Norwegian Airlines Singapore to London flight review

This is my second flight with Norwegian Airlines on the Singapore to London Gatwick route in 2018. And it has been a pleasant experience as well.

Though Norwegian airline is a low cost carrier, its B787 aircraft features free PTVs and usb port at every seat, including economy class. This is a big advantage over other low-cost, long haul airlines such as Scoot and AirAsia.

What is different in my experience this time is that I get two meals on this flight. On my previous flight, I had no food at all for the 14 hours long flight.

The meals themselves are alright and definitely better than having nothing to eat at all.

Sadly, Norwegian Airlines is discontinuing flights on this route from January 2019. It continues to serve the Thailand to Scandinavia market. If the ticket price is reasonable, I might head to Thailand (Bangkok or Krabi) to take Norwegian Airlines to Europe.

Lecuk Inn, Ubud, Bali

At the Ubud, the kura kura bus terminates at the Museum Puri Lukisan stop. From there, it's a ~10 minute walk to my next guesthouse.

Lecuk Inn is located off the main street. The side street turns out to be an interesting walk. With plenty of carvings on the road surface for an interesting read.

Initially, I followed google map directions to get to the guesthouse. Turns out, the map actually shows the incorrect location! I walked way deeper into the street than it should have been. The guesthouse sign isn't displayed prominently and can be missed easily if not looking for it.

Once past the entrance of the guesthouse, it appears that there are several families living in the area, which comprises of many houses. The friendly owner helps with the luggage to the doorstep, where check-in formalities is then carried out at the outdoor patio.

The guesthouse is big by any measure. A big advantage is the outdoor patio with equally big table and chairs.

My room is located at the end of the guesthouse walkway, so my outdoor patio has a great view of nature!

Lecuk Inn is located near the main commercial street in Ubud, within walking distance of the Ubud market and shops. Certainly a great place to stay!

Rena Segara House, Kuta, Bali

On my return to Bali, I stayed one night in Kuta before moving on to Ubud. Rena Segara House is located near the airport, within walking distance of the main touristic areas of Kuta beach.

I was assigned a corner room on the second level. The room is clean and large.

Comes with a big outdoor balcony, though facing the city.

Beautiful artwork on the wall

Though a no frills guesthouse, it does come with a clean towel, toothbrush, bath soap and shampoo.

For the price I paid, it is definitely worth staying here.

Tour of Ubud

On my second trip to Bali last year, I had the chance to visit Ubud, Bali. Ubud is famed for the monkey forest and the many beautiful rice terraces.

From my guesthouse in Kuta, I booked a cheap Grab car ride to T Galleria Bali, then transfered to the kura kura bus towards Ubud. The journey to Ubud took over an hour, as the bus makes scheduled stops along the way, and Ubud is the last stop on this route.

I stayed two nights in a Ubud guesthouse. I shall review this guesthouse in a subsequent post. 2018 is my second time to Ubud and Bali in general. The first being 2010. Maybe it is the long time gap. I can hardly recall the surroundings of Ubud. Everything seems so new to me. But I thoroughly enjoyed the experience !

Carvings on a road surface in Ubud

Somehow reminded me of the Hollywood walk of fame in Los Angeles. Haha !

Typical Balinese architecture

On a morning hike to see rice terraces

first glimpse of rice terraces

This karsa cafe is a great place to stop on this hiking trail, not just for refreshments, also for the fantastic views from its second floor.

Great views of rice terraces

The hiking trail continues past karsa cafe, but I decided to head back to town. On the way back, I met this pair of wild cows grazing by the roadside. As someone coming from an urban city, this is an interesting stop for me!

Ubud is a must-visit for someone coming to Bali. A great place to see Balinese architecture, rice terraces and to wander in the market for handcrafted souvenirs.

An Update: List of Countries Visited

How time flies.. I previously updated my list of visited countries in July 2018. And it's been half a year since. With the december mega trip over, it is now a good time to update this list once more.

