crab fest..

Dengan tujuan bikin yg baca pada ngiler,...silahkan dilihat foto2 dibawah ini...


Udang masak oatmeal


Kepiting Telor Asin


Kepiting Curry


Soup kepiting bihun

Temanya sepupu gue ultah kemaren, jadi kita pergi makan-makan di Melben Seafood.
Suuueeeedddaaaapppppp abbiiisss...
Harga? I don't know,..karena ditraktir...(bikin tu kepiting tambah sedap..hahaha..gara2 gratis)..

Favorit gue yg soup bihun kepiting, wwuiihh,..gurih abis!

"martinez" pembantu seksi..

Ceritanya kantor gue punya mbak2 yg bersih2 seminggu sekali,..nah, akhir bulan lalu si mbak pulang kampung (ke Sri Lanka), dan karena nggak bakal balik lagi ke sing, gue kudu nyari pengganti.

Alhasil, nanya anak2 kantor, ada ngak yg punya kenalan, colleague gue bilang ada. Dikenalin lah ke gue. Sebutlah si "angela".

Temen gue yg org singapore bilang, kalo loe berdiri di pinggir jalan dan ngelempar 5 kerikil, yg satu pasti kena "Ang-Moh" (org bule), 1 kena org india, 1 kena org indonesia, dan 2 kena org filipino...si "angela" ini org "F"...

yg gue perhatiin, beda nya PRT "F" dan PRT indo adalah mereka tuh kelihatan banget memperhatikan penampilan dan merawat badan dan muka...mmg PRT indo juga pada merawat diri, tapi biasanya gayanya lebih "kalem"...

Contohnya si "Angela" ini, nyampe kantor gue, pake baju lengan buntung dan celana pendek, trus kalo udah selesai bebersih, pake body lotion, dll. Mmg ni anak kecil dan kurus, jadi masih nggak terlalu vulgar lah...tapi tetep aja..pilihan baju nya itu loh...

kemaren ini dia bawa temen nya untuk bantuin bebersih (alasan nya karena si temen ini lagi nggak ada kerja-an), gue sih nggak napa, karena gue bayar tetep sama.
Nah, temen nya ini (si "Martinez") dateng dgn dandanan necis bgt dah (gue aja kalah)..jeans putih, platform wedge, t-shirt lengan buntung, make-up-an...
pas mau mulai bebersih, "martinez" tuker baju, pake celana pendek, tank-top, tetep dgn platform wedge nya.

Celana pendek nya itu yg bahan kaos gitu, stretch-able, tipis dan nggak sampe paha.
Gue langsung keinget sama kalender yg sering dipasang di bengkel-bengkel.....

gue dalam hati geleng-geleng....speechless bo! selain karena attire-nya itu, bos gue jg lagi ada di kantor hari itu!
kalo mikir versi org baik sih, ya, mungkin mereka lebih gampang bergerak di pakaian itu untuk beberes dan mereka nggak nyangka kalo bakal ada bos gue. Tapi tetep aja....

Untung jadwal bebersih tiap sabtu (di kala kantor gue nggak kerja); untung si "angela" nggak seperti si "martinez"...(se-nggak nggak ya agak mending lah)...

enaknya jadi org kaya?

Ceritanya kantor kita punya klien (sebut lah Mr.X)..orang Indihe dari Indihe (maksudnya bukan org Indihe sing)..
kita nge-renovasi apartment Mr.X ini di sing dan skg udah selesai.

Perlu gue bilang dulu kalo si klien ini baik and sip banget dah,..org nya santai (walaupun tajir abis)...
Buktinya dimana? setelah design disetujui, Mr.X ini ngasih duit segeplok dan kita tinggal atur sendiri belanja2 barang apartment (dari furniture sampe handuk) + ongkos2 dll..

Sekarang doi mau masuk rumah, dia bilang ke gue "eh, nancy tolong donk kamu atur-in pasang line telpon, pasang cable tv, dan coba cari org untuk bersihin apt ini setiap hari"
gue sambil senyum dan nganguk2 sambil mikir,.."buset dah, boleh nih gue charge servis sekertaris" (nggak bisa geleng-geleng, karena si bos juga ada di situ, dan bos nggak bilang apa2), gue nggak keberatan jg karena, ya itu, si Mr.X ini nggak sombong gt..

kronologis kerjaan di atas dari Mr.X ngomong ke gue sampe hari ini adalah;
1. gue kirim formulir langganan TV ke Mr.X, supaya doi bisa milih channel cable TV yg doi mau.
2. Mr.X ngirim formulir yg dia dah isi ke sekertaris nya (di Indihe); karena doi lagi ada di Dubai.
3. sekertarisnya ngirim formulir ke gue.
4. gue ngirim itu formulir ke manager perusahaan di sing (karena tu apartment belinya lewat perusahaan)
5. Nanti, itu formulir bakal balik lagi ke gue karena gue yg kudu janjian sama tukang pasang Cable TV nya.

hhh,...itu dokumen udah jalan-jalan lebih jauh daripada gue.....

Satu lagi,...

