Honeymoon Episode 1 - Bali

Bali was our 1st destination for honeymoon. We secured the honeymoon package way back in August 2009 during Matta Fair at PWTC. It wasn't our 1st choice of destination, but since we couldn't get a honeymoon package for the place that we wanna go ("Adik, tunggu next Matta Fair lah.. this Matta Fair is just for travels until early March") plus that particular Matta Fair was held in the month of Ramadhan (penat + agak malas nak go through every booth), we quickly secured the package to Bali for a fair price. After finding out the real price, we managed to save about RM600++ from the actual accommodation cost. Worth it eh..?

So we left for Bali two days after the reception by Husband's family. A quite tight schedule, it was for us. But everything went as planned, and that we wanted to utilize the marriage leave to the most optimum capacity as possible. A few colleagues who went there for their honeymoon gave their best tips, and their guide was all that we have.

Upon arriving at Ngurah Rai Airport, we could already feel the strong Hinduism influence in Balinese culture. The carvings of Hindu deities were everywhere, but they were not the same like the carvings we have on Hindu temples in Malaysia. They were more to the epic stuff (I guess!) like Ramayana and Rhavan (even Goddess Guanyin was among the deities featured, it got me confused!) For us, yep, definitely a new kind of experience!

A view of the Balinese carving @ Ngurai Rai Airport.

 Though I was not really sure if this was of which epic (Ramayana ada scene naik kuda eh?) but I must say it was a really magnificent statue.

The journey to Jay's Villa took like almost an hour (Bali traffic condition is almost alike to Jakarta. Macet!) The villa was located in a paddy plantation area in Kerobokan. Most of the exclusive villas were located there. As we arrived, we were served with welcoming drink, and then being led to our villa :) Enough reason to make us not go out at all! A few friends have also asked us where this place is. Haha!

 

Us, in front of Jay's Villa

 

 The bedroom, as cozy as it could get

We had our private swimming pool!

The lovely decorated bathtub. Sayangnya nak mandi..

The spacious + airy bathroom

The TV lounge beside the pool

We had our lunch first before..

.. going for shopping~~!! Weee.. @ Legian. Many handbags and surfwear shops to choose from, and of course, souvenirs and local crafts were sold here too. If you're a nightclub or bar goer, Legian is a great place to hang out with friends. They have bands playing at night too. Mat saleh ramai la kat area ni.

After the tiring walk and shopping, it's time to get a few minutes of rest. This was Husband's idea - me going for manicure (it hurt like ouch!)

And dear Husband needed foot massage very badly.. hehe.

After the hand and foot therapy, we went back to the villa to get some rest. Along the way back, we feasted our eyes with scenic view of paddy fields. Their harvesting way were more traditional, cuz it is mainly for household consumption. And as we reached the villa...

.. we discovered the pool was decorated with rose petals when we got back! How romantic..

Well, we were more tempted to have our dinner and not disturb the pool, haha. Nyum2!

We went to Ubud the next morning after breakfast. On the way to Ubud, we encountered many shops that sell silverwares and paintings, not to mention stone carvings as well. We stopped by this outlet, being informed by Pak Supir that this place had the finest handmade silver ornaments. But it was too expensive here. An ordinary silver ring could cost up to RM150! Kat Malaysia RM60 pun dah boleh beli cincin silver Giordano.. duh. So no shopping done here.

Here we were, at Ubud! (after almost 50 minutes from Kerobokan) We got ourselves good bargain for t-shirts and pretty handicrafts. Sarongs here were quite expensive, depending on the type of material they use for the cloth. After shopping, we asked Pak Supir to drive us to a nearby halal food restaurant. He brought us to this restaurant, Natrabu. Tasteful dining. They also have an outlet in KL.

We had our dinner that night at Jimbaran Beach. There were lots of seafood restaurants for tourists to choose from. Wooden tables and chairs covered the long stretch of the beach. It was definitely a lovely scene and a great dinner too!

Our meal.. nyum2!

and while enjoying our dinner, these guys entertained us with "Can't Help Falling in Love".. ahh.. schweettt..

 

The following morning, again we went to Legian beach, to say farewell before we left that afternoon. I managed to get my hair done and Husband got his massage at the salon that morning, before we rushed back to the villa, pack our things, and headed straight for the airport.

To sum it all, 4 days 3 nights vacation to Bali wasn't enough to cover the whole island, cuz Bali is kind of a big island (or maybe because our pace was not that fast). Spa services are cheap here, so take the opportunity to pamper yourself while you are there. I personally did manicure, hair treatment and full body massage during the 4-day visit. But I guess the villa made it a honeymoon worth going. Perfect for newlyweds! :)

Ok, next stop!