Chinese New Year - Sri Lanka Style

This past weekend was the Chinese New Year celebration, so Thursday and Friday were public holidays here in the Sling.  I took off to Sri Lanka for the long weekend with 5 friends (Kelly, Kristen, Alison, Kat and Chris) and we had an amazing time!

We landed around 2am on Thursday morning (after flying BUSINESS!) and hopped in a van - ahem, the rattiest stinkin' van to exist with only three real seats in the back and no a/c - to our hotel in Colombo to catch some z's before our 7:30am (much nicer) van pickup.  The first stop after Colombo (there's not much to see there other than weird - but way cool - hotels with private butlers who constantly ask to give you head massages, though you know the only person he wants to touch is Kristen) was the Pinawala Elephant Orphanage.  Baby elephants are the cutest freaking thing you ever saw.  Although I will say that when Kelly showed me the picture of the blind grandfather elephant with a hard on (I was off in wonderland and missed it) I nearly had a heart attack and got a whole new meaning of the word "elephantiasis".  Jesus I never want to see that again. After purchasing some paper products made from elephant dung, we were off to Kandy.

In Kandy we saw a pretty sweet cultural dance show, complete with men walking on hot coals just after rubbing fire all over their entire bodies (mouths included).  At this point we're basically one full day into the trip and already Kelly and I just want some western food - cheese and tomato sandwiches with french fries for dinner!

From Kandy we left for Unawatuna, stayed on the beach, and had a fabulous time.  Can't really complain - the views were spectacular, the people friendly and smiling, the food came out hot and the beers came out cold.  I've had just about enough rice and curry to last me a long time, to say the least.  It's the food of Sri Lanka and they are damn proud of it!  My goal is to replicate the curry we had at The Lucky Tuna restaurant on Unawatuna Beach.  It had quite a bit of coconut milk, but there was a sort of sweet and spicy zing to it - I kept tasting nutmeg.  So weird.  Be on the lookout for future attempted rice and curry blog posts (whether it's a success is a totally different story).

View of the ocean from Lucky Tuna Restaurant - Unawatuna, Sri Lanka

Ali and Kristen, enjoying some Coronas on the beach.

We took a day trip to Galle Fort as well, did quite a bit of shopping, ate...wait for it...rice and curry, drank some Sri Lankan tea, and watched the sunset.

Good times had by all!

And now, only because I promised...the results from last Tuesday's weigh-in.  Ugh, I just want to cry.  How much weight has Sarah gained?  Do I really have to say it?  135.5.  Dear God ONE THIRTY FIVE POINT FIVE!  It wasn't very long ago I was hanging out at 130 and feeling wonderful!  Now I just feel fat and sassy.
So, I've got some new rules and some new challenges:

1. Change weigh-in day to Friday for a pick-me-up, and so that I can use all of my extra points from the start and be a good girl for the rest of the week!
2. Start measuring inches lost in addition to pounds, every other week or so.
3. Remove all junk food from house!  NOW.
4. Post Smugglette pictures every other week or so, when measuring, so that all of you readers can keep up with my progress.  If putting pictures of myself in a bikini for all the world to see isn't motivation, I don't know what is!
5. No clothing purchases until goal has been achieved.  This is going to be the hardest part.  I am a shopping fanatic!

First round of Smugglettes:

So when am I supposed to reach this goal?  Giving myself plenty of time for ups and downs, I'm setting my 27th birthday, May 14, as goal day.  Bring it!

Royales with Cheese are GO!

I did it.  I mean I actually did it.  We landed in Phuket last Thursday night, I downed enough booze to throw inhibitions out the door, and I put on that damn Smugglette!  The bottoms were tiny, but I don't think I looked half bad in the thing!

Phuket was an amazing place; our villas were INCREDIBLE, the Thai people are beautiful, and we had one hell of a birthday bash for my friends!

I did skip weigh-in on Tuesday.  I was definitely feeling like a fat kid, and considering my lack of exercise over the past week (I did however use the villa's elliptical for 20 minutes - gasp!), it just wasn't happening.  So I'll wait until next Tuesday and hopefully maintain.  I'm not shooting for any extreme weight loss goals this week either...

Today I am 26.  That's right - it's my friggin' BIRTHDAY!  So tonight I'm celebrating with good friends, Singapore's best version of Mexican food, and lots of margaritas!  And of course what better way to end a birthday weekend than with champagne brunch with 21 of your closest friends?  Needless to say, I'm binging this weekend - lots of food and lots of booze!  Love it.

So for now I'll leave you with the proof...

A not so great shot, but there you have it!  Me in a Smugglette!

One of our beautiful villas (this one is where Brian and I stayed)

The views from our villa - spectacular!

Saturday lunch - Thai fried rice with chicken, spicy beef salad, and the freshest cucumbers I've ever had...delicious!

And finally, the perfect ad for Budgy Smugglers (I'm on the right)

You Win Some, You Lose Some

I'll start by saying that Bali was amazingly fantastic, and every person on the planet should make it there at least once in their life.  But I'll also say that the quantity of booze and delectable food is hard core and it would be tough for even the most committed of weight watchers to follow the plan while vacationing in this lovely part of Indonesia.

Photo courtesy of my friend Ellen - taken during our drive from Jimbaran Bay to Tulamben

I step on the scale this morning, eyes closed but slightly peeped open as if I'm watching a gory movie, crossing my fingers and muttering to myself, "Please oh please oh please MAINTAIN!"
Mother trucker.  137.5.  Great.  Fanfreakingtastic.  Awesome.  So then of course I start beating myself up over this measly little one-pound addition to my gut, only to realize that's no way to learn from this, and I alter my perception to one of lesson-learning and motivation for next week.
Then I spent the better part of the morning coming up with all of the different excuses I could give to my blog readers about why I didn't weigh in this week - a simple attempt to keep you all from knowing about my tiny blip.
Yeah, that would have been silly anyway.  So I sit here, Sarah Koopersmith of Singapore, attempting to lose weight and look hot in a bikini, admitting to the world that I was unable to maintain a weight of 136.5 pounds while living it up in Bali for three days.  I'm fairly certain all will be ok, and life will go on as usual.

This week, however, it's on like freaking Donkey Kong!
I will track every day.
I will eat all of my fruits and veggies.
I will work out harder and longer.
I will lose at least one pound.
I will stay motivated and inspired.
And damnit I WILL enjoy every minute of every day!

So there you have it.  Take that, excess flab!  I'm kicking you to the curb.

Smuggling

I'm heading to the airport in literally half an hour, but I wanted to squeeze in a quick blog before leaving ... for BALI!  Yes, I will throw that in your face at every single opportunity.

So...while I'm in BALI this weekend, I won't have an easy time counting points.  But I do know the points value of certain foods, and I do know when I'm eating a fruit or veggie.  Sarah's plan this weekend - find fruits and veggies, listen to my stomach, and don't overdo the booze (the third one will be tough).

But, the real reason for this blog post is Smugglettes.  We ordered them today, and I'm totally freaked out!  I've never tried Aussie sizes before, and the online conversion says I'm a 10.  Royales with Cheese size 10 here we go!  Keep your fingers crossed that when the time does come (check the bottom of my blog for a countdown!) my skinny ass is going to fit perfectly into those budgy smugglers!  ...I think I can I think I can!

Whew!  And off we go!  ...to BALI!