Klien indihe juga,..nelpon bos trus bilang mau buka kantor di sing,...tanya pendapat bos gue ttg lokasi,..bos gue nawarin nyariin,....siapa yg kena nyariin?? ya bukan bos gue lah,.....

Emang enak hidup kalo tinggal angkat telpon dan minta (atau nyuruh)...

ping-pong

Ini nich jadinya kalo bos pergi keluar negri selama seminggu, trus kerjaan lagi agak santai...hahaha...maen ping-pong!!

Baru beli kemaren2, kebetulan punya meja diskusi di kantor yg pppaaaasssss buat ping-pong..tinggal beli paket ping-pong (net + tiang nya + tepok-an nya (2) + bola ping-pong 3 biji) hihihihi.....ngelepas stress boo!

Breakfast anyone?

-Cinnamon French Toast with strawberries-

Northanger Abbey

Kemaren2 baru selesai dengerin Jane Austen's "Northanger Abbey"...

Yup, "dengerin" karena gue minjem audiobooks dari library...sbnrnya audiobooks lebih buat org-org yg nggak bisa melihat/baca..jadi ada orang yg baca-in itu buku dan di-record.
Biasanya sih yg bacain aktor/aktris, karena pronounciation nya kudu jelas supaya nggak binggung yg dengerin..dan juga (yg seru menurut gue) kalo ada dialog di bukunya, si pembaca biasanya langsung masuk karakter...
Misalnya dialog antara bapak dgn anak, si pembaca bakal menyesuaikan suaranya utk mengekspresikan nada suara si bapak dan nada suara si anak....

Lumayan juga buat ngelatih pendengaran,(kalo kadang2 bos kumur2)..haha...dan juga karena bisa gue copy ke ipod gue, jadi gampang dengerin selama naek bus atau sambil masak, dll...

"Northanger Abbey" ini merupakan novel terakhir Jane Austen (1775-1817), ceritanya ttg seorg anak ceweq, Catherine Morland, yg liburan bersama tetangganya. Selama liburan ini dia ketemu 2 cowoq yg sama-sama tertarik terhadap Catherine dan pada akhirnya Catherine married dgn salah satu cowoq tsb.

Lumayan seru, tapi kalo yg nggak suka, dibacain cerita gitu, bisa bikin ..zzzzz.....

Lamb Vindaloo

Hihihihh,..namanya exotic yaa??

Ini masakan gue 2 hari yg lalu; sebenarnya udah pernah masak ini juga 2 bulan yg lalu tapi nggak di-blog (skg secara nggak mau kalah sama elsiey
Ini ngikutin resep asli dari jamie oliver
di websitenya mungkin belum tentu ada karena gue beli bukunya "The Ministry of Food"



Anyway, masakan nya ini ala india, alias curry.
Bahan:
- 2 bawang bombay, iris halus
- 4 bawang putih, iris halus
- jahe sebesar jempol dikupas & iris halus
- 2 cabe (atau seberani mungkin) iris halus
- 4 tomat (masing2 dibelah 4)
- segenggam peterseli, pisahkan daun dan batang; batang diiris halus
- 1/2 botol merk Patak's Vindaloo curry paste (ini mungkin yg agak susah nyarinya di indo; mungkin di SOGO ada)
-800gr lamb / pork / chicken (enakan bagian yg banyak lemak & urat karena bakal lama masaknya)
- 6 sdk makan Balsamic Vinegar (ini cuka ala italy)
- 400ml air
- 1 sdk makan madu
- 200 ml yoghurt
- 1 lemon

Cara:
Tumis bwg bombay+ bwg putih+ jahe+ cabe+ batang peterseli di campuran minyak+mentega (kira2 sama lah quantity nya), masukin daging, dan curry paste, balur daging sehingga tersalut penuh sama curry paste; masukan tomat, balsamic vinegar dan madu.
Tuang air sampe semua daging terendam.
Besarkan api untuk mendidihkan air, terus kecilin dan tutup panci. Masak selama 45 menit.
Jadi deh!!
Pas mau makan, peras sedikit lemon, garnish dgn daun peterseli dan sesendok yoghurt. Nyuam nyuam...

Weekend...

Kemaren sama temen2 pergi nonton "Angels and Demons" Tom Hanks. Keren juga tuch, lumayan kombinasi drama dan action nya,..balance gitu..
tapi kudu konsentrasi abis nonton nya, soalnya ngomong nya pada cepet banget, rada kumur2 plus dalam beberapa bahasa (inggris, italian, latin) dan emang ceritanya "dalem" bgt!

