Love (the outdoor activities)

January 3, 2012

 

Today, I hiked up to the waterfall. It was very lush and green on the way up and the waterfall was magnificent. I could not believe I was the only one at the falls. The 300-meter waterfall gave off a deafening sound and the wind picked up its mist. It was beautiful and relaxing to be standing under this waterfall.

I love the warm rain of Bali. It feels soft on your skin and makes a soft pitter patter sound. I love sitting outside listening to the rainfall, bouncing off the stones and the pool water.

 

January 4, 2012

 

I went out on the dive boat today to snorkel. I saw the prettiest reefs to-date along with beautiful tropical fish. The ocean water is the same temperature as the air (~80 degrees Fahrenheit). There is something so peaceful about being under the water, just floating below the surface and taking in a whole magical underwater scene. Until a crazy fish starts biting you and pursuing you as you swim away.  He chased me to the beach and then out to the boat. Sheez.

 

 

 

January 5, 2012

 

Today is my last day in Bali. Tomorrow I leave early to make the 3-hour trek by car to the airport and the 4-hour flight to Bangkok before heading home.

 

It was beautiful and sunny this morning. There is something so calm and magical first thing in the morning and I’ve cherished my early mornings with a cup of coffee sitting on the patio.

After breakfast (banana crepe!), I kayaked around part of the island. I wish I had brought my camera to take pictures of the corral reefs below and the beachfront villas and resorts that dot the coastline. I was shocked to find out the Balinese people don’t like the ocean (um, island!). In fact they fear it. They tend to pile up their trash in their backyard that borders the beach and blocks the view of the water. You can’t imagine anyone doing that in San Diego!

As I was paddling back to the villa, the clouds started rolling in off the mountains. Now the sky is covered by an entire haze eliminating any breeze and making it very balmy and humid. I hear the thunder in the distance and I’m waiting for the rain (did I mention it is the rainy season?) this afternoon to cool things down. Then it will be time for my 4 p.m. massage. Bliss.

 

It will be hard to leave paradise and the simplicity of my days mostly spent floating in the water or soaking up the sun. But I am definitely ready to go home. I feel restored and rested and excited to tackle all the work that is waiting for me at home. Plus I can’t wait to see how big my little niece is by now!!

“Makan” ~ Eat

The food here is very fresh and vegetable-based. For breakfast you have a choice of eggs or banana crepe. Um… the banana crepe is A-mazing.

Lunch is either a vegetable soup or a vegetable salad. Served with slices of cheese. The cheese is really good here but different. You know the same, but different? And a slice of their homemade bread… that is incredibly delicious and rich. My grandfather (the engineer) got really into baking bread in his sunset years and this bread reminds me of all those delicious loaves we consumed when we visited him.

Bali Salad

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup chopped Cucumbers
• 1/3 cup chopped Tomatoes
• 1/3 cup shredded white cabbage
• 1/3 cup shredded carrots
• ½ avocado sliced into small cubes

Directions

1. Combine vegetables in a bowl.
2. Drizzle lightly with oil.
3. Salt and pepper to taste.

Dinner is normally rice and veggies served with tofu or tempeh – and sometimes fresh fish caught that day by the owner, Alex. They serve a peanut-based sauce on the side that is rich and creamy. I need to get the recipe! Of course there is dessert every night. The first night it was a slightly sweet gelatin cake. Not really all that tasty, but I figured it would end up saving me a few calories on this trip. But the next night, dessert was fried bananas covered in honey. Oh heaven!

After my daily massage, I wandered up to the kitchen to learn about how to make Balinese food.

The kitchen staff of five women showed me around their outdoor kitchen and how to make a couple Balinese dishes: Curry Tempeh and Spicy Tofu. Look for recipes here.

Pray.

New Year’s Day

I didn’t wake up until 10:30 a.m. today. That was a miracle… I don’t think I’ve ever slept in that late in a long, long time. It felt so nice. And, what a relief I didn’t sign up for that 7 a.m. yoga class I thought I would really want to do. Ha!

You know how when it rains, you just want to curl up and read a book inside. Well, it is rainy season here (don’t worry I didn’t know that either and felt like a bit of an idiot when the Australian couple staying in villa #3 told me last night… also, that is what happens when you buy the worst Bali guide book but don’t realize until you are reading it on the plane… on your way to Bali). So, I’ve spent the day on my own lanai staying dry, relaxing and reading while the warm rain falls down around me. The rain makes you want to do nothing but loll around and relax. And that is exactly why I decided to come here, I wanted to sit around and do nothing. No running off to see one place or another. No work, email, phone calls, or deadlines that I’m barely making at home. To be content to just sit here and do nothing. That is harder than it sounds. But I am content. I am in a state of rest.

