Sunsets are something that Bali does particularly well. And Jimbaran Bay, a not-so-sleepy fishing village nestled on Bali’s sun kissed south-west coast, is one of the best places on the island from which to soak them up. Add an ultra-luxe villa perched on a gentle slope overlooking the deep-blue Indian Ocean, a private plunge pool and a ready-to-mix cocktail at the Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay, and I can’t think of many places I’d rather be.

Only a 20-minute drive from the Bali Ngurah Rai International Airport, this extraordinary resort is a sanctuary for the soul, providing an idyllic retreat for both couples seeking romance and families seeking to relax and reconnect, without straying too far from Bali’s most popular attractions.

Four Seasons Resort Bali Accommodation

Inspired by traditional Balinese architecture, the Four Seasons Resort Bali’s 147 villas are set out like a traditional Balinese village. Each is housed in a pretty, stone-walled courtyard, with spacious indoor and outdoor living spaces. There’s also a gorgeous sun terrace with a private plunge pool and a separate thatched-roof bale.

My villa offers sweeping views over terracotta rooftops and along the curve of Jimbaran Bay, a view I would normally be unable to tear my eyes from, but the temptation of the ready to shake cocktail that’s waiting in my lounge proves irresistible, and I tear myself away to get the job done.

Tropical martini in hand, I’m ready to take a tour of my ravishing premier ocean villa. Inspired by a typical Balinese courtyard house, an elegant mix of contemporary Balinese décor, rich teak furnishings and floaty fabrics fills the whopping 300-square-metres of living space.

Floor to ceiling sliding French doors invite in sparkling views of the Jimbaran Bay; which guests can view from a divine canopied four poster bed that’s a thing of floaty perfection.

Then there’s an enormous dressing area that leads to an extraordinary bathroom with its deep soaking bathtub and separate indoor and outdoor garden shower.

Tropical martini in hand, I head back out to the deck and dangle my feet in the pool for a better look at that view. I could happily stay here forever.

As the sun sets, the beach is coming to life as smoking barbecues start to sizzle seafood at the dozens of warungs that line the beach, and locals and tourists alike congregate to dine with their sand in the toes. I’m almost tempted to join them.

Four Seasons Resort Bali Dining

But tonight, I’m dining in at one of the resort’s four unique culinary venues.

Winding my way down the terraced grounds as the sun sets, I pass the resort’s massive main swimming pool, stopping to explore private temples, shrines, and bougainvillea-filled nooks, until I reach the resort’s beachfront restaurant, Sundara.

A beach club by day, it transforms into an atmospheric fire lit restaurant by night, where cool cocktails meet mouth-watering Asian cuisine fusing fresh, locally sourced organic ingredients with modern cooking techniques.

One of the best things about this gorgeous property is that it offers direct access to Jimbaran Bay beach, one of my favourite places in all of Bali by day and by night.

So, after devouring far too may satay sticks and an assortment of five star delights, the lure of the beach proves irresistible and I stroll, shoes in hand, feet wet from the waves, as I soak up the sights, sounds and smoky scents of Jimbaran beach by night. The atmosphere is electric.

An incredible buffet breakfast is served daily at the gorgeous, open air Taman Wantilan, surrounded by pretty ponds and flower-strewn tropical gardens. I can’t get enough of the breakfast noodle bar with its dozens of choices of noodles, broths and seasonings.

Or if you prefer a little privacy, you can start your day with a gourmet three-course breakfast served on a floating tray in your villa plunge pool.

Four Seasons Resort Bali Activities 

But I have a date with the spa and an immersive Sounds of Jimbaran treatment that’s all soothing gongs, glass stones and hydrating herbs. Muscles molten, I head back to Sundura and nab a daybed in front of the beach-front infinity pool.

Complimentary sun care products, towels and ice water are nice touches.  If I could be bothered moving my lazy backside, and turning my back on the cocktail that’s on its way from the bar, there’s even complimentary non-motorised water sports including windsurfing, kayaking, paddle boarding as well as surf boards and snorkelling equipment on offer.

There are loads of other more serene activities throughout the resort including hands on Balinese cooking lessons at the Jala Cooking Academy, free cultural tours of the resort grounds, canang offering workshops, songket (fabric) weaving and traditional dance classes. There’s also an extremely special traditional blessing ceremony at the resort temple with the resident Pemangku (priest).

And, of course, the Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay kids club is sure to keep littlies entertained.

While I’m no stranger to The Island of the Gods, my cocktail and satay-infused solo stay in this breezy beauty, though brief, reminds all over again what I love most about this paradise of golden sand, temples and sunshine.

Getting there

The Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay is just a 20-minute drive from the Bali Ngurah Rai International Airport.

Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay
Jimbaran, South Kuta,
Bali, Indonesia
T:  +62 361 701010

The post Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay review appeared first on boyeatsworld.

Bali is beckoning again! As soon as the temperatures start to drop, my inclination to beat a hasty retreat to somewhere warm rises. And where better to escape to than beautiful Bali? It’s one of Australia’s favourite holiday destinations, and for good reason. 

Just six(ish) hours from the East coast of Sydney and only three and half(ish) hours from Perth, this tropical paradise packs plenty of punch for such a small island, with pretty golden sand beaches, lush forests and terraced rice paddies dramatically spilling down mountainsides. Oh, and plenty of sunshine! With so much on offer we suggest planning a 10 day itinerary, but even if you can only stay a short time here are a few ways to beat the winter blues in Bali…

Bali’s Beaches

As it’s an island destination, beaches are not in short supply in Bali. And we are all about falling into Bali’s watery embrace.

The Bukit Peninsula is home to some of the island’s best surfing beaches, with Uluwatu, Belangan, Padang Padang and Dreamland amongst the most popular. We are particularly fond of Uluwatu as it is also home to one of Bali’s most iconic temples, so we can get a culture fix between breaks. Jimbaran Beach is another favourite spot for my hungry crew, but more to catch a Balinese sunset and gobble down fresh caught and cooked seafood from the warungs (restaurants) that line the beach.

In the South of Bali, we like Sanur and Tuban’s beaches, which are more protected than Kuta, and better for our kids. Seminyak has some of the island’s prettiest beaches and it’s a top spot to hire a surfboard, take a dip or just pull up a stretch of sand to relax in the warming sun.

Long a favourite of surfers, the village of Canggu, surrounded by rice paddies about 20 minutes north of Seminyak, is becoming increasingly popular for families. Echo Beach offers epic surf, but we prefer Pererenan Beach as it’s quieter with smaller waves and swimming spots more suited to young kids.

