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The last and final Bali installment is here! I can’t believe my journey sharing Bali with you guys has come to an end. I hope the posts have helped you with trip planning and gives you some ideas of things to do in various parts of Bali!
Today, I’m sharing with you another part of Bali, Indonesia! A gorgeous and vivacious city called Jimbaran. Right outside the city of Jimbaran, about a 30 minute drive, you get to this amazing view. I mean, I was in awe. We hiked up the hills to see the Uluwatu Temple and we were treated with an amazing view of the Indian Ocean as well. The ocean stretched as far as the eye could see and it was the perfect day. Granted, there is barely any shade while you’re hiking up and it was humid, but it was really worth it and the sea breeze cools you off!
My knees got a bit weak though. I’m scared of heights and I could barely make it to the edge of the cliff to take photos. Amanda was much more brave and kept going. Our little guide lady kept telling her to be careful! Haha, it’s a loooong way down :)
You gotta watch out for these buggers. They warn you about these monkeys and they’re really no joke. They swipe at every and anything they can see. They’re such little stealers! Really, if you have sunglasses on your head or a purse on your shoulder..they will swipe it. You gotta keep everything close to your chest and body. They’re cute but they basically steal everything of yours! And of course, you’re not supposed to feed them but people kept feeding them. Probably why they keep coming back.
Okay, so after we spent a good 90 minutes hiking up to Uluwatu Temple, we had our driver (he was amazing! Tip: if you’re in Bali, see if you can hire a driver for 4-6 hours. They are inexpensive and it’s the best way to get around. Our driver waited for us in his car while we hiked to the temple and was waiting for us at the bottom with a car blasting with AC, haha it was great!) take us to get luwak coffee because we heard we had to try it if we were in Bali. The process sounds pretty gross and that’s probably why a lot of people don’t want to but then again, a lot of people try it at least once because it’s so exotic!
So all those coffee beans are basically defecated coffee cherries that are eaten by the Asian palm civet (he kind of looks like a lemur). Right? Totally gross, huh? But of course there’s a whole process to this so you’re not really eating shit, lol…they take the shells and process it just like coffee beans! Roasting, grinding, sifting, and brewing! And to be honest, it was really good. It tasted like chocolate coffee to me.
We also had a huge sampling of teas and of course the luwak coffee. I needed that kick in my day because we were still a bit jetlagged and after all that hiking, I needed to stay awake for dinner!
We worked up an appetite so after our veins were caffeinated, we headed off to lunch at Fat Chow! My friend actually recommended this place to us because when they were in Bali, she said this was their favorite restaurant they ate at. That’s a pretty bold statement so I knew we had to go. We had our driver drop us off here for lunch and Fat Chow’s main dining area was on the 2nd floor so it overlooks a lot of the other buildings so you can see a lot of the city and the tops of trees. It was a really nice view and since it wasn’t too hot out (it’s considered ‘winter’ in Bali right now), we sat outside to enjoy our meal.
More coffee! I’m telling you, I can’t ever turn down coffee :) they had this awesome sounding coffee that had condensed milk on the bottom so I had to get it. It’s like Vietnamese coffee in a sense.
Okay so we ordered a lot of food but again, we worked up an appetite, haha…this was the pataya pork ribs that was served with jasmine rice. Oh my goodness, it was PHENOMENAL!! Look at that sauce!
Then we ordered a sampler platter where we got to choose four things off the appetizer menu. This was the mekong roll that had steamed prawn, minced chicken, cucumbers, carrots, and wrapped in rice paper.
Chick in pandan. You don’t eat the leaves but the leaves give the chicken inside such incredible flavor and it was so moist!! One of my favs from this sampler.
This chow pao was like a steamed bun (kind of like the Taiwanese version of gua bao) filled with pork in a hoisin BBQ sauce.
This was a Tokyo prawn that was wrapped in rice noodles and deep fried. It was my second favorite from this sampler menu!! So good!!
