Waking up to know you’ve woken up in Bali is always an incredible thing! Man I love it here. I’ve managed to get a 5-6 hours sleep, but it’ll be a couple of days before my body clock will become accostamed to the 2 hour time difference. I look outside to see some dark clouds, but I know that it is generally temporary so I am not concerned that a day walking about is planned ahead. Boston hasn’t quite woken up and I am not sure if Jamei is awake yet so I decide to head down the road to grab a coffee from one of my local coffee shops “Morning Glory”. They remember my face from my last visit, they are such a friendly bunch of people working there. It’s always so nice to be greeted so warmly there.
I noticed that the wifi connects automatically but saw on the table the password is “I love coffee”. I’m home! I grab my takeaway coffee and head back to the room to grab all my electronics to blog while I wait for the girls to wake up.

To sit in the restaurant downstairs is always entertaining. It is situated on a very busy corner, so there are dogs, people, cars and bikes all scooting past. It’s nearly 8am and the morning hasn’t really gotten too crazy as tourists sleep in, and shop owners wait till later in the morning to open up their stalls. Blogging always gives me a chance to recount the day and check out the pictures and notes about the days activities. I can’t help but grin like a Cheshire Cat as I feel so at home here.

The blog is done and I check in to see if the girls are awake. They are, so we make it downstairs to breakfast. The Zest Hotel, our home for the next 10 days, has been a great choice. With breakfast included for us all we start to order and I m reminded of one of the many reasons that I love the Balinese. Their kindness and their smile.

We all chat about the plans for the day which is going to be starting any second. Boston hasn’t seen the area yet and so we take her for a wander down to the beach to give her a chance to take in the area for the first time. We take a short cut through a hotel that both Jamei and I have stayed at before and I am recognised by Linda. She has been working as the hair braider, massager and all seller in the grounds of the Jayakarta for many years. I remember my first visit many years ago spending time with her as she spent over an hour braiding my hair. I have always stopped to chat to her and have something done. She greets me warmly and with a big hug. I introduce her to my girls, and they are surprised that she has remembered me. We promise to come back sometime to give her some business.
We head now towards Legian Beach and pass a lot of transport guys and street sellers.
It’s a humid day and it’s at this point I realize that I forgot to pack sunscreen. Wow! What a stupid thing to forget. Seems the girls have also forgotten.
We enjoy a wander and a chat as we notice footprints and horse hoof prints along the beach.

We decide it’s time to enjoy some pampering, so we head for one of the many salons in the area near the hotel. Seems that Jamei and I frequent the same one. Boston tells us she’s never had a massage before, so we walk in and we have a short wait before the girls head into for a massage and I wait for a pedicure.
It’s so relaxing with the air conditioning on and chills sour music in the back ground. I hear my girls chatting away with the staff and it’s so lovely to hear how they are interacting with the locals.

Our next stop is to visit Kuta. Mostly so Jamei can speak to her tattoo artist. She’s already organized to meet Made (Pronounced Mar-day) who works at Golden Ink. Our driver drops us off at the Bali bombing monument and gives us directions on how to make the last 100m or so through the winding streets. Even telling us to walk on the left, which pays off as it’s the only pavement in a very tight laneway. Many thanks to our drivers directions we find it easy.
Sadly Made is not going to be in for another hour and a half. So we make our way back to the main road on the hunt for somewhere to eat lunch.
We find Viaipi Sports Bar that sits right near SkyGarden (a very popular night spot in Kuta). The staff are super bubbly and friendly. They seem like a lot of fun. We order a few things, well Jamei orders a jug of cocktails and Boston and I just regular meals and a drink. Our view is of the busy street and the Bali bombings monument where the Sari Club once sat.

Jameis drink comes out and she asked if it is strong enough. She’d already pulled a face at the alcohol taste. Seems the bartender was very interested in keeping her happy. Later on the meal even crafting her a rose out of a serviette and a straw.

We sit and sweat, as is commonplace here as mostly all restaurants are open air. The humidity is often over 70% and to sweat in places you never knew existed is all part of the Bali experience.
I look at my surroundings and notice there is a bank next door. It’s not the pristine building you’d normally see banks back home, but had a sign hanging from the front. I noticed they’d decided to use water bottles to weigh the sign down in case it got blown around. I love the simplicity of life and problem solving here

We finish our lunch (my delicious spinach, ricotta & garlic tortellini) and have some time to kill so we head off to the shopping centre Matahari. Initially we’d planned to jump in a cab. But a shortage of Blue Birds (my preferred and most trusted taxi company here), we were on foot. A cab driver stopped to offer directions. Probably could have picked up a small fare but again simply shows the difference in the culture here.
We find Matahari and meander through. The girls don’t find anything they like. But I’m always amused by the T-shirt range there that consistently offers great sayings and positivity.

We step outside after having a short look around. We’ve enjoyed the reprieve from the heat but decide to jump into a cab to get back to see Made.
He is ‘on his way’ apparently. So we wait inside and make small talk with the other artists there. He finally arrives and chats with Jamei about what she wants and talks prices and times. He offers me a small tattoo for free “for mumma”. I’m keen. Just need to think about what I might like. Jamei leaves her deposit and we head back to the hotel as the girls are keen to go for a dip in the rooftop pool.

While the girls pick their bikinis to wear I hunt for sunscreen and then meet them at the pool. It’s such a gorgeous spot up there.

I head downstairs to chill out and get a head start on today’s blog. I touch base with friends back home before I am joined by Jamei who says Boston’s opted for a bit of time out in the room. We order a snack and just hang out a bit. It’s not long before we need to head to the beach so we decide to grab some snacks for Boston and go for a short wander. Finding a little alley way that will take us to the beach. We decide to explore and just at the moment I think how narrow this walkway is, it is soon shared by motorbikes, prams and passers by. Jamei and I literally climb the walls to let motorbikes through.

We walk back to grab Boston so we can head to the beach to find our spot at one of the many beach bars littering the beachfront. We sit down at the Champlung and order drinks and some food.

Its so interesting to watch the people around us. Many people posing for photos. Soccer games. Beach peddlers. There’s live music where we are, so we relax into our beanbag chairs and immediately all our cares melt into the seats with us. Our drinks and food arrive and we chill out.
After a while we decide to head for the hotel. Not before stopping at a beautiful alley way running behind the beach bars we’ve been sitting at.

This magical place just takes my breath away. I feel like I’ve been away for a week and it’s only at the end of our first full day.
We get back to the hotel and while the girls shower and head to the room for the night, I opt for some more people watching and blogging. Knowing there will be little time to catch up on writing in the morning.
It’s great to meet a gorgeous couple from New Zealand. Both originally from Zimbabwe, had met and married on the other side of the world. One a probation officer, a bubbly 30 year old who was clearly a kindred spirit. The other in planning, a softly spoken but kind soul.
We chatted and commentated on the drag show happening across the road. We laughed and shared stories. Such a wonderful way to finish up my day.
All the while messaging our driver from the day before Perry-good, to be our transport out to Bali safari tomorrow.
Look out Thursday, we are ready for you!