Our little Balinese dancer

A couple weekends ago was Chinese New Year, a fairly big holiday here in Jakarta due to the large population of Chinese Indonesians. As it was a 3 day weekend and we didn't do much for x-mas this year, we decided to take a long weekend and head to Bali. There isn't one perfect place in Bali, so when deciding which part of Bali to go to for this trip we had to decide what we really wanted...best culture, go to Ubud...best nightlife, go to Seminyak or Kuta...best place for quiet, beauty and relaxation, go to Nusa Dua. There are other areas of Bali too of course, like basically the entire island since all the above places are in the southern part of the island. We haven't yet ventured to the north or east parts of the island, which are also supposed to be wonderful. In any event, we decided to return to the first place we went to in Bali, to Nusa Dua (it's on the southeast corner). We wanted quiet, beauty, clean clear beaches, and an easy place to take the kids. Nusa Dua Beach Hotel was the perfect place.

Unfortunately I was recovering from a virus and was pretty miserable the first 24 hours or so. Our first full day there was also cloudy and rainy, and we didn't have many plans for rain, so we were a bit stuck. To fill the time we took walks and played at the playground, and for dinner we headed to the area mall. This is a bit sad, but with the rain there aren't a lot of options with kids. Thankfully the following morning was bright and sunny, and we headed straight to the water after breakfast. One thing we love about Nusa Dua are the clean beaches and calm water - perfect for kids! And as usual, the kids had a great time playing in the sand and C enjoyed getting in the ocean. LC, on the other hand, is still very hesitant about the idea of all that water, and water that moves and makes noise! He preferred to be held the entire time he was anywhere near the ocean. Both boys preferred the pool to the sea, so most of our water time was spent poolside. Nusa Dua has a beach pool, so the kids could play in the sand both outside of the water and inside the pool. They both loved this, especially LC. We love it too because for at least part of the time we parents could just sit back and watch them play in the water. C also had fun paddling around the pool with his floaties and jumping into the pool. LC of course had to copy C, so he was jumping in as well (big difference being we have to catch him).

For dinner that night we took a taxi over to Jimberan Bay, which is on the southwest side of the island. It's a great spot for watching the sun set, as it is a wide open beach with several restaurants that all have tables and chairs right on the beach to provide everyone with a front row seat. These restaurants serve fresh seafood, which you get to hand pick and they bbq for you. We came here with J's parents in Oct. '07, and we ended up at the exact same restaurant (our taxi driver picked it). When we arrived at the restaurant, C informed us that this is where his grandpa hurt his finger in the car door. Mind you, this happened 16 months earlier and we probably haven't mentioned it once since then. C's memory is unbelievable! Unfortunately the beach was far dirtier this time; it was filled with all kinds of trash. Other than that though, we had a nice time enjoying the beautiful sunset, salt air, and good fresh fish and prawns. There was also some Balinese dancers giving a performance at the restaurant. We just saw a bit before we had to leave, but LC was totally transfixed. Balinese dance is quite interesting. The dancers tell a story with their bodies as usual, but they also use their eyes a great deal. It's amazing how expressive they are with just their eyes. The dance is also unique due to the arm and hand movements, which remind me of Egyptian or Thai movements (if that helps at all...). Here below is a video I got off of YouTube.

We spent our last morning in Bali in the pool. J stayed in the room to pack and I took the boys to the pool. All I have to say is thank god for floaties! It makes a big difference with the ratio of 1 swimmer to 2 non-swimmers! From there we got ready and went to the airport and had another easy, non-eventful flight home (we love Air Asia, but some of our friends have had bad experiences with flight delays, etc. ). All in all another successful Bali trip!

This past weekend at home was much less interesting. One fun thing though is that LC started to dance a little differently. Every time we played music he would start doing this funny thing with his arms, almost like he was doing a jig. It took me a few days (duh!) but I finally realized that he was dancing like a Balinese dancer! So now our little 19 month old Bahasa Indonesia speaker can also dance Balinese!

Update: For the last 2+ weeks (since I wrote this post) I have been trying to take video of LC doing his Balinese dance. However, it seems I realized what he was doing too late...he hasn't done it again! And he won't do it. So sorry folks, I can't get my little Balinese dancer on film to demonstrate his wonderful dance...