Australia Perth - Swan Valley & Yahava Coffee & Chocolate Company & Windarra Honey

Swan Valley, WA 03.05.2014 

Beautiful view across West Swan Road, Swan Valley, Perth, Western Australia

Swan Valley is located in the northeast of Perth, Western Australia. The atmosphere here is very fresh, natural and relaxing. It is really a beautiful and nice part of town. There are fields and fields of vineyards, cattle and sheep wandering in grasslands, not to mention the boundless sky. Inevitably you will have a refreshed and great mood when here!

Windarra Honey, Margaret River Chocolate Factory and Yahava Coffee on West Swan Road, Swan Valley, Perth

The Chocolate Factory, Yahava Coffee and Windarra Honey are the three places we always visit when coming here. Of course, there's also a lot of wineries, orchards, animal farms and restaurants. If you want to get away from the city's bustle, this is a great place!

The Margaret River Chocolate Company, on West Swan Road, Swan Valley, Perth, Western Australia

This chocolate factory is the same company as the one at Margaret River. The style and items they sell are very similar, and both are very famous. The special thing is that there are three different pots, filled with dark chocolate, milk chocolate and white chocolate - for unlimited tasting!

Free Dark, Milk and White chocolate tasting - The Margaret River Chocolate Factory, in Swan Valley, Western Australia

They sell more than a hundred kinds of chocolate, and launch new chocolate products regularly. I was very satisfied just looking at these colorful packages. All kinds of chocolates with beautiful packaging, and suitable as gifts, but the prices are not cheap though!

Beautiful Chocolate selections at The Margaret River Chocolate Factory, in Swan Valley, Perth, Western Australia

They also have fresh chocolates, and every one is so pretty and cute - they should be very tasty! Also there are handmade ice creams which look very delicious, and a small coffee shop. People can order freshly made coffee, chocolate, cakes or biscuits, and then sit outdoors and observe the beautiful view and sky while enjoying the foods! They also have a large glass window so you can watch the chefs make the chocolate if you time it right.

Fresh chocolate, including preparation and cooking, icecream and the cafe at The Margaret River Chocolate Factory

After the chocolate factory we drove north, and along the road you can see the sign: "Honey Free Tasting". Just follow the advertising board and you will arrive at the Windarra Honey shop (5 George St., off West Swan Road, in Swan Valley). This is an adorable shop. Although they don't have fancy decor, and no overcomplicated packaging, their products are really outstanding and about the highest quality in the world! People from all over Asia buy loads of their honey, and a Hong Kong customer once bought 20kg and took nothing else in his luggage when going home!

Windarra Honey, on George St, off West Swan Road, in Swan Valley, Perth, Western Australia

This was the second time we went there, and D was very surprised that they didn't raise the price in nearly two years! The boss was very enthusiastic, and invited us to try a variety of honey. We could tell that he was quite confident about their products. They tasted very strong and pure, and had the fragrance of flowers. They didn't have any kind of sugary or watery taste like many supermarket honey's, and were totally natural. We bought four 1kg cartons which were 3 different kinds: Black Butt, Redgum and Wild Flower.

Honey tasting and products at Windarra Honey, on George St, off West Swan Road, in Swan Valley, Western Australia

In addition, we tried mead - the honey drink, and real honeycomb. The mead didn't have any alcohol taste but had a honey fragrance, and it was easy to drink and went down smoothly. That was my first taste of the honeycomb, and the boss said the wax was edible, or you could just throw it out after chewing it. It was very special to me!

REAL Honeycomb, bees and products at Windarra Honey, on George St, off West Swan Road, Perth, Western Australia

There were many other honey products, such as hand creams, lotions, candles and soaps. The boss let me try the hand cream, and it was very moist but not greasy. Their creams are all made of natural ingredients with nothing artificial, so they were very helpful for dry and sensitive skin!

Honey Drinks and creams at Windarra Honey, 5 George St, off West Swan Road, in Swan Valley, Western Australia

The boss was very humble and frank. His only goal is to offer the best quality honey to his customers, so he doesn't has a big advertising sign, and he grows business just by word of mouth. He said that there was a Chinese businessman who wanted to buy out all of his honey, but he didn't wish to do that at all. He cared more about his customers who really like his honey, and who would be willing to drive personally to buy from him. He is really a rare and good farmer!