Or head a little further south to gorgeous Nusa Dua, where the spectacular beaches are quieter and, with soft white sand and safe swimming, absolutely awesome for families.

Balinese Culture

Home to Indonesia’s largest Hindu community, the Island of the Gods is a place where everything from prayer to the way houses and resorts are built and orientated, to the making of offerings called Canang Sari (palm-leaf baskets of flowers and incense), is done to achieve harmonious balance between Gods and demons.

There are many festivals and ceremonies celebrated at the thousands of temples around the country. While temples are welcoming to visitors, it is important to be respectful and wear appropriate clothing with covered shoulders and either a sarong or temple scarf tied around the waist.

Our crew can’t get enough of Bali’s cultural stuff, and we highly recommend checking out a Kecak fire dance at Uluwatu temple.   

Bali’s outdoor action 

Bali may be small in size but it packs a hefty punch in terms of action packed fun. Lovers of the great outdoors can explore its golden beaches, secret canyons, colossal waterfalls, soaring cliffs, rugged coastlines, fire-breathing volcanoes, tangled jungles and terraced rice paddies.

Adventure seekers can try white water rafting, mountain biking, volcano hiking and plenty of wild water sports including kayaking, stand up paddle boarding, surfing and jet packing.

Or take to the trees at the Treetop Adventure Park in Bedugul where they’ll find adrenalin charged adventure circuits with flying foxes and suspended bridges, spider nets and a Tarzan jump.

Kids of all ages will enjoy all the wet and wild fun of Waterbom Bali in Tuban, one of my kids’ absolute favourite spots to get wet. And animal lovers will love the animal parks, though my kids prefer their wild life wild and enjoy watching the Long Tailed Macaques that call the temples on the island home. Just remember to keep a distance, because that snappy selfie is not worth the rabies shot you’ll need if one bites you.

Bali accommodation

Bali’s accommodation is all about family and whether your crew is on a tight budget or seeking the ultimate in indulgent luxury, you’ll find everything from hostels to budget family hotels to epic beach resorts and luxury butler serviced resort villas, as well as amazing private villas catering for kids, a great option if you’re fed up with trying to squeeze your crew into a tiny room or spending your days battling for an empty lounge by the pool.

Ideal for families, a private villa offers room to move and a home away from home vibe.

To ensure your stay is an amazing one be sure to use a reputable service like Villa Finder, who have more than 600 well-maintained villa rentals on the island, each with stunning private pools, ocean views, unbeatable locations and, if you desire, on-call chauffeurs, fully equipped kitchens and your own personal chef. And, because you’ll talk to a real person when you book, you can be sure your chosen villa is the best fit for your family and friends.

The guest relations team can then organise the details, so you can enjoy your stay your way, whether you desire spa treatments, day trips and baby sitters or a fully stocked fridge on arrival. They can also to childproof your villa with safety gates and pool fences, and can organise car seat, cots and pram hire to keep the littlest members of your family safe and happy. Oh, and you’ll be doing your bit for the environment too as Villa Finder plants a tree in Sumatra with every booking, helping with all important reforestation. Bonus!

Balinese cuisine

Food plays a huge part in the selection of any destination we may visit, and Balinese cuisine delivers. The food of Bali is an intriguing combination of indigenous, Indonesian and Indian flavours, with dozens of must try dishes.

Both my kids love the ikan batar (grilled fish) and other varieties of seafood from the markets at Jimbaran and ubiquitous perkedel Jagung (Indonesian corn fritters)  but Sugarpuff is also big on smoky satays (meat on sticks with peanut sauce), ayam goreng (fried chicken with rice) and gado gado (steamed vegetables with peanut sauce). Raffles on the other hand is partial to the bebek betutu (slow cooked duck) and nasi goreng (Indonesian fried rice), though preferably slathered in wads of hot sambal sauce.

Disclosure: This post was written in collaboration with Villa-Bali.com – But all of our Bali experiences were independently sourced and paid for and all opinions are our own.

The post Five reasons to beat the winter blues in Bali appeared first on boyeatsworld.

In collaboration with Luxury Escapes

Bali is one of those places that does resorts extremely well and, of the six I’ve now stayed in, I can’t fault a single one. But, though we’d been told by several discerning friends that a stay at the Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua with kids would be the absolute best of the best, we planned on reserving judgement on our luxury escape until we’d seen it for ourselves.

It ended up taking about 30 seconds for the resort to prove our friends right. In fact, the kids are sold from the second they hop in the resort’s limo at the airport, stocked as it is with a plate of waiting macarons, just for them.

When we arrive, we are greeted like rock stars by a ferocious Balinese figure and the resort’s waiting staff in the hotel’s open-air lobby.

Once I spy its soaring ceiling and expansive carved wood panel depicting the Balinese Circle of Life, I too am as smitten as the kids. This place is ridiculously pretty.

Even more so when we are ushered out of the main reception past incredible artworks and installations to Club Millésime.

The stylish lounge boasts its own indoor and outdoor lounge areas and pool, where suite and villa guests can luxuriate in style, or in our case lack of.

We loll on the comfy lounges, the kids sipping on fruit drinks while I inhale a cheeky chilled rose as we are checked in.

Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua Rooms

Now, by the time we checked in to our adjoining rooms I admit that I am wearing wine goggles, but damned if  these rooms aren’t sexy!  Think dark timber finishes, a terrace with a swing overlooking the resort and the sparkling sea. Then there are the enormous bathrooms with standalone marble tubs and separate rain showers.

But the kids haven’t spotted those yet as they’re too distracted with the inexplicably pretty table load of treats that is here to greet us. There is a trio of freeform chocolate towers propping up cakes, more macarons and handmade chocolates, a platter of fresh strawberries and tropical fruits.

But there’s more, on the bed a tray awaits with a travel diary for the kids, an edible chocolate teddy bear, a cuddly one for a keepsake and the most adorable cupcake I’ve ever seen.

I tear them away from their haul to grab a meal downstairs at the incredible Kwee-Zeen buffet where Sugarpuff dives straight into the chocolate fountain, but not before calling our butler to organise a wee surprise.

When we return from feasting, two decadent bubble baths await the kids and they dive in, using the cleverly designed bath trays to prop up their towers of sweet treats, getting so sugared up in the process that sleeping is not even a remote option. But we’re on holidays, so what the heck.

