Days 11,12 & 13 (oops starting to get behind) Saturday 9th June Koala headed into Kuta for a browse through Mataharis and to change some money there. She managed to find a couple of playstation games that Scott had wanted on the top floor of Mataharis for 4,000rp each as mentioned previously. She wandered round the store but not a lot caught her eye. As normal, the women's clothes cater mostly for small asian sizes but she browsed for the teens back home. Scott is at the age where he likes playing army men and has a good collection of tanks. Whilst passing the watch collection in Matahari's, Koala noticed a selection of watches in the shape of various transport vehicles including one tank. It lights up and makes sounds and the clock pops out. It was multi fit from small to large and it was 45,000rp..an ideal surprise for Scott. They also had cars,trucks,buses,boats and planes. Koala then wandered downstairs and into the street but after one length of Kuta square and being accosted by 15 time share people in 100 metres, she was getting a little weary of it all . Most of them took no thanks for an answer but its annoying when they see you have turned down another only metres away and they still ask you again!! She was just about to call it quits and hail a taxi when approached again by a malaysian/western lady who spoke English perfectly with an English accent even Queen Elizabeth would have been proud of. Koala automatically said "No thankyou. I'm not interested" and the lady tells her she isn't selling anything which is the usual reply the timeshare sellers give. Again Koala repeats . "No thankyou. I'm NOT interested in timeshare". The lady says she isn't selling timeshare but actually works for McDonalds. Now this was a different approach and the lady asks where Koala's hubby is, another classic question as a timeshare seller needs to have the breadwinner of the family to come to time share interviews for the hard sell. As the lady is saying this, she opens her bumbag and starts to draw out the exact same survey the last 15 people had profered. Koala at this time is pretty much wound up and told the lady how unprofessional she was by being so dishonest. The lady tells Koala it is none of her business..very ironical as it was her that approached Koala in the first place. The lady stands there with the time share survey in her hand and still says she is working on behalf of McDonalds so Koala shakes her head and just walks off. You have to wonder why these large Western time share corporations are allowed to hire so many people to literally annoy the hell out of the tourists. The locals cannot be blamed as they are led to believe they can make loads of money by doing this as the corporation uses the same persuasive crap on their employees as they do on their potential customers. With a sigh of relief, Koala goes back to the hotel. This afternoon is a busy one around the hotel. Nick,Shona & family are leaving to go back to W.A. early afternoon and their friends from Melbourne head back in the evening. We have a drink and a chat before Nick and Shona leave. shar^kie hands them a copy of their wedding on video for them to take back home. The hotel hosts a birthday party that afternoon and as friends are attending ,we join them on and off for the afternoon too. We have organised to go down to Sanur Beach with Andy01 and Jan for dinner. We meet them at the Aussie Bar on the beach itself for drinks and enjoy the display of various balinese dances .We walked along the beachfront undecided as to which cafe to try out for dinner. Eventually we decided on the Matahari Beach cafe. Unfortunately in the dark, we didn't realise that the cafe was a hotel cafe and boy were we surprised with the bills at the end with ++ added. It worked out the same price as Poppies or Koki and had the meals been good we probably would have not minded, but honestly they were substandard compared to other basic restaurants along the beach front. For example the mixed sates that Jan and Koala ordered were cubed meat,not grilled, and had been frozen and just warmed up by the watery taste of them. Extremely bland because they were watery and the accompanying sauce was mild and so-so taste. The rice was not even appealing. shar^kie had a local steak and said although it wasn't bad, it didn't warrant the price.The milkshake was watery and tasted very average and Jan wasn't impressed with her cocktail. If it had been a run of the mill restaurant with basic prices, then it would have not been so bad but you expect something a little better than that from a hotel Restaurant. I guess we have been spoilt so far with all great meals wherever we have gone and we all felt for the money, we might as well have gone to one of the better restaurants. Sunday 10th June shar^kie had a bit of filming in Sanur today so Scott went into Parent's Escape at Camp Splash and we headed off to the main street of Sanur. We walked along the road, taking photos and film as we went. The township was fairly quiet and the shop owners not overly pushy for "look here please" but it may have been the presence of the large video camera which helped! We