HELLO YELLO!
Welcome back to another travel post, this time I'm going to tell my experience (and also some useful tips) while traveling in Bali. I went here on April with my BFF/soulmate/sister, Fiodesy Gemilang Putri. We already planned for this trip since late 2016 as our graduation trip, but there were this and that, we finally could do it this April 2017. We bought the flight ticket on January, booked the hotel, and found a driver to take us around.
Day #1
We met at the airport at around 6AM. My stomachache hurt so much because I recently had a diare/maag and I didn't feel really well.. We flew at 8AM, and arrived at 11AM. I booked a driver through my mom's langganan, and he was already there when I arrived. Then we went to NOOK at Kerobokan for our lunch. It is located in the middle of rice field which is very nice! They had cute interior design filled with white chairs and desks, with colorful and patterned walls. We had Ayam Betutu and Spaghetti Carbonara. In my opinions the food's taste is so-so, but the price is very reasonable. We were very hungry so we finished it anyway. There were lots of foreigners here - I was greeted by a women, asking where I bought the dress I wore because she thought it was very different but brave hahaha.
After that we went to Seminyak Square, because I read it online that it has musholla, and it was also very near the coffeeshop that we wanted to go. Arrived at Seminyak Square, asked the officer but there was no musholla. We walked around for a while, and it turned out that it was Seminyak Village that has musholla. They are very close, we could just walked there. And yes they have a musholla located on the basement, which is quite stinky and dirty, but well at least we could pray. After that we went to Titik Temu Coffee, which was recently being talked online. The place is nice, quiet, and perfect for chilin out. We ordered Snickers Milkshake and it was delicious, feels like eating snickers chocolate, and a bottled latte for take away.
After that we planned to go to Nyang-Nyang or Green Bowl Beach, but it turned out that the traffic was quite bad. We were going to watch Kecak Dance in Uluwatu Temple, and it was usually very crowded, we won't make it ontime because the beaches are quite far. So we went to Suluban Beach, which was also very beautiful. It is located downhill, so you have to go down some stairs to reach it. The beach was surrounded by rocks and cliffs. Lots of people are swimming, sunbathing, or surfing there. After that we went straight to the Uluwatu Temple, walked around the temple for a while, then waited for the performance. It was really really really crowded, thankfully we got a perfect place to watch the dance and also the sunset. People didn't stop come in even until the show started, it was really annoying. At first the audience sections are full, then people started sitting on extra plastic chairs provided near the entrance gate, then it also weren't enough - they sat on the ground where the performance would take place.
People sat there, making the circle where the performers would be even smaller and smaller and smaller. Beside that, during the performances people were entering and quitting the area, causing a distraction to the performance. It was very overloaded. But apart from that, the show was good - mystical, tense, and entertaining at the same time. After that we went to Jimbaran Seafood to eat dinner because we were really starving. We ordered sweet sour squid (cumi asam manis) , which included rice, fruits, soup, and vegetables. Then we went to the hotel, we were staying at Grand Ixora Hotel, located near the airport, very close to Lippo Mall Kuta & Discovery Mall. While we were on the way to our room, we passed the swimming pool and Fio really wanted to swim. I was planning to only accompany her sitting by the pool because it was already late night, but then I decided to also swim because it was quiet and comfy hahaha.
Day #2
In the second day, we were going to Nusa Lembongan yaaayyyy. I already asked my friend who went here in early 2017 about the transportation, highlights, boats, etc. At first I was hesitated to buy it directly at the port because I was afraid it will double the price. Yesterday my driver offered me to buy it through his friends but the price was even higher - 400IDR per pax from Bali to Lembongan PP. My friend said that the boat would take 200IDR per pax, so yeah I decided to take the risk. I have been to Nusa Penida in early 2016, the boat left at 07.30, so I thought the same thing applies to Nusa Lembongan. We arrived at the port around 07.20, but the counter were closed. Oh ya and in that day was Kuningan Day for Bali's people, that is why lots of stores were closed. Thankfully we met a guy who helped us find the fastest boat, it left at 8.45 AM, and the price is 200IDR per pax. While waiting for the boat, we played at the beach, sunbathing, and just walking around the beach. Then the boat left, the trip took about 45 minutes, and we arrived at Jungutbatu Bay. After that we need to find a motorcycle to rent, my friend that it usually cost 75IDR - 100IDR. A guy greeted us and offered a motorcycle rent, and yes it is 75IDR without having to negotiate. So Fio ride the motorcycle because I couldn't ride it hahaha. Jungutbatu is located at the north side of the island, and most of the highlights are located at the south side of the island. So from Jungutbatu, we drove for around 5KM to get to the first highlight, the Dream Beach.