The kids have twin beds in their room, while I have a glorious king-sized Sofitel signature MyBed all to myself. Well, that’s the plan. When we finally retire for the night it takes about 10 seconds for my farting, snuffling offspring to invade my heavenly bed and start shoving their toes into my nostrils. But the bed is so huge, I manage to find a comfortable kid-free corner to sleep.

Right now, Luxury Escapes have made it possible for you too to indulge in the elegance of a Luxury Room at more than 50% off the normal rate, with up to two kids staying free.

Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua Cuisine

The following morning, we return to Kwee-Zeen, a buffet restaurant inspired by the street-side hawker markets of Asia, for what is quite possibly the best resort breakfast I have ever come across. There are quite literally rooms of food from noodle dishes, breakfast curries and freshly made masala dosa to an Indonesian breakfast selection and an egg station whipping up eggs every conceivable way imaginable.

But that’s just the start as there’s also a room laden with pastries, donuts and fresh breads, another with cold cuts and sushi and a station for pressing fresh designer juices.

Naturally, we stuff ourselves silly.

It’s no secret we love Indonesian cuisine so we repeat the gorging at lunch at Toya Beach Bar & Grill. There are kids’ menus available but the kids opt to dive into a delicious feast of Indonesian delights, Raffles attempting to break the world record for most Indonesian food consumed by a single nine-year old boy in one sitting.

Dinner at Cucina, an Italian Al Fresco continues the theme of over indulgence. Sugarpuff dines on pizza from the kids’ menu while Raffles and I devour a sublime squid ink pasta topped with seafood and some delightfully fluffy gnocchi spiked with truffles, only coming up for air to watch a mesmerising performance by Balinese dancers.

There’s also a Lobby Bar serving snack items where the kids liked to sit and watch the sun set and rise.

One of the best things about eating at the dining establishments in Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua with kids is that each and every one of them has a dedicated kids area so you can dine at leisure while the kids do their thing in safety.

Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua Vietura Spa

The Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua Beach Resort has two different spas. Vietura offers non-invasive aesthetic treatments, nutritional counselling and cosmetic dentistry while the The So Spa is an otherworldly oasis of soaring ceilings, mood lighting and trickling water that looks and feels like a temple. It is here, while Raffles heads back to the kids’ club to become one with an X-Box, that Sugarpuff and I enjoy a mother and daughter spa session.

She beams as the ping of a singing bowl signals the commencement of our simultaneous head to toe massages, both of us falling into a relaxed sleep under the expertise of our masseurs.  By the time she has her toes filed, polished and bedazzled with glittery purple polish she reaches six-year old nirvana.

The activities

While Bali has plenty of family fun on offer, it’s tempting not to leave the resort. Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua knocks it out of the park for kids with some of the best cultural, creative and just plain fun activities and facilities for children I’ve come across in a resort. We make time to loll on the day beds on the golden beach, and splash about in the clean clear waters.

We head for the enormous landscaped lagoon pool that snakes off under humpbacked bridges from one end of the resort to the other.

The kids swim and play happily for hours, while I happily indulge in a few delicious lychee-infused gin cocktails at the swim up bar.

There’s also a family swimming pool complete with slides, splash pads and a man-made beach, but its lack of bar for mama renders our visit short lived.

Sofitel’s Cheeky Monkeys Kids’ Club turns my kids’ club hating offspring into raving fans with an incredible array of supervised daily activities. My wee dirt girl adores the organic gardening programme, aerating the earth, learning about the vegetables and herbs she collects, and picking watermelons straight from the vine.

They take their haul of freshly picked fruits and vegetables to Cucina to meet the lovely Isep, one of the Sofitel’s talented chefs who cook up cakes and pizza with kids during twice-weekly cooking lessons. On this occasion though, he teaches my kids how to whip up seafood we’d picked on an early morning trip to the fish markets at Jimbaran Bay.

He teaches them to chop and pound the ingredients into pastes before wrapping the fish in banana leaves and placing it into an oven. Raffles even helps prepare a delicious seafood infused noodle soup made from the river prawns, topping it with a handful of chilies for a little added fire. It is nothing short of sublime.

Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua Culture

Sugarpuff and Raffles both get in touch with the local culture through dance lessons at the onsite temple, my little dancing queen learnt to (gracefully) shake her booty Balinese style.

The kids rock a fetching Balinese ensemble for an audience with Pak Mangku, the temple priest entrusted with the spiritual wellbeing of the staff and guests of the resort.

Pak Mangku graciously explains the five elements of the Balinese Hindu faith to my enthralled and appreciative kids before teaching them how to make offerings to Bali’s Hindu deities.They weave canang baskets from banana leaves then fill them with tiny treats, flowers and smouldering incense before silently making a wish and placing them on the altar of the temple.

It is moments of cultural immersion like these, combined with the incredible warmth of the staff, that prove to be the highlight of our stay and take our holiday to a level we’ve never experienced before in Bali.

Indeed, it proves so very hard to say goodbye to the people who have gone above and beyond to make our stay at the Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua with kids so special, that instead we say “see you next time,” because we are resolute that we will be returning.

And I’m not arguing, I’ll be booking another Luxury Escape at Sofitel here.

Disclosure: BoyEatsWorld were guests of Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua. This post is sponsored by Luxury Escapes but all dancing, splashing, temple touring and opinions  remain our own.

The post Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua With Kids appeared first on boyeatsworld.

I have to confess it took me a while to catch the Bali with kids bug. You see, my first taste of Bali, some 25 years ago, wasn’t exactly a success, partly due to my appalling taste in first husbands and partly due to the fact that I spent the entire week drunk and/or rocking a killer hangover.

So awful was that particularly vacay that it took me two decades to summon up the courage to return. But return I did, though with a shiny new non-douche bag husband and two small children in tow. The result was Bali’s endless beaches, terraced rice fields, tranquil temples, warm-hearted people and the colour and chaos of its culture getting under all of our skins so much that we’ve repeated the experience many times since.

In fact, having just racked up their fourth visit to the Island of the Gods, Raffles and Sugarpuff are seasoned pros when it comes to Balinese escapades, and our recent sojourn reminded them all over again why they love this paradise of golden sand, temples and sunshine. Here they share their thoughts on the best things to do in Bali with kids, by kids.

