Nasi Lemak, the most beautiful dish in the world.

I, however, was suffering from nausea and later regurgitated this meal.

Hopping on the plane.

I’m pretty terrified of turbulence when flying.

I want to hit whoever was in charge of music. I do not appreciate listening to Gangnam Style 20 times in a row.

Up in the air.

Solid ground.

Winky Mak at the Bali Airport.

First stop: Ayam Tulang Lunak, famous for its pressurized chicken and flying fish.

Ba had Bintang Beer with every meal this trip.

My watermelon juice.

Winky’s mango juice.

Sayur Asam, a vegetable soup with a sweet and sour tang and a hint of chilli.

Rendang Chicken.

Flying Fish, named for its presentation.

Back shot.

Kang Kong. It’s usually cooked with the chilli sambal, but the sambal contained fish, so my mum asked for it on the side.

Likewise, we ordered this dish without sambal.

Tempeh. An Indonesian speciality made by fermenting and binding soybeans into a  cake patty. It’s nutty, with a much coarser texture than tofu, due to its retention of whole soybeans.

Tahu Telur (literal translation tofu egg).

This was delicious, my favorite dish of the meal. Crushed peanuts, whole peanuts, cooked cabbage and beansprouts atop a tofu and egg omelette, doused in a sweet soy sauce.

The flavours mimic what I cook with at home for most meals: kecap manis, soy sauce and a hint of sweet chilli sambal.

Salted Egg Yolk Chicken.

Random pink building.

Narrow streets mean most people drive motorbikes and scooters.

It also means traffic often crawls.

We stayed at the Baleka Resort Hotel & Spa, located in Legian, Kuta. Super touristy area.

They welcomed us with complimentary sweet orange juice.

I shared a room with my cousin, Winky.

Oh fluffy pillows, how I love thee.

The view from our balcony.

Time to do some sightseeing!

We went to a store specializing in selling Luwak Coffee. 

It’s considered the most expensive coffee in the world.

The Luwak, a civet cat, selects ripe berries, eats them and secrets them with the berry intact.

Going through the Luwak’s digestive system changes the flavour of the berries however, and once cleaned and shelled, are roasted and turned into coffee.

I am not a coffee connoisseur.

I drink overtly sweet mochas made by university vendors.

I lumped my free tasting with sugar and creamer.

Lots of wall paper scribblings from guests, mostly honeymooners.

We bought 6 bags, at AUS$15 each. They  ground up half the bags for us, turning it into instant coffee.

The stunningly beautiful driveway up to W Resort & Spa.

A security guard before he leaped back and yelped in surprise at my camera.

“I want to get married as soon as possible so I can come here for my honeymoon!” – Winky Mak.

Oh Ma & Ba.

This trip was the happiest I’ve seen my mum in a long time.

Visiting Ground Zero of the 2002 Bali Bombings.

Named on the monument are the 202 people killed, including 88 Australians, when terrorists denoted bombs in a popular nightclub district in Kuta.

The parking lot where one of the clubs once stood.

Dinner at a Chinese Seafood Restaurant that I neglected to take the name of.

Complimentary salted roasted peanuts before the meal.

Super large young coconut. A bit sour, as they are picked and served under ripe.

They also have less edible flesh than their mature counterparts.

Ma’s Avocado Milkshake. A popular Indonesian drink with blended avocado, milk and chocolate syrup.

It tastes pretty much like you think it would.

Feasting like only the Maks know how.

As I’ve mentioned, I’ve been craving soup heavily this trip.

This corn and bamboo shoot soup with egg was both tasty and supremely filling.

Another corn-heavy dish, with egg tofu (my favourite kind of tofu).

Fried Green Beans, married with a ton of minced garlic.

This is my favourite way to cook this vegetable, rendering it crispy on the outside, soft on the inside and full of flavour and oil.

Gai Lan, cooked in the same way as the beans. Love love love.

Stir-fried meat of sorts.

Steamed fish with soy sauce.

Simply exhausted.