.. unfortunately we didn’t get to see any street poco poco dance..(whats with this dance anyway?.lap dance I prefer still ..)hehehe btw , I did go see the ThaiGirl dance in Bangcock.(more like just boring pole playing ...but outfit was sexy tho.) Best thing also is that you do not even have to dress up to go out in Bali. Shorts and singlet will do just fine.

My advice to you all is that if you ever plan to visit Bali, stay at the Kuta or Legian area.. where you can do shopping, get entertainment and a nice evening stroll enjoying the sun of the beach.

Nusa Dua which is situated about 50kilometres from my hotel, boast a prettiest slice of the southern region of the island.It’s long stretch of beige sandy beaches,sprawling with 7stars hotel,
resorts,spas and golf greens making this region the Miami of Bali.

Missing Sunday’s mass, we thought why not we head on to the sea to discover what the waters can offer and fascinate our already over filled of 4 days adventures. Our tour in Bali wouldn’t be complete without stripping down to our swimming costumes at‘Mawar Kuning’ of Nusa Dua water adventure marine club. Chartering a see through glass floor motorboat for us only to realize 10minutes after anchoring in the open seas that Cathy almost drowned while we did the middle ocean snorkelling(this is not the disastrous part yet).

The boatman was generous enough to show her how to inhale and exhale through the snorkel and fastening the goggles while I, not having a clue at all for what had happened after a quick stunt he pulled on her trying to cover the embarrassment, was excitingly naming fishes already. The seabed view was not as expected due to strong currents and my face blocked by hundreds of colourful Nemo’s swamping all over me for the fish feasting time..Though i baited my buttock cheeks, hoping to glimpse a hungry shark or a topless mermaid, they preferred to stay low for the feedings.
After several failed attempts to lure Cathy to join me again in the warm bouncy waters, she preferred to stay on deck leaving me helplessly swept away by the currents, even getting rolled under the boat which left a slash mark on my right arm until today after me exhaustingly trying to save one of my flippers that slipped off, fast instinct reaction of remembering the payment and fine documents signed earlier for any missing diving items loaned to us. We also passed a few other couple-divers too which I think had some shares of Cathy’s near-drowning experience to tell..

In the middle of nowhere again, there lies the turtle island and it was my lucky day, not only I get to ride on turtle back, but posing very courageously with other exotic reptiles and rather large birds too.

By the way..dont forget to tip island, tip guide, tip boatman and tip tip tip.. Before retiring for the day, Cathy stole time to update her Bali journal at the marine club while I still very frustrated and upset about the cancellation of the ‘Parasailing’(parachute-sailing) sea adventure that I was really looking forward to due to ‘claimed’ bad winds. And that was the my biggest disappointment or disaster I’d call it..!! I insisted to stay, I waited on patiently for an hour crossing-fingers for a less hurricane-like wind, observing movements on land, water and air, yet still the tour operator knee-begged that I should give up and get a refund from my agent. Which I did eventually after long calls from the marina in my best broken Indonesian accent…
’Bapak,
mereka disini omong bahawa cuacanya buruk sekali untuk parasailing, bisa ya uang(wang) saya dikembalikan?’..! something like that lah I said….hehehe

If one were to look for sun, sea and surf, Bali is perfect for those under budget still..hehehe or relaxing by the beach with a good book, or a relaxing massage by the beach’s massage ladies for the less adventures ones..

When the sun goes down the streets come alive in an exhibition of lights, offering perspective to the city with its streets lined with neon-lighted cafes, restaurants, bistros, surf shops, boutiques, stalls, souvenirs shops and invasion of pedestrian walkways by non stop movements of seemed-lost tourist captivated in the mystical allure of what the night can satisfy your desires .
(huuuh.. that’s another loong sentence..) That evening , to protect myself , I body-sprayed insect repellent all over freely only to be head-to-toe massaged for sixty minutes, plus forced to strip down, clothed only in sarong later at the spa centre under watchful eyes of my wife who was also on the other bed getting same full body massage.(really full body massagae!!) Must she really be there ?hehe.. I wonder still who that eye was for.. me or the lady? Shocked and Surprised I was when the urut-girl suddenly hoped over my back and squatted on my butt for the pizza-dough-rolling massage move.. ouch!!crack!!.Hmmm.. The insect repellent must’ve given her headaches and funky thoughts I guess.. how embarrassing .. wished I had the ‘Gautier’(gift from Richard) on me that hour at least the smell was seducing like..hehehe.

Hunting places for our last dinner as the dusk rapidly approached, we found a nice bali-bamboo traditional roof style bistro-restaurant. I cant quite remember what I had but we surely enjoyed the liveband.

Since our resort had a pool, we tried to make it useful for our last day in Bali. I amused-off my synchronised water skills while Cathy and the resort staff on shift as well as some suntanning guest looks on in disappointment..

Most of all, Bali is great not just for the romantic atmosphere, shopping, fun at sea, and massages, it’s also a fabulous way to take time out to mingle with the locals, see how they live and how they routine their daily life.. and we certainly did that during our getaway.!!!

Share me your Bali guys!!

Downhere is the journal by Cathy

31.12.08 (WED)

09.45am - 12pm ~ airasia KK-KL

04.00pm~06.50pm~ arrived at Ngurah rai Int. Airport Bali - almost got cheated by the taxi driver. He wanted to charge us Rp250K=RM80.We walked out to the main road & managed to get taxi (the 1^st pak wayan) with only Rp56K=RM18.00!!!!

( While talking with the taxi driver, hubby had misinterpret some of the words in indonesian,e.g- bapak=you instead of bapak=father in malaysia.)

