Archive for the 'peregrine' Category

bali stories

Published on 14/6/2005 in peregrine and photos. 0 Comments

OK, time to do this. I’ll add to it when I can.

First, a couple of pictures.

The choice of breakfast tea at the Sofitel is not what you would call a smorgasbord. However, their Cocos go POP and their Rice is the Crispiest.

The wedding was on the Friday, so we decided to arrive a bit early (the previous Sunday) and make a nice little holiday out of it. At the Sofitel in Seminyak, there were just three of us, with a few others at the Oberoi and 23 others at a villa complex thing.

We had a quiet night on the Sunday, met up with Indo Poo Doris and her friend in Kuta, but left early as we had to be up at 6am to go diving. Kuta was a bit too touristy for our liking, and we didn’t see many ladies around at all. Anyway, the next day, a long trip to the north of the island, seeing as we had to go back as I’d forgotten my dive computer and we also got a flat tire. Long, but lovely. Driving through the island, seeing people washing in streams and all the paddy fields. I loved it. Alas, the photos were not so good. I did sort of get a video of the volcano. [2 MB MPEG] Not sure of the name. It might be Gunung Agung.

The diving was OK, not amazing. Comedy long walks up and down the rocky beach. Not the best on safety either and our dive guide just buggered off taking photos. Was good to meet up with everyone, including one of my first mates from Hong Kong, who moved back to NYC a couple of years ago. Great to see him.

It was a long long day, but we had to go out to find somewhere to watch the West Ham playoff final in a bar called Stadium I think, followed by ‘doing the cocktail list’ in a bar in Seminyak. Tuesday and Wednesday by the pool getting red. Tuesday evening, we met everyone at Ku De Ta. What a place! So chilled out.

Ku De Ta is an assault on the senses, part restaurant, part bar, part lifestyle. As you walk up the smooth granite stairs and enter the dark teak wood bar and restaurant you look out through the open veranda across the mirror like ornamental pond that separates the property from the perfect white sand of Seminyak beach… and you can really begin to understand why Bali is called ‘The Island of the Gods’.

As lunch drifts into dinner and the sun begins to drown over the sea, the candles are lit, the palm trees are illuminated and the Balinese ornamental flags flutter in the dying wind, you find yourself thinking… it doesn’t get better than this… and it really doesn’t.

Again, the photos didn’t come out very well. There are some here, and more text:

If you’re a fashionista, a cosmocrat, a hipster, the place to be and be seen in Bali, is, without discussion, the Ku De Ta. Situated next to the Oberoi Hotel on Seminyak beach, the Ku De Ta is a bar/terrace/restaurant/party venue for the beautiful people. Superb decor, incredible view of the sunsets (sunset is the time to be there), expensive drinks and lounge music (with live DJ’s), the Ku De Ta submits to all the requisite clichés but does so with panache. It is of course on of those places where style beats substance but you cannot fail to get caught up in the ambience.

So, by around 2am of course, they were playing Bohemian Rhapsody with us screaming at the top of our voices.

More later.

back from bali

Published on 7/6/2005 in peregrine. 3 Comments

Home sweet overcast home.

What a week! I was totally bowled over by Bali. Will write up asap. In the meantime, here’s a treat I left for The Snoop. He doesn’t trust those little bananas.

gone

Published on 29/5/2005 in peregrine. 0 Comments

Right, I’m out of here for a week.

Stay safe and take it easy.

bali

Published on 27/5/2005 in peregrine and personal. 6 Comments

Off to Bali on Sunday for a week. We have four days in Seminyak and then three days in Ubud.

One of my mates is getting married, so a load of us decided to make a week out of it. We will be staying with all the journalists, at the Sofitel in Seminyak to start with, then to the Alila in Ubud.

The Sofitel looks quite nice:

So does the Alila:

The actual wedding is at Begawan Giri. Why am I not staying there? Check the rates! More pics here.

We have a couple of things organised. Diving on Monday and a “Boy’s Day” on the Thursday. Other than that, relaxing.

