Byeee Bali!

People forget that I am an introvert. I don't. I can't. I know that since I was a kid. When work made me do those MBTI things, mine always turns out to be an unwavering INTJ. Social interactions in large groups exhaust me. Time-outs are needed otherwise I get into this funk where I just want to hide and read and not do anything else. Not going to be apologetic about it.

It's been such an enjoyable stay in Bali. I wanted to get in touch with nature. Got that plenty. Sunrises, sunsets, blazing mid-day sun, surf, sand, sea, volcanoes, paddy fields, rivers, mud and green. Glad to have hung out with a bunch of humans who also understand the value of silence and solitude. That is deeply appreciated.

Didn't overload on the booze. Well, since local beer was shite, we relied only on the whisky in the room. Not totally convinced about paying for cocktails. Cannot deal with hangovers since we gotta wake up early most mornings. Amazing that we didn't over-eat. Or rather whatever we ate, it was completely exercised off within hours. It's hot and humid, but nothing intolerable when we're dressed down light and casual in dri-fit and all that. Thankful that we didn't even get rained on much wherever we went even though this is rainy season.

Bali and her people have been incredibly hospitable, albeit with heavy police presence over the festive season. The south is still mad with throngs of humans. Tourism drives the economy of this island. There'll always be pockets of quietude on this island. We just have to find them. Managed to do so on each too-short trip. Since the last visit in 2010, there've been so many changes. Some for the better for sure. Dunno when I'll be back. Till then.

Ate Loads of Balinese Spices

Resolutely stuck to local food in small warungs. Those have been pretty decent. Can't blame me for missing sambal belado and sambal matah, the sorts. I've no interest in bebek anything, ayam betutu or babi guling. Luckily the man came to Bali recently with the boys on a stag party trip and ate all the meats. Heh. It means that on most days, I get to decide on what I want for meals.

Lots of nasi padang available along the tiny stalls that lined the streets. The one thing I didn't want to eat was nasi lawar- vegetables, grated coconut, minced meat and fresh thick blood. Save for medium-rare steaks, I don't have a thing for animal blood in congealed form.

We did head out to a nicer restaurant at Gangsa Private Villas. They even did a complimentary pick-up from anywhere in Sanur. The resort sent us back too. That was really a pleasant surprise. Like most places in Bali which are non air-conditioned, it has a problem with mosquitoes. Oh well, just slap on all the mozzie repellent in spray or adhesive form, and one should get away with minimal bites. Or none. It isn't so bad in the restaurant. But the villas might be a problem. Need like total fumigation because of where it's situated. It's further inland.

Its Gong Restaurant offered a Balinese rijsttafel. Perfect for sharing between two, or four if additional dishes are desired. There were beef rendang and a babi kecap (braised pork with sweet soy), chicken sate, and a mahi-mahi fish. They offered different sambal along with the meal. Sambal sere tabia, sambal matah and sambal belado. Yummy! In sambal heaven.

There was rice provided. The sort with fried shallots on top. I love it! But we were greedy and ordered an additional nasi goreng vegetarian that came with lots of tempeh, and a bebek betutu (slow cooked duck). The spices were beautiful. Totally blissed out. What a splendid dinner.

A Foot Rub

The big toenails are royally bruised. More treks are planned. Wondering if they will finally fall off in a few weeks when I'm done with these muscle-building and core strength training sessions.

Blisters have formed at the sides and under the feet. Blister plasters have been slapped on. Lathered antiseptic lotion and cream. Walking continues. There isn't much pain. Those plasters work well. After two days, the blisters have simply skipped the blood and pus stage to become dried skin. Whewww.

I'm not interested in massages this round. Indonesian massages don't knead deep enough. Even those that indicate 'deep tissue'. Honestly, the various activities done have stretched out all kinks and muscles so well. Don't particularly like stripping in places that smell funky. None of us feel like paying S$120 for a massage at a higher-end spa in a resort on this trip. We were more focused on the activities scheduled than chilling out at the spa. Heh. We can get those massages at home.

