one attracts two

extension of yesterday: had dinner at the famous Made's Warung, where Sari recommended the Nasi Campur, which is a little plate of everything and it was delicious. bopped in and out of some shops and headed to the room pretty early. nice arrival day :)

onto the new blog...

I believe that it takes a certain kind of person to travel solo. not saying that I wouldn't have loved having Sari here, but being on your own brings out many experiences that you may not have had otherwise and it takes a certain amount of trusting your own judgement to act accordingly when those situations arise.

got up early today and had breakfast, quickly put my bikini on and made my way to the front row of lounge chairs that face Kuta Bay and turn their backsides to this marvelous "infinity edge" pool. if I wanted to take a dip, basically, I could pay close attention to my belongings. so I got about 45 min of sun and then it starts pouring. I got video too. it got dark and the heavens just opened up! while I was taking refuge in the outside dining area, Jane, a woman traveling with friends, but who was on her own today, struck up a conversation and it was lovely. we talked about many things, introduced ourselves and say goodbye. I went back to trying to obtain some sun, while reapplying sunscreen and reading the final Harry Potter book. needless to say, that it turns cloudy again and I finally went inside, only to realize that even with my best sunscreen reapplications, my front and back look blotchy. can't win them all.

showered and dressed and headed to the mall for a little shopping. loving the exchange rate! took a taxi then to Kori Restaurant (actually near my 2nd Kuta hotel), which was recommended for their seafood in two Bali travel books I have with me. and I have to say that the food was delicious. I had a won ton sampler basket and the chef's special mahi-mahi, and something called a Golden Kori for a drink. the only problem I had was that my waiter (mas) brought my appetizer and entree out at the same time. this actually pissed me off. I get this from my Dad. so instead of a leisurely dinner, I had to eat a bit faster since both food were best eaten hot. and I didn't think that he would actually understand if I asked to return the entree for a later time slot during my meal. oh well.

put my walking legs on and hoped over to the Hard Rock Megastore to check out the goods, before having dessert at the cafe, next to the Hard Rock Hotel complex. as I was about to put my hand on the door, I heard the intro to a Coheed & Cambria song and saw their Nokia Unwired at Hard Rock Live performance on the tvs inside the store. seriously. I left MP a message and tried to call Erica to no avail. it weirded me out that I am seriously around the world and I and watching and hearing a band that I have met on more than several occasions and whom I am friendly with friends, crew and loved ones. it's a small, small world afterall.

I walked around the corner and order a Thick Avocado Shake with vanialla ice cream and chocolate sauce because Sari told me I have to try something avocado during my trip, and yes, I did get my hurricane glass as a souvenir. I know they are overpriced, ok. it will replace the one I broke previous to the Holiday Extravaganza in December. As I am taking pics for MP, who loves the memoriabilia that the Hard Rock Cafes have gotten their hands on, I offer to take a pic of a group of ladies. they then proceeded to shuffle me into a picture with them. Indonesians certainly like foreigners! while I was finishing off my shake, a girl next to me inquired where I was from andwe got to talking. second time today! her name was Bity and we exchanged numbers, as she is actually from Jakarta, a few years younger than me and works for a Swedish cosmetics company. she is returning to Jakarta tomorrow and we scheduled to be in touch and have coffee when I get back to the city. she knows some people in New York and you know how this starts... hopefully I will be making some new friends!

by the time I walked home, the shops had closed and I am in the lobby, getting bitten up by mosquitos and posting this and pics. tomorrow I am gonna get some sun and then spend some shopping (batik, silver, wood carvings) with Laila and have dinner at her home in Bali with her family and an out of town friend. I'll keep ya updated!

ps- my Dad is going to have knee surgery today, so keep him in your prayers.
love ya.