Yahava Coffee on West Swan Road, Swan Valley, Perth, Western Australia

Next we went south to Yahava Coffee, where they also had free coffee tasting. You could tell them what kind of coffee you like, or you could ask them to recommend according to your preferences. Then they would make the fresh coffee right in front of you to taste! Their knowledge and coffee brewing techniques were quite professional!

Freshly made free coffee tasting at Yahava Coffee on West Swan Road, Swan Valley, Perth, Western Australia

They have as many as 12 kinds of coffee to choose from. I don't have any particular preferences or know much about coffee, so I bought 3 bags of Black Gold coffee as gifts for my friends and family. They sell coffee in beans where they can ground them for you, or you can go home and enjoy the fun of grounding beans yourself. If you tell the clerk the coffee is to be taken overseas, they will use another kind of sealed plastic bag to keep the smell from spreading to your luggage - very sweet!

Black Gold coffee, bagged and ready, at Yahava Coffee on West Swan Road, Swan Valley, Perth, Western Australia

They also sell mugs, coffee pots, coasters and other merchandise. There is a small cafe and outdoor dining area. It's very nice for having a cup of great coffee while sitting over the grass and observing the lake, vineyards and beautiful sky. Really quite a nice scene!

Inside Yahava Coffeeworks on West Swan Road, Swan Valley, Perth, Western Australia

Margaret River also has the same Yahava Coffee, and both are very popular and famous in WA. Many people in Perth drive all the way over here in the northeast just for their coffee. Because of their coffee I started to drink coffee and gradually like it more. For the people who like coffee it is highly recommended!

Travel for travelling - Bali - Gloria Jean's Coffee & Discovery Shopping Mall Kuta & Denpasar International Airport

Seminyak 25.03.2014

Starbucks in Kuta and Ubud, in Bali, Indonesia

I was impressed by the level of development in Seminyak. And I will miss the nice people and the natural beauty of Ubud. Bali is a good place to have holiday, because you can enjoy relaxing and a paradise to explore. This was the last day of the trip, and our plane took off at ten o'clock at night.

Gloria Jean's Coffee, near Kuta Square, in Kuta, Bali

About midday we checked-out of our hotel and caught a taxi to Kuta city. We just stopped at a cafe and had some rest. Gloria Jean's Coffee was located near the Kuta Square roundabout, and they had the the special Häagen-Dazs ice cream! We chose the salty caramel flavor, and I really liked the combined taste of sweet and salty. It was also very creamy. This cafe had very good WiFi, and the decoration of the second floor was great. They used warm colors and simple patterns, and it was pretty and cute in design! They also had very comfortable sofas, so we hung out there for the whole afternoon.

Inside second floor of Gloria Jean's coffee near Kuta Square, Bali

We ordered a pot of green tea, a chocolate muffin and a cup of mocha. D liked chocolate the muffin very much and even ordered another one later on! My mocha was full of cream, and I was very excited when I saw it! It tasted beautiful^^

Green Tea, Chocolate muffin and Mocha with cream, at Gloria Jeans Coffee near Kuta Square, Bali

After a little break, I walked to the Discovery Shopping Mall which was on Jl. Kartika Plaza. Discovery was the most fancy department store in Kuta, and you could see many boutiques here, but the price was not that special. Their decor was very new and had an orderly store design, and it was also very comfortable and cozy to stroll around!

Discovery Shopping Mall on Jl. Kartika Plaza, in Kuta, Bali, Indonesia

On the other side of the Discovery Shopping Mall was a beautiful beach. Walking around and seeing the special local architecture and observing the nice ocean view was such a wonderful thing to do here! It was really enjoyable to have meal in this romantic atmosphere and with the beautiful scenery here! Magnificent!