Things to do in Bali with kids

1. Bali’s kid friendly beaches

Whether it’s in the sea, in a pool or falling from the sky, my little Pisceans certainly live up to their astrological personas because, notwithstanding their lack of gills, I swear they are part fish. Needless to say, with Bali being one of Australia’s best-loved beach holiday destinations, the kids are all about falling into its watery embrace. But with so many beautiful beaches, and beach resorts, which are the best for kids?

Though it’s packed with family resorts, Kuta Beach has a very strong current, and is frankly quite dirty, so it isn’t ideal for swimming, though surfers will love it. Nearby Sanur’s beaches are more protected, making them a better choice for young kids. Seminyak is another top spot for families and Canggu is becoming increasingly popular with its choice of surf beaches and swimming spots suited to littlies. If you’ve got little groms in the family, the Bukit Peninsula is the place to be. Here you’ll find some of the island’s best surfing beaches including the famous breaks of Uluwatu, Belangan and Dreamland. And, after a day of chasing waves, Jimbaran Beach is the perfect spot to catch one of those famous Balinese sunsets while dining on fresh caught and cooked seafood from the warungs (restaurants) along the beach.

He said: “I love a good beach, especially when there are kayaks and SUPs around, and although the beaches in Nusa Dua had both, and I had a great time on them, my absolute favourite beach is at Jimbaran Bay. That’s because it is where the fish markets are. I love watching the fisherman bring in their catch and then watching ladies carry big tubs of fresh tuna on their heads. Man, they are so strong.”

She said: “There are lots of sandy beaches in Bali to play on and I loved to run and jump and splash and fly huge kites that looked like eagles and pirate ships “

2. The Balinese people

It’s hardly news that the Balinese people are some of the nicest and most welcoming on earth. One of the best things about Bali with kids is that the Balinese people adore children, and go out of their way to accommodate them, and my kids are extremely appreciative of it.

He said: “The Balinese people are awesome. They are all really kind and friendly and love to share their culture with people. I met so many nice and helpful people, even the guy on the beach who sold us a kite went out of his way to help us, because that’s just what Balinese people are like. Probably my favourite person though was Pak Mangku, the priest at Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua because he spent loads of time with me teaching me about Balinese Hinduism and how and why they make offerings to the gods, and that was really special.”

She said: “I loved all the people we met because they were so friendly and nice they liked joking with me and always made me giggle. There was a really nice lady who gave me cuddles in Ubud. And I loved the chef (Isep) who taught us how to make fish at our hotel because he called me chef.”

3. The Balinese culture

Bali’s culture is both colourful and complex but it is very accesible for kids. Most of Bali’s 3.5 million people are Hindu and there are many festivals and ceremonies to observe at the  thousands of temples around the country. Most resorts even having their own in-house temple. Regardless of where the temple is located, it is important to be respectful when visiting and wear clothing that covers shoulders as well as a sarong and temple scarf around the waist.

Everything in Balinese culture, from prayer, to the way houses and resorts are built and orientated, to dancing and chanting, is done to keep a harmonious balance between Gods and demons. I absolutely recommend watching a performance as the dancers are mesmerizing, the kecak fire dance at Uluwatu is especially spectacular.

They also make offerings, lots and lots of them. Canang are the ubiquitous palm-leaf basket that you will see filled with petals, gifts and incense literally everywhere. Sadly, we see a lot of tourists trampling them, which is incredibly disrespectful. It’s really not hard to walk around them.

He said: “I’m really fascinated by Hindu culture because they have the coolest gods like Ganesha and Hanuman, a flying monkey God who is totally epic. I loved watching the kecak fire dancers at Uluwatu and spending time with a priest who taught me all about the five sacred natural elements – earth, water, fire, air and ether – that the people hold sacred. And explained about temples and offerings. It’s just a beautiful and kind culture.”

She said: “I really liked the temples and all the smoky incense sticks and flowers and stuff but my favourite thing was learning to do a Balinese dance, it’s really hard because you have to stick your bum out funny and hold your hands in weird positions.”

4. Bali’s Natural Attractions

One of 17,500 islands that make up Indonesia, teeny tiny Bali is not called the Island of the Gods for nothing! The place is supernaturally beautiful. It is a tropical paradise of golden beaches, secret canyons, epic waterfalls, soaring cliffs, rugged coastlines, fire-breathing volcanoes, tangled jungles and terraced rice paddies that spill down mountainsides. And its a beauty that is not lost on my little nature lovers.

He said: “We’ve been all over Bali and have seen so many beautiful beaches along the coast but Ubud, in the mountains, really blew me away. The landscape was formed by volcanoes and was dreamy and there were bamboo forests, rice paddy terraces, wild rivers, awesome waterfalls and jungles to explore. It’s just really beautiful. I really liked the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary too. Even though the temples are man-made the forest has kind of reclaimed them, though the monkeys are kind of vicious and a bit scary.”

She said: “We went to Ubud and saw a really real volcano and it was so beautiful and pointy. We also went hiking down a big slippery hill to a waterfall that was so noisy but really pretty. It looked like a place that water fairies might live, my brother even went into the waterfall to look but he didn’t find any.”

5. Bali’s adrenalin packed action

Despite Bali’s small size, it packs a pretty big punch in terms of activities for the adventurous. From white water rafting, mountain biking and volcano hiking to wildlife watching and water sports and my little thrill seekers are up for it all.

He said: “There are so many adventurous things to do in Bali, I don’t even know where to start. The slides at Waterbom are pretty epic and every kid should go there at least once, and the resorts offer kayaking and stand up paddle boarding and jet packing and other cool water sports. But my favourite adventure of all was mountain biking through the forests in Ubud (with Sepeda Bali) then hiking down a steep hill to run around under a colossal waterfall.”

She said: “I super love Waterbom because they have a big splash area and I got to have water fights with my brother.”

6. The Balinese cuisine

Balinese cuisine is an intriguing combo of indigenous, Indonesian and Indian flavours. There are dozens of must try dishes that are kid friendly including satay (meat on sticks with peanut sauce) , ayam goreng (fried chicken with rice), gado gado (steamed vegetables with peanut sauce) and nasi goreng (Indonesian fried rice) and if your kids are really picky it is not hard to find a pizza or burger in the main resort strips. Happily mine are anything but and love tasting the local cuisine.

