Breathtaking Bali

I never knew you could fall in love with a certain place. That was before I set foot in the Island of Gods - Bali, Indonesia.

This is my first ever out-of-the-country trip and I must say it's the most memorable experience I've had so far. Bali has so much to offer - from amazing temples, luscious greeneries, IG-worthy tourist spots, entertaining night life and party zones, affordable accommodations, and delectable local dishes, one couldn't get enough of this incredible island.

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GETTING AROUND: 
Private car
GrabCar/Grab Bike
Motorcycle/Scooter

ACCOMMODATION:
Nau Here Hostel - Kuta area. Whether you stay in Kuta, Legian, Ubud, Seminyak, etc. one thing's for sure - there are lots of budget-friendly hotel/accommodations in Bali to choose from.

FOOD:
We both tried local dishes and yeah, fastfood outlets such as Mcdonald's and KFC.


BUDGET:
Exchange Rate: 1PHP = 264IDR

We spent more or less P7,000 per pax including accommodation, tour guide, foods, souvenirs, tip, knick knacks and other miscellaneous expenses (but excluding airfare and Philippine travel tax).

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Below is our 4D4N itinerary:

Day 0 - TOUCHDOWN INDONESIA!

6:40PM to 10:55PM - Flight via Air Asia
11:40PM to 12AM - Ngurah Rai International to Hostel


Day 1 - BALI COUNTRYSIDE

• Free Breakfast
• Wanagiri Hidden Hill - 40,000IDR
• aHandara Hokkaido Gate - 30,000 IDR
• Ulun Danu Beratan Temple with Boat Rental - 75,000 IDR 
• Buffet Lunch - 125,000IDR
• Taman Ayun Water Palace - 20,000IDR
• Alas Kedaton Monkey Forest - 30,000IDR
• Tanah Lot - 70,000IDR
• Dinner - 20,000IDR

   

   

   

   

      

   

Day 2 - UBUD

• Free Breakfast
• Batuan Temple - 10,000IDR
• Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary - 50,000IDR
• Buffet Lunch @ Grand Puncak Sari (overlooking Mount Batur) - 135,000IDR
• Tirta Empul Temple - 15,000IDR
• Uma Pakel Coffee Place & Bali Swing Activity - 200,000IDR
• Coffee Luwak - 25,000IDR (50,000IDR/cup but we chose to share a cup)
• Souvenir Shopping
• Dinner @ KFC Kuta Square - 25,000IDR
• TOTAL - 460,000IDR (PHP1742.00)

   

   

Some Australian peers we met during our temple run

   

 

   

   

Day 3 - BEACHBUMMING

• Free Breakfast
• Pandawa Beach - 15,000IDR
• Dreamland Beach - 5,000K
• Lunch @ Warung Bejana - 82,000IDR
• Dinner @ Dewi Sri Food Center - 41,000IDR
• TOTAL - 143,000IDR (PHP920.00)

   

Day 4 - BYE BALI!

• Hostel to Airport via GrabCar - 28,000IDR (PHP106.00)

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Travel Tips:

• We availed the private tour c/o Galih Bali Tours (550,000IDR/Whole Day Tour) and it's already good for 4 persons. Prior to our arrival in Bali, I coordinated with Made Adayasa thru Facebook Messenger - he's very nice and accommodating with all my questions. No mobile data? No worries, because they offer free Wi-Fi inside the car plus free Tagalog songs playlits. Our driver and newfound friend, Mr. Gede, made sure every trip is hassle-free and exciting. He speaks good English, too.
• It's better to bring USD then exchange it to IDR or you can withdraw IDR using your ATM upon arrival in Bali.
• Don't forget to bring universal adaptor. 
• It's scorching hot when we were there so, sunblock galore!
• Don't forget to bring tumbler so as to save money from buying bottled water from time to time (just like us) because there's no such thing as free service water. Free coffee, meron pa.
• Try Babi Guling - one of Bali's most famed local dishes
• When buying souvenirs, don't hesitate to haggle. If the price is [not] right, you could simply walk away and chances are, the seller/s will give you the price you want.
• We stayed up late roaming the streets of Kuta and Legian and I can say that it's generally safe to walk around even in wee hours in the morning.

