Bali Trip - May 2007

This is going to be a loooong entry.

Having waited for almost 5 months, Bunny and I finally went for our Bali trip (her 3^rd trip this time round)! I was a bit uncomfortable with the place at first, but I grew to love it and we were very upset on the last night, knowing that it might be her very last trip to Bali and it might even be my first and last trip there.

We spent 5 nights and 6 days there, allocating two days for inland day trips with a private driver we had hired, and the rest of the days were spent visiting the beaches along the western coast of Bali, as well as spending a few hours in spas. I was so attracted to the handicraft that I now regret not having bought more while I was there. But when I think of how the Balinese handicraft won’t fit with my room nor my house, I’m glad I didn’t overdo it and have tons of ornaments and knick-knacks left aside. Perhaps when I get my own place, I’ll make a trip there to buy stuff for the house. Dream on. Another main attraction was the Balinese architecture. I loved looking at their houses, stone carvings, doors, statues and statuettes, and etc.

Here’s a breakdown of our Bali trip:

We arrived in Bali after 10.30pm, which was rather late. So we didn't get to do much besides changing the room to one that was on a higher floor (because a palm tree was blocking our pool view and it irked Bunny) and paying a visit to the minimart nearby.

View of the pool at night



View of the room from the balcony


The service there was great - the people were friendly and accommodating. We even received a yummy chocolate cake as a welcome snack!



View of the hotel from the breakfast area

Day 1 – Seminyak Beach

On the next day, we headed to one of the beaches there. There were lesser people here and although the hawkers continued to pester us, it wasn't half as bad as Legian Beach, which we went a few days after.

Bakso - We've yet to figure out if this is the real bakso we saw on TV, but I suspect it is

The waves weren't exceptionally big, but we did manage to bodyboard a bit. I'm pretty lousy at it, but Bunny managed to fly all the way to the shore and many times as well!

She's going for the waves again

My turn

Wee!!! (My 23482737th failed attempt)


I give up

After relaxing at the beach, we went for another form of relaxation - a full-body massage, body scrub (lulur) and flower bath with herbal tea and cookies at Sicilia Spa:

We loved the setting of the spa. It had a rustic feel about it - not the usual air-conditioned spa with modern decor.

Rejuvenated

It was both me and Bunny's first spa treatment of our lives and it was indeed memorable to have experienced it somewhere else and not in Singapore.

After our spa treatment, we walked back to the beach to catch the sunset:

Speaking of sunsets, this was our first attempt to catch the sunset in Bali. Bunny told me numerous times that Bali had the best sunsets in the world. However, the period when we went for the trip was considered as the cloudiest months throughout the whole year, hence we didn't manage to see a big and bright orange yolk setting over the horizon. Damn.

After our first failed string of attempts on catching the sunset, we traipsed all over Seminyak looking for Made's Warung, a restaurant that served local cuisine:

I ordered nasi campur (which I think is their version of our "economical rice") with gado-gado


And of course, Bunny washed down her nasi goreng with her favourite Bintang beer

That night, we took a cab from Seminyak to Legian and walked ALL THE WAY back from the top of Legian, down to Kuta and to the hotel, which was situated at South Kuta. That's a hell of a distance I tell you, especially with the condition of their pavements! It was an amazing feat and we were both surprised that we had actually walked that far! I managed to snap some pictures along the way:

The memorial that was erected in remembrance of the victims of the Kuta bombing on 12 October 2002


Kuta Square, where Bunny's favourite surf shops are


Two models posing as mannequins. Note: do NOT pay attention to that ang moh chick behind them

Day 2 - Kintamani Tour

On the second day, we went for a private day tour which brought us inland to visit the factories, temples, Ubud and the volcano. Prior to arriving in Bali, we had managed to book a driver online via TripAdvisor.com. However, on the actual day itself, he arranged for his brother to bring us on the tour instead. His excuse being: he had to attend a wedding ceremony. Nonetheless, his brother was quite a good tour guide; he also talked to us about their culture, beliefs and even told us the story behind the Barong and Kris dance.

