Yudhie!

Holy cow, where has the time gone? I’ve lost track of the days. Last weekend went missing somewhere. That’s fine, it’s great at this hotel, the Grahita Suites and I think this may take over from the Taksu as my favourite place. Being a bit cheaper may have something to do with it.

We’re in a large room with a kitchen. It has a two burner gas stove, a small sink, plenty of cupboard space and a medium sized fridge, which freezes really well. It also has a small dining table with two armchairs and a long sideboard under the TV, where I am now. The bed is king size, the mattress is new but a bit hard, and the bathroom is good sized and immaculately new and clean. The verandah has a table and two chairs, and the pool is 10m away. It was too cool to stay in last night. I think we got the winds from the big anticyclone over WA.

Best of all, the manager, Kasih, is so friendly and intelligent that we feel really at home here. She can’t do enough to help. She’s the one who spent an hour trying to stop the bleeding last week. The wounds are fine, by the way. Still needing a dressing, but clean and dry. Starting the antibiotic immediately was a big help, I think.

____________________________

She drove us in my friend’s car into Denpasar today to fix up an insurance problem, and I’m glad she was driving. It’s quite safe, but the traffic is thick and the motorbikes are a curse. They thread and weave and swarm their way into every gap, with their noise and fumes. Many intersections on busy roads have no traffic lights or give way signs, so it’s a matter of bluff and courtesy and may the best man win. It’s scary, but it works, and Kasih managed to drive and keep up a continuous conversation.

__________________________

We’d had lunch at my good friend Yudhie’s restaurant (a warung, actually) overlooking the rice paddies. I was amazed a few days ago when I said to her I had a friend here. We waffled a bit and after Kasih heard his name, she said, “Oh, he is my friend too, we went to school together.” Bloody hell, it’s a small world.

The breeze was cool and the food was gurami fish, Balinese style. Very delicious, although complete with bones, fins and skin.

He gave good news that my other ex-Perth Bali friends are still alive after cancer scares, are here in Bali in their villa, and he’s still working at 92 or 93. Amazing. I hope to see them tomorrow.

_________________________

We had a very nice dinner at a bakery last evening, the Goddes Bakery in Jalan …. somewhere in north Sanur. We initially just wanted to buy bread, but it’s a full service coffee shop, beautifully presented, fabulous menu, so enticing we went beyond our initial thought of just coffee. We got talking to the manager, who also happens to be a friend of Kasih, and he presented us at the end with a complimentary coffee concoction, like a mini cappucino but cold and with a biscuit base under cream. Yum!

This Goddes Bakery is so good that I feel like writing them up on Trip Advisor.

________________________

I’ve actually had a bit of Bali belly in the past few days, unusual for me. After my first couple of visits in 1980 and 1983, I never had any more trouble. But I suppose taking high doses of the antibiotic hasn’t done my gut any favours. It’s not a bad case.

Dinnertime!