Ah, after all that walking, a foot rub would be nice. Don't need the S$40 an hour at the fancier spas for a foot rub that isn't foot reflexology (and I get a better deal back home). But a foot rub at the smaller places is welcomed. At RP70,000 to RP100,000 (~ S$7.50 to S$10.50) for an hour, that's pretty okay. It's more soothing than useful in ironing out aches.

There're many shops along Sanur's Jalan Danau Poso and Jalan Danau Tamblingan, and the surrounding streets. That's the main stretch of town where most tourists pop by, say the supermarket and the ATMs. Pick any massage shop that looks good to you. Randomly stepped into one, liked it and returned a second time. Did two foot rubs so far. Totally no frills. Cool. At least it has proper chairs to recline on. I find it rather strange to lie down for a foot rub. Again, it's not foot reflexology. It's more of long soothing strokes and a little kneading to even out obvious knots. Felt great.

Maya's Coffee & Smoothie Bar

Since we're mainly in Sanur, naturally we found a cafe to return to almost daily for a juice or a smoothie- Maya's Coffee & Smoothie Bar. Tried a number of other cafes dotting the streets and didn't quite fancy their smoothies and juices. Many cafes add sugar to their smoothies and juices, and even to coconut water. Like sugar syrup into a whole coconut. Most cafes don't do smoothies in the thick lovely texture that we hope for. Maya's is pretty good and churns out smoothies the way we like it.

Afternoons usually find us there. Didn't bother with the wifi since we had data-SIMs that allowed us to port out to laptops and tablets. The 3G is faster than most wifi; there's no 4G as LTE is still on trial and we can't seem to pick it up via Telkomsel. It's a nice quiet place to chill out if we don't feel like alcohol. A cold juice on a hot day is best thing ever. I like Balinese coffee. The simple grounds in a French press. Hearty and strong. Ahhh beach life.

Maya's also does salads and sandwiches, eggs, tomato soups and pasta. There's oatmeal porridge too! But we haven't tried it. It's usually just drinks- the milkshakes, coffees and smoothies. There was one day we came in for a non-local easy breakfast because the man felt like banana nutella pancakes. Heh.

Maya's Coffee & Smoothie Bar
Jl. Pantai Sindu, Sanur
Bali 80228, Indonesia
Hours: 8am to 8pm

Treks Up The Volcanoes

Halfway up Mount Batur. Sky's getting light. Needed to hurry.

The only thing about these treks up high points on Mount Agung and Mount Batur- they totally disrupted my sleep cycle. To see the sunrise, we gotta get up there by 5.45am. Which meant transport picked us at 11pm for Mount Agung, and 2am for Mount Batur.

We took the easier route up the 3031m Mount Agung via Pasar Agung. Took 3.5 hours. For the 1717m Mount Batur, we were the earliest and took two hours. We seemed to have taken a local route where there weren't more than 50 people on it. Not sure, but there seems to be all sorts of local disputes, rights and money over guides and hikers visiting these public volcanoes. I don't want to know. The hotel arranged our hikes and we were fine with our drivers and guides. Although they didn't explain shit to us initially. Like meet, and just follow them to walk. Unless you speak bahasa, then you'll get more information out of them. Read those forums before you sign up for these hikes.

Now these hikes require climbing boots, gloves and poles. Use a head lamp instead of carrying a torch. (Guides mostly provide torches and not head lamps.) You need both hands. So pack those gloves. The last hour on Mount Batur was nothing more than a rock scramble on all fours. Same goes for Mount Agung where your trepidation lasts two hours. Once out of the treeline, the trails are simply loose mud, stones and dust.

Give up on walking down. Not possible. Good luck sliding down during the descent. Dunno if this sunrise thing is overhyped. It was beautiful, for sure. I just haven't decided if it's worth the effort. Oof. Anyway. And we walked and clambered in the dark mostly. Luckily for the full moon on those two nights. That provided some light. Thank fark we climbed in the dark and could only see five steps at a time. If I could see more, I'd have completely bailed out of climbing. Wtf. Also, pee in the side bushes before you get out of treeline and before sunrise hor. Hahahaha.

Ominous clouds that brought a shower and luckily nothing heavier. On both treks.