1. Malaysia

2. Thailand

3. Indonesia

4. Philippines

5. Vietnam

6. Cambodia

7. Myanmar

8. China

9. Hong Kong

10. Taiwan

11. India

12. Sri Lanka

13. Australia

14. New Zealand

15. Brunei

16. Laos

17. Japan

18. South Korea

19. Greece

20. Turkey

21. Holland

22. France

23. Britain

24. Switzerland

25. Denmark

26. Norway

27. Sweden

28. Finland

29. Estonia

30. Latvia

31. Lithunia

32. Hungary

33. Poland

34. Brussels

35. Germany

36. Italy

37. United States

38. Chile

39. Canada

40. Iceland

41. Spain

42. Portugal

43. Mexico City
44. Macedonia
45. Vienna
46. Oman
47. UAE (Dubai and Abu Dhabi)
48. Qatar

49. Romania

50. Bulgaria

51. Serbia

52. Slovakia

53. Ireland

54. Kazakhstan

55. Ukraine (transit only)

56. Fiji (transit only)

Bali Public Bus Transport

Bali has a very basic public bus system. It is hardly advertised and I doubt many tourists even know about it.

There are two companies currently operating regular, scheduled bus service on Bali island. Sarbagita bus is taken mostly by the locals. It uses a fleet of big and small buses and has a bus stop in both directions at the Bali airport terminal. 

On my second trip to Bali, I intended to give this bus a try. The bus stop at the airport is however not signposted clearly, if at all, and I had to ask information for directions. After arrivals, I had to turn left and walk towards the end of the terminal building. That's where I saw the bus stand. Not too obvious as well. I was fortunate as I only waited for about 10 minutes before the bus arrives. 

While waiting at the stop, some taxi drivers kept on verbally persuading me to take taxi, but I simply stood at the stop and wait for the bus. This is the quirk at Bali airport. 

Bali is a resort island and a major tourist destination year-round. After arrivals, expect to see many taxi drivers and touts trying to get business. The taxi fares is inflated as well. It costs much more to depart than to get to the airport. This is probably my only negative experience in Bali.

Anyway, though there is no published bus timing, the bus fare is cheap. There is a bus conductor on board to collect the fare. In my case, a really young, friendly bus conductor. I took it to the Galleria Mall stop in ~15 minutes.

A typical sarbagita bus stop

There are two shopping malls in the vicinity. One beside the other. Mall Bali Galleria and the T Galleria.

The T Galleria is the bus terminal for the kura kura bus, the other bus company operating in Bali. It uses a fleet of mini-vans. Some slightly bigger than the others. Though advertised as a public bus, it is almost exclusively taken by tourists. The bus fare is more expensive, and there are day passes as well.

The kura kura bus service follows a published, scheduled bus timings. The buses are more or less on time. There are a few routes that travels around Kuta and also as far as to Ubud, a major tourist destination within Bali.

The stops are usually located near shopping malls, hotels and places of attractions. Convenient for tourists. Unfortunately, it doesn't go to the airport. Neither does it go to Tanah Lot, another major tourist attraction.

With the pass in hand, this service is basically hop-on-hop-off on all routes. The only route that requires advance reservation via the website, is the route serving Ubud. On my trip, the mini-van towards Ubud is actually full while the return trip is not. The great thing is that the mini-vans are equipped with free wifi, with the password available inside the van. The wifi connectivity varies from van to van, sometimes good and other times not as good. A great way to pass the traveling time, especially to Ubud.

There is a useful hop-on-hop-off map that shows all routes, stops, and timings.

Finally, at the end of my Bali tour, I went to the Bali Collection, an outdoor shopping area not too far from the airport.

The shopping area wasn't crowded at all in the day.

Sarbagita bus has a stop in this area. I attempted to wait for the bus, but gave up after some hours without a bus in sight. Not sure why. 

I had a plane to catch out of Bali that night, so decided to just use the app instead. Grab gave a high quote while Bluebird app gave a range of price. In the end, I still had to haggle with the driver. Not sure what's the purpose of the app then.

At least the cab driver took the toll bridge towards the airport. And I took in this beautiful sunset view along the bridge.

Yup. So this is my experience with the two bus companies in Bali. Other than the Grab and bluebird apps which work well and are cheap for short distances, I do recommend the kura kura bus for their reliability.

For the independent and budget-conscious travelers, though Sarbagita bus has a stop at the airport, its timings are not really published so I'm not sure of the intervals between buses. Personally, I wouldn't take this bus again, at least from the airport.

I have been to Bali twice, the first time on New Year day in 2010. Since there are still so many places around the world I have yet to visit, I wouldn't be returning soon !

In my next post, I shall review my trip to Ubud, as well as two other great guesthouses that I stayed in Bali.

Coach travel from KLIA to KL City and Singapore

There are various ways to get from Kuala Lumpur international airport (klia) to the city. An affordable way is to travel by coach.