The island itself is very small (8KM square based on Wikipedia), and you just only need to pick whether to turn right or left - there are also many street signs to help you reach the destination. Beside motorcycle, you can also travel by golf car (for around 4 people) or mini truck. Based on the map that I searched before, the closest destination from Jungutbatu is Mushroom Beach. But we didn't see the signs leading there so we ended up in Dream Beach instead. We parked the motorcycle, and found the "instagram-able swing" just at the top of the beach, it was really beautiful. After taking some photos, we went down to the beach. It was very quiet, there were only 4-6 people there, all of them are foreigners. We played at the beach, the wave & the current were quite strong, I even hurt my foot while accidentally bumped by a rock that were brought by the ocean. Fio was really happy here because she really wanted to play and chill by the beach, and it felt like a private beach because it was so quiet, clean, and nice. The weather was verrrryyyyy hot, thankfully we managed to find a small shady spot to sit down, lay our bag, and chill out. After 45 mins there the beach was starting to get crowded by local and foreign tourists, luckily we had a chance to arrive early and enjoyed it first. While people started coming, we packed our stuff and went back to the motorcycle parking.
Next stop, we were going to Devil's Tears, it was very close to the Dream Beach based on the map. We got lost a bit, because there was no sign there, just a big yard/meadow/field around us. We then followed some cars and motorcycles, and yeay we found it. Devil's Tears is like a spot, packed by stones, which caused the ocean kinda stuck in between the stones, and caused some kind of water fountain and big wave there. We were standing at the top of the stone, just at the edge of the ocean it was very cool! There were two spot that could bring up the water fountain. But again the weather was very hot since it was almost 11.30, so after taking some photos we left the place.
Then, we headed to Mushroom Beach, which is also a port in Nusa Lembongan. This time we found out that Google Maps work here perfectly, it was so relieving! We arrived safely at the beach, this time it was more crowded with people since it was a port. We then walked by the beach because there were many restaurants there, so while comparing it we also sat under the tree and again played with the ocean - just sitting on the sand and waiting for the wave arrived. There were also many foreigners who were leaving on a boat for snorkeling, diving, or other water sports here. Some of them were also sunbathing and reading books under a tree. After a while we were starving, and decided to eat lunch in one of the cafes there. We ordered spaghetti and sandwich, the taste was OK because we were really hungry. They also have toilets so we could clean up a little bit there.
After that we went back to Jungutbatu area, to the Mangrove Forest, also helped by Google Maps a lot. Along the road, there were many tour/agents offering for the snorkeling, but we decided to go to the end of the road to see if there was a center or verified tour there, and yes there is. We went on snorkeling (250IDR for 2 people) with an old man by a boat. And it was really good - the fishes were all so colorful from black to stripes to blue to orange to purple to yellow and all other cute things. We were there for around 1hr or so, then we went back to the land. We also can took a shower there and changed our clothes. Oh and we were so stupid we didn't take ANY picture here :( We didn't bring an underwater camera, we didn't take a picture while we were on the boat because we left all our stuff in the locker, we didn't take a picture while we finished or before we started the snorkeling because we were so tired. This one is the only picture that I took. I took it while I was waiting for taking a shower, because me and Fio took turn. You can see the snorkeling equipment there, the same chair & umbrella that I sat, and the condition of the house there. The Mangrove forest is actually behind my back but I don't know why in the world did I prefer to take a picture of chair & umbrella instead of those forest :(
Then we went back to the Jungutbatu Bay to return the motorcycle. We left by boat on 16.30, we arrived there at around 15.30, and the meeting point was at Bunga-Bunga Restaurant (if I'm not mistaken), so we went to the restaurant. We ordered some drinks and just chill there. Oh and we haven't prayed Zuhur & Ashar yet, we couldn't find any musholla, or even any decent place to pray, and we won't make it on Bali. So we decided to pray at the restaurant, while sitting on the chair wearing mukena. HAHAHAHAHA so weird I know. The restaurant was very quiet, there were only 2 other visitors beside us. SO yeah we took wudhu in the sink and prayed there, directly facing the ocean and the sun. We were so sleepy and tired we just sat there and enjoyed our snacks while waiting for the boat. We went back to Bali, met our driver. We planned to have dinner at Warung Made, we already went there, but apparently it was closed because of the Kuningan celebration. So because we were so tired, we just went back to the hotel, ordered some meal at the room while packing for our next day!