Hikers need to be fairly experienced and fit. We climbed at an incline of almost 70 degrees for three to five hours. There's no safety equipment provided unless we bring our own. You know I have acrophobia. During final ascent on both volcanoes, I refused to balance on two legs and literally went on fours. I'm stronger scampering on four limbs and defintely felt way more secure. Same thing for descent. I rather slide and swing around steep bends than walk upright precariously. Either side is a ravine where a fall would end with a broken branch pierced through a body part. Tip your guides generously. They are experienced and perhaps you might get one who's super helpful.

Went up both volcanoes on overcast mornings. Cloudy. Windy. Still beautiful though. After the treeline, I think it was like 12 or 15°C. Was busy perspiring. Didn't even feel cold till we got nearer to the top. A light windbreaker sufficed. Grateful for a rain-free climb and view, considering that this is rainy season and there were thunderstorms and crazy lightning before we were picked up for both climbs.

Glad to have gotten up the volcanoes before the next eruption.

Never happier seeing easy slopes.

Cocktails at Sunset

Some people insisted that a trip to Bali wouldn't be complete without sunset cocktails at a club. What the crap. I totally dislike lounge music and DJ sets. It's not my kind of scene anymore lah. Also I didn't want to be in these sort of venues over the festive period. "One drink!" They said. Fine. Went to the most horrifying of the lot along Seminyak- Potato Head, and hoped we don't die in a blast.

Potato Head is so painfully hip that you'd feel like a slob in a boring get-up of tees and bermudas, unless you're supermodel-thin or you wear them with such flair that you look camera-ready, and don't look like a regular human heading out to the wet markets or kopitiams. Anyway, Bali's restaurants and clubs aren't exactly air-conditioned. Dresses are much cooler than tees and shorts. Flopping around in a dress is certainly good for flicking off sand after hitting the beach.

The beers kinda sucked, even though the menu offered more than the usual beers. Do not order the local beers except for Bintang, preferably served ice-cold. Potato Head's menu has an impressive list of cocktails, mocktails and juices. Smoothies too. Fresh fruit, yoghurt and bananas feature rather heavily in the concoctions.

My companions lapped it all up, including the cocktails. Eioowww. Too sweet. I stuck to whisky. Well, bourbon in this case. As much as I dislike the vibes in Seminyak and its 'beach clubs', they do possess the best alcohol list in Bali, and do a mean mix of cocktails. Potato Head's cocktails are certainly fantastic. Dunno how strong the alcohol content is, but arak-infused coffee beans sound intense.

Hog Wild

None of us wanted to go to Naughty Nuri's in Ubud. But the man and the friends were keen on checking out Hog Wild. It was crazy traffic from Sanur to Kerobokan. Ah Bali. To get to anywhere, we sit in the vehicle for at least 80 minutes.

At least the cabs now are plentiful and metered, at a starting fare of only RP7000 (~ S$0.72). It's about RP130,000 (~ S$13.30) from Sanur to Kuta or Seminyak, depending on traffic. Since we aren't going into these two towns more than thrice, we did away with hiring a car and a driver for these short trips.

Balked when we got there. It was teeming with humans at 7pm. The eatery was full. Good lawwd. The sheer size of the waiting horde of humans was scary. Luckily Hog Wild used a buzzer system to control the wait list, but it can't stop humans from clogging up the sidewalk. Spied empty seats at the bar. So I asked the servers very nicely if we could sit at the bar. After all, only four seats were needed. We didn't care about being seated at a table. They gave it to us and we completely skipped the queue. Hurhurhur.

I don't understand this fascination with pork or ribs. I'm not particularly fond of pork. As long as there're other items on the menu, I'm okay tagging along to whichever eatery. On a side note, I'm not enamored with the Balinese eateries opening up in Singapore. Having had one utterly shitty experience at the stupid duck place at Chijmes, I'll never bother to eat at any of those again. Their prices are insane, lousy service, food isn't up to par, and importantly, I couldn't care less about duck or pork.

There were grilled corn, nasi goreng and spicy fruit rojak for me. Hurrah. The others were thrilled with the two full racks of beautifully marinated pork ribs, and well flavored clear pork rib soup. They were in love with those ribs. By the time we finished dinner, we were completely soaked and beads of perspiration dripping off our ear lobes. Hot hot humid night at a hot hot hot eatery.

