High Tea at the Tea Room, Gunners Barracks

Good day my dear readers. Imagine me saying that in my best English accent haha.

So Gaffa and I had enquired about having our wedding reception at Gunners Barracks as we loved the idea of high tea and the beautiful views there but unfortunately we couldn't make the numbers. My SIL (offically now) went there for high tea with a friend and told me that they did a gluten free option. So I booked Gaffa and I in for afternoon tea on the first weekend he was back from his initial training period with the Australian Navy.

They gave us a time slot from 12.30pm - 2.30pm for high tea and I had originally booked for 2 gluten free high teas but then later decided to just have one gluten free and one regular, so we were able to compare the two. I had also confirmed with them that our table would be outside, undercover but with a very nice view of the city and surrounding headland.

Flourless and Low Sugar Chocolate Cookies

Gaffa is currently down in Jervis Bay, attending New Entry Officer Training at HMAS Creswell. He has been there since his birthday and is not allowed off base until 16 August. So it's been a very long and hard couple of weeks, but I've been lucky enough to talk to him on the phone a few times. Originally we were told that phones would be taken away and no contact was possible in the first 4 weeks. But apparently they've been doing well in training so they get some phone time to call their loved ones :D

During one phone call I got from Gaffa, he told me is mailing address and also advised me that I could send him a care package if I wanted to. Yay! Challenge accepted. With a few suggestions from friends, I decided to bake him some cookies - gluten free ofcourse!

I did a quick Google search and stumbled upon a recipe from Kalyn's Kitchen for some chocolate cookies.  I'd also been told by Gaffa that he's been going to church and getting gluten free biscuits from the chaplin's wife, after the service. So I knew Gaffa was craving some treats since he's not normally one to go to church... but who knows?

Mixed Berry Cheesecake Brownies

Hi ETD-ers! Sorry for the lack of posts recently, but Gaffa and I have been busy preparing for Gaffa to join the Australian Navy. He started the New Entry Officer Training Course on his birthday- what a great birthday present! ;P And is due to finish at the end of November. Just in time for our wedding! :) Yay!

Just before Gaffa left he requested that I bake him his favourite cheesecake - one with berries and a brownie base. I first discovered this cheesecake from a recipe I found randomly in a magazine at a doctor's waiting room. Since then I've used a couple of other recipes for the same cheesecake because it's easier to do a quick Google search than to find a piece of paper that I've stuffed somewhere...

This time I used the first thing that popped up in my search, a recipe from Taste for raspberry cheesecake brownies. The recipe uses dark chocolate whereas in previous recipes I remember using cocoa powder. This may be the reason why Gaffa raved about the brownie base being so damn good on this particular cheescake!

Diving in Tulamben - USAT Liberty Wreck

It's winter here down under and it's damn cold! So today I'm reminiscing on the warm clear waters we experienced while diving in Bali. Gaffa and I decided to do another day of diving by ourselves on the Tulamben wreck. We both love wreck diving - travelling around the world to dive on top wrecks like the SS President Cooliage in Vanuatu, Zenobia in Cyprus, Thislegorm in Egypt...

This time we were diving on the USAT Liberty which is a US Army transport ship that got torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in 1942 near Lombok. It was the towed to Talamben beach for salvage operations. In 1963 when Mt. Agung erupted, it pushed the ship about 25m from the shore to a depth of about 30m, where it now lies encrusted with beautiful coral and swimming with an abundance of marine life.

Eating in Bali Part 3

Okies, I swear this will be the last post about eating in Bali! Only two more restaurants to rave about, ones that are a definite must-eat when visiting this paradise island. 

After the wedding all our relatives and family friends went home, so it was just Gaffa and I, my parents and the newlyweds. We decided to meet up with them in Seminyak for dinner which is about half hour taxi from Nusa Dua. We arrived abit late for the $3 cocktails across the road,  but we were happy with the lychee martinis at Ultimo. 

Ultimo is an Italian restaurant on the main street of Seminyak, where you'll find lots of shopping boutiques, restaurants and cafes as well. I was surprised to see such a popular Italian restaurant in Indonesia, but I guess you do have a lot of  Westerners who probably get sick of eating nasi goreng everyday they're in Bali.

We were seated out the back, outside. There was minimal lighting, so little that they supplied us with torches so we could read the menu. We ordered an antipasto plate to share for a starter, and each ordered a pasta dish for mains. 

