Day03

Monday morning in Bali.

What do you do if it is piddling down ... check the email, buy postcards, write postcards – discharge our obligations to the troops at home!!!

It is true that we both have a fondness for culinary delights has resulted in a less than svelte physiques. We both look like we’ve stepped out of a Rubens painting :-)

Piegirl had packed only a couple of sarongs and swimsuits (to fit the mountains of cuddly toys in our luggage) and was fast running out of things to wear. Having struck out badly in Garlic Lane the previous day she was keen to hit the Animale Factory.

Mixed feelings about our excursion – there was a lot that she liked… but she was at the extreme end of their size range (a size 6) and the choice was limited by what was left in that size.

She loooooved the men’s range – for her, not for me! Piegirl tells the story: "Gorgeous linen shirts with lilac and khaki abstract floral." I think it's all a bit fruity. "Fine for Italian waiters with 12 inch hips”, I might have muttered. (Mind you, I was also nearing the end of the gear I’d brought over… including the grundies you're about to hear more of.).

Nonetheless, I endured over an hour of Piegirl fossicking through the racks.

The Secret Garden Day Spa offers the Royal Treatment which is just great – and a whole new experience for the Pieboy. The price is about 320,000 rupiah per person.

Piegirl says it was excellent and she knows about these things!!

It was the whole shooting box – massage, facial, Javanese Lulur, petal bath, hair wash, head and shoulders massage, pedicure and manicure.

Pieboy reckons it was waaaay better than going to the barber although the idea of losing the grundies came as a wee bit of a shock. At least it wasn’t cold. But I still don’t see why Piegirl had insisted that I wear my good reggies!

After such a treat, walking down JL Legian is a challenge! There are hardly any tourists on the street this afternoon. It must be very, very hard to make a living at the moment and some of the sales people are pretty desperate to make a sale. “No thank you I don’t want hair braided – nails done – time share etc etc etc etc etc“ We always try to say “no thank you” – even if it is in German – rather just brush past and ignore people.

Even in Poppies II there are hardly any people around and the Piepersons wander along the virtually empty lane – we really wanted to just walk and look at this stage. One or two stall holders are quite persistent and it makes strolling a little difficult in places.

We end up in the Rainbow Café. The waiter is a hip hopping Balinese guy who knows his job and does it well. There is something a little strange about finding the hiphop thing in Bali … the hat on backwards, skate shoes and so on. This dude is cool – we’ve left his Australian twin at home.

Dinner is good and cheap – but not large enough for the Pieboy.

One aspect of our after dinner stroll down Poppies II which worried us a little was the approach of people (twice) who were attempting to sell us something that we can only imagine was an illicit substance. On both occasions the people had small bottles with some type (?) of plant suspended in what seemed to be oil or some other liquid. We weren’t so polite in declining on these occasions. Fortunately it didn’t happen again during our stay.

We need to go to Matahari which just happens to be conveniently located near McDonalds.

Imagine this: sitting in a McDonalds in Bali watching TV which is showing an Indonesian show called Extravaganza with a couple of guys with alternative sexual preference dressed in women’s clothing … its all in Indonesian so we can’t understand a word. I’m not too sure which is funnier – the TV programme itself, or the McDonalds’ staff reactions to the programme – they were really enjoying it – or their reactions to our enjoyment of the programme that we couldn’t understand. It certainly proves that laughter is universal.

In Matahari we pick up some packs of antibacterial Wetties. Every Aussie and Kiwi knows the commercial – Pop up a Wet Ones! Wetties are the Indonesian equivalent of Wet Ones. According to the pack they are “extra thick”. Don’t be fooled. They’re not. Pieboy reckons that they smell ok though.

Because of baggage weight restrictions, there are certain items that must be consumed before we leave Indonesia. Diet Coke and duty free Malibu is fast becoming the Done Thing in the evenings. Maybe they balance each other out.