This was our itinerary for the day:

- Traditional Balinese dance (Barong and Kris dance)
- Batik factory
- Wood-carving factory
- Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave)
- Kintamani (lunch with panoramic view of Mt. Batur and Lake Batur)
- Gunung Kawi (unfortunately, this was NOT the Gunung Kawi I had in mind)
- Rice terraces
- Ubud
- Sanur
- Seafood dinner at Jimbaran

The first stop our driver brought us to was to watch one of Bali's traditional dances, called the Barong and Kris dance:

That's the Barong

Our next stop - the batik factory. This was where I bought a batik painting of a Barong which was hand-painted onto a piece of fabric.




3rd pit stop - wood-carving factory. We didn't buy anything here; everything was way too expensive, and way too pretty too:

Exterior of the wood-carving factory

Wooden masks adorn the wall next to the entrance

One of the many huts located within the compound

Entrance to the shop where they sell all sorts of wooden knick-knacks. Pity I didn't manage to take a picture of some of the items for sale inside as one of the guys was following us around.

Wood-carvers doing what they do best

Next stop - Goa Gajah



This place was pretty interesting for me. Being the archaeologist I've always wanted to be, I was really fascinated by this place. This ancient temple situated around a carved cave entrance, is a main tourist attraction, bringing busloads of tourists there all the time. According to their religious customs, we had to wear sarongs to cover our knees.


Recent excavations carried out in 1954 unearthed bathing places in front of the cave with six female figures, representing. nymphs or goddesses holding water spouts. Like any other temple in Bali, Goa Gajah has springs and pools of holy water. This one looks dried up though.



There was a raised stone platform at one corner of the compound, with many rocks stacked on top of one another. I found it to be quite a strange sight, fascinating too. So I started taking heaps of pictures of them and I've yet to find an explanation as to what it used to be and what its purpose was.





Here's the famous Elephant Cave, with carvings of a monstrous Kala head looming above the entrance of the cave:



Goa Gajah probably dates back to the 11th century and was a hermitage for Buddhist and Hindu monks. I wasn't able to take any pictures inside the cave, but if you walk into the cave, you'll find that it was a small T-shaped structure with a statue of Ganesh at one end of it. The chambers within the cave are thought to be meditating cells or possibly living quarters for the priests or hermits. The cave itself wasn't very huge though. The stone carvings are thought to be created by the mystical Kebo Iwa, who fashioned the chambers and carvings with his powerful fingernails, a feat that took him one night to accomplish.

It is still unsure if this site was a Hindu or Buddhist site, as both scriptures have been found here. However, a statue of a goddess found at this site suggests that this might have been a Buddhist site before it was taken over by the Hindu.


Highlight of the tour - Kintamani

It was approaching lunchtime and our highlight of the first day trip was to have lunch near the volcano. The driver brought us up to Kintamani, which is a strategic viewpoint that overlooks Mt. Batur (Gunung Batur) and Lake Batur. It was so bloody chilly and windy up there that both Bunny and I ended up freezing our bras off.

We had buffet lunch at a restaurant called Batur Sari

This picture does look a bit fake huh?

That's the volcano

And that's the lake over there

Mt. Batur is an active volcano and is the second highest mountain in Bali, following Mt. Agung, which is the highest volcanic mountain. Mt. Batur erupted thrice - the recent eruption was in 1984.

I read somewhere that you can actually "lava ski" down the slopes!

Back to sea level - Gunung Kawi (Tampak Siring)

After coming down from Kintamani, our driver brought us to Gunung Kawi. Sigh, it was quite a disappointment for us, not then, but right now because after further research, we realised that this was NOT the Gunung Kawi we had wanted to visit. This is the Gunung Kawi with spring water temples. The one we wanted to visit has 3-4 storey high stone sculptures, caves and holes where monks used to reside in. Urgh. Why must they both be named Gunung Kawi?

