Isolation Journal 38

Today I woke up early as I'd booked a Covid test at the drive through regional centre at a nearby park and ride for 8am and so I was up at 7.10am which is a good hour and a half earlier than recently and I had breakfast (apple, yoghurt and granola with coffee) and fed the cats.  I'm helping with the app for monitoring my daily symptoms and it asked me to go for a test, so I obliged.  It was different to the other time when I went back in May and had to open my window and had someone swab for me, this time I was given my own test (they dropped it through the passenger window) and I had to put the swab to the back of my throat and also do my nose - it's not a pleasant test.  I then had to drop it into a box next to my window after they'd stepped away.  I got the results back today and it was negative, which wasnt a surprise.

I was back at home for 8.30am and logged on for work at 9am as usual and kicked off with a call and then had a few bits and pieces to discuss with my boss and then a few prep calls for candidates.  I've come to a conclusion that I worry very much about some calls or disputes about things that then distract me from actually getting on with things, I think one thing about lockdown is it gives a bit too much time for self reflection and less ability to form context from speaking to colleagues.  I had Pilates again at 12pm and then Alan cooked rostis and I put a couple of bratwurst in the overn for lunch and then we had them with sriracha mayo - the house smelled like the German market.  We had 2 deliveries when I was doing pilates, one was a surprise from one of the girls in my team a card an some chocolates to say thank you for some of the help I'd been giving her and the other was a box of flowers that I'd ordered from Arena Flowers as a new 2 weekly subscription - some beautiful blue hydragena and they make me happy every time I see them!  There were 6 blooms with eucalyptus foliage and enough for 2 vases.  I also had a lovely print of a runner from my friend to thank me for my help with the council tax - it's been a very good post week.

Work was very busy with a few things to sort out and I also ran the weekly quiz which was based on peoples LinkedIn profiles and guessing people from bits of photos and also from their testimonials.  

Alan cooked dinner which was a hello fresh pork and rice recipe that I later finished off for lunch tomorrow.  The delivery for toilet paper, natural deodorant and soap arrived from Ethical Superstore which was great.

I then finished off a few more things and then got ready for Guides which was at 7pm and needed some water and bowls prepping, I managed to get ready just in time and they had a fun meeting which was about stress and relaxation.  Kirstie did a guided river and leaves relaxation that was great.  

I was aware that Alan hadn't been out for a few days so I encouraged him to go for a run and we did a fairly good pace for around 5K and had a sit down and chat on the lawn before going in and getting showered and after I'd finished off lunch for tomorrow and ate a lollyand  I cleaned the kitchen and then had a shower and turned on my computer to write my appraisal.  

Alan is a bit down so I went and gave him a hug and got Maya to sit next to him.  

Paris

I've lived in England my whole life and was 30 minutes away from Waterloo station and so therefore Eurostar until 1998, but I've never actually managed to visit Paris.  When my friend Sam mentioned she was going to book a solo trip "but I've always wanted to go to Paris" I whined, "So come with me!" she said and then we picked up my friend Zoe too who wanted to come and has also been able to act as a very useful tour guide.

Last week was mentally busy for me, I had Guides, drinks out on a work night, Robbie Williams in Manchester, WI and then visiting my cousin.  When people learned that I was flying to Paris on Saturday they all wanted to know - "is it a romantic weekend?"  Well actually no, but it's been extremely fun and actually really nice sans les garcons.

Sam was amazing and had booked all our tickets and accommodation and so after a very straightforward flight from Leeds Bradford Airport we took a train and a metro (all included within our "visite" card) and arrived at our apartment that Sam had booked through Air BnB 

The apartment is beautiful, if a little quirky and has amazing views including the Eiffel Tower!  I had to use a lot more of my A-Level French to speak to our host who doesn't speak any English and was giving us a guided tour of the facilities.   If there were negatives to be cast on this beautiful place it's that there is only one toilet with very thin walls off the living room/lounge and that there are no curtains (?!?!)

