I don't think I've mentioned this, but i don't sleep well when I'm not in my own bed. I seem to wake up every couple of hours, another reason I may be inclined to daily nanna naps. As usual, I'm up by 6:30am & in the gym by 7am. Again I am the first person there. I do my stretching, my workout & stretch again. I'm convinced that if I didn't workout, I'd be the size of a barn. 'They' say that weightloss is only 20% exercise, 80% diet. My diet is around 10-20% in holiday mode so I must keep up the exercise. Aside from being my pennance, I also happen to enjoy it.
That done, time for brekky. I see a pattern developing in the selections available under the closhes. Its never the same. One day beef bacon, the next pork bacon. The opposite sausage is available and today chicken sausages are thrown in the mix. The vegetable fritters look appetising. Baby hash browns are on today too. Scrambled eggs ordered, plate loaded. Pineapple juice this morning instead of orange. There are chocolate filled croissants on offer today - maybe just one?
Waddle back to my room for my habitual lie down. I shower first. I decided that none of my clothes look that wrinkled once they're on, so never did get round to doing the ironing. I so missed the queue when they were deciding who would be a domestic goddess. I loathe housework, just as any professional sloth would. Last night's DVD is still in the player so I watch the remaining 2/3s & close my eyes for around 20 mins for a light kip afterwards.
I ask reception to ring me a taxi & I'm bound for Ultimo for lunch. Only its not open, damn it. There is an Italian place next door that is open - Trattoria La Cucina. I decide to have a pizza with ham, italian sausage, onion, mushrooms & peppers. While I wait, the waitress brings out a bread basket with sliced roll, a couple of whole rolls & crispy bread sticks. There is no butter offered, so I munch on some sticks. A few persistant flies are making a nuisance of themselves & I idly brush them away from the food. A couple with a recalcitrant toddler come in & sit nearby. She takes off & tours some neighbouring tables & then starts slapping the waitress on the bum as she is taking her parent's order. A high chair is produced & there is some wailing involved at being effectively coralled. Mum moves the breadstick basket within her reach. She picks up a breadstick & promptly drops it on the floor. Same with the next, and the one after that before Mum notices & moves them. Next a spoon sails through the air onto the floor. Nothing left to to throw, she wails. Mum gives her some water with a straw. Quick as a flash this little missy has plucked the straw from the bottle, opened her hand & watched it fall to the floor. Must be her favourite trick. She's keeping me amused. Mum gives her some pasta from her plate on a teaspoon. Nope not having that, wants to feed herself. Mum puts the spoon down next to her. Cheeky miss grabs the pasta & puts it in her mouth & sends the spoon to the floor to join the straw, the other spoon & an array of breadsticks. Mum has wised up so leaves morsels of pasta on their own in front of bub. In the meantime, a young group of couples sit in the table next to me. One of them eyes off my pizza, half eaten by now & tells the others that the pizza looks good & orders the same. The pizza was good - the crust super thin. The cheese was a little lacking though & underneath the other ingredients. I easily polish it off. Naturally. The restaurant becomes even busier & it takes a while to get my bill. I'm in no rush. I have Facebook.
My plan after lunch is to look in every single dress shop back to Seminyak Square. Traffic is busy, so a parking attendant blows his whistle & stops traffic for me. Everyone stops except this idiot motorcyclist who rounds the stopped car in front & nearly takes me out. He was a tourist & didn't have time to stop in his haste, so nearly takes out the parking attendant as he swerves & keeps on going. I suspect the flow of Balinese from the attendant was not very complimentary! Safely on the other side of the street I see the shop Animale & go in. A large woman is trying on beads. As she leaves she sees me looking through a rack of dresses & says she hopes I have better luck than she did & that I should try Diva on the main road. I tell her I know where Diva is, thanks, whilst feeling grossly insulted that she thinks I need to go to a plus size clothing shop! They have some lovely flowy clothes & I try on 5 different dresses, all of which fit incidentally, deciding on a knee length sleeveless dress in splashes of black, white, lime & dark green with two flounces at the hem. I buy it, happy that I can buy off the rack. In fact, they had an even bigger size than one I bought, so take that large lady! It was a bit more than I was expecting to pay though.
I go into every dress shop heading towards Seminyak Square. Some of the dresses are lovely but I'm not paying over $100 for them. A few long dresses I liked the look of were on closer inspection, those ridiculous dresses that are mini skirts at the front & drape down to long dresses at the back. Not with these knees! Most of the dresses I saw are size 8 & 10 which rules me out. At Seminyak Square there is a row of market stalls selling dresses & I find a tiered black one & a flowy brown one with a fine white print. I sharpened my bargaining skills & both myself & the vendor are happy. Hot & a wee bit tired, I go into the Bali Bakery & sit down for a few minutes & have a drink. Suddenly there is a loud concerted roar above & a young Japanese girl seating nearby leapt to her feet in panic, looking around to see what the comotion was all about. It's ok, I said. There's a sports bar upstairs & they are watching football. She nods & sits down again, but I've no idea if she understood English or if it was the tone of my voice that was reassuring.
I check my phone for the time - nearly 5pm. I decide that it's stupid to go back to my hotel & turn around in an hour & come back here for dinner, so an early dinner is on the cards. I head back up the street & pop into another DVD shop & purchase a few more movies. Back on the road again I think I'll try Ginger Moon restaurant for dinner. There's no-one at any of the outside tables & when I poke my head through the door it looks like all the staff are having a meeting. One of them breaks away from the group to see what I want & I ask if they are open? Yes. I'm seated at a small table outside, near the entrance so I get a waft of cool airconditioned air every now & then. I order their curried chicken spring rolls to start & chicken satay sticks for main. My satay sticks appear while I'm only half way through my entree. I hate that. I realise my satay didn't come with rice, so I order some & a glass of wine. The food was good but I would't rave about it. I finished up with a scoop of coconut icecream. I am still their only patron. I pay the bill & easily catch a taxi back to the hotel.
In my room I try all my dresses on again, happy with my purchases. I write up my blog & settle in front if the TV & watch one of my new DVDs. Bali nightlife is not for me. Movie over, in bed early, read for a bit then lights out. Such a thrill a minute life I lead!