Now I come to understand why Bali is being referred to as paradise. The island made me speechless countless of times and I will forever treasure every single experience I've had here. When I think of Bali, it only brings back happiness, contentment and peace of mind.

Travelling to Bali is relatively cheap and will give you more than your money's worth, hands down! 4 days isn't enough and there are still lot of places we've missed during our trip thus, more reasons to come back and explore other parts of the

island.

P.S.

Eto 'yung lugar na baBALIk-BALIkan ko talaga.

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Promises Are Made To Be Broken

Yeah, I know. I've said it before that I would update this blog from time to time and as much as possible but I guess I just suck at this thing. Meh. 

Last update? November 4, 2016. 🙈

Fast forward to 2017, yeah, of course, there are many changes in my life. 

• [Silently] Celebrated one year work anniversary at Marriott
• Another baby in the family - Chrisela Louise Supnet (Mae's firstborn)
• My weight - I think I've gained at least 3 kg because my metabolism has been stucked and my tummy won't let go of its baby fats 😭
• Had my first-ever blood-letting experience
• New ASUS laptop (on installment) and iPhone (recontracting c/o Globe)

As of the moment, I've been busy devouring reading different travel blogs and forum because I'm planning a lot of out-of-town-and-country trips next year (bae will be coming back soon) and we'll kick of his comeback with a Hong Kong-Macau trip by June - my first ever international trip! I really want to do a lot of travelling next year. As. much. as. possible. And as much as my wallet permits. 

Oh, next week, me and some close buddies are off to Caramoan. Time for some Vitamin Sea, baby! 

P.S. I'll try my very best to blog about the escapade. *fingers crossed*




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Post-Its

I've been on a hiatus for quite some time. Heh. Lemme give you some interesting tidbits for the past few days. 

- My family and I went on a mini-vacation last Undas long weekend. Me, sis and girl cousins bonded over this card game called Uno, which, I've got [quite] addicted to. 

- My sister already gave birth to a bouncing baby girl yesterday. She's angel like but I'm not sure what her name is. 

- I'm almost done with my pre-employment requirements, except for those which I have to secure from my previous employer. Talk about headache. Pffft.

- Speaking of work, I'll be starting this coming Monday. Already! I thought I still have a week of being a lazy bone but since most of my requirements are submitted, they decided that I could already start reporting to work. Boy, I still can't wrap my head around it. After more than a month of R&R, I'm going join the workforce again. Come to think of that. Oh well, I'm so thankful for this opportunity! 

- I just throw a fit at J few moments ago because of a misplaced 'Good morning' chat. Non compos mentis.


*sprinkle mixed emotions*




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Signed!

I'm very happy to announce that I've already signed the job offer from Marriott Hotel Manila! 😊

For the following days, I'm gonna be busy with the pre-employment requirements and fortunately, most of the documents I have to submit are already with me. I thought I would be starting as soon as next week already (Haha!) but of course, there are necessary documentations and procedures to be undergone first. Anyway, that's another 3 weeks of R&R. 

Next step, I have to inform my soon-to-be-ex-employer abroad that I'm already backing out from the position.

Thank you, Lord, for such blessing! 🙏

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How Could I Be So... Jobless

Disclaimer: This was supposed to be posted last night, October 23. Meh.

Last August 24, I tendered my resignation to my last work because I received an employment offer from abroad. I was already feeling burnt out at the same on my job that's why when the opportunity came, I grab it right away. LOL.

