at Turi Resort - Batam Island

at Turi Resort - Batam Island
Originally uploaded by Leone Fabre.

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it is about Turi Beach Resort on the Indonesian Island of Batam!!

http://www.turibeach.com/

sitting on the balcony to watch the sun rising !!

we do get to see some mighty special sun rises from the jetty at Nongsa, the colours of the sky, the 

shape of the clouds, the different hues of the water and the silence as it rises up over the 

South China Sea is nothing less than spectacular!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

even from our bedroom window

which is why we are having a beautiful balcony installed on the top level

so we can sit outside in the early morning and watch the sun rising!!

 

and this is what our balcony is going to look like by the 

first week of November just in time for Christmas!!

 

the beauty of rising early

Some of the sunrises we get to see when we are staying on the Indonesian island of Batam are simply amazing ..... the colours, the shapes of the clouds and the serene view of the water all add to the beauty of the early morning sunrise.

Yesterday morning - Sunday September 26 2010 - was no exception. We woke at about 5.15am and saw the slight pink tinge in the sky announced to us that we were in for a treat.

We hurriedly got dressed and headed straight for the jetty .... our favorite place to watch the sunrise.

  

The view above is from our bedroom window and the image below is of the Nongsa Village Jetty.

 

 from the 'kiosk' on the jetty we could see the sun popping up from the horizon.

 

 the above images were all taken within a few minutes of each other,

none have been 'photoshopped' either, what you see above is how it actually was.

After about 30 minutes of watching the ships go by, the sun rising and a 

few schools of fish swimming around, we headed back along the jetty towards our villa.

But as we looked down we saw the early morning sun shine on the jetty pylons 

and what a lovely sight it was with the water lapping gently against the sides.

 

 

we did enjoy our morning on the jetty - just like we normally do.

All too soon we needed to head back for breakfast, showers and get ready to enjoy 

whatever the day is to bring us!

eggs 'n toast any which way!

if you have breakfast in a cafe or restaurant and ask for eggs and toast, it is likely it will come to the table looking something like the following:

but in most places in Singapore it will come to the table very different to the above. Like I always say, not wrong, just different.

The taste is the same of course ..... well it is eggs and toast after all.

First of all I order my eggs, toast and tea at the counter and pay my $3.50.

A few minutes later the tray arrives at my table complete with Teh Tarik (my cup of tea), a bowl with a teaspoon, soya sauce, salt and pepper and a metal container with a lid as seen here:

My waiter taps the metal container and tells me to "wait 3 minutes", because it has two eggs sitting in hot water inside this container!

but as John and I are talking, the waiter comes up to remind me that my eggs are ready ...... so I crack them open and pour them into the small bowl ...... yes, "pour" them into it.  If anyone prefers hard boiled eggs, make sure you leave them in the hot water for at least SIX minutes!!

Most people put some soy sauce onto the egs, I still prefer a bit of salt ..... shhh, did I say that?

Anyway, that was my brunch this morning ...... soft boiled eggs 'cooked' in the metal container and served with tea and toast for the large um of $3.50 SGD.

Maybe not the usual way you might eat your eggs, but hey ..... it all goes down the same way!!!

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a little bit about Tenerife .....

WHY?

because we will be there six months from today ... that's why!!

Now someone is sure to ask where is Tenerife, I have located a couple of maps from Google:

 

and more data from Wikipedia has that Tenerife is a rugged and volcanic island sculpted by successive eruptions throughout its history. There are four historically recorded volcanic eruptions, none of which has led to casualties. The first occurred in 1704, when the Arafo, Fasnia and Siete Fuentes volcanoes erupted simultaneously. Two years later, in 1706, the greatest eruption occurred at Trevejo. This volcano produced great quantities of lava which buried the city and port of Garachico. The last eruption of the 18th century happened in 1798 at Cañadas de Teide, in Chahorra. Finally, and most recently, in 1909 the Chinyero volcano, in the municipality of Santiago del Teide, erupted.