Nusa Lembongan Tips!
- Wear a swimsuit inside your clothes
Because Nusa Lembongan is mostly about beaches, you wouldn't be able to avoid the temptation to play with the ocean & the wave because it is so pretty :""") So it will be better if you already wear your swimwear inside of your clothes while you arrived there, because it was quite hard to find a toilet, or you have to pay for it. We were mistaken because we didn't prepare for this, so we changed our clothes literally at the beach HAHAHA while we covered for another with a sheet of kain :"") because we were so lazy to pay for the toilet :""") luckily it was very quite and there was no other person there. The weather was also very hot so your swimsuit will dry up as you went by.
- Bring snacks and lots of water
Again as I mentioned before, the weather was amazingly hot, so you should be prepared to bring lots of water (we brought 2x1.5 L) - especially if you were very medit like me and don't want to spend extra money for it. You will also get hungry while chilling at the beach, so it will be nice if you bring some snacks with you, just biscuits or chocolates will do.
- Bring a towel and a kain
Yes this is very useful! First you can use it to cover you up while you change your clothes (like what we did HAHA). Then after you played by the beach your clothes will get wet, you can use your towel or kain to dry it off. If you are going to travel by motorcycle, the seat will eventually get REALLY HOT, this is where the kain comes handy - you can fold it and use it as your alas on top of your motorcyle seat. And if you are planning for snorkeling you will need the towel for your shower after the snorkel.
- Use backpack instead of handbag if you bring lots of stuff
The previous 3 tips were to bring this and that, so you definitely will need a proper bag to carry your stuff around, especially if you were traveling by motorcycle. And to get to the boat, most likely your pants will get wet because the boat usually park near the beach where the water level is still quite high. Therefore I will highly suggest you to bring your backpack because it is very easy to carry around, to bring all your stuffs around!
Day #3
Our last day, the most awaited part of our trip: sunrise hiking to Mount Batur!
So this hiking part was mainly Fio's idea, we've been to some mountains before and she really miss it. And while we were on Bali, why don't we also go here? So then we searched for more informations, and we found lots of information through blog - usually by foreigners. From what we read or saw through their vlog the hiking was not so hard, it usually take 1-2 hrs to get to the top. They also wear normal clothes (just tshirt and pants and running shoes, or even sepatu sandal). Some of them booked through an agent before they arrived in Bali, some of them booked through an agent directly while they are in Bali, and only few of them went straight to Batur and use a local guide there. We were quite confused at first, I almost made a reservation through an online agent because it is quite cheap (400K per person included with pickup and snacks) compared to other agent (700-900K per person). But my driver said that we don't need to book a guide, we just directly use a local guide there. I was quite insecure, but well let's give it a try.
We woke up at around 00.00, then we ate Popmie as our breakfast wkwkwkw. We planned to buy it on the way there at KFC or MCD but we were just too sleepy to wake up again. So we ate Popmie with hot tea. We left the hotel at around 01.15, based on what we read it usually take 2-3 hrs drive to the starting point, and people usually left at around 01.00-02.00. Our driver was driving really fast so we arrived there at around 02.30. I was quite afraid that the local guide price would be very expensive because we didn't make any booking, but by time our car parked there we were approached by one local guide, he offered us 300IDR per person, which fit with our budget. I was quite relieved because I didn't have to bargain or discuss for cheaper price. We prepared ourselves, went to the toilet first, and started walking at around 3AM. The guide also provided us with flashlights.