 

There is something about being outdoors in God’s big beautiful earth that makes you feel closure to his creation and him. The beauty of Bali has really reminded me of how big the world is and He made it with his hands.

 

January 2, 2012

 

When I woke up today, it was beautiful and clear. After a cup of coffee while sitting in my little garden pool area, I headed down to the beach (25 feet away) to walk the shore. The beaches here are all rocks. I’ll admit, these are not my favorite kinds of beaches. I liked soft, soft white sand. The water is warm and soft. It is a deep blue.

 

 

This evening, I went up the mountain to take a yoga class at the resort up there. Yoga tea teachers from all over the world come to stay and teach for two weeks. The setting was exactly what you’d want for yoga: beautiful large room with one side completely open to a beautiful fountain/pond overlooking that jungle that leads to the ocean. Not bad, huh?

 

On the three-hour bumping, windy drive from the airport to the villa, I was treated to some beautiful scenery.

 

 
The rice paddies.

 

 

The mountains and valleys that capture the mist and fog.

 

The jungle views up in the mountains.

 

Have I mentioned how many bugs there are here? I don’t remember Elizabeth Gilbert writing this in her book… but speaking of the book, when we were driving through Ubud to the villa, there was a place called Ketut’s place. And glancing through the doors, it looked like the place in the movie. So, back to the bugs. There are lots of them everywhere. And that kinda freaked me out. We don’t have that many bugs in America and when we see one inside our house, we kill it immediately. Here, different story – you cohabitate with them. It’s very zen like. Go figure. Oh, and there’s a bird that lives in the grass roof of my hut. I can hear him chirp every so often and I find his poop on the floor, but no sign of him yet.

 

Welcome to the jungle.

 

Eat. Pray. Bali.

New Year’s Eve

Well, I am living up the third part of Elizabeth Gilbert’s book or Julia Robert’s movie (ha!). Bali is stunning… like no place I have been before… I guess that is why I came.  It is really rich in texture, color and tropical feeling. And it is largely untouched… especially in the area where I am staying. Isolated was in the description of the villa I rented and that is exactly what I wanted. I didn’t want to stay in the touristy area and be jam packed with people and gimmicky restaurants. Also, I don’t surf so I didn’t need to stay in any key surf spot place. So, I picked this beautiful villa from homeaway.com and got myself isolated.

I’ll admit: I freaked myself out. I still didn’t want to be staying the touristy areas and I still wanted the Balinese experience, but I didn’t realize that isolated meant: alone. In fact, when I arrived the “concierge” asked: You’re alone in Bali? She emphasized the “alone”. Yep, that’s me: all alone.  I flew halfway across the world to be in a place where I didn’t speak the language, was in a remote villa and had no form of transportation. Hmmm… clearly, I didn’t plan this trip very well.

But the villa is… incredible. It is so beautiful set in a lush background with my own infinity pool, lanai, covered area for eating, and indoor bedroom and bathroom (sans the shower… that’s outdoors, did I mention that?)

Minutes after I arrive, I am treated to a massage in my lanai located by the pool. I can hear the ocean rolling in, wave after wave. I hear the birds chirp and bugs buzz. Soon, I am all oozy and comfortable. I realize that I made the absolute right choice in coming to Bali and staying in this remote and beautiful villa.

Then something wonderful happens… I am no longer alone. No, Fabio didn’t walk into my villa and offer to make all my fantasies come true. My hosts – the owners of the villas, Anna and Alex, invited me to join them and their friends who were staying at the next villa to watch a traditional Balinese dance performance.

Did you think I’d end up spending New Year’s Eve with a bunch of drunk Ukranians? Nope, me neither! And it was fun!! Next thing I know, I am being offered Russian vodka and immediately being worked into this group of 4 couples and their 8 children. Two Australian couples join us from villa #3. What fun! We eat, we drink, we watch this beautiful Balinese dance performance…

we (the communal “we”) set off fireworks on the beach and then we head back inside for presents… yep, presents… they even had presents for me… I don’t know who ended up without a present (it didn’t appear that way), but we all received funny sunglasses suited to each person’s personality (mine were green with big palm trees on each side) and danced around the living room to techno music like we were in a dance club and not in a Balinese villa.

Then there were more presents… and for each present, the recipient had to do something funny on the request of the gift giver. One gal had to do a sexy dance, another had to jump up and try to eat a banana, another had to be wrapped up in toilet paper like a mummy, another had to make up a song… and I (mercifully) only had to sing an American Christmas song… which luckily I was able to get everyone else to join in with me which is lucky – especially if you have karaoked with me, you know I can’t carry a tune.  Next thing I know, it gets very quiet and then some drum-based music starts pumping and the Ukranian men all run out of one of the bedrooms wearing funny hats, arms-linked and dancing. They did some kind of funny Russian jig to much applause. Oh, what a night!

