DAY 1

Ahhh… No introduction…(refer to airport drama) That is so unlike me. But I couldn’t help it, the ideas were literally popping out of my head, forcing me to succumb to pressure and write, not that I didn’t want to, but thanks to the days off that I took, workload has increased : ( and of course there was (still is) a Japanese test that I’m supposed to study for.

Well, truth is I had a short but happy break in Bali, about 2 weeks ago… (that long already??!!) so, the airport drama post and the following few have all got to do with the trip (for posterity… and I suppose and just for the fun of it).

AIRPLANES, ARCHITECTURE AND ????

The flight… seated in a row… thanks to good negotiation skills by friend : ) View from the plane: c’est magnifique! Ha! Ha! Now I know that clouds cast shadows that can be seen on land (or sea for that matter). Looking back though, all I can say is “duoh!” Why else is it shady when there are clouds in the sky? This goes to show that a high level of excitement denies a person from thinking logically!

Back on solid land. As soon as the immigration necessities were fulfilled, we were met by our guide, walking out of the building you could feel the heat concentrating all it’s energy on you, but it’s common knowledge that things like that are too trivial to keep you from being excited. We also unfortunately received news that our friend with the passport problem was unable to settle her matters… and that she would not be joining us there.

A gargantuan carving, made of stone decorated the roundabout near the airport, and almost every other roundabouts in Bali. I have seen a tiny, almost non-existent roundabout before, and now I’ve seen one with gorgeous decorations. Life is finally complete!

A long drive and many roads later, we reached our hotel… seriously the place looked like a nature reserve cum art gallery, with all the greenery, and such, and our room was a quaint little cottage which overlooked a valley. Bella!!!

Hungry people. Note that touch down time was at 1:55 pm, + extra walking time and long drive. Way past lunch time… Hungry people needed fuel to get through with the rest of the day, so we head off in the hotel shuttle bus (more of a van, really) and get off at a local eatery offering their famous dish. Babi Guling.

Honestly, we were flabbergasted to see a (roasted?) pig happily sitting at the entrance; most probably never guessing the fate that was gonna befall it. Poor thing!

Later on we shopped around (not to the extent of dropping, though!), while honing our skills in the art of bargaining (well, maybe), checked out some cool buildings, and had dinner of pepes ikan (coconut with fish wrapped in leaf, if you may), and satay (different from our local kind in terms of flavour) and Balinese coffee (an excellent drink to wash down the fat from the food).

End of activities for Day 1.