Club Med Bali – Body and Soul Program Day 1 & 2

As you know, I was in Club Med Bali for their new Body and Soul Program for 4 days 3 nights recently and I only knew my full itinerary the day before I was due to depart but I was thrilled as it did looked promising.

Waking up to yoga classes, themed and colors oriented food as well as fun in the sea and sun (ok, maybe not so much the sun) is totally up my alley. Plus, this is my first ever Club Med experience and I have heard so so much about Club Med that I have already suspected that I will enjoy myself immensely throughout the program.

I arrived late afternoon on day 1, the day of YELLOW.

Like my sunny outfit? 🙂

The 1st activity for Rejuvenation in Yellow was Dance of the Dragon at 5 pm. However we arrived later than 5 pm so we missed that.

Here are some of the Yellow themed activities:

Check in was swift and the feel-good vibe Club Med was known for was in abundance. Smiley faces went by in a blur as enthusiastic greetings rang out. I was still dizzy from the flight and was happy to be in my room til it was dinner time.

Lucy, a Malaysian Club Med Village Trainer was our dedicated Club Med personnel for the next 4 days.
A cold towel, welcome drink and a swift brief later, I was escorted to my room – a Deluxe Garden View Terrace.

The Club Med Resort of Bali has 393 rooms located in 5 buildings of 1 to 3 stories designed in traditional Balinese style architecture using wood and natural colours. Mine was on the lower ground, has a private terrace and thus the name – “ Deluxe Garden View Terrace“ . You can read about the differences between Deluxe Garden View Terrace Rooms & Suites HERE.

Once I was in my room, I did my usual inspection and video which you can view below:

Shortly after that was dinner.
Agung Restaurant is the main restaurant for meals here while Batur Restaurant is a smaller restaurant that offers ala- carte menu together with compact buffets for appetizers and fruits. More on the meals will be in separate posts as there were too much food and I have so many photos to share from the meals that I had during my 4 days stay here!

But to give you an idea of the themed food, here are some of the dishes.

MENU: Rejuvenation in Yellow “Healthy eating by color”.

Buffets in Agung Restaurant is extensive and for the Body and Soul Program Day there will be a food station dedicated to the color of the day and its corresponding dishes.

A special that day in accordance to the color of yellow was this Beef Rendang with Turmeric Rice.

The rest from the “Yellow spread” were grilled pumpkin with pine nuts salad, carrot and red pepper shooters, pumpkin bread, pineapple cocktail and lemon tarts.

Dinner was good and once sated we joined the after dinner entertainment. There are performances almost every night in Club Med Bali and that evening it was a performance by the children of the GMs (Gentle Members = guests of Club Med).

I was told by Lucy (our Village Trainer/GO – Gentle Organiser) that the children had just practiced for a few hours that evening. But I definitely wouldn’t have guessed that as it looked as if they practiced for days!
I was blown away by their performance as it was well choreographed and the children were so spontaneous.
It was obvious that the children really enjoyed themselves too! 🙂

There were even matching outfits and costumes for each sketch which made the performances real and fun to watch.

After the children’s performance it was the Club Med Yellow Crazy Signs Party. I had wanted to be up nice & early the next day so I retired early and skipped the Crazy Signs Party, which I heard started at around 12 am.

Boy I was already in slumberland by then! 🙂

Day 2 was Energy in Red.

And these are the themed activities for the day:

The first activity was Tribal Rhythm at 9 am but I was already up by 6 am. And by 7.30 am I stood with my tummy rumbling at the breakfast buffet counter.

Besides the usual range of baked goods, cereals and eggs station, some rather intriguing items on the buffet was this Walnut, Goat Cheese & Raisin Savoury Cake.

And every morning there is Body & Soul Specialty at the juice station as well and in keeping with the theme of RED, today’s was Guava & Watermelon Juice.

But I love the Banana Milkshake the most! It was so luscious and creamy! 🙂

A full glass later, I hurried over to the Fitness Center for Yoga.

The Fitness Centre has classes starting from 8.00 am to 4-5.00 pm with a variety of sessions like Body Sculpt & Shape, Abs and Thighs, Dance Fitness and Step Class. All of these activities are free for all guests at Club Med. This was my first activity at Club Med and I had walked in with high expectations of the energy and enthusiasm that I have heard so much of the GO (Gentle Organiser)/ Instructors here.
Unfortunately Yoga is a sedate exercise program and my instructor, Sam wasn’t exactly bouncing off the walls.

Once Yoga was over I headed back to Agung Restaurant for a light bite before the gardens for Tribal Rhythm, a drumstick and fitness ball combo cardio exercise with energizing music and even gregarious fitness coach Lisa Westlake, owner and physiotherapist, fitness instructor, presenter and author of Physical Best – an award-winning Australian fitness company.

Also present was Lynley Gladdis an international presenter in the area of mind and body fitness with degrees in Arts Dance and Remedial Massage.

