Puri Segara Guide

Dear Guests! 

Welcome to our “house by the sea” – Puri Segara – a small slice of Paradise on the Island of the Gods. Please make yourself feel at home and we ask you respectfully to treat our villa with the same care that you would your own home. This short guide is intended to make your stay a little smoother and more relaxing; there is a hard copy folder in the Villa.

Contents:

Air-cons.  Your fee includes electricity. However we ask that you save the environment, and of course our electricity, by not having the air-conditioning on with the room unattended or with the doors open. In the dry season (Apr-Oct) you may find that the fans are sufficient or even that you prefer to sleep with the doors/windows open.

Airport Transfer.  This can be arranged by Anik although we find it is cheaper (~IDR400-450k) to contact Indotrans at the airport. They know where Puri Segara is and offer reliability with reasonable rates: indotransastri@hotmail.com      Tel: +62-361-757650 or 081-647-10625

Amenities.  We provide towels, robes, shampoo etc and we ask that you leave them behind for the next guests. One quirk of the outside bathrooms is that the wind unravels the loo paper – hence the shell “necklaces”.

Animals.          None of the dogs and cats are ours so please shoo them away and do not feed them.  There are many lizards that will do you no harm including a fairly large water monitor lizard that stalks the frogs in the garden.  The chitchat lizards live inside as well as outside the villa they are good at catching insects so are beneficial. Spiders in the house also do you no harm and will catch insects. The fruit bats visit us at night and are sometimes seen in the eaves of the house resting during the day.  They make a mess at night so Made will spread out a sheet before she goes home in the evening to catch the droppings.

Bale Benongs.  In addition to the normal overhead light that is switchable from the patio, each Bale Benong is equipped with dual electrical sockets and twin spot lights. If the staff are not around and it starts to rain, then we ask that you lower the blinds to protect the furnishings.

Electricity.  The electricity is approximately 220V/50Hz i.e. the European system, including European (German) sockets. If you have Japanese/U.S. appliances, please beware! A shaver socket in each bathroom provides 110V too, although for low currents only e.g. not hair dryers! We’ve provided several multi-adapters that should allow most plugs to fit the European sockets and we ask that you leave them behind! If they have all “walked” there is one fitted multi-socket upstairs.

• Front door switches:

• Patio switches:

• consider for overnight use 

Being Bali, the electricity supply and the electricians are not the best! Occasionally, the power station is at maximum capacity and there are unscheduled power cuts. If the rest of the neighbourhood is black then please be patient – you are in the Unknown!

Equally, especially when there is a thunderstorm, one of the phases in the villa may cut or circuit breakers may operate. The main breaker box is in the utility room behind the kitchen – just look for the tripped breaker and try one or two resets. BEWARE - it is all live and dangerous as soon as you open the box!

If one phase is off but all of the utility room breakers are in the correct position, then you can try locating and resetting the main house breakers. Go out of the back kitchen door, turn left and the main supply is at the (south-west) corner.

We have a couple of battery torches/lights – one in the main bedroom and one in the lounge. Please be careful if you decide to use candles….

EMERGENCIES!               See Emergencies Page,  First Aid, Hospitals and  Telephone Numbers below. If in doubt: call the Help Desk +62-81-916-486382 (24 hours). There are 2 fire extinguishers by the kitchen entrance – one water (non-electrical) and one gaseous.

First Aid.  A small first aid kit is located in the kitchen in the lowest right hand drawer to the right of the sink. If you need other minor medications there are a few Apotheks in Seririt, the first being adjacent to the monument in the middle of the road 100 metres after you enter the one way system having turned left at the traffic lights (not the monument at the lights – the second one). Additionally, Hardy's store, a little further round the one-way system, has some medical products.

In the event of a medical problem requiring assistance, there is a Klinik (rhs) opposite the Seririt police station (lhs), next to the BCA ATM sign with a couple of doctors’ practices immediately adjacent. Go up the lane to the road, turn right and they are within 5 minutes’ drive. Dr. Handra is good, speaks English and will do a home visit. Please also see the Telephone Numbers and Hospitals sections below.

Please be aware that the Sun is very strong here….

Help Desk.  We employ a “Help Desk”, which is actually one lady called Anik. Her phone number is +62-81-916-486382. Her prime function is to co-ordinate the villa services. She will also ask you for your passports at some stage as the police need photocopies for immigration purposes. This is a legal requirement (and is required in all the major hotels, for example) and will cost you IDR20k per passport; we ask you respectfully to co-operate.

She will also, if possible, arrange anything else that you may need such as car/moped hire or a driver etc. Like the rest of Bali, she may charge you a small commission for her time. However, to make your stay most enjoyable, we recommend her services to you – please feel free to call her at reasonable hours of the day.