The lift is also pretty terrifying, it says that it can accomodate " 3 personnes..."

but unless you are a contortionist  or extremely thin, it feels like a horror film of claustrophobia about to happen.  Although it is also amusing like a cupboard that goes up and down!

After we had settled into the apartment, got changed and ready we headed out to look for a restaurant recommended to us by our host, after we couldn't find that particular one, we ended up at Marcel's and I had probably one of the best meals I've ever eaten! 

I started with Foie Gras which i've never had (appreciate it might be cruel in production at times, but it felt like a must have today - sorry!), I then went onto a blue steak with chips and a chocolate fondant pudding for dessert.  It was all melt in the mouth and amazingly tasty and the red wine went down extremely well also.

We wandered back to the hotel, put our PJs on and hung around and played on the piano and ate some funky pic n mix that we'd bought after dinner.

Cupcake Baking and Decorating Class

So back in the Autumn my friend Jenny suggested that we buy a Living Social voucher that she had spotted for a 3 hour cup cake baking and decorating class for £22 from Zarina's House of Cakes.  We booked it for today to give us something to look forward to after Christmas and it was really good fun.

First of all we had a look at some of the cakes that Zarina had decorated whilst we waited for the rest of the class participants to arrive and were offered a coffee.  We were then shown through into Zarina's lovely (and huge!) kitchen where all our ingredients were ready and laid out for us - just like on a TV cooking programme!

  
There were 4 of us in the group in total and the first thing that we had to do was to bake our cakes after we'd been talked through the recipe - similar to a sponge recipe, but with the addition of cornflour to make it a smoother mix.  The recipe from memory was as follows:

4 oz self raising flour
4 oz stork / butter
4 oz caster sugar
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons corn flour
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence

All the ingredients were added into a bowl and then whisked for exactly 1 minute.

If you've ever wondered how to make cupcakes that don't bake too high...then we learnt how to do this - using an ice cream scoop you fill it 2/3rds full and then use the scoop releaser to put the cake mixture into the cupcake case.

The cakes then went into bake and Zarina showed us how to make our fondant icing decorations to go on top of the cupcakes.

First of all we blended two blocks of white fondant icing with our chosen colour pastes.  I went for Tangerine and violet and Jenny went for claret and ice blue.

We then used Zarina's huge array of cutters to cut out decorations for our cupcakes.  The cutters we used included butterflies, shoes, stars, flowers and geometric shapes.  Some of the cutters just cut out the shape, but others emboss patterns on top.  We also layered up the decorations and used just a drop of water to attach the icing pieces together.

After we had made enough decorations for 6 cupcakes, we took our baked cakes that were almost perfectly flat and Zarina showed us how to ice them with very smooth and perfectly whipped butter cream icing.  First of all we were shown how to "Flat ice" the cakes - spreading the butter cream icing over the top of the cake and using a palate knife to neaten up the edges.  

Zarina then showed us how to pipe butter cream roses onto the cakes - simple, but a definite technique required to make them look like roses.  Then when we had iced our cakes with butter cream roses or flat icing techniques we placed our fondant decorations on with some really lovely results - even if I do say so myself.  (Mine are on the left and Jenny's on the right)

Zarina then gave us a cupcake carrier box to put our cakes in and I think that they are almost too pretty to eat!

We then went back to my house so Jenny could see my decorating efforts on a larger scale (I've just repainted my entire lounge - photos and post to follow shortly) and I introduced her to the wonder that is Kirkstall Morrisons with the best salad bar in the UK (only rivals I've found would be in New York!).  Jenny is here looking very pleased with the selection.

Sukawati Market, Sanur Beach and a long journey home

This blog entry I'm writing on the train back to Leeds from Kings Cross.  Everyone said that I would be really shocked by the weather and how cold it would be, but actually it's been quite pleasant.  I do love the warmth and sunshine of Bali, but there is something to be said of the ability to walk 100 yards without literally dripping sweat everywhere!