Ringkas ceritanya si Tom Hanks di minta tolong oleh Vatican untuk menyelidiki penculikan 4 org kardinal yg merupakan kandidat favorit untuk menggantikan Paus yg baru saja meninggal. Penculik nya meninggalkan calling card illuminati (musuhnya gereja dari jaman bahela)

Seperti film dari adaptasi novel Dan Brown sebelum nya (Da Vinci Code) yg perlu diingat waktu nonton film ini adalah kalo film ini adalah fiksi. Dasarnya mungkin ada unsur2 kebenaran tapi tetep saja hasil akhirnya bukan dokumentasi ataupun reconstruction of truth events

Sebelum pergi nonton, kita dinner dl di Din Tai Fung, -makan xiao long pao-; wadoh, ini restoran emang nggak ada matinya! di saat resto lain mungkin agak2 berkurang pengunjung dan kudu bikin promosi, resto yg satu ini hampir selalu harus ngantri 20-30 menit (tiap kali gue pergi ke situ sih ngantri)...
Biasanya gue selalu ogah kalo musti ngantri (kalo di singapore, ngantri itu -hampir selalu- menandakan tu resto enak), tapi kalo Din Tai Fung service nya super efisien, dan super cepet. Hampir bisa dijamin meja bakal siap dalam 30 menit. Makanan nya sederhana tapi enak dan tergolong "worth the dollar" dan keluar dari dapur dalam 5 menit begitu loe pesen.
Turnover meja dalam 1 malem aja bisa 3 kali, kali tuh; the big question is "Berapa profit nya sebulan ya?"
Gue rasa salah satu rahasia nya karena staff nya orang2 China; bukan nya ngejelekin, tapi yg namanya ngerantau pasti org yg kerja lebih keras dari org lokal, dan karena mereka Chinese ........ perlu gue jelaskan?

Udah kelar makan + nonton, on the way pulang ke rumah, gue dengerin Diana Krall - Quiet Nights. Wah, emang cocok bgt judulnya dgn isi CD nya...
Sambil jalan balik ke apt, tengah malem, aransemen lagu nya soothing dan calming ; favorit gue "I grow accustomed to his face" dan "I hang my tears out to dry"..
Nice..

Zap..Zap..

haaahh...2 minggu belakangan ini capek banget,..

Capek #1
Awalnya pas dapet "bulanan", biasanya dari sejak teenager, gue nggak pernah ngerasa sakit/pegel2 pas lagi dapet, tapi belakangan ini (1 tahunan) koq jadi berasa pegel2 ya? terus kemaren ini yg paling parah, sampe sakit bgt perutnya,..light headed dan pinggang pegel bukan main!! gue ampe research di internet,...soalnya biasanya kalo cuman pegel2 doank, gue tempelin botol isi air hangat di perut/pinggang udah mendingan...tapi kali ini gue ampe minum susu, makan yoghurt dan panadol (migrain juga dikit)..

Udah pengen ijin sakit and nggak masuk kerja,..tapi liat2 sikon kantor + mood bos yg lagi agak2 "berkabut", akhirnya masuk juga deh,......setelah tersiksa selama 8 jam, ini pertama kalinya dalam berbulan2 gue pulang jam 6.15!
untung "dapet"nya pas hari kamis, jadi tinggal tahan hari jumat, weekend deh...

Capek #2
Pas udah nggak sakit perut lagi, bangun kesiangan mulu, akhirnya kudu naek tangga deh ke kantor...(liat "what motivates you (2)")

Capek #3
Selama minggu2 itu, gue tetep coba ber-pilates ria soalnya menurut saran2 (di internet), selama 'dapet' pun harus tetep berolah raga, which will helps utk ngurangin pegel2..

Capek #4
Kemaren, sepupu gue bawa pulang osim u-zap (punya ceweq nya); yg bergeter2 buat ngecilin perut itu. Nah, gue cobain lah karena penasaran dan emang dulu pernah mikir2 pengen beli..
Ternyata.....
capek juga pake itu,..karena perut otot gue serasa ditarik2, didorong, ditabok2, dll...10 menit aja udah cukup buat bikin perut gue merah kayak kepiting rebus! dan rasanya abis sit-up..

After so much sweat, gue deserve a little reward doonnkk,....A slice of truffle chocolate cake yg gue beli buat ultah sepupu gue....hhhmmmm,.....nyuam nyuam...

The curse of Facebook

Minggu kemaren baru nambah bbrp temen dan sepupu di facebook.

Dengan nambah temen, more often than not, berarti nambah pula foto2 yg seringkali udah terlupakan kalo pernah diambil sama si temen itu, jadinya keluarlah foto2 yg kadang2 bikin seneng, bikin nostalgia, mengingatkan akan sesuatu atau (yg lebih sering terjadi ke gue) memalukan!
Bukan apa2 sih, foto2nya bukan tipe "tabloid hot" gitu, tapi lebih ke "ihh, jelek amat gue di foto ini" soalnya terus terang aja, gue orgnya cuek bgt, jarang pake make-up; kalo pake pun nggak kelihatan saking tipisnya, dan sering udah kehapus..sehingga...kelihatan lah semua jerawat yg selalu menghiasi muka gue...

Dilema gue mungkin nggak ada apa2 nya kali ya,..soalnya gue jg bertanya2 kalo utk org2 yg ganti pacar misalnya, tapi gerombolan temen ttp sama, pasti ada beberapa foto yg include si-ex...
mending kalo misalnya putusnya baik2 sama si ex, kalo putusnya penuh drama dan juicy gossip??? waddoohh,..bisa merusak pasaran selanjutnya....*sambil berharap2 cemas ini nggak akan terjadi ke g*...hehe...

mumbles..

hmm,..sbnrnya nggak tau mau posting apa nich,..tapi karena udah lama, hmm,..mau cerita apa ya??

