March 8
We awaken ready for a new challenge. Today we are flying to Bali for a little
R&R. The Hotel Madras in Singapore
has agreed to hold some of our larger pieces of luggage so we can travel
lightly. We opt to save on taxi fare
since we have a three day pass for transit and after breakfast make our way to
the nearest bus stop that will get us to a train where we can get to the
airport. Easy, breezy!! We have to wait
a little longer than we desire for the #133 bus, but it finally arrives. We are lugging along with us a huge bag of
items that we want to ship back home – some cold weather clothes and other
items we no longer need/want so we can lighten our load. However, at the moment, we are struggling under
the weight of the cargo. We make it to
the airport with a few delays and get settled in the waiting area, but not without incident. As we walk along the motorized walkway, three japanese women approach Sam and start putting their arms around him and posing for pictures. We are all a little baffled as to why they would like to have their pictures with a perfect stranger. Then, after he walks on, they start to pose with Annie. It is really weird and unexpected, but we all agree that we can only assume it is a complement. All goes smoothly and we have an uneventful
2 ½ hour flight to Denpasar, Bali. When
the plane touches down, we find the very long lines for temporary Visas……they
are very easy to obtain. All you have to
do is exchange your US$ for a visa. It
is so nice they have made it that easy!
Then we stand in line with said visas to pass through immigration. Once on the other side, we look for our
checked bags and I withdraw Indonesian Rupiah from the ATM. Wow…..it is difficult to figure the exchange
rate when there are 9,000 Rupiah to each dollar. I withdraw 500,000, thinking this will surely
be enough, only to figure I have taken a little over $50. In my fluster to try to grasp the exchange
rate, I inadvertently leave my ATM card in the machine…..big mistake, I later
learn. As I have now figured out how
little money we actually have to spend, I make the next mistake and exchange
cash at one of the hawker stalls near the departure gate. I must admit, it feels nice to have over a
million currency in my pocket even if it only adds up to $150. We are on the look out for a driver to take
us to the hotel and are unable to spot him so we make our way to the info desk
where he is paged and appears shortly.
He is a very affable and kind man and helps us load all of our luggage
into his minivan. As we depart the
airport, I am amazed at how many motorbikes there are in the parking lot…..thousands
upon thousands. We drive for what seems
like a very long time, passing by the most amazing assortment of furniture
making operations. My mouth stays firmly open as I drool at the wonderful
furniture that will appear, I am certain, within the pages of very high end catalogues
back home. I’m lost in the thought of
how to transport and entire patio set to Raleigh, when our car makes an abrupt
turn into a gated road that turns out to be our hotel entry. Was that an armed guard I just saw??? Hmmm.
Well the place is lovely despite the military presence at the
entrance. We are ushered to the
reception where we are given keys to our apartment. Wow…this place is amazing. Our apartment consists of a huge living area
with wrap around sofa, a dining room that seats 6 people and three bedrooms
each with its own desk, TV and other amenties.
This is going to be great. We
take a quick swim and settle in before inquiring about a taxi to take us into
town for dinner. We get a ride and the
town is quite nice. The driver suggests
a restaurant that will offer us a return taxi trip, so we bite (no pun intended). This is most definitely the type of
restaurant we have not been able to enjoy for quite some time. The white table linens are always a give away
that the place is out of our budget, but not here. We sit down and are served the most elegant
meal that have had in months…this is the life.
Paulie and I agree that the dinner is as good if not better that any
meal we have had at Magnolia Grill for a fraction of the price. I think I am falling in love with Bali! After we stuff ourselves, Annie, Hudson and I
go off in search of a small market we passed on our way into town. We pick up some essentials for the morning
and return to the hotel quite satisfied and very happy to be here.
No comments:
Post a Comment