Bali trip - July 2014
I only got to know about the cursed myth of Bali from my colleagues when I decided to go Bali. Rumor has it that all unmarried couples who travel to Bali by themselves are cursed to break up. The version that I heard was couples who watch sunset together at Tanah Lot temple, their love will also set with the sunset.
Anyway, the myth goes like this. Once upon a time, there was a prince and princess in Bali and very much in love. One day, the prince decided to break up with the princess probably because of third party. The princess got very furious with the prince. In fit of anger, she put a curse on all the couples who visited Bali.
Both Bf and I do not believe in myth and decided to put our 9 years of relationship into this test. If it works, then hallelujah. lol. We even joked "YES, finally a good reason to get a relief from this relationship." #okweverychildish
Day 1 (Sunday)
"We are going to a cycling trip in Bali!"
We were very excited about this cycling trip as this is our first time cycling oversea.
Now I can show off to people that I went to "tour de bali" before. #Isoundedquitebimbo
We booked the eco cycling tour online before our trip. They picked us up from our hotel at 8am and they were on time. On our way up to Mount Kintamani, we stopped by for a very nice view of rice terraces.
The aim of this tour is to take a step back from the Bali urban touristy areas, to see ‘the real Bali’ and to learn about the Balinese culture.
We finally arrived at our first stop for breakfast! The Lookout Restaurant & Bar is located at the peak of Mount Kintamani where it offers a spectacular panoramic view of Mount Batur.
Mount Batur
Indeed the best spot to see Mount Batur in Bali...
..and its crater lake.
Could not believe we are going to have breakfast in front of an active volcano.
Balinese breakfast
I would come back here to stay for a night.
After breakfast, the tour guide brought us to have a heavenly but most expensive taste of their best gourmet coffee in the world.
Bf was learning how to be a good barista.
Luwak coffee bean that I have always wanted to try.
Handpicking the good beans.
Different type of coffee/tea for trying.
Ginseng coffee
Hot cocoa
Lemongrass tea
Pandanus tea
Rosella tea
Coconut coffee
Ginger tea
Saffon tea
Lemon tea
Vanilla coffee
Mocha
Luwak coffee!
"The most EXOTIC, RICH, SMOOTH and EXCELLENT COFFEE from Bali. 1 cup only Rp. 60K"
This is how they promote their coffee lol
The famous cat-poo-cino
The taste was indeed very rich! It had a noticeable less bitter yet more sour than normal coffee. I was a little disappointed as the taste disappeared very fast in my mouth. Then it immediately shot back from my throat to my nose and stayed for a while in my whole mouth.
I would say this is the most everlasting coffee aroma that stay in my taste bud. I am not a sucker for coffee though. I will continue stick to the coffee house near my office lol.
The real identity of the animal that shits out the most expensive coffee beans.
Given the name - cat poo coffee, I thought the animal is a cat. From what I see, it looks more like a baby bear.
The luwak, a small catlike animal. They gorge on the most ripe crop during the night, digest the fruit and expel the beans which farmers collect, wash and roast a real delicacy.
Finally was the highlight of the tour!
My tour mates. They were mostly Caucasians.
Let's start the downhill cycling!
We were on our mountain bikes through the rural heartland of Bali, travelling downhill on non tourist village roads and forested areas, experiencing typical Balinese daily life and enjoying the beautiful countryside to Ubud.
This banyan tree is so humongous that it makes the kid look very little.
Thousand of years.
Our last stop of the tour. We were served with Balinese lunch in the serene surrounds of rice paddies.
This fried spider dish was served to a birthday boy in our tour and he was forced to eat the insect under peer pressure.
We were fetched back to our respective hotel around 2+ in the afternoon. We were very exhausted so we rested and slacked in our hotel room till dinner time.
Bali Eco Cycling
Rp. 420,000 per adult
The sky was already dark at 6pm and felt like it was already 8pm in Singapore. We were not hungry so we decided to explore the town area near our hotel. We were quite shocked to see Korean's brand over there!
Their traffic jam... is worst than in Singapore..
Horse carriage! I feel for the horse though. The horses take in carbon monoxide every day even worse when they stuck in traffic jam.
Their most urban shopping mall! The price range is more on the luxury side. They have Mango, Armani Jeans, Pull & Bear and many big brands.
We continued walking along the street and settled down at Rosso Vivo for dinner.
Risotto al nerd di seppia con salmone alla griglia (Black rice ink squid with salmon fillet and beetroot sauce) Rp 130,000
Vellutata di mais con gamberoni alla griglia (Corn soup with grilled prawn) Rp 90,000
Linguine al gamberoni, calamari, tonno in salsa di pomodoro fresco (Linguine with prawn, squid, tuna and grilled prawn) Rp 180,000
Ended our day with this temporary tattoo imprinted on my body. =D! I have always wanted to have a star tattoo behind my ear but was too afraid of pain. I was super proud of myself for getting these temporary tattoo to strike off one of my dying wishes. hehe