Cici + Cihu dateng 2 minggu kemaren; mereka org "melarikan diri" dari rumah for a long weekend sekalian istirahat in singapore (cici lg batuk pilek)..haha..detail nya liat aja di aja yach..

Yg seru dari trip ini buat gue (selain ketemu my dear sis, off course) cihu gue beli tangan HellBoy yg gue temukan di mall sebelah kantor. Liat nich poto ku..


KEREN KHAAANNN!!!!
Ini skala 1:1 prop tangan nya HellBoy! hihihih....
Udah dibawa pulang sich ama Cihu, gue cuman numpang foto keren nya doank! hahahhaha...

Yg tadinya dateng ke singapore cuman masing2 bawa hand luggage 1, pulang nya beranak pinak, nambah kardus setinggi pinggang 2!
Dan lagi cici + cihu gue makan nya kuat bo! cici gue sih badan seukuran gue, tapi tembolok saingan tuch ama laki nya! (gue curiga tembolok loe sbnrnya bentuknya memanjang ci, dari perut sampe lutut balik lagi ke perut..hahaha..) Jadwal makan bisa 5 kali (brunch + lunch + tea time + snacks + dinner)..
kalo gue nggak berasa kenyang tanpa dessert/kue/pastries, cihu gue nggak berasa kenyang tanpa nasi+ba**....sedangkan cici gue selalu nemenin gue dan cihu gue makan...kebayang doonkk!!! *hehe..Peace ci*

Tapi asik dan seru banged...dan banyak kenang2an nya;
1. Dapat bakwa (ba** panggang ala bee cheng hiang) ketinggalan.. :)
2. Weekend berikutnya setelah cici gue udah pulang, sandal jepit gue nyerah (lem-an udah kgk kuat) saking kebanyakan jalan weekend sebelum nya..
3. gue mulai batuk :(

The Girl in the Green Scarf

Yesterday night, me and my friend went for the movie "Confessions of a shopaholic"; which I approach with caution as earlier in the day, I read the newspaper about the movie and found so many unfavourable reviews.
Most of the reviews slammed the movie as

shallow, weak and man-crazy

..you might guess that these reviewers are mostly men! Who have no understanding whatsoever of the sometimes-weak-slightly-neurotic dark side of Venus(es).

One brave men writer even wrote

have women gone nuts?

with reference to movies like Sex and the City movie

There is a joke about the Sex and the City movie that says that of the few men who watched it, half were gay and the other half were straight men who had done something really bad

(read=watching the movie is like punishment for these straight guys)
I don't disagree because Hey, that movie is celebrating women POWER (I would like to include underline, but there is none)
If you don't like it, then don't watch it,...same as I wouldn't watch 300 or saving private ryan, cause I don't fancy blood and gore with my popcorn.

so for guys who don't understand it - give it up, don't try, as we don't understand some of your guy-cry movies either.

-------------------------------spoilers ahead!!--------------------------------------

Back to the movie, a basic requirement is you will have to love shopping even a teeny tiny bit to understand the sentiment.
Secondly, you got to like a teeny tiny bit of Ally Mcbeal, as Becky (Isla Fisher) is the shopping version of Ally.

The movie is simply about addiction. In this case, addiction to shopping. As in general cases of addiction, the victim has to get "hit" at regular intervals to soothe their craving and "make the world better".

The verdict? I love it; I mean who hasn't experience trouble with money once in their life? Its the kind of movie that you rent for a girls' slumber party.
Light, refreshing and struck a chord with me in a few aspects; and as a romantic comedy, the fantasy does really hit the spots with over the top bills, SA (Shopaholic Anonymous); and the absolutely-DELICIOUS-Hugh Dancy-with British lilt *sigh* (Shallow Mode ON)
In the first scene where Hugh met Isla, I can almost literaly feel my toes (and the toes of all women in the cinema) just curl with delight!
The tousled brown hair, the pointed chin, the annoyed yet amused gaze, the expressive mouth and the accent just melt me like a warm butter on a hot toast! *sigh again*

Wake Up, Nancy!! *slap slap and tissue to wipe my drool*

Iron Man Vs Frankenstein

Hari ini di kantor LUAR BIASA sibukk...

Cerita nya berawal dari seminggu yg lalu, kita dapet invitation to tender (kantor gue konsultan arsitek)..pendek kata ada client mau bangun gedung dan minta kita untuk ngasih harga (berapa duit kalo mau design+bangun dll)

Hari ini merupakan deadline submission tender itu...dan juga hari terakhir bos gue di kantor minggu ini (besok doi mau keluar negri sampe jumat)..makanya selain deadline ini, anak2 pada ngejar bos juga buat diskusi projek..

