Bali Trip – Hard Rock Hotel Review

I know this is super late but this last post’s got some info that might be useful for you.

Actually this was supposed to be the “Day 4” of the Bali trip, but what we did on the last day of the trip was just packing, swimming, walking around and had quick lunch nearby. Not that interesting to share I guess? Hahaha. Thus I’d rather give a review of the hotel we stayed at Kuta, which was Hard Rock Hotel.


On a very tiring evening, we checked in to our room and found it really humid. The floor was sticky and dirty. The beds were damp. We suspected that it was from the aircond that wasn’t working properly so we called out the repair man and cleaning service. Luckily, the locals there are just very friendly and polite so service-wise it was good.  One thing that I still didn’t like though, was the fact that we were at the lower level of the hotel, like basement! I don’t know about you, but I definitely prefer higher floors so I could enjoy the view from the window.


The superior things from this hotel are definitely the facilities. The swimming pool, garden, entertainment rooms, there was even a "Teenager Room” or something like that which was strictly for teens from around 11 to 17 only! I feel old… The breakfast there was not even that good in my opinion.. and I think they could’ve done so much better.



Overall, since we booked this room at a special rate, we didn’t feel as much disappointed as we would have if we paid at a normal rate, coz I think it’s just not worth it. I’ve stayed in Hard Rock Singapore before and I really liked the room. I guess if Hard Rock Bali wants to brag its infamous brand, they at least need to meet the international standard to match with its international price. And for those who won’t stay around at the hotel, I suggest that you choose another hotel coz it’s such a waste to not fully utilize the facilities (like us..).

In addition, I wish we could spend more time chilling at Kuta beach!! Coz it’s definitely better than Nusa Dua! Man, next time we shouldn’t make our schedule too packed.. it was holiday anyways!

DAY 1 // DAY 2 // DAY 3

xo, Jo

Bali Trip – Day 3

Previous day in Bali: DAY 2. 

Hello peeps! Sorry for the delayed post. Been busy with job-hunting ugh :/ So let’s pick up where we left, shall we? DAY 3!

Pandawa Marine Adventures, Nusa Dua

On a sizzling hot day (I think you could fry an egg on the sand), we went for some water sports. I should say that Nusa Dua is not the best beach in Bali, but it is the market for water sports. We never thought that we would spend as much as USD$100 there, but we did. Just by recalling it makes my heart shrink.

1. Flying fish

Rating: 4.5/5. Yes, we flew! I recommend you wearing goggles though, if you dont want sea water to come in direct contact with your eyes.

2. Big maple (or Donut, if it’s for 2 persons)

Rating: 4.5/5. We didn’t get flipped over unlike Banana Boat, but it didn’t make it less fun! If my life jacket was not too huge, I would give it a 5/5.

 

3. Parasailing

Rating: 4/5. I wish it was longer!! It was just like 1 short round. It wasn’t as scary as I thought. I kinda liked the feeling of flying I guess :p  Only my girl friend and I chose this one coz we had never tried it before. While the guys decided to opt for water ski.

4. Water skiing

As I had expected, this thing was difficult, even for the boys. They said it was fun though, so maybe this could get 4/5. I knew if I went for it I would just be wasting my money haha. I have a bad balancing skill :p

5. Diving

Rating: 1/5. I’m not kidding, it was BAD. First, shouldn’t the suit cover the whole body? The bottom part was shorts and upper was short sleeved. I got nasty scratches and bruises afterwards. Second, the area was not good at all for underwater sightseeing. The water was not clear and the fishes were the types you could find in aquariums. Third, the guides didn’t let us to explore (not that I could move a lot but still). We were just holding on at one big coral. Fourth, one of the guides was rude! Fifth, I didn’t like the feeling of breathing from my mouth and my ears got plugged so bad. Sixth, it was freaking USD$44!!! Diving at Nusa Dua is definitely not recommended.

Blue Point

My favorite spot when I was in Bali!! So beautiful and we didn’t spend any cents. I wish we could’ve stayed longer and chilled at one of the cafes.

  

I like this shot a lot!!

  

Uluwatu

Kecak dance!! Must see!!

 

Nasi Pecel Bu Tinuk, Kuta

A very affordable Javanese dinner.

Galuh Bali Spa, Kuta

It was my first spa experience! I liked the interior design and I guess it was worth the price (around USD$22)

Overall, we should’ve done diving first before the rest so we could make a better impression on the water sports thingy. For the 2 previous days, I really didn’t spend a lot and for the whole trip I spent most on the water sports. We were too greedy I guess haha. Even on this third day, our meals were really affordable. We had Mcd for lunch and USD$3 meal for dinner. Luckily we went to Blue Point, I simply loved that place :)

Next: Hard Rock Hotel Kuta Bali Review

xo, Jo

Bali Trip – Day 2

Click here for DAY 1.

Our second day in Bali mostly consists of visiting the most popular tourist spots. These places give you proofs against “picture or it didn’t happen”.