Anyway, we took tonnes of pictures here too:

Entering Gunung Kawi - we had to cover our knees and tie a silk sash around our waist.

Tampak Siring (the real name of this place) is built around a sacred spring. An inscription dates the spring back to 926AD and there are fine carvings and Garudas on the courtyard buildings. The temple and its bathing spots have been used by the Balinese for thousands of years for good health and prosperity.





Quick pit-stop at rice terraces - Along the way to Ubud, we made a short visit at an area where we could see the rice terraces:




The rice terraces looked a bit dry though. I suspect it was harvesting time for this batch of rice crops.

There were some stalls along the roadside right next to the rice terraces, and this was where Bunny spotted a newborn puppy, and upon catching a glimpse of it, she started chasing the puppy around with the camera and finally managed to scare the poor fella into posing for her:

Awww! Look at those eyes!

We're both awfully glad that the stray dogs there seem happy and contented with their freedom to roam the streets and beaches, without getting pestered by humans. At least the stray cats and dogs there are generally well-liked and treated with respect.



Next stop: Bali's arts centre - Ubud

Ubud is a remarkable town in the middle of Bali and is considered as the island's preeminent centre for fine arts, dance and music. When we arrived there, Ubud gave me a very backpacker and bohemian feel about it, and when I read up more about the history of Ubud, it was indeed a haven for cosmic seekers, artists and the like, and it is still very popular with mystics and backpackers.

Our driver dropped us at the carpark, right next to one of the many royal palaces within Ubud, so naturally being very much attracted to their architecture, we ventured into it without hesitation AND without knowing the name of the place:

Entrance to the palace


I look a bit scared...

One of the elaborately decorated rooms


Another room...

...and another

Bunny looks a bit grumpy here. It's the holiday grumps.


I simply love their doorways

After exploring the royal palace, we went to explore Pasar Ubud - the arts market situated in Ubud:



The market was really a dazzling display of odd knick-knacks, woven rattan baskets, wooden carvings, plenty of clothes, accessories and sarongs, and beautiful Balinese ornaments and paintings. My eyes were darting about every single moment and I hardly had the time to digest what they had to offer. It was such a busy bazzar, bustling with plenty of tourists and local store owners. Hehe, and Bunny knows me well; she knew that I would love this place.





I really wonder how long do they take to sell everything! One stall alone already has thousands of things for sale and even during our road trip, all you could see along the streets in Bali were handicraft stores or wholesale furniture, wood and stone carving stores! In short, there are millions of such stores, no matter is it along the main streets of Bali, or at the most deserted and remote areas, there are just plenty of ornaments and handicraft in Bali! It really is amazing.




Short trip at Sanur - After resting at a teahouse at Ubud, we headed down south towards Sanur. We told the driver that we wanted to take a quick look at that place, since it was on the way to Jimbaran, which was our ultimate destination for a seafood dinner.



Sanur is where Bali's first beach resort was built. We didn't get to see the nicer bit of Sanur, where all the resorts are. Instead, the driver dropped us at the place where the locals swim and play at.


Seafood dinner at Jimbaran - After our quick tour to Sanur, we continued our journey to Jimbaran, where we initially wanted to avoid, because tonnes of tourists used to flock there for the food and ambience before a bomb was placed at one of the restaurants a few years ago.

Yay! Table 12!

The ambience there was great, but Bunny and I were freaking at the waves! Jimbaran beach had such huge waves, we felt like we were sitting right at the edge of a cliff! It's a pity how the pictures can't describe how huge the waves were. We did take a video of the waves though.


The seafood dinner there was ok. Our seafood spread comprised king prawns, squid, one whole snapper and vegetables. I felt that the seafood dinner at Happy Elephant in Koh Samui was much better though:



Phew! That was a long entry and it was such an intensive trip too.