Sebelum makan siang, si client tender nanya, "jadi nggak nich ikutan tender?" (lewat email)
Terus bos gue nanya ke gue "Itu minggu kemaren kita udah ngirim email konfirmasi kalo kita mau ikutan khan?"
"iya, bos" gue jawab "Ada nich emailnya masih I simpen"
Begitu dibales ama bos gue kalo kita masih ON utk ikut tender, si client balesin "Tapi saya baru terima konfirmasi untuk project yg satunya lagi"
DUEENNNGGG......gue kayak kena geledek! (bos gue kyk kebakaran jenggot) Matilah, pikir gue, salah gue, apa yak?
Langsung bos gue minta gue nelusurin email yg kita terima dan kita kirim...

Selama 15 menit itu gue keringat dingin, tangan ampe rasanya beku, muka gue saking stress nya kayak di-botox; karena kita (3 arsitek + gue ngerjain kontrak) udah ngerjain selama seminggu utk deadline hari ini, udah tinggal 5 jam lagi! Worst case scenario adalah kalo misalnya kita ngerjain denah project yg satu dengan deskripsi project yg lain,..seperti, maunya bikin Iron Man tapi jadinya malah Franskenstein,.....waaaa...ttiiiddaaakkkkk!!!!.......
Konsekuensi nya ya nggak dapat projek atau semua org bakal mesti ngulang kerjaan (either options gives a phantom heart attack to me)
BBRRUUKKK...*background gabrukan pintu toilet sama bos*
makin spaneng gue....Bakalan langsung dipancung di tempat nich..

Tapi ternyata liat punya liat, si bos juga nggak nyadar kalo ternyata si client ngirim 2 projek...(buktinya dia masih nanya gue, walaupun tetep nggak mengurangi pelototan mata doi ke gue)......
pas ngirim projek#1, kita udah diskusi; pas bbrp hari kemudian si client ngirim projek#2, gue ama bos mengira client ngirim projek yg sama secara resmi *abis mirip siicchh* (karena mereka minta receipt resmi)...jadilah kita ngirim receipt utk projek#2, tapi receipt projek#1 tetep aja nggak dikirim.

Akhirnya setelah klarifikasi, baru deh kita bales ke client; sorry, bla bla bla, kita tetep ikutan koq buat 2-2nya..

Fiuh! makanya gue nggak usah nonton film horror lagi,...kerja aja udah cukup buat sport-jantung.....

to the Spa..to the Spa..

Kemaren pas ke Bali itu, sempet gue mention kalo gue ke spa, khan?
Well, emang kalo gue ke Bali itu, kyknya kurang afdol kalo blm ke spa. Nah, sebelum berangkat, gue sempet browsing spas di Bali. Kalo di Jkt, favorit gue emang Four Seasons (gara2 dulu pernah kerja di four seasons, hihi), kebetulan di Bali ada 2; Four Season Jimbaran sama Four Seasons Sayan.
Akhirnya gue save no telp dua2nya, just in case.

Pas kebetulan selesai resepsi dan jalan2 di Ubud itu sore + kebetulan Four Seasons Sayan itu di Ubud + kebetulan bisa bikin appointment malam itu = jadi deh ke Four Seasons Sayan Spa!!*victory sign*

Dari Ubud, dianterin sama bus pariwisata ke entrance road nya;
dari situ gue jalan kaki masuk ke kompleks resort nya...

setelah lewat jalanan mobil, nyampe lah gue di Drop-off area. Ini baru pintu gerbang "resmi" nya si resort; biasanya di sini pengunjung nya turun trus jalan kaki masuk ke resort, sedangkan bagasi dll dibawa ke lobby oleh buggy (mobil golf itu loh).

Sampe sini, gue masih santai2 aja, cuman pikir,"oh, bagus ya,..banyak pohon, hijau2, teduh, udaranya lebih dingin (pas cuaca abis hujan)…

Di sini ada concierge nya, trus gue nanya “Mau ke Spa, lewat mana ya mas?”
Si mas nya bilang “oh, lewat jembatan ini trus turun, mba; spa nya ada di bawah restoran”
Huh? Jembatan?

Ternyata ngelewatin gate itu, ada jembatan kayu selebar 1,8m-an yg menghubungkan gate dengan lily pond yg gede banget di ujung nya…

WAH! Lutut gue sampe agak lemes gitu saking pemandangan nya keren abis!
Lily pond nya itu di-design seperti infinity pool (yg nggak ada pinggirnya, jadi air seakan2 meluap keluar) dan pemandangan sekitar nya pohon-pohon. Jadi seakan2 melayang di tengah2 jurang gitu!



Di ujung lily pond yg menghubungkan ke jembatan ada buka-an yg ternyata tangga turun ke bangunan utama resort nya. Dari sini ada tangga setengah elips di sebelah kiri yg menuju ke lobby dan open air bar. Turun lagi 1 level ke open air restaurant. Turun 1 level lagi, spa.

Gue check-in dulu ke spa, trus abis itu pengen jalan2 liat-liat kompleks nya. Pas nanya ke concierge, dibilang boleh, terus dipanggilin buggy sama 1 staff (namanya Jantik) buat nganter gue muter2 kompleks.

Dari lobby, gue dianterin ke salah satu River Side Villa.

