Batam Day 3: The Most Beautiful Day

Have you ever woken up one morning knowing that it was going to be a beautiful day? I did. Who would have have thought that lazing about the entire day prior would have such an optimistic effect… obviously I need to be lazy more often.

Selfie, because even my makeup was on point.

Profusion My Beauty Collection 96 color eye shadow palette, Silky Girl silver eyeliner pencil and primer, Dolly Wink liquid eyeliner, Revlon Photoready foundation, Shophouse Sixtyfive Sentosa Island lip balm, Etude House lipsticks, Belif Aqua Bomb moisturiser sample – these were the day’s arsenal of makeup; a number of them new additions to my collection.

Vacations are one of my favourite opportunities to experiment with types and brands, not just because I find myself in need of travel-sized products, but also the freedom of being faceless in a different land gives me the courage to be a little more daring.

After that I dragged Ottie out to the neglected beach behind Harris Waterfront Resort for a couple of outfit photos. They had well-kept cabanas overlooking the cove there. We virtually had the whole area to ourselves, which was great for my photos, although I felt bad that the resort didn’t have as much business due to the off-peak season.

We then took a cab to Nagoya Hill Shopping Centre for the fixed price of 130,000 IDR (SGD 13) thanks to our hotel’s facilitation, where we immediately zoomed in to A&W, a fast food chain that’s been long since extinct on Singapore shores. Ottie was amused at the irony of traveling all the way to Batam just to have ‘All American Food’.

Curly fries and a cup of melty root beer float.

Mozza burger. I have no regrets.

Hunger sated, we took a stroll around the stores in the shopping center:

These Barbie and Ken lookalike dolls are ridiculously fabulous. Especially Kenny with his brooding eyeshadow.

Just like in the US, old school arcade places are dying out in Singapore. It was nice to take a trip down memory lane. The amount of smokers in the place were a huge no-no for us though.

Panties Pizza situated next to Happiness Restaurant. Not sure how to feel about that.

We chilled at Bistro Godiva for a bit, and I cleared a plate of buffalo wings plus an oreo shake all by myself. The oreo shake was too sweet for me, but it did the job quenching my thirst.

The staff asked for a photo with us when we left. At first Ottie and I thought that they wanted to take one with him, because you know, exotic white people and stuff. But then it turned out that they wanted to take one with me! I was apparently a tall, beautiful person. Those ladies made our day. (^w^) Took a selfie while they figured out how to work their camera.

Our last item of the day was to head down to Turi Beach Resort to catch the sunset. Getting a cab in Batam is pretty easy, but getting the right fare requires a bit of finesse. We were approached by potential cab drivers willing to take us to our destination, but we cut the cab drivers so low while haggling in our ignorance that they eventually gave up quoting us slightly inflated fares and succumbed to showing us the official cab fare prices hidden in plain sight at an innocuous little booth by the side of the shopping center’s entrance. The official cab fare was 160,000 IDR (SGD $16) according to the price chart. Anyway, we totally underestimated the travel time from the shopping center to the resort, so I didn’t get to catch the golden hour that I originally planned for.

Then again as the saying goes, every cloud has a silver lining. We ended up privy to the most beautiful sunset over Singapore. It was a magical moment. But first, in more ignorance:

Here I was climbing rocks and trying to ignore those blistering barnacles I hate so much because they’re gross and are indecently lewd (which actually makes them awesome if only I could get past those irregular holes).

The sun was hidden behind an outcrop, so we didn’t realise just what we were missing until we decided to explore the jetty. Ottie wanted me to run down to the end of the jetty to catch the beautiful scene (for outfit photos) that we belatedly realised was there all along, but I was a little occupied with capturing some pictures of it on the way:

Singapore has never looked so pretty.

Got my shot with the scenic backdrop.

Here’s the photo I posted on my Instagram back then. ♥

Some shots that I finally got a chance to take at leisure after the sun had well and truly disappeared past the horizon:

Looking back at the resort.

A swarm of termites were buzzing about this piece of wood, likely having made a nest in the cracks.

Ottie stood fascinated by them for a good while before mosquito bites forced him to retreat. I don’t remember why he was carrying all my stuff.

The jetty at dusk.

Got myself a Pina Colada at the only restaurant open at Turi Beach Resort to cap off a beautiful day.

Life was good.

Wearing
White chiffon shirt – M)phosis
White beach hat – H&M
Drape jersey harem pants – Haute Hippie
Round sunglasses – 24:01
White platform sandals – Taobao

Outfit photos assisted by Ottie.