The first part of the tracking was quite flat, a long road with small stones, surrounded by grass and weeds, sometimes passing through rice fields and small roads. We were just walking quite fast in order to have more time to reach the top, we took a break for every 20-30 mins walking. After passing the 1st part, we continued to the 2nd part, which was a little bit of hiking - more stairs, more climb, and more stones. While we walked in this 2nd part, we saw more people around us, all of them were foreigners. The end of the 2nd part was warung-warung where we can sat down and rest for a while. At this point there were more and more foreigners who came to climb.
After resting for a bit, we went to the last part, which is the hiking part. We passed through one pathway only, climbed through the stones - all were mostly climbing, no more flat roads. This one was quite hard, because there were only one way up. So if you were tired and would like to rest you need to step aside a bit because lots of people were waiting behind you, and they were all foreigners so they were much stronger than us locals, so they climbed faster also. After those struggles finally we reached the first peak to watch the sunrise at around 05.15 AM, so it was 2 hrs hike. There was actually the second peak which is at the top of the mountain, it took about 45 minutes from the 1st to 2nd peak. Lots of bloggers recommended the 2nd peak because they say it is less crowded.
We were already very tired and sweating a lot. At first we wanted to only rest for a while at the 1st peak then continue to the top. But it was VERY CROWDED..... since it was a long weekend holiday. The path to the 2nd peak was literally filled by people we could see it even from the 1st peak, queuing to get to the top, so then we decided to just stay at the 1st peak. Luckily we got a seat on a bench, a perfect spot to watch the sunrise.
We brought some biscuits and chocolates so we enjoyed it while waiting for the sunrise, they said it is around 6AM. Lots of food were sold by local people there but it is quite expensive. At first the weather was cold while we waited there, but eventually more and more and more and more people showed up making it so crowded it even got warm. There were literally NO LOCAL TOURIST there beside us, they were all foreigners, there were even some children there which made us quite ashamed :") We waited for the sunrise while fixing some problems with our camera, then it finally rose at around 6AM. It was very beautiful, the sun was literalllyyyyy a perfect round circle, at first was dark pink because it was still surrounded by the clouds. Then it started to change into orange colour when it started to rise.. It was very beautiful, the clouds were like cotton candies, there were other mountains in front of us (I forget whether it is Mount Agung or not), there were rice fields and lands below the mountains, the perfect combination of blue, white, and green.
After enjoying the sunrise, we went to the sulfur cave or something I forgot the name. There were natural hot steams, provided by the sulfur, where we can put our hand above it to get warmer. There were also some hills above where lots of sulfur were still active, we can only saw the smoke from above. Then we hiked down the mountain through the exact pathway as going up. It was extremely harder because the stones were very steep, it was even harder to went down rather than going up. Almost 3/4 walking down the mountain was helped by our guide. Fio is really good at hiking down mountains because she rarely think about where to step, she would rather just walk and move fastly from stone to stone, which is very good because it prevents her from falling or sliding. Me on the other hand, I think too much of which stone should I step on, so I spend more time standing at one area before moving to the next spot, and when I step on the wrong stone, I will definitely slip immediately. Which is why our guide help me while Fio just climbed down the climb on her own. I literally hold my guide's tour to prevent me from falling and just follow his steps down :"""" And besides, lots and lots and lots of people were waiting behind me, and once again they are very fast. It is like they haven't run out of energy.
Long story short we managed to climbed down safely, the next part was just walking a very long road to get back to the parking lot. Oh and we gave a tip for our local guide because the money that we paid before (300IDR per person) was stored directly to the Mount Batur's management, so I am not sure how much do they get from those. And also, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't by his help, so we gave him a tip. I actually don't know how much does people usually tip them, but we gave him 50IDR per person.
Batur Hiking Tips!
- Bring snacks and enough water
We bought 2x1.5L and it is enough for both of us. You will need lots of drink in order to keep you hydrated and fit enough to climb the mountain. You will also need lots of sugars for your energies! That's why Fio always kept chocolate in her bag. Usually we eat gula merah while we hiked, but we couldn't find any in Jakarta or Bali, so a chocolate will do. You can also ate it on the top while waiting for the sunrise, instead of buying there for 3x expensive price.