 

Tenerife (Spanish pronunciation: [teneˈɾife]) is the largest of the seven Canary Islands, Spain, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. Tenerife has an area of 2034.38 square kilometers, (Singapore is 655 square kilometers), and 899,833 inhabitants. It is the most populated island of the Canary Islands and Spain. About 43% of the population of the Canary Islands is on this island. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, which is also one of the busiest Spanish resorts and the first of Canary Islands. Tenerife also has one of the world's largest carnivals, and the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife now aspires to become a World Heritage Site.Tenerife is the only Spanish island that has two airports. Tenerife is the largest number of tourists it receives, it is also headquarters of the main financial institution of the archipelago, Tenerife so is the economic capital of the Canary Islands.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital of the island and the seat of the island council (cabildo insular). The city is capital of the autonomous community of Canary Islands (shared with Las Palmas), sharing governmental institutions such as Presidency and ministries. Between the 1833 territorial division of Spain and 1927 Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the sole capital of the Canary Islands, until in 1927 a decree ordered that the capital of the Canary Islands be shared, as it remains as at present.

The island is home to the University of San Fernando de La Laguna, which was founded in 1792. The University of La Laguna is the oldest university in the Canaries. San Cristóbal de La Laguna (World Heritage Site) is the second city of the island and the third one of the archipelago.  The city of La Laguna was also capital of the Canary Islands until Santa Cruz replaced it in 1833.

Tenerife also has the highest elevation of Spain, a World Heritage Site that is the third largest volcano in the world from its base, El Teide.The island's capital contains the architectural symbol of the Canary Islands, the modern Auditorio de Tenerife.

 

 

 

 

 Tenerife's Carnival claims to be the second largest in the world, after the one in Rio. The celebration kicks off with the election of a queen, and there are many parades, including one especially for horses, the "cabalgata." The center of the merrymaking is Santa Cruz, where the Grand Parade is held, but each town has its own fiesta. How do you know when it's all over? When it's time for "Entierro de la Sardina," (Burial of the Sardine), a mock funeral to bury the spirit of the Carnival, complete with grieving widows and other mourners dressed in black. This year the sardine's interment takes place on Mar. 1, the day after Fat Tuesday and the beginning of Lent. 

 

 The seven major Canary Islands are scattered over 300 miles of the Atlantic Ocean, starting about 60 miles northwest of Morocco in Africa. The archipelago is part of Spain, and the islands have a diverse climate and topography. ...... we are very much looking forward to seeing this part of the world.

Just six months from today

sailing on the Nurah

We had the most amazing experience on Sunday ..... we were invited to go sailing on a "Pirate Ship"!

Well I guess it is not really a Pirate Ship as such, but is a two masted sailing ship sailing out of Nongsa Point Marina. This was it's first trip so we could experience what it would be like and hopefully pass on the information to others that may be interested.

It was worth every minute and we all had a great day ...... they are going to start doing day trips for up to 40 people, or overnight trips - of up to 6 days - as there is accommodation on board for up to 15 people.

 

 

 It does not look so big here in this image, but to "walk the plank", climb over the back of the ship, up the very steep steps and onto the first deck .... it is big.

With short legs it was not easy, in fact I really was a little nervous to start with, but soon got the hang of it but wished I had better footwear, my FitFlops were not so good to climb up and down the steep steps! Before departing from Nongsa Point Marina we had a good look over the ship and managed to get our bearings!

 

 

then we set sail at 4.00pm and headed out of the Marina, we all knew we had to be on board and ready to sail at that time ..... but just as we headed out, three people came running along the boardwalk still wanting to board even though we had left the dock. They were so late, but the Captain very kindly stopped the ship to allow the small speedboat - with the three people on board - to come aboard the Nurah. We then continued on our journey out past the entrance to the Marina and headed east towards the South China Sea.

 

 

 

 

John had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed himself, but it was

not long before we had to turn westwards towards the sunset and home.

it was a beautiful evening, perfect weather for sailing and spending time on the water!

Life maybe short, but never pass up an opportunity to go and enjoy yourself, 

especially to do something you have never done before

like maybe sailing along on a Pirate Ship!!

"fun times indeed"

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