Breakfast at the Mercure - the omelette twins, Poppies II, view from Mercure restaurant



	Monday morning in Bali. What do you do if it is piddling down ... check the email, buy postcards, write postcards – discharge our obligations to the troops at home!!! It is true that we both have a fondness for culinary delights has resulted in a less than svelte physiques. We both look like we’ve stepped out of a Rubens painting :-) Piegirl had packed only a couple of sarongs and swimsuits (to fit the mountains of cuddly toys in our luggage) and was fast running out of things to wear. Having struck out badly in Garlic Lane the previous day she was keen to hit the Animale Factory. Mixed feelings about our excursion – there was a lot that she liked… but she was at the extreme end of their size range (a size 6) and the choice was limited by what was left in that size. She loooooved the men’s range – for her, not for me! Piegirl tells the story: "Gorgeous linen shirts with lilac and khaki abstract floral." I think it's all a bit fruity. "Fine for Italian waiters with 12 inch hips”, I might have muttered. (Mind you, I was also nearing the end of the gear I’d brought over… including the grundies you're about to hear more of.). Nonetheless, I endured over an hour of Piegirl fossicking through the racks. The Secret Garden Day Spa offers the Royal Treatment which is just great – and a whole new experience for the Pieboy. The price is about 320,000 rupiah per person. Piegirl says it was excellent and she knows about these things!! It was the whole shooting box – massage, facial, Javanese Lulur, petal bath, hair wash, head and shoulders massage, pedicure and manicure. Pieboy reckons it was waaaay better than going to the barber although the idea of losing the grundies came as a wee bit of a shock. At least it wasn’t cold. But I still don’t see why Piegirl had insisted that I wear my good reggies! After such a treat, walking down JL Legian is a challenge! There are hardly any tourists on the street this afternoon. It must be very, very hard to make a living at the moment and some of the sales people are pretty desperate to make a sale. “No thank you I don’t want hair braided – nails done – time share etc etc etc etc etc“ We always try to say “no thank you” – even if it is in German – rather just brush past and ignore people. Even in Poppies II there are hardly any people around and the Piepersons wander along the virtually empty lane – we really wanted to just walk and look at this stage. One or two stall holders are quite persistent and it makes strolling a little difficult in places. We end up in the Rainbow Café. The waiter is a hip hopping Balinese guy who knows his job and does it well. There is something a little strange about finding the hiphop thing in Bali … the hat on backwards, skate shoes and so on. This dude is cool – we’ve left his Australian twin at home. Dinner is good and cheap – but not large enough for the Pieboy. One aspect of our after dinner stroll down Poppies II which worried us a little was the approach of people (twice) who were attempting to sell us something that we can only imagine was an illicit substance. On both occasions the people had small bottles with some type (?) of plant suspended in what seemed to be oil or some other liquid. We weren’t so polite in declining on these occasions. Fortunately it didn’t happen again during our stay. We need to go to Matahari which just happens to be conveniently located near McDonalds. Imagine this: sitting in a McDonalds in Bali watching TV which is showing an Indonesian show called Extravaganza with a couple of guys with alternative sexual preference dressed in women’s clothing … its all in Indonesian so we can’t understand a word. I’m not too sure which is funnier – the TV programme itself, or the McDonalds’ staff reactions to the programme – they were really enjoying it – or their reactions to our enjoyment of the programme that we couldn’t understand. It certainly proves that laughter is universal. In Matahari we pick up some packs of antibacterial Wetties. Every Aussie and Kiwi knows the commercial – Pop up a Wet Ones! Wetties are the Indonesian equivalent of Wet Ones. According to the pack they are “extra thick”. Don’t be fooled. They’re not. Pieboy reckons that they smell ok though. Because of baggage weight restrictions, there are certain items that must be consumed before we leave Indonesia. Diet Coke and duty free Malibu is fast becoming the Done Thing in the evenings. Maybe they balance each other out. Breakfast at the Mercure - the omelette twins, Poppies II, view from Mercure restaurant See these pictures and others on today's picture gallery.