Merlijn Series 13: Wonderful Bali
Welcome to Merlijn Series 13: Wonderful Bali. This was the second journey to Bali during my internship in Telkom University this semester. Check it out pals!
December 7, Thursday morning, 9:30 in the morning we got in the taxi to the airport to go to Bali. After breakfast at Starbucks we got on the plane and landed in Bali. We went straight to the hotel where we unpacked our bags.
We rented a scooter at a local scooter shop and drove to the beach. Here we walked around the little shops a bit before going to a restaurant we have been before: Brazilian Aussie BBQ. It is a very good restaurant with unlimited meat! Afterwards we went straight back to the hotel where we relaxed in the pool before going to bed.
The next morning we got on our scooter and drove for over an hour to Bali Bird Park. We were just in time for the bird show in the restaurant where we got to see some of the birds and take pictures with them. After the show we wandered around the park, taking pictures of the beautiful birds and enjoying the weather. A lot of birds just wandered around the park freely, not being stuck in a cage, which is nice.
We continued our day with lunch at a local pizza place in Ubud where we enjoyed some delicious pizza. Our next stop was the Elephant Cave ‘’Goa Gajah’’. It was obligatory to wear a Sarong so we bought two in one of the shops just outside the cave. It was very big located in the jungle with a few temples located nearby. It was very nice to see.
Around 16:00 we drove back to the hotel to take another splash in the pool before going out to Seminyak beach for dinner. We had dinner while sitting on beanbags on the beach with live music played in front of us. Unfortunately though, it started to rain so we had to move inside and sit on normal chairs. Afterwards we drove past some of the small souvenir shops and headed back to the hotel to get a good night rest so we would be ready to go out again the next morning.
Saturday, December 8, we drove to the sound to see the Uluwatu temple. The temple was swarmed with monkeys trying to steal your sunglasses, water bottles etc. Luckily for us, nothing got stolen and we could freely enjoy the view of the temple and the cliff. One man however did not get lucky and lost his sunglasses, a local man then tried to help the man by offering the monkey a water bottle in return for the sunglasses.
Continuing the day we drove to Nusa Dua where we laid down on some beds in the sun for a little while. We got tired of just sitting around so we wanted to do something. We walked to one of the locals who offered water sports and we decided to go snorkeling and ride a jetski. The snorkeling wasn’t that great because the water was very blurry and there was only one type of fish. The jet skiing however was a lot of fun, both terrifying to fall of and exciting because of the speed and the high waves.
In the evening we went to a mexican restaurant called Aribar where we enjoyed some burritos. After dinner we went to one of the many spas in Legian street and got a massage of an hour. After 30 minutes however, the power in a big part of the street went out so the massage was continued in the light of small candles, which had its charm. Since there was no power, we went back to the hotel and chilled in the pool again before going to bed.
Sunday morning, we packed most of our clothes in our bags and left our suitcases at the hotel. We rented a big scooter and drove off to Lovina through the mountains. On the way we stopped at Ulun Danu Bratan and another local smaller temple. When we were driving through the mountains, we saw a sign with ‘’waterfalls’’ so we took the exit and went to the waterfalls. The sign said it would be a 500 meter walk but it seemed way longer, and to top that off, it started to rain halfway through. Once we arrived at the waterfalls though, everything was worth it, it was a small paradise in the middle of the jungle.
We arrived at our hotel around 4:30. Due to the rain and mud we were extremely dirty so we washed ourselves off and went to a restaurant nearby called ‘’the secret garden’’. This was a small garden with about 4 or 5 tables where they served delicious food.
We ended the evening in the whirlpool by the hotel, which was next to the ocean.
Monday morning, December 10. We woke up at 5:30 to go with a local fisherman to watch the Dolphins. There must have been about 50 dolphins swimming in the ocean just outside Lovina, it was an amazing experience. We were dropped off at the hotel at 8:00 to have breakfast before going out again to go snorkeling. Snorkeling in Lovina is amazing, there are hundreds of different fish from big to small and from black to rainbow, beautiful coral and even blue sea stars.
In the afternoon we went to the city Singaraja to see the big temple and the statue of Ketut. Afterwards we drove back, past our hotel to go to Oleh-Oleh Krisna 5, which is the biggest souvenir shop in Lovina. In the evening we went for dinner at Le Jaezen where we enjoyed some delicious fresh seafood. After dinner we drove back to Krisna, but this time we entered the funpark instead of the souvenir shop. It is a very cheap funpark where you par for each individual attraction/ride. We went in the evening because the park is full of colours.
The next morning we drove back to the south of Bali. After another ride of about three hours, with a few stops along the way, we arrived back at the hotel we stayed before. We spent the afternoon relaxing on the beach and in one of the malls. It was very hot so being in an air conditioned mall is very nice that time of the day. We had dinner at a restaurant near our hotel and once again spend the evening in the swimming pool by our hotel.
Wednesday, December 12, our final day in Bali. We read about a turtle conservation and education center in Bali, this seemed very interesting so we decided to give it a visit.
The center is run by volunteers who rescue and take care of turtles. It is also a place where baby turtles hatch and are brought up. At the center there is the possibility to adopt a turtle who will then be released into the sea. We adopted a baby turtle and named him Frankie.
In the afternoon we drove off to another mall because it was once again so so hot. We didn’t buy much but mostly enjoyed the air conditioning and cold drinks inside. Afterwards we wanted to get a Temporary tattoo so we drove to the beach and within one minute we had a local next to us which gave us our tattoos. Since we adopted a baby sea turtle that morning, I decided to get a small turtle tattooed on my forearm.
Around 5:00 it was time to go to the airport and get on our flight back to Bandung. This was our final trip here in Indonesia as we will both be spending the next 1,5 week either working on exams or final project for the internship. I would once again like to thank Telkom University for providing me with the option to travel through Indonesia and make all these amazing memories.
