Day 5 was planned as another chill day
for us at Villa Teresa. We started the day with what had become our
standard, Nasi Goreng, a fresh juice drink, fresh cut fruit, and
coffee. Nasi Goreng is a typical Indonesian breakfast of fried rice
(sometimes with chicken, sometimes pork) with a fried egg on top. It
sounds a bit odd by American standards, but actually is a great way
to start the day. As for the fruit, we have tried a bunch of new
things for me … dragon fruit (white flesh with many small seeds
that look like poppy seeds) and mangosteen (purple fruits with a
white fleshy center that you eat) being my favorites. The mangosteen
has an odd texture (think of an overly ripe clementine) but is
incredibly sweet and delicious.
We puttered away the morning by the
pool and reading...somehow all that activity made us hungry enough
for lunch. We had a large platter of fried calamari and chicken
curry over rice. The chef makes some of the best calamari I've ever
had. :-)
After lunch, the chef offered us a
cooking class in the making of peanut sauce. We had this with
several of the meals we had, and the kids just loved it, eating it by
the spoonfuls. We wanted to learn how it was made. While the chef
as quite correct in saying it was easy and quick, the difficult part
will be in replicating some of the ingredients in the midwest. I
KNOW that they are not carried in the local grocery stores, although
perhaps the Asian markets have them. I will make the attempt though
because it was delicious. It consisted of raw peanuts (easy), garlic
(easy), sweet soya sauce (probably available at the Asian market),
oil (easy), chili peppers (easy), lemon leaves (not
easy....particularly as they come from a specific type of lemon, even
smaller than the key limes), turmeric root (looked like a tiny
yam...the chef said turmeric powder could be substituted), cardamom
root (this will be tough and is NOT the same as the ground seeds we
use in baking), and candle-nuts (these tasted a bit like raw almonds,
and the chef said they would work fine as a substitute). All of the
ingredients are cooked in hot oil in a wok for 5-7 minutes, the lemon
leaves are removed, and the remaining ingredients are ground into a
paste by adding a bit more oil. Delicious!
I had a reflexology treatment and the
“only in Bali” creme bath, the latter being an avocado hair
treatment and head massage. Both were delivered by an impossibly
small woman with impossibly strong hands. I had to keep asking her
to reduce the pressure! As is typical with reflexology, it was not
relaxing during the treatment, but you feel fantastic after wards.
And, my hair has never been softer or smelled better. :-)
Since it was our last dinner at Villa
Teresa, we went a bit over board on ordering. We started with spring
rolls (a HUGE pile of them), had a seafood soup (I forget the name,
but it was Thai in nature, with lots of lemon grass), and tuna cooked
in banana leaves. For dessert, we had traditional Balinese black
rice pudding. I can't say that this was my favorite dish, but it was
interesting.
The next day dawned beautiful at Villa
Teresa which made leaving that much harder. We settled up our bill
(about $800 US for the 5 days for seven people, including all food,
all drinks, laundry and the car/driver). I don't think you can
complain about that! Worked out to about $100 per person.
Considering the quality, it was a downright bargain. I took a few more photos to remember the incredible detail in the decorating and design of the villa:
Our next stop on the trip was
Sembirenteng in the north of Bali, at the small resort Agung Bali
Nirwana. The drivers from there were to pick us up at 11:00, but
apparently there was a mix up in communication and they didn't arrive
until nearly 1:00. A bit frustrating, but only a small glitch. Once
they arrived, we quickly threw the luggage in and we were on our way.
We were told it was about a 3.5 hour drive (maybe 110-120
kilometers), but it ended up taking about an hour more than that, and
we arrived around 5:30 pm. We were slowed down by a traffic detour
caused by a cremation ceremony in Keraboken. I think we were
traveling about 1 km per hour at that point. Very slow. We stopped
once for a bathroom break, and that was (as they say) “an
experience.” Traditional pit toilet. We also stopped in Candidasa
for snacks, and learned something interesting. The food prices there
at a a local “mini mart” were significantly less than at the
Carrafour in Seminyak. Unlike in the US where smaller towns seem
to command premium prices, the opposite seems to be true here.
The trip along the coast was stunningly
beautiful, with much of the drive through jungle like rain forest.
We saw many village temples, women walking with large containers of
coconuts on their heads, and rice terraces climbing up the sides of
tall mountains. Bali is beautiful away from the cities and
congestion of the south.
We eventually turned off the main road
to reach our resort...it appeared we were going to drive straight
into the ocean, when literally about 15 feet from the shoreline we
turned into our resort. It is lovely. I didn't get any photos then,
and so far this morning, it is pouring down rain, so no photos yet.
I hope to get some later today and will add them then. The resort
consists of dining bale, a swimming pool with an infinity edge
looking over the ocean, a massage pavilion, and three separate
villas, one for each family on this leg of the trip. All the villas
are identical, and consist of a large outdoor patio, perfect for
reading, a smaller dining bale, living room, kitchen area, and three
bedrooms. The master has a shower large enough for 6 people (no
kidding!). We are happy.
Dinner was ordered off the menu, but
was nominally priced. We had two banana milk shakes, 2 large
Bintangs, 1 small Bintang, spring rolls, chicken sates (with rice and
veggies), a seafood platter with rice and veggies, chicken sandwich
with fries and mie goreng. Total bill, including service charge was
300,000 rupiah (roughly $33 US). Can't complain about that at all.
I would say the food isn't quite to Villa Teresa standards, but is
more authentic (they aren't holding back the spices here), and quite
adequate. Beautiful settings make up for any flaw in the food. :-)
Off to bed, to the sounds of waves
crashing along the shore....
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