Deb and I got here 2 days ago and it has been a flurry of activity from the moment we arrived.
Let's see...how have we filled our time? Got some paintings we bought in Myanmar framed. Deb's painting is quite big...she got it matted and framed with glass for $60. It would have cost at least $400 back in Canada. I went to the doctor for some strange mark that looks like a burn on my hand. We both went to the dentist. Teeth cleaning cost $17 for Deb and I had to get a filling redone and get my teeth cleaned. Total cost was $62. Figured I might as well do it now as it could be a while before I am on benefits.
What else? Oh yah...had a 2 hour thai massage for $9. Ha...wonderful. Had to squeeze one more of those in before we leave. Ate some awesome thai food...having phad thai and a Singha beer for dinner tonight. Have already mentally ordered it. Did a little shopping. Yep...more shopping. I swear I will be flat broke and clinically depressed when I get back to Canada but I will be dressed to kill.
Got our hair cut and coloured. Basically we are doing all the things that are cheap to do here and that we won't be able to afford to do for a while once we get back.
Tomorrow morning at 8:15am we will hop in the taxi and head out to the airport. First we fly to L.A. and the following day onto Calgary.
Good bye Asia. Madness. Heat. Shopping. Cheap massages. Long bus trips. Adventure. Sunshine. Sand. Swimming pools. Scuba diving. Great food.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Time keeps on ticking
Yesterday was a bright, sunny and very hot day. I of course, loaded down with sun screen somehow still managed to burn my nose. Deb...whose nose is significantly larger than mine never burns her nose. Don't understand it.
We started the day off with a nice long walk on the beach, watched the Kuta surfers ride the waves and then we headed back to our little hotel for a swim in the pool. Read poolside for a bit, then hopped on our motorcycle and went to a restaurant on the beach for some lunch. Deb had some seared tuna and I partook in the Mahi Mahi (delish!) and of course we took advantage of the happy hour beers! After that, the draw of the stores was too much for my elder sister. A shoe store screamed her name and in we went. She came out with a cute pair of black sandals and I came out empty handed...mostly because I sat there with my eyes closed the entire time refusing to acknowledge the plethora of earthly delights that surround me.
Last night we planned on going out to some clubs...after all it was Saturday night. But we cruised around to all the apparent 'hot spots' and they were all dead. Not too many tourists here on the island at the moment. So our effort was for nothing. We were back in the room just after midnight.
Today we will wander the beach again. Trying to burn the sounds of the waves crashing into our minds, as tomorrow we fly off to Bangkok....where hopefully we will do no shopping. Ha. Actually the plan is quite exciting for Bangkok...we plan on getting our teeth cleaned. It only costs about $20 compared to the $200 that it would cost me in Canada without benefits.
Both of us are currently living in denial that the year is almost up....
We started the day off with a nice long walk on the beach, watched the Kuta surfers ride the waves and then we headed back to our little hotel for a swim in the pool. Read poolside for a bit, then hopped on our motorcycle and went to a restaurant on the beach for some lunch. Deb had some seared tuna and I partook in the Mahi Mahi (delish!) and of course we took advantage of the happy hour beers! After that, the draw of the stores was too much for my elder sister. A shoe store screamed her name and in we went. She came out with a cute pair of black sandals and I came out empty handed...mostly because I sat there with my eyes closed the entire time refusing to acknowledge the plethora of earthly delights that surround me.
Last night we planned on going out to some clubs...after all it was Saturday night. But we cruised around to all the apparent 'hot spots' and they were all dead. Not too many tourists here on the island at the moment. So our effort was for nothing. We were back in the room just after midnight.
Today we will wander the beach again. Trying to burn the sounds of the waves crashing into our minds, as tomorrow we fly off to Bangkok....where hopefully we will do no shopping. Ha. Actually the plan is quite exciting for Bangkok...we plan on getting our teeth cleaned. It only costs about $20 compared to the $200 that it would cost me in Canada without benefits.
Both of us are currently living in denial that the year is almost up....
Friday, February 23, 2007
The shopping drove me to drink
So let me start by saying that Debbie and I just drank the biggest glass of red wine I have seen in a while...and it was delicious. We had a crap dinner last night. Absolutely awful. I think they scooped it up off a sandy floor as every bite was gritty with a sand-like substance. So tonight we were determined to find a good meal. There is a lovely couple staying at the hotel we are at...they spend part of the year here in Bali (in fact this is where they met, they both lost their husband and wife and met here...romantic story but I won't get into that here). I asked them for some restaurant recommendations and I didn't really hear past the 2nd recommendation when Hanna told me that this restaurant serves up very big glasses of wine. SOLD! I am there!