He said: “Don’t even get me started on how good Indonesian food is. I’ve always loved dishes like satay but this time I tried some more traditional home cooked dishes at Wayan’s house in Ubud. I’m not sure what the dishes were called but some were quite spicy, which is a good thing, and the flavours were really unusual and really, really good. The fish at the markets is so fresh and really delicious barbecued. And we bought some lobster sized prawns to cook that were insane. And then there were these epic roadside snacks of fried tofu stuffed with noodles, crispy perkedel corn fritters, and veg that were super delish. And I loved that the food always came with wads of hot sambal sauce that I could pour all over everything.I could go on and on.”

She said: “I really like Nasi Goreng. It’s fried rice that a chicken lays an egg on top of. Well it doesn’t really lay it, someone cooks it and puts in on top and it’s yummy. And I liked the yellow rice with chicken sticks at the beach at Sofitel even though Raffy pigged most of it.”

7. Where to stay in Bali with kids

Bali’s resorts are famously fantastic for kids with incredible facilities for the whole family and awesome kids club programmes that go way beyond the usual offerings. It’s also fairly easy to find large family rooms, discounted interconnecting rooms and free or discounted children’s meals. Babysitters are also readily available and are excellent value, costing just a few dollars an hour. For more on some on where to stay in Bali with kids click here.

We’ve now stayed in multiple resorts in Kuta and Seminyak, several resorts at pretty Jimbaran Bay,  as well one in the mountains of Ubud, and most recently a stunning hotel in the luxury enclave that is Nusa Dua. Whether you are on a budget or a seeking the ultimate in luxury Balinese accommodation, you’ll find everything from hostels to family resorts and butler serviced private villas catering for kids. The one thing that’s guaranteed regardless of the price point? The service will be awesome.

He said: “I don’t think they even have bad places to stay in Bali. We’ve stayed at three or four now and they’ve all been amazing, but the Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua was so good it might even be one of my favourite hotels in the world. Like Ever. Seriously, the breakfast buffet alone was enough to make me love it more than life itself but there was so much more. They had the biggest and best pools, cool activities, cultural experiences, cooking lessons, a great beach, the nicest rooms, yummy treats and Xbox games at the kids’ club that I got to play when mum took my sister off to the spa. But the best thing about it was the people who worked there, they made me feel like family.”

She said: “I really liked Novotel (Bali Nusa Dua) because they had yummy ice blocks by the pool and also a good beach that wasn’t crowded but I really, really loved the Sofitel (Bali Nusa Dua) because I got to go gardening and mummy and I went to the spa for a massage and the nice lady there painted my nails sparkly purple.”

Disclosure: While The Eats Worlds were hosted at Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua it was for Raffles to film a new episode of Welcome TV and not for the blog. We aren’t obligated to write about this or any other resorts or attractions here but the kids have chosen to share their favourite bits.

Note: Bracketed copy additions by Mama Eats World

The post Things to do in Bali with kids, by kids appeared first on boyeatsworld.

Travel has proven an amazing way of introducing our children to a range of new and exciting foods. But so many travellers, especially those with kids, refuse to bypass fast food chain burgers and the limp pizza at the hotel buffet to wrap their lips around the local cuisine.

Sometimes it’s due to a fear of flavour but more often its due to an often misplaced fear of food poisoning. But why travel at all if you aren’t prepared to truly experience a destination? The first thing Raffles and I do when we arrive in a new city is head straight for the nearest street food vendor. We both consider it an integral part of the travel experience because it fast tracks our understanding of a country’s cultural identity.

Indeed, one of Raffles favourite recent travel experiences was taking on Phuket Old Town’s Walking Street Night Market, and his body weight, in weird and wonderful Thai treats with Migrationology‘s street food superhero, Mark Weins.

Of course we take precautions. We’d never take an uneducated risk on our children’s health. We avoid tap water, raw foods and stalls with dubious hygiene standards, and our street food mantra is “cook it, peel it or forget it.”

To be honest, sometimes street food can be a safer option for kids, because you can see and smell exactly what you’re feeding them. While there are still no guarantees of avoiding illness, that’s true of any meal prepared outside your own kitchen.

But not all street stalls are created equal. Here are our 12 top tips for a safe street food experience with kids.

Top tips for safe street food

1. Up and at ‘em

Wake up! We all love a holiday sleep in but all the cool cats know that the best local markets start at the crack of dawn. So set the alarm and head out for an early breakfast to ensure you get your teeth into some of the freshest and best street food treats of the day.

2. Shop like a local

If you’re after the real thing when shopping for street eats then avoid ordering tacos in Taiwan or burgers in Bangkok. Choose local dishes cooked to local perfection. Markets packed with western tourists usually serve up sub-standard and inauthentic eats, so go where the locals are and eat what they eat.

3. Follow the leader

For the best food in town just stalk the locals. If they’re lining up for a particular vendor and the food turnover is high, then form a conga line behind them because it’s most likely going to lead you to a fresh and fabulous meal! On the flipside, if a vendor has no local customers, you have to ask yourself why? Regardless of the answer, in my quest for a vom free holiday, I follow the local lead.

4. Behind closed doors

E.coli doesn’t discriminate. The malicious bastard is just as likely to be found hanging with his pals salmonella, listeria and typhoid in a sit-down restaurant where you can’t see the kitchen, the hygiene standards, or the produce you’re about to eat, as he is doing backstroke in the salad dressing at a street side stall.

5. Keeping up appearances

Whether your dining at a restaurant or on street foods, if the store looks dirty and the sous chef is a rodent just move along, there’s nothing to eat here.

6. Keep it clean

Is the vendor using gloves and tongs? If yes, there’s a good chance they understand the importance of food hygiene. Or do they have one finger up their nose and another scratching their arse? We’ll pass. 

7. On the nose

Take the sniff test. If the place smells like a toilet, then there is a good chance you are going to end up bent over one.

8. Hot to not trot

The best bet for avoiding vom-inducing bacteria is to choose foods that are thoroughly cooked and are still hot.

9. Dodge that salad

It’s best to avoid anything raw, including fruits and vegetables. Salads may have been rinsed with unsafe water and fruit that has been pre-peeled and cut may have been exposed to all kinds of icky bugs, dust and dirt, and may well be hosting a bacteria bacchanal. Stick to unopened fruit like papaya, mango or bananas and peel it yourself (after you’ve cleaned your hands).

10. Bottle it

Speaking of water, never drink water that’s not bottled and always use a straw so you’re not drinking from a can that’s been sitting in ice made from undiluted typhoid. We pack our own paper straws (the plastic ones are a hideous environmental hazard) for just such occasions.