Hospitals.        For more serious problems, the nearest hospital is “Shanti Graha” in Sulanya about 5 minutes’ away. Again, go up the lane and turn right at the road (to the west). After 500m, turn left at the first “major” turn left (well before the Police Station and opposite the football field on the right) -signposted Sulanya and Pupuan.  On that road, about 5oom on the right hand side, up a small hill, is the Rumah Sakit “Shanti Graha” Hospital. It is a “cottage” hospital and will be able to deal with most minor emergencies.

However, the best hospitals are in Singaraja, some 30 minutes’ drive away (to the east). The first one is some 200m from the first set of Singaraja traffic lights – the only other lights between here and Singaraja are the ones in Lovina, some 15 minutes’ away. The hospital is on the right hand side and called Parmi Sidhi. It’s probably best to drive yourself rather than await an ambulance…

Phone numbers for a doctor, a hospital and an ambulance are in the the “Telephone Numbers” section. In an emergency – police/fire/ambulance: dial 112.

Insects.  Like most of the tropics, dawn and dusk are the worst times for mosquitoes and other insects. We generally keep the bedroom doors continually closed to prevent night-time bites and you may prefer to keep the house generally closed for an hour or so at sunset. Obviously, lights attract insects, however we’ve found that sitting outside in the evening is not a major problem except at dusk. In the middle right hand drawer of the kitchen we have some mosquito coils and repellent. If it runs out you can ask Made to buy you some more from a local store quite cheaply.

Upstairs there is a mains-powered, anti-insect dispenser for those who may not feel the mosquito-netted 4-poster is sufficient.

Internet.  We’ve a wireless Internet system that covers the whole villa area. Just turn on your wireless and put any web page address into your browser e.g. google.com; the Bits&Bytes hotspot logon page will appear. If not already arranged, a logon account can be provided by Bits&Bytes in Lovina (SMS (+62) 087860070309, voice (+62) 0362-3435550, fax (+62) 0362-42126 or email). Alternatively, it’s very easy to follow the “Buy Online” links to set up a PayPal account where payment can be made through major credit cards, such as Visa etc. At the moment, a PayPal payment has cheaper rates than going through Bits&Bytes directly. Alternatively, ask Anik at the HelpDesk to organise it for you. Like the rest of the island, the local speed is not great and varies during the day, although night-time seems to be better! One account does one computer at a time although the wireless can accept multiple computers with multiple accounts.

“Library”.  We’d like to collate a library over time, so please feel free to read any books you find. We ask that you try to finish them before you leave, however if you need to take novels (not reference books, please) away at the end – so be it! Likewise, we would appreciate you donating any books to the villa to assist in our quest to provide a selection of books for our guests. We also have a chess set and a couple of packs of cards in the lounge.

Restaurants.    The best selection of restaurants is in Lovina – we tend to eat Indonesian at home. Our favourites include Sea Breeze (on the beach just to the left of the dolphin statue), the Thai and the Tower restaurants (on the road leading to the dolphin statue, opposite SpiceLink mast), Tropis Bar and Bistro (traffic lights, turn left, by the beach car park). Near Lovina (ask directions), we like Chonos and the Damai Hotel, although the latter is expensive. Near Singaraja, both the Rice Table and the adjacent Puri Bagus Hotel are very good and about 30 minutes’ drive. Towards Mejengen Island there are a few 4-star hotels with excellent food, including the Tower restaurant in Mejengen Resort.

Restaurants - Deliveries.  We’ve provided a couple of telephone-order restaurant menus in the bottom right hand drawer in the kitchen: Chonos & Tropis Bistro. If you find another restaurant that delivers, please obtain their menus too!

Restaurants - Free Transport.   Chonos Hotel and Tropis Bistro will provide you with free transport to and from their restaurant. Just give the driver a small tip on the return journey eg IDR 10-20k

Security.  The Balinese, being mainly Hindu, are peaceful people however there will always be the occasional individual who breaks the norm. We have night-time security 7 nights a week from 5pm-8am and, because our daytime staff are off on Sundays, one security guard will be on duty during the day. They have been instructed to patrol the grounds, which include the adjacent villa, at regular intervals. If you find this intrusive, please just ask them to be more discreet during your stay. We tend to leave the garden lights on throughout the night (please see * the Electricity section above), however, that choice is yours.

A compressed-air horn is located in the main bedroom dressing table, which can be used to summon Security in an emergency. It is very loud and will likely deter any would-be intruder! We recommend you use it away from your ears. The security staff’s  main function is to act as a deterrent rather than as a SWAT-team, and they have been instructed to call the police rather than to engage physically.