Theft :: Artistic Appropriation

One of the many magazines I like to read in its physical paper format is Tin House. Such a pleasure reading the poems and short essays in the chosen theme of the quarterly issues.

Caught up with its September release- Issue #65 'Theft'. It's an enjoyable holiday read. Thought I would read lots in Bali, but no. Had only time for short stories before being dragged out somewhere.

Tin House sent out a call for short essays about "memorable thefts" and had the call "answered by the doyen of crime writers, Mary Higgins Clark, alongside Alissa Nutting, George Singleton, and Laura Lippman." The essays, poems and short stories were very good. It does make one stop to think about issues of copyrights these days. "Mary Higgins Clark reminds us that, in Shakespeare's words, “The robbed that smiles steals something from the thief.” [Othello, Act 1 Scene 3]" True that, under certain circumstances.

There're the poems and the slightly serious essays on issues of copyrights. Ginger Strand's thoughts on fair use in 'Vonnegut on the Road'. She's interested in detailing the stories of 'the rover boys' on their road trip in a borrowed Packard on Route 36 from Indianapolis to Missouri and Colorado. in the summer of 1939. She read the hand-annotated manuscript "The Rover Boys" which is a typescript of Vonnegut's letters home during the journey, ordered and bound in a blue booklet. The 'rover boys' were three sixteen-year-olds- Bud Gillespie, George Jeffrey and Kurt Vonnegut Jr (1922-2007). It also touches on how Kurt Vonnegut Jr had been earlier accused of stealing and how he righted that wrong two years later on this road trip. However, because of the ambiguity of fair use and copyright laws, no one is able to publish any writing about those stories even years after it, and after 'the rover boys' have passed on.

"All of these stories are quite good. But when it comes down to it, it may be best that I don't. You should hear them first from Kurt Vonnegut. It would be a shame if you had to wait until 2077 to do so; that seems excessive. But with any luck, the Farber Literary Agency will put "The Rover Boys" into print soon, and you can have as much fun reading it as I did. I'm sorry not to offer you more than that, but I have tried not to be a schmuck.

There's an almost funny story (it ends well) 'Run Your Shit' by Victor LaValle, who presumably recalled his one-time attempt to run away from home at thirteen by pretending to be attending a Mötley Crüe gig at Madison Square Garden. That was 1985. Feeling lost wandering through the streets of Times Square, he somehow got robbed off his book bag, decided that living on the streets wasn't his thing, and returned home within the hour.

Eventually, I tried to imagine my life in New York City. Where was I going to sleep? How was I going to make any money? Soon a more pressing question arose: Where was I going to piss? This was the kind of thing they never addressed in the Uncanny X-Men. Where did mutants pee? Maybe on of their special powers was never struggling to find a bathroom in New York City.

Mary Higgins Clark loves her jewelry. You see that in her stories. In this contribution of 'The Jewel Heist', she wrote a little story about stolen jewelry and how one particularly sentimental piece was dropped in her garden by the robbers, and the landscaper later found a few months later. It was a "three-tiered dinner ring" of diamonds given to her by her mother-in-law, of which she loved, and a piece her husband thought "vulgar". The point of the story is really, a formidable new safe isn't really as safe as,

"good jewelry snuggling under old clothes in an even more crowded attic. Lots of luck finding it."

A New Pair of Sunnies

In short, V bought a few pairs of sunnies online that didn't fit because we only just realized Tom Ford made them in different fits. I never knew that either!

Instead of doing the returns thing, V asked me to see if they sit all right on my nose bridge. One pair did. So V decided that I should have it as super-early birthday present. Woot. Apparently, this pair is a non-Asian fit. Very strange. Not like I have a sharp nose bridge. The cheekbones are quite high though. The Asian fit literally sat on my cheeks. Cannot leh.

I'm mainly in Oakleys on this trip. Doing things mah. Oakleys are polarized too and works great against strong sunlight and glare. Need a practical pair for running, climbing, salt water and perspiration.

