Bali: Ayung River white water rafting

Ayung River rafting

03 Dec 2010

This is the post with all the ADVENTURE & SPORTS! Both of which is hard to associate with me. But surprisingly, I'm the one who insist on including it in our itinery. This is another side of me, the opposite from the bimbo side


From the previous long entry, you can see that we had a very very tiring day. So we skipped the Kecak dance & went straight to check in at our villa. We were swept off our feet the minute we entered, it was like stepping into a haven as compared to outside. View the video I recorded here.




Oh my legs look mighty short here. But that's not gonna stop me from posting it up!



Mum & I agreed on a time to meet at 7.30pm (she knows I always dilly-dally), so we could take our time to freshen up.

First thing I did was, of cos, soak in the bath! It's my 1st successful bubble bath by the way. Everytime I tried creating bubble bath, the bubbles are always pathetic. Maybe it's the soap?






I don't really fancy soaking in the bathtub, even if we have one at home. So strictly speaking, I'd only bother to use it when we're having holidays overseas. And from as young as I can remember, dunno it is to save time or water, my mum had always asked my sis & I to use the bathtub one after the other.



Meaning we both wash in the same water. Ewwww!~ How dirty right? Why must help hotel save water right? But that's what my mum asked us to do! Parents always have the greatest influence on children. Just like how she didn't force me to eat greens when I was young, which resulted in me not eating any now.



I dunno if I'm being considerate or stupid... but whether in public places, other ppl's house or at hotels, I'll help them save water. I'll feel guilty when I flush the toilet cos I remember vividly reading in p.sch health education textbook that a half flush = 4.5 litres, & a full flush = 9 litres. And then I'll imagine 4.5 litres = 3 big bottles of water & that's such a waste!!




Have I mentioned that I wear my clothes twice before washing? (Unlike my sis wear 30min also throw into the laundry, wasteful!) When I was in p.sch, my shoes & uniform are washed EVERYDAY. Until my friends told me they wash their shoes once a week, & I decided I want to be like them too. So from then on, the habit to save detergent is carried on till today. See! My future husband confirm save alot from having a thrifty wife!











The only person in the room is my sister, so I could only turn to her for help in taking pictures, however unwilling I know she is. My friends know how hard to please I am... so people who help take my photos have to be prepared to take repeatedly. Sis was so frustrated in the end! :p


Yes, I know right! I am SOOOO narcissistic.





Then it's dinner time!


We're lazy (& also afraid) to travel far, so we asked the counter staff for recommendation on restaurants. He said there's just one Italian restaurant just right beside... perfect!













Aww so sweet, mum looked so happy :)




Edited this photo using a china software, nice?



Unglam chewing~

















Mum wearing the frangipani clip we bought that day.



There's only us in the whole restaurant!! And you'd think that they only have 1 or 2 waiter but no, there's at least 4-5! Look at the picture below & you'll see there's already 3 hanging around the entrance chatting.


Towards the end of our meal, a group of malays (or balinese?) came in for their reservation. They look like those on the 'rich' end. I think in bali it is too commercialised. Expensive places are veryyyy expensive (bali context), that's to aim tourists, esp generous caucasians. But how can the locals afford it? That's the result of being tapped on too much for tourism.










With my gingle ale... taste like sprite



That's mine... actually I forgot what I ordered. Steak?



My sister's pork rib. She only ate like 2 mouthfuls & didn't want it anymore cos she said they're all bones. So I chided her, "Then why did you order it?" She said she doesn't know it's like this


I can't stand her being so wasteful eh... Seriously, she wore a pair of jeans from our place to grandma's place. It's a 30min drive in a cab. Once she reached there, she changed out of it. Like this also must wash?!?!





Dad's putting on a forced smile cos I stopped him from eating hahaha!



Lastly, our dessert. Caramel pear/apples & chocolate lava. Both are awfully sweet... but that's what desserts are for isn't it?











I think I look so stylish in this outfit... like finally I'm touching the tail of the trend. But that top is my sis' & I rarely dress up like this, I usually stick to my old boring safe outfits back home.






Back at the villa, what do we do??

WELCOME!!

That's how my villa look at night :)








And this is my parent's. Their's is the winter theme I think... it's much brighter, & our's is much dimmer & more romantic, hence mum said ours suits daddy & her better.


