Shock! Horror! I do some work

I had breakfast with an older German man today, who was also on his own. He also had friends at the Sofitel but was unable to get a booking himself. However he has to change hotels 3 times in his 17 days here. I guess it is quite busy, even though it’s low season.

After that I decided to do a bit of work on the help screens for the Indian project. I had another email last night wanting bank details, which I had already supplied, in addition to a request for the SWIFT code the day before. They must be about to pay me.

A bit before 11 I wandered down to have a massage. The guy who did it yesterday wasn’t in yet but they rang him and he was there by about 11. That gave me a chance to get to the shops and then get some money from the ATM. Today I had a foot massage which includes most of your legs as well and a quick massage of arms, back, neck and shoulders at the end. Again it was very painful as he worked on my calves. When he finished they felt quite tight, even though they are probably loser than they’ve been for a while.

I then went for a walk around the town, down the little alleys and past the local markets. I got to the golf course on the other side of the railway line and checked the fees, hire clubs etc with the intention of playing on Monday. I also bought a cheap polo shirt to wear then, as nothing I’ve got has a collar and most are sleeveless as well. I also bought and put on some sunscreen as I felt I was getting burnt.

I eventually got to the Sofitel after a couple of hours of walking. The stiffness in my claves was pretty much gone by then. After a fruitless search for my friends round the pool, I found one couple in their room. On the way back to the Hilton I wandered a bit more and eventually had dinner in a Mexican restaurant. I had just passed a couple of guys in the lane, who had finished a round of golf and one of them was the manager there. They told me of a cheaper course than the ones available through the hotels and golf shops.

I read for a while after lunch and then headed down to the pool and read some more. Happy hour started so I had 2 daiquiris for the price of one. The B200 on the price list become B235 by the time service and vat was added, so roughly the same as 2 drinks in a restaurant outside the hotel. As they say, cheap at half the price. Jeff turned up while I was between drinks with the plans for the evening. I had a quick swim before I headed to my room to get ready for dinner.

I joined my friends at the Sofitel and the couple I’d caught up with earlier were in their new room. The original one only has twin beds and they are now in a King room with a balcony 2 or 3 times bigger and closer to the pool.

On our first night here we left our original choice restaurant because they couldn’t serve cocktails and wandered down the street to where 2 restaurants were opposite each other. On the toss of a coin we went to the left one. This time we went to the other, after pretending to toss a coin again. The owner was so grateful. She got quite distraught when she saw us tossing the coin, since, she said, she always loses. The food was, we decided, even better than the first night and the cost was again about $13 or $14 including cocktails.