Beach Lounging

Day 13 – Watching the Clouds Go By
Waking up at a decent hour, we got ready and headed downstairs for breakfast. We were greeted by name at the hostess stand, and guided to a table. With English breakfast tea on the way we walked through the options. There was a full buffet but also a la carte options as well. Spying salmon eggs benedict on the menu I ordered that before taking a walk around the buffet to see what the other options were. K also ordered off the menu, but went with a sweet, not savory option. This in one large difference in our pallets, I enjoy sweet breakfasts such as French toast/pancakes, but will usually go savory. K will sometimes go savory (for omelets or eggs) but 99% of the time will choose the sweet option. The buffet was enormous, with dish after dish of options, including a juice bar with at least 8 different fresh squeezed juices, and a small room dedicated to cheese and cured meats. Filling a small plate each we returned to the table just a minute before our other food. Everything was spectacular, executed flawlessly and seasoned to perfection.

Stuffed from breakfast it was time to relax again (a really hard time we’re having here), but this time on some loungers by the pool/beach. We spent the next several hours reading/relaxing/swimming and just generally absorbing the picturesque scenery.

Craving some more European food for lunch we headed back to Seminyak Square where we’d seen a fish and chips shop that was pretty well reviewed. By the time we got there we had both completely gotten over our breakfast and were famished. The place wasn’t very crowded and we got our food quickly. Over the bar the TVs were showing a rugby match (presumably Australian), and I realized that I really do not understand anything about the game after watching it for the better part of lunch.

Back at the hotel we returned to the beach for another long walk. We followed the same route from the previous day, but made it considerably further than we had before. At one section of the beach I noticed a lot of small crabs that would scurry around the sand after a wave receded before burying themselves. The whole process repeated itself over and over after every wave. Feeling the heat of the afternoon sun we turned back to the hotel to cool down.

Wanting to see the sun set over the beautiful beach, we decided that once we had reached a decent temp that we’d head back down the beach to a bar we’d passed earlier and have a beer while we waited for the sun. We had a great view out over the water, but unfortunately it was a somewhat cloudy day, so the sunset was not as spectacular as expected, however the beer was cold, and the scene was still beautiful. Finishing up our drinks, we paid and then headed back to the hotel for some cold waters and AC. As the light faded into darkness, we walked back to Gapet for another delicious dinner. I again ordered duck (with a different seasoning blend this time).

Day 14 – Endlessly Sunny
Walking into the restaurant for breakfast we were again greeted by name and asked if we wanted to sit at our same table as yesterday. Surprised that they remembered we said yes, and as we were seated she asked if we wanted the same tea as well. This was the level of service that blew us both away during the duration of our stay.

Deciding to switch it up, I switched from savory to sweet, going with French toast with some caramelized bananas, along with a little plate of fruit, cheese, and some cured meats. The French toast was perfect, light and airy, but still had a nice richness to it, and went great with the banana and some excellent maple syrup. Overall it was another spectacular breakfast, and we took our time sipping tea while looking out over the ocean.

Once again we settled down on some lounge chairs next to one of the pools and looking out over the beach. Every few minutes a waiter would stop by to ensure that our ice waters were topped up (gotta stay hydrated). Most of the time was spent reading, with a stop to gaze out over the water every few pages. As the sun moved across the sky, our umbrella was also adjusted to ensure that we had enough shade. The time flew by, and before we knew it, it was pushing 2pm and we were both ready to make our way to lunch.

In my searches for restaurants in the area, I’d come across Motel Mexicola, a Mexican restaurant not too far from the hotel. Although it is a popular restaurant, we luckily didn’t have to wait for a table, and quickly had some icy drinks to help with our review of the menu. Lunch consisted of a shared app (guac) and then we each got a few tacos (along with another drink). Overall the food was really good, and the whole place was pretty cool-looking in a retro Mexican way.