Day 3 - Uluwatu and Tanah Lot

We hired our driver for two days, so on the next day, he brought us to Uluwatu and Tanah Lot; of course we made a few pit stops along the way.

The first stop was at the southern peninsula of Bali - Tanjung Benoa, where we wanted to take a look at the beach:



There wasn't much there; it was mostly a bay area for watersports:





Since we were at the southern peninsula of Bali, our driver brought us to Nusa Dua, where all the "atas" resorts were located at. We weren't allowed to use the beach facilities there:


But I guess that didn't deter us from sneaking into Hyatt and using their beach chairs and toilet facilities:



Just as we were about to leave, one of the hotel staff approached us and informed us that it was private property and blahblahblah. Anyway, after relaxing here for an hour or so, we headed straight to Uluwatu - a seaside temple at the southern peninsula:



Uluwatu is one of Bali's most spectacular temples located high on a cliff top at the edge of a plateau 250 feet above the Indian Ocean:





There were plenty of monkeys there, and we were warned to hold on to our belongings tightly because the monkeys were known for their mischievous behaviours:





After trekking the whole of Uluwatu and drenched from our own sweat due to the sweltering heat, we made our way to Jimbaran beach (yes, again!) because we wanted to see how it looked like in the day:

The waves were much smaller but the area we went smelled really fishy.

It was already past noon and lunchtime, and our driver told us we had to start setting out to Tanah Lot now, so that we will be able to catch the sunset later. We managed to take some pictures of rice terraces along the way:




We finally reached our ultimate destination - Tanah Lot:


Upon arriving there, we were greeted by hordes of tourists from all over - foreigners and domestic tourists included! There were so many people, it's unbelievable! It was quite a long walk through the market before we finally arrived at the gates of the temple:

Here's one temple where we need not wear sarongs

Tanah Lot was built by one of the last priests to come to Bali from Java in the 16th century. This temple is one of the seven sea temples around the Balinese coast. The temple is now split into two, as the middle portion has given way to erosion over time. Balinese superstition has it that unmarried couples shouldn't visit Tanah Lot, for they will be split into two just like the temple itself. Because Bunny and I did believe in this a bit, we decided not to take any couple pictures at the area. Haha.

The waves here are so strong, it's no wonder its constant battering led to certain parts of the rocks to crumble. In 1980, the lone temple on the rock got so dangerous, that it was closed from public access:

Despite the occasional gigantic wave coming towards us, it did not stop us from taking pictures near it:

It's coming, it's coming!!!

Cheh! Small one.

After exploring the surroundings, we made our way up to the viewpoint where we planted our butts on some chairs and watched the sun set. Yet, another failed attempt again:

It was too cloudy!!!

Try as we might, these were our best sunset shots at Tanah Lot.

After our trip at Tanah Lot, we went back straight to the hotel, washed up and went for dinner at a Japanese restaurant, where I stuffed my face with sushi. We walked around Kuta a bit and Bunny brought me to take a look at the ever popular Hard Rock Hotel.



Day 4 - Legian Beach

Having done our inland discovery tours, we went back to relax at the beaches once again, and this time round we paid a visit to Legian Beach:


Much to our despair, the hawkers here were even more persistent than the ones at Seminyak, and we got really annoyed after awhile. However, the waves here seemed rather big too:

After spending almost the whole afternoon at the beach, we went around almost the whole of Bali looking for an affordable spa. The spa we intended to go to was closed for the day, so the taxi driver brought us to another spa, which was an upmarket one and charged according to USD. We didn't want to spend that much money, so we had the taxi driver bring us to another spa (called Febri's) near our hotel, which was cheap and good:




We did the same package again: full-body massage, body scrub (lulur), body mask, facial mask and herbal tea and cookies. Yay! Our 2nd spa experience of our lives!



