Bali Escape! -Day 2-
Today was going to be our main shopping day, as our schedule does not really allow anymore time for much more shopping. We had plans to go to Bali Collection in the afternoon, but we headed to MoMo Cafe once again but for the Buffet Breakfast this time. The spread was good, with some good quality food such as the omelet and the waffles that we enjoyed. We also had a comedic error of mixing up tomato juice for watermelon juice. (ZA : Who drinks tomato juice ? To me, red fruit juice IS watermelon juice)
After breakfast, we lazed around in the room for an hour or so, and then headed off to Bali Collection. We were now accustomed to the security checks around the area, and we passed through the checks without much hassle. At the entrance of Gate A, we were firstly greeted with a huge Banyan tree that spread almost across the whole road. As we were expecting a more shopping center style of retail outlet, we were not expecting a shopping district similar to Orlando’s Premium Outlets. We walked around, of course not without Ashley picking a toy along the way. When we were about to leave Bali Collection, we realised that we had arrived at the wrong gate for the shuttle bus that would be able to take us back to the hotel. After a long walk across the whole complex, we were able to hitch a ride from one of the staffs stationed there, and we did not need to walk the two kilometers back to the hotel.
After we arrived back at our hotel, we went for a swim at the pool located at the ground level of the hotel. The water was cool and refreshing and was a good escape from the piercing heat that we experienced at Bali Collection just an hour or so ago. The pool gave us an opportunity to test out our newly bought Panasonic Lumix FT-5, which was a shockproof and waterproof camera which vastly exceeded our expectations. The quality of the shots underwater was sharp, and although the colour was not as accurate as the Fujifilm X10 that we brought along, we found it to be excellent for the purchase price and considering it is also an underwater camera. The whole family had fun relaxing in the pool.
After all the swimming, we went to MoMo Cafe once again for a quick tea-break before continuing with our activities for the rest of the day. Thankfully they allowed us dining in our swimwear, so we did not need to go through the trouble of changing before having our snacks. My dad ordered Gado-Gado, my mom ordered Goreng-Pisang, I ordered the Club Sandwich, while Ashley ordered the usual.
After this, we settled down while Ashley soaked in the huge bath tub as we waited for dinner to arrive at 8pm. The owner of “Kendi Kuning Restaurant” – a restaurant on the beach was coming to transport us to the restaurant. I personally really enjoyed the trip to the restaurant and the atmosphere at the venue. The wife of the owner greeted us immediately as we got off the car, and showed us the fresh seafood that they had in stock, including Mahi-Mahi, clams, lobsters and also King prawns. The ambience was good as the place was lightly illuminated without it being too dark to enjoy our food, and there was a live band of a hotel not far from where we were seated (which was nice). The staff there were also highly accommodating when I approached the cook, who talked me through all the food that she had on the grill and allowed me to take videos and pictures of the food on the grill.
The server of our table was also kind, willing to help with our demands all the time, never showing a sense of displeasure. We ordered two seafood platters, “Batman”, Nasi Goreng , Ayam Panggang Bumbu and a Red Snapper. The seafood platter consisted of Prawns, a whole Mahi-Mahi, Squids and Clams. All of the dishes were grilled (close enough) to perfection. I personally enjoyed the clams the most, as the sweet flavour of the clams was mixed on with the “Balinese” sauce, causing a sweet and spicy flavor not unlike most Singaporean dishes. My parents both enjoyed the prawn more, with its more succulent meat and a more natural flavor of seafood rather than the hard-hitting flavor of the Balinese Sauce. “Batman” which Ashley ordered was a simple Fish n’ chips, which was made with good quality fish which we enjoyed very well. The Ayam Panggang Bumbu was nicely done as well, with the chicken being tender and the sauce served with it also being of a nice light flavor. Finally, the Nasi Goreng that my Mom ordered came with a good light flavor of chilli, while retaining the taste of simple fried rice.
We all enjoyed the dinner thoroughly, and the owner of Kendi Kuning brought all of us back to the Marriott where we had an early night in preparation of the activities the next day.