Kuta Beach, Bali, Indonesia

We bought a Big Mac meal set from McDonald's for dinner. The fast food restaurants here all provided free chili sauce, because it was one of the necessities to Indonesians, and I liked their chili sauce too. The chili sauce was not really hot, instead it was like sweet chili sauce, and it went with chips very well! The Big Mac burger tasted good and similar to Taiwan's, and the price for one set was about US$4.

About 6 o'clock we took a taxi to the airport. It was charged by mileage this time, and from Matahari Kuta Square to Denpasar airport was about US$4.20. There was little traffic on the way, but it became smoother once we got out of Kuta city.

Upon entering the airport we saw a very long queue, and we realized that people had to go through security checks before go into the airport. Mainly to check there were no weapons or dangerous objects (because the flight MH370 had just gone missing). When we were close to the security gate, after waiting for about 20 minutes, we noticed there was another checking gate on the right hand side which was not very far away, and less people were queuing there.  There was a foreign couple in front of us who were stopped because they were carrying two bottles of wine. They said only the wine bottle in a sealed bag can be brought into the airport.

Visitors must pay US$25 before entering into Bali, before the customs desk, and also had to pay departure tax in rupiah of 150,000 (US$15) per person when leaving. It was quite tricky and certainly an extra cost in the holiday! After that we went through the security scan again, and everything was going smoothly. This airport was not that huge, and maybe some parts were still under construction, because it didn't look quite complete. But the airport looked quite magnificent and beautiful from outside!

Our flight was at ten o'clock at night, and so we thought it wouldn't have too many passenger. But there were swarms of people there! The boarding place was also full of people, and there was one more security check before boarding! They required everyone to open luggage for inspection, but there were so many people that they ended up not doing it very well. I think they just paid lip service to their job after a while, because they didn't really check very carefully. So after 5 minutes on the shuttle bus we finally saw our aircraft !

The new Denpasar Airport in Bali, Indonesia (2014)

We were actually quite happy to come home by the end. Although Bali had an enjoyable atmosphere for a holiday and also the tasty exotic cuisine, eight days for the trip was enough! We were relaxed to return to the warmth of our sweet home! ^ ^

Travel for travelling - Bali - Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel & COCO Supermarket & Burger King

Seminyak 24.03.2014

Free Buffet Breakfast at Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel

One of the joyful things during travel is when you wake up in morning and there is a delicious and hot breakfast waiting for you! Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel served buffet breakfast every morning, and although it was not particularly fancy food, they had quite a lot of choices and friendly service. Simple tastes can be very enjoyable!

Free Buffet Breakfast at Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel

We had four different styles of fried rice and noodles when we were here for 4 days. My favorite was the Indonesian style fried rice and rice noodles, and the others were not bad. They offered many kids of vegetables, like baked potatoes, grilled tomatoes, stir fried broccoli and chips. For bread they had white and whole wheat toast, croissants, and if you like hot croissants they also can help you to heat it up. 

For western guests they served cheese, cold ham slices, two kinds of sausages and baked beans, and cereals and milk as well. There was a tropical fruit platter which had papaya, watermelon, cantaloupe and rambutan etc., and also 2~3 kinds of fresh juice. They had a hot water pot and tea bags, but only a few varieties. There was a coffee machine which supplied Good Day latte coffee, D liked it because it was very sweet!

Fried rice and noodles, croissants and banana pancake at Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel

Every morning everyone can order one kind of egg dish from the kitchen. They didn't have a menu so we just ordered based on experience, and had soft boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, omelets and sunny side up eggs. However, we heard someone ordered a banana pancake on the third day when we were having breakfast, which we didn't realize was available! We took the opportunity on the last day of course, and the banana pancake tasted really delicious!

Our beautiful second floor room at Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel, in Seminyak, Bali, Indonesia

Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel had two kinds of rooms. The first one was located on the first (ground) floor, and you can access the pool from the balcony in this suite. Our room was the other kind which was a Superior Suit and located on the second floor. Although there was no direct access to the pool, it was very nice and quiet. There was a small living room with a comfortable sofa, and a kitchenette with a complete set of cookware. There were also utensils and cutlery, but they were not all clean!

