Bali trip

The last time we went to Bali was May 2004 - and that time we stayed at this truly fantastic place called Tegal Sari in Ubud. This time we stayed at Champlung Sari, also in Ubud, not too bad a place, but I was quite disappointed. It's okay I guess if you haven't been to Tegal Sari but after Tegal Sari, this place just sort of became second class. I'm not saying that Tegal Sari is a 5 star hotel - definitely not. But our room had a wide verandah which faced the padi field and it is separated from the other rooms by a narrow path with beautiful trees on either side. Since that was May then, the padi was still growing and the green was like emerald and you were greeted by the sound of birds cooing early in the morning.

Monkey eating my apple

Here in Champlung Sari, you are greeted by monkeys raiding your verandah, fighting on the roofs or stealing your food. You cannot leave anything outside for fear they will steal it.  However they look kind of cute.
 Rice terraces at Jati Luwih

However this time around we got to see more places - we went to see the padi terraces - they are really fantastic - at JatiLuwih. It was quite far from Ubud - maybe around 2 hrs away on a very narrow winding road but I think the trip was really worth it. The water that irrigates the padi comes from the mountains and its so clear you can see right through to the gravel beneath. We had tea and fried bananas with honey at a cafe there and it was simply marvellous. The farmers here still use the ox and plough to plough the land and many were actually ploughing when we were there. There was also a group of young boys swimming in the irrigation canals,their high spirited shouts echoing through the valley. The scene reminded me so much of my childhood and I hope that modernisation, if it came to Bali, would not take this away.

That evening we also went to Tanah Lot to see the sunset. It's been said that the sunset here is just out of this world but this treat was denied us - the spectacular sunset just did not arise - the cloud cover was too low and we could only see mild strips of burgundy and orange - nice but not spectacular. However Tanah Lot itself is an awesome place - its a promontory where the sea has carved out blowholes, caves and also a spit upon which the Balinese have built a temple. It is truly a marvellous sight and a natural masterpiece.

Tanah Lot, Bali

The rest of Bali is just as beautiful as ever though Denpasar is bigger than I remembered it. There are more big malls and shopping centres and also of course more vehicles. The people are just as spiritual as ever - there are holy days in Bali almost every day - each day for a special saint. THis time around too we did not see the Barong Dance or even the Kecak Dance. We just wanted to see the sights - the natural beauty that is Bali. I think next time we'll renew our memories of Kintamani and the volcanic basin  or Danau Batur, and Mount Batur. Anyway I'll try to remember not to come at the end of the year where they have thousands of visitors who go there for the New Year celebrations at Kuta Beach.

THis is my last post for this year so I'll say good bye to 2009 and welcome to 2010. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU OUT THERE!

Haji Tahir Family Day

(That's me trying my hand at gold putting!)

Its the time of year for the Family day again. This time we're joining in - Repin, myself, Wan and Shasha. Rizal flew to Brisbane yesterday with Pohling and Sophie. They're visiting with Chee Mun there so its a kind of family day for them too.

We had ours at Pengkalan Balak , approximately 22 km from Melaka Town - at a place called Padang Kamunting. Its quite lovely actually - the beach was nice and sandy - soft yellow sand and quite spacious too so we could have games on the beach itself. They started the day with Treasure Hunt.There were quite a number of teams and mine was called Golden Stars - Jasmine, Intan, Azura ,Nadia and me. Some of the clues were quite easy - How many arrows in Robin Hood's quiver, the name of our chalet and so on but we only got 5 answers correct and Lela's team won first prize.

The day was quite warm and balmy - plenty of sun in the morning though not too hot, so it was really fun, sitting there under the shade, talking and playing with my sisters and brothers. Zin however didnt turn up at all and Kamal came late. So did Leha but she was from Singapore so I guess that was excused. Anyway all in all it was a good day and everyone took part, even Mami Leha. It rained in the evening though and the Sandcastle competition had to be cancelled. They all played an indoor game however so things went well.

 It ended with the karaoke and Wan won second prize with his song. Iskandar won the first prize with his rendition of "Cant help falling for you" which was quite good. As in many karaoke competitions, there were a few really lousy singers but I guess they can't help it. Lots of fun and games though.However,in spite of having booked  two rooms for myself, Repin decided to go back to BB in the end so we went home around 11.30pm.

Salmon for Shasha

Yesterday I made a salmon dish for Shasha my daughter. She hates fish other than salmon and Repin doesn't like salmon, so I've never cooked it at home. However yesterday since she was on leave I decided to make a salmon dish for her, using left over pasta sauce, some vegetables and lots of tomatoes. First I marinated the salmon steak with oregano, black pepper, salt and lemon juice. After marinating it for a half hour, I popped it in the oven for 10 minutes under broil. Take it out again and this time I put in the other ingredients - chopped onions, Japanese cucumber, tomatoes, a dash of pepper and finally the pasta sauce. I put it in the oven again and leave it to grill until its well done - crisp outside. It tasted great, especially after I put on some parmesan cheese on top and let it melt. Shasha loved it, finishing the whole piece of fish. I guess that's the only way she'll eat fish and salmon does have a lot of omega 3.