The first jam-packed day (as in…we did things other than shopping and eating).
We started our day with a 2-hour surfing session. Chris: I didn’t choose the surf life, the surf life chose me. Seriously, Chris got to stand for a few seconds! Meanwhile… Chantal got double points for not only taking herself out, but another surfer as well!
We had a lot of fun (this was Chris’s first time surfing). We both got very badly torn up by the surfboards and sand but we’d definitely do it again. We couldn’t do the full two hour session and decided to head back to the hotel.
We decided to go for a massage in the markets and Chris convinced Chantal to try out the fish foot spa. Chantal conquered her fear (she’s incredibly ticklish on her feet) and was able to sit in the spa for over 10 minutes. Chantal was really worried about it but in the end she enjoyed it. She says she wouldn’t do it again though. Chris thinks it’s really good fun and would recommend it, even if you’re a little ticklish. We were able to negotiate the price down to 50,000 rupiah (~$5 AUD) for both of us.
After the fish foot spa we decided to go for a massage at the same place. We had a half hour back massage for around 60,000 rupiah (~$6 AUD) for both of us. It was AMAZING! Chris is really squeamish and doesn’t like massages but after a few minutes he calmed down. Chantal was immediately in heaven. After paying we felt like we were floating above the ground. Would definitely recommend!
We kept walking along the markets and found a good money changer. Chantal also got a few deals on some jewellery and other gift items while Chris got a deal on a cheap watch. The guy selling the watch wanted around 600,000 rupiah, but after some bartering, and threatening to leave he was able to get it for 150,000. He was happier that he was able to barter that low rather than receiving the actual watch.
On our way back we bumped into Casper, an attraction and theme park agent. He was able to give us some excellent deals on Waterbom Park, the Bali Safari and bike rides which we organised for the next few days. Andrea, Olivia, Chantal and Chris were going to Waterbom on Monday. Olivia, Chantal and Chris were going to Safari on Tuesday. And Chantal and Chris were going to bike ride on Wednesday.
After purchasing all the tickets, we made our way to a nearby restaurant for some early dinner around 4pm. This was our new favourite restaurant as we sat down to a black kitten sitting next to us. We didn’t pat the cat but we fed it some of the food and let it play with a toy attached to Chantal’s phone. The food was pretty good but it could have been terrible for all we cared. The kitten was the most important thing.
We made a walk to find a laundry shop. After trying multiple shops trying to charge for each individual item, we found one that would wash clothes based on weight, which is just a lot easier. Afterwards we made our way to the beach and watched the sunset. We got impatient waiting for the sun to set though and decided to walk across the road to a nearby restaurant to drink and watch the sunset. The sunset was beautiful and definitely worth a watch if you’re in Bali. But drinking while watching the sunset is definitely worth it too!
Chris and Chantal 