The horror! I've woken up to not one, but two pimples on my face. Two! So unfair! And at my age! And not small unobtrusive ones, either! They are enormous & enormously obvious. One on my chin & the other at the base of a nostril. And they are blind ones too, so I can't attack them & make them gone. Why, oh why? Could it be because I am, in a sense, detoxing? I haven't had chocolate in days, I'm not eating between meals and you could almost say I am eating paleo if it wasn't for the bread, rice & pasta? Could it be? I don't know the reason that this adolescent affliction has befallen me. All I know is that it's every kind of wrong & I don't like it. Fortunately I packed some foundation, so some camoflage is in order. I don't know why I brought so much makeup. I've only been wearing mascara & lip balm. I thank the vanity in me that I packed it in this instance.
Down to the gym I go for my workout. I am there on my own for most of it & I studiously avoid looking in the mirrored wall. It's just too depressing. I have to hurry this morning because I have a plan. I make short work of my stretching, & soon make way for my favourite part of my day. A buffet breakfast. Brilliant. Now that I am well aware of all the food element stations I have a system for gathering my sustenance. A glass of OJ on my placemat to stake my claim. Order my eggs while I inspect under the closhes & make my selections. Out come my eggs with their swirl design made from sauce. After I down that lot its up to tropical fruit bar to accompany my waffle & a small pastry from the tiered plate. I am so ravenous at breakfast. I love breakfast. I strongly suspect I am overeating.
It is possible that eating my body weight in breakfast goodies is the reason I feel the need for a little lie down so my body can apply all its energy into digestion when I get back to my room. However, today I cannot indulge as I have a plan. I have booked to go on the 10am hotel shuttle bus so I need to get ready. There are a few more people on the bus than last time - 6 of us. 4 get off at Seminyak Square. I'm going to the last stop - Bali Galleria in Kuta. I've never been there, though I've passed it many a time. The traffic is horrendous, even at this hour. Bali needs to invest in some more roundabouts so there is a bit more order & some rules about who goes first & who gives way to who. It seems so random & pushy.
It takes a good 40 minutes to get to the Galleria. I walk through the huge hardware store into the mall itself. Interesting - it has an open garden area which is surrounded by shops & eateries. My mission today is to find some dresses & a new pair of skechers. I methodically inspect each shop, going in to the few that sell clothes. Nothing takes my fancy. Nothing in Matahati dept store that I want. The Body Shop is having a sale. I buy some body mist & oil in Satsuma clementine fragrance - smells citrusy like a mandarin. Lovely. The one shop that sells skechers has very little stock, so that's a fizzer too. My feet are getting tired from walking & I'm getting hungry again. I don't want to eat here so I retrace my steps & exit through the hardware store again. Out in the carpark where we were dropped off there is not a taxi in sight. I go back to the hardware store entrance & ask the security man where I go to catch a taxi. Near Starbucks, I am advised. That's 1/2 way through the mall, so back I go through the hardware store into the mall & find the exit near Starbucks & a few taxis waiting for fares. Phew. My feet are throbbing. Where to, madame? Discovery Mall please.
The traffic again is heavy, with alot of stop/starts. Ooh, another new stretch of road I haven't seen before. Ooh, and a new mall - Lippo. We pull up at Discovery in front of Sogo department store. I am inundated with time-share touts which I firmly decline & enter Sogo. I try on a few dresses in there, but they are all too small. Damn. Time to eat. I go to Coco Bistro on the far outer edge of the mall. I can see a bit of the sea. I order a milkshake & their nasi goreng - spicy please. It is very good & has decent chunks of chopped up prawns tossed through it & 2 chicken satay sticks accompany it. After I pay, I go outside onto the concourse & watch the waves roll in. There are new restaurants out here too. Its peaceful & a temporary respite from the madness of shopping.
I go to Centro department store but see nothing I want to buy. Near the base of the elevator is a stall that sells thongs - Havianas & Ipanemas. They have a huge range & I decide on a purple pair of Havianas with black straps & purple writing. After paying for them, unfortunately not on special, I find a seat & swap footwear. Ah, bliss. When I enquired where I could buy skechers, I was informed they have a store here which I find easily enough. I admired a pair a lady was trying on & we started chatting. They didn't have my size in hers, so I tried on some others. I want some Go Walks - my black canvas ones are getting low in the tread. The new Go Walks are ghastly - zigzag patterned mesh. They come in fleuro pinks, fleuro oranges or black/grey. They look more like slippers & don't feel as spongy to walk in. I see some black leather-look ones with pink stitching. They are really light & spongy. Nice. They have my size. Even nicer. The other lady buys sone too. They're not on special but still work out to be $25 cheaper than home. I leave the box in the store - apparently they are used to that. I stop by the DVD shop & they have Breaking Dawn Pt 2 which I buy. Only one, I'm asked? I've always hated the toilets at Discovery & my memory still serves me well. Yuk, but I need to go. No way am I sitting on the seat. At least there's toilet paper this time. I'm totally stuffed now & shopped out - time to go back methinks. I exit the way I came through Sogo dept store & walk down to the road curbside & flag a Bluebird taxi as it was about to turn in. As we drive past, I see there was a queue for taxis at the front of the store. Oops.
It is well after 4 by the time I get back to my room. I am happy with my purchases, but no dresses & I'm running out of clean clothes. I lay back on my pillowy packets of heaven & pop Breaking Dawn Pt 2 into the DVD player & while away a couple of hours with The Cullens & The Venturi while I gather my strength again for the trip out to dinner. I don my new skechers which really are super comfy & walk down to reception to ask them to ring for a taxi. Tonight I am going to try Ultimo, its not too late so I hope I can get a table. Yes I can. The front half of the restaurant is chockers & noisy, but I am taken out the back which is like stepping into a different world. Its gorgeous. White satin lines the roof, ruched up into a high peak in the centre. The chairs are completely covered in white material, such as you would see at a wedding reception. This room is glassed off. Around 2 sides are windows overlooking greenery, spotlit with lights. The other glass wall looks out to the outside dining area. Wow, I'm impressed. The waitress brings over the menu - its much more reasonably priced than I was expecting. I order a pina colada & a chicken & mushroom pasta dish. I'm given a bread basket with a variety of rolls & bread sticks with a dish of garlic butter. Oh, & there's a couple of fruit buns in there too. Heavenly. You know if I was with someone I'd have to share my bread, so I am a happily unattached glutton at present. Oink! My main meal is scrumptious too. I have pannacotta with raspberries for dessert. Mmmm. Yummo. The tartness of the raspberries cut through the sweetness of the pannacotta perfectly. Hello, I think I just channelled Matt Preston! Definately coming back here again.
Once again its easy to get a taxi as the traffic is crawling along this popular stretch of road filled with popular restaurants. I've yet to find a taxi driver that doesn't know my hotel, so I can relax back & watch the more familiar landmarks pass us by on our trip back. I'm really tired & only manage to watch 1/2 a DVD before admitting defeat and settling in for the night. I lead such a thrill a minute life!