walked a fair distance and after looking at all the restaurants and menus,we started to become hungry. Koala said she felt like something light like a sandwich and round the corner we came across the Piazza Cafe and Bakery which opened on June 1st. It is part of thr Gazebo Hotel and although it looks upmarket,the prices were very reasonable. They had seats in the open,under cover or in air conditioned upstairs. We chose in the open because of the cameras we were carrying even though we were quite hot from walking. The waiter brought us lovely wine glasses and filled them with the iciest cold water which was a nice touch. The menu was small, upmarket style but very well priced. There was also a cake/sandwich deli bar where you could order and design your own sandwich. The drinks sounded nice and Koala ordered a tangerine and strawberry juice and shar^kie tried the banana milkshake. shar^kie liked the sound of the foccacia bread with strips of lamb and new york style chips (22,000rp) and Koala ordered a honey ham and tomato on a white french baguette roll.(17,000rp).When the arrived we halved each order and shared it. The lamb was perfectly cooked and exquisite and it also came with a salad as well as several interesting vegetables including one unusual type of mushroom. Koala's sandwich was equally yummy and the ham was very nice. All the meats were imported. The bill arrived and it was missing the cost of shar^kie's meal so Koala explained to the waiter that the bill was too cheap. Bet they don't have that happen very often but Koala felt sorry for the staff as you could see they were new to the job and were just getting the running of the new restaurant into some sort of order. They looked for the missing order and couldn't find it,but Koala explained what it was and they were so grateful and said she was so honest and a new bill was presented. Koala then decided to add a couple of take away cakes to the order. A slikce of black forest and a slice of choc banana liquer cake were placed into a carry box and added to the bill and it was about 90.000rp for the entire meal plus drinks and large slices of cakes for later. We caught a taxi back to the hotel and had a shower and decided to head into Legian with Scott .Tonight was the second organised meeting of Forumites at Sammy and Susy's Bar on the beach. Last week we left early but the traffic was heavy and arrived late. This time we left earlier again as we had several bags and a box of goodies for dropping off at Taman Gardens Restaurant for the Crisis Care Centre. We got to the beach about half an hour early and no-one else was there. It must have been everyone else's turn to be late but we chatted to a American journalist on a brief holiday to Bali before he begins a 6 week tour of Australia with 20 or so American media students for their summer break. Suddenly forumites started to appear..including a few from the week before and new faces. We all chatted about Bali (what else hehe) and various accomodations and great places to visit. It seems everyone has their special spot/hotel. Si Badak arrived with the Cracker Family who just landed for their holiday that morning. Scott was happy to see all the kids if only a little shy. He shared out some packs of smarties and they were soon digging in the sand. As last week, it was great to meet the old and new faces and chat like old friends. As it became darker and darker,people drifted off and we left the beach with a promise fora group to come and visit us at the hotel on wednesday. Back in a taxi we quickly visited the new Matahari Galleria looking for an oversized swim ring for the water slide at the pool. We found one and headed back to the hotel. Dinner at the hotel tonight as we were pleasantly tired. Monday 11th June We booked Scott into the parent's escape yet again as he begged us to and we grabbed a driver Made off the street and organised a half day to Ubud going backroads and generally taking photos etc- no buying thanks. He started off telling us he would take us through the "real Bali" and that just to tell him stop and he would do so anytime. Up through the back of Denpasar into villages and there are hardly any cars. We drive through one small village and we see a lady digging up a young banana tree. Made stops and helps her dig it up and then hops back in. This day is looking really good for some great photo shots. He then says he is passing his own village and would we like to drop in. We agreed but said briefly and as he pulls in, he says he is very very poor - we took one look at his house and thought hmmm as it was indeed extremely nice with solar heating and the porch was huge with the best tiles,intricate carved stone work,and the eaves were lined with fine timbers. Definitely not the home of a poor person of any standard. The large block also had another lovely home and one being built but still plenty of room for a nice well laid out garden. Probably the most impressive thing was the entraceway.It was huge and he proudly tells us it cost him 20 million rupiah to build. He then tells us his son is in university doing economics and his daughter is planning to be