But too bad! I prefer mine.











That's my mummy fiddling about her kitchen in her nightie~




THEN I had to follow her around her villa, like her personal photographer helping her shoot every corner while she posed. LOL!


Talk about narcissisism...



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After she's done, it's my turn. So she followed me back to my villa (which is next door) & now its her turn photographing me I didn't ask my sister cos I know how she'll react.




I know! Super act right?!





I may look very relaxed here, but it's actually very hot! I really considered using my laptop here... but I couldn't stand it! I rather hole into my room with soft comfy bed & full blast air-con







That night I watched The Amazing Race online while my sister went to dreamland first. It's actually a little scary being the only one awake in such a big villa

The next morning...

In this villa, you get to choose what kind of breakfast you want to eat (American, Japanese, Indonesia, Baliese, Organic... etc.) & they'll serve you in your own private villa. So we chose our breakfast when we checked in the previous day, & at 8.30am sharp (or the time you choose), the helpers will knock on your back door to inform they're here to prepare.












That's mine! I chose Japanese to differentiate from the others. It's quite authentic, from the looks of it. But look at the amount of greens... they're those I'd never touch. Arrangement of the food also looks great. Don't look at the small amount of food, they're actually v filling together with the rice, fruit juice, tea & fruits.





American breakfast is even more filling. I ordered it the next day & both me & sis couldn't even finish our own share!







Dad doesn't look like he's prepared for the water rafting at all! Look! I'm all prepared! :)





Mum forced me to take this photo. "Stand nearer to the orchid... one more one more~"

(Heh! You spotted Panda?)




For today's activity, I arranged for another driver to pick us up (becos of the many recommended drivers in Tripadvisor, I was indecisive & didn't wanna stick to one, so I contacted another driver other than Sila). The driver was supposed to be Putu, which I triple-confirmed with on the phone the previous night.... I didn't want anything to screw up cos I'm organizing this trip!


But he couldn't make it & sent his brother instead. Was a little paranoid at if he'd be a good driver, but yes he's okay :)

After 1.5hr...

Here we are! (Photos from now on taken with my old canon camera)






The place is at Ubud (or near), & it's very deep inside. When we reached, there were a few balinese guys & our driver asked us to follow them to walk through the side of a house. I didn't think much of it, but my dad started saying, "We wouldn't even know if they were to sell us off or kill us at this remote place..."


Then alarm bells started ringing in my head & I convinced myself it can't possibly be true... we're not so unlucky. Emails between me & Putu flashed back in my mind... And only when we reached the gathering place & saw other tourists do we heaved a sigh of relief.





There's 3 Malaysian girls travelling together & an aussie guy travelling alone joining in today's adventure, adding on to the fun!





















It was a loooooooooooonngggggg way down, & I took the lead! How long is long? I'll tell you guys. We headed downwards for about 25min before we reached the end. And my legs were shaking & giving in by then, I swear. I asked the instructor & he said it was about 450 steps

450 steps!!!

Strangly, the few days in bali, my skin condition was better than usual, & I was without makeup most of the time. Who in the right mind would apply makeup for water rafting right? But I had on concealer cos my dark eye circles were terrible...


While waiting for our instuctor, dad stood at the edge of this huge rock with the rushing water underneath. Dunno what he's trying to do!




Glowing mum & sis :)



Yes, look at what kind of steps we climbed!! Slippery, uneven & dangerous!






This 2 are our instructors. The one with the helmet is the other group's & he's real funny!




Crash course & then setting off!~ I'm very serious ok! I was listening very attentively to instructions cos I'm really afraid accidents will happen.


I even insisted on rushing to buy a pair of sandals 2hrs before jetting off becos the website says "sandals", & I'm afraid if I wear slippers it'll slip away despite mum telling me it won't. I'm those kind who will follow each instruction cos I'm rigid like that.









Apparently, the sculpted wall behind are done 5 years ago (?) by the 5-star hotel located high above, Ramayana or something I'm not sure. And it's not a small area... the wall extended very very long! (This pair of shorts used to fit me very well, I used to wear it very often. Until it's been expanded by my mum! )









The one above is our instructor. He's not as much a joker as the other, but he tries to make the whole experience fun for all of us by splashing water on us, making our boat bump into rocks etc.


