"Know the world... know yourself..."

hello everybody!
 
i've made it to bali (i know some of you already know this, but the first email only went to family, so here is the official first email!).
 
ok, so after 21 hours of flying/connecting, i arrived in beautiful bali and spent one short day in kuta, the most touristy spot in bali. there wasn't much for me to do there so i went on immediately the next day to ubud, a artsy town in the middle of bali (not on the beach unfortunately, but that also keeps some of the tourists away which is very nice). i have a lovely hotel here - the room is quite plain and simple, but very clean and with a glorious porch that overlooks a tropical garden. all that and delicious breakfast included for just $8/night! you really can't beat the prices here.
 
on the bus ride from kuta, i met two londoners, joe and emily, and we became fast friends. we had a really nice dinner together my first night in ubud, grilled prawns with pineapple and tomatoes over rