Oh wait before I forgot, I must show you my mom’s weird habit.

This was what my mom did in that 10 days at Bali, washing bajus and showcasing it around in our room. Mom is a mom.

After dolphin watching we rushed back to our hotel to have breakfast before we leave to Ubud.

The most decent hotel breakfast, I’d say. Danish and sausages, I couldn’t be happier.

Another Nasi Babi Guling while on our way to Ubud. Nasi Babi Guling is really easy to find, but for a really good one it’s best to do some research.

On the way to Ubud, I was sleeping the entire time so I missed out quite a lot of scenery.

I have this habit of sleeping a lot in the car during road trips but I try not to if boyfriend is the one who drives cause I want to accompany him. I’m a good girlfriend like that. LOL!

The narrow walkway to our hotel, Jati 3 Bungalows.

Just bricks and light bulb but I love.

We were greeted by this cute statue at the entrance. It was Nyepi Day the next day which is Balinese new year, so they dress up these statue with hibiscus. How cute.

We stayed at Jati 3 for 2 nights in Ubud. And having a swimming pool is a must because on the 6th day we were all stranded. More on that later.

Our room with everything bamboo. Quite a decent place except there’s quite a lot of ants and lizards around because they planted a lot of plants around them.

Our balcony where I chill and play with my phone.

I do think it’s quite a nice period to visit Bali during March before their Nyepi day because we get to see and experience their culture that happens only once a year.

Balinese practice Hinduism and a fact that cant be deny is that they are very devoted to their God.
They give their offerings everyday and along the street, you’ll spot them in front of shops, stores, and houses.
Some of them even put their offerings on their car.

Canangsari, Balinese offerings. I try not to step on it while I walk but sometimes especially during the night, I cant see that well. I have to look in front, left, right, and at the floor to watch out for offerings.

Nyepi Day or Balinese new year is very much different from our Chinese New Year or our Calendar’s 1st day of the year.
Instead of celebrating it with fireworks, visiting houses and making lots of noises, it is their Silent Day.
No one is allow on the street on Nyepi Day to the extend where even the airport is close down on that particular day.
Only Pecalangs or the security man is allow on the street to make sure that no one else will be on the street.
Light and noise needs to be keep minimum.
Some of the Balinese fast, and some do not talk at all for the whole day. It is also some sort of like a day for them to reflect.

Which is also why picking a hotel with a pool is very much needed, to keep us from being bored to death.
Thank God for wifi and my brother’s Ipad too, we get to watch PPS.

There were a lot of Ogoh-ogohs on the street.

Ogoh-ogoh are statues built for the Ngrupuk parade, which takes place on the eve of Nyepi day in Bali, Indonesia. Ogoh-ogoh normally have form of mythological beings, mostly demons. As with many creative endeavours based on Balinese Hinduism, the creation of Ogoh-ogoh represents spiritual aims inspired by Hindu philosophy.

No joke, some of the Ogoh-ogohs really look scary and creative.

I especially like this one, hahahaha. There’s even hair on the armpit, LOL!

My brother with two Ogoh-ogohs at Ubud’s field.

Some were made from sponge and they’re really light.

After walking around oohing and aahing over Ogoh-ogohs we stopped by for some gelatos.

Mom was absolutely enjoying her pandan gelato.

While I picked Pistachio ice-cream which is really good. Will be better if it weren’t so sweet.

Balinese temple.

Funny thing is, people in Bali just do not use umbrella under the hot sun but they do have umbrellas around temples to shade statues.

An old lady praying.

I have to buy myself a hideous hat to shade my face from the sun.

And then that’s me again trying to place my lego man.

We then walked around for a little while more at the market before going back for a rest.

Bali sells dicks everywhere as souvenirs.

Some arts sold inside a lane.

And some stones with faces along the way.

Will blog on my awesome dinner that night on the next post.
Too much stuff going on now, my laptop is very laggy.

JATI 3 BUNGALOWS
Monkey Forest St. Ubud-Bali
Phone/Fax: 62-361-973249, 62-361-977101
Email: jati3_ubud@yahoo.com

Day 4 is all about sitting in a car for 3 hours and staying in.
We head to Lovina from Kuta, just to catch a few glimpse of dolphins jumping up naturally from the sea.

Lovina manages to exude a sedate charm even as the number of hotels and other tourist places grows. Almost merging into Singaraja to the west, the town is really a string of coastal villages – Pemaron, Tukad Mungga, Anturan, Kalibukbuk, Kaliasem and Temukus – that have taken on this collective name.

Lovina is a convenient base for trips around the north coast or the central mountains. The beaches are made up of washed-out grey and black volcanic sand, and they are mostly clean near the hotel areas, but generally unspectacular. Reefs protect the shore, so the water is usually calm and clear.

I’ve heard of a place like such from my bff when she told me she drove a few hours up the hill just to watch dolphins.
I thought to myself, ‘crazy meh, so many hours just to see dolphins’ but I was wrong.
It was extremely worth it.

#1 At Lovina, we stayed in Padmasari Resort which cost the most among five hotels.

#2 Padmasari’s lobby.

#3 Nest like ornaments.

#4 Where we had our dinner and breakfast, facing the sea.

#5 The best part is of course their infinity pool and in this pool I found out that I can actually swim if I put my goggles on. Heh.

#6 Walkway into our room.

#7 We paid about Rm200+ for a night.

#8 The most spacious and cleanliest room among all the hotels we stayed in Bali.

#9

#10 Stayed in to chillax and have a swim. (:

#11 Mom came out with a swimming cap and my brother and I cant help but laugh at her. Olympian wanna be.

#12

#13 Meows.

#14 Reflection from the pool when the sun was setting. Just beautiful.

We had dinner in the hotel and rest early seeing that our boat will pick us up at 6 in the morning.
There isn’t a jetty right where we get on the boat, so we have to walk and dip our feet into the sea before getting into the boat.
So be prepared to get a little wet if you’d like to see some dolphins.

#15 There’s isn’t a proper seat on the boat and I tried not to move around so much.

#16 Look at that wood plank my mom was sitting on.

#17 If you look closely, these boats looks like spiders because they have ‘legs’ to balance the boat.

#18

#19 Dolphins!!

#20 I was really excited when I first saw a glimpse of them jumping up because to me that was such a rare opportunity.

#21 That’s when the sun rise above.

I kept waiting for dolphins to resurface again and again and once anyone spotted any trace of the dolphins, all the boats will rush over to that direction.
Which in a way I think that rushing towards the dolphins isn’t really the right thing to do because it will scare them away. :(

You can either leave to Lovina from Kuta, Ubud, or wherever during midnight or you can rent a room at Lovina like what we did.
We rent the boat from our hotel and it costed us IDR200,000 (Rm60).
To see something so rare, the money paid is definitely worth it.

#22 Took this picture while we were heading back and the sea water is really really clear.

#23 I even spotted a blue starfish from above but couldn’t snap it on time.

Lovina is a must visit if you want an unforgettable experience.
That four hour sitting in the car was worth it and so was waking up at four plus in the morning. :)

Take note: Dolphins will not necessary surface from the sea every single time, so it really depends. There’s no guarantees and no refunds. Also, do wear short pants because you’ll definitely get wet from below your knees.

PADMA SARI BEACH FRONT RESORT
Jl. Raya Seririt, Singaraja, Bali – Indonesia
Telp. : 62 (362) 3435750 / 3435755 Fax : 62 (362) 41947

I’m afraid that by the time I finish blogging my Bali trip, it will be the end of the year. /gasp
I’m only on the third day. T_T

On the third day, we booked Made Supmarjaya for half a day because our itinerary for the day was to go for another sunset.
Matahari Guesthouse do not provide breakfast so we went to Bamboo Corner Restaurant for some affordable first meal of the day.

#1 Mom was quite excited when she saw Fanta, telling us how she used to drink it when she was young.

#2 That’s what we do before every meal, haha.

#3 Breakfast was quite affordable but my poached egg was over cook. :(

#4 Lego man wanted to take a sip too.

#5 On the way to Tanah Lot.

#6 Love everything in this shop, the colours, cushions and bean bags.

#7 Upon reaching Tanah Lot.

#8 Mom acts like a kid sometimes.

#9 Spotted jagung bakar and I couldn’t resist.

#10 Quite a great snack.

#11 This snake scare the crap out of my mom, it’s HUGE!

#12 Me brother and I.

#13 Me mom.

#14

#15 Result from turning a dark picture into a brighter one.

#16 This is Tanah Lot.

Tanah Lot is a famous attraction in Bali and it is also a must visit for tourist.

Tanah Lot means “Land [sic: in the] Sea” in the Balinese language.[2] Located in Tabanan, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Denpasar, the temple sits on a large offshore rock which has been shaped continuously over the years by the ocean tide.
Tanah Lot is claimed to be the work of the 15th-century priest Nirartha. During his travels along the south coast he saw the rock-island’s beautiful setting and rested there. Some fishermen saw him, and bought him gifts. Nirartha then spent the night on the little island. Later he spoke to the fishermen and told them to build a shrine on the rock for he felt it to be a holy place to worship the Balinese sea gods.

#17 I wanted to go to the rock where people stand too but I was quite afraid of the waves.

#18

#19 This is so beautiful, even more beautiful than Uluwatu’s sunset.

#20 Very got feel wan. I look so pretty here because you cant see my face lolol.

#21

#22

After watching such a beautiful sunset, it was time for dinner.

#23 We had Babi Guling for dinner.

Babi Guling is somewhat like our Chinese suckling pig and you can choose different parts of the pig to add in to your rice. The skin is extremely crispy.
Somewhat like our economy rice too.

The restaurant I went for dinner was Warung Babi Guling Sari Kembar 99 at Denpasar but you can find a Warung Babi Guling easily at Bali.
The famous one is at Ubud called Babi Guling Ibu Oka which is highly recommended by Anthony Bourdain.
I wish I get to try Babi Guling Ibu Oka, so if you’re there and you so happen visit Ubud please try this restaurant.

Talking about Babi Guling makes me want to have a plate right now.
I LOVE food so much you cant even imagine. :P