Bali

On 22th November 2010

As we pulled into Lovina S08 09.6 E115 01.4 a local outrigger came to greet us and show us around the reef. Darman was the skipper of the boat and became a daily visitor, doing our laundry, cleaning the hull, delivering fuel and watching the yacht when we were not around.

Having dropped anchor in Lovina we can’t wait to get ashore.  Anna is very excited as we went past Singaraja she saw a Carrefour ( French owned super market chain).  They are off to Kuta tomorrow as they badly need to get a new visa.  We anchored just opposite the statue with a dolphin on top. This statue is also a good lead to use when coming in to the bay.

Lovina (Lovely Indonesia) Beach - Note the Dolphin statue on the left.

Darman and his helper, refueling Catcha Star

Fuel for "Black Pearl"

We kept an eye on “Black Pearl” while they had a few days in Kuta are they will  mind “Catcha Star” while we went to  Serangan S08 43.66 E115 14.67 and Kuta.  Our friends David and Lyn from Fremantle, they have just built a home in Lovina and we were dying to see it. We will head to Kuta  on the 28^th to meet and stay with Davie when he flies in from Perth. We then had a few more nights at Mystique or in Kuta. 

Three 20 year old English Guy's built this boat and were spending a few years cruising SE Asia.
They sure new how to party!

So for the first five days we were at anchor in Lovina, in a little bay protected by reefs and surrounded by restaurants, just heaven really.  Lovina is not as pretty as some places because of the black sand but is a perfect place to relax. We have loved most of Indonesia so far and find it hard to accept we left Darwin over six weeks prior. I have to keep reminding myself here that the water is warm and I don’t have to hold my breath when I jump in. I Don’t think I will be able to swim at Rottnest again, the water is so cold there.  There have been some beautiful beaches unfortunately many have plastic bottles and rubbish on them, it’s a real problem.

We hired a driver to take us into Singaraja (Lion Kink), on the way in we stopped at the old port and on the way back we had a look at the new port. Singaraja was originally the capital of Bali before Denpasar became the capital in the 1950’s. The Carrefour supermarket was full of western produce as well as Asian, and quite well priced.

Singaraja, the old Dutch port and capital of Bali

We found a driver called Yuli in one of the local stalls +62 8133 8555 680 that would take us to Kuta for RP320. He also came down to Kuta and picked us up, and drove us back for the same fee. We stayed at Hotel Sorga, just off Poppies Lane for AUD$20 per night www.hotelsorga.com The pool, massages and manicures were fantastic. The After a few nights there we met David and stayed in the Mystique Hotel of which he is a part owner. Our stay at the Mystique was great fun as always www.balisunsetsuite.com The residents and guests at Mystique always recommend changing money at Bintang Supermarket in Jalan Raya, Seminyak.  

We had ordered some spare parts from the USA, to be delivered to Bali.

www.cockatoo2.com were able to help with a contact. Ruth at Isle Marine Services is based in the Royal Bali Yacht Club. Even though the parcel was clearly marked; for the Yacht Catcha Star with Spare Parts for Yacht in Transit in bold letters. Customs in Jakata wanted to charge us nearly AUD$1000 import duty. Ruth is a brilliant negotiator and has an extremely good knowledge of Indonesian law. After negotiating for over two hours Ruth had the fee reduced to AUD$50 and her fee to us was about AUD$50. Ruth is also very good at arranging Berthing Clearance, Cruising Permits and Visa’s. +62 361 996 7451           info@islemarine.com           www.islemarine.com    

Bali Mystique Hotel

Just along the road from the Mystique is this restaurant, the Biku became a favourite for breakfast.

We bargained for fresh fruit and veggies on the way back to Lovina from Kuta.

We met Graham, Rhonda and Elle for dinner on Tuesday, they are an Australian couple that operate a very successful building company in Bali. They are building a large holiday resort on the beach in Lovina and among many other projects are building David and Lyn’s Lovina property. They welcomed us into their home and we spent many-many lovely hours together. 

Little Elle never stops smiling

Graham and Mark discussing the build of Graham's boat.

Rhonda and Davie wondering just how long Graham and Mark can talk about boats for

One of the beautiful restaurants that Graham and Rhonda introduced us to. 

The view from Graham and Rhonda's home

One of the many holiday villas that Graham, Rhonda and son Aaron have built

David and Lyn's new Lovina Villa

Like Graham and Rhonda’s home, David and Lyn’s new house is in the hills looking down onto Lovina Beach. LBR sure know how to build a beautiful home and holiday resort +61 8133 706 0679 www.lovinabeachresort.com