11. Clean up your own act

It’s not always the food that makes people sick, it’s the germs you’re packing on your own hands. Especially kids who struggle to keep their hands off everything! Just like we would at home, we make the kids wash their hands before they put their fingers anywhere near their food or mouths. As an added precaution, we also use a splash of hand sanitiser before and after each meal.

12. BYO utensils

Though we used to be a little more nonchalant, with kids in tow we have to take more precautions. We carry our own reusable cutlery for the kids because the plastic cutlery stocked at street vendors isn’t always the cleanest. And its bad for the environment. Paranoid? Perhaps. Have my kids ever had food poisoning? Never.

 SO WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IF YOUR KIDS DO GET TRAVELLER’ DIARRHOEA?

You may know it as Delhi Belly, The Hershey squirts, Bali Belly, Peru Poo, Burrito Bowels or the ever so politely British, holiday tummy.  Regardless of your preferred euphemism, a case of traveller’s diarrhoea is shit. And no matter how cautious you are, getting it can come down to nothing more than bad luck.

The good news is that it is usually a self-limiting condition that clears up after a few days. And while adults can keep things “contained”, so to speak, with over the counter medication like Imodium, things get more complicated with kids’ as, in Australia, Imodium is not recommended for anyone under the age of 12.

Unfortunately, kids under 12 are also more prone to dehydration. So what to do?

1. Oral hydration is essential and the last thing you want is your child to end up on a drip in hospital, so it is vital to replace the fluids and salts that they lose.

2. Don’t leave home without plenty of oral rehydration powder, and ensure the kids take little sips of fluid as frequently as possible. Isotonic drinks like Gatorade and Pocari Sweat can also help and, if you are in the tropics, fresh coconuts (cut in front of you) contain water that is sterile and safe to consume.

3. Breastfeeding is the best way to reduce the risk of foodborne and waterborne illness, and to rehydrate babies who are at even higher risk from dehydration.

5. Avoid juices and dairy products except for plain natural yoghurt as its natural probiotics can help fight the bacteria.

5. Ginger or peppermint candies and fresh (weak) chamomile and peppermint tea can help settle nausea.

6. If your child is hungry, let them eat but stick to bland foods. Bananas, plain rice, porridge, clear soup and soy based milk products have essential nutrients that can help fight infection.

7. Administer some kid-friendly probiotics packed with live (good) bacteria that can aid the digestive system.

8. Rest. Don’t overdo things.

9. If symptoms persist, or your child is becoming seriously dehydrated, seek immediate medical advice.

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It is somewhat of an understatement to say that both Raffles and Sugarpuff love the water. Whether it’s in the sea, in a pool or falling from the sky, my little Pisceans certainly live up to their pesce astrological personas, which is a touch ironic given that I think astrology is such a crock. So much so that I think it’s far more likely someone accidentally dropped a little dolphin DNA into the embryonic cocktail shakers at Casa Conception because, not withstanding their lack of scales or gills, I swear the two of them are part fish.

So it seemed almost serendipitous that on a recent holiday at the Holiday Inn Baruna Bali with kids we should be staying in a resort named for Baruna, the Hindu God of the Sea. It is no surprise that my amphibious offspring developed a bit of a thing for the wet and wild deity, who is said to offer aquatic protection and providence to the island’s majority Hindu people.

At the Holiday Inn Resort Baruna Bali, the dripping deity certainly delivers on his watery promises.

As if providing a dazzling swimming pool and tranquil koi ponds isn’t enough, the beachfront location of Holiday Inn Baruna Bali, close to many of Bali’s best attractions, offers a backdrop of colourful, wooden fishing boats that have me wondering if Baruna might just be a divine show-off.

It is here that we spend our evenings when the beach comes alive as lovely locals and tourists gather to watch one of Bali’s fiery sunsets.

The Balinese people are every bit as friendly as they’re rumoured to be and the kids collect new friends like seashells.

The beachfront gatherings also bring a small army of hawkers spruiking everything from sarongs to snacks and massages.

Bali’s hawkers are nothing if not tenacious but it is polite to at least acknowledge them with a simple ‘‘no thank you’’ or tidak mau (don’t want). If you’re not interested in what they’re offering don’t engage further and don’t try to fob them of by saying you’ll come back later because they’ll be waiting.

As lovely as our evening strolls are, it is floating on the massive beanbags in the Holiday Inn Baruna Bali’s enormous lagoon style pool that swallows most of our time.

A shaded toddlers pool is an added bonus for Sugarpuff, as is the swim-up bar that Mr EatsWorld and I patronise each evening at happy hour!

We do manage to escape the pool’s watery depths for meals at the resort’s excellent restaurants.

Where any pretence of decorum is soon forgotten as my ravenous ringleted rascals dive face first into the lovely local cuisine, particularly smitted with the bowls of noodles, nasi goreng and crispy perkedel jagung (Indonesian corn fritters).

One great feature of the Holiday Inn Baruna Bali with kids is the cold stone kiosk in the resort Hub, where the kids take multiple breaks to gobble ice cream. Between scoops, we also discover a store that stocks snacks, beer and bottles of wine, which to our utter amazement are all sold at supermarket prices. Huzzah!

Given the Holiday Inn Baruna Bali’s generous bevvy pricing policy it seems the least we can do to imbibe each evening on the private terrace of our spacious studio room… after our little sea monsters fall asleep.

Speaking of rooms, our studio, which looks out onto the beautiful resort gardens, is big enough for even the fussiest of sea dwelling deities with a massive king-sized bed, king-size sofa bed and a separate kids area with bunk beds, its own television and, much to Raffles delight, an X-Box. On the terrace there’s even a sizeable day-bed which Sugarpuff covers daily in fallen frangipani blossoms.

And in keeping with our holiday’s watery theme, there’s also a colossal bathroom where family shower dance parties, complete with pumping music from Raffles iPod, become a daily occurrence.

Raffles and Sugarpuff do dry off long enough to visit the resort’s Tea Tree Day Spa where they relax and enjoy their first ever spa treatment.

An insanely ticklish Raffles spends most of his massage giggling and wriggling about like a loon, but Sugarpuff is so hooked that I foresee a life long addiction to nail polish following her ocean blue mani.

What with the awesome pool and beach, one could be forgiven for thinking a visit to a waterpark would be superfluous to requirements. But one obviously hasn’t spoken to my waterlogged weirdos. To appease the mighty Baruna, we’re off to sacrifice our children by chucking them down the slides at Waterbom. They take it extremely well.

