Chapter 2 & conclusion.
At last! Generous whack of tequila, subtle orange tones of Cointreau, the clean sharpness of lemon not overpowering the spirits, salty tang. Perrrfect. But where? We shall get there, eventually.
Kafe Suri in Monkey Forest Road gave us a pleasant breakfast, so we returned at night to try their margarita. Mistake. Sagittarius, little better. I'm not rating them out of 10 as before because I realised my subjectivity is unreliable. My previous post overrated the entrants because of my near death experience. I was on a high when I posted, not because of alcohol content, but because I had narrowly escaped loss of life, or perhaps toes, under the wheels of a French bicycliste. When I stepped off the curb to avoid an obstacle going down Monkey Forest Road, I was aware that it was 2-way for motorbikes and was listening but didn't look. Merde alors but it was a near thing as mamselle flashed past at speed, close as a razor, soft as a whisper. We brushed elbows and she called out a greeting. Or something. My French is not what it used to be.
In the shop, Tequila was 605,000, Cointreau 735,000...
On to Pemuteran. We stayed at Adi Assri, where they were celebrating the first anniversary of their opening. Very pleasant property and we enjoyed our stay, but not their Margarita, which was nothing to celebrate. Snorkelling at Menjangan was brilliant with superb visibility despite the unseasonable rain the day before. We've snorkelled Lembongan and Amed but this was the best for colour and variety of both coral and fish. Trekking in the National Park was another highlight for us. Monkeys, squirrels, pigs, birds, small jungle temples. We walked up the beach at sunset to Taman Sari, hoping this more upmarket establishment would boast a potable Margarita. Hope springs eternal in a youthful breast but the tequila's a trickle at Taman Sari.. Food was fairly good. The Greek food at Taman Selini the next night was sensational. We didn't risk spoiling the experience by requesting a margarita.
Back to Ubud, staying at Bucu View on Jalan Bisma. Lovely - view over the gorge, sound of rushing river, squirrels, lizards & birds, and a snake. The snake was small and desperate to get away from us but when we first saw each other, it was face to face at eye level, as it was slithering down a retaining wall, so there was an initial frisson. Ah, my French is coming back. We thought Bucu View was probably the most pleasant place we stayed this time and certainly the best value. Caught up with a man I'd stayed with in Celuk in 1981, who was then a pemangku, and a gracious, wise man who let me sit in on a number of ceremonies. I'd unearthed some photos from that time and took copies to give him. In his eighties, he's still clear of eye, smooth of skin and sound of mind, and now a podanda. I felt privileged to have coffee with him. My driver was seriously impressed.
Went to Mama Nachos. The ribs were great and guess what - the Margarita not bad! We drew a line under Margarita experience at this point.
My thanks especially to Hoary, Baldie, Pak Mun(g)kin, Pak Itinetcetera, Zabowskee, Pinktanktwo, Tannalee and Clovis amongst all the other posters.
Oh, the perfect Margarita? Constructed back home in my kitchen, of course.