Temple on the water

Taman Ayun Temple 

Our driver! ;)

Balinese Chicken at Dewi Sinta, Tanah Lot

This was GOOD. But make sure you have stock of tissues!

Tanah Lot Temple

The temple is made of rock and there are caves everywhere. Cool!

We went across the water to get “blessings”. The waves were crazy!

Made it!

Step 1: Wash your hand and face. Step 2: Drink and spit the water. Although it’s at the middle of the sea, the water was not sea water! It was fresh spring water.

For health, happiness and all the good stuff ;)

Rice on forehead and frangipani flower on ear. Do we look pretty? Teehee.

Crossing back! It was pretty deep and rocky!

Souvenir shopping at Krisna

The “cheapest” and the “best”, they said. It WAS cheap, but do look carefully at the expiry dates when buying snacks since the storage life was quite short.

Dinner at Ikan Bakar Cianjur 

Good food, indeed, but it wasn’t new to me since I’ve had this a lot in Jakarta haha. It’s actually Sundanese food (West Java).

Overall, it was a great day and we had fantastic meals for both lunch and dinner. Though I personally think that we could have skipped Taman Ayun for other place. Not that it wasn’t impressive, the buildings were beautiful and had high historical value (it was a royal temple). They said they made lots of temples during the Dutch colonization to make strategies to attack and get back their land. But in Bali, temples (in local what is known as PURA) are everywhere. If you had a proper tour guide that can tell you the whole history then go for it. But in our case, we just had a driver that happened to know a little bit of history so we didn’t get a whole lot of information.

Thanks for reading this much! Next: DAY 3!

xo, Jo

Bali Trip – Day 1

This is it! The first post of my Bali trip review. My friends and I went there for 4 days as our graduation trip. Hopefully this post and the next 3 other posts can be useful for those of you who are interested to go to the amazing island of Bali!! We hired a driver from a local travel company to guide us around for 3 days. I’ll leave you the details later at the end of this post.

First meal of the trip: Balinese Suckling Pig

Arrived in Bali at noon with half-full stomach (had a meal in flight) but we still headed for lunch anyway! Honestly it wasn’t what I really expected. I forgot where it was actually located but it was a small local eating house and I personally doubted the hygiene. The food itself was okay. I liked the crispy pig skin actually :p and it was really cheap. I didn’t have stomachache or whatsoever afterwards so it was fine! Teehee.

Putri Ayu Cottages, Ubud

After lunch, we checked in to our hotel to stay for a night. I loved the bed! Thanks to the mosquito net haha. It looks so romantic and when I woke up the next morning I almost felt like a princess :p

Kintamani

Batur Volcano 

 Beautiful!! It was kinda chilly up there. The guide said that every year the locals would bring offerings to the volcano so it won’t errupt again. The last eruption was in the year of 2000.

Dewi Agriculture

Asian Palm Civet aka Luwak.

Luwak’s poop = the most expensive coffee in the world (No, I’m not joking!!). It’s gentle for the stomach and it’s got that chocolate-caramel fragrance. Nice!!

So in this place they own various kinds of plants, mostly Asian herbs, as well as the little guy above, luwak. They produce all those things into a range of traditional tea and coffee. As for luwak coffee, I don’t mind to pay a high price coz I know it’s more expensive elsewhere, but for other stuff like herbal tea, I do think they were overpriced.

Dirty Duck (Bebek Bengil), Ubud

The best thing I had eaten in Bali!! It was a little pricey but considering the portion size and the ambience, it was worth it! Must try!!

Next post: Bali Day 2!

xo, Jo

Dear 2011 (TT #28)

On the 31st of December 2010...

It's 2011! Can you believe it?
Time flies super fast and before we know it a year has gone by.

I chose this song for the first Tuneful Tuesday in this brand new year because it's got good encouraging lyrics as a motivation to start off everything. Enjoy :)

2010 had been an interesting year for me. I met new people, made new friends, gained new experiences, and challenged myself to new problems. Despite the new stuff I have encountered, I also experienced stuff that is related to the past. I found my ex-crush on facebook, met up with my bestfriend in 3rd grade that I had lost contact for 10 years, got reconnected with my North Korean soulmate, and reunited with some of my highschool friends. I can say that it was a good year, though there were few moments that I don't want to happen for the second time, like losing a family member and realizing that a person that you used to love has become a complete different person.

My resolutions for this year:

- to manage my time better.
- trying to be more patient and not to think so much about matters that are not worth the time.
- to love myself more and be more grateful of what I already have.
- to try my best to understand people with different personalities and attitudes that conflict with mine.
- to play more the electone.
- to read more books.
- to gain more new experiences and accomplish things that make me feel good.
- to respect my parents more and be closer to family and God.

In short, I want to be a better person for others and myself :)
How about you??

On the first day of 2011, I visited my aunt's house. It was really a quiet neighborhood and since my brother and I were being obnoxious, some neighbors peeked outside from their fences LOL.

This cat was a total poser! Camerawhore :p

I hope all of you have a wonderful year ahead!

xo, Jo