Jimbaran, Indonesia
Intercontinental Jimbaran Bay: Sun 21st June – Thursday 24th June
Room: 6406
We’re home now but this trip stood out for one small reason….and this can probably be traced back to when we were packing. I’d suggested Tom throw in some shorts for running and, for this, he chose his school shorts. Read on……
Sunday 21st June
I had though that if I was to write a blog it would start once we arrived in Bali. Not so! The taxi to the airport was the first part of the adventure and was obviously supposed to get us ready for things to come. Mark had to tell the driver, rather sternly, that we were quite early for our flight in the hope he would start to drive on the correct side of the road! After leaping past many tens of cars…we finally arrived in one piece….. although slightly un-nerved.
Garuda flight at 10.30am: It was a pity our taxi driver wasn’t flying the plane! Our flight was late departing and also landing. Then, once we arrived, there must have been only one person unloading bags off the plane as that stage of the journey took over 40 minutes.
We didn’t arrive at the hotel until about 5 pm, much later than the 3 pm estimated. We settled into our room and then headed to the Club Lounge for our first of may ‘Happy Hour’ sessions and we ended up staying there for the evening before heading back to the room and early to bed. This had been a particularly tiring trip.
Monday 22nd June
Resumption of our usual routine…this being: Mark and Mary take a morning walk along beach, swim in pool and then have coffee in the cabana by the pool.
Breakfast this day was down by the beach/pool as this restaurant had finished being renovated and so we thought we would try it out.
Our first full morning was spent back by the pool with both boys working (see photo evidence) and me reading. One mum commended Tom for working so hard during his holidays.
Later on Mark and I went into Kuta to drop off some of my silver jewelry to a Silver shop to be mended. Then, it was back to the hotel for ‘High Tea’ and more pool time before hitting the Sunset Bar for sunset drinks and then walking up the beach to ‘Cuca’ for dinner.
Tuesday 23rd June
Mark insisted on going to Ubud. I didn’t want to go but I exacted some revenge by buying yet another large piece of timber carving to adorn yet another wall. Our driver for the day was Wayan who, like our earlier taxi driver, thought he was Mario Andretti. Lanes, traffic lights and traffic-direction convention meant nothing to him. Luckily, for Tom and I, Mark had scored the front seat with the enhanced visuals of this driving expertise. We were home by 3 pm and Mark and I headed to the pool whilst Tom stayed back in the room to do some more work.
Later on, we all headed down to the beach bar for sunset drinks before moving on to the hotel’s Italian restaurant Bella Cucina for dinner.
Wednesday 24th June
The three of us went on the beach walk this morning before the usual swim and coffee by the pool. Another mum, up early swimming with her son, approached me to ask about Tom and where he was at school. She, like the mum from the day before, was impressed by how Tom was working so diligently during his holidays. She was keen to hear more about Grammar and by the end of our trip announced that she was putting her son’s name down for a shot at enrolling at Grammar.
Mark nominated the breakfast venue today to be the beach/pool side restaurant, and so, there we headed. Tom retired back to the room after breakfast, reluctantly so however, to do some more study and Mark and I spent the morning by the pool.
Mark and I then went back in to Kuta to collect my jewelry before heading back to the hotel for some more pool time. I detoured briefly on the way home for a foot massage.
We spent sunset by the pool before heading down the beach to the Four Season’s restaurant, Sandara,for dinner where both the meal and setting were lovely.
Thursday 25th June
Lazy boy Tom feigned a headache this morning so as to get out of the beach walk. He did make it down to the cabana though for our swim and morning coffee. Today was our last day and so the plan was to just hang around the hotel and pool until our evening departure, and, this we did. We were able to have a late check-out at 4 pm and spent the remainder of the afternoon by the pool, at the pool bar for sunset drinks and we even dined at the pool side restaurant before departing the hotel at 9 pm for our 11.45 pm flight.
A gentleman approached us at the pool side bar during sunset drinks to ask about Tom. It seems he had noticed Tom’s running shorts, his Grammar shorts, and being an ‘Old Boy’ himself just wanted to say hello and ask a bit about how Tom was enjoying the school. This family, too, had a boy and were wondering about whether to put his name down at the College. By the end of Sunset drinks they, too, had decided to put their son’s name into the mix as well! So Tom, his school shorts and good study habits may well end up being responsible for at least two new Grammar enrollments!