Now this is what we call a stimulating session! Both Lisa and Lynley were energetic, smiley and friendly.
We started off with warm-up, then vigorous beating of drumstick on the ball followed by some arm exercises using just the Fitball.

Then Lynley stepped in with some sexy Zumba moves and had us gyrating our hips and shaking our shoulders while laughing over our own poor arms and legs coordination. It was a wonderful session under the trees in the open air with clean breeze and these 2 professionals definitely made exercising enjoyable.

After 40 minutes or so, we were led through a stretching and cool down session. I like how both instructors gave very clear instructions and vigilantly kept an eye out for everyone to do the correct form. As you know injuries are possible at any time when you’re engaged in exercise/sport and even veteran fitness enthusiasts made mistakes.
For a Body and Soul Program like this which targets people of all ages and fitness levels, it’s important to look for an instructor who takes her profession seriously. It ensures that you’re not wasting your time (ie; you’re really working on your stamina and muscles in your body) and it keeps unnecessary injuries at bay.

I was pumped up after a good sweat and spent some time to know our both instructors before heading off with Lucy for our resort tour.

We toured the resort for the next hour; strolling over the tropical gardens, golf course, spa, beach front, restaurants, theatre and viewed a suite room. More on the resort as a whole would be in separate post as this entry would focus solely on the activities of the Body and Soul Program.

Lunch was amazingly good as usual. Here’s the Red Corner for the day.

Clockwise from top right: Watermelon & Chilli Soup, Tomato & Citrus Soup, Tomato and Mozzarella Terrine.

From top to bottom: Strawberry Tarts, Tomato Tuna and Egg Salad, Red/Purple Cabbage.

Body & Soul Specialty: Grill Salmon with Glazed Beetroot. This was good! 🙂

Do note that that’s isn’t the full spread of the buffet of course. That was just the Red Corner for today’s Red for Energy theme.

After lunch myself and Huai Bin (sixthseal.com) signed up for Windsurfing course at the Watersports Centre. This activity is complimentary under any Club Med package as long as you’re above 8 years of age. There are 2 beginners sessions each day, one at 10.30am and another at 3.30pm.

Although it is a public beach at Club Med Bali area, the sea bed was clear and the water shallow. The beach is clean and the sand soft.

I managed to sneak in a quick massage before our windsurfing lesson. There is a spa within Club Med Bali but I had booked for my Balinese massage session for the last day and all I wanted today was a good feet massage.
At the beachside there are many local hawking their services from jet-skiing to massages to mani and pedi and hair braiding.

It was really convenient as all I had to do was walk to beach and speak to them.

And so I got myself a masseur, lie down at her pavilion and relaxed for the next one hour as she worked her magic on my aching feet. The sun was hot but the sea looked gorgeous!

Her name is Kak Rumi and she’s really good! Cost? IDR 100,000 = RM30 🙂

Right after that I hurried over to the Watersports Centre.
Our session started with a short briefing by Irul, our watersport instructor for Windsurfing. There’s no better method of comprehension than actual hands-on sessions so each one of the participant gets a go on the mock windsurf board after Irul’s monotone briefing.

Irul was a man of few words and he went through the necessary brief as expected of his job. Some of us were slower to grasp the handling of the sail and he displayed slight impatience at times. Poor Irul, it’s a tough job I know!
Hands and body coordination are essential while handling the sail to guide yourself on water. It is relatively simple once you get the hang of it but can be complicated for absolute beginners or those who has poor body and limbs coordination.
It does take you a while to figure out which hands to be on the front or back of the sail or to lean left or right to guide the direction of the sail.

Below: Huai Bin’s turn on the board.

That done, it’s off to the sea for the real action!

We suited up with life jackets and a team of 2 are allocated a windsurf board each. Thankfully I was partnered with a quite competent English lady. Irul oversaw the whole exercise but we mostly assisted each other as partners. I got off to a good start since my partner was able to help me on the techniques.
But after my 5th or 6th turn I unable to hoist my sail up when it collapsed and I got stranded about 100 metres out at sea.
I waved desperately for help and since Irul seems busy my partner swam over and rescued me. I gave up after that as I didn’t want to be stranded out at the sea again and have to ask my partner to come help me hoist up the sail each time to sail back to the beach. That wouldn’t have been fair to her!

And thus that ended my windsurfing adventure. Nevertheless I had a good time and I’m happy to be able to cross off “windsurfing” from my bucket list of watersports activities.

I rested for while before preparing myself for the evening. It was Agung Restaurant for dinner again.

And I see the Red Corner:

Choose from Tomato Salad, Red Beans Salad, Marinated Watermelon, Strawberry Salad….

…as well as Raspberry Gaspacho and Strawberry Tarts.

And here’s the Body and Soul Specialty; Duck Comfit with red cabbage chutney.

That evening the party theme was Red Latino Night. First I went over to the theatre for the night performance; and tonight it was a performance by the GOs (Gentle Organisers) themselves.

I must admit, it was quite an entertaining show! 🙂

The audience, including myself sat through the entire show. When it was over, Jean Benoit, Village Chief joined in for some singing and dancing!