When I was in Bangkok, my friend Henok asked me about my plans for New Years. I told him I didn’t have any and truly that was just fine: because the bigger plan was just being able to be in Bali for the holiday. Lucky, I was dead wrong about having plans to celebrate on New Year’s Eve.

The Temples – Thailand

I was told when I was planning my trip that 2 days in Bangkok was enough to see what I wanted to see. So, I was selective about my site seeing and enjoyed my short visit.

Since I arrived in the afternoon of day #1, I quickly jumped in a cab and headed to Wat Pho to see the reclining Buddha.

The temple grounds (where the reclining Buddha is located) were very beautiful and I was able to catch some great shots as the sun was starting to set and the wind picked up. There was something very peaceful and magical about this moment as the wind blew through the flags that the monks were hanging in this plaza.

Afterwards, I headed across the street to Amarosa, a restaurant, that had a great view of Wat Arun, located across the river. Along with a bunch of other tourists, we watched the sun go down and the temple light up.

Then I walked a couple blocks to the river ferry to take the boat back to the sky train station and then back to the hotel. I ended up walking with a family from Tokyo who were visiting their dad who had moved to Bangkok for work.

I’m sure you’re wondering how I made it to all these different places on my own… well, I’m very good at asking for directions. The only hitch is that sometimes I get back directions and end up walking 10 blocks in the wrong direction and 20 blocks in the right direction.

The Floating Market, Thailand

Before I left, a friend told me I had to go to the floating market just outside of Bangkok. I checked into and despite the fact that it was a 1.5 hour car ride each way leaving at 7:30 a.m. and a bit pricey to hire a car and a guide, I went for it. And, I am so glad that I did!

 

The floating market is how commerce used to occur in Thailand. Merchants would load their boats with wares and float down the river to sell fruits, vegetables and goods. Now, the floating market is solely for tourists. After zipping along through the rivers by boat, you arrive at a busy intersection of commerce.

 

 

A boat takes you around and you stop when you see something you would like to buy. You haggle and negotiate. And end up with some fun souvenirs.

 

On the way home, my guide bought us a snack – coconut pancakes and iced coffee to go.

Once I made it back to the hotel, I was pooped and needed a little downtime. So, I hung out at the pool and hit up the gym for a quick workout.

That evening, I met up with my friend Henok – who is from the states and is in the Peace Corp. living in Thailand. I met Henok when we both took a community organizing class for our graduate degree. What is truly amazing is that Henok is putting his knowledge from this class to work! The way I understand it from Henok is that he moved to a small remote village (3,500 people) and was tasked with finding an issue and then organizing the community around this issue. In our class at USD, we had the same task, however, it is more difficult to do in the states because we have very little “social capital” – i.e. the community is not invested in bettering their community together. We lost that somewhere along the way when our communities became more spread out and we didn’t have to know our neighbors to survive each day. Anywho, back to Henok changing the world: He discovered that many of the villagers had poorly managed Type 2 diabetes. These individuals had not been taught how to take care and track their diabetes. Also, the health ministry deemed that their blood sugar only needed to be checked once a month by a doctor. If you know anything about diabetes, this is completely useless information. Sugars need to be checked multiple times a day and insulin, food and exercise are utilized to either lower or raise sugars. Henok set up a program where participants received a sugar meter so they could check their sugar levels throughout the day and monitor their own health and adjust their activities and food  according to the meter’s reading of their sugars. He is seeing behavior change in the way individuals manage their diabetes. He won’t claim success yet, he wants to the overall group sugars average go down another point. Yep, that’s my friend Henok, out there saving the world!

 

Mah Ha Sah Han! (How Fabulously Amazing)

 

How do I even begin to explain the most mind-blowing resort I have ever stayed in?? The Conrad Hotel on Koh Samui is made up of individual villas that have been built into the side of a cliff overlooking the ocean. The walkways are very steep and narrow – but allow for “buggies” or golf carts to race up and down to ferry passengers to different parts of the hotel.

Each villa is outfitted to absolute luxury perfection. With over 1000 square feet, there is lots of room to relax and unwind.

 

Yep, that’s the tub.

The outdoor infinity pool:

The reflection of the sunset on the infinity pool.

Looking out the door of opportunities.

The lobby/bar/restaurant area:

Enjoying the traditional Thai music during “2 for 1″ happy hour… yep, even in paradise, they have good deals for happy hour.