There's a number of instructions, like "boom-boom", "back", "forward", "left", "right", "down" etc.
At first I was pumping with adrenaline, & nervous at the same time. The drops were really fun... but after awhile you get used to it. There's alot of rafting company, each priced differently. The pricing I found online was USD $64 each, but when reading Tripadvisor, people say it's cheaper to book there.


Our rafting co. is called Payung, & it's arranged by Putu so it's cheaper. Our's is one of the few company which starts very early in the river... so we passed by alot other rafting co. during our 10km ride.






There's a few places where you can stop your boat & get out for a rest. Your instructor will also tell you where the water is shallow so you could jump in for a dip. The Malaysian girls got pulled into the river by their playful instructor & the aussie guy! And man, was it cold!



That's my zodiac, the goat :)
   










We stopped at the waterfall for some scenic photos. Some rafting company start their trip AFTER this waterfall so they don't have the oppotunity to view it 










Guess what? After the 1.5hr rafting, my dad took out his hp from his wallet & say that he forgot to put it into the waterproof bag How could he forget!



These are more professional photos taken with a DSLR. At one point in your trip down the river, one of their guys from the company will actually wait & shoot while you pass by. And they'll bring back to the original gathering place where they have a computer & compile it in a dics.


Best thing is it is very reasonably priced! Most companies like this catering to tourists will try to rip you off at any chance they get. However it's not the case here. We bought the dics (8 photos) at only less than SGD $10 I think.











After the whole thing ended, I sincerely thought we'll magically reach the place for lunch. But no! We had to climb all the way back up!! My dad almost fainted, lol! During the whole trip, I kept observing if he is smiling, cos I want everybody to enjoy from the activities I planned. Apparently it is not as easy...



Climbing down is already hard, but climbing up is even harder! Although I'm an ex track&field runner (lol show off!), but I panted like a dog! From what the malaysian girls said, my whole face turned pale , & I ended up having to be piggy-backed up by their instructor. Which I believe was extremely tiring. Imagine how tough it is to climb up yourself, now you have to climb up with added weight on your back. Btw, they climb up & down EVERYDAY, sometimes twice a day (!!!)



Sis climbed the fastest. She's the youngest! Mum asked her to slow down but she refused. And later on she told us that she was somewhat molested. Cos she was the 1st to reach the top, & there was a balinese man, & he held my sister's hand interlocking her fingers. She was so shocked! Then he asked her to kiss him on the cheeks (EWW!) but she replied no. Mum scolded her later for acting pro haha!



As usual, my paranoia acted up. Cos this is the 1st time we seen this driver, & it's such a long activity. My wallet was placed in the car too... & mum reminded me my credit card's inside, she said he could drive off, use the card & come back. But what I'm worried about is he'll be gone when we reach the ending point, cos this is like in the middle of nowhere!


Luckily he was. Just patiently waiting for us while chatting with fellow countrymen. Honest guy!



Towels & showers were provided. I'm someone who can't stand dirt. I'll squirm uncomfortably & cringe in disgust, even if I visit friend's place with dirty toilets. So the showers weren't pleasant...but it's as if the structure is designed with Ubud in mind, with stone walls... just rural & village feel lah. Maybe if you stay at hotels/villas in Ubud area it'll be similar to this.



Lunch was normal, I think the more expensive the company charges you, the better the lunch will be? But generally the food in bali is okok only. We slept throughout the 2hr ride back to the villa.





Candid photo mum shot of me I didn't even know until we got back to SG. I was checking my emails & also searching for good massage places to go to for our aching bodies.



Originally, my plan for the day was to go for the Ayung river rafting at 9am, then go for a helicopter tour at 2.30pm. I'd already sent emails to them to make a booking weeks before we arrived, they'd also confirm & asked if we'd like to pay by cash or card already. Then after that when I wanted to confirm again my tour, they didn't reply!


I called them on the 2nd day I reach but couldn't communicate with them, so I asked my driver to speak to them in their language. Apparently, a super duper ultra rich guy who stays at Anatara or something booked the helicopter for the WHOLE WEEK. Imagine 30min already costs SGD $1300 (cheapest package), how much would it cost for a week!


I really really really want a helicopter tour.... so depressed my itinery screwed up (a little). Well luckily we didn't squeeze it all in one day cos we were dead beaten by the time we reach the villa at 3.30pm.