Bali Escape! -Day 4-
After the rafting ordeal from the day before, we finally had a break from the hectic schedule. We abandoned the idea of sea sports activities and thus had a chance to sleep in late today. We enjoyed the buffet breakfast as usual, where we dined at a table next to the pool. The spread today had changed as well, with us mostly enjoying the food that we had picked.
We had a chance to relax at the hotel, where we then decided to proceed towards the Marriott private beach. The bus to the beach departs every 30 minutes, and the driver was on time and prompt. We climbed onto the bus for the short trip to the beach, which only lasted around 5 minutes from the hotel. Once we had reached the beach, we disembarked, only to be greeted with the gentle roar of the waves around us. The water was a azure blue, and the sand was as fine as sugar. The sight and sounds were simply overwhelming, with us being amazed as we approached the ocean in front of us.
At first, we did not intend to have a swim in the ocean, but after Ashley wanted to look for “sea treasures”, my dad and I did not have a choice, and had to follow her on her endeavors. The sand in the water was filled with corals and wildlife, the sand still being as accommodating as on dry land. We did not take long until we found some coral and sea shells that Ashley had enjoyed.
The service at the beach was also outstanding. Despite what other travelers had mentioned about the lack of activities, we found the relaxation of the ocean enough to keep our simple minds entertained. The menu at the beach was simple, with me ordering a Vanilla Milkshake, and 2 other soft drinks to share among the family. We thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience. Especially Ashley who had picked up a whole bag full of her ‘sea treasures’. However, with us being unprepared, we did not bring any extra clothing for the trip, so we had to get another outfit for Ashley to change into. Thankfully, my mom found a suiting dress at the beach for around 12 SGD, and Ashley really liked her new dress. Again, we left satisfied with the experience at the beach.
For my highlight of the day, we had plans to visit WAHAHA restaurant, where they serve “The best ribs in Bali”. We got on a cab from our hotel for the 30 minute trip to Seminyak. The cab ride only costs 15 Singapore dollars, and the driver offered to wait for us at a cost of 6 Singapore dollars per hour. I was taken aback by the cheap fares of the taxis here, and we agreed for him to wait for us as we did not want to go through the hassle of flagging down a cab after the dinner.
We arrived at the restaurant where the decoration was simple and clean. After a quick consultation of the menu, we ordered three sets of their famous ribs, and 2 “Crispy Ribs” which were basically ribs that were deep fried then smothered in a sweet sauce. We also ordered a kids “Mee Goreng” for Ashley that came as a surprise as it was sweet and simple, with a taste that spoke more Chinese than Bali.
Being me, I thoroughly enjoyed the Ribs as they were well marinated in barbeque sauce which was not strong enough to upset my mom (who dislikes barbeque sauce.). The ribs were lean while being tender, and the general taste was very impressive. Although I wanted to make comparisons to my favourite ribs (Tony Roma’s), I found myself unable as the ribs were of different flavours and types. The ribs from Tony Roma’s are generally more sweet to the taste while being more fatty in the meat department.
The Crispy Ribs were also good. They arrived with a sweet taste that was not too strong to overpower the taste of the ribs, and the deep-frying gave it an unique crunchiness that reminded me more of fried chicken. The only complain I had was that it was hard to pry apart the meat, as the batter from the deep-frying was hard to seperate.
As for the drinks, we decided to go for less normal decisions. My dad ordered an Orange Crush blend (which I quite liked.), but the main star of the show would be the lime mojito my mom ordered. It was refreshing as a light minty beverage along the hard-punching flavour of the ribs.
After our dinner at the restaurant, we got back to the cab which drove us back to Nusa Dua. I found this extremely exciting as we were driving at night without much light in rural roads, and we were dodging motorcycles from all directions. It really gave me hope that driving in the future would not be all doom and gloom (as I have been looking forward to driving most of my childhood.) Soon after, we were dropped off at the shopping street next to our hotel. However, we did not find anything much for ourselves with the exception of Ashley. She found some variants of the dress that she acquired from the beach. We got some snacks and drinks in preparation for our final day in Bali, before walking back to the hotel for our much needed rest for the next day.