So well in fact that what’s meant to be a morning of splashing and sliding our way down and around the waterslides and navigating the lazy river turns in to a very long day.

It proves near impossible to budge my kids, or Mr Eats World for that matter, as they have been sucked into the vortex of fun that is Waterbom’s kids water play zone.

It takes being forcibly removed by the staff at closing time for us to exit the facilities and return to the resort where, after giving Baruna a metaphysical high five, all three dive straight back into the loving embrace of the pool.

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Sunsets are something that Bali does particularly well. And Jimbaran Beach is the place those in the know gather to enjoy them. Which is why, at sundown, we find ourselves leaving the Ayana Resort and Spa to instead sip a leisurely Bintang at bustling Jimbaran Bay with kids.

At least sort of, as said kids have run off to stalk, with serious intent, a guy selling balloons.

Only the emergency purchase of a duck and an Angry Bird wheelie balloon (don’t even ask) allows the poor guy to escape without having to have an AVO taken out on a particularly obsessive Sugarpuff.

It proves an astute purchase as the tow-along balloon thingy proves to have true pulling power and my little cougar kitten is soon enjoying her first holiday romance with a younger Balinese man she picks up on the beach.

As the two tiny tots cuddle and play together, Raffles frolics merrily by the water’s edge with some older local kids and their ball, connected only by a shared language of play. It is a beautiful thing! When our kids engage with other children on our travels, it not only strengthens their experience and creates a world of connections for them (and their parents) but also teaches my wee but worldly little lovelies to appreciate both the similarities and differences of those from other cultures.

We fill the kids happy little bellies with fresh fish from one of the seafood shacks that line the beach,  and watch as they feast on perkedels (corn fritters) and some freshly barbecued corn from a cart that’s sitting quite randomly on the sand.

But mum and dad are fasting in preparation for a rare night out together at Ayana’s Dava Restaurant. Sans enfants. Gasp!

To be honest, we’re a tad nervous as it isn’t often Mama and Papa Eats World get to eat out without lugging a truck load of baby wipes or having to nag someone to finish their vegies. And babysitters are a rarity. But we’re biting the bullet! Well, we’re actually biting succulent chunks of crayfish, slivers of rare wagyu beef, freshly shaved truffles and a perfect baked chocolate fondant.

By candlelight.

Alongside a pretty terraced lily pond.

Yep, it’s a little bit special. And by little bit I mean it is freaking amazeballs!

And while our meal and the time alone is all kinds of awesome, the biggest surprise of the evening is returning to our villa to discover that the ever hungry Raffles and Sugarpuff haven’t eaten their babysitter and are, in fact, fast asleep.

Food is an integral part of what makes a visit to Bali and a stay at the Ayana Resort & Spa experience so special. Besides fine diner Dava, the resort offers a huge choice of dining from fresh seafood on the beach and trattoria-style Italian to a melting-pot of pan-asian cuisine and traditional Indonesian market fare, which rocks.

Speaking of rocks, we can’t miss a visit to the resort’s famous Rock Bar but this time Mr Eats World and I take the kids as chaperones, lest we actually start getting used to uninterrupted conversation.

Accessed by inclinator, the split-level bar  merges almost organically into the cliff face. It is Bali’s hippest bar and the queue to get in is long but as guests of the resort, we’re whisked through VIP style, the kids welcomed with crayons and colouring books and a bowl of the fanciest chips I’ve ever seen.

Mr Eats World & I surreptitiously steal a few and toast another beautiful day in Bali as waves break below us and traditional fishing boats sail past into yet another postcard perfect sunset.

But the most special dining experience in Jimbaran Bay with kids is a quite simple one that we enjoy on our last day after an eye-opening tour Raffles and I enjoy of the local fish market.

We’re the only tourists and my beautiful boy is as intriguing to the lovely locals as their fishy wares are to him.

He is warmly welcomed to see, touch and taste the freshest of fresh fish.

And to view the bizarre array of unrecognisable seafood as it is sorted and unloaded straight from brightly-painted fishing boats on the busy beachfront.

As excited as Raffles is about seeing where his food comes from and playing in the fishing boats, once we return to Ayana for lunch his excitement goes turbo as we enjoy a very special meal of seafood nasi goreng (Indonesian style fried rice made with a spicy tomato sambal), and tum bebek (tasty minced duck with a spicy bumbu genep paste and lime leaves steamed in banana leaves).

A meal that a beaming Raffles – chef’s hat firmly in place – presents proudly to us after his first ever official cooking class with the lovely chefs at Ayana’s Padi Restaurant.

And it is as delicious as he is.

THE RECIPE – Seafood Nasi Goreng

Ingredients:

4 tbs Vegetable Oil
2 cups cooked white rice (best prepared the day before)
1 cup of chinese cabbage, julienned
1 cup of bok choy, julienned
1 cup of leek, finely sliced
1 long red chilli finely diced
2 shallots diced
4 garlic cloves finely diced
100 gm firm white fish (we used snapper fillet) cut into cubes.
100 gm prawns peeled and diced
50 gm of calamari, diced
2 eggs, beaten
1 egg, whole.
1 tbs fish sauce
2 tbs Sambal Tomat (recipe below)
1 tbs mushroom soy sauce
1 tbs fried shallots.

Method:

Heat 2 tbs oil in a wok or heavy fry pan.
Add shallots and garlic and fry for a minute.
Add the beaten eggs and fry, stirring.
Add chilli and add fish and calamari, stir fry for one minute then add prawns and fry until seafood is almost cooked.
Add a tbs oil, fish sauce and sambal.
Add vegetables and cooked rice, stirring gently.
In a separate pan fry an egg sunny side up and put aside.
Add mushroom sauce and white pepper to taste.
Serve with fried shallots, and fried egg.

Sambal Tomat (for nasi goreng)

Ingredients:

2 tbsp of vegetable oil
3 shallots, roughly chopped
6 cloves garlic
4 large chillies, seeds removed and roughly chopped
2 medium tomatoes, quartered
1 tsp shrimp paste
2 tbs lime juice
Salt to taste

Method:

Heat oil in a heavy based frypan or wok.
Add shallots, garlic and chillies and fry for about 4 minutes.
Add the tomatoes and shrimp paste and fry until soft.
Take off heat and add blend ingredients in a food processor to a coarse paste.
Season with salt and lime juice.
Cool before use.