- Bring wet and dry tissues
Since you drank a lot, you probably would want to pee there. And up there, there is no toilet. Which is why you need to bring both wet and dry tissues to pee in between those trees :") trust me this is very important
- Wear comfy clothes and proper shoes
When I read or watch Mount Batur travel vlog by others, they made an impression that this hiking was quite easy and relaxed. They wear normal clothes, sandals or just running shoes. But believe me, you will need a proper hiking shoes. Even me who already wear a hiking shoes, experienced difficulties while climbing up and going down the mountain. I would highly suggest you to wear safety shoes or hiking shoes. Then comfy clothes, don't wear too much layer because you will sweat a lot on your way up to the top. But also do bring jackets, because you will feel cold up there once you waited for the sunrise. You can also bring a spare of cloth if you want, because my shirt was all wet of sweat once I reached the top, and the wind was so strong up there it gave me chill. It would be better that you changed your wet clothes up there, so you won't catch a masuk angin. I also brought gloves, scarf, and kupluk because usually I couldn't stand the cold and needed extra layer to keep warm. But I don't know if it was because we were walking quite fast so we didn't feel cold, or is it just warmer in Bali. So I guess you don't really need these extra things.
- Work out routinely
Again, foreigners made it sound very easy. But I think us as locals, our bodies are generally weaker :") We regretted not doing some kinda routine exercise before arriving here, because if we do, maybe we can reach the 2nd peak and won't run out of energy after reaching the 1st peak. So yes, do exercise and work out before you climb.
After that, we went back to the hotel to take a shower, clean ourselves, and pack our stuffs. We arrived at the hotel at around 11AM, so it took about 2hrs drive from Mount Batur. At first we were planning to have brunch at Seminyak because our flight was at 8.30 PM. But our driver was really annoying he wouldn't take us there, he said that there were also other nice restaurants around this are (fyi my hotel is located very close to the airport) and it would take hours to go there and get back here. I already mentioned that our flight was at night, but still, I also understand that he might be very tired because he worked since 01.00 that day. But well, I already booked him for 3 days, so that is what I expected.
So we decided to lie to him, we said that the hotel provided a free shuttle to the airport, and we just need him to take us to the souvenir center then drop us back at the hotel. We will just eat at the mall and wait for the flight at the hotel. And of course he agreed right away because he wouldn't have to wait for our night flight. So then we went to Lapis Legit Harum, this is a very delicious snacks to buy in Bali. The texture is verrrryyy smooth, it has many flavors but my favourite one is original & cheese. It will be better if you booked for it first through phone because when we arrived there, the original flavor was sold out, but thankfully there were still some cheese flavor. I bought 2 cheese and Fio bought 2 pandan chocolate.
After that we went to Krisna, a famous souvenir center. We were looking for an umbrella for Fio's mom, many Bali snacks for Fio's work colleagues, a pair of shorts for my sister, pie susu for my family, and daster for me. After paying the souvenirs, we would like to put it inside a package. So Krisna always offer a packaging service for 10IDR. Usually they allow us to put other stuffs inside that box (example if you buy another souvenir like my Lapis Legit Harum you can also put it inside the box combined with the Krisna's souvenirs). But the rules have changed! They didn't allow you to include other stuffs inside the box except for Krisna's souvenirs. We didn't know it until we reached the cashier, but luckily he felt pity on us because we asked him to just not put the tape on top of the box, we will figure it out on our own. But then he let us include the Lapis Legit Harum inside the box. It is a new rule, he said.
After that we went back to the hotel, finished our thing with our driver, gave him the fee, and shoo-ed him away. At the hotel, we put our luggage at the receptionist because we already checked out from the room (the maximum time of check out is 12PM). Then we ordered a Go-Car to take us to Seminyak. Oh by the way, at first we planned to go to La Laguna Beach because it seems nice and cozy to chill out. But since it was quite far from the crowd, and our driver sucks, and there were no many online transportation there, so we decided not to go there. Huhu quite sad actually.. In our 1st day we planned to go to Nyang-nyang or Green Bowl beach but we didn't, because our driver said they were too far from Uluwatu temple. In our 2nd day we planned to go to Potato Head and Gusto Gelato, but we didn't, because the traffic was really bad and were afraid we wouldn't be able to wake up early in the morning. In our 3rd day we planned to go to La Laguna Beach, Gusto Gelato, and Motel Mexicola, but we didn't, again because our driver sucks. Well that means we need to go to Bali again and have a proper time to just go around from one resto to another resto all day long 😊😊😊
We wanted to have lunch at Seminyak, but we haven't prayed yet, so went again to Seminyak Square :") because it is the only place that we know that have mushola, even at the hotel we didn't see a musola near the front office. So we went to Seminyak Square by Go-Car and prayed there. After that we went to Sisterfields! It is very close to Seminyak Square, we just need to cross the road. We arrived there at around 1.30 PM and it was quite crowded, we needed to wait for 3 queues, but it wasn't so long, about 20 minutes wait. We were extremely hungryyyyy since we haven't eaten anything proper since hiking. We ordered Sisterfields Dirty Burger, Salmon with poached eggs, and I forget whether it's Ice Chocolate or Milkshake Chocolate. Then it turned out that they provide free mineral water, even with refill! I reaaallyyy love this compliment, even many foreigners around us didn't buy a drink because they provided mineral water. The food were delicious! The salmon poached eggs were so delicious, the burger was very big but it was worth the price.
