we touched down denpasar airport at 11pm on monday night. it was the eve of my birthday.
"this is it!" i thought. i have been dreaming of going to bali since my cousin showed me her honeymoon photos 10 years ago. paying for my plane ticket was actually seeing my dream come true.
"6 more days darling... counting down to our holiday!" that's his text message a week before our trip. and everyday since then we did a countdown through text messages. we started organizing our trip two months before our target departure date, which is the eve of my birthday.
so where was i? oh yeah, at the airport. a nice man from the hotel named D picked us up. i was so giddy to see my name on the a small placard! A, my travel companion, talked to him in bahasa and after that D shooked my hand and greeted me a happy birthday. awww! my first birthday greeting! =)
we settled at this beautiful 10-room hotel in sanur: tropical bali hotel. and even in darkness i can say the place is beautifully done. lovely. perfect. the owners greeted me a happy birthday as well. yay! "im turning 26 any minute soon!" and the minute the clock struck 12, A prepared 2 glasses of chivas, handed me a lei to put on my head ("for photo purposes", he said), lit up his lighter ("sorry, no candles on a birthday cake") and sang happy birthday. he is the sweetest! =)
few minutes later, text messages started to flood my phone.
"happy birthday! where are you now????"
it was everyone's question. this year i decided to silently celebrate my birthday: no themed parties, no out of town trips and island hopping with girlfriends, no overdrinking and dancing with my former colleagues, no overeating with my boys, and no intimate dinner dates with a loved one. this year, it was just me and a good friend in a far away beautiful island and slowly dreaming of something bigger....
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
things i need to settle
1. house to rent for a month. i don't want to move into any fancy villa with 'private pools' and all that luxury holidaymakers normally get. i want to rent a small one-bedroom house that's made of wood. i don't want a modern house, although a pool is nice but i just want to live normally, as in like a local in bali and not a tourist. i want to meet and greet balinese neighbors. and maybe even see monkeys in the morning.
2. gather up a few friends. i already made a two special friends in bali. one was my friend's friend who works at a popular bar in kuta and the other one's a nice mid 40's catholic driver who took me around during my first three days in bali. let's give them fictional names: V and F (obviously its their initials) so yeah, V is such a sweet girl and i love her to bits. she calls me sweetheart and darling and dear. F, on the other hand, seems to be a good father. he's only got one son and he's very proud of him (from all his stories, i can surely say he raised him so well) from these two people, i can extend my network. i already met one through V, his name is I. I is V's suitor, and a very consistent at that. i also met a few local surfers and vendors along kuta beach while suntanning. i know they won't remember me but i sure do remember their faces and when i see them i will give them a big hug (especially that one old lady who came up to me five times cuz she wants to give me a massage for 100,000 rupiah. the next time i come back i will finally let her massage me even if hate it so much!)
3. find a good surfing school. i have over 5 surfing school brochures which i took from the hotel lobby. surfer girl's got my attention because of 2 reasons: 1. i went to an all-girl school from kindergarten to high school, 11 years of my life and i think its just right for me to go to an all-girl surfing school. hehe! seriously though, i miss the all-girls environment. it's crazy and beautiful! 2. their transport and surfboards are pink! and pink is my favorite color. i will be posting specific entries about surfing schools later on and pictures are going to be everywhere!
4. adopt a dog. i need a house that's pet friendly. i already looked at the kuta townhouses but it looks so, um, cosmopolitan. and i don't like living in buildings anymore. i want a landed property where taking an elevator is not necessary for you to get to your home! i hate dogs, i hate pets, i hate everything that needs to be taken care of 'cuz i don't think i can even take care of myself. but this time, i'm going to do it. this is one major test of patience. i will adopt a nice little puppy and i'm gonna name him/her INDIE (for indonesia). indie is going to be so happy and healthy living with me. she/he is going to hit the beach with me everyday and we will have so much fun together!
2. gather up a few friends. i already made a two special friends in bali. one was my friend's friend who works at a popular bar in kuta and the other one's a nice mid 40's catholic driver who took me around during my first three days in bali. let's give them fictional names: V and F (obviously its their initials) so yeah, V is such a sweet girl and i love her to bits. she calls me sweetheart and darling and dear. F, on the other hand, seems to be a good father. he's only got one son and he's very proud of him (from all his stories, i can surely say he raised him so well) from these two people, i can extend my network. i already met one through V, his name is I. I is V's suitor, and a very consistent at that. i also met a few local surfers and vendors along kuta beach while suntanning. i know they won't remember me but i sure do remember their faces and when i see them i will give them a big hug (especially that one old lady who came up to me five times cuz she wants to give me a massage for 100,000 rupiah. the next time i come back i will finally let her massage me even if hate it so much!)
3. find a good surfing school. i have over 5 surfing school brochures which i took from the hotel lobby. surfer girl's got my attention because of 2 reasons: 1. i went to an all-girl school from kindergarten to high school, 11 years of my life and i think its just right for me to go to an all-girl surfing school. hehe! seriously though, i miss the all-girls environment. it's crazy and beautiful! 2. their transport and surfboards are pink! and pink is my favorite color. i will be posting specific entries about surfing schools later on and pictures are going to be everywhere!
4. adopt a dog. i need a house that's pet friendly. i already looked at the kuta townhouses but it looks so, um, cosmopolitan. and i don't like living in buildings anymore. i want a landed property where taking an elevator is not necessary for you to get to your home! i hate dogs, i hate pets, i hate everything that needs to be taken care of 'cuz i don't think i can even take care of myself. but this time, i'm going to do it. this is one major test of patience. i will adopt a nice little puppy and i'm gonna name him/her INDIE (for indonesia). indie is going to be so happy and healthy living with me. she/he is going to hit the beach with me everyday and we will have so much fun together!
i guess that's about it. i know i will have to consider more things as time passes by. we'll see. =)
the dream
from my other blog...
bali is THE place to fall in love! yay! =)
so now i have a dream. i dream that i am going to live in bali. for a month. i will raise 10 million rupiah and rent a one - bedroom apartment there. i will learn how to surf and will forget everything about the past. and no, i will not ask him to move to bali with me. i want to live on my own, just me in my 1 bedroom apartment. =)
i have nine months to save 10 million rupiah. march or
april 2009 is the tentative month.
this sounds weird but this dream keeps me moving on each day. i'm so drained at work that i need something to look forward to. something i am excited about. something special, something important.
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