a doctor. Made starts to get settled in for the day asking if we would like to stay for coffee etc.. but we gently remind him that we have a fair bit of travelling to do to fit into a half day. With a sigh he tells us how hard he works driving to Sanur everyday (about 15 minutes hehe) and from then on, he tells us that throughout the trip at regular intervals. We soon realise that Made prefers to have naps at regular intervals and probably isnt the most hard working man in Bali. It is about this stage with his plans thwarted for a nice hour or so kicking back at home, that he begins to think of great ways to drop us off at places so a) he can have a nap b) he might get some commission. Well we expressed an interest in art and he tells us there is an exclusive art gallery we can check out but it is very expensive and good for just "looking" rather than purchase. This suited as we didn't want to buy just look. The gallery Genta Fine Art was indeed impressive and there was no sell..just a chance to look at some fine art. Made seemed disappointed we were back so soon and then we are off and then somehow we are stopped at one of those commercial art places where tourists are herded in with their own private seller...we race through it and kindly tell the guide that we are looking and not buying. Walking back to the car, the guide tells Made-no sale-no commission and we proceed to tell Made we DONT want to buy anything and please no more shops of any kind just scenic drive. He starts to head off and then mentioned a woodcarver he knows- almost simultaneously we both state no woodcarvers as this is how he started with the painting spiel. By this time we have passed and missed some great photo opportunities and we tell him to stop his vehicle and drive up around the corner a bit to let us walk through the village for a few photos. Eagerly he allows us to do that and we walk up through a wood village where big logs of mahogany and teak are stored. Too soon we catch up with the car and Made is snoozing once again and he seems disappointed we are back so soon. We decide to visit Goa Goa Elephant cave temple and for some reason Made drops us off a way before the entrance and then lays back for another sleep. We gather any closer and he might have to pay parking but we aren't sure so we brave the traffic here which is fairly dangerous to cross as it is on a windy, blind corner. Once across we walk up the hill and towards the temple. We have heard some stories about unoffical guides attaching themselves to tourists and then guiding them around whether you want them or not and then demanding money. With this in mind, we head in and pay our 3,100rp each entry fee . shar^kie has to don a purple sarong as he is wearing shorts but I luckily was wearing 3/4 length pants and didn't need to. There are official guides but they are busy so we walk in to take some photos and suddenly we have a guy beside us asking us our names and where we are from. To answer these simple questions, it seems is an agreement to hire this guy for a guide. We are aware of what he is up to as it is the same tactics the ladies on Sanur beach use to lure you to their shops. We take photos and then he says..please follow me this way.We say no sorry we want to wander around and take photos. He walks behind us and then says something of interest about a particular statue we look at, but his english isn't good and we fail to understand what he is saying . Obviously he doesn't have authority as a guide as he doesn't follow us inside the cave as other official guides do .For those who have never been there, the elephant cave is a hand carved cave with intricate carving detail on the outside. Inside it has been hand dug out to make a cavern and the single electric globe and wire does detract for the atmospshere as you could imagine oil lamps or similar would be more in keeping with the whole thing. Back outside and suddenly out of nowhere, the guide appears. shar^kie tells his nicely, no we do not want a guide of any sort and he walks away and we are left alone totally to take photos and view the rest of the place including down the steps to the waterfall on our own. We gather enough information from the official guides who speak excellent english as we go along. About 20 minutes later, we start to leave and a stranger approaches us and asks for a coin donation. He is not part of the official staff so shar^kie says sorry we have no coins which actually was quite true. The guy walks off and sits down next to our would be guide muttering something about Australians. We leave the temple totally, and we unsarong shar^kie and grab a drink on our way back to the driver. Suddenly our would be guide appears from nowhere and demands payment for "guiding us". It looks like he cannot do that in the temple area and he has waited for us to get out of the temple and then try to con us. shar^kie explains we did not ask for a guide, he did not guide us and we were not paying and we kept walking. We did not get hassled further. Back to the car and wake Made again who drives us through ubud then parks and falls asleep once again despite us giving him