7.15pm ~ Reached Balisani Padma Hotel in jln Legian,

unpacked the luggage and went for our 1^st walk on jalan legian to go to the kuta beach - to join the new year celeb.

11.00pm ~ took dinner in the foodcourt somewhere at kuta beach. Crowded with people.noisy!

12.00am ~ went to the open disco (name forgotten) to watch the new year dance performances

~ Sesat on the way back to hotel, we took the looooooong way instead. =c

( Did the 1^st shopping ~ Dress Rp45K,amk's singlet Rp35K)

01.01.09 (THURS)

10.10AM ~ Woke up late.huhuhu

10.30am ~ Had 1^st breakfast at the hotel cafe.

11.00am ~ Get ready to go out.

~ Bumped into a tourist agent in a tourist booth at Jalan legian.

01.50pm ~ 1^ST TRIP~ TANAH LOT

- journey took 40mnts - driver is another

pak wayan which hubby didnt like.

02.45pm ~ Reached Tanah Lot - camwhoring - 1^st pura/temple we visited.

entrance fee:Rp25K- saw prayers performed on the beach.

- high tide so only can view the tanah lot temple from afar. - got big snake!!!yuck!

- a lot of gerai2. I bought album & hair clips. We had burger for lunch.

- I bought dress,selendang & T-shirts & etc.

04.45pm~ Leave Tanah Lot to Uluwatu to watch the sunset.- passed by Jimbaran area

( main activity of the people=agriculture/padi) - passed by a big area of bali university with a unique design.

05.00pm~ Reached Uluwatu -entrance fee:Rp9K- So many monkeys – one monkey grabbed my new hairclip!!!!!

~ Beautiful sunset~ we were at the cliff - we didnt go for the kecak dance Rp50K,boring!

~ Leave Uluwatu right after sunset to go back Legian street - traffic jam (ngecet)!

07.30pm~ Reached Legian Street and had our 1^st dinner at a javanese restaurant called Warung Jogja- tired due to the hot weather.

09.00pm ~ Had foot massage nearby hotel.cost Rp35K each of us.- then go back to sleep.

02.01.09 (FRI)

07.30am ~ Breakfast!

Chartered a suzuki van - 1 driver + 1 guide for Rp400K

8.35am ~ Off to Jalan Bypass Ngurah Rai to watch the Barong dance performance for 1hr15mnt

- forgot the entrance fee how much.- the dancers asked for tips! Ish!

10.15am - 10.30am ~ Journey to see the making of original batik - shopped at the boutique-spent more than Rp1m!!!! Blame to hubby.he shopped like a girl.hehe

12.30pm-1.00pm~ went to Jalan Ubud- the art area- stopped by at Fine Art Collection shop to check on paintings.

1.20pm-1.45pm~ Went to Karya Mas Gallery to see wood carvings.

1.45pm-2.35pm ~ Journey to Utara Tengah Bali - Kintamani the volcano-fruits stalls can be seen everywhere

02.30-3.55pm ~ Had buffet lunch at Danu Batur restaurant at the peak of the mountain so many flies!!! Expensive at Rp193K for 2pax!with service tax 21%!!!!!!!!

~ People selling cheap things everywhere, begged us to buy! Annoying!

3.55pm-4.10pm~ Journey to see the Bali Kopi asli manufacturer - Agrotourism

~ hubby with his 'taik kopi" Story.yuck!i cant imagine the process! (luwak coffee)

~ spectacular view of the mountain with trees.-gratis trial of various type of coffees - sold at tourist rate

4.45pm-4.50pm~ journey to Pura Tampak Siring -entrance fee:Rp12K each

~ Saw istana of ex-presiden sukarno at the top of the hill

~ shopped at the gerai2-they forced us to enter their shop.kena tarik somemore!!!!

5.50pm ~ Leave for legian street.

6.30pm~ Night walk at the city - dinner at a western restaurant.

03.01.09 (SAT)

10.30am ~ woke up late!!!! Breakfast.

11.00am ~ Went to the Discovery Shopping mall-all expensive- camwhoring at the beach!

11.30am ~ took taxi to pasar Kumbasari at Denpasar -journey took 45mnt - Rp45K

~ Shopped for arts & sourvenirs.

5.30pm ~ back to Legian street - rest

7.00pm ~ Diner at Warung Jogja again! Get hooked with the foods

~ Jalan2 at the Legian Street - Bought bikini, shortpants, Bintang singlet

9.00pm ~ Enjoyed live band at The Legend – hubby pizza for dinner - all RP77K=RM26 only!

04.01.09 (SUN)

8.30am - 0930am ~ Journey to Nusa dua beach for our water activities at Mawar Kuning.

0935-1035am ~ On the boat-did snorkeling- I almost drowned cos I dunno how to use the goggles & breath thru snorkels from mouth.

~ Beach & the sea not clean-

1035 - 1130am ~ Stopped by Turtle Island nothing special! Tips to guide:Rp13K,donation:Rp10K

~ RAINING !hubby so sad cant make it to the parasailing-claimed back the money from the agent

1.30pm ~ Back to Legian and had evening sleep!

3.00pm ~ city sight-seeing again -had body massage & manicure & pedicure .

07.00pm ~ Night walk at the city - Dinner at a balibamboo roof style bistro and enjoyed the live band.

05.01.09 (MON)

FINAL DAY!!

~ Jalan2 around the city -had final lunch at warung jogja again! - camwhoring

~ swimming pool session in the evening before off to the airport.

~ Reached airport in the evening and leave for KL-I was sick with running nose & badflu!

~ Reached LCCT & had KFC for dinner - slept at the seat-so uncomfortable!

06.01.09 (TUE)

~ Reached KK at 9.40am

~ Yuri received us at airport holding up card with our names written on it….