The bathroom was very bright, clean and beautiful. They had two kinds of showers. One of them poured down directly from the ceiling, and it was quite refreshing and special to us! We noticed that the toilets of both hotels all had a small showers next to it, which I thought was for cleaning the toilet, but D said it was for cleaning the thing that Japanese people like to clean after the toilet. So it was like a manual bidet toilet. We were very happy to have the large room space with new equipment anyway!

Our beautiful bathroom at Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel

They also had room cleaners come by every day, who washed and replaced our glasses, cups, plates and towels. They provided two bottles of mineral water every day, and a small bag of toiletries. They included shower gel, shampoo, body lotion, toothbrushes, toothpaste, cotton swabs, a shower cap and a comb. If you don't like the stuff they provided just buy from the cosmetic shops, as they sell small packages of daily necessities and all very cheap!

Coco Supermarket in Ubud and Seminyak, Bali, Indonesia

COCO supermarket was our favorite supermarket here, as it was a good place to buy fruits, drinks and snacks. Perhaps they had a lot of stuff that we had never seen before, because it made us so curious! They also had a lot of different chocolates here, and one of them was  white Toblerone chocolate which I had never seen before! Their instant noodles were quite nice and very fragrant, and there was a kind of noodles with gold packaging which was very delicious, both with its tasty sauce and its great noodles! Of the drinks, there was a rhino packaged bottled water which was very special. Although it had no particular flavor, there were some herbal ingredients which can cool you down and are good for your heath. They also had other fruit flavors, like lychee, strawberry, orange and lemon. Our local friend also said it was a healthy drink when she saw us drinking the can!

Great Rhino drinks, Silver Queen candy and Chitato chips at COCO Supermarket in Bali, Indonesia

We didn't go anywhere in particular this day, and only met a local friend at Burger King at Sunset Point. Burger King had a buy one get one for free special during the snack time which was from 3:00pm to 5:00pm on Monday to Friday. We bought two beef cheese burgers with 2 cups of small Coke, and the total amount was less than US$4! The burger was quite small but not bad.

Travel for travelling - Bali - Mamasan Restaurant & J.CO DONUTS and COFFEE & Seminyak Square

Seminyak 23.03.2014

Cattle hanging around in the farm in Seminyak, Bali

Sunset Road divides Seminyak into two contrasting sides. The left hand/west side has a prosperous and bustling with life downtown. You can find the latest fashion, great tasting and gourmet food. It was just like an all day city! The right hand/east side was half-developed residential areas. Although there were quite a number of nice villas and beautiful hotels, they were just right next to fields or farm so that you could see cattle and chickens running around. And more than half of the street had gravel road instead of paved concrete.

Seminyak map - Sunset Poink, Mama San Restaurant and Semiyak Square

After breakfast D went to the gym for weight training, and I stayed in our room listening to music while working. It was so good to just relax without going anywhere, and to relieve the fatigue of the previous few days, and I really enjoyed it ! The specialty of Seminyak Lagoon Hotel was the swimming pool, so we were looking forward to giving it a try after D finished his weight training!

Swimming pool of Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel

We saw the staff cleaning the pool in the morning, so the water was very clean and there was no heavy bleach smell. At that time, we were the only two people swimming in this beautiful and quiet exclusive pool. It was great!

The only mission on that day was to celebrate D's birthday. We both had a fulfilling and leisurely morning, and it was time to reveal the center of Seminyak and find some great food for birthday dinner! We found a massage shop that was US $ 5.50 per hour - incredibly cheap! D decided to give it a try immediately. He took a foot massage for one hour and I chose the full body massage. But you get what you pay for. The girls' massage skills and strength were great, but the room facilities could be better. I'd rather spend a little bit more money to have a better environment, so I could fully relax and enjoy. But still this was very good if you want to save money or have a longer massage!

Mama San restaurant in Seminyak, Bali

Quite a lot of people recommended Mama San restaurant on internet websites, and some of them even said that it is the best restaurant in Bali! That was the reason we decided to have the birthday celebration there. Their decorations were interesting, combining retro and modern in two contrasting styles. The first floor was decorated in retro style, with furnishings that were normal height tables and chairs. The second floor was a modern luxury style, however they furnished it with low tables and low sofas. Because we didn't book in advance and only the sofa area was available on the second floor, we had to put up with that.