Dari level jalanan, yg kelihatan Cuma pendopo yg dikelilingin lily pond. Ternyata jalan masuk ke villa nya turun tangga. Menurut Mas Jantik, banyak tamu yg bilang kayak masuk bunker!..haha…Buat gue yg setengah hermit, gue sih seneng2 aja.
Masuk ke villa, bangunan nya dibagi 2, outdoor dan indoor. Di outdoor, ada tempat duduk2, mini bar, patio dengan umbrella, plunge pool dan sun-deck.
Pemandangan nya bener2 keren! Karena view nya sungai Ayung yg berlawanan arus. Nggak kelihatan orang2 lain ataupun gedung hotel ataupun jalanan. Privacy abis!

Indoor, ada kamar tidur, kamar mandi dan walk-in closet. Indoor nya ber-AC.
Dari kamar tidur ada French sliding door yg terbuka ke sun-deck. Sedangkan di kamar mandi ada pintu yg menhubungkan ke outdoor shower dan ke sun-deck juga. Jadi kalo dari plunge pool, bisa langsung ke kamar mandi tanpa melewati kamar tidur.

Keluar dari villa, gue dianterin ke swimming pool yg letaknya di level paling rendah kompleks; pas sebelah-an sama sungai yg mengalir dengan seru; dgn shape yg mengikuti lekuk sungai. Sun-deck utk swimming pool juga dialokasi di pinggir sungai dengan akses batu2 kali untuk yg pengen turun ke bibir sungai.



Ngeliat ke belakang atas (dari swimming pool), kelihatan lah block hotel yg sekitar 3-4 tingkat dan seakan2 nancap di pinggir tebing.


Setelah puas muter-muter dan foto2, gue dianter balik ke lobby, dimana gue pesen sandwich di bar, (dinner dan sambil nunggu waktu buat spa).


Pas udah waktu nya spa, gue dianter lagi pake buggy ke Spa Villa.
Menurut therapist nya, spa villas utk treatment di atas 2 jam. Tapi karena lagi sepi (kyknya) dan gue tamu special (ehem ehem…) massage gue yg kurang dari 2 jam pun di kasih di spa villa.

Turun tangga dari jalan, sampe lah gue di arrival pendopo. Design Spa Villa ini merupakan cluster 3 treatment villas dan 1 Back-of-House building cum pendopo. Clusternya dibangun di atas Lily pond.


Setiap Spa Villa, bisa utk treatment 2 org bersamaan, ada bay window with seating, shower,toilet, bath tub, walk-in closet dan outdoor shower. 2 sisi bangunan merupakan folding glass door yg bisa dibuka.

Begitu gue ditinggal-in buat ganti baju, langsung gue cobain outdoor shower nya! Hihihi,…out door area nya tertutup sama tanaman2, dan karena letaknya lebih rendah dari jalanan, jadi bener2 nggak bakal kelihatan dari luar.
Fuh! Karena udah seharian (dari resepsi) pake baju pesta, langsung seger pas mandi.

Abis mandi, therapist nya dateng buat massage. Dan abis massage, gue mandi lagi (nggak mau rugi). Kali ini di shower yg ada Rain Shower nya. Dinamain rain shower karena shower head nya gede (sekitar diameter 30cm) dan dipasang di langit2 kamar mandi; jadi seakan2 mandi di guyuran hujan; tapi ada air panas tentunya…hehe….

Di Vanity table nya, hampir semua disediakan, hairdryer, sisir, kapas, cotton-buds, moisturiser, face moisturiser, talc-powder, deodorant,dll. Tinggal make-up aja nich yg kurang,.hohoho…

Abis dari villa, gue diantar buggy ke main building buat bayaran, trus gue minta dipanggilin taxi buat pulang.

Fuhhh! Sip dah!

Photos courtesy of Four Seasons Sayan; and the author would like to thank all Four Seasons Sayan staff for their wonderful hospitality which render an unforgettable experience.

suprised visit..

Weekend kemaren ini, ada undangan temen kantor yg orang Bali. Doi married sama temen sekolah yg juga anak Bali.

Sebenarnya sih nggak ada rencana mau ke Bali lagi (mahal bo! semua dihitung pake USD!) soalnya desember kemaren baru juga pulang dari bali, waktu itu beneran liburan untuk santai-santai; tapi ini pengecualian. Kali ini mikirnya pergi sekaligus sebagai representative kantor, soalnya nggak ada lagi yg pergi selain gue.

Sebelum pergi, gue nelpon paman dulu yg kebetulan tinggal di Bali, ijin mau nginep, abis tiket pesawat udah mahal, jadi udah nggak ada budget buat nginep di hotel lagi dah..:(

Nyampe di Bali jumat malem, terus besok paginya jam 7-an udah dijemput ama mobil utk naek bus ke tempat resepsi. Temen gue nyiapin bus, karena selain gue, ada lagi 15-an org temen dari pihak si ceweq yg juga terbang ke Bali utk acara ini.
Akhirnya kita sama2 jalan ke tempat resepsi jam 9-an, dan nyampe jam 11. Memang tempatnya lumayan jauh dari denpasar.
Tadinya gue pikir, resepsinya di gedung serba guna gitu, ternyata rumah keluarga si cowoq, dan karena keluarga si cowoq cukup terpandang di daerah itu, kompleks rumah nya cukup besar dan menurut temen gue ada 7 keluarga yg tinggal di satu kompleks itu.

