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          PROBUS CLUB of MANDURAH PEEL Inc                                                                                                                         Reg No - A1019730Z                                                              

                            

 

                       **TRAVEL GROUP**

                                                                    Leader:   Annie Clark  

                                         *****************************************************                      Trip to Bali - 11^th to 21^st September 2026   

                    A day-trip in Bali away from the beach

Nine of us that set off with our guide and driver, to explore a little more of this beautiful island.

Our first stop in Gianyar was a coffee plantation. Our guide pointed out all the various coffee and cocoa trees and all the many spices and fruits. We visited the civet cats sleeping soundly during the day. They are allowed to roam at night and eat the coffee beans. They actually only eat the fleshy red outside fruit and then swallow the beans whole. These precious beans are excreted and then collected by the farmer the next morning. They go through a process of washing and drying and the next two layers of the

bean are removed leaving the pure coffee bean which is then roasted. This produces what is believed to be the finest coffee in the world despite the fact that it is mostly decaffeinated! We took our seats and sampled about 15 different flavoured coffees and teas, flavoured with either coconut, ginger, ginseng etc.

Our next stop was in the village of Kintamani to see the amazing view of Mt Batur volcano and Lake Batur. We were lucky it was a nIce clear day for the views.

Our final stop was at the Tegalalang rice terraces. Oh so beautiful. The land is farmed by 25 different farmers and they can get 3 rice crops a year if the weather conditions are favourable. They have turned the views into a tourist attraction and have swings for ladies to swing in flowing dresses across the paddies. Also available is a tandem bike ride and a zip line. Our brave Communications officer David Thomson had a go on the zip line and enjoyed it immensely.

Here we stayed for our lunch to enjoy the views before our long journey back to the hotel.

Prama Sanur Cooking Class

One of the fabulous activities on offer during our 10-day stay at Prama Sanur Beach was a cooking class that eight eager budding chefs took advantage of.

The day began with a tour of a traditional Balinese market with an array of items to purchase. We learnt that the market is busiest at around five in the morning but it was certainly much quieter when we arrived around three hours later. Joan Thomson couldn’t resist a few baskets for her grandchildren, Margaret Paganini decided to stock up on various spice mixes, as did John Yates who also added a bunch of those delicious small bananas to share with the group.

The budding chefs: Joan Thomson, David Thomson, Carol Hoult, Frank Hall, Elizabeth Enz-Ceccaldi, Margaret Paganini, John Yates and Liz Yates then headed back to the hotel where it was time to start learning how to prepare and cook traditional Indonesian fare under the expert guidance of Chef Bagus Putranaya, who issued us with our aprons and chef’s toques.

The menu we chose was Soto Ayam (chicken broth) which we all thoroughly enjoyed and looked forward to replicating when we returned home. Our main course was a first for us all: Pepes Ikan, fish wrapped in banana leaves and cooked over a grill, served with a fresh salad. We were encouraged to ‘plate up’ the dish in an attractive manner – but no judging! Our class ended with a Balinese favourite dessert, Pisang Rai, (bananas dipped in a batter and boiled). It sounded very strange but was surprisingly lovely.

As we completed each of the lunch courses, we sat down under shady trees to savour each one, let it digest before continuing with the next. The experience was a very leisurely and enjoyable meal with fellow Probians.