This weekend we moved into our new home. We congratulated ourselves on the reasonable rent we managed to procure, then went directly to the nearest supermarket and blew half a months rent on juices, tupperware and Bintang.
Reflections on our new home:
+ the landlady welcomed us with a huge vase of white lilies from her garden
(the landlady failed to stock our kitchen as promised, insisting we fry our bread instead of procure a toaster...and the cutlery drawer contains merely 1 knife, 1 spoon, 2 forks and a spatula - probably for the toast)
+ the pool is truly lovely
(disturbingly we have discovered that a mere three steps from our front door puts the boys at the edge of the pool...so long distracted parenting - hello 'parent-noia')
+ our two bed two bath home means the husband and I can sleep and groom ourselves in peace
(last night we were again four in a bed...and the monsters refuse to use their bathroom and will only use ours - rendering the second one obsolete)
+ we've got a telly again! ( ie. cartoons + monsters = 'Mama Dada Time')
(unfortunately it is not satellite so all programming is Indonesian...this evening we walked in to find Egg deep into an Indonesian soap opera)
At any rate, we had a glorious day out this afternoon walking through an ancient elephant cave site or some such. (The husband arranges all these exciting day trips for us and we just hop on the scooter as 'plus ones' and take photos of him in exotic locales before demanding iced lattes and banana bread as recompense).
The highlight was watching Eggie and Dumps reenact the rather involved final death scene between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker in Star Wars "Return of the Jedi" right in front of a sacred temple.
This evening, our landlady brought over a shy village woman and told us we could hire her to clean, watch the children, and possibly cook for us if we wanted. I found myself wondering whether this gentle looking villager with the downcast eyes could possibly have the overlapping skill set of childcare, domestic goddess and washer woman covered.
Then I found out she speaks not a word of English. I can just imagine the field day Egg and Dumpie are going to have with her.
Egg will have her sat in front of a chess set for hours trying to explain 'rooks' and 'pawns' and get frustrated when she invariably moves the wrong piece the wrong way. Dumpie on the other hand (if his treatment of The Aunties is anything to go by) will probably have her sat at his feet, shucking Oreo Cookies as if her life depended on it, in order to supply him with a constant stream of the white middles he so loves.
Add to that Egg's blossoming talent as a pickpocket (he relieved both the husband and I of several Rupiah today from our wallet and bags respectively) and Dumpies current enjoyment of all things carnal ("May I see your nipples please?" a commonly heard request in moments of boredom) and I suspect this poor lady shall come for one day only - never to be heard from again.
Ah well, as we are next to a village, I am assured of a constant supply of candidates. And the good news is that most people here in Bali seem to be called 'Wayan' so it will save us the hassle of trying to remember the names of all the housekeeper/nannies we manage to get through over the coming few months.
Hi there, What a fantastic blog. I have just idled away an hour of my life reading about yours. I am sat here breastfeeding and putting off cleaning and laundry sorting - Monday morning drudge. Do you still get that on your travels? Sometimes, even on holiday, I feel like I should be inspired and excited but it's a different day, different washing machine/ dustpan and brush! Just my life as a non- domestic goddess somewhere else and with no skate park/x box to distract my boys from constantly winding each other up................
ReplyDeleteI am envious of you though, and I just know if I show your blog to my husband he'll be plotting on maps how to cart us all around the world. We have done a little road trip around Spain and France and would love to go further, How have you managed to stop your "normal' life to get off the roundabout? Can you point me to the post where this idea all began, or give me a potted history of how you came to be in Bali following Goa etc!
We have four children and two weeks away is usually just about right before we go stir crazy with each other 24/7 - I suppose yours go to bed sometimes, maybe before you in the eveings?
Anyway - love the blog, I'll pass it on! Happy adventures and I 'll look forward to the next installment!
Amanda
thanks so much for your lovely email :)
ReplyDeleteit always makes me smile to imagine someone doing something like breastfeeding for example (i've been there...have i ever) whilst getting preoccupied with someones blog. I'm honoured to have held your attention...haha
first of all, to be honest, I have to confess that EVEN while still having an exciting year of adventure abroad, reality still reigns. for example, I too am sitting here at my big dining table, looking forlornly at the huge pile of dishes in the sink, covered in ants, which the husband and i are having an unspoken 'stand off' over :)
there's a huge laundry bag of soggy wee-drenched pants over in the corner (not mine I hasten to add) that I simply must attend to, but keep putting off - even if it is just a matter of walking down the blissfully serene village road to the nearest laundry place.
even abroad, I still find it difficult to make time for myself. no matter where i hide, the children and husband always find me and my book/laptop/sneaky dvd session comes to an abrupt halt, and I sigh, and think, 'soon'...
so you see, we are not that different you and I...all we've managed to do is press 'PAUSE' on 'normal life' (whatever that is..it's becoming increasingly less clear), rent out of our home, take our savings, and set off on a year of 'living courageously' (anyone who willingly travels with a 3 and 5 year old boy is courageous in my opinion).
when you can't change your life (or don't necessarily want to), the quickest way to a shine it up a bit, and gain a new, much-needed perspective, is to change your environment.
and on that note, i think i WILL head off to the laundry woman...across some beautiful rice paddies...and into the sunset...ahhh
natasha :)
Nope, it's still sounding idyllic to me however much you persuade otherwise....
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear your son is also obsessed with boobs - LB1 seems to think it is perfectly acceptable to put his hand into my shirt and cup my breasts in the middle of a lunch party.....
ok fine. i hold my hands up! if i were to choose between life here in tropical paradise OR dragging a child through the high street on my usual supermarket dash - there is no comparison....fair enough.
ReplyDeleteas for the other issue...i am becoming increasingly concerned that Dumpie views my breasts as HIS. he glances approvingly whenever they are showcased in a low-cut top, and i cannot shower with some form of (if from anyone else would be viewed as) sexual harassment. Nice.