Hotel Kumala Pantai Kuta

... hotels we took a short walk over to the beach. The water is not as warm as in the north but it was refreshing. For our evening out, we went to a lovely restaraunt down a little alley called Un's and splurged on a lovely pasta dinner. We had the whole place to ourselves as it was only 5:30 PM. On the walk home it started to rain so we ducked into a little place for a one ahd one-half hour massage for $7.00. Bali on $30 dollars a day.<br>

... ex-lawyer's assistant from Georgia who's recently discovered her passion for humanitarian work and travels) to negotiate a price for cooking lessons. As the restaurant is set a fair distance off the main drag and is run solely by a husband-wife team, it is hard to believe that they engage in cooking lessons often. Nonetheless, we are avid fans of their gado-gado and we've convinced ourselves that by explaining how much we love their food (if it isn't evident enough by our ...

... Pool und den Garten und das Saub**machen in d** nette Jogi Lodge im idyllischen Amed an d** Nordostküste, mit dem ich beim Frühstück ins Gespräch komme: d** einheimische Hotelbesitz**, d** noch zwei weit**e Hotels in d** Gegend hat, zahlt ihm 200.000 Rupiah im Monat, ca. 13 Euro. Dafür muss ** von 7 Uhr morgens bis 9 Uhr Abends in d** Lodge anwesend sein. Urlaub gibt es nicht. Trotzdem ist ** froh, dass ** üb**haupt einen Job hat. Er hat nur 9 Jahre die Schule besucht, bis zur Junior ...

So... For the past 4 days we've been in Kuta Bali, and tomorrow we are packin' up and heading north a bit into the town of Ubud for a few days. We're both a little "beached" out, and could use a bit of culture. Ubud is the center of Balinese dance, cooking and art - so I'm sure we'll find a bit to keep us both occupied for a few days before we head to the Gili's. More of the same here - lot's of sleeping, lounging and eating.... but to mix it up a bit, a few nights ago we went out to ...

... up feeling more like I was in a washing machine than anything else. The waves came in sets, some big and some small. I liked it when they were smaller and less frequent. The big ones that I would have to duck under every time gave me that panicky feeling since I was always afraid that when I emerged from under the water, another wave would be following right behind and tip me over once again. I also hate being under the water when my eyes are closed and I can't ...

... hotel was interesting. It was good enough (except for the day that the pool turned green) but there was an obvious problem with our unit. Power outages were a daily problem. Every morning without fail, however, the manager informed us with a big smile, "Power problem gone, bye bye! All feexed!" Then with a wink and a lower voice, "You no tell what you pay for room, yes?" I took that to mean that we had negotiated a good deal. Even ...

... these awful looking creatures (kinda like farrets - sp?) sit in a large cage and eat coffee beans all day and then poo them out in the morning. The poo is collected by the "poo hunters" and sold as the most expensive cup of coffee (apparently something like $40 a cup in the UK/US!). We were given a special opportunity to drink the poo for only $3 a cup. Somehow it just didn't appeal to any of us. Go figure. All fueled up, we were outfitted with bikes ...

... the best part... fish oil in the chemical cupboard being one of the more technical items. 3. There is no real assessment structure in place and in fact the math's teacher made up end of term tests based on his own knowledge... that is the only real record of achievement within Science and Maths and English... Not quite the level of data I am used to! 4. My laptop is too advanced to connect to the printers at the school and the comp in my room was produced as a substitute for the ...

... Our books followed us to lunch, then back to the beach in the afternoon. By dinner that evening we realised that we weren't going to make it all the way through the book and in the end after a full days study (well, as full a day as anyone should do on Bali) we only managed halfway through chapter 4. The next morning we were picked up early and ferried back to the dive centre. Fortunately the gaps in our knowledge were soon filled thanks to the DVDs ...

... from that because it is not Bali at all. It is what Australians have made Bali into over the last 30 years. I first went to Kuta over 20 years ago and it was brilliant, but that place is well gone. The old Kuta can still be seen in some of the quieter places but they dont have too may facilities so it all depends on what you want to do with your holiday. I love the people and the general atmosphere in Bali so I dont need the amenities...you do what makes you happy :)