Last day in Bali

Time really passes too quickly and before we knew it, it was our final day in Bali. We planned on spending the last day doing some last minute shopping and tanning at the beach, so this time round, we headed back to Seminyak again as we found the hawkers at Legian Beach too persistent.

Bye-bye Bali


Streets of Seminyak

After walking around Seminyak and all the way to Legian, we took a cab to the infamous Kuta beach, where there were hordes of local and foreign tourists alike:


I'm guessing that everyone was waiting to catch a glimpse of the sunset, just like me. Unfortunately, the sky was even cloudier than the previous days, and there was no sunset whatsoever. Again. I've missed it again.

Last attempt of catching Bali's sunset

We took the 10pm flight back and reached Singapore at 1am with the Balinese traditional music stuck in our heads. It took awhile for me to fall in love with Bali and when I eventually did, I didn't bear to leave.

###

Having seen different cultures, particularly countries which are not cosmopolitan, really makes one wonder why we often take things for granted and grumble at the slightest thing. The irony of it all is definitely more obvious and the truth of such irony is that such laidback places are seemingly more beautiful and tranquil than many other cities which we are comfortable travelling or living in. I am still suffering from withdrawal symptoms and it really is strange to be in a city again, rushing for the morning and evening trains, brushing shoulders with strangers everywhere I walk, and returning to the complexities of what modernity brings.

We're currently planning our next trip and we've decided to head to Beijing for the Olympics next year!!!

One night in K.L.

It's been awhile since I last came to Kuala Lumpur. The last time I came here with my family was almost 6-7 years ago. Seems like a lot has changed.

Arrived here in the morning and went straight to the office (again) after checking into the hotel:

Pool view- Nothing fantastic here

The whole trip was really tiring, especially with a packed agenda, but nonetheless we had a quiet and enjoyable evening with a colleague from Malaysia after the meeting.

We headed to KLCC because my colleague said she had never seen the Petronas Towers before, as her last trip to KL was almost 10 years ago. So we said we'll have to go there then.

On our way to KLCC, we went pass Sungei Wang. Here's a picture of Sungei Wang and the area where I stayed at during my previous trip. The place looks different now; more developed in a way:




Anyway, we had dinner at a "Truly Malaysian Cuisine" restaurant named Madam Kwan's in KLCC:



I really couldn't decide what to eat and was contemplating between the nasi lemak and the assam laksa. The assam laksa was beckoning me; I just had to have one. Since the last time I had a bowl of assam laksa was a few years ago, I decided that I had to savour that amazing concoction of sour gravy with onions, sardines and prawn paste once again.

After dinner, we accompanied my colleague around KLCC:

(That's the ceiling)

After exploring it for awhile, we went out to take pictures of the iconic and remarkable manmade structure which is now the 2nd (ex) tallest building on Planet Earth:





I've actually never seen them at night before and I didn't even realise that those two towers were so huge during my last trip to KL! As you can see, I was trying to take pictures of it in all sorts of funny angles:







Having seen KL's most important landmark, my colleague suggested we hit the Beach Club & Cafe at Jalan Ampang.





Well, there's a story behind why she chose to go to that place for ONE drink. Her boyfriend had visited that place during his last business trip to KL and my Malaysian colleague recommended the Beach Club & Cafe to him. So the boyfriend went there not knowing that it was an infamous pick-up joint for Filipinos and Mainland Chinese! He got himself in a fix when a few girls kept requesting money from him to buy drinks for themselves.

Anyway, my colleague (the girlfriend) wasn't too happy about that, so last night she decided that she should check the place out. Hence, due to cause and effect, I ended up with my bum planted on one of the seats at the Beach Club & Cafe, listening to the band jamming away.



To be honest, the band is great. But other than that, I don't see anything appealing about that place, besides the huge amount of expats and skimpily dressed women.

Anyway, I'm back in SG now and I'm glad, and even more so because I'll be flying to Bali tonight and we'll be there for about 6 days!