I brought along this new pair of Tom Ford anyway. Just for fun! I wouldn't have bought it for myself. Love the huge shades, but they are too fashionable. LOL. Only the good friends would be able to pick them out for me and insist I wear them. Like clothes and whichever accessories too. Heh.

Thanks girlfriend! Super love the huge sunnies that cover half the face. xo

Lobsters at Sunday Brunch

This was the most un-Balinese meal we've had and would probably have over the course of this trip. We were chatting with the friends and somehow thought we should hang out for a bit before they continued on to Kintamani.

It was like a belated celebration of M's birthday, so we ended up going to Fairmont Sanur's Sunday lobster buffet brunch. Thankfully, it wasn't crowded. It was pretty decent. We ate so much.

There was the buffet spread, and the menu to order an endless supply mains. A whole leg of parma ham. The servers also came around with plenty of other dishes like salmon sashimi and smoked barramundi. So decadent! The lobsters didn't disappoint. Maine and local lobsters aplenty cold and grilled. They also came in the form of a bisque, pastas, risotto, sandwiches, seafood laksa, etc. Delicious.

Of course the restaurant isn't air-conditioned. Eating was hot work. I gulped like five tall glasses of freshly squeezed guava juice. Those made up dessert. Totally avoided the ondeh-ondeh and chendol. Was happy with the appetizers and mains. Filled up the stomach almost to bursting point. Took a long walk along the beach to literally sweat it off before taking another long swim.

Warung Nasi Ayam Men Weti

Bothered very little with the breakfast buffet at the hotel. It's included in the room price. While it's got loads of stuff typical in an Asian hotel buffet, it isn't enticing; although we welcome a few pieces of bread and muffins packed in a box for us when we head out early for the various activities. If we sit down for breakfast, then we rather venture to the local makan stalls.

Then there was a morning breakfast at Warung Nasi Ayam Men Weti. As usual, no menu. Didn't have to bother with whatever. We just had to decide on how many plates wanted. Speak bahasa hor. No English here. The warung only serves one dish. Balinese style nasi ayam. I think the locals pay RP20,000, and the foreigners (including domestic tourists) pay RP25,000 for each plate (~ S$3). Am certainly not going to quibble. At least they didn't charge me RP30,000 for being a total silly foreign tourist. With deep fried chicken skin, shredded chicken, offal and pepes ikan. Vegetables consist of cassava leaves and sorts, fried peanuts, and sambal matah.

One woman (daughter?) was solely in charge of dishing out each and every plate, so customers gotta have a ton of patience. Average waiting time is 20 minutes. Ibu Made Weti sorts out everything else and well, supervises. It might seem like a chaotic mess of humans crowding around the stall, but there's a system. Just wait for your turn and put in orders after people in front of you.

Wah lau, the out-of-town Ibus are damn scary man. Dunno where they're from. They pushed to the front and were so fierce in ordering. I refused to budge. I was there first; politely ordered earlier and waited. The kak-kak dishing out the plates didn't seem to like the impatient and stern tone of the out-of-town Ibus to my either elbow. She knew I had quietly waited, and handed me the next four plates. Yay. She also gave me the last two eggs- half an egg for each plate. Nobody else behind had eggs unless the stall cooked and peeled more in the next hour. SCORE. Small victories. The odd mix of sambal and tomato sauce on the eggs was delicious.

Warung Nasi Ayam Men Weti
Jalan Segara Ayu, Sanur
Bali, Indonesia
Hours: 7am to 11.15am-ish or when they sell out.

Rafting Down Telega Waja

Am happiest in and around water. As much as I love the mountains, I'm a water baby. Nothing better than to plop into the sea for a few easy dives and see if the lungs are agreeable to this sort of depths. I miss diving so much. You're with people, amongst nature, and yet alone. It's glorious.

Went rafting at Telega Waja in Karangasem, right below Mount Agung. The two hours it took for us to go 16km downstream made it moderately fun with a 4m drop just before the end of the journey. Much better than the not-very-exciting Ayung River which is quite dirty now. Telaga Waja is still beautiful. While paddling, we remembered to look up to admire the green and the water. This river really should be preserved and kept clean for many to enjoy.

