Saturday, April 23, 2011

Updates on the Bali trip- it was simply too nice not to have a post to remember it by!

Day 1- Had breakfast, arranged for a driver for the next day, then headed out to Seminyak beach.. Had a beer at Breeze @ the Samaya around midday, then started on a 1.5 hour-long stroll from Seminyak all the way to Kuta under the hot sun. Didn't feel as hot as it should be cos of the constant sea breeze, but someone's pretty sunburnt at the end of the day (of which he insisted it's cos he was shielding me from the sun's glare.. awwwww)!

Then we walked around Kuta Poppy Lane 1 & 2 before settling down for lunch in a little local resto. After lunch, we strolled a bit more around Kuta Square before heading back to Seminyak looking for a massage. A 1-hr massage at Nirvana Spa later, we headed for dinner at La Lucciola where we had the most delectable beef wagyu linguine and lamb ragout! Mouth-watering... Beachfront location with the sound of the waves crashing onto the shore, fine dining in singlet, shorts & slippers, all for the total price of less than what a meal at Iguana along Boat Quay costs!

After dinner, we heaed back to our hotel, Mutiara Bali Boutique Resort & Villa on Jalan Braban. We relaxed in a 30-min jacuzzi at the pool at 10pm, before washing up back in our room's semi-open bathroom (unique).


Day 2- Our driver picks us up at 8.30am and we head off on a 1.5 hr drive to Ubud. 1st up- Ubud central market, where I bot a sarong, and he bot a handmade kite! Now to find a time in SG to fly the kite! ;)
After Ubud market, we headed to the rice terraces- we climbed down the rice terrace towards a hut with a old man and his dog, had a refreshing Rp 20,000 coconut (get a cheap thrill out of paying "thousands" for a coconut) then climbed all the way back up again. Stunning, beautiful pictures!

Lunch! My favouritest meal in Bali was lunch at Bebek Bengil (Dirty Duck) restaurant in Ubud! Crispy duck, ayam penyet style! Absolutely yummilicious!

After lunch, we headed down all the way south to Uluwatu temple for our cultural dose. The view of the cliffs dropping off into the ocean was awe-inspiring- waves crashing relentlessly into the cliff bottom, a lone temple standing on the edge of the cliff (Ulu means "land's end" and watu means "rock"). The monkeys are known to be agressive, but they did nothing more than come sniffing around my slippers (although they did snatch a clip off another tourist).

After Uluwatu, we head to Dreamland beach to kill some time. Turns out, this was earmarked to be developed into a mega tourist hub during Suharto's time but because of the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, it was abandoned. We passed by a guarded gantry to get into the resort areas, drove a good 10-15mins past long driveways, a golf course and half-built buildings before finally parking, and then took a 5min hike thru unpaved treks of small rocks before reaching this relatively undeveloped beach. It was small, but with locals enjoying the surf, it was pretty relaxing.

Dinner was of course at Jimbaran Bay for a spectacular beach sunset view! But truth is, we didn't actually eat any seafood cos we were still way too full from lunch! So we had a large beer each while enjoying the sunset view and just talking about everything and nothing.. After we were done with the beers, we strolled briefly along the beach before heading back to Seminyak..


Day 3- very short day cos our flight was at 12.55pm. I headed to the Mutiara Spa for a relaxing 1-hr Javanese lulur scrub (excellent- body scrub incoporating massage techniques, and the tumeric smells really relaxes the body) while he lounges around. After the spa, we checked out and headed to the airport for our flight home..

A short, but very very enjoyable and memorable 2 days in beautiful Bali, can't wait to go back there again!


------ Saturday, April 09, 2011

It's been a looong time, lack of updates hehe..

Let's see..

Work wise, could potentially be an interesting year, depending on how things turn out. The 1 thing that could ruin the year would be interpersonal relationships I guess. Elsewise, this could poise to be a landmark year? Hmmm.


Social life, going ok. Meeting with friens once in a while, drinks, dinner, lunches etc. Starting to reconnect more with some older friends, the feeling's really nice. Perhaps it was too premature of me to write some things off too quickly previously, I'm glad for the effort we put in to keep things going. And I realise, with the different things we are persuing in life, and without the pressure of needing to keep up or "outperform" or "outdo" each other, it's much easier to share thoughts and feelings once again..

26 march- Bain's big day! Wooohooooo! So happy for 1 of my closest friends who has decided to settle down.. Congrats darl!


30 march- in Bali.. A wonderful, thou v short, 2.5 days in beautiful Bali.. Some photos, many memories, best of times.. I'm already thinking of my next Bali trip.. Oh the wonderful food and wonderful massages and friendly people, can't wait to go back! =)


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