Wee~~~~

Not going there again - St. James Power Station

Last Friday marked our maiden voyage to St. James Power Station. I swear I’m never going back there again unless it’s a company event. Granted that there are many different rooms catered for different sort of music lovers or clubbers, however one would not want to mingle amongst the crowd for more than 2 hours.

Despite my discomfort with the venue and the crowd, we had loads of fun entertaining ourselves by taking tonnes of pictures:

Vivocity - Argh! What's Teri doing clinging on to my Bunny?

Our first stop was at the Boiler Room and then we proceeded to Powerhouse:

We got sick and tired of the place, so we decided to head to Bellini Room where we started taking pictures in front of a bright neon pink wall decorated by Belvedere vodka bottles:

Out of all the rooms, I preferred Bellini Room the best, mainly because they played jazz, swing and low tempo music. Anyway, we left this room after sashaying in front of that pink wall for almost 20 minutes or so, and ended up at the Rouge Lounge, where we decided to relax on the couches and ordered a bottle of red wine. But we sure as hell didn't end up relaxing, because who the hell plays 5-10 with red wine?

So we started taking pictures again. I was fiddling with the self-timer on my phone when it accidentally took a snapshot of the group. This is the difference between being:

prepared...and

...unprepared!


Finally a proper one!

The above pictures were taken before Bunny suggested we play 5-10 with red wine. Here are the pictures after playing 5-10:

Wha...?


Drinking blurs your vision. Do not drink and drive.


Peek-a-boo!


They're loving it...


Hmmm...


???


I don't think anyone knows what kind of pictures they're taking anymore.

It was a fun night out with them and they never fail to amuse. We created such a ruckus that the straight couples sitting at the couch next to us kept glaring at our unruly behaviour.

Having said all that, I've decided - I will not step into St. James Power Station unless I really need to.

Hit-and-run...literally

One of the news headlines today read, "TV actor Christopher Lee jailed for drink-driving."

Sounds good. I think he deserves it.

Click on the full story and here's what it says:

SINGAPORE: MediaCorp actor Christopher Lee has been sentenced to four weeks' jail over charges related to drink-driving.

He was also fined $4,500 and his driving licence was suspended for three years.

The actor had been slapped with five charges relating to drink driving, including causing injury to a motorcyclist and his pillion rider and not rendering help to the injured. - CNA/ir

My first reaction was: His case gets delayed for months, he was involved in a hit-and-run accident and all he gets is 1 fucking month of jail? Doesn't his ass get split in half from corporal punishment from such an offence like his?

This is bullshit.

Is this to say that the law has now slacked and we can now go around knocking pedestrians off street corners and drive away without having to worry about getting our asses caned or squatting in some dark and dingy cell?

Ok, let's just say the law stipulated for drink-driving isn't that strict, but surely the hit-and-run incident would have raised some alarm bells. How dare they even publish such news blatantly when many sufferers, victims or accused might think of this as a case of injustice?

So it seems that there was no slight hint of remorse from our “oh-so-charming-and-alluring-Malaysian-Singapore-actor-who-is-now-
part-of-the-elite-bunch-in-Singapore”, Christopher Lee. Well, good for him. All he needs to do now is relax in a cell for a month and pay a $4500 fine, which is peanuts, considering some offenders get slapped with $5000 fines for crimes less serious than hit-and-runs. And he gets to do all this without getting his ass whipped.

Oh, one more thing. He doesn't need to get involved with the Yellow Ribbon campaign because he's still going to get hired by Mediacorp anyway!

Bahhhh.

