A perfect farewell to Bali

Sunrise over Sanur Beach

This travel post about Bali, Indonesia- an island I’ve dubbed the gem of SE Asia, will undoubtedly be my last blog about our SE Asia travels for quite some time as this was our farewell to SE Asia trip before repatriating to the USA. We are hopeful that we will once again become expats, but who knows where in this beautiful world that will take us….maybe SE Asia but maybe South America, Africa, or Europe??…the possibilities are endless, and thats what truly excites me thinking about the unknown in our future. Anyway, here is my 3rd and final blog on beautiful and serene Bali!

Morning walks with the babes!

Back in 2010 for our honeymoon (and before we even knew we would eventually move to SE Asia 1.5yrs later!!) we stayed at the amazing St. Regis in Nusa Dua. In 2012 when I was a mere 5 weeks pregnant with Ava we stayed in Seminyak, at the Semara Resort & Spa,  so this time we decided to try something new once again and stayed in the beach town of Sanur, located on the lower east side of the island. Whereas Nusa Dua is the home to the big resorts and low key vibe of family and honeymoon travelers, Seminyak is known for its stunning sunsets. For this stage of life we are in with the young babes, Sanur fit our bill perfectly as its known for its captivating sunrises!! And I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again, while Bali is known for its amazing surf, its not known for its pristine beaches, but rather the people and the culture is what makes Bali so inviting and warm. That being said, Sanur is also protected by a nice big reef so there are no pounding waves hitting the beach which makes it very nice for families with toddlers, because Ava could wade into the water pretty far out, making it ideal for us :).

Beach life- afternoon naps at the villa!

Via agoda, I found the perfect spot for us to set up camp for 10 days- the serene Mahagiri Villas. Located about a 10 minute walk from the beach along a quiet neighborhood street, the Mahagiri Villas is comprised of completely private pool villas- there are a few 3 bedrooms, a handful of 2 bedroom and a dozen 1 bedroom villas. There is a small and excellent spa along with a quaint restaurant where you can dine for any meal, plus the deal we scored for our 2 bedroom private pool villa had complimentary massage upon arrival, daily afternoon tea/smoothies plus breakfast included in the price and no additional charge to have it delivered to our villa every morning, which for any of your with small children know that it is a game changer when traveling!! They also offered complimentary shuttles to and from the beach where they had their own beach chairs for our use, plus they would shuttle us for free anywhere in the beach town we wanted to go- the grocery store, restaurants, shops, etc. On Wednesdays they had a nice balinese dance group come in for entertainment during dinner and had bikes on hand to bike around town for free- so fun! The service was excellent & our 2 bedroom villa was such the perfect haven for us!

The kiddos enjoying our private plunge pool!

For a special treat for both us as well as our amazing helper J, we decided to splurge and bring her along with us on this farewell holiday. We’ve known many expat families who take their helper with them on every beach holiday (and I can totally now see why), but we never had taken that leap. However, since J has been such a huge part of our family and because we would miss her so much (plus the fact that I couldn’t travel with both kids alone and David was joining us a couple days after the kids and I departed), we decided to bring J along with us, and we are insanely happy that we did!

Lunch at the beach!

J really helped me with the kids and getting to the airport with all our luggage and entertaining Ava on the flight while I dealt with nursing Mac, plus upon arrival she was a godsend with helping me through customs, getting our bags and getting to our private van for transportation to our villas (about 20 minutes away). We had the first night just her and I and the kids and then David was able to come a day early and met us the next evening- so we had all of us for the remaining 9 days and it was wonderful!!

The Mahagiri Villas Entrance

The 2 bedroom villa was the perfect set-up. We had a private entrance which led into the courtyard where there was a huge covered daybed along with a wonderfully relaxing plunge pool (the resort even put up baby safety gates around the whole pool free of charge- yay!). The first “hut” housed our living area, complete with a small kitchen with full size fridge/freezer, stove, microwave and dishes (where we were able to store food we purchases from the local grocery store…along with diapers and baby necessities too!), along with a nice dining room table and couches with TV. The 2nd hut (with a separate entrance) was the master villa with a king size bed and en-suite bathroom (with an outdoor shower!!!). This is where David and I slept and they provided us a cot for Mac. The 3rd and final hut was the 2nd bedroom with 2 twin beds and its own bathroom (with outdoor shower), which is where we had another cot put up for Ava and where J also slept alongside her. All rooms had aircon units and housekeeping came daily. Really this was the most ideal and perfect set up for our farewell holiday.

View of the fence along the pool and entrance to the living area to the left

So now you know our setup and are probably wondering what we did in idyllic Sanur beach right? Well let me tell you, a whole lot of NOTHING. It was heaven- hahaha! We walked along the streets of Sanur browsing in the vender stalls and buying cheap and cute Balinese clothes, we swam at the beach and enjoyed morning walks along the 6km long boardwalk lining the beach, we ate at delicious and quaint little restaurants both beachfront as well as along the main drag, we napped in the afternoon with the kiddos and took daily swims in our private pool, we indulged in cheap and excellent massages, we sipped on wine and even managed to sneak in a few dinners away from the kids since we had J to watch them, and just simply enjoyed being in Bali amongst (in my opinion), some of the warmest people of SE Asia. We also one day set our alarm for 5am and were taken by van to the beach (we brought Mac but left Ava with J) to witness the most gorgeous sunrise over waters surrounding Bali. Talk about the best way to relax and decompress after packing up our lives in Malaysia in preparation for our next big move into the USA. Our 10 days in Bali with our babies and with J were just what the doctor ordered- we desperately needed this breath of fresh air after having our and baby in less than 2 years and after the emotional roller coaster & many tears shed of saying goodbye to our home in Malaysia.

Strolling hand in hand!

There really isn’t much more to say except to tell you- GO TO SANUR BEACH IN BALI!!! And also, browse through these wonderful pictures we took to capture this moment in time. Bali, you were my first love in SE Asia and will remain deeply rooted in my heart forever. Till we meet again….

Enjoying the bassinet on the airplane 🙂

Keeping busy watching videos en route!

J being the perfect helper!

Our massive amounts of bags. Going straight to the USA after Bali!

Waiting for our private car to the villas!

Stunning beach views on our morning walks!

Daddy and Ava beachin’ it!

Ava LOVED wading out into the water 🙂

Taking a rest 🙂

Hindu is the main religion in Bali. Here is an offering to a God of theirs on the beach.

The Mahagiri Villas beach loungers setup…J hanging with Mac in the shade 🙂

Lunch with our feet in the sand!

The Balinese dance and music show at the villa on Wednesday nights.

Picture time- haha!

She is so silly- loves the beach and water….hates wet feet and sand caked on- haha

lunch break with my girl!

Amazing wait staff at a local restaurant keeping Ava occupied so we could eat in peace….feeding the fishes 🙂

Both Mac and the nice server look freaky but really they were happy….keeping Mac busy while we ate dinner- so nice!!

Family photo with J- love.

Sunrise

fishing boat heading out at sunrise

Even the locals wake early to witness the beauty.

Mac slept through it all- haha

Sun hitting the horizon 🙂

My sweet little beach dude.

Breakfast with a view!

A break from the sun and heat- there was this awesome indoor playhouse, didn’t cost much, and Ava could run around and have fun- we loved it!!

Such a great idea for families with little ones to take a break from the heat!

Mac daddy turned 3 months!

Sassy senorita!

J and the babes. A farewell shot 🙁

Until next time, take a break from life and just “be”~

Kimbra