Anyway, I wanted to write about my last full day in Bali which was really good fun.   The day started very well with a gorgeous Banana Pancake with caramel and coconut on it and the usual selection of fruit - Papaya, Pineapple, Watermelon and the option of a tiny banana or green tangerine with coffee.   Rachel came by my hotel with Kiran having found a really lovely guy to be our driver for the day called Putu - Made was busy with some preparations for a family cremation.

First of all we drove to Sukawati market as the market that I'd been keen to visit in Ubud is currently being renovated.  Sukawati market is huge and I think that we saw only a very small part and mostly the tourist shops, and it was perfect for completing my holiday present shopping.  I bought 3 sarongs for the pretty batik patterns that I will be able to use in my embroidery and sewing work, a lovely little dress for one of my friend's babies (who hasn't been born yet so will have to wait a while to grow into it.), some small paintings for my Mum and some incense for Coddy from the "local" part of the market.  Everything is brightly coloured and I could really spend a whole lot of money there and if transporting them back to the UK wasn't an issue I'd love to buy some of the amazing wood carvings and furniture.

We got back in the car and drove out to Sanur which is a beautiful coastal resort.  We grabbed some lunch - impressively there was a baby chair so Kiran was able to bang his hands on the table and make a mess of all the food that he was eating and Rachel got to eat using both hands for a change.  We both had some very tasty Nasi Campur.

It was a warm and sticky day and so we walked along the beach and found a nice spot to lay out our sarongs and get into our swimming things and Rachel put Kiran into his swimming outfit.  He was much more interested in playing with and trying to eat the sand of course.  

We went into a beautifully clear sea which was really calm and shallow, and as warm as a nice bath and perfect for Kiran's first experience of swimming in the sea.  He loved it and smiled and giggled as we splashed him around in the water.  Rachel and Kiran got out and I swam around for a bit until I spotted a sea snake nearby and so decided that was a good time to get out!

We walked along the beach for a little bit and I bought an amazing kite for my Dad which was shaped like a boat and we saw a Labrador that was happily lying in the sea enjoying the warm water (he was there for ages as we saw him on the way there and the way back!)  

Our driver took us back to Ubud and we got showered and changed and relaxed in the hotel room until Made came with Maya to pick us up and take us to a lovely restaurant for dinner.

The restaurant was very attractive and a large section of it had individual tables in little huts where you sit on cushions on under low tables.  We ordered a big fish sharing platter and some rice and it was pretty spicy, but really tasty.  Maya and Kiran amused themselves by trying to crawl under the table and Kiran enjoyed shredding paper napkins like an Andrex puppy.  I ordered a young coconut drink which was huge and very tasty.  Basically it was a whole young coconut with the top sliced off and some sugar, avocado and jelly added to it - was more than enough for a pudding even though it was just a drink!  

After dinner I was dropped back at the hotel and was determined to fulfil the final thing on my list that I'd wanted to do and I walked down to find somewhere that I could get a manicure!

I initially went back to the first place I'd been where I'd got my pedicure done earlier on - Kenko, but at 8pm it looked distinctly closed so I walked back and just went for the first place that wasn't too far off the main street who shouted "Yes massage" at me!  I asked if they could do a manicure then and they said yes and I went to Daisy Spa which was by no means glamourous, but for £3 for a manicure I was more than happy.  At the last minute I also thought that I may as well get my toes redone as the pedicure I'd had was starting to chip after 10 days of walking around in flip flops and so the girl got her friend and I had my feet done at the same time.  It was a bit of a weird place and experience made even odder when the girl doing my nails told me "You are beautiful, I like your face".   I took it as a compliment, but "I like your face" is one of the strangest compliments I think that I've ever been paid.

Back in the hotel room I packed up my suitcase as I knew that getting up at 4.30am I wasn't going to want to do very much at all and I managed to snatch about 4 hours sleep before Putu came by at 5.30am to pick me up and drive me to the airport.