Interior view of Mama San restaurant in Seminyak, Bali

We ordered crispy duck again which was called "Crispy duck with pickled mustard green choy sum & green chilli nahm jihm" and a salad called "Chicken & prawn eggmett with coconut caramel mint beansprouts peanuts pickled relish". Their meals all had such long names!

Their crispy duck was really gourmet. They served the fried duck with a special sauce which tasted a little bit sweet and sour. It also had bok choy and sauerkraut instead of the other spicy local dishes we had had, which I prefer. The duck skin was very crispy, even when soaked in the sauce, and the duck meat was tender and juicy. The homemade sauce made it taste especially good. It was super delicious! The meal didn't come with rice, but I suggest you order some!

Moreover, the salad was also very special. The salad was mixed with flossed pork, bean sprouts, chicken, shrimp and mint leaves, then wrapped in the pan fried egg. The dish was a successful combination and tasted very refreshing, not to mention it looked beautiful! We were very satisfied with the food and service, and the atmosphere was very good. But the short tables here were really not suitable for dining, and the light was very dim, with only candlelight, so you could barely see the food . Also smoking was sadly permitted upstairs.

Crispy duck and chicken&Prawn eggmett of Mama San restaurant in Seminyak, Bali

After that we went for a walk along Jl. Kayu Aye to Seminyak Square. There were many clothing and shoe stores with all kind of styles, and most of them were individual designers' own brands. However the prices were quite high. The restaurants there were also dazzling. It was just like a small international village, where they had Italian, Chinese, Indonesia, American and French styles.

Seminyak Square was different from what I expected. In fact, there were less shops than I expected, and on that day there didn't seem to be many visitors either. We only took a look at the supermarket and left.

Jl. Kayu Aye and Seminyak Square

On the way home, we saw a Cafe - J.CO (JCOCCINO) at Sunset Point, so we went to see if they had the birthday cake that D liked They did not sell cakes but donuts and drinks, and we bought a yogurt ice cream and six cute donuts. The ice cream was good, and we were able to choose three kinds of toppings, so D chose the Oreo, orange and a sort of green candy. Although the toppings didn't match each other, they went with the ice cream very well. The green candy was very tasty actually, with a rock melon flavor and a mochi texture. So it was interesting and special! 

The donuts were very delicious, probably because we liked sweet taste very much ... They had a lot of designs and flavors, and each one was so cute! The worker recommended durian flavor, so we got one, however it didn't have a heavy smell of durian and was actually quite yum! My favorite one was tiramisu flavor.

J.CO DONUTS & COFFEE at sunset point in Seminyak, Bali

The streets were very dark in the night, when we walked back to our hotel. They had street lights but they were a bit far away from each other. Under the lights they had a lot of gravel roads, so it was better and safer to have a flashlight. Also that way you could see the road clearly and avoid animal poo. We had encountered a group of cattle in the night hanging around the side of the road, and a group of dogs barking at the intersection like they were just having a party! It was a bit scary, but actually they were all just pretty harmless animals who didn't care about us.

Travel for travelling - Bali - Kuta Beach & Made's Waeung Restaurant & Matahari Kuta Square

Kuta 22.03.2014

Temples in Kuta, Bali, Indonesia

The reason why we chose to stay in Seminyak was because we thought this place would have less tourists, however it was not far away from Kuta. It took about 15 minutes from Seminyak Lagoon Hotel to Kuta City by taxi, if the traffic wasn't busy, and the taxi price was about US$5!

This day was our day trip in Kuta. We stared at Jl. Melati and walked toward to the beach, and there was quite a big market on the way selling clothes, dresses and accessories. Every shop was similar just like in Ubud Market. We also bought some clothes here, of course after bargaining!

Map of travels in Kuta, Bali, including Made's Warung, KFC, Matahari Kuta Square, Carrefour

At the end of Jl. Melati was Kuta beach! It was a sunny day, so the beach and ocean view was beautiful! But we only took some pictures and didn't swim in the water, because Australian beaches are relatively clean and pretty, too.