 

 

Eating in Bali Part 2

When it comes to food you can gurantee that there'll be a part 2, maybe even a part 3! Stay tuned...

The day after the wedding was spent relaxing since we had a late night out at ZJ's , a night club in the grandest hotel I've ever seen, Mulia. Anyway, that night we had dinner at Jimbaran. Jimbaran is known for its seafood and dinning on the beach. We watched the sun set at Rock Bar but I've heard the sun set at Jimbaran is good too. I assume all the restaurants at Jimbaran are much the same,  getting their seafood from the same place. We ate at Menega Cafe, and we had a set menu since there was about 30 of us. The tables are on the sand, on a slight angle so keep hold of your drinks! Food was decent, but my parents, aunties and uncles who also ate there said the food was not that good.

After the wedding we spend a couple of days in Ubud. Ubud is known for its beautiful rice fields, and is the arty and cultural hub of Bali. There are alot of warungs on mountain tops with gorgeous views of rice fields below. Definitely worth a visit just for the great views.

For lunch in Ubud we were taken by our tour guide to a local warung where we enjoyed some smoked duck and crispy duck. I don't know what the restaurant was called, sorry! But if you do a Google search for places to eat in Ubud, a few duck places will pop up. The smoked duck was really good, with lots of sauce to be soaked up by the rice. The spices used were delicious and the meat fell straight off the bone.

Eating in Bali Part 1

One thing that I was most looking forward to whilst in Bali was not only the hot weather and cheap shopping, but the food. Gaffa and I planned most of our travels around what's best to eat, so it was no surprise that we would be gaining weight on this trip! Lol.

In Sydney we'd only eaten at a few Indonesian restaurants, mainly Ayam Goreng 99 in Kingsford. Enjoying the grilled chicken and satay sticks with copious amounts of ketchup manis and chilli sauce was just the beginning of our love affair with Indo food.

The first night we ate out at a warung - which is a name for a small family shop , cafe or restaurant. You'll see a lot of warungs around Bali, where you can gurantee there'll be good cheap local food. Made's Warung in Seminyak is not your typical hole in the wall joint, but has grown so much that it's expanded to a larger restaurant with a live band. The a la carte menu has a variety of Asian and European food, with the traditional Indonesian and Balinese dishes.

Gaffa and I shared a Nasi Campur Special and some juicy chargrilled sate skewers. The nasi capur provided a good mix of food and Gaffa was so hungry he ordered a Nasi Goreng for himself! First night in Bali also called for a Bintang beer tower to share between the table. Surprisingly the beer is not too bad. Easy to drink with a light taste.

Potato Head Beach Club, Seminyak, Bali

 

If you ever visit Bali I highly recommend spending a day or night or both, here! Potato Head Beach Club is a funky hang out for all the cool kids. There's a beach, infinity pool complete with its own bar, sun lounges, dinning tables and grassy area; all for you and your friends to soak up the sun during the day and cool off at night to the chilled out tunes while trying all their delicious cocktails.

 

Diving in Nusa Penida, Bali

My bro, Rave and his fiance, Ms. Tjak were getting married in Bali so Gaffa and I took this opportunity to do some diving. We did some research and found that Bali was famous for its manta rays and the mola mola but it was not mola mola season. So we decided to do our first day of diving at Nuda Penida, in search for some manta rays.

Earlier in the year we'd taught The Banker and her boyfriend to dive, and we also found out that a few of Rave's friends were divers too. I organised with a PADI CDC (the highest rating for a dive centre) - Crystal Divers to spend the day out on their boat with a group of 9 of us - 7 divers and 2 snorklers. They were very efficient in answering our questions via email beforehand and their level of service and professionalism was top notch. I would highly recommend them for anyone diving in Bali. They're service provides everything: pickup and drop off from your hotel, gear hire and lunch, snacks and drinks during the day. The prices are reasonable also, giving discounts to PADI professionals.

Vivid Sydney

Every year when the weather starts to get cold, Sydney decides to put on a show of lights, music and ideas called Vivid. This year it runs from 24 May until 10 June. The city near the harbour lights up from 6pm onwards into a spectacular array of colours,  providing a great night out; just remember to wrap up because it's chilly outside!

Gaffa and I went to Vivid many years ago when we first got together, and again this year. The highlight for me at Vivid is seeing the Opera House projected with beautiful lights on its sails. The classic Sydney icon is transferred from its basic white facade into beautiful,  bright designs, worthy of numerous photo snaps.

Here are a few of my photos from the night.