My Visit to Atlas Pearl farm in Bali

[Red]

This is the end of the Atlas pearl farm tour, and thank you for coming along. We still have another couple of days in Bali which were sponsored by Atlas Pearls, and I'll continue with my report of our activities tomorrow.

Now that I'm back home, I have to say that we did a lot of exciting and relaxing things in Bali. It is a great place to visit, and I highly recommend Bali. (With the one proviso that you don't have any difficulty walking about. There are a lot of steps in Bali, and few elevators.) But, the tour of the Atlas pearl farm stands out in my mind as the highlight of our trip. So few people ever get to see a working pearl farm and it was extraordinary.

 

[MSC]

What a wonderful trip to get to witness, thank you for taking us all along!
That large circled pearl you chose looks very special.

 

[BWeaves]

Red, Thank you for taking us along for the ride. And thank you PG, Jeremy and Atlas for putting this trip together, even if I didn't have the winning ticket.

 

[lilliefuzzysocks]

Thank you for this detailed report of your trip. My stand is from there and it's so nice to see where it came from. I can't wait to see your new pearls in person.

 

[CathyKeshi]

Another great report, Red. I am also one who didn't know much (almost nothing) about Atlas, so yes, you're certainly furthering their goals, in a delightful way! Your new pearl set looks amazing

 

[Katbran]

Oooooh you found yourself some lovely pearls !!! I can't wait to see what you do with the big circle pearl ! You always have the most fascinating designs! Thanks so much for taking us on the tour and shopping !!! Great photos and commentary !! Well done!!

 

[amti]

That was some great reporting! Thank you! And you got some lovely pearls!

 

[Sanippy]

Such gorgeousness! I love your new pearls!

 

[Pareltje]

Thanks for taking us along with you during your journey to Atlas. Congratulations with your lovely ssps. They are pretty.

 

[asurazzy]

Wooww such a nice trip! Planning to go back to Indonesia on October. Guess have to strut around Bali looking at Atlas pearls farm. Btw the tour youve done is it because you are special guests or normal people like me can enter and have such tour in their farm?? And those pearls you got mmmm....delicious...and the price its wuite reasonable.

 

[KAC]

This is the end of the Atlas pearl farm tour, and thank you for coming along. We still have another couple of days in Bali which were sponsored by Atlas Pearls, and I'll continue with my report of our activities tomorrow.

Now that I'm back home, I have to say that we did a lot of exciting and relaxing things in Bali. It is a great place to visit, and I highly recommend Bali. (With the one proviso that you don't have any difficulty walking about. There are a lot of steps in Bali, and few elevators.) But, the tour of the Atlas pearl farm stands out in my mind as the highlight of our trip. So few people ever get to see a working pearl farm and it was extraordinary.

Thanks for the great reports - Looks like you had a fantastic trip!

 

[Red]

Thank you so much MSC, BWeaves, LFS, CathyKeshi, Katbran, amti, Sanippy, Pareltje and asurazzy.

I'm glad you are enjoying the reports. It is the least that I can do given that I won a trip to Bali.

LFS, you have a very special pearl strand, indeed. The farm that we visited is the breeding farm, and is probably where the oysters that made your pearls were conceived. The pearls would have been grown and harvested in another one of the Atlas pearl farms.

asurazzy - We were indeed given a special tour out to see the workers on the farm as part of my having won the Pearl-Guide/Pearls as One/Atlas Pearls/Pearl Paradise drawing for the trip to Bali. Regular visitors will see the Atlas Pearl farm gift shop, view a short movie about Atlas, and see the demonstration of the oyster nucleation.

 

[Red]

We followed the suggestions given by Atlas for our activities during the next few days.

We arranged for a relaxing massage the afternoon after our pearl farm visit at the Matahari Spa. This incredibly beautiful spa was located just steps from our bungalow at the resort.



That evening Atlas arranged for us to visit a nearby resort and we had a romantic dinner on the beach under a full moon.



And, the next day we had a cooking class led by the chief chef from the Matahari. We started out at 6 am with a visit to a local food market. It is kind of like our farmer's markets, except it is open daily from around 5 am to noon. There was produce, sugar and sweets, and a fish market. This lady is selling bananas. There are so many banana varieties that we never see in the US.



The cooking class was held in the open air kitchen at the beach of the Matahari. The chef agreed with me that his view while at work was pretty special. We made enough dishes that we had them for both lunch and dinner that day.

 

[Red]

The view while eating at the Matahari beach restaurant. I would never tire of this.

 

[Red]

The next day on our way back to south Bali, our driver took us to a famous waterfall. This waterfall is a bit of a hike into the woods and is unique in that it is the joining of two separate rivers. You have to love that bamboo foot bridge that we used to cross the river.



The flora were amazing. So many of these plants we grow in pots in the US. I felt like I was in a huge garden center.



And, of course, it wouldn't be Bali without visits to some of their amazing and beautiful temples.



And, we took a swim at a hot spring.

 

[Red]

Atlas Pearls put us up at the Sudamala Sanur Hotel for one last night. The Sudamala in south Bali is a lovely hotel. This is a view from our private patio towards the Sudamala gardens.



The Sudamala greets you at breakfast with their signature ketchupy cheery "good morning".



We say thank you to Atlas Pearls for hosting us in Bali. We went on to spend the weekend on our own at the Tandjung Sari Hotel in Sanur, then headed inland to the Kayumanis Ubud for four days. Finally, on our way to the airport to return home we dropped by for an unforgettable visit with Eastern Trade Winds in Kuta. But, this will be the subject of another thread.

"Om Swastiastu"

 

[baby nurse]

Marvelous!! What a joy it's been to follow this thread. Thank you for taking the time to do such a wonderful write up, Red.

 

[pattye]

So delightful to see the pics of you and the Hubby having a wonderful time! Thank you soooo much for the fabulous report and the amazing photos!

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Reading this thread felt like a little vacation for the mind. Lovely! Thanks for sharing your trip with us this way.

 

[JerseyPearl]

I have so enjoyed these posts! Your trip sounds like it was a dream come true. And I cannot wait to hear about your side trip to see Eastern Trade Winds...