Meals, Wheels And Deals
Our discussions over breakfast this morning centred around our ever improving haggling skills. Amanda let us in on some secret Balinese business. Apparently, I f you are given a black bag for your purchases at the markets, it’s code for the fact that you are an A1 haggler and tips the other stallholders off that you are a haggling force to be reckoned with – a kind of black belt in the art of haggling. A white bag, however, signifies your rookie status and shows you have a long way to go – P-plates for bartering. This fascinated us and we went back over our piles of previous shopping to check our bag colours and statuses. Keryn, Claire and Amanda (no surprise) revealed a stockpile of black bags, making them swell with pride. I was disappointed, though not super surprised, to find not a black bag in sight when I rifled through my purchases from the previous day. I still have a long way to go.
As we headed out the door armed with our shopping lists, ready for a morning’s shopping in Seminyak, some of us with Black Bag Confidence and others of us – the mere White Baggers – like their apprentices, secretly hoping to pick up at least one black bag along the way, we knew we were in for some fun.
It was a short taxi ride to the Bali shopping Mecca and as we were dropped off in the middle of the Seminyak shopping district, Miss Indonesia briefed us on where we were, what to do if we got lost and where we were to meet for lunch. Where would we be without her? She also pointed out to Keryn that Legian Beach was actually pronounced “leggy arn“, not “leej-I-on“. We’re such tourists!
Inevitably we were separated into smaller groups as we wheeled and dealed to retain as many rupiah in our thinning wallets as possible. Ann-Maree proved relentless in her quest for a good price and her hard work was rewarded with some stellar bargains. Keryn, Claire and I came across one woman who was a very tough nut to crack indeed. She was digging her heals in despite our ‘pretty good if we do say so ourselves’ efforts, we couldn’t wrangle a rupiah out of her if our lives depended on it. At one stage I was buying a dress and was giving it all I could muster, going toe-to-toe with her backwards and forwards over price. We’d hit a standstill when we reached the equivalent of AUD$14, not a bad price for a dress, but I was determined to knock her down a couple more bucks. Right in the thick of it, in the midst of our ongoing discussions, Keryn unhelpfully piped up – in front of the woman – with confirmation that this woman’s dresses really were good quality and she thought that wasn’t a bad price. D’oh! Needless to say, I paid the $14!
Satisfied that we’d put some crosses through our shopping lists and having bagged some excellent bargains, we cabbed it to our lunch spot: Gato Gato, right on the beach, where were reunited to have our own little Show and Tell session of what we’d bought. It seemed that most of us had bought a dress of some description and as we held each one aloft for the group to peruse, collective approval was given, with a chorus of oohs and aghhs ensuing. Ann-Maree is definitely the Dress Queen and has worked tirelessly, adding some beautiful dresses to her collection. Something tells me she is not yet finished. The restaurant was in a beautiful spot and we were able to sit in the shade to avoid the direct sun – probably the hottest day we’ve had since we’ve been here. Our outlook was so pretty, peeping out to the surf beyond through big green trees.
After lunch, we divided into two groups. Keryn, Amanda and Suzie, who were not yet shopped out, were keen to return and to indulge in some more retail therapy. Ann-Maree, Claire and I made a bee-line for a cab back to our villa where we could swim and recuperate with a book.
The staff at our villa have been fantastic. There’s nothing quite like coming home to a beautifully tidy house that you haven’t had to tidy! They’re like little fairies working quietly behind the scenes.
We were told that if we wanted any clothes washed we should put them in the dirty clothes baskets in our rooms. I popped a few things in mine and sure enough, when I came home, they’d been taken off to be washed! Suzie pointed out that this must be just how our kids feel. It’s so nice for the shoe to be on the other foot so to speak! We’d better not get too used to it…
I’ve mentioned earlier that we have become accustomed to the crazy traffic here. Today I witnessed Claire and Keryn, on separate occasions, walk assertively out into the middle of the busy road, hands confidently raised in a STOP sign position, to hold back the surge of oncoming traffic on both sides, allowing us to cross safely. This they did with their bare hands! Impressive! We’ve come a long way.
Well Amanda had a special treat for us tonight. She instructed us to dress a little fancier than usual (what a great opportunity to test drive those new dresses!) and we organised our cabs. Our destination was La Lucciola, perched right on one of the prettiest stretches of beach in Seminyak. Making our way over the fairytale bridge lined with flickering lanterns along the ground that continued the whole way, we wound around a path through a wonderland of frangipani trees twinkling with fairy lights. Huge palms with long straight trunks were lit up from below and spotlights beamed across the breakers on the dark horizon. The restaurant was constructed from timber and bamboo, all open at the sides, with a thatched ceilings and a jungle tree-house, Gilligan’s Island kind of feel. The air was still SO hot, even though it was after eight at night, but there was a slight breeze coming off the sand. We sat on the second storey with such an incredible view it looked like it had been superimposed as a backdrop on a green screen. Suzie gave the ambience a ten out of ten. It was truly a romantic dinner for six. Our waiter, who was a dead-ringer for Guy Sebastian was incredibly attentive and the food was amazing! A few of us had the pork but I was initially hesitant since I had already had pork for lunch. After all, I didn’t want to make a pig of myself.
The dinner had started with cocktails and ended with scrumptious desserts. It was a night to remember. With eyelids descending, we barely had time to spray our insect repellant before switching off the lights and hitting the hay.
