We love Bali with our Brompton- Day 1

We were invited by Brompton Owners Bali together with Ministry of Tourism of Indonesia for a Brompton cycling event in Bali for 3 days and 2 nights. We were provided with a free 4 star hotel accommodation and food. All we need to do is just buy our flight tickets. Some of us took Malindo and it has been popular among us travelling with our folding bicycles.

There were more than 30 Brompton owners from Malaysia which formed the largest contingent among all the invited guests from the various part of the world. Some of us travelled with our favourite IKEA Dimpa bags while some with Vicinta bags. I extended my trip with extra days before and after the event making a 5 days adventure in Bali island.

For the first time I decided to use a exercise mat instead of plastic impra board to protect my bicycle. I found it suitable and more convenient to maneuver as a minimalist traveller. And here we were in Bali, after safely landed in Ngurah Rai International Airport, Denpasar. We decided to set up our bikes and cycle to our accommodation somewhere near GWK Cultural Park.

All bicycles were in tact, took our time to set up and were ready to roll on the streets of Bali.

Let's take a group picture outside Ngurah Rai International Airport before we hit the road.

As eager as usual I love cycling on new ground, seeing new surrounding and looking out for any peculiar features.

The main road from airport out is easy to cycle basically a 2 lanes with adequate space at the side. 

One of the many Balinese cultural sculptures seen almost everywhere in the island.

Bali is reputed for its many narrow roads which we ventured into some to see the inner part of the country.

Along Jalan Kendonganan we were able to see the sandy beaches of Jimbaran, looking very happening with many bars and food outlets.

I was excited with its durian and was telling myself to try it, if not this time but soon before I leave the island.

After a roundabout at Jalan Raya Uluwatu we encountered a severe climb that was impossible to pedal up even pushing the bicycle was tough. It was just before arriving at the proximity of GWK Cultural Park.

Garuda Wisnu Kencana (GWK) Cultural Park located at the southern part of Bali island and it is on a hilltop terrain. This will be the first official meeting place for the event where we will be registered on the following day. We rode about 13km from the airport to this part of Bali.

We checked into Jolie Hostel Jimbaran for the night and it is only 1km away from GWK Cultural Park.

Our dinner at Warung Makan Campur Campur with a variety of delicious Balinese food.

 It is located at Jalan Raya Uluwatu GPS : -8.803417, 115.159867

We then proceeded after our dinner to visit GWK Cultural Park and enjoyed the night scenery. The statue of GWK is the biggest and highest in the world. Garuda Wisnu Kencana statue is the symbol of God Vishnu riding the great Garuda as his trusted companion. We rode around the limestone rock landscape and discovering the many corners of the park.

All done for the day and one more Bintang before calling a night. Good night Day 1 in Bali.

Cycle Mekong Delta 2018 - Day 1 Kuala Lumpur to Phnom Penh

After much consideration as to where we should explore in Indochina with our small wheels, we decided to fly into Phnom Penh, Cambodia and fly back to Kuala Lumpur from Ho Chi Minh with a span of 11 days to spend. Malindo Air offered the best deal for the flight with less than RM400.00 in total. A return ticket inclusive of selection of seat, meal on the flight and 25kg checked in luggage. Thank you so much Malindo Air we hope to travel more with you.

I started my journey from Setiawangsa LRT Station to KL Sentral and hopped into ERL Transit with a senior citizen fare of RM38.50 to KLIA. We finally gathered at the airport and ready to see Indochina and especially Mekong Delta.

The weather was perfect. All radiant and eager to start the exploration.

We landed at Phnom Penh International Airport safely, everything was intact with all our bicycle unfolded and ready to roll into the city of Phnom Penh.

With the help of Google map and our GPS devices to set our direction towards our pre-booked hotel. It's always interesting and exciting to cycle in a new atmosphere and we has no problem blending ourselves in the traffic of Phnom Penh.

Food is always on our minds and we will stop wherever we see enticing corners for food.

The best local food is always found in the local market. We simply enjoy the local delicacies. It was our dessert after a good and yummy noodle soup.

We managed to locate the hotel and checked into Angkor International Hotel. I spent RM33.00 per night with 3 persons sharing a room. We stayed for 2 nights.

The remaining Day 1 we went sightseeing, visiting some of the places of interest like this monument known as the Peace Dove Sculpture made of old armaments such as rifles and machine guns.

We were lucky to reached FCC in time as it started to pour. FCC stands for Foreign Corespondents' Club which is a public bar and restaurant and located along Tonle Sap River, the view is spectacular indeed. FCC even have 9 hotel rooms. The rain has finally stopped we enjoyed the drinks and left FCC for Angkor International Hotel. 

It was wet at the river side as we rode back to the hotel. The pavement along Tonle sap is well built and friendly to cycle on it.

Joseph knows Phnom Penh well he brought us to see the Independence Monument which was built in 1958 to memorialize Cambodia's independence from France in 1953. 

Our dinner at a shop near our hotel which looks like fried "Lou See Fun" with luncheon meat. I like it, the luncheon meat tasted like fish cake and slightly chewy. So that was Day 1 of our Mekong Delta adventure.