Terms & Conditions...click to agree

I’m currently working on some Terms & Conditions which I need to let some lawyers read through first and I came across this (note the sentence in bold):

3. You agree not to use the Site to send, post, promote or transmit on any place on the Site, any message or material that is unlawful, harassing, libelous, defamatory, abusive, threatening, harmful, hateful, vulgar, obscene, profane, threatening, racially or ethnically offensive or otherwise as determined by Nikon in its sole discretion to be objectionable. In this regard, please note that any material that (a) depicts nudity or genitalia in a manner calculated to titillate; (b) promotes sexual violence or sexual activity involving coercion or non-consent of any kind; (c) depicts a person or persons clearly engaged in explicit sexual activity; (d) depicts a person who is, or appears to be, under 16 years of age in sexual activity, in a sexually provocative manner or in any other offensive manner; (e) advocates homosexuality or lesbianism, or depicts or promotes incest, paedophilia, bestiality and necrophilia; (f) depicts detailed or relished acts of extreme violence or cruelty; or (g) glorifies, incites or endorses ethnic, racial or religious hatred, strife or intolerance is prohibited. Nikon reserves the right to delete any such material from the Site.

And under the law of the Republic of Singapore, we are required to include this in.

Grrr. I read and re-read point (e) just to make sure that it says we are NOT allowed to permit such content. Lesbianism. Now it sounds like a cult of some sort.

Seriously, what can be so harmful about content which advocate homosexuality or lesbianism? This doesn’t mean your children are going to turn gay just because they saw an image of women cuddling or men kissing each other! Hello?! They might already be gay?

Why are we required to restrict such a subjective and openly discussed matter such as sexuality? I’m not here to contest the law but I’m sure you can imagine what my reaction was when I stumbled upon this tiny sentence amidst the 40+ pages of disclaimers, policies and other boring stuff. And to stipulate this amongst other terms such as “incest”, “pedophilia”, “bestiality” and “necrophilia”, is creating the impression that “homosexuality or lesbianism” is in fact a CRIME and that we are FREAKS who share the same mental condition as someone who fucks corpses or animals!

And then I heard a voice say, “Because the gah’ment said so and because it’s against the law to be gay.”

Ok. Sue, charge and deport me. I shall thus go back to the land where homosexuality is neither criminalized nor deemed as an act of immoral and/or unethical behaviour.

Two thumbs up for Loretta Chen who dared to blatantly portray such “debauchery” themes in 251, along with political ones.

Urgh. And screw that fucker who "tsked" Bunny and me at the escalator near Tangs. Too bad that fella was going up the escalator while we were heading downwards on the staircase. Otherwise...baaahhh.

Lost Youth

This morning, Moo called me over to her desk and she started showing me these:

*cringes*

What's with the hair and make-up? My complexion was better last time.

Zon looked soooo young then.

"Heeee..."

"Muacks"

"Weeee!"

Oh my goodness. How young we were! And what’s with the hair man? Plus my complexion was SO MUCH better! Urgh.

If we can recall correctly, these pictures were taken at Moo’s place in Camberwell, during our New Year celebration in January, 2003. She made her famous spicy salsa dip. I can’t recall what else she made though.

It was summer and I spent a lot of time at Zon and Richard’s place at Sturt St., swimming, tanning and staying over at their place. It might have many years ago, but I remember certain significant events that will always remain ingrained in my mind.

Lost youth indeed. Not like I don’t already realize that. But I shouldn’t rub it in anymore because Moo might knock my head, Bunny will feel even older and Richard, well Richard will always feel young, despite his age. Ha!

So let’s do a comparison:

2002 – Young, naïve and cynical girl who has just turned 21 years old, sporting a semi-long mane of thick, luscious hair; who doesn’t have a worry in the world besides calculating that minimal amount of pocket money that she has in her wallet (although still sufficient), her grades and her relationship with her emotionally abusive girlfriend (of that moment).

2007 – A worrisome, tanned and spent woman (fatter too) in her mid 20s, is just at the peak of her quarter-life crisis, and not knowing if the current path she’s treading on is good for her. She now worries about her savings; insurance policies, career prospects, personal development, improving her tennis skills, renovating the house, hoping her relationship with her Bunny will work for real this time round...and the list goes on.

And when I reach 30, I might then be able to write a longer entry consisting of all my woes and regret.