Then we walked along Jl. Pantai to Made's Warung restaurant. We thought it would be great enjoying the beach scenery while walking along the beach, but actually the distance was quite far and it was very sunny... We stopped for a rest and had a cup of Slurpee in a convenience store after walking for 15 minutes, and it took another 15 minutes to get to the restaurant!

Made's Warung Restaurant on Jl. Pantai Kuta, in Kuta, Bali

Made's Warung restaurant is Indonesian cuisine, and they are really an inexpensive restaurant. We ordered Nasi Campur Special, Nasi Goreng Special, and Thai Soup (Tom Yam Soup). "Special" means there was a satay skewer extra. Their Nasi Goreng was very tasty, and the Indonesian fried rice tasted very good, as they all had on the trip so far.

For the Nasi Campur Special, in the middle was steamed rice surrounded by a variety of local tastes, of which I only liked the fish paste stick, dried small fish and the green beans with curry sauce. The other dishes were too spicy for me. Tom Yam Soup was a Thai seafood with spicy and sour soup which tasted very rich, and came with quite a lot of ingredients like fish, shrimp and vegetable. Also too spicy but tasted good. This restaurant had good foods and services, and the only defect was no air-conditioning! By the way, we found there was another branch in Seminyak later on.

Nasi Campur, Nasi Goreng Special and Tom Yam Soup at Made's Warung Restaurant, in Kuta, Bali.

Matahari Kuta Square is like a department store selling clothes, shoes, bags, perfume and some jewelry. The ground floor sold mainly sarongs, with Bali style jewelry and local decorations, and there was a supermarket on the right hand side. The second and third floors were more international, with some shops here selling very famous brands. D bought a backpack, and although it was not a famous brand, the design and materials were quite good, and it had a very special discount - 20% off after 50% off, so it turned up only US$16!

One of the international brands - POLO, had their clothes and bags really cheap here, and like a lot of backpacks had the same consecutive 20% off and 50% off discounts (ie 60% off).

There were many stylish clothes, make up, cosmetics and shoe stores around Matahari Kuta Square. It was really busy! We saw a couple of  DC Shoes stores, and D likes their shoes for a long time. But the prices here were not really cheap even though they all had quite a discount for the old versions of their shoes. However D didn't get any of them, because he didn't like the style or couldn't find his size.

We walked slowly toward the beach when it was close to dusk and we were very lucky to just catch the sunset in time! Although it was not the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen, I still felt very happy and pleased! Near the beach there were some water sports, and we saw some little girls with lovely hair braids. Next time I would also like to try that! 

Sunset at Kuta beach, Bali

Carrefour is very common in Taiwan, but Bali only had two of them! So we were looking forward to visiting, and we asked several drivers the price from Kuta square to Carrefour. They asked for about US$7-10, but we didn't think it was a good deal so we decided to walk there! 

We came on Jl. Pantai this morning, so we walked on Jl. Legian back this time at night. This street was lined with shops and restaurants, and we thought it would be crowded in the night but it was surprisingly quiet. So we enjoyed looking around at all the shops and it was very relaxing. Plenty of restaurants were deserted, maybe because March is not tourist season? 

Compared to Taiwan this Carrefour was much smaller and simpler. Although they had most kinds of goods, they didn't have many choices for each kind. But the good thing was that we found the beauty products, such as facial cleansers, cosmetics and skin care products, and even the well-known brands are much cheaper in Bali!

Travel for travelling - Bali - Seminyak Lagoon Hotel & Ananda Restaurant

Saminyak 21.3.2014

Ubud Market - Beautiful ceramic colored glass coasters and bowls - a huge selection!

Besides the salon, there was something else I was very interested in - the Ubud Markets. The ceramic plates which are decorated with a colorful  tiles collage. Each one has its own unique features or pattern. Some are mixed colours, or one very nice beautiful shade. They can be used as a fruit tray, soap holder, or jewelry tray, and so are very useful! But I had no idea which kind to choose when I decided to buy one, because there were so many choices!