In my few days of stay, I have developed a deep respect for this guy. He takes his responsibility to an entirely different level. He’s professional, genuinely hospitable and it’s clearly passion, not a mere paycheck that drives him.

I see him walking in the hot sun to every part of the resort the entire day, a smile ready and ever helpful; always inquiring if there’s anything he can be of assistance, greeting the guests warmly and could be seen diligently keeping check on all aspect of the resort. He would always stop to have a word or two with the GOs occasionally and then continue his vigil watch as he moved on to another part of the resort.
Truly admirable!

As if that wasn’t enough, he added singing and dancing to his list of qualities. It was one thing seeing the GOs do it, but leave a totally different impression when you see the Head Village Chief himself so spontaneously working the crowd and enlivening the mood.

At one point he danced Oppa Gangnam Style and had the whole crowd going wild. 🙂

I was thoroughly absorbed in the whole scene and I admit I truly experienced the famous Club Med vibe then; the food, the cheerful atmosphere and the happy guests all high on the atmosphere of the moment.

But it wasn’t over. Next we continued sashaying to Latino beats at the main bar by the pool, where the action is on most nights.
Here the Club Med GOs got the crowd going and kept them going!

As we know it’s an all inclusive package so drink up! 🙂

Even the kids are not left out, but with fruit based beverages of course. Small detail, but it shows why Club Med Bali was ranked No. 1 in the Top 10 Hotels for Families – Asia’ category by TripAdvisor in its 2013 Travelers’ Choice® awards.

I retire that night on my comfy bed with a happy smile. 🙂

MORE ON THE BODY & SOUL PROGRAM:

Body and Soul

Club Med Bali/Cherating Beach

Get rejuvenated, energized, balanced and revitalized inside and out

Bali: March 12^th – March 23^rd

Cherating Beach: April 7^th – April 14^th

Club Med invites you to Club Med Bali and Cherating Beach for the Special ‘Body and Soul: Four Colors in Four Days’ event in 2013.  Body & Soul is a health and wellness retreat designed to boost wellbeing and overall health through a series of activities on four color-themed days per session.

Each day coordinates with 5 key ingredients.
First, a colorful diet of healthy eating by color. Second, enhanced current resort activities. Third,  participants get fit with guest experts from Physical Best – an award-winning Australian fitness company. With us will be Lisa Westlake, owner and physiotherapist, fitness instructor, presenter and author.  Also leading activities will be Lynley Gladdis an international presenter in the area of mind and body fitness with degrees in Arts Dance and Remedial Massage.
Fourth, kids programs by color theme. Fifth, all guests can enjoy special parties with colorful ambiance at night. In addition, GMs can meet special Spa promotions during this period.

Body and Soul Program
Rejuvenation in Yellow

Inhale the elements of sea, sand and sunshine.  Soak up the beauty of the surroundings as you move through a flowing series of morning stretches and rejuvenate body and soul with yellow foods which play a key role in regenerating the body.  On the yellow day, cater to inner & outer beauty.  Some of the key activities include a jungle walk, golf and aroma therapy classes during the day.  For the experts, a key part of the day is the Dance of the Dragon.  Based on an ancient Taoist practice (the healing art of Qi Gong), it energetically re-balances, regulates and detoxifies the internal system through consistent practice.  The Dance of the Dragon incorporates simple on-the-spot movements to induce a deep internal massage and improve health and wellbeing.  In the Mini Club, kids can enjoy finger painting or Batik printing.  At night it’s time for the yellow party!

Energy in Red

 Boost energy with dynamic Red Day programs. Various daytime family activities are available like Tree Top, flying trapeze and mini family-Olympics.  During these activities, family bonds are strengthened and children are given the opportunity to enjoy the wonder of discovery – all while sharing happy moments with the family.  For those in need of more intensity, there is Tribal Rhythm with the fitness experts.  As the name suggests, it is a time for combined music and fitness.  Participants will drum on the fit-ball for an empowering hour of fun.  After the uplifting warm-up, gears shift and it’s time to focus and balance the heart, soul, body and mind. The next available activity is Zumba in which everyone dances their way to health with Latin-inspired moves.  Jump start energy with red foods and continue the theme into the night at the Latin Night Party.

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NEXT: Day 3 and Day 4 – Balance in Green   and Revitalization in Purple

So, what do you guys think of the Body and Soul Program so far? :DD

This was from 20th – 23rd March 2013 in Club Med Bali for the Body & Soul Program “Four Colors in Four Days”.
The next one would be at Club Med Cherating from 7-14 April 2013. The package starts from RM1860 per pax (based on twin share) for a 4D3N stay. Transportation is not included.
The above price is the starting rate for the Body & Soul event specific to Club Med Cherating Beach but for more accurate quote based on your travel dates and needs please contact Club Med Sales Office at (03) 7957 5678. You can also visit http://www.clubmed.com.my for general Club Med news and special offer.