Now, klia, used by most carriers, and klia2, used mainly by AirAsia as a hub, are not physically connected or near to each other. There are a few ways to travel between the two terminals by public transport. 

First, there is the klia express train, which travels between klia, klia2 and kl sentral. A paid ticket is needed to travel between klia and klia2 as well.

Otherwise, there is the complimentary shuttle bus that travels between klia, klia2 and long-term carpark. In klia2, it stops at the bus bay A10. This is how I travel from klia2 to klia, twice. On the first time, the bus stops for some time at the long term carpark stop before proceeding to klia. On the second time, I had to change to another bus at the long term carpark stop. Anyone can board the bus, whether you have a boarding pass or not.

The bus is never crowded and there are sufficient seats for everyone.

At klia, I followed signages to the coach terminal to board the bus towards kl sentral. The ticket can be bought from the counter. The platform number is written clearly, with the bus usually departing from platforms 1 or 2. It costs RM10 for a trip. Duration is about 45 minutes to an hour. At times, the bus may stop at klia2 to pick up passengers. There are no seat numbers, so it is free seating. The bus is a typical long distance coach, with comfortable seating and good recline.

Once in KL city, there are long distance coaches that operate to Singapore. I have tried two companies, Grassland and Starmart, both departing from their stops near Imbi monorail station, Berjaya times square. Both coaches are relatively comfortable. Grassland coach seat come with a blanket as well, distributed by the driver once on board.

Starmart's prices are usually cheaper, bookable either in person or using the easybook app at S$15 a trip. A lower price can be obtained using various discount codes.

In comparison, a one-way flight from Singapore to KL cost $52 at a minimum. While the other way cost $26, due to lower airport tax departing from KL.

Starmart's office is located under the escalator on the side of Berjaya times square, with many frequencies throughout the day. Grassland's office is located on the opposite side of Berjaya times square, with few frequencies only.

The trip between KL and Singapore, though scheduled for 6 hours, in reality, took about ~8 hours or longer, due to rest stops near Malacca, traffic jams within Malaysia and at the causeway. The coaches pass through second link connecting to Tuas in Singapore.

The coaches almost always offer direct services from KL Berjaya times square to Singapore, via a stop at TBS station within KL to pick up more passengers. Seat numbers are arranged, so every passenger is guaranteed a seat. 

Except for the most recent trip with Starmart, where I had a change of bus in JB, near the causeway. It was a seamless transfer however, as my first bus parked literally right behind the waiting second bus at a roadside. So it was just a few steps of walking. What's more surprising, both buses had the same numerals on their number plates, though with different letters, I think. 

Also, I think they combined two or more frequencies into one bus, as I had the same seat number as another passenger. End up, the manager at the TBS station announce free seating on the first bus. And I manage to get myself a bulkhead solo seat.

I was not told about the transfer by the ticket office. Rather, I overheard the driver and another passenger that the bus would terminate in JB only. I had to call the starmart office in Malaysia to confirm this. Thankfully, the number is printed on the coach ticket.

On the second bus, with a qistina company logo, there were less passengers connecting to Singapore. So there are some vacant seats around.

I departed on the 1430 coach. Actually, it left the Berjaya times square stop ~ 10 minutes early, as the passengers were already on board. I reached Singapore Golden miles complex, the usual stop for most Malaysia-bound coaches, close to 2300, on Dec 31st 2018.

The timing is great for me, as I later walked towards city hall to catch the New Year Day fireworks at Marina Bay Sands. I followed the crowd towards a viewing area at a traffic junction near the esplanade. 

From where I stood, I had a glimpse of the Star Island fireworks show at the floating platform as well. This show originates from Japan, Tokyo, Odaiba. It is their first time performing outside Japan.

Probably 2019 is a good time for me to re-visit Tokyo, to see the Odaiba fireworks !

I had been to Osaka in recent years, though the last time I visited Tokyo was in 2011, I think. Beyond Tokyo, I would like to visit Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Fukuoka and the Kyushu region. Probably Hokkaido again as well. Haha !

Anyway, back to the topic on coach travel. AirAsia does have promotional prices between KL and JB airport. I have seen below S$10 one-way flights. There is the credit card surcharges to take into account. Then the bus AA1 connects the airport to JB sentral, walking distance to the causeway checkpoint.

