Our bags finally arrived overnight, which we’re really pleased about – although we think we could have managed fine without them!
Up for a 7:30am breakfast of local specialities: a broth with boiled egg and chicken, and some sweet treats. The broth is really delicious!
After breakfast we meet at reception and jump in the minibus, headed for a local village. We’re going to make some local crafts and see how people traditionally lived. After just a short 5-minute drive, we’re hiking into the village, where we’re met by a very friendly chap and his family. He explains a little about the village before taking us inside to get started on our activity.
This morning the adults will be making coasters and the children kites. Afterwards we’ll hike up the hill behind the house and hopefully have enough wind to fly the kites.
We get stuck in with the family showing us how. The weaving is quite tricky and takes us a while to get the hang of. We persevere and all end up with a finished coaster that we can take home as a souvenir. The larger baskets they show us can take several days to make even when you know what you’re doing.
We’re given some local snacks to try while we work: sticky rice with red bean, very sweet but tasty. The kids even try them!
Afterwards we hike up the hill behind the village and get a nice view of the sea. Sadly, there’s not enough wind, so the kids can’t fly their kites - we’ll have to try again at the beach.
Back in the van, we head for Virgin Beach, so called because there were no paths leading to it, so it remained untouched until “recently”. These days there’s a paved road, which you have to pay an entrance fee to use, but it takes us all the way to the beach.
When we arrive, we bagsy some sun loungers on the beach and go for a swim. The waves are quite powerful and we spend the time diving through and dodging them.
Afterwards we take a break for lunch, then relax on the sun loungers for an hour before heading back to the hotel.
Back at the hotel it’s free time, and Diana, Bella and I go to the spa for another massage. I try the traditional Balinese massage and scrub. The massage is more pointy and twisty than a regular massage, but relaxing all the same. The body scrub feels like I’m being marinated – it’s very similar to the sauce on my chicken the other night! My skin feels great afterwards, but it takes quite a long shower to get all the scrub off!
I then read my book by the pool until dark while the others nap. The pool is lovely and warm for a few laps.
After a quick shower, we head to the hotel restaurant for dinner. I have gado-gado to start and beef rendang for main, both really tasty. The kids have margherita pizzas, which are less so!
After a day of fresh air, we’re all exhausted and head off for an early night. We’re walking at 7:30am tomorrow before breakfast!