Welcome to Bali

After some well needed sleep we woke at around 10 and set out to find breakfast as we'd just missed the motel's breakfast. We got some baked goods from a bakery down the road which included a delicious raisin bun with what tasted like vanilla custard inside. Back at the motel we realised we were actually an hour ahead (no one had told us this) so had to quickly grab our bags to check out in time. As it was already midday we knew it would be a waste to try and get to Ubud so chose to spend all of the rest of our time in Bali in Kuta, the beach party town. We knew it wasn't far away so asked the lady at reception how to get there. She was pretty clueless but directed us to the nearest bus terminal. It turned out this terminal wasn't for buses to Kuta so we got in a mini minibus (it really was mini) and paid a small fee to be taken to the correct terminal. From there our nice driver directed us to another mini minibus that took us all the way to Kuta (about half an hour). I always thought Bali was just a town in Indonesia but it's quite a large island. 

We walked to our hostel from where we were dropped off, strolling along the busy and lively jalan Legian (Legian street). It took us a little while to make our way up the street as it's pretty long but finally we were able to drop our bags off and get a late lunch. Turns out that Kuta ain't cheap so I had mie goreng again as it was the cheapest thing on the menu. It was okay but I'm getting pretty bored of it. 

After lunch we went exploring, walking along the town's little side streets, checking out all the souvenirs and crap that were on offer. We ended up at the beach which was a lot nicer than I expected. I know everyone goes on about how lovely Bali is but Kuta is very touristy so I expected the beach to be packed. It was pretty busy but it was around half 4 so the locals had just come out (they only visit the beach early morning and late afternoon everywhere in Asia). Also, there weren't many sun loungers and umbrellas and the trees that lined the beach were taller than the buildings behind. The sea wasn't crystal clear but there was a lovely vibe (very cliched) what with the surfers and people sat drinking beers under the trees. We sat on the beach and watched the sunset before having a beer whilst there was still a bit of light in the sky. 

We headed off the beach for tea, attempting to find somewhere relatively cheap. We were unsuccessful and so settled for a place that wasn't extortionate but wasn't in our usual price range. It turned out to actually be the top place in our guide book but we weren't too impressed. We didn't order much but they still took far too long to bring our food out. In fact, I reckon they only remembered because I asked where our food was. I had chicken satay again (it was cheaper than other stuff) with rice and a banana and pineapple juice. It was nice but not worth the price or the reputation. Because of the long wait it was gone 9 by the time we left the restaurant and after the half an hour stroll back to our hostel through the party area (it was very loud) we decided to call it a night. In conclusion, Bali is nice but rather expensive compared to the rest of South East Asia.