Yesterday was a really long day - the whole day went like clockwork in terms of getting picked up, the flights that weren't delayed and the transfers that were very smooth, but 19 hours or more of travelling is just exhausting.  I grabbed breakfast at the airport in Denpasar and even though I was tempted by Eggs Benedict, I dedicated that an Indonesian breakfast was a good idea as I'm not likely to get the chance again for a while.   The journey from Bali to Singapore was very smooth and I had a brief snooze in between the time when they fed us.  The transfer from Terminal 1 - 3 in Singapore was smooth, a brief walk and the "Sky Train" in between the terminals with about 10 minutes free to buy 2 very expensive bottles of water for $4.  On the 13 hour flight from Singapore to London I managed to watch a total of 4 1/2 films!  I was trying hard to keep awake to try and right my sleep pattern by going to bed early and waking up at a usual time this morning.  I think that it's more or less worked, although I did practically fall asleep in my dinner.

First of all I watched "The Hunger Games" as I was interested to see how it was done compared to the book that I'd read earlier on in my holiday.  The film is really faithful to the book and it was very similar to how I'd pictured everything in my mind.  The portrayal of the main character - Katniss Everdeen was very good and just as I'd imagined her, the actress - Jennifer Lawrence looked very similar to how I had imagined her.  Peeta Mellark who was one of the other main characters looked different as I'd not imagined him to be blonde, but Josh Hutcherson portrayed him well in terms of character.  I suppose my only criticism was that they didn't really make as obvious in the film in comparison to the book the main characters feelings about each other, they glossed over it a little which was disappointing, but does make for a neater conclusion.

Next was People Like Us I'm not sure why I chose this one, but it was a bit of an odd film with a plot that could have been shortened and tidied up considerably, but felt quite unnecessarily drawn out.  Basic premise is that Sam the main character is a bit of a shyster and is short of cash, in debt and doesn't visit his family.  He ignores calls from his Mum all day and then his girlfriend tells him that his Dad has died.  He makes every effort to avoid going to the funeral including hiding his ID from his girlfriend, but they end up arriving there late and missing the funeral.  His Mum is played by Michelle Pfeiffer and she is clearly angry with him and a lot of the film explores their strained relationship.  Sam picks up a note from the lawyers about his fathers will which is an odd request to deliver $150000 in cash in a shaving bag to a "Joshua Davis" who he then discovers is his Dad's Grandson to a half-sister that he never knew existed.  The majority of the film then is a slightly farcical exploration of him getting to know his sister and nephew without revealing until right at the end who he is so that she ends up trying to kiss him.  All in all it's a bit weird.

Total Recall the remake was next.  I think I've watched bits of it in the past, but I can't remember watching the whole film.  I was a bit sleepy during this one so I think that I may have nodded off and had to rewind at points.  I do remember that they left in the 3 boobed lady from the original film in the dodgy district that the main character - Hauser visits to go to Rekall.  The premise of the film is good and the remake seemed good too - although I can't remember if I've seen the original in full to give an accurate comparison.  It reminded me quite a lot of Inception that I've seen recently and the special effects were very accomplished.  The ending was fairly satisfying and there of course were lots of parallels that can be drawn with global politics which I always find quite interesting.

Finally I went for Papadopoulos & Sons which was actually a lovely film.  It was the story of a self-made Greek millionaire - Harry Papadopoulos - who over leverages himself and ends up bankrupt apart from £25K cash and a closed down fish and chip shop that he co-owns with his estranged brother.    When he is evicted from his mansion with his 3 children, they all decide to move into the shop and re-open the business and it's a lovely exploration of family connections, and whether money or happiness is more important.  I really liked the film, it had a predictable ending, but it wasn't too saccharine sweet and had some good performances from some British actors. 

I started to watch 2 days in New York which was quite good, but I just kept falling asleep and then they collected up the headphones, so I'll have to have another try at this one in the future perhaps. 