Pas kita sampe, di ajak masuk ke courtyard yg udah dipasangi tenda putih. Wuih, untung banget ada tendanya, kalo nggak pulang2 bakal hangus, soalnya panas banget hari itu, matahari nya super terik!
Di pintu masuk courtyard ada meja tempat buku tamu dan tempayan buat amplop, terus ada buffet makanan kecil (kue2 manis) dan minuman botol manis.
Dari situ, baru deh kita salam2an sama pengantin dan keluarga nya.

Bajunya si pengantin bagus banget! dekoratif, elaborate dan detail. Kita yg pada pake baju cuman selapis langsung komentar "Wah! nggak kepanasan loe pake baju gitu?" soalnya yg cowoq pake jas lengan panjang dan sarung semata kaki + kaos kaki sedangkan si ceweq pake kebaya lengan panjang dan sarung semata kaki juga. Setelah sarung, mereka berdua masih pake kain dekoratif hitam putih. Make up lengkap dengan rambut palsu (buat si ceweq).

Setelah ngobrol2 akhirnya kita foto2 bareng pengantin nya. Abis foto2, makan siang prasmanan.

Acara hari itu memang resepsi tok, sedangkan "adat nikahnya" udah sehari sebelumnya. Memang lebih seru pas adat nikahnya (yg sama temen gue di puter di TV samping pelaminan). Seperti adat jawa atau sunda, adat nikah Bali pun penuh dgn ritual-ritual yg melambangkan bermacam2 pesan2/nasehat dari tetua, dsb. Seperti misalnya, saling suap2an nasi; pengantin pria berjalan mengelilingi courtyard dengan guci tanah liat di bahu, dll.

Sekitar jam 2, akhirnya kita pamit pulang. Bus yg tadi dateng, bakal nganter kita ke Ubud utk jalan2 bbrp jam, baru terus diantar ke tempat nginap masing2.
Karena group temen2 kerja si ceweq udah ada acara sendiri, gue bikin appointment buat spa di Four Seasons Sayan (bakal gue ceritain di blog selanjutnya), baru pulang ke rumah paman.

Besoknya, hari minggu, kita ke gereja pagi, terus pergi makan siang dan pulang deh.

Pada bilang sayang sih, ke Bali bentar banget, tapi apa boleh buat, lagi nggak niat liburan, ini pergi karena ada acara aja. (setia kawan banget ya gue....hahahaha)
abis gue pikir, kalo ini resepsi gue dan nggak ada org dari kantor yg dtg, gue bakal miserable banget dah. Acara sekali seumur hidup nich! ya nggak?..

What motivates you (2)?

Almost everyday of this week, I've been waking up early in the morning and arrive in the office a few minutes before 9am. Which is quite out of the norm as usually my schedule will follow a loose pattern of:
Monday; arrive at 8.35
Tuesday; arrive at 8:55
Wednesday; arrive at 9:02
Thursday; arrive at 9:10
Friday; arrive at 9:17
or it coulb be; arrive at after 9 for the whole week. (FYI, office hours start at 9am)

Wonder what motivates me? the answer is two-word (as Danny De Vito said in "Hercules") Mini-Bus

Well, I did mentioned in my blog previously that our office has moved to a new location right? Well, that new location is on one of the highest points in Singapore; not that much different how Mt.Everest summit is to Nepal (shrunk 208times; give and take a few hundred meters).

Ever since we moved to this office, I've been climbing a set of staircase every morning (and sometimes at lunch time) to/fro the main road. As the location is in a designated residential area, no convinience store and no cafes around. A quick trip for a stick of ice cream is out of the question. I've learned to be smart with my time, if I have to go on errands, I make sure that its around lunch time and I came back by taxi.

So you can imagine our delight when the landlord of our bulding said that a mini-bus has been provided to carry us in the morning, departing every 8:50am from the main road.
Since then, there is no turning back for me, I've been waking up with renewed spirit every morning, eager to catch the bus!

to the dentist...to the dentist

Last weekend, I finally decided to go to the dentist to have my teeth examined. Been having problems of food stuck to various spots between the teeth and also it is about time to do some scaling and polishing.

I have alwasy hated going to the dentist since one of my tooth got pulled out due to ill-placed growth, but mostly I dreaded the visit because they have nasty equipments that emits high pitched skin-crawling-nerve-wrecking sound that have to be operated inside your mouth!

However, I convinced myself that I am an adult and more mature and should be able to bear this. So, I made the necessary appointments.

