Hi Gram,
My friends are here! My friends are here! I woke up Thursday morning with that thought in my mind, excited to explore the area all day. I would get to show them around, show off what I’d learned in the past few days, and go learn and explore some new things together. I tried to be quiet when I got out of bed in case they were still asleep. I started doing my stretches, then David texted me to let me know they were brewing coffee and tea downstairs. I headed down to see them and chat a little bit, then headed up and finished my morning routine.

Hungry for breakfast, we decided to go wander the neighborhood and see what we could find. We all had delicious food and commented on the different textures and flavors, unique to what we were used to back home. My plan was that we would grab breakfast, then I could come back and upload my letter from yesterday. It turns out, we kept going for much of the day instead. After breakfast we walked over to the spa for our massages but found they weren’t open yet. Ashley texted them and we arranged to come back in the afternoon. With our morning free, we wandered down the narrow street looking at the different vendors that were just starting to open up. Some were busy setting out their wares and paid us no mind while others tried placing objects in our hands and offering to sell them “at a good price. Discount just for you!”

Once we ran out of street to wander down, with many of the people selling the same or similar items, we headed over to the Ubud Art Market. I was told the Art Market was like a bazaar with a wider variety for sale from electronics to clothing to housewares and more. David and Ashley wanted to get an umbrella or rain coat for each of them and I’ve been looking for another bag so we were hoping to find some there. We were a little disappointed to see that most of the vendors were selling the same stuff that everyone else in town had for sale. David and Ashley did find rain jackets, but no luck on the umbrellas. We got drawn in by a woman offering shirts for sale and found her pleas and offerings too difficult to refuse. David got a couple of nice button down shirts and I added one more shirt to my wardrobe. After some more entertaining interactions with sellers, we decided that we’d all had enough of the pushy salespeople and got out of there.

We headed back to the apartment and texted Stacey to meet us for lunch before our massages. We all met up at Cafe Lotus, a nice cafe serving authentic Balinese dishes in an outdoor cafe. We had a view of the Water Palace and lotus flowers while the sun shone down on us. I got the Sate Ayam, basically chicken skewers and a ball of rice.

The chicken was tender, the rice was perfectly sticky and fluffy, and the peanut sauce was just amazing. Everyone else enjoyed their meals too as we caught up on our lives since we’d last seen each other, talked about the FI Freedom Retreat that we’re all here for, and made plans for the next day. As we were finishing our meals, the spa texted Ashley and told her they were ready for us. We said our goodbyes to Stacey and headed over for our treatments.

The ladies there were once again magnificent, skilled, and friendly. This time I got a half hour back and shoulder massage then a pedicure. The last time I got a pedicure was probably ten or fifteen years ago, and I don’t know why I waited this long. I walked out of there floating on a cloud with my feet feeling soft and tender and my shoulders feeling like a weight had been lifted from them. We were all a little spacey, having each enjoyed our treatments, and wandered the street talking to vendors and browsing their offerings. We stopped for some cool drinks on the way back to the apartment, put them in the freezer to stay chilled, then each showered or napped to freshen ourselves up. We met again in the living room with a breeze blowing through and enjoyed our icy cold fruit juices. Stacey texted to ask if we wanted to join her and shortly thereafter we met up again, this time at a pizza joint. The four of us had taken votes on which pizza place to go to – one that Stacey had been to but was far away, one that was a little closer but a little out of the way, or one that she’d never tried but was very close. The vote went in favor of the closest but unknown restaurant, a cute little spot on a busy but fun street.

The vibe was fun, the conversation was great, but the pizza was so-so. Not bad or anything, just not memorable. We all agreed that it was acceptable, but we’d each had better pizza before. I saved room for dessert and was rewarded for that decision with a unique and fun Celtic themed crepe place. We ate upstairs in the “Treehouse”, where we looked over the menus then rang a bell to let the staff know we were ready. I had an apple and caramel crepe with an herbal blend iced tea and oh my gosh the flavors! The apple, caramel and nuts combined to become more than the sum, enhanced even further by the crepe and coconut whipped cream. The ginger in the tea added a little kick and the other flavors combined to make it sweet and alluring without any added sugar. We were all raving with each bite, although the table was unusually silent for a few minutes while we were all mesmerized. The conversation flowed and we shared laughter and companionship until all the dessert were in our bellies, so we headed downstairs to pay our tabs and head home. We said goodbye to Stacey and headed back to the house. What an amazing day.