family wanderlust: Bintan Dec 2007

Day 2, we had an early morning walk at the beach.

left side of the shoreline

right side of the shoreline where we walked

a rock island

walked back to the hotel grounds

family pic just after the sandy area

two by two

trying the hammock

bar by the pool

the infinity pool

testing the water

lounging area in the infinity pool

We had a long breakfast time at the hotel's main restaurant (from 8-10am!). They had noodles, eggs, bacon, bread, fruits, cereals, juices, milk etc. We spent a lot of time at the restaurant because once we step out and the kids get to change to their swimming gears, there is no stopping them from playing under the sun -rain or shine! We knew the kids would stay in the pool for the longest time so we had to conserve energy and keep away from the sun as much as we could before going out.

the kids had cereal and milk

finishing up his honey stars

just outside the hotel restaurant. Behind us is the pool area.

After having breakfast, we went back to the hotel room to change into our swim wears.

It was another few hours in the pool for the kids. They couldn't get enough of it!

Ira loved riding his airplane water floater. He was quite hesitant to try it at first, but when he got the hang of it he was going in and out of the water, following Kelvin around.

sitting by the edge of the infinity pool

father and sons

After the pool, we walked back to the beach.

Ira found some seaweeds and cleared them out.

already cold after spending more than 3 hours in the pool

just feeling it...

testing the beach water

following after his brother

big splash

After hours of playing in the pool and at the beach, the kids finally got tired and hungry so we headed back to the hotel room. The kids just had some snacks, watched a bit of tv and then we went out to look for other activities to do.

We checked out what other activities we could do in the resort. We were planning on renting a golf buggy so Mark can drive us around the resort grounds. Unfortunately, they required a driver's license and he did not bring his. The hotel activities staff offered us the dune buggy ride instead - which does not require a driver's license but the driver should have had experience in driving (is that confusing or not!). We thought about if for a while because we were worried that it might be dangerous for the kids. The ride costs $75 per hour per buggy and it can only accommodate 2 persons, which meant we need 2 buggies (that's $150!). But since we don't have any other activity in mind (that is good for the family) we gave it a go.

We had to wait for almost an hour for the activity to begin (since it has a schedule). Ira almost fell asleep! I was keeping myself busy removing oil slick from my footwear! After the long wait, we were finally on our way (walking) towards the buggy station (a short walk from the hotel).

We had to go for basic buggy driving course (anyone can do this i guess). The good thing is there was a guy to help us around and guide us along the buggy course/track.

the kids trying out the buggies before we started our outdoor adventure

I was driving and Ira was my passenger. Mark, on the otherhand, had Kelvin as his passenger. During the drive, i was constantly checking on Ira to see if he was "still on his seat" since it was a really bumpy, muddy ride! I was glad to see that he was actually holding on tight and enjoying the ride. Although there was a time when i thought he almost fell asleep! Mark and Kelvin were also doing well, but filthier than us! hahaha.

The trip brought us around the Nirwana Gardens grounds - to the forest, the beach, the reservoir and back to the hotel. It was worth the dollar we paid for. There were some scary steep forest tracks and bumpy rocky roads. We also drove along the main road.

a short stop at the beach

daddy and Kelvin

Ira did not have much of a reaction during the ride. But he was not scared at all.

There were even times when I thought he was almost sleeping!

We were guided towards the beach, the forest, along the road, near the reservoir. There were winding roads, steep roads (where i thought we would turnover), paved roads (where it was the easiest to manouver) and muddy roads (where we all got dirty!). Then we had one stop where we were given some coconut juice.

we had a short snack break at the reservoir

Coconut juice was thirst-quenching.

After the short pit-stop, we were on our way back to the resort. We were all hyped up by this activity. It was really fun, scary, bumpy and exciting experience.The kids wanted another round!