Piccadilly Market: Honeymoon Guesthouse

Bali with Kids Part 1

My wonderful 3 children and I have just returned from the best 12 day holiday in Bali. Whilst away I have had a lot of people ask me questions about travelling with kids which of course has prompted this post.

First of all...

Did I feel safe? Absolutely!!!!!
Did we get sick? Nope, not one of us.
Did the kids love it? More than I thought possible.

We flew Jetstar who are totally fine but do remember that you get nothing, zip, zero on the flight. Everything is an extra. Pack lots of snacks. The flight over left at 6.30pm so we had dinner at the airport and they were fine with that. I hired 2 video players for 3 kids and had one headphone splitter so 2 of them could share one unit.

I had arranged my regular driver to collect us on arrival, very happy to pass on his details. He is awesome, English is great and very trustworthy. Means no negotiations with taxis when you are tired.

We head straight to Ubud where I have been going for 23 years. There is something unique and wonderful about this town. You can see an old post here I do think the Eat, Pray, Love book and film has made it a lot busier sadly.

I stay at Honeymoon Guesthouse which I adore as it is so traditionally Balinese. No glass windows, everything is open air with shutters....love! love! love! I reserved interconnecting rooms number 15 and 16 which were on the 2nd level with a huge private balcony where we spent most of our down time. The beds are all 4 poster with mosquito nets, the girls felt like Princesses.

A word of warning is due to the open air it is very noisy from about 6am with roosters. We went to bed earlier to compensate. I didn't mind as I love the experience of staying here. We had a fan cooled room which was fine at this time of year but would be hard between Sep - Apr.

I paid about $120 a night for 2 room including breakfast.

From here we walked to the Monkey Forest through the rice fields. well worth a visit but keep all valuables hidden and take off sunglasses. We bought bunches of bananas and had fun feeding the hundreds of monkeys.

There are loads and loads of fish spa places where hundreds of fish suck all the yucky stuff off your feet. Lola and I were a bit freaked about it and stayed clear but these 3 loved it.

We took a day trip to the Elephant Safari and Marine Park and had some amazing interactions with the Elephants. The kids got to feed them and we got to touch and cuddle some after the show they have. The whole park is incredibly well run and a beautiful oasis. When we arrived we were bombarded with pricing options and I found it overwhelming. We chose the $45 option (per person inc kids) which included lunch. NOT worth it. Go the $35 and get your own lunch, it is cheaper and way more food options. The kids had photos with a giant yellow snake around them...very brave. Don't forget bathers as there is a fantastic Water Fun Area to play in. Tip is to do it after the Safari as I could not get my kids away from there to do the safari.

My restaurant recommendations are:

Cafe Wayan located on monkey Forest Road. It has been around since 1986 and I have been numerous times. It is set amongst beautiful gardens that keep going and going. Children are welcome. The Chicken Sate was hands down the best we had in the 12 days and they also served a pretty good Nasi Campur, my all time fave Balinese dish.

Indus is an absolute must at sunset and for awesome food. It is owner by the same people that own Honeymoon Guesthouse and is about 5 minutes out of town overlooking the rice terraces. I have also been here many times over the years and have never been disappointed. Great Nasi Campur and the Signature Paella is very good. We celebrated the girls 6th birthday here, I pre ordered an enormous cake which has happy Birthday to me on it instead of the girls which we had a giggle over.

Clear Cafe is a brand new restaurant in town and we all loved it. Super funky decor. My son Jonah and I found it when we were out shopping one day and booked the floating pontoon table where you sit on floor cushions. Very fun and quirky for the kids. The menu is all organic and very yummy. I had the chilli prawn burrito and my Mum had the Red Fish Curry. The kids menu was good and cheap and the kids loved their macaroni cheese and hamburgers.

Bintang Beer has got to be the best in the world, a few cold ones with lunch and dinner is a must.

Next we went to Sanur which will be my next post

Please feel free to make comments and if anyone has their own recommendations it would be welcomed.

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, by Geelong Baby Market

In Bali, Casa Luna

My Eat, Pray, Love Experience

just over 3 years ago I went to my beloved Bali to meet my best friend Greg and his partner Marcos who live in Argentina. I had been reading Eat Pray Love before I left and completed the Bali section on the plane. Since I was going to Ubud for a week and was having some personal problems I decided I simply had to see Ketut Liyer and Wayan. The taxi driver knew exactly where to take me. We had to wait a few hours in the heat before my time came. There was another foreigner and a few locals ahead of me. Ketut held my hands and told me my marriage was ending which in my heart of hearts I already secretly knew but it did take another 18 months before my marriage collapsed. I had tears streaming down my cheeks and was quite emotional so I don't remember much except I would start my own business (tick) and that one of my children would help me with it. I am in the photo below with Ketut and his wife.

My next stop was to see Wayan the healer which was most definitely a life experience. It was a 6 hour extravaganza which Greg also did with me. It started with having to fully disrobe and wrap myself in the teensiest, tiniest sarong. I am not the smallest person so felt quite silly and uncomfortable. After being scrubbed and washed down we then lay down on a massage table in a room where there was about 6 other people. So there I was naked in a shared room with young boys massaging AND in view of the passing traffic in the street if they looked up. Lets just say it was very very confronting. It took a while but I did eventually relax and succumbed to being massaged for hours sometimes by 2 or 3 people at a time, hot lemons were rubbed up and down my spine. Every now and then Wayan would come and do her magical healing stuff. I drifted in and out of consciousness. When it was finished I had to go downstairs in my tiny sarong where a very relaxed Greg gave me a funny grin. A young girl took me into the wash room and to my surprise stayed with me. She got a bunch of leaves and washed me all over, she then indicated I spread my feet apart and put my arms out and said in the only English I heard her speak "I now wash your vagina". I stared out the window at the chooks in the yard and imagined Greg receiving the male wash and had to try and hold my laughter in. Wayan then fed us an amazing lunch. It was a great experience but not sure I would do it again. Not a great pic but this is me with Wayan.

I saw the movie last night and no it's not as good as the book or the best movie in the world but I enjoyed it and dont understand why it is being canned. It just so happened that when I was in Bali again last year with Greg and Marcos, it was being filmed. I tried to do some Julia and Javier spotting and had my zoom lens at the ready but no luck.

I did enjoy seeing beautiful Bali and the area I know so well that I have been going to for 20 years. Here are a few more of my favorite Ubud images.

We attended the Casa Luna Cooking School which was fantastic. We started with an awesome Market tour, I so love the colors, smells and sounds of the market. We came back to Casa Luna for a beautiful breakfast before cooking the most amazing feast. This is me with Janet De Neefe, an Australian who runs the cooking school and the beautiful Honeymoon Guesthouse where I love to stay.