In Jimbaran, we were hosted at the Jamahal, a private luxury resort and spa. It was definitely private. There’s only 21 rooms here and there are various villas. We had the opportunity to stay at all three villas! The garden suite villa, the pool suite villa, and their pool villa. The garden suite didn’t have a private pool BUT it had a large garden area where you could have breakfast and drink your coffee. I think my favorite part of the garden villa was that the bathroom and showers were outside!! Including the flower-filled tub. It was really awesome to shower outside. At first I was scared but it’s actually quite relaxing and serene.
See? We had a pool right in front of our villa and our own lounge area!
This was the pool that was available for all guests but since the resort has a small amount of villas, the pool was never crowded so it was very relaxing to go out there to read or get some work done. Most vacationers opted to go to the beach which there is a direct shuttle to from the resort!
Isn’t this gorgeous?! I have always dreamed of bathing in a tub full of fresh flowers!!
I loved how private and quiet and GREEN the Jamahal was. It’s like you’re walking into a lush forest.
How gorgeous was everything about the rooms in the villas? I love the tiny details and the room key was a custom wood engraved key fob with your room name on it!
The breakfast every morning was so delicious! You order it the night before and they deliver it to you at the time you specify the next morning. Perfect way to wake up in paradise :)
We were lucky enough to experience the CHOCOLATE SPA experience at the Jamahal Spa!!! Ahhh it was everything you could dream of. We were rubbed down in chocolate and we smelled amazing afterwards.
We were invited by Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay to enjoy their amazing view of the sunset while sipping on some cocktails in front of a fire pit. It was so relaxing after the day we had. I loved listening to the waves splash against the beach.
The never-ending dinner course was top-notch. We dined at Sundara, Four Season’s new restaurant, and it did not disappoint. We got to meet their executive chef, Greg Bunt. He’s originally from Australia and he fell in love with Bali so he decided to stay. I loved the Japanese influence in his food. There was great variety from everything we tried. I swear they kept sending us dishes from the kitchen – even ones we didn’t order! They really wanted us to taste a well-rounded palate.
The next day, Four Seasons invited us back to attend their anti-gravity class. OMG. YOU GUYS. It was an experience, for sure, but I got such a blood rush to my head that I hated the inversions. BUT the instructor was amazing and so patient with all of us. There were only four of us in class and we all were beginners so that was good. My favorite position might’ve been the hammock/cocoon we did where we just laid there and let it swing us like a baby in a bassinet, haha
Your photos are so dreamy! The photography takes me right back to being in Bali. I just got back from a trip to Jimbaran and have serious post-holiday blues! It sounds like you had a fabulous time there just as I did. I would love to know if you agree with my thoughts about it so please give my blog post a read: http://www.freydefleur.com/travel/2016/1/12/four-seasons-jimbaran-bali x
Gorgeous!
what a beautiful trip. Am I correct assuming this was a work trip? There is no disclaimer about any portion of this trip being provided by the tourism or resorts, so it’s hard to say. But I believe the FTC requires that you divulge that information to your readers.
Please go back and re-read. I wrote that we were hosted by The Jamahal and that we were invited to the Four Seasons. The other places we went to in this post and where we ate? Out of my own pocket. Thank you for policing the web and making sure bloggers are being FTC compliant.
I loved Bali when I went last year, but never made it over to Jimbaran. We stayed in Ubud and Seminyak. When I go back (hopefully one day soon1) I want to stay at the Jamahal – looks beautiful! And will definitely check out Fat Chow – those ribs! x
Can’t take how CUTE that monkey is!!!! Must make my way to Bali someday. It looks gorgeous!!!
Bali looks incredible and I could use a soak in that bath!
That bath though!!! amazing trip!
I’m sorry you lost me at Chocolate Spa! Such incredible photos, add Bali to my list of places to go ASAP!
Such a dream!! Love all of these photos, just beautiful!!
Bali has always been on my list of places to visit and its everything i imagined it would be like from your photos!