Now I will get to what drove me to drink. Some of you will think it is Debbie...could be, but not in this case. Some of you will think it is because we have less than 1 week left here in Asia (you are close...that is making me want to drink but it didn't push me to the bottle). What drove me to the sweet seduction of red wine is the shopping here in Bali. The only way I know how to stop myself from shopping any more is to be drunk. So for the next 3 days I have vowed to be staggering drunk. So drunk that I am slurring my words and perhaps lose control of my bowels. Anything to keep me away from the amazing stores and the SHOPPING! It is a terrible thing and this is the only way I know how to stop.
Sigh....
Now I will get to what drove me to drink. Some of you will think it is Debbie...could be, but not in this case. Some of you will think it is because we have less than 1 week left here in Asia (you are close...that is making me want to drink but it didn't push me to the bottle). What drove me to the sweet seduction of red wine is the shopping here in Bali. The only way I know how to stop myself from shopping any more is to be drunk. So for the next 3 days I have vowed to be staggering drunk. So drunk that I am slurring my words and perhaps lose control of my bowels. Anything to keep me away from the amazing stores and the SHOPPING! It is a terrible thing and this is the only way I know how to stop.
Sigh....
Sunday, February 18, 2007
The clock ticks a little louder
Well thankfully, Deb is on the mend. No longer a subtle shade of grey and once again looking human. Too skinny, but human.
So as we approach our final days here in Bali we are both starting to hear a rather large clock ticking (not the biological clock) in our ears. We are doing our best to drown in out by swimming in the pool, walking on the beach and listening to the surf pound against the shore, drinking our sorrows away with cold beer...stuff like that. At times it is working quite effectively but as we both begin to apply for jobs (sob) it is less effective.
The past few days while Deb has been holed up in her room listening to the subtle sounds of her gurgling stomach, I have been out exploring with Amit. We went to a great bar on the sea for some rather expensive martini's...but the good music and the sunset made them worth the high ticket price. We have gone for massages, went to a waterpark where we slid down the waterslides (going down backwards is a BAD idea...that is all that I will say [puke puke]), fed a monkey, rented a motorcycle and cruised around the area, etc. It has been good. I had passing moments of guilt as I was floating down the lazy river at the waterpark, thinking about my poor sister...but then we would grab an inner tube and whip down a slide and all thoughts of Deb would be ripped from my mind as I was too busy clutching my bikini shorts to ensure they weren't ripped from my body by the rushing water.
All around us here in Kuta we are assaulted by great shops that continually scream our names as we pass by. My GOD, this country is amazing for cheap shopping. Friends beware...I am going to buy a whack of stuff and invite you over so you can all do some shopping. My version of a candle party...it will be an earring, t-shirt, bracelet version. So get your money ready!
So as we approach our final days here in Bali we are both starting to hear a rather large clock ticking (not the biological clock) in our ears. We are doing our best to drown in out by swimming in the pool, walking on the beach and listening to the surf pound against the shore, drinking our sorrows away with cold beer...stuff like that. At times it is working quite effectively but as we both begin to apply for jobs (sob) it is less effective.
The past few days while Deb has been holed up in her room listening to the subtle sounds of her gurgling stomach, I have been out exploring with Amit. We went to a great bar on the sea for some rather expensive martini's...but the good music and the sunset made them worth the high ticket price. We have gone for massages, went to a waterpark where we slid down the waterslides (going down backwards is a BAD idea...that is all that I will say [puke puke]), fed a monkey, rented a motorcycle and cruised around the area, etc. It has been good. I had passing moments of guilt as I was floating down the lazy river at the waterpark, thinking about my poor sister...but then we would grab an inner tube and whip down a slide and all thoughts of Deb would be ripped from my mind as I was too busy clutching my bikini shorts to ensure they weren't ripped from my body by the rushing water.
All around us here in Kuta we are assaulted by great shops that continually scream our names as we pass by. My GOD, this country is amazing for cheap shopping. Friends beware...I am going to buy a whack of stuff and invite you over so you can all do some shopping. My version of a candle party...it will be an earring, t-shirt, bracelet version. So get your money ready!
Thursday, February 15, 2007
The Barracuda got us
Went to Amed, Bali to do some scuba diving and we stayed in these amazing bungalows with a sunken tub and a deck that overlooked the ocean. It is low season (we were the only one's staying there) so we got a great price. The swimming pool was one of those where when you are in it, you feel like the pool becomes the ocean. It was amazing. Just chilling in the pool staring out at big blue. Sigh...
