Today I had a surreal experience. You know one of those days where connections seem to be popping, you have choice but to go along with it. Let me explain what happened.
This morning at the crack of dawn…okay not crack of dawn, but shortly after, I went over to a Seminyak internet cafe and got online. The staff was outside buying snacks and the machines started beeping. When she returned she said, “Sorry Mister, listric finish.” The power was out and so as I. Annoyed by the inconvenience, I jumped on my bike and headed for somewhere that might have power. Global Xtreme in Kerobokan was the obvious choice. Riding up Jl. Seminyak a sharp looking trail bike passed me by. I always toyed with the idea of getting one, but hated the stinky 2-stroke exhaust. Strangely this bike didn’t seem to emit much exhaust. The rider was an androgenous looking being, so all I could do was admire the rear of the bike as it sped off.
Arriving at Global several minutes later, I climbed the stairs and said hello to the staff. Turning around and looking at the bulletin board what did I see? Trail bike for sale, with photo. The same exact bike. Taking down the number I mulled over the idea of phoning the owner. The asking price was 10m rp, the bike had a 1 year old engine, which matched what I saw out on the street.
Later that day I called the owner, a lady from Jakarta named Helen. She asked were I lived and I thought ‘Oh no you don’t darling, I’m not that stupid. There’s no way in hell, I’m telling a local where I live, so they can steal the bike back from me 1 month from now.’ We agreed to meet in KuDeTa’s parking lot at 5.30pm. Thinking ahead, I brought my camera and snapped her photo as soon as she dismounted. After chatting, I could see Helen was a very nice person and my worries faded. You just have to be carefull in a lawless place like Bali, full of thieving little benchongs. Helen told me she was buying a car, so wanted to sell the bike. It looked good close up and she explained about the maintenance. She agreed to hold it for me for while for 9.5m rp. I’ll pick it up at end of the week.
Sitting here I’m kind of amazed at what happened. Goodbye 400,000rp at the start of each month, hello trail bike. All I’ve got to do is learn how to ride one, before I climb onto it.
Photos besok (that means tommorow).
