Good morning everyone,
Firstly the weather... haha... I'm beginning to feel like Angela Tsun from the Channel 9 news!
Yesterday remained sunny and warm, no rain, humid of course, but otherwise lovely.
Today looks ummmm... actually its a bit early to tell yet, it looks a bit overcast, but the sun hasn't really been up long enough to burn off the light cloud layer. I'm hoping for sunny, but with a lovely cool breeze that feels rather like airconditioning! It could happen!
Yesterday we spent the morning lazing around the villa, breakfast was cereals etc again, and a morning of splashing around in the pool with Master 2 meant that tantrums were kept to a minimum.
At 12:30 we piled into Nyoman's van, stopped by a kodak shop to exchange money and then headed to Biku. Well... what can I say.
There is a reason that people rave about Biku! Its a lovely restaurant, comfortable, well staffed, charming atmosphere, and its honestly a fun change to sit down to a meal with gorgeous floral china, and feel like your doing something reserved for the high class ma'am's!
Most of our party, including Master 2, ordered the traditional high tea. This includes cucumber, salmon and cream cheese, and ham with mustard sandwiches, spinach quiche, scones with jam and cream, and a selection of bite sized cakes. Ummmm... actually, Master 2's high tea came with fairy bread, peanut butter, ham, and a cupcake.. he was in heaven!
While Master 2 attempted to grab the cupcake, and I continued to fill his hands with more savoury treats, the rest of our party supped on gorgeous tea (from proper tea pots, with proper sugar bowls, and proper milk jugs, with proper tea cups on proper little plates and it was all just so PROPER! haha) and the delicate little morsels that made up our lunch.
It was all lovely, though I have to admit to finding cucumber sandwiches nowhere near as interesting as I had hoped they would be.
So with Master 2 happily munching his way through his cupcake, we finished off our meal, were greeted by the lovely owner of Biku, and after a brief chat were on our merry way.
Lunch with 5 High Tea's, 1 round of sandwiches, and 1 sheppards pie (which was gorgeous!) came to just under 700k.
On our way home mum and I decided that we simply had to drop into Biarritz to find out what all the fuss was about.
Well... now I know.
Its like a giant Red Dot store, with all of the cheap bits and pieces that people sell stocked up on shelves, and in baskets waiting for the fixed price bargain hunter to come and snatch up a prize!
Placemats, cushion covers, table runners etc. Incense gift packs, hair clips, statuettes, bowls, platters, salad servers, knick knacks, etc. etc. etc. And this is just the first floor!
The second floor was more statuettes, fans, bowls, vases, just... stuff!! and there was a third floor, which I was banned from going to because I had already filled two shopping baskets to overflowing, and I'd promised I was only going to look! oops!
Now I should have come here earlier in my shopping travels... only because as I left the store I was very aware of how I was going to have massive problems getting my purchases home!
I had spent a portion of the morning packing up most of my purchases into a suitcase. In fact, I have all but filled the suitcase and this didn't take into account the piles of stuff we had arrived with, even though we were "packing lightly", nor did it take into account the giant wood wall panel, nor the two massive remote control helicopters I somehow had to get home!
Oh... speaking of the helicopters....
They work wonderfully, in fact the morning dawned with Master 14 running around in the garden, practicing flying his monster beast.
Unfortunately our villa garden is gorgeous... lush, surrounded by greenery... and as you can imagine, helicopters controlled by inept Master 14's and trees don't like each other very much.
The helicopter got damaged... twice.
Hubby assures me that he has repaired it, and they only need to return to Big Boys Toys to pick up a few spare parts "just in case". I can see whats going to happen! Its only been one day... by the time we leave I'm going to have a second suitcase deveoted to helicopter rotors and motors and bits. Its going to look like some high tech bomb through the airport scanners, and we're never going to board our plane, and we're going to be stuck in Bali.... ummm... actually that sounds good, we'll go with that!
Dinner last night was a return to Poppies Restaurant. What a good idea! The food was the best we have had since our arrival... absolutely magnificent.
We ordered starters, garlic prawns, sashimi, liver pate (of some birdish variety?), and a few others which I was too busy eating to notice... yummy! Then mains we were served Greek Salad, Shish Kebabs, Seafood A'la King *drool*, Sate, and Seafood Skewers. Master 2 lucked out with ham and cheese jaffles that suited his picky eating habits and were thoroughly enjoyed.
The food was superb, and met with thumbs up from everyone... not a single word of complaint. But the highlight of the meal was the drinks.
If you know anything of Poppies restaurant, you have probably heard of their signature drink, the Pina Colada. Well, our party ordered 3, and it was a darn good thing there were 8 people at our table, because they are HUGE. Beautifully presented, carved out of a coconut into the shape of a Barong, and absolutely and utterly gorgeous to drink. So filling though! I got half way through mine and threw my hands up in defeat.. one more slurp and I would have had to send my food back! Hubby got lumbered with the rest. Good thing he had only ordered a salad!
So after a fantastic meal in every which way, and a more expensive but worth every single penny cost of 1.6mill for 8 people (including starters, mains and at least 2 drinks per person), we rolled ourselves back to the van, came home and went straight to bed to sleep it off!
This morning we have an 8am pickup to take myself, hubby, Master 14 and Master 2 to the Safari Park. We will be staying overnight, and unfortunately as we really are "packing lightly" I won't be taking my laptop. As such, unless I find a convenient computer, no post for Day 12, it will have to be a double whammy on Day 13.
Eek... being picked up in 45 mins and noone else is out of bed yet! Must dash!
Have a great day everyone!
BaliDaze