We ate at the hotel restaurant the first night...all of us ordered the barracuda. Big mistake. It may have been dead, but it bit us back HARD. I fell first. Started with some severe back pains while I was scuba diving and then the nauseau, loosies, etc. Then the others fell. But poor Deb fell hardest. I have been recovered now for a couple of days with a few lingering side effects, but I had to get the hotel to call a doctor yesterday because Deb just wasn't getting any better. Not eating, dehydrating, etc. So while I am off exploring Kuta and all its surroundings, she is stuck back at the hotel recovering. Hopefully now that she has some medication she will recover quickly...as our days are numbered. Sheesh...we leave Bali on the 26th and then fly back to Canada on March 1st. Please let it be warm.
We ate at the hotel restaurant the first night...all of us ordered the barracuda. Big mistake. It may have been dead, but it bit us back HARD. I fell first. Started with some severe back pains while I was scuba diving and then the nauseau, loosies, etc. Then the others fell. But poor Deb fell hardest. I have been recovered now for a couple of days with a few lingering side effects, but I had to get the hotel to call a doctor yesterday because Deb just wasn't getting any better. Not eating, dehydrating, etc. So while I am off exploring Kuta and all its surroundings, she is stuck back at the hotel recovering. Hopefully now that she has some medication she will recover quickly...as our days are numbered. Sheesh...we leave Bali on the 26th and then fly back to Canada on March 1st. Please let it be warm.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Mom and her adventure with monkeys
We rented motorcycles yesterday and decided to go on a little roadtrip south to Ulu Watu temple. The temple itself isn't much, but the location is superb...perched on the cliff practically hanging over the ocean. So we get there after 2 hours of pretty hard riding. My knuckles were white from the dodging, weaving and braking on the way there. Once again we are in a country where traffic is mad.
We pay our entrance fee and are told to take off all our jewellery, glasses and hats because there are monkeys by the temple. Deb, Amit and I take off our sunglasses but think it is ok for mom to keep her glasses on. We are walking along past some bushes and there are all these monkeys about. They make me a little nervous to be honest. I like them from afar, but up close when they are baring their teeth and hissing at you...not so much.
I am in the lead and all of a sudden I hear a little scream from mom. A monkey has swung down off a tree and stolen the hat right off her head....the cheeky little bugger. So off I go in search of a stick to see if I can somehow get it back, because I can see the culprit and he is just sitting there chewing on it in the bushes. Then I hear Debbie yell that another monkey has stolen moms glasses. Sheesh...they were serious when they told us to take them off. I look over the railing and there he is...mom's glasses bent in half, one lens missing...chomping away on the plastic from one of the nose pieces. Kiss those glasses good bye. He is big and he is baring his teeth. Suddenly 2 Balinese men come, jump the fence and throw some cucumbers at the bugger and he drops mims glasses. He found the lens, patched them together and mom is wearing them today...without the nose pad or the plastic on the arm...but at least she can see. They even got the hat back...minus the Canada flag pin and the $2US she had tucked in the hat. I guess now the monkey can go buy his own sunglasses!
We pay our entrance fee and are told to take off all our jewellery, glasses and hats because there are monkeys by the temple. Deb, Amit and I take off our sunglasses but think it is ok for mom to keep her glasses on. We are walking along past some bushes and there are all these monkeys about. They make me a little nervous to be honest. I like them from afar, but up close when they are baring their teeth and hissing at you...not so much.
I am in the lead and all of a sudden I hear a little scream from mom. A monkey has swung down off a tree and stolen the hat right off her head....the cheeky little bugger. So off I go in search of a stick to see if I can somehow get it back, because I can see the culprit and he is just sitting there chewing on it in the bushes. Then I hear Debbie yell that another monkey has stolen moms glasses. Sheesh...they were serious when they told us to take them off. I look over the railing and there he is...mom's glasses bent in half, one lens missing...chomping away on the plastic from one of the nose pieces. Kiss those glasses good bye. He is big and he is baring his teeth. Suddenly 2 Balinese men come, jump the fence and throw some cucumbers at the bugger and he drops mims glasses. He found the lens, patched them together and mom is wearing them today...without the nose pad or the plastic on the arm...but at least she can see. They even got the hat back...minus the Canada flag pin and the $2US she had tucked in the hat. I guess now the monkey can go buy his own sunglasses!
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