After a heavy quaff of my fourth Bintang I have no difficulty of declaring to myself that ‘God! I do love beer, especially this delectable brew'. I guess that it was a taste that I acquired as a publican for 34 years. I check my 'Rolex' and take note that my warden is not due back for ages so I settled back once more and drift into my musing again. My book is now closed and lain to rest upon the bar. No more pages of the written word will be digested today. For some reason I wonder why it is that I haven't had a desire to infiltrate my now recovering lungs once again with nicotine and smile the arrogant smile of a conqueror. I laugh to myself as I contemplate the irony of how my rejecting the substance that was destroying my health and helping fill the coffers of the purveyors of this insidious legal drug had now given some hope and future stability to an average young Balinese Family, none of whom smoked at all and never had. As I sit with my thoughts, sipping my beer, my eyes wander up and down the pathway to the extent of my vision in both directions and take note once more that the absence of tourists is glaringly apparent. Mongrel, gutless terrorists I mumble into my beer. As my eyes sweep across the waters of the bay and settle on the waves breaking over the reef it comes to me that to my mind each and every time these religious fanatics perpetrate and act of terrorism in the name of their God that results in the death and injury of many innocent victims that not too long after a natural disaster occurs that results in the loss of many, in some cases thousands, of mainly Muslim lives. The irony of all of this is that it is the hated western countries that willingly and without malice contribute both material and monetary aid. The fanatics want the supply of aid and monetary support to continue to flow into their countries of origin but still they seek to destroy those who supply that aid. How does one ponder the imponderable? I am just finishing my sixth Bintang when as if by magic my beloved ball and chain appears at my side and my reverie is abruptly terminated forthwith. Pat orders a refreshing watermelon juice and being the gentleman I am I consider it impolite for her to drink alone so I force myself to consume another Bintang to accompany her. She wears the glow that always attaches itself to a woman who has just had the full beauty parlour works and I am about to make some comment when I realise that whatever I say will come out wrong and such being the case there would be far less painful ways of terminating ones life than being torn apart limb by limb by an insulted and angry wife so I simply say 'you look good'. She is only half way through her watermelon juice when I discover my beer is empty. My chivalry is still intact so I cant let her drink alone, so its 'setu Bintang Terima Kasi' once more. We then have a light late lunch and then quietly enjoy the remainder of the afternoon.
Putu and his girlfriend Vani and her brother Devin join us for dinner and we have a most enjoyable evening at the Gazebo listening to the band that is playing. Soon its Friday and only two days to go. After Brekky at Made's Frangipani we have a lazy morning at the hotel and collect the woodwork that we have ordered and some painted wooden eggs from the in-house artisans. My masters voice sizes up our gear and decides that 'once again' there is too much for the cases so we toddle over the road and purchase a Bali bag. Another to add to the many that we already have at home! We send them to the kids with the stuff we bring back for them but for some reason, and I suspect that they have as many as us, the send them back again. At about 10.30 Pat suggests that we go for a jalan jalan along the beach before lunch. Now this I herald as a good idea as it will build both an appetite and a thirst. We wander down to the beach path through the hotel gardens and I fortify myself with Bintang before heading off on our journey of discovery. It is an extremely pleasant morning and weather is really good. A little overcast but great just the same. We meander along the path past the Tanjung Sari and then the Besakih down to the Griya Santrian. The powers that be have done a wonderful job in reclaiming the beach, installing controlling groynes and paving the walkway that runs all the way from around the Mercure at south Sanur to the Grand Bali Beach at north Sanur. To compliment this construction the hotels along the beachfront have kept the sand neatly swept and raked each morning and the pathway along their particular frontage in good order and repair, and it is to their credit that they do so. However, detracting from the hotels fine efforts is the lack of attention given to the beach sands and pathway by the wealthy owners of the private properties dotted in prime positions among the beachfront hotels. Whether you are riding a sit down and run all the time machine, pushing a toddler in a pram or simply just enjoying a stroll along the beach path be prepared to trudge through and force your way through heavy sand that mars the integrity of the path and runs the length of the private properties. Obviously what occurs over the fence is of no concern or interest to these owners. It would appear to be a case of supporting regulations that impact upon the hotel operators while abrogating their own moral responsibilities and maintaining a lack of interest in their own community and local environment. It really is a shame as the pathway is now a major thoroughfare from on end of Sanur to the other and serves both tourists and locals alike. Still, for all of that it is a really wonderful stroll along the path at anytime, so the bride and I just ambled along until we reached the Peneeda View, where at which point we crossed through the hotel and headed back to the Gazebo along Jalan Tamlingan. On the way back we stopped for an excellent lunch of large deep fried king prawns and potato salad at the 'Gassolin Alley Lazer Sports Bar'. This is a great place for an entertaining evening and at the weekends for watching all sports, including Aussie rules football, live on tv.