some lunch/drink money. We realise our half day is nearly up so we have a wander around the market and it is good to see you can actually look at things without being hassled like you do in Kuta or Sanur. We had lunch at a small Restaurant and to be honest we can't quite remember the name but it wasn't anything to rave about. shar^kie's French onion soup is red coloured and definitely a local brew but not too bad. Koala's mie goreng was ok but it had the same flavour as the soup and although it was with meat, she struggled to find the one piece of meat. Definitely a let down after the fantastic Mie Goreng she had at Orchid Gardens in Legian a few days before. shar^kie ordered a Margherita pizza and he loves it thin and crisp but the crust was thin, hard as a rock and totally inedible. He scraped the topping off and ate that but he said it tasted like the soup and Koala's mie goreng instead of pizza topping. Our bill was 45,000rp. We realised we were running short of money so we decided to try a local money changer....actually the first we came across. It was in a fairly large wood shop and the exchange rate (5830) was quite good but not that high rate which is classic of a dishonest money changer. The lady also proffered large notes..another good sign and she counted it out in front of us and we double checked and it was correct. We thanked her and left.Back to the car and we again wake Made and we tell him that because of the time,we need to go directly back to the hotel. He then heads off and we pass a cockfight in progress and ask if we want to stop. No thanks but our time is up and we want to go back to the hotel. He tells us he has a very scenic route planned for our trip back. We again say but our half day is nearly over and we want to get back to the hotel fairly quickly. He then says we are already an hour over the half day and that it would be at least another hour home. It is at this stage we notice the car clock suddenly doesn't match Koala's watch like it did early and it is now 15 minutes faster!! We were also told a half day is four hours...and now suddenly it's three. We get back to the hotel and by the drivers calculations its an extra 1 3/4 hours over half day. By our calculations it's an extra half an hour and we told him that. We expect a confrontation but we hand him an extra 25,000rp and he seems very happy so we guess even that was probably too much but it doesn't matter. However, we have learnt a new trick and guess it would have worked well if we had not had a watch with us and been so observant of going overtime. Overall as a driver he wasn't bad but he had his faults which would stop us from recommending him. He spoke excellent english but he comes across as a very lazy person and would easily take you to previously organised sellers for his cut of a commission and I'm sure he would make most of his money this way. We noticed at least a couple of times through Ubud as we drove in, shop owners waved him in discreetly and he just as discreetly signalled to say we weren't victims...er buyers. The clock rigging wasn't honest so that makes you wonder what other things he would do. The going home for a visit was definitely a time waster as he was clearly disappointed when we didn't accept his invitation to kick back with coffee on his porch for the afternoon. There are clearly risks grabbing a driver off the street. Sometimes you get a gem, sometimes not. We knew this when we decided to obtain a driver this way and clearly he wasn't a gem but he wasn't aggressive either- I think it would be too much effort for him to be aggressive. Back to the hotel, we had a swim and then met a family who had just arrived in Bali from Melbourne. We chatted and gave them a few recommendations for meals, things to do etc. We mentioned we were heading for Koki's for dinner tonight and they said they may go to as they were tired and didn't want to travel far. Coincidentally we arrived at the restaurant at the same time and we were hoping they enjoyed their meal as much as we had done so far. As far as our order went, we were again extremely pleased especially after the so-so meal at lunch time. Koala had this huge,plate stealing schnitzel served with chips and mashed potato as requested as she and Scotty were sharing. She was glad as it was way too big for one. shar^kie couldn't say no to the 400g aussie sirloin. This very thick, perfectly cooked (rare) steak was peppered and accompanied by the pepper sauce, the special gravy for the mashed potato and the thousand island dressing with the salad. Scott was too full for dessert this time, but Koala could not resist having the creme caramel once again. A dessert to die for ..in her words. With fingers crossed, the family approached us as we were all about to leave and we were relieved as they raved about the meal and the service. Sometimes people don't always share the same views as your own and it would have been disappointing for them and us if they had not enjoyed it. Back to the hotel as shar^kie had some video editing to do and Koala and Scott were going to play the playstation for awhile. Hi again from sharkie koalaa and scotty