I remember my own first trip to Bali when I was a child – it seemed like all we did was sit in the coach, something which the girls must have also felt on this particular trip since it takes ages to get from one point to another. It took an hour and a half to drive from the airport to Ubud, where we began our holiday, 1.5 hours to get to the Bali Safari and Marine Park from Ubud and the same to Bedugul. From Sanur to Kerobokan, it’s another hour. Essentially, it takes at least an hour to get anywhere in Bali outside of your immediate locality. Once the girls figured out that the seats in our driver Esa’s van could recline to almost 180 degrees, however, the drives became a lot more comfortable.

There's plenty to see at Tirta Empul on a weekend.

I planned this trip to include activities that would keep the kids entertained, so temple visits were kept to a minimum although I’d really have liked to visit a couple more other than Pura Tirta Empul which we hit up on our first day. But there’s always next time, sans kids. We also did not watch traditional dances such as the barong dance as we thought Zoe would be freaked out. Strangely, she wasn’t at all disturbed by the many statues which we passed while we were there.

What we did do was visit the Bali Safari and Marine Park, the Bali Treetop Adventure Park and Umalas Equestrian Resort. All activities for kids, but K and I were happy to see Alison and Zoe having fun. Of these, the Bali Safari and Marine Park was the least value for money – we paid USD45 a head to get in with some concessions which were hardly worth the price. To top it off, I filled out a feedback form before we left, only to have my number abused in a cold call telling me I’d won a free one-week stay somewhere in Bali – if I attended a sales talk. I was displeased, to say the least. If you have been to the Singapore Zoo, you can give the Bali Safari and Marine Park a miss is my verdict.

Brave Alison high up in the air, attempting the flying swings.

In contrast, the Bali Treetop Adventure Park is good fun for everyone aged 4 and up. For a flat fee, you get to try all the circuits in the park, so you could easily spend an entire day there. Pack a picnic if you do. We were there for just two hours, and enjoyed glorious cool weather before the heavens opened upon a group of Singaporeans who arrived just as we were leaving.

"I keeeeel youuu!"

We also caught a shadow puppet theatre (wayang kulit) show featuring the Aranya Kanda portion of the Ramayana at Pondok Bamboo which is opposite Padi Prada on Monkey Forest Road in Ubud. Everyone was a little lost when the show first started, but it got easier when the sidekicks began speaking English, even throwing in choice tourist phrases such as “You want transport? Transport transport?” The best part of the show was really going backstage to see how the puppeteer managed so many puppets all at once.

I’m always thankful that both Alison and Zoe are great travellers and don’t give us problems like misbehaving on the plane or refusing to try local food, although Alison ate one bowl of spaghetti bolognese for every day of the holiday along with a strawberry milkshake, and Zoe generally did her usual thing which is to graze continuously rather than eat complete meals at regular times. They said they enjoyed Bali and would like to go back, so I guess another trip might be on the cards in the next year or so!

Family photo with a lion cub at Bali Safari and Marine Park. K and I think the cub was drugged because it was so sleepy and rather uncharacteristically docile.

Where we stayed:
Murni’s Houses in Ubud
Oasis Lagoon in Sanur

Where we ate:
Ubud
Murni’s Warung***
Bebek Bengil***
Cafe des Artistes**
Cafe Lotus**
Padi Prada*

Bedugul
Strawberry Stop**

Sanur
Mona Lisa Cafe ***
Cafe Batu Jimbar **
Cafe Smorgas **
Ryoshi Japanese Restaurant **

K had beef slices in instant noodles and satay soup on both days.

After breakfast, we wandered under the flyover/bus terminus and found an Aji Ichiban outlet.

I stocked up on my favourite peeled chestnuts while K indulged in his usual sweets.

We decided to go across to Kowloon, and took a stroll down Granville Road. On the way, we stumbled across Tai Ping Koon, which a friend had recommended for its roast pigeon and Swiss chicken wings, so we decided to have lunch there. We both ordered the set, which was HKD 82 each – a steal for what we got.

Very old school. Since 1860!

My starter borscht soup.

More beef noodles for K. The beef slices were soooo succulent and tender.

I didn't feel like tearing into pigeon, so I ordered the recommended Swiss chicken wings. Loved the sweet sauce. Mmmm..

Duly fortified, we continued shopping in the Mong Kok area, but I’ve no photos of that. We were completely exhausted by the time we made it back to our hotel, and I was very grumpy and hungry. We ended up eating at Lei Bistro in Times Square. Although I really wanted to eat good dim sum on this holiday, this dinner was the only time I saw food in baskets – we ordered siew mai.

K tried crispy siew yoke for the first time. He doesn't usually like to eat pork but amazingly, he liked this.

Seafood kway teow noodles in lobster soup. We couldn't find the lobster though.

Chicken on a bed of what seemed like extra-glutinous chee cheong fun. The chicken was nice. The "chee cheong fun", not so much.

Custard with water chestnut for dessert.

We went back to the hotel and crashed after that. End of Day 2.

• Our villa was fantastic – in a great location, central but quiet, reasonably priced. The daily breakfast was customised to our preference, and our host Mathieu was very helpful.
• Driving in Bali is insane, so we left it to Esa and Putu who are part of Drivers with Distinction. Both were warm, friendly and very accommodating.
• I learned that unlike in Sotheby’s auctions where the price can only go up, you can actually bargain down the price of a painting to 50 per cent of its original sticker.
• Rafting with Sobek down the Ayung river, a Grade 3 whitewater, is a lot more fun than sitting on a rollercoaster.
• I am happy to have hit up Biku, Sarong, Warung Made and Sari Organic. Too bad about Bebek Bengil and Ibu Oka. Next time!
• There are many levels of “offroad experience”. If you, like me, only get on your mountain bike once in a blue moon, choose this bike tour over this.

OK, on to the photos:

And we're off! Photo © suanie on Flickr