Bali in May

Last weekend I was in Bali. I went there for a final check on the wedding preparations before July and also to have a break.

We flew from Bandung and as usual with Air Asia. We took a shuttle bus to Bandung from Jakarta. That was quite fun and a different way to do things. 

The airport at Bandung is called Husein Sastranegara and it is a typical small airport you would expect to find in Indonesia, despite the fact that it is an International Airport (serving KL and Singapore) and that you can fly to many more places with Air Asia than you can from Jakarta (Medan, Surabaya, Pekanbaru and Bali vs Bali, Jogja and Semarang from Jakarta). 

After a check of entry from the security guard outside the airport we were not asked to provide ID at either Bandung Airport or in Bali. We had checked in online which makes life so much more easier but I must say that the lack of security and checks provided by Air Asia is slightly worrying.

The airport itself is tiny with next to nothing in it and huge traffic problems outside, however we settled in the cafe next to the departure lounge and waited it out.

We flew at 7.55 and got Bali around 10 and it was nice as we arrived early.

The place we were staying was in Seminyak and it was a Bed and Breakfast called Umadasa. It was nice and small and exceptionally quiet. The area in fact was quiet even with the amount of big new hotels going up and Beach Double six just minutes from the room.

The usual things in Bali for me, beer, sea, sand and shopping but this time we hired a bike to help get around a bit more easily and so instead of opting for a Mio or some other fully automatic bike I insisted on a geared bike and ended up with a Honda Karisma 125. On first inspection it went well and stopped and of course needed fuel so we got on and headed out. By the time I had filled the thing up with fuel I had already come to the conclusion that there were no brakes either front or back and so to help stop the bike feet down and hope!

Returning from the wedding venue, we had a flat tyre and so rode on to find a repair shop which seemed to be almost impossible because Kuta is a tourist haven nothing more and so it took a while to find one and
then another while to replace the inner tube. 

The sunsets as usual were glorious and the beach at Double Six clean and full of activity. However the locals outnumbered the tourists and the tourists were mainly families and not groups of drunken Australians, which was nice.

I had to brave Oleh Oleh Krisna near the airport for some souvenirs and then it was time to go back.

Not staying in Kuta was a very good idea as staying somewhere nicer and different from Poppies 1 was great. No hassle, no rude or obscene calls to me or the fiancee and less rowdy and drunken behaviour.

The next time we are in Bali will be to become one and we are not staying anywhere near Poppies nor will my Parents!