In a raft of four with the friends, we had bits of extra adventure when our raft got stuck on a rock and filled up fast with water. We had to get out to push the raft off. Then I underestimated how light it was and kinda fell in with the raft when it slid off the rock. Heard lots of screaming when I surfaced. Everyone else was still on the rocks. Our guide looked concerned and tried to come after me asap, but the current was strong; he also had to hold on to the raft. I was okay! It wasn't difficult to swim against the current, and I easily swung back into the raft. Yayy.

Hahaha. Part of the fun. Luckily I didn't hit my head or got caught under the raft. It was a smooth part of the river without too many jutting rocks to crack my ribs and elbows. What an awesome mini adrenalin rush.

It's a new year. Hello 2016. As crazy as the world gets, I hope to find pockets of sanity and carve out precious moments of solitude. 

You have a good one too. Define your happiness.

Watching the rather hilarious video of the ride from M's GoPro.

The Last Day of 2015

Sunset in southwest Bali.

Very pleased with how the year has panned out. It has been oddly crazy productive on the freelance work front. Slacked off on chasing projects, but the projects found me. Grateful to have completed the major charity projects that I've worked on over two years to bring to fruition. Those gave me much joy.

Headlines hit closer to home. There's a palpable sense of peace that might be shattered soon because of the madness prevailing in various parts of the world. We don't live in a bubble. Singapore is vulnerable. Humans do this best, kill one another. Depending on which part of the world you live in and the sort of circumstances dealt with, closing a year with a sigh of relief 'I survived' will have a significantly different meaning.

The last day of the year always bring about calmness, and a bit of moroseness for me. I've always thought it to be the calm before the storm. Dunno. I'm a pessimist. Am more than grateful for 2015. With each passing year that I still have my health so that I may serve, I don't doubt God's blessings and His path for me. It has been an incredibly privileged journey filled with laughter and the love of friends who are family, and the family who are sane and we get along. I'm thankful to be able to do all that I do.

Thank you for stopping by to browse these ramblings. May you end the year joyfully and begin 2016 on an optimistic note.

Wishes. From us to you.

Warung Mak Beng

First thing I wanted- local food by way of fish and sambal. Bring on those awesome spices! Got 'em both at Warung Mak Beng in Sanur. Dunno why it's such a popular spot. It's crazy crowded at all times of the day with big groups of locals and domestic tourists.

The man and I squeezed in to the counter at the wall and plonked ourselves in the corner. SCORE. Ordering was easy. The eatery hired sufficient staff. I think they speak basic English since it's off the Sanur beachfront. But I speak passable Indonesian. Works fine especially when ordering food. Anyway, there's only ONE SET MENU. RP45,000 each (~ S$5). No choices. It can't be that difficult to politely gesture or something. And honestly, at this age, if we didn't learn it as children, we ought to have picked up basic bahasa melayu or indonesian.

Warung Mak Beng only does one thing- fish. Fried and in soup. Ikan laut goreng and sup kepala ikan dan sayur. Food comes as one set. I don't think they even have a menu. You get fish head soup, fried fish with sambal and a plate of steamed white rice. Drinks are separate.

The eatery uses whatever fish they caught that morning. As long as it's fresh. At RP45,000 for a set, we can't complain. (Yup, prices have increased since two years ago.) Go to the toilet, because you'll pass by the kitchen on the way. Use it as an excuse like I did. The kitchen is the exciting portion! I wanted to see what sort of fish are in the pots and woks, and how the kitchen works. Heh. They use different fish. I spied giant trevally, beltfish, pickhandle barracuda, and leatherjacket. Wheeeee.

My gawwd. Lunch hit every spot. I was totally craving for spices. Most of Bali isn't air-conditioned. The heat and humidity was unbelievable. In dri-fit and was still soaked through. Smelt like grease after. Totally worth it.

Warung Mak Beng
Jl Hang Tuah, No. 45, Sanur
Bali, Indonesia
Hours for now: 8am to 8pm-ish.

A New Pair of Water Sandals

Being anywhere near the town center of Kuta or Seminyak irritates me to no end. But I needed a new pair of water sandals. Dive shoes wouldn't do. I also needed shops that would accept credit cards. My 10-year old sandals broke after being soaked for only two days. Gaah.