We’ve provided a safe, located in the large wardrobe of the main bedroom. If not already provided, the 5-digit code can be obtained by email from nigel@vortices.com. I’m afraid we cannot be held responsible for loss of personal items so we strongly encourage you to use the safe for your valuables.

Made will lend you a front-door key; we recommend that all exterior doors are locked when you leave the premises and at night. It is safe to leave the upper floor windows open to enhance the cooling breeze of the buka-style Balinese design (unless it’s pouring with heavy rain!).

Smoking.  We are non-smokers and would appreciate if you refrained from smoking inside Puri Segara. Please ask Made for ashtrays. Additionally, we remind you that the thatched rooves are highly flammable!

Staff.  We have two daytime staff who will do all they can to assist you. Our housekeeper, Made (pronounced Marday), works from 9am-6pm Monday- Saturday. However, if you would like her to be more flexible then please just chat to her or Anik, the Helpdesk lady. Putu, our gardner and handyman, also works Monday-Saturday but from about 7.30am-4pm. Both have an hour lunch break, Made about 12 pm and Putu usually 11.30am – 12.30pm.

Made will cook, clean and attend to washing. However, she will need some directions as to what time and what food you would like to eat etc. Equally you can just ask her to cook anything and it will be a nice surprise! She will buy the food and drink locally but please bear in mind that the local shops are somewhat limited and are arranged mainly for local tastes. Please give her the money for shopping beforehand and she will do her best to obtain fresh produce at a reasonable price, supplying receipts if necessary. She, like most locals, shops on her small motorbike that has limited carrying capacity! We pay her IDR10k per trip for petrol.

If you need more in the way of a Western diet then we recommend the Lovina Bakery, which also has other (rather pricey but good quality) imported supplies. It is about 100m beyond the traffic lights on the lhs. The Buda Bakery has nice bread cakes, croissant etc and will deliver to the villa.  A price list is in the folder. Please replace/replenish any alcohol or other beverages that may be in the fridges.

There should be ample fresh bottled water when you arrive, however, if you notice it getting low then please ask Made or Putu to arrange for some more to be delivered (about IDR10k per bottle). You are advised only to drink the bottled water. The tap water comes from a well for the garden and from the mains for the villa, however, we do not drink it.

Tips or gratuities are dependent on how our guests feel they’ve been treated, the size of their party and their national customs. We do not give any of our staff a percentage of your fee – we pay them a monthly salary. Whilst Made, the housekeeper, will be at the forefront of assisting you we ask that you also consider Putu, the gardener, who will have helped in the background to make your stay more enjoyable, and Komang, the security guard.

Telephone. You may ask Anik to get an Indonesian phone chip for your mobile phone. It is very cheap and will save on even local roaming rates; we suggest you put IDR25 -50k on it initially.

Telephone Numbers. 

• Emergency Call Number 112

Dr. Handra                           081 236 05733

Dr. Handra (house)              (0362) 23798

Fire brigade Singaraja         (0362) 21113

Fire brigade Seririt              (0362) 94813

Hospital “Shanti Graha”      (0362) 94554

Polsek Seririt (police)            (0362) 92450

Polres Singaraja (police)      (0362) 22510

PLN (electricity)    Seririt    (0362) 92796

                           Singaraja    (0362) 25480

Made (housekeeping)            087 762 942982

Anik (Help Desk)           081 916 486382

Valerie                                   087 863 138569

Television/Audio.  The projector is for video use and connections are provided for PC/Macs. AUXiliary sound, such as iPod etc, is provided by the DVD player. There’s an audio cable extension under the sideboard. We’ve provided a small selection of DVDs & CDs, which can be found under the DVD player. Plug the yellow connections together for video. There is a TV in the main bedroom that digital media can be connected to as well as another disc player upstairs.

The disc players work on all Regions and one has a USB connection. There are two remote controls with the usual excess of buttons. We find the best one to use is the combined one.

Things to do/ Places to see.      See separate sheet in folder.

Transport.               In the folder is a list of drivers/cars for hire.  Always negotiate before you rent.  You can self-drive a car for about IDR 150 -200k per day.  They can take you on touristy trips but make sure you check that the driver knows the sort of place you want to go first.  There is a road map in the lounge but please don’t lose it.

Finally, we’d sincerely appreciate any feedback on how we can improve our guests’ enjoyment, so please feel free to email us with suggestions. We hope that you thoroughly enjoy your stay here in Bali and, in particular, at our home and house by the sea – Puri Segara!

Valerie & Nigel Demery