The boss offered me a set of three plates for US$85, although I could chose my own combination of any styles and any sizes, but it was still a ridiculous price! We couldn't reach a price that satisfied both sides though, even after much bartering. So I thought I would just take the smallest one and the price should be US$5. However this boss was really tough, so I had to compromise to US$7 in the end ... Then D bought four of coasters for US$1 each. 

Right when we paid the money, the boss then said 'only US$12 for the large and medium one' if we took the rest of a whole set... I was quite angry, and he was really good at acting. D thought we should take them as well after his mathematical consideration, so we got one set of three sizes for US$19, down from the crazy US$85. Our local friend said the cheapest price should be US$12! So next time we will look for the markets he mentioned where they sell them that cheap - Sukawati market.

Our selection of the ceramic colored glass coasters and bowls

After breakfast we packed up and got ready to go to the next part of Bali - Seminyak. Our driver's English was not very good, so he didn't talk to us during the travel. But it was relaxing, and we just chatted to each other and enjoyed the transformation of countryside scenery into city views. From Ubud to Seminyak it took about an hour, and the the price we paid the driver was US$25. D gave this man another US$1 note tip, and it made him smile!

Bali - Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel - Lobby, Kitchen/Restaurant and more

The following four days we were staying in the Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel. It was quite a new hotel, and had only been running for one year, so the room facilities were very new and their design was interesting and beautiful! We were very satisfied with this accommodation.

We found Seminyak Lagoon from the expedia.com website. Their price was less than US$50 per night including breakfast, and it had plenty of good reviews, so we just booked and paid on line. It was one of the very best, especially for its price, on traveladvisor.com

Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel website - http://www.seminyaklagoonhotel.com

Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel - Free Lobby Internet Access on Apple iMac

They provided two Apple iMacs in the lobby, free for guests to use. There were many WiFi spots around the whole hotel, and the signal was good. The speed was poor on the first day, but improved after that and was quite ok.

Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel - Swimming pool views - Beautiful!

This long rectangle pool was their specialty. I like the way they used fringed green plants as the decoration, which was beautiful and romantic! If your room is on the first floor, just open the balcony door and the pool is right in front you ~ very convenient!

Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel - Free breakfast buffet! Delicious fruit!

They served a buffet for breakfast each morning (7:30am to 10:30am), which was basically fried rice, fried noodles, sausages, vegetables, toast, croissants, fruit compote, cereals and a variety of fresh juices, and hot drinks. 

We could also order egg dishes from the kitchen, like boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, omelets or sun side up eggs, but each person can only choose one style per day.

Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel - Small free gym for exercise training

In addition, they also had a gym which was free to use too. Although the gym was a little bit small and not very professional, there was an exercise bike, a cross trainer and a multi function weight training machine. For just a couple of days it should be good enough. No one else used it either!

We took a break after first arriving at the hotel, then went to the Seminyak city central for dinner. It took us about 10 minutes walk from the hotel to the center, which was not that close but not bad!

Seminyak, Bali - including Mamasan Restaurant, Burger King, Pizza Hut and Seminyak Lagoon All Suites Hotel

There were many kinds of restaurants along the streets. Most of the western-style restaurants seemed very popular, but tasting local meals in Bali was one of our purposes of coming here. So we found a restaurant which looked very "Bali".

Seminyak, Bali - Ananda Restaurant

Ananda was a very quiet restaurant, and their food was not stunning but inexpensive. We ordered the avocado juice, curry chicken, Mie Goreng with their traditional dish GADO-GADO.

GADO-GADO was a kind of salad, with boiled vegetables dressed in peanut sauce, and was quite a special dish! They liked adding chocolate sauce into avocado juice, and it was a very wonderful combination and made quite a large cup (the avocado here in Bali is really cheap and delicious!). Mie Goreng was similar to the fried noodles in Taiwan, and the flavor was very tasty. The curry chicken was not very special though.

Ananda Restaurant - Mie Goreng, Curry Chicken, Avocado Juice, Gado-Gado

After dinner, we walked slowly back to the hotel. It was relaxing and very comfortable with the breeze blowing gently! We went to bed early this day, because we were looking forward to the breakfast and didn't want to miss it ~ ha!