Three stores in Kuta had only BCA terminals which couldn't get a signal at the exact point of payment. It was infuriating. Ah, Bali and your familiar 'no signal for credit card machines, so cash only'. Finally found two other shops that also owned a Mandiri terminal but could only process Visa cards and not Mastercards. Zzzz. Same goes for the supermarkets. ARRRGH.

Since the credit card terminals finally worked at two shops in Kuta, I also bought extra socks and tees. Might as well. Then I don't have to be washing clothes every night. Rinsing with travel detergent and drying them will do. The clothes absorb so much perspiration that they stink so badly. Ugh. Not putting them into the suitcase till they get less smelly.

Found a pair that isn't sandals, and not exactly water shoes. Skechers walking shoes. They don't dry fast enough. But they will do. Lightweight, comfortable and wayy cheaper than any online listing! I already have dive shoes and I'd rather get a proper pair of Teva sandals which aren't available on the island. So in case I need to leave this pair of flexi-sneakers in Bali, it's okay.

Hey Bali

From West to the East. From 36°F to 32°C. The rain's similar, except Bali's raindrops are warm and fat. It doesn't feel too bad getting soaked. When the sun comes out in Bali, it's blazing hot. When I got back to Singapore to quickly swop out suitcases, it was so fast to pack for the tropics, including hiking poles, climbing gloves and head lamps.

It's been a long time since I last stepped into Bali. There's a new-to-me highway leading out of Denpasar, and a brand new international airport. Look hard enough, and even Bali has something to offer returning visitors. The last trip was mainly to check out Taman Nasional Bali Barat (West Bali National Park) and the surrounding area. This one is going to be a lot more focused on the sea and the active volcanoes. I really want to trek them before their next eruption. The Pacific Ring of Fire seems to be awakening. Am really glad that our flight in wasn't interrupted by thick columns of volcano ash from other volcanic eruptions. (Obviously we aren't bothered about the flight out. Hahaha.)

This round, we chose to stay at Sanur and not move here and there. Sanur is a convenient point to Nusa Lembongan and Gili islands without staying over. Best decision ever. No white sand on its beaches, but that's not a dealbreaker. It's far less crowded and not as chaotic as Seminyak, Nusa Dua and Kuta. Whewww. At least traffic isn't horrendous unless we're heading to those party venues. Dunno how businesses in Sanur feel, but fewer tourists are always good for us who prefer a quieter area. That said, we bought three bottles of whisky from Changi duty-free. Hurhurhur.

Looking forward to a number of easy dives and long treks. Bedtime's gonna be by 10pm, and we'll be up by 6.30am. On three nights, we'll have sleep by 8pm and wake by 1am to do the night treks to the volcanoes to catch the sunrise at 6am.

Goodbye Jakarta

All in all, it’s been a good trip. The week concluded an exciting project that my team has seen through from inception to implementation and almost joyous completion.

When my counterparts asked me about future projects, I crafted the answers carefully because all that matters is the continuity of institution to institution ties, and the trust in our brand name and our quality of work that will remain excellent in spite of the different humans.

Yet, so much of our work and warmth with our counterparts are built upon the interpersonal relationships. Is it not clear then, why we won’t be able to go beyond a certain level in terms of establishing strong linkages. It's more than the language. There're certain actions that can always transcend language barriers. We always underestimate face-to-face contact. I’ll miss this.

With the work wrapped up, it was time to go home. Rain sent us off on the journey to the airport. With the traffic jam, a 40-minute journey turned into a 2-hour crawl on the roads. Not surprisingly. We had allocated 3 hours to get to the airport, so there was no panic, just a quiet acceptance of the wait as part of the travel experience.

As the car passed street vendors huddled under umbrellas and make-shift shelters, we really couldn't complain very much about our situation. At least we were dry and comfortable. The rain meant that they would sell fewer items and earn little for the day. What is mere annoyance to us will have a greater impact on the street vendors.

There's always a queer mix of wistfulness at the end of each work trip. I'm glad to be heading home, of course. But I'm not desperate to be home. To me, being in Singapore clearing work in the office is the same as working out of anywhere else. But hell, I'm damn happy to not be bound to clearing the work emails at night. Pulling double shifts can be a tad tiring.