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My first visit to Bali was nearly 20 years ago. You might say it was less than successful. You see, although I enjoyed a little taste of Bali’s endless beaches, terraced rice fields, tranquil temples and the colour and chaos of Balinese Hindu culture… being young and utterly, utterly stupid, I also tasted way too much bourbon.

So much, in fact, that after a huge night in Kuta, I ended up so tanked that I tried to buy a horse. Yes, a horse. Of the live, whinnying variety. Think Phar Lap, only smaller, smellier and less dead. It may have been the two gallons of bourbon I’d just consumed, it might have been the humidity, it could have been brain damage caused by having listened to Ace of Base playing on loop at a dodgy bar… but there I was bartering with a kart driver, convinced in my spectacular stupor that I’d be saving my little pony from a life of slavery and servitude.

I was also confident, in the way only the truly pissed can be, that I’d have no problems smuggling a horse back to my beachfront resort without anyone noticing… or waltzing it through customs the next day for the trip home.

Clearly it was one of my finest moments, and by finest I actually mean dim-witted. The resulting hangover was up there too. I’d even go so far as to put it in my top five of all time. Quite a feat.

But that was then and this is now and my embarrassment had finally faded just enough that, a few months back, I decided to brave a second bite of Bali, only this time as a parent.

And, armed as I am with a touch more maturity and the responsibility of two small children, I am almost certain that this time around drunken equine acquisitions followed by a day of pain and puking can be avoided.

To be safe, I’ve ditched the party atmosphere of Kuta for more upmarket Jimbaran. We’re visiting the completely fabulous Ayana Resort and Spa with the kids in tow, and every one of is treated like rock stars from the moment we arrive.

The kids are stupidly excited by the pretty purple fruit drinks to sip (which I check to ensure are free of Bourbon) as we check in, and a melodic soundtrack is provided by Balinese musicians.

And they’re not playing Ace of Base! It’s a promising sign. A buggy picks us up to take to our room but as we walk through the brightly painted front gate of a Cliff Villa it becomes obvious that there has been a mistake.

They must have muddled the accommodation… we can’t be staying here. Can we?

I mean seriously, I’ve stumbled across European castles that are smaller than this place.

But there’s no mistake, it’s all ours! Hells yeah!

Locating our jaws from where we’d dropped them on the marble floor, we snap them back into place, wipe away the drool and head off to explore the bathroom, which is roughly three times the size of our apartment at home.

The swimming pool size bath is brimming with floating flowers, and a gift bag with a family of rubber duckies is presented to the kids.

Meanwhile, I am presented with a cell phone, a mobile hotline to the personal butler that we, as villa guests of the Ayana Resort and Spa Bali are privileged to enjoy. I don’t have the first clue what to do with a butler but am quite prepared to spend the next few days working it out.

That’s just the kind of brave soul I am, people.

Any fantasies I may entertain of enjoying the pretty petalled bath are obliterated by my already naked kids who dive through the layer of roses and frangipanis. At the exact same moment Sugarpuff proceeds to vomit purple-tinged puke all over the pretty petals.

Noooo! We’ve not even been here an hour. And as far as I am aware she hasn’t been drinking bourbon. As paranoid as I am after my last trip, I scan the room for hidden horses and am relieved to find none.

This wasn’t in the AYANA Resort and Spa with kids brochure! And I really can’t bring myself to call the butler, so instead of lolling in the luxurious tub, I find myself on my hands and knees scrubbing vom out of it while the fam, including a fast recovered Sugarpuff, giggle happily and lounge on an enormous daybed in the bale (Balinese pavilion) that overhangs our private pool. Bastards!

Though I must admit they’re incredibly cute bastards, who are hard to stay cross with!

Leaving them to their private poolside party I sneak off to road test the signature ‘seven chakra dhara’ treatment at The Thermes Marins Bali Spa, the one place I feel I should be safe from both puke and ponies. I melt at its awesomeness, then return to the villa and the madness and mayhem that is my family.

Once Sugarpuff’s splendiferous motion sickness incited hurling has well and truly abated, we pool hop across the resort.

Choosing only one from the five on offer – each complete with an array of fantastical spurting fantasy creatures and waterfalls – proves impossible.

The mythical creatures that dot the resort create a fab arena for a little hide and seek.

And a spot of improv…

While the sun decks, lounges and bean bags provide a relaxing escape for people who aren’t related to our kids.

Our day of blissful leisure is interrupted only by the temptation of satay sticks cooked over charcoal on an authentic Javanese cart outside the resort’s Damar Terrace, where we spend far too many hours.

As hard as it is to tear ourselves away from Ayana and her satay sticks, I want the kids to experience a little Balinese culture so we head to the 11th Century temple at nearby Uluwatu.

Perched high on a steep cliff overlooking the ocean, the location is as remarkable as the temple and the perfect spot to view a Bali sunset.

It’s a Balinese national holiday and the place is chockers! Sugarpuff takes a fancy to a local gentleman and quite literally throws herself at him.

In a profoundly touching gesture, he scoops her into his arms and carries her into the temple courtyard, where tourists are not allowed, for a priest to bless her before returning her to me with a gentle smile.

It is moments like these that make travelling with children so special.

A buzz fills the air as a traditional kecak dance begins. About 50 loin-cloth clad men form a circle around a fire and throwing their hands in the air begin a percussive chant of “chat-chat-chat”

Two ornately dressed female dancers join in on the spectacle – sizing each other up and circling one another – while the men continue their chant. It is strange, noisy and colourful, which is right up Raffles and Sugarpuff’s alley! They love it.

It’s not all sweetness and light at the temple, though. The temple is also inhabited by a bunch of mischievous monkeys. Hats, sunglasses, and cameras are particularly popular among the pilfering primates and while some may exchange stolen goods for fruit, it is better not to have to enter negotiations with the bolshie bandits. Especially when you’re with kids becasue monkeys do bite and a rabies shot will not make for a great memento of your trip.

Having said that, the kids do enjoy a few moments of monkey magic, from a suitably safe distance. And while the monkeys are cute and furry, I’m happy to day I don’t feel even the slightest inkling to purchase one. So far, so good!

The kids have been so well behaved that the following morning I take them to the hotel’s gift shop to choose a little memento of our stay. Raffles immediately sets his heart on a carved timber item. My heart stops as he holds it out to me.

It’s a bloody horse!

Kill me now.

So once again I find myself in Bali purchasing a freakin’ pony, only this time I’m sober. Oh well, I guess it will offer me a reminder of both my Bali breaks. And at least this one should be easier to get through customs…

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