Back at the hotel it was time for our daily beach mosey, so after a quick change for K we set off. This time we made it down to Double Six beach (a little over a mile down), before turning around and making our way back. Ready for some drinks, we took advantage of the free mini bar and grabbed some beers and snacks on our balcony while looking out over the waves. We sat around chatting and relaxing for a few hours until we decided it was time to head out to dinner.

Switching up our dinner spot, we didn’t head to Gapet but rather walked towards Seminyak center, passing our fish & chips spot from yesterday. Tonight we were dining on burgers at Bo$$ Man, a very trendy-looking spot. Placing our order (burgers, truffle fries, and some bintangs), we moved outside to the patio and grabbed two seats at the raised counter. The burgers took a little while to come out, but were worth the wait when they arrived. After cleaning our plates (and emptying the bottles) we headed out to walk around a bit more. We hadn’t walked around the mall much, so we went back inside to see what kind of stores and items were available. To my surprise, it was mostly the normal western brands and merchandise, nothing very exciting. Once we’d done our tour it was a relatively quick walk back to the hotel and time for bed.

Day 15 – Last Full Day in Paradise
Waking up we were both looking forward to another amazing breakfast and once again were greeted by name, but our usual table wasn’t available so we switched it up. Continuing my sweet streak from the previous day I went with a waffle, which again, was perfect. Deciding that today would be an even lazier day (if that was possible) since it was our last full day in Bali. We had a very long breakfast before making our way to our normal lounge chairs.

The weather had kicked up some larger waves, and it was high tide so the crashing whitewater was much closer than it had been on days past. We were in the second row of chairs, not being able to move up to one of the front spots. This turned out to be advantageous as not too long after we sat down that a huge wave slammed into the seawall and shot 15’ into the air before the sheet of water fell down smack onto the couple relaxing in those chairs. Luckily the water didn’t do anything than mist us, as all of our stuff was up on the lounge chair with us. The other couple wasn’t quite as lucky, it didn’t seem that they really had any electronics, but they were covered in sandy/dirty water. The pool area staff descended on us and them to make sure that everything was ok. After the couple collected their stuff and moved away, those seats were made off limits for the rest of the morning.

Not wanting to move for lunch we instead decided to stay where we were and order off the poolside menu. First up was an order of chicken satay, then some spring rolls, and finally a rocket and prosciutto pizza. Deciding not to have any alcohol at lunch, we instead inquired if we could get some more of those welcome drinks we got when we first checked in (lemongrass/mint/lime). After a quick check we went through several rounds throughout the meal and rest of the afternoon. Since we couldn’t skip our daily walk on the beach, we instead took a shorter jaunt down, walking far enough down the sand where the water from larger waves would just barely reach.

Washing the sand off of our feet we headed back to the room to relax a bit (having had a very busy day already…). We had missed teatime the past two days, so we were determined not to miss it on our last opportunity. Once again we sat down to a fancy tower of plates with some sweet and savory options and sipped hot tea while watching the sun getting closer to the water. Again, clouds blocked the best views, but it was still a very tranquil and relaxing time. Finishing the last drops of tea, we made our way back to the room and then headed off on a search for sea salt.

I like to bring back functional souvenirs (like bottles of wine, chocolate, or other edibles), rather than more stuff that will just clutter up the house. Thinking about the options for Bali, I had read about some small sea salt operations on the island, but hadn’t seen it in any of the shops we’d poked around it. Instead, I asked the concierge of the hotel, and they suggested a few spots. We took a taxi we hit the first spot (a gourmet food store) with no success, and then started walking our way back towards the city center. Striking out at the other spots on the map, we ducked into one of the larger supermarkets and by sheer luck they had a small food souvenir section and had a few small bags of local sea salt.

Our mission accomplished, we continued our walk back towards the hotel, stopping at Gapet for one last dinner. Again the ice-cold beers hit the spot, and my duck was delicious, but K decided to branch out for some fried rice that turned out not to be very good…(shouldn’t mess with a good thing) Back at the hotel it was time to start some preliminary packing before hitting the sack.

Cheers,
-N