There is also the KTM train shuttle between JB and woodlands at some frequencies, taking just 5 minutes across the causeway. Tickets can be pre-purchased from the website.

Someday, I would like to try out these transport options.

Malaysia Airlines KLIA Golden Lounge review

Malaysia Airlines KLIA Golden Lounge is one of the very few lounges in the world that offers arrival access. I was travelling from Bali to Kuala Lumpur on Malaysia Airlines business class.

This lounge was located in the satellite terminal. On arrival, it can be accessed before immigration and customs. The receptionist noted my arrival boarding pass and I was promptly invited into the lounge.

The lounge is big, feels spacious, plenty of seating and never feels crowded at all. One of the biggest lounges that I have come across. At every seat, there is a power port and usb port.

The lounge offers unobstructed views of the tarmac and airplanes.

Clean shower facilities are provided.

Food variety is reasonable, though slightly limited. A coffee machine is available for self-service, though it is possible to order one at a manned counter.

At every seat, there is a lamp for additional lighting. When it gets dark, someone will come along to turn it on one by one.

This lounge is by far one of the biggest, with good food and views of the tarmac. So far I have only been to the Turkish airlines lounge in Istanbul airport and Qatar Airways lounge in Doha airport that is bigger. Emirates' lounge at Dubai airport is bigger as well, though I have yet to experience it.

I stayed in the lounge for a few hours till evening, before leaving the airport into the city for my long distance coach ride to Singapore. By now, I have traveled multiple times on coach rides between Singapore and Malaysia, an affordable way to travel between the two countries. Stay tuned for my review on long distance coach rides between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur !

Malaysia Airlines A330 business class review

My Denpasar, Bali to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia ticket on Malaysia Airlines was booked many months ago on a promotional price. 

MAS operates some flights a day between these two cities. Most of them were operated by B737 narrowbody aircraft. I believe only one or two flights a day was operated by an A330 widebody aircraft. Now, the A330 business class features flatbeds on a 1-2-1 configuration while the B737 business class features just recliner seats, similar to domestic first class. For a more comfortable business class experience, I selected the flight timings on both legs that were operated by the A330. 

Thankfully, the aircraft type remain the same from the time I ticketed the flight to boarding the flight.

Fast forward to the day of flight.

I selected the window seat with direct aisle access

Seat control, usb port, handphone pocket, old style remote control for the PTV

Both doors used to board this flight

mas-branded headphones and newspapers

Garuda Indonesia widebody plane. Despite being so close to Indonesia, I have yet to take a flight with Garuda Indonesia, one of the few five-star airlines in the world. So I'm looking forward to taking it to Bandung next month, albeit on a B737 narrowbody !

SQ operates its widebodies to Denpasar a few times a day too.

Table-cloth service begins with a champagne, water and packaged snack

Asian cuisine for my lunch

It's a short flight from Bali to Kuala Lumpur, passing by Singapore !

After reaching klia airport, I went straight to access the mas golden lounge using my arrival boarding pass. Not many airlines or airports in the world offers arrival lounge access. 

The mas golden lounge feels spacious, clean and boasts great views and in my opinion, easily on par with SQ's silverkris lounge in Singapore Changi Airport. I shall review it in my subsequent post.

Airplane models in klia airport

The same mas A330 business class seat. Picture taken on my return leg.

The cubby hole for my leg feels quite spacious.

An asian cuisine for my breakfast

In conclusion, Malaysia Airlines A330 business class is definitely worth the experience. With friendly in-flight service and a great hard product !

Premier Lounge, Bali Airport review

I arrived at the Bali airport early for my Malaysian Airlines business class flight to Kuala Lumpur. The check-in counters opened shortly after I arrived. I was first in the business class queue and check-in was swift.

Then I headed to the Premier Lounge for breakfast. The lounge is located at the second level of the departure hall, next to several other lounges.

As it was in the morning, a breakfast buffet of Asian cuisine was offered in the lounge.

Seating was quite limited as the lounge area isn't too big. The lounge was quite empty when I arrived but soon filled up. There is a big dining area as well as a small inner area with more comfortable chairs for more privacy. 

There was a tv screen showing a movie in this area while I was there.

There is shower facility within the lounge which is kept clean.

Towards noon time, some buffet selection were changed to lunch offerings. I didn't had much of these as I would be having a great lunch on my Malaysia Airlines flight !

In conclusion, the Premier Lounge at Bali airport is a great place to relax before a flight, with decent food selection and shower facility.