back from bikini paradise - part 1

-photo taken at Dreamland on 26/08/06 by gracie
yes, as im writing this, im recalling all the good things that have taken place at bikini land. the delicious lasagne at warung italia, the nice sunset at semiyak, the surfer boys and strong waves at dreamland, the great music and embience at Escape & Maccaroni...

this trip was a refreshing and adventurous one, as compared to the first one. maybe because it's our second trip, we skipped a lot of the cultural dances, island tours, cruising etc. money was well spent on good food, tremendously cheap massage treatments going at 40 000 Rup (equavalent to SGD$8) per treatment and shopping!! like how mr. metrosexual often imitates the salesgirls, "cheap cheap...i gib u good pry (*price)!" i had my go at bargaining for bags and wristbands and everything else...im never great at it (i admit!) but as i rationalised, even if i were to cut price by 10 000 Rup, it's merely paying SGD$2 lesser. which is like~ duh?!? bargain for the sake of bargaining ;)

and what made it interesting was we rented motorbikes to travel around the island. mr. metrosexual knew his way around. he's been to bali millions of times. he led the way. yeah, with this simple mode of transport, we travelled to various beaches, eating places and explored shopping malls and backlane streets which i haven't been at all. it's my first time being a pillion rider. my heart jumped a few seconds on my first ride. after a few rides, i got used to its speed. it's fun! thoughts of benny flew back to me. (he offered me rides on his bike on many occasions in the past. that happened when he was still alive.) anyway, bali drivers are generally ok. they aren't as reckless as those city drivers.

the evening rides around the island reminded me so much of australia. perhaps bali is flooded with ang-mohs, especially aussies. many restaurants catered to the taste buds of the europeans, americans and aussies. the weather's cooling in the nights. and the street lightings went off after 12 midnight. pubs opened till late. and tight security in crowded pubs and restaurants. especially at Hard Rock Cafe Hotel, the pub's packed! the music was great! security was even tighter, since the second bali bombing. was at the bombing memorial stone, which recorded names of those who passed away during bomb blast. many ppl still stand in silence in front of the stone, whilst others snapped pictures. (well, if you wana see it, you've gota wait till bomb blast anniversary next month. it's now under-construction.)

to me, the highlight of the entire trip was the beach visits. we rode to various beaches - semiyak beach, dreamland & kuta beach. they were so beautiful. im utterly awed by its serenity and marvellous view when i stepped into each of the beaches. if i were to choose, i'll choose dreamland. as its name connotes, it's paradise there. the sand's soft. the winds rustled in the air. the waves meet the sands at shoreline. the sun's out. the weather's good. and thanks to the fine weather, i got my bikini tan - golden brown. i like it when i could look healthy once again. for the first time, gracie is sunburnt!! yes, my skin's peeling right now...

in short, it's been a great trip! good recharge. mr. metrosexual said, "it's not a question of "will you come back to bali again?" it's more of "when will our next trip be?" ;) yes, he said it right. i'll come back for you again - Bali.