Another Holiday.. Another Time In Bangkok!

I must admit. I love to travel. Lots!

Though I know I do travel quite a bit but never knew that I liked it that much.. well not till friends & families tell me that I do.



Owh, well I can't disagree. For while I'm still compiling my travel articles for Bali, and yet to write on the Singapore trip (minus the F1 race experience).. I'm already here in Bangkok with even more travel experiences!!

Well that (travel) is how I spend my annual leaves anyway.. if we are not video shooting!

Anyway, here I am. In the Land Of Smiles.. and City Of Angels - Bangkok, Thailand. In many ways, I'm back here to familiar grounds yet there's some new places to explore still!

And this time round, I'm gonna be a lil more touristy. In fact, while I'm writing this, I'm on the boat ride on my way to the Grand Palace!!

There's more to do, see and feel! And those experiences will come up soon!

In the meantime, catch my updates on my Bangkok trip through my photos at Instagram (http://web.stagram.com/n/quachee/).

*It's interesting that this will be my 1st time visiting the Grand Palace despite being here in Bangkok for over 10 times now! :)

Things To Do At Kuta Beach

Going to Bali means going to the beach, aye? And of all the beaches on the island - the most popular one of them all is the 5km stretch Kuta Beach!

Interestingly though this isn't my 1st time in Bali, but it is my 1st time visiting Kuta!

And here are the top things I'd recommend to do at the beach!

1. Beach & water sports



Fans of water sports activities like riding the motorboat or surfing will have a fun time here.

While I am into swimming but this time, I didn't - partly of the high waves. Instead I enjoyed walking on the long & wide beach.. letting my feet feel the smooth fine sand.. and at the same time - people watching and just err.. camwhoring!

2. Enjoy the sunset!



For me, nothing beats being on the beach, enjoying the sunset.. just basking in the warmth sun rays and listening to the waves.



The magic hour is just like those postcard views.. and if you love sunsets as much as I do - this will be one truly unforgettable moment in Bali!

3. Letting go of turtles



The Turtle Sanctuary is located on the beach, and every now and then turtles will lay their eggs here. The baby turtles are then sent back to the sea.

If you are lucky, you'd get to experience letting go of baby turtles into the sea.. just like what I did then.

It was a unique and heart warming experience to be part of this even if it was just for an hour or so. Btw as I was there, I was invited to go on stage and had the crowd sing a birthday song for me! Haha! Eventually, I also became the flag bearer leading the other tourists & locals to release the baby turtles into the sea.



4. Shopping



A few of Bali's famous malls are located in Kuta.

The one I visited is Centro. It has a fair bit of branded stuffs though for me - I was more into looking at the local Bali souvenirs like their handicrafts.



There are also a fair bit if shops nearby the beach selling them and also other stuff like tshirts.

5. Dining



There are loads of restaurants and cafes at Kuta.. serving a good mix of local and western cuisine. Seafood too!



For me, I had some local food at one of the hotels there. Then, later headed to the quite packed Sugarmama's cafe (at Centro Mall) to have some (yummy) cakes & drinks, with a view of the beach!

The half day spent at the Kuta beach has been wonderful and I do recommend one to at least spend some time by the beach on your visit to Bali!

*Apparently, sea turtle lay eggs between March and September each year and they will hatch between May and October. So far, only the Olive Ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea) species of turtle, have been found to lay their eggs at Kuta beach.

Between 2002 and 2010 there were more than 15,000 eggs that have been safely relocated to the Hatchery, and 80% of these were successfully hatched and released to the ocean!!

Bali Hotel Review: Grand Mega Resort

In my recent Bali trip, I stayed in 2 hotels. And this is the 2nd one which I stayed for 2 nights.

Staying at this hotel is a lil different from the hotels I use to stay.. as this is not the usual boutique like hotel. Instead this hotel has over 100 plus deluxe rooms and beyond.

Walking into the lobby of the hotel does feel just like it's name - (kinda) grand & glam!



What makes this place really cool? The swimming pool, which has a bar by it too. I truly enjoyed my night swim here and my drinks at the pool bar.

Talking bout the pool, during breakfasts, one can have a choice of dining in or by the pool too. Neat!

The coffee house where I had my breakfast

The eggs I had for breakfast..! Was - yummy :)

Owh and btw, breakfasts are buffet like, with a decent size spread like what most 3-4 stars hotels in the region serve.

Now to the rooms. It's comfortable and they do take an effort to make it 'grand'. But it's the bathroom that shines here - which is a bigger-than-usual sized bathroom and comes with piped in music.



On the whole, a pretty good hotel. The only setback is probably the fact that it's not directly by Kuta beach.

The hotel provides bicycles for rent too, though I wonder if guests use it as the road in front of the hotel is rather busy.

*GRAND MEGA RESORT & SPA BALI contact details

Jalan By Pass Ngurah Rai No. 234, Simpang Siur Kuta-Bali 80361 Indonesia 

Phone : +62 361 767672 | Facsimile : +62 361 764242 

Email : sales@grandmegaresortbali.com 

Website : www.grandmegaresortbali.com

 

Bali Good Food: Ayam Bertutu Khas Gilimanuk

With so much food reviews on Bali food, this island sure feels like a food heaven!! And yes, in many ways it is!

And this is one of the local food that I tried - the ayam bertutu (braised chicken)!



The restaurant is called Ayam Bertutu Khas Gilimanuk.. and honestly, most tourists might not even know bout this place. Or even if one were to pass by it, he/ she may not necessarily pay a visit.

For the shop do look really plain. And that means - very local. But that is probably a selling point too. For it serves one of the better local food around!!



The epitome of them all is of course non other than the Ayam Bertutu Gilimanuk - braised chicken with herbs like garlic, turmeric, shallots, ginger, lemongrass, chilies, bay leaves and kaffir lime leaves.

This is really for fans who love spicy food, as it is (extremely) hot and spicy. And I say that - coming from one who loves spicy food!

The meat is soft and tender and the gravy is delicious!

There's also the Ayam Bertutu Goreng Gilimanuk (fried chicken) which was also nice - though I prefer the former.





The side dish - the kangkung sambal was also yummy - and fresh!



Owh and there's also the sate lilit (satay).. which is quite a traditional Balinese dish.



I had all of these on my last day - and it being my last meal. I must say that I'm glad I had it.

My Bali friend who introduced the restaurant. Thanks Denny!

And once again, all thanks to my Bali buddy who introduced this place!! :)


*One can order the set meals here - which is a choice of chicken (or duck), the vegetables and nuts.

*Price wise - it's not cheap, but Bali food is never cheap to begin with, even local food.

*The outlets' contacts in Bali:
Jl. Bypass Ngurah Rai No. 89 Tel: 08123863232 Nusa Dua
Jl. Buluh Indah No. 51 X. Tel: 0361 7407509 Denpasar
Jl. Raya Tuban No. 2 X. Tel: 0361 757535 Kuta
Jl. Merdeka No. 88 Tel: 0361 263464 Renon