The flight got in a little early to Heathrow and so my parents only had to wait a few minutes for me and then drove me back.  I gave them my presents, managed to eat some curry takeaway before falling asleep very early for me at 10pm.

Shopping and coffee drinking Ubud style

It's easy to forget sometimes as you are walking around Ubud just how pretty everything is as there is so much beauty everywhere.  A simple shop will have a beautiful floral decoration outside or a pile of offerings carefully crafted with many coloured flowers displayed.  Even the shops have their wares presented beautifully - all brightly coloured items either clashing in a very attractive way, or clothes arranged as per the colours of the rainbow.  I feel very fortunate to be able to enjoy this as I've yet to come across another British tourist - Dutch, German, Australian and American yes, but no Brits at all - where are they all?

Rachel came by after breakfast and we went out for a wander looking in some of the funky shops and also stopping off for a few coffees and drinks along the way.  First of all we went to Tutmak Coffee Shop where Rach had breakfast and I had a couple of iced coffees and a lemongrass and ginger drink and Kiran had....a very long nap on the comfy cushions.  

We then wandered past Hibiscus Bar which isn't a bar anymore and is actually a cushion shop

If your image of Ubud streets is purely based on Eat Pray Love, you'll be amazed at how much more chaotic everything is - there are *loads* of motorbikes everywhere, loads of offerings all over the place including the floor, random dogs and lots of people offering Taxis and in a way that makes it sound dirty "Nice massage very good price".  Here is a typical picture of the street

I like the chaos and the noise and the random blend of smells - rubbish and litter, incense, spicy cooking, a different blend of incense, and the general smell of tropical vegetation.  

There is loads of art everywhere in Ubud which is really interesting to look at - here is Rachel outside an art shop along with some slightly more random examples!  She's also wearing a slightly different baby carrier - Kiran seemed very comfortable and did quite a lot of sleeping whilst we were walking around.

We walked around a few more shops including a very plush shop with awesome, but very expensive children's clothes - it had some bird boxes outside.

Then it was off to Bar Luna for lunch which had some comfy cushions which helpfully were transformed into a soft baby prison for Kiran to stop him crawling off and falling onto the floor!

And of course we needed dessert so we stopped for some very reasonable sorbet at an icecream shop about £1 per scoop.  Rachel (and Kiran!) had passionfruit sorbet and I had lime sorbet.

We walked back in a circuit and past BAWA which is a sort of RSPCA equivalent.  Rachel adopted her cat Queenie from them, but she told me a rather worrying story where she reported a dog that had lots of puppies, and then another litter and they came to take photos of it and then instead of taking it away, came back and dropped off some more puppies for it to be a surrogate mother to!

We then walked past Monkey Forest and saw a couple that had "escaped" (Rachel is a bit immune to them as she sees them a lot - they probably seem a bit like squirrels to her!)

After all the walking around we were all hot and bothered so decided to go back to the hotel to cool off with a dip in the pool.  It was also a chance to give Kiran his first swimming lesson!  Maya apparently howled the first time she was in a swimming pool, but Kiran loved it!  He splashed around, smiling and laughing and even splashed other people in the pool!

So here is what I managed to spend some money on in the course of our shopping trip:  A lovely dress/long top and some aromatherapy spray - very refreshing in such a hot climate.

So Rachel then was picked up about 4.30pm and I went for a nap and then headed back to Bar Luna for dinner - apparently it's supposed to be a fairly social place for travelers  but at the moment, I'm the only one here and have been since the 4 people telling stories of getting drunk in Bankok and dropped off at a police station by a taxi driver left about 30 mins ago...I have to say though, I am enjoying my own company for a change and it's nice to be able to slow down and enjoy just doing very simple things like eating and drinking - slowly....  Bar Luna is famous for "literary" stuff and they do readings etc and so their menu is peppered with references to literature and so it's only right that for my dinner I had a "Graham Greene Salad" (I didn't even eat the bread - I'd be a rake if I lived here permanently!