Some Luck In The Shopping

We were supposed to get a birthday present for the man’s Dad way earlier than this. But the boutiques in Singapore don’t stock the item. We hopped into a couple of shops and didn’t find it at all. It was clear that we had to pick another present.

So I decided to try searching for it in the malls of Jakarta. I thought I’d have better luck, as exemplified by all other items I had wanted but not stocked in the boutiques at home, and I found them here on the last trip. Shopping with a purpose is much easier as I simply run through the shops very quickly rather than lingering to waste time.

True enough. A jaunt to Plaza Indonesia and Grand Indonesia got me what I wanted, and more! This boutique didn’t just stock the item. They carried the exact specifications we wanted. And they presented a selection of tea and served the chosen earl grey piping hot while I was waiting to sign the bill. Such considerate service. Yay. It’s now a belated present, but well, I’m just happy that we got the birthday boy something he needs than to substitute it for something else, or worse, buy yet another camera or lens to add to his growing collection.

Then there were random other things at the rest of the boutiques that were worth checking out- like a shade of a pouch in a color I haven't seen in Singapore or at DFS. Not for myself! The other stuff are procured for the girlfriends who asked me to take a look!

Hard Rock Cafe Jakarta

Do not even ask how I ended up at Hard Rock Cafe Jakarta. By golly, I haven't stepped into any HRC for eons. Hey, it was just dinner, okay. It's not uncool as a dinner venue....umm...right? A light beer Bintang was my choice of drink for the night. Too much alcohol from the previous nights already. Without good strong shots of caffeine to last me through these few days that began at 7am, I'm only relying on adrenalin from the intense pilates stretches in the mornings to get me through.

Service was so bloody prompt that I was a little bowled over. Drinks appeared within 3 minutes of our order. That huge plate of nachos arrived in 4 minutes; the rest of the food came in 10 minutes. I didn't mean to count, but the speed was amazing.

I loved the nachos. Awesome stuff. Couldn't say the same about the fish and chips. Decent oil and flour used for the deep fryer. But that fish held a strong muddy taste that couldn't be ignored in spite of the thick dabs of mayo and chilli sauce. I dumped the fish, ate the chips and cleaned the plate of nachos.

The house 'DJ' played MTVs on the projector and plasma screens. I forgave the uncool factor of HRC when they put on John Mayer and Kings of Leon. There was Audioslave, The Police, The Killers, and oh dear, they also had Jason Mraz. Eiooowwww. Anyway, the company definitely didn't know rock music and I didn't see it fit to add on to their random comments. I was busy stuffing nachos in my mouth just so I wouldn't be able to make bitchy remarks. It was all I could do not to die laughing from the mere fact that I was sitting in Hard Rock Cafe Jakarta.

The resident band comes on at 10pm. I was a tad curious about it. But after Prost Beer House and Rossi, I decided that it would be better should stay in for the night and watch telly. Shark Week beckoned on Discovery at 9pm. So I scooted back to the room really quickly.

One Final Meal Together In Jakarta

On this final work day of the week, we were hosted to an epic lunch at Grand Duck King. I was damn glad that I didn't eat breakfast beyond fruits and juice. Ditched the coffee at the hotel because it really sucked.

The photos here don't even show half the dishes we had. There were plenty of dishes at lunch. Prawns, soups, dim sum baskets and MORE! Quite standard Hong Kong style Chinese food, but I love the additional spices that mark it uniquely Indonesian. The food is rather good!

The duck and the chicken looked lean and nicely roasted. They were soaked in oil. Looking really tasty. But I gave it a pass and concentrated all my stomach space on the fish, broccoli and cumi!!! I like cumi when it's well done. This one was lightly grilled and still juicy. The sambal that came along with it was da bomb. Washed it all down with 2 thick glasses of jus alpukat. Glorious.

None of us wanted dessert. But of course the colleagues were most interested in the durian goreng. They decided to eat it like a main savory dim sum thingy. Some like it hot and some like it cold. But whichever way, it's quite yummy, they said. I no like durian, so my portions were given to the colleagues who ate up every last bit!