Drum Kits at Forty Paces
It’s getting monotonous with more sleeping in, and a missed breakfast, and then another long afternoon of sunloungers by the pool. It’s a different day as we each have enough energy to take the pool. ….. Oh, I’m thinking we may have over-exerted ourselves a bit. The best solution is, of course, to go back to sleep.There’s only one day to go, and we’ve not ventured beyond just a few hundred meters from our hotel. I’m sure nobody’s trying to find out how to proceed here.
We take a stroll in the late afternoon down the beach. The violent surf of the last couple of days has slowed down a bit, and swimming is permitted at first since we arrived here, and a few surfers are trying their luck on the waves. We drive by what appears to be someSeminyak Beach
Some sort of religious event at the beach with lots of locals in traditional attire and a small contingent of people bringing an offering on the shoreline to let it out into the ocean. The people are out in force to enjoy the sunset, and they’ve got dogs. Lots of dogs. One dog seems to be a bit frightened to follow us. Issy believes it has rabies, however it’s not bubbling with excitement but it’s not obvious anyway. I’m more concerned about two other dogs that seem intent on trying to kill one another. I’m hoping neither will join us. However, rabid dogs aside, it’s an amazing broad, clean, sandy beach. And the sunset is spectacular.
As a sign of our apparent resolve not to travel far from our hotel, we’ve had dinner in each night thus far. We’ve been to one two restaurants. The restaurant is known for serving small bite-sized Asian dishes that are designed to share. Its “bite sized” sums it perfectly, just like taking a bite at a time and then it’s gone. I’ve had a full stomach each time this raises the question of the reason behind it.Sunset watchers, Seminyak Beach
The second time, I was there. This is an amazing question.
Tonight, we’re going to dine out in an outdoor restaurant on the beach. Its traditional Indonesian food is delicious and, more importantly, portions are ample. The ambience is also excellent however there’s one significant omission. Live music is playing that would be great If there weren’t any live music being played in the same volume at the outdoor restaurant across the street. We are unable to hear either correctly; they seem determined to drown each other out. We think this isn’t just a single incident; it happens on a regular basis.
One group eventually decides to stop for a moment, then what will the other group do? is that it decides to take breaks too. There’s a peaceful silence for a couple of minutes until they both get back up … in the exact same at the same time. They must be intentionally doing this in a live music war that has us caught in the middle of the conflict. This isn’t the only battleground on the island. The blinds that block out light in our room could be useful for blocking out light but they’re not up to the task for the live music blasting through the hotel bar every night. AndReligious festival, Seminyak Beach
This is fine, except for two reasons it’s the fact that the singer suckers and appears to be also in conflict and in this instance, along with the loud group from the beach club right next to it. It’s drum kits and bass guitars playing at 40 mph, while tourists search for of Ear muffs. We’ve always imagined Bali as an idyllic place…