Nah, of course I thought about my final decision prolly a hundred and one times and consulted with my boyfriend and some colleagues for their advices, too. TBH, boyfriend halfheartedly-agreed with this career move because according to him, I could already get that salary from where I'm currently working (which is not true IMO), and mainly because he wants me to be here in the Philippines once he returns from Jordan where he works now. Cheesy! I know.  - Trivia: Both of us are hoteliers. 🙂 -

Fast forward to September 23, my last day of duty (September 24 is my day off). I thought it's gonna be easy to leave but as they say, there's no easy way to say goodbye. I shed some tears while hugging my colleagues. *sniff sniff*

I thought after few days or weeks after my last day, I would already receive the documents I need including the flight details for me to be able to process on POEA and start my new job in another country. At first, I was feeling ok with it since I prefer to have at least some time off to take a breather. But after a while, I got weary. That's the time I keep on sending emails to follow-up with the HR Manager, my main contact person on the hotel, regarding the status of my deployment but as of 2 weeks ago, the employer said my visa is still being processed.

I became pretty obsessed with my email - I keep on checking them even on the wee hours of the morning hoping against hope the HR already sent the documents I've been dying to get hold of. But, nada! I grew tired of waiting and waiting as the day goes by. So what I did? I sent lots and lots of resumes and job applications to various companies, including call center companies. Yes, you read that right. Hashtag: Desperate. And I did received a lot of interview invites as well of which only few I entertained.

Fortunately, there's this 5-star hotel which invited me for an interview about 2 weeks ago. I decided to give it a try and to be honest, I didn't expect anything from it because I don't want to be disappointed. I thought, if I'm not gonna make it then at least, I still that job waiting for me in Qatar. But if I passed, then wow. I most probably will choose the local package. You might ask, WHY?! Well, because it's part of the largest hotel chain in the world and... ka-ching! 💰

Very good news: I did well (I suppose) because I was informed right after the interview that I'm for job offer already. Hooray! 🎉

But as of this writing, my employment status is still official: Jobless.

P.S. I'm scheduled tomorrow for the job offer and I'm feeling really good. And quite nervous. Update tomorrow, yeah?

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Orphan Black Rocks!

This blog entry was composed on my phone because the laptop's keyboard kinda suck already, thus typing using online keyboard is quite challenging for lengthy post(s). (Which makes me really consider of buying a new laptop, soon).

Anyway, this entry is specially dedicated as appreciation for my newfound love, hit US TV series, Orphan Black.

Because I'm getting bored lately due to being a jobless whack (oh, separate entry on this one), I've decided to look for something I'd be addicted to. So the other day, I've signed up with Netflix and browsed the different TV series and movies there. Orphan Black piqued my interest and I've heard some raves about the show every now and then so I gave it a try.

And boy, I was definitely hooked from that moment on! I started watching the series the other day and I just finished Season 2 yesterday. Every episode is:

⁃ Action-packed

⁃ Thrilling

⁃ Geeky

⁃ Dramatic

⁃ Hot and Steamy (Whooo!)

⁃ Simply OMG-riffic!

Tatiana Maslany is such a great actress. To be able to portray 5 or more different characters in one series is way too amazing. I cannot fathom. Thus, her bagging an Emmy's award as Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series recently is no wonder.

I also love Felix, Paul, Kira, Mrs. S, Delphine, Cal, and basically almost all of the characters in the show, including the clones themselves. Each of them has distinct personalities which make them grow on me. Walang patapon, in short.

I'm about to start Season 3 later. I can't wait to delve more on the twists and turns and conspiracies.

P.S. It's just a shame this series will only last for 5 Seasons. Bummer!

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Uhm...

So, whoa, I'm back. Again. Hah. After such a long time.

Honestly, the reason I've been routed to this page is because I've seen an entry of someone I know and realizing she has a blog, I came to remember I have one, too. Harhar.

Well, it's been really quite a decade since I published an entry so I decided to, somehow, try writing once more.

A lot of things have changed - some little, others immense. A lot of things are also happening in my life right now - so many plans, ambitions, wishes, rejections, anxieties, frustrations, decisions to be made, among others - that there are those moments when I just wanna crumble and become nothing or fall into a sleep coma. 

But I refuse to give up no matter how hard the struggles and challenges are. There's a fuel burning within me to just keep on going, keep on trying and keep on learning because  I know that all of these will make sense to me someday.

I'm keeping the trust and faith, no matter what.



P.S. I'll try my very best to update my so-called blog from now on.  #trustandfaith



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