On the day, I went in to the Doc's chamber with my empty stomach (since I don't intend to insult the doc with my breakfast bits) tied in 100 knots. The Doctor was Korean, very kind; almost fatherly; still in his 30s (I think).
But when he asked when was my last examination, if I floss, etc etc; I was feeling like I'm in one of those room with a two-way mirror. After that, the Doc asked me to get in the Xray room to take a pic of my teeth.
Turns out, the cause of that food stuck is because my wisdom teeth are not nicely developed. The good doc's advice is to remove all of my wisdom teeth! All! That's like 3 tooth!Dang!

I was quite shocked, to be honest! But I guess its necessary.
So,...let's see what's next...

Rainbow Connection

Isn't it amazing how one song can be sung in so many different style, across different genre and it will evoke different feelings.

I've just came across "Rainbow Connection" (Kenneth Ascher - Paul Williams) arranged by Gil Goldstein, sung by Jane Monheit, with Peter Bernstein at the guitar and Gil Goldstein playing piano and accordion.

It was mellow, fluid, romantic, with the accordion lent Parisian air of the city of lovers. The song easily suggests me the image of couples waltzing under the moonlight (which wouldn't supprise me if the song features as a movie soundtrack someday).

If I didn't search youtube for the music video of that song, I wouldn't know that it was originally sung by Kermit the Frog. And I also found different variations of the song by Jason Mraz, Sarah MacLahlan,etc.

But, I really do prefer Jane/Gil's arrangement. Check it out..

"Behind every story is a great Journey"

It was 13.15 in the afternoon, the sky was a big blue bowl, the sun was shining bright enough for me to wish I've had my hat, the air pleasantly warm and dry and stirred into comforting breeze. As I nibbled on parma ham,mozzarela and fresh tomatoes foccacia sandwich (with a side salad and just fried potato chips) I could see as far as the sky meets the sea. The sea which calm, sparkling blue and totally unmarred by ships/sail boats or people doing water sports.

That was not my imagination by the way, that was how it was as I lunched at the Bulgari Hotels and Resorts Bali. It was part of my holiday trip, but the experience deserved its own column.

The resort was perfect for tourist looking for a bit of peace and quiet, away from hot spots such as Kuta, Legian or other destinations.
Bali is dotted with such development, with big brand names catering to the wealthy and privileged. But what separates them are the level of services provided; which also reflected in their villas rate.

When I arrived at the drop off, I was immediately welcomed with a smile and the assurance that the buggy will arrive in a few minutes to take me to the Bar.
The drop off was a huge traditional Bali Pavillion influenced with a contemporary Italian style. The drop off pavillion was cleverly designed to reveal the view with a flourish!

After a 5 minutes ride circling the compound, I was dropped off at the Bar area to enjoy the view and nicely prepared lunch. Over to the right is the infinity pool with a few covered cabanas of weave rattan and cotton scattered by the pool. To my left are the restaurants. The Bar itself is a big open-air pavillion perched right at the edge of the cliff.

The villas are spread out over the compound in a terraced manner to give maximum view of the Indian Ocean for each villa.
Although I didn't have the chance to tour the whole place or any of the villas, I am quite impressed with what I've seen.

As the buggy drive me back to the drop off, the driver alerted the drop off attendant to summon my ride. I really need not to request it. They anticipated your needs and most of the times provide it before you ask!

Next trip, I am going to try the spa.

flying fox and babysitting

As mentioned before, I really wanted to get away for sometime now and last weekend I was flying off to Bali to spend 3 days there. It was quite an improptu thing, since a friend of mine will be there for the weekend as well on a business trip.

The first 2 days, I spent with my uncle's family (they reside there) and my sister (she works there), we went for local delicacies, day trips (flying fox), spa and dinners together.

And then the last night I went to stay at a hotel (selfishly I wanted some time alone to regroup and enjoy lazy days). It proved to be quite a good decision, as I managed to catch that magnificent sunset at Kuta Beach with Fency, do some sightseeing and shopping at Legian (found the cutest bathing suit! exactly what I had in mind)
I was regreting (a bit) of not staying in the hotel earlier, as I met this guy who is the hotel's photographer. I think he was quite cute (can't see clearly without my glasses as I was swimming). Wonder what might ensue from that meeting if I were not due for check out in 2 hours....

From Bali, I fly back home and stayed at my sis' place for the rest of my holidays, babysitting.
She recently moved from the centre of town to the suburbs (way WAY out in the suburbs), where a decent mall is 30 minutes away. Whereas my parent's house is 10 minutes away from one of the poshest malls in town.

Knowing I'll be at my sis, I brought my little munchkins some snacks and chocolate bites. Imagine my horror when my sis said that they are ALERGIC TO CHOCOLATES!!! OH NO! my poor bambini...I hope they outgrow it though..
So for 5 days, I coddled them, soothe them, break their fights, change their wet pants,etc etc..But I have to say when the rewards are big hugs, toothy grins, and sloppy kisses, its well worth it.
They are in their first week of school and I just got this cutest picture of them in their uniforms.
Luna and Jovann remember me still as I was there during their early days (from birth to 1-ish), but little sebastian still wary of me up to the day I left. He is one tough nut to crack.

Anyhow, it was one of the nicest holiday I've had in long time.....with nothing to do but what I want to...Isn't that what great holidays are?