Bali On The Rocks

The Ayana Bali is a destination in itself. Sharmistha Chaudhuri finds out what makes it so unique.

- Sharmistha Chaudhuri

It was surprisingly windy despite the humidity. The sun was about to set, the colour of the sky slowly turning into a mesh of warm orange, pink and purple shades. I sat nursing a rather tall glass of a gin-based cocktail. They called it Rockatonic, one of the signatures the menu read. Who was I to argue with the logic? My sister had told me one thing before I left the humidity of Delhi for the warm, tropical weather of Bali: “Go wherever you want, but you must have drinks at Rock Bar.”

She of course was referring to Ayana Resort and Spa Bali’s famed bar on the rocks (literally), where everyone wants to go and be seen at. It is rather unique— carved on a cliff face along the Jimbaran coast, with views of the striking blue namesake bay for miles. It opens in the late afternoon and makes a sundowner worthwhile in the age of social media. There are certain places that have gained immense popularity over the years, where a ‘check in’ or photo-validation has become mandatory almost— Shakespeare and Company, the quaint bookstore in Paris which opened in 1922 at its current location; Illiterati Café in McLeodganj, which often finds itself at the top of every must-go-to café list in the hills; The Elephant House in Edinburgh where JK Rowling wrote about the ‘boy who lived’. Such is the case with Rock Bar. In fact, a friend who has never been to Indonesia told me about her plans to go and have a drink there at sunset sometime this year.