Right, it's Wednesday night. The show at the Hulu Café starts at 11. We've reserved a table for 10, in the hope that everyone turns up, and guess what! They do! Amanda, Margaret (with friends Tony and Sue), Greer (with Bali boyfriend Wayan), two other girls we met at S&S (forgive me, I don't remember your names) and my sister Vicki and myself. Decent turnout. Well, what a night it turned into! Some of those boys (girls) are seriously gorgeous! There's one there you'd swear was a woman! Angela. Petite, long dark hair, gorgeous frock. She was so stunning I got jealous. Then again, I'm 56, a little overweight (oh alright, a little more than a little!) and my best days are definitely far behind me. But at least I still remember how to enjoy myself!
The show comprised the usual miming to popular numbers, and at one stage a guy got pulled up out of the audience to join in. He did a great job acting up to the lyrics ('Whatever Lola wants, Lola gets'), even grabbing the girl and planting a big kiss right on her lips. I think he was a plant! But it was well worth it to set the mood! Then Tony from our table got dragged up (no pun intended!) to have a dance with one of the girls. One of the girls clambered down from the stage and climbed all over a guy at the next table, but then decided I looked a likely victim and climbed all over me. I ended up with a (small) lipstick smear on my t-shirt, directly over my left boob. The rest of the table was completely kacking themselves laughing (me too), and it was an absolute scream. Vicki was invited to form a threesome by the bi guy at the end of the table, who was seriously lusting after one of the 'girls', but politely declined the invitation. It was a great night, and I think it's safe to say a good time was had by all. Some of us (Gail Amanda) decided to go again, but I'm sorry guys, the bit of paper with your contact details got lost in a shopping bag somewhere! Couldn't find it for love nor money. Blamed husband (who else) but he denied responsibility.
So on Thursday we went to the Griya Santrian at Sanur. It felt like going home. I enjoyed the stay at Legian, as we'd never stayed there before, but now that I've seen it, I don't ever have to go there again. There's way too many tourists, and it's way too busy for me. I like the quiet of Sanur.
So we've checked in, we've unpacked, and I find I've lost my brand new specs. The bifocal sunglasses I'd had specially made a month ago, so I only had to take one pair of specs down to the pool! Bugger! Considering all the specs I took over for John Fawcett, you'll appreciate the irony. Let's hope the travel insurance claims gets paid!
Lovely to meet up again with Kerrie and his wife Denise (from Kalgoorlie) and their friends Steve (the mad golfer) and his wife Fran. They're also Griya regulars.
Rang John Fawcett to arrange to drop off the close to 200 pairs of spectacles I'd brought with me (after the Customs officer at Denpasar kept us waiting for 20 minutes or so whilst he rummaged through them to find a couple of pair that suited him). Thieving prat! Were invited for morning tea and had a very nice 2 hours with a remarkable man who'd gone to Bali 23 years ago to prepare for his retirement, and was now working harder than ever. Late last year the Foundation had received a bus which has been converted to a mobile operating theatre, and they're performing 12 cataract surgeries per day in the Singaraja region. Did you know (we didn't) that you can send a Balinese child to school for AUD100 per year? And that AUD100 is tax deductible! Did you know (we didn't) that regularly wearing sunglasses can help prevent cataracts? The Foundation does a wonderful job, and if we go to Bali again next year, I'll be collecting more spectacles.
From here on it just get quiet. We do dinner regularly at Lazer Sports Bar, Aladin Café, Retro Café and Jala Jala. Kapu Kapu across the road is great for breakfast. Warung Kami Sama is just not the same without our 'adopted' son Acong to serve breakfast. We also go to Toot Sie one night, where Acong is now working. Love Acong, not fussed on Toot Sie. As usual, I love the chicken Florentine at Aladin, the penguin satay at Lazer, and Retro does fantastic lumpia (spring rolls). Three in a serve, and that's an entrée. It's almost enough for a main.
We met some lovely new people at Sanur. Vicki and Brent, the Kiwis, first-timers. Dale and Leslie, the Poms, also first-timers. Had some great days around the pool (and dinners) with these guys, and a terrific evening at Tanah Lot with Vicki and Brent.
Sanur has been incredibly re-developed. The beach is so cosmopolitan now. There are tea shops, coffee shops, and of course all the usual shops. All the restaurants along the beach were packed almost every night, and as a result the diners on the main street were suffering badly from lack of custom. We ate at places on the beach only 3 times (I think). We much preferred the street, where it was quiet enough to have a chat with the staff. I must admit I liked the beach better before all the renovations.
The biggest disappointment was going to Tulamben for the day to snorkel. Had breakfast at Padangbai on the way. That was a lovely spot to visit, but the lady hawker was a challenge. There was no part of 'no' she understood. We went to Tulamben at the recommendation of various Forumites, mainly because sister Vicki can't climb in or out of a boat due to her arm injury. We were assured we could walk in off the beach and snorkel at Tulamben, and at Amed. We'll, you probably can, but don't do it when there's just been a full moon. Does awful things to the tides, and makes the water really dirty. Got quite badly knocked about in the water at Tulamben, and had to be helped out by a scuba diver, as I was at risk of being swept away by the waves. It was really rough! But the scenery on the way there and back was fabulous. Extremely photogenic! Definitely worth the trip. And we had a great laugh with the 2 little kids manning the stall by the roadside when we stopped for a drink. They were such good fun we had several drinks and tipped them outrageously!
We took Acong and Yuni and little Gede Allan to the Bali Bird Park. We'd bought them a pram the day before, as a surprise, and Gede took to it like a duck to water. Thought it was a great idea to just lie back and go to sleep. Made life a lot easier for Yuni as well (and the rest of us, as we didn't have to take turns carrying him). The Bird Park was still gorgeous, but we all felt that there didn't seem to be as many birds as last year. Maybe it was just that last year it had been such a stunning surprise, and this year we knew what to expect. But it was still a lovely day.
I didn't mention earlier that I'd picked up a Pro XL SIM card for my mobile, which was a terrific idea. I would highly recommend doing this, as it's very cheap, and saves a lot of worry. It meant we could keep in touch with all the kids back home, and so my daughter could tell me she got yet another high distinction for one of her uni papers. Smartie pants!
I think I've pretty much covered everything now. Of course, if anyone has any questions, I'd be happy to answer them if I can.