Back at Manado, we disembarked and I found a taxi straight
away. We stayed at Swiss-Bel via booking.comfor 800 000R. The room was smaller but it didn't matter.
We hung around the pool, had KFC across the road and dinner
at the hotel. On our previous stay the meal was small so we order more this
time and this time the meals came out big. Haha!
4 AUGUST 2018
We woke at 5am, jumped in our taxi at 5:15am and was at the
airport in 20 minutes. The ride is usually 45 minutes but the taxi driver was
on a mission for some reason.
Our Lion Air flight left at 6:45am and we reached
Denpasar, Bali by 10:30am. On the flight we met Ruben,from Holland, who had just finished his first ever project in Makassar building at island. A great story he told.
We decided to go up market and stay at the Swiss-Bel
Hotel.The taxi from the airport was 100
000R. The hotel room was huge and the bed very comfortable. The foyer was in a
classic style with bar and cafe.
We hung around the pool most of the day till the afternoon. I
rang Captain Riski +6282338984820 and arranged a boat for Bunaken tomorrow at
10am for a 500 000R drop off at Jonath's Lodge.
We ventured outside and caught a minuvet (blue van) for 4
000R each to the Boulevard near the waterfront. I needed a laptop bag. On the third
floor of the IT Centre, I purchased one for 400 000R. We needed a bit of
exercise so we walked from there to the Centro Mall. At the mall, we had iced
coffees and dinner. At the end of dinner, we asked where the taxis were and the
guy rang an Uber for us and guided us to the waiting car. Very nice. The car
was 17 000R to get to the hotel.
Back at the hotel there was a guy playing a piano and a lady
singing melodic songs. We parked ourselves in the bar and listened to them
while enjoying a few beers. Nice.
31 JULY 2018
I woke early and watched the sunrise from the hotel window.
Jacinta woke later and we packed our gear and had a great
breakfast on the second floor restaurant.
Kara and John would have arrived at Gili Air staying at the
Zitt Bar restaurant and bungalows.
I woke early to sun and blue skies. We had
breakfast at the hotel. While I was waiting in the foyer, I was semi-swamped by a
group of lovely Manado ladies about to start a conference.
After that, we started on a long and fun walk along the city streets. We walked in the
general direction of the harbour and took a number of side distractions which
were amazing. On one of the turn offs we walked through a souk type eating area. We had
the feeling we weren't welcomed but a few smiles changed all that and it was
like a reunion with old mates.
Down at the harbor, we wandered around looking at
the boats and ferries. It was very pretty.
We eventually, came across the boats for Bunaken Island
and met Captain Ricky. We got his phone number and negotiated a price for a
drop off to Bunaken in about a week. It turned out that the place we want to stay, Lozenzo's, is his brother.
We walked further and met some lovely people down at the
waterfront behind the Mega Mall. We walked some more in the increasing heat and
humidity then headed for the Mega Mall for a great coffee and early lunch.
We caught a taxi back to the hotel and swam and sat around
the pool.
Clouds and thunder set in so it as back to the room.
The weather cleared and we decided on eating near the
waterfront. The reception recommended Wisata Bahari, which had a great view
over the ocean. We had beers and fish and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
It was dark so we took a taxi back to the hotel and had a Bailey's at the hotel bar.
Back in the room and it seemed so late but it was only 8:30pm. Ha ha.
Earlier, I had rung Denny from Manado Rafting. He organized a
car to Tangkoko for 400 000R compared to the hotel price of 605 000r.
.JPG)
