i'm not a big fan of carrot cakes but this one sure makes the cut! if you're into or never thought you would select carrot cake as your choice of dessert, head down to marmalade in mont kiara. they have quite a selection of cakes and trust me, we had a tough time picking one. the cake was moist and didn't taste like salad which was a good thing! topped with cream cheese (or was it mascarpone, i forget) sprinkled with chopped hazel nuts and whole pumpkin seeds. now, how often do you get that? i love that they also had some jullienned orange peel ala marmalade as decor which tasted great together. the fact that they didn't just serve on a plain white plate but a handpainted one that's full of colour gets a full 5 points. price - rm8.90 marmalade is located in mont kiara, same row as kiosk and baskin robbins.

day 1: we arrived denpasar at 1350 and were greeted by our tour operators. visited the handicraft and silver shops. insisted we skip the batik and ceramics factory. enjoyed our 2 hours massage and spa. after 7 years of friendship, this was our first time we felt tensed. we had to be in our birthday suits infront of each other but after the massage and lulur scrub, we couldn't care less. had authentic balinese cuisine at the legian padma hotel and adjourned to hard rock hotel for drinks.

day 2: visited ubud and went crazy shopping. our driver, koman was v. dissapointed with our bargaining skills in the first shop. however, in our second attempt we showed no mercy and went all out. 70% off the pricetag. shopping was our energy. we missed our free hotel breakfast and didn't eat anything until 3pm. had nasi campur at a roadside warung. also visited uluwatu. the temple overlooks the ocean. savoured seafood (crabs and mussels) at the seaside in jimbaran. excellent view. did more shopping in kuta.

day 3: took a one and a half hour cruise to lembongan island. our first activity was to view marine life in a glass boat. we tried snorkeling but couldn't see much as the strong sea current was making the water murky. next was banana boat ride, unfortunately we didn't fall off. we snorkled at a different area and it was much better. held a starfish, saw a longthorn and fed fish off my fingers! had our bbq lunch on the boat. kayaked to the island and swam in the hotel's swimming pool which overlooks the sea. beautiful! at night, we went to the pasar seni (art market) in denpasar. had cheap indonesian food in a warung -- sate kambing (mutton satay), gado-gado (indonesian equivalent to rojak), pekel

lele (deep fried catfish) and nasi campur (mixed rice).

day 4: exhausted from last night, we woke up late. bright and sunny day. decided to head to kuta beach. got our nails done and had our tired feet massaged. experienced being a local and had a meal in a little stall on the beach. it was definitely 5,000 rp worth. did more shopping in legian. these sellers think we are japanese amateurs until we lash out our overused but useful line "kami bukan orang jepun. dari malaysia. beri la harga jiran! murah murah!" got rid of all my ruppiah. departed bali at 2020.

hi-lights: people are friendly and helpful. food is great and the shopping is even greater. not only are items cheap if you know how to bargain your way through but the quality and variety are commendable. even local tours are v. affordable. a great place for singles, couples and family. the massages and scrubs, for the price you have to fork out, it is definitely worth it. sheryl jumping into the boat after snorkelling like a seal jumping onto a platform. flat and face forward! having a nearby boat full of mat sallehs looking at your stunt like you've just performed in sea world.. priceless!

lo-lights: you will get the occasional guy on the street that are 'curious' and 'friendly' (that would be the euphemism to harassing and annoying young punks) to know where you are from to strike a conversation. the denpasar pasar seni was disappointing. quite a waste of time and so were our company. the jagung bakar. didn't get to try babi guling (suckling pig).