Sundays are meant to be lazy or spent doing something enjoyable. So despite the heat of the day, the S.O. and I decided to explore the southern part of Bali, which we have yet to do so. We were also motivated by the many queries of friends about the resorts and hotels in this area, of which we have no clue about.
Our first destination was the luxury resorts alcove, Nusa Dua. Although it part of the island of Bali, Nusa Dua most definitely does not look like the rest of island!
The asphalt on the road is smooth, the pavements are well-maintained and there is an abundance of floral and fauna as you drive along. Even the grass here is different: carpet grass, instead of the common weed variety, so that there is always a stretch of soothing green for visitors to walk on. Some of the public grass areas even have a sprinkler system.
Well, this is to be expected of a place known for its luxury resorts!
The roads are connected such that if you follow the main road, it will bring you to all the resorts, which are situated side by side. Common amenities within the resorts include specialty restaurant, private pool in the villas, scenic beach view from beach-facing rooms, impeccable service, and of course, airport transport.
Each resort has access to the stretch of beach that they are one. But if you desire to enter the beach without going through a resort, it is possible too.
Within Nusa Dua, there is the Galeria Nusa Dua. It is an open-air compound of single-storey air-conditioned shop units, with SOGO as the biggest tenant. Other names include Quiksilver, Polo, Reebok, SurferGirl, Baskin Robbins and Starbucks. There are also a few restuarants and eateries. The pavement of the compound is tiled and there are benches placed among the flora and fauna, which are tended to by a gardener, for seating. There are other details within the compound such as fountains; stone carvings of Buddhas or Hindu mythology characters, and speakers for broadcasting music.
At the shops here, prices for products of the same labels are slightly more expensive than in the tourist areas of Ubud or Seminyak. Even a Giordano trousers costs more than I recall them to cost in Singapore dollars. However, for the Japanese tourist, buying Polo or Reebok in Bali is definitely cheaper than buying them in Japan.
Although the compound was opened just a couple of weeks before I came to Bali, we estimate the occupancy to be at most 40 per-cent of the total tenancy. Perhaps rent is steep?
After spending about 40 minutes here, we decided to try our luck at the newly opened Bvlgari Hotel & Resorts. It is located at the most south-wester point of Bali at the top of a sheer cliff overlooking the sea, near the Luhur Ulu Watu temple, near the village of Pecatu.
At the end of the pleasant ride, we were rudely ‘welcomed’ at the gate of the Bvlgari, Bali.
As we were on a motorbike, we were redirected to another entrance that led to the parking area for bikes. The security personnel that approached us started on the wrong foot by speaking to me instead of the S.O. He said something to me in Indonesia but in a tone that was not too friendly. I replied with: “I am not Indonesian.” while the S.O. replied that he is Italian and both of us only understand English.
Then he goes on to check my bag and under the seat of the bike, which is normal procedure at most hotels and resorts here. But the next thing he asked for was out of line: identification papers from both the S.O. and myself.
It so happened that neither of us had brought any identification with us. Even telling him that I am from Singapore and the S.O. is from Italy did not seem to help. In the end, the S.O. managed to pull out his Italian driving license. But by that time, we felt as if we were being treated shabbily.
We walked away quickly after parking the bike, as we wanted to leave the unpleasant scene behind us. As we walked, we realise that we had entered by the service area where the staff receive goods for the resort. It was not a big deal to us, but we were momentarily lost.
Eventually, one of the security caught up with us and pointed us to the receiving lobby. Just as we stepped up, we were greeted by the General Manager, Robert Lagerwey, with a warm greeting (“I’m Robert, welcome to the resort. We are always happy to welcome guests.”) and handshake. As Robert was busy attending to the needs of two different groups of guests, he promised to get back to us once the guests were settled in.
True to his word, he came back to us and took us to view the show-villa, which at the lowest of the rack rates costs US$1200 a night. Naturally, an experience such as the Bvlgari does not come cheap. Firstly, it is an Italian brand name. Secondly, the space taken by the entire resort is so enormous, you will need a buggy to get from one end of the resort to the other!
There are 59 ocean-view villas, of which three are two-bedroom villas and one is the sprawling 1,300-sq. metre Bvlgari Villa. The villa we viewed carried a dominantly dark brown or rosewood color scheme, fusing contemporary Italian design with traditional Balinese style. On entering the villa, you pass a tiny tropical garden onto a covered patio that serves as a dining area. At the end of the patio is the plunge pool and a view of the sea.
To the left of the patio is the air-conditioned bedroom, bathroom and tiny ‘office’ area. The bathroom was almost as big as the bedroom: there is a bath tub in the centre of the bathroom, with two basins to one side of the tub and space for two comfortable armchairs on the other side.
Included in the Bvlgari experience are two typs of bathrobes, specially made for the resort; handmade crockery, specially made for the resort; Italian linens; clothes hangers with the Bvlgari imprinted on them; Bang & Olufsen television and sound system in the bedroom, and impeccable service. According to Robert, the most stolen item has to be the clothes hangers.
In the course of the visit, we pointed out our rude welcome to Robert. So after the tour, Robert showed us to the pool bar – where we were welcomed by a cheery female staff handing us cold hand towels to refresh ourselves – and told the bar manager to put everything that we ordered on his tab. Then off he went to speak with the security manager.
As we sipped the refreshing alcoholic minty drink (“Our bar’s signature drink,” says Robert), we took in the spectacular view of the ocean that we had, while seated at patio, we noticed a few puzzling things.
For example, we know that the Bvlguri trademark colour is black. But does it make sense to cover your cushions in black material, when they are going to be placed under the hot sun? I doubt guests would want to rest their body on the hot objects in the middle of a bright and sunny day. The same goes for the black umbrellas that are available to guests: no doubt the black colour will sheild the person from the sun’s rays, but the temperature under that black umbrella will be hot-hot-hot!
Then there are the metal toilet signs in black, placed against a black wall, at the pool area. If I did not notice them earlier as we walked down the stairs to the pool bar, I might have walked past without realising that those were the toilets.
Another black item that I think did not really serve much purpose were the round coasters that our cold glasses were placed on. The coasters probably only absorbed a tiny fraction of the condensation from the glass. We had to wipe dry the puddle of water that formed with some napkins that we were given.
Other than these tiny ends to tie up, we think that the resort is doing well on its eighth day of operation.
Thus we finished our drink, decided not to abuse the hospitality of Robert, left a tip for the same cheery female staff who served us, and left the Bvlgari Bali.
We have to admit that it was an enjoyable afternoon, except for the rude welcome dished out by the security at the Bvlgari. Next week, we shall try and explore the Cultural Park that is near our place.
