Our flight to Bali at Jakarta International Airport was about noon after a slight delay from Air Asia. So this was a local flight we need not cross immigration. The airport itself is rather small and messy as there were no proper displays indicating which gate is for which flight. At the end we had to be transported to our plane via a shuttle lol.
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| Departure Hall |
Upon arrival at Bali, we were a bit lost as we had landed at the domestic airport section instead of the international side. The driver we engaged was supposed to meet us at the international arrivals. Hence we had to drag all our luggages over there while we wait for his arrival.
The driver we engaged was with our accommodation in Ubud, which was none other than the famous Tegal Sari Villas which was located right in the middle of the paddy fields. Prior to this I have read many rave reviews about this place and I was not going to give it a miss. It was rather tricky to book this place as it was really popular. To secure the rooms for 2 nights I had to call directly to reception via Skype to ensure my booking was confirmed (the usual way was to make a reservation via an online form submission). Even then, I was given two different rooms for two different nights. The Wooden Deluxe Room was simply too popular.
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| Paddy field |
As I stepped foot at the place I could finally see why this place was so in demand. The scenery was indeed breathtaking. The service was amazing as well. All of our luggages were carried to our rooms while we waited to be checked in. The Ice Lemon Tea reception drink served was also one of the very best that I've tasted before. Apart from that, the price for the rooms was considerably cheap too.
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| Best Ice Lemon Tea ever! |
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| Mini outdoor gym |
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| Mini outdoor pool |
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| Interesting looking room |
There were only a limited number of rooms available that's why it's booked up pretty fast. During my stay the people were busy renovating and building new rooms to accommodate more people.
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| Room for the night |
As mentioned, our room of the night was wooden theme based. It's a very unique design and feels like a tree house. The room itself was relatively small and there was no TV nor any WiFi reception. This is the place to be if you want yourself secluded from the outside world and just relax and stare at the paddy fields.
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| Not a good idea sleeping outside while all the red ants crawling around |
After settling our stuffs, we then headed out to explore. Behind Tegal Sari was Bebek Bengil, also known as Dirty Duck Diner. This was one of the recommended eateries in Ubud. The whole restaurant was really beautifully designed.
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| Dirty Duck Diner |
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| Serene Surroundings |
There were ample seats on offer but the best ones has got to be verandah styled seats facing directly against the paddy fields. Fortunately for us, we managed to grab this seat even though there was a 'Reserved' signage on top of the table as we were early for dinner.
I ordered the mixed rice version whereas my friend ordered just the Crispy Duck set. Essentially the whole duck was not very meaty. I didn't really like it that much as I still prefer our Roasted Duck back in Malaysia. It's worth to try though, something different. The 'brem', or rice wine , however, was delicious.
After dinner we then explored the nearby areas as this area was essentially a huge rectangle with many shops and eateries lining across the roads. We walked up to Ubud castle (which we didn't bother to visit) and then turned back.
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| Ubud Castle |
We ended the night at the Laughing Buddha Bar for some cocktails as well as enjoying some live band music before calling it a day.
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| Lychee Cocktail but I can't taste any lychee flavour |
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| Some watermelon cocktail |
Next: Day 2 (Part 1) - Goa Gajah Temple, Tirtha Empul Temple, Kintamani (+ Tepi Danau Restaurant), Sebatu Agrotourism (Luwak Coffee)
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