#@nallyru

Tattoos

This weekend was pretty uneventful, apart from the bit where Jackson and I drank beer and gave each other matching homemade tattoos, accompanied by a turn of the century emo soundtrack and serious hypothetical discussion about tattooing dogs and sci-fi inspired sexual fantasy.  

Weekend fun.  Home, Yarraville, Footscray, Ritual, Toilets, Rubebs.  Coffee then beer with good company.  The crew, reunited, plus additions.

So, I'm back in Melbourne.  I was sad to leave Bali, and miss all of my new friends and my special Bali family like crazy.  But, I'm happy to be home, living with my family and working properly on my goal of relocating to Indonesia for the long term.  

I've become really fond of blogging, so I think I'll keep it up.  I'm still in search of paradise, but this time, I'll be sharing paradise closer to my original home.  I'll be posting much of the same as I did in Indonesia - photos and stories, showcasing my good friends, favourite hangouts and some special photo excursions as well.  

Indonesian friends and family, here's how I am at home.

1405 steps:  Petitenget Beach.

On a morning such as this one, when, for whatever reason, I am still awake at dawn, I often wind up post-sunrise at Petitenget Beach.

As people from Bali know, Petitenget Beach is special.  Thankfully, my local beach lacks the tourists, hawkers, umbrellas, massages, pedicures, braids, etc, that Kuta, Legian and Double Six beaches are known for.  It has bigger, rougher waves and coarser, darker sand.  But even though all of the aforementioned characteristics add up to making Petitenget beach one of more appealing beaches in South Bali, the real reason Petitenget is so special, is because it is a sacred beach.

On entering the beach, you pass a large temple.  Pecalang guard the entrance with a tollbooth, dressed in their (surprisingly) authoritative uniforms of checkered skirts and leather vests.  While large fences and tall, dense trees hide the interior of the temple from street view, its tall gates and extensive stairways offer a glimpse of its size and beauty to those of us who aren't able to enter.  Even though I haven't been inside, I regard this temple as especially sacred, as do Balinese Hindus, because it is so close to the water.

Upon passing the temple entrance, and greeting the Pecalang, I wander through the large car park on the way to the beach.  It is normally packed full of motorscooters, as it services the beach, the temple and the police station.  However, this early in the morning, it is calm as it lacks the usual traffic.  Street food vendors finishing their night shifts congregate on their bikes near the beach entrance.  A footbridge crosses a stream of often dirty water that eventually meets the beach, and at the end of the footbridge, I am greeted with a sign; a polite reminder to all visitors that Petitenget beach is sacred, and that swimming and sunbathing in this area is forbidden.

A small but varied collection of creatures can be found on the sands of Petitenget beach just after sunrise. Contemplative types seeking clarity (probably after a few too many) crouch on the sand staring out at the waves.  Sporty types that get up first thing  for a jog on the sand (eternally youthful locals run comfortably barefoot, while the leathery old bules run faster, but less affectively, in their expensive sneakers).  Bali dogs gather in groups to play and fight and hump.  Hindu couples offer flowers, coins and candy to the gods of their sacred waters.  I can fall into any number of these "types", depending on the night I've just enjoyed or endured.

510 steps:  Warung Sulawesi.  

Another lunch date with the gang, but this time at a new location, Warung Sulawesi. This warung is hidden away down a gang off Jl. Petitenget, but it was by no means quiet, with a steady stream of people lining up for a seat.  

Sanita had told me that this warung was popular for its Sulawesi cuisine, which wasn't so common in the warungs we had visited.  She described the Sulawesi flavour as being particularly strong, perhaps due to excessive use of oil and MSG.  The counter was packed with a great selection of meat, fish and vegetable dishes, with separate cabinets for gorengan and desserts.  Despite asking for itty-bitties of each, my plate was piled high with each of my selections.  I chose a well-rounded meal of red rice, poached fish, shrimp, greens and okra with tomato-ey/chilli sauces, and tempeh in an extra sweet "manis" sauce.  All yummy (thanks, MSG!), with the anticipated heady flavours.

Despite Sanita's criticism of the MSG laden lunch fare, she held Warung Sulawesi's desserts in high regard, in particular, the Palu Butung.  Even though I have been in Indonesia for months now, I am still taken back by the vivid colours of some foods, having eaten "clean" for so many years - unnatural colouring is as far from "clean" food as you can find.  However, on second glance, I saw a delicately thin egg pancake hiding banana sweetened with palm sugar, all swimming in a rose hued soup of coconut milk and delicious sago.  Obviously, I dug right in.