We planned to go to Nalu Bowls and Gusto Gelato but the weather was very hot outside, and it was kinda hard to park or stop in front of the resto because the road was very narrow. And we were afraid that we couldn't find a transportation there. So we decided to chill at Sisterfields and ordered another meal, which is Acai Berry Bowl, a healthy fruit bowl just like in Nalu Bowls. It tastes good! We hardly finished it because we were very full. After that we left the restaurant, crossed the road back to Seminyak Square because it will be easier to be picked up by our online transportation. Luckily we find a Go-Car to drive us to the hotel.
We arrived at the hotel at around 5PM. Oh and we decided to book a shuttle from our hotel, because in Bali, Uber and other online transportation is forbidden. Even though lots of people still use it but we were just too lazy to think or manage or plan everything. Luckily there was a shuttle (75IDR per car). Usually guest should book for it 1 day before the date, but I begged to the staff and luckily they had available shuttle. The shuttle left at 6PM, so we just chilled out by the pool. Fio literally slept at the bench wkwkwkw she was very tired. So well I just chilled, listened to the music, and laying down on the bench. At 6PM we sat near the front office to wait for the shuttle. Oh another funny thing happened, one of the staff asked me for a photo. He said they will edit the photo and made a greeting card for me, he asked for my email. He said that if I go to Bali again and stay there, I can make some special request through him. He also lived near my house in Jakarta, so he was very excited when I told him where I live. Then we went to the airport. We had many time so we just walked around the airport, moving from one to another store, pray, then ate Pizza Hut, waited there while logging in using their Wi-Fi. Luckily our flight was on time, we arrived safely at Jakarta at around 22.30 PM.
Extra Tips!
1. Choose the best driver, explain your complete itinerary
You may have notice how I mentioned the driver sucks and annoying. I booked him through my mom's langganan, so it wasn't like not trusted or new agent that I've tried. I also already mentioned my plan to him but apparently he didn't mention it to our driver directly, so our driver had no idea. If you want to hike Mount Batur as our schedule, I would suggest you to just book a tour agent, but with a price around 300-500K per person (if it is >700IDR then just search for other agent). Because then you can use your daily driver to drive you around after you finished hiking. Unlike my driver who got tired and annoyed at us and didn't want to drive us around as promised before.
2. Always bring mukena along with you (+and sajadah if possible)
Yes finding a mushola here is verrryyyy hard. I only knew one public place that had it, and it is Seminyak Square. But in spite of that, do bring your mukena along with you, because who knows that you need to pray just anywhere possible (just like what we did at Nusa Lembongan)
3. Don't forget to bring sunblock & sunglasses
Bali is very hot, the sun is shining so bright, so yes don't forget to use sunblock - not only to keep your skin from getting darker, but also to protect it from direct sunlight. Especially if you are playing at the beach just like what we did at Nusa Lembongan, you will be exposed by direct sunlight without no big place to cover you from the sun. Sunglasses are also important to help you see clearly without having to dim down your eyes.
4. Enjoy!
Last one, prepare for your trip - search for the best flights, the comfiest hotel, and the hypest places that you want to go. And when things don't work out as expected, take a breath, try to relax, and think that there must be another way. (I know it is hard, I'm still working on it)
Hope this post is useful for you ~~~ see you in my next trip!
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