The Boy’s Day is rafting and river sumo (whatever that is!) followed by a good feed and a few brews, the diving:

10.00: First dive will be at the USS Liberty Wreck
11.30: Lunch at the restaurant
13.00: The second dive will be at drop off wall
15.00: The third dive will be at Batu Kelebit, just around the corner from Tulamben bay, 15 minutes by jukung this beautiful site, Batu Kelebit are two large underwater boulders lying just off shore from a point market by a jagged crest of lava.
18.30: Depart from Tulamben
21.00: Arrive back at your accommodation.

I simply cannot wait to see those boulders!

Ah, one, slight hitch. I just heard from someone. She’s in Bali.

manila

Published on 18/5/2005 in peregrine and shifty capone. 6 Comments

Too tired to do the weekend writeup justice.

Maybe not. Let’s see.

It started with me, drinking with Godot in the IFC. Was soon met by Caspar, The Snoop, Barnaby, Gudmond and The Counter. Over to the aiport to check in with our e-tickets, that turned out to be 100% paper. I was moaning, but we had biz class seats in the end, soooooo.

On the flight I watched the latest episode of 24 on my PSP. Lovely. Gudmond listened to music very loudly. It was his birthday, sooooo. I think we got to the hotel, into our rooms and out again by midnight. I wanted to head over to Greenbelt, to meet Mili, alas I was outgunned by naughty bars. Don’t recall much of the banter. I do remember this:

Girl: “You want to play a game?”
Counter: “Do you have chess?”
Me: “Or cribbage?”
Girl: “Yes I have cleavage, look!”

Riiiiiiiight.

Caspar did his usual, and ended up somewhere mad. A ‘dance rave’ that was playing Barry Manilow. The Counter was wandering the streets until 10am. I was tucked up in bed with my camera and a coconut scented mermaid. No. No photos on here.

We were collected at 12 by Cheech and Chong for our ride up to AC. A place that exists for pretty much one thing. Noncing. Check out the Oasis Hotel:

The suites are among the largest rooms in Angeles and a good option if you like to have two or more girls for the night.

Erm. Oh my zut!

Cheech and Chong had no idea how to get there once we got off the expressway. They stopped every two hundred metres or so to ask someone. Ridiculous.

Right, getting tired now. Let’s just do a precis.

Out for food.
Sweating.
Met mad Doris from t’internet. She was sweating. And lovely. But mad. She left.
Few bars. Me singing Bohemian Rhapsody on a mic. To a bar full of hyuuuuuukers. Autographs. Offers of free tattoos. No thanks.
Hey Ya Sambucas.
Lancelot Club. Birthday cheers. Welcome to the MLCCC. Some Tagalog song to the tune of Another One Bites The Dust, but is naughty I think. I can hear ’salsal mo’ and ‘blow job mo’. The first one means ‘wanking’. Not sure about the second. [All links MP3, < 120KB]
Met mad Doris again. She left again. Saying I didn't like her. She couldn't have been more wrong!
Again, our motto was "No stone unturned", Caspar's was "No stage unturned": in every bar, he danced on the stage. He also sang into a flip flop. Then lost it. I found it. Then, the worst signing. Ever. [AVI, purposely adjusted the contrast to protect the guilty. 1.9 MB]
Ice in the bog.
Queen.
DJ Caspar.
Arse. [CAREFUL!]
A bleached blonde from the “Malay-Hispanic-Sino-American mélange to our south“.
All of us.

There will be more. Once I get The Snoop’s photos.

in country

Published on 22/4/2005 in peregrine. 2 Comments

A few of us are leaving ‘The World’ and going ‘In-country’ on a ’seek and delight’ mission. We’ll be joining up with the rest of our platoon at the airport tonight, 31 of us in total.

Well not really, just a stag do in Ho Chi Minh City.

Back in a bit.

gone

Published on 30/1/2005 in peregrine. 4 Comments

Right, I’m gone. Nice early start.

Hopefully The Snoop and Gunther will keep you entertained while I’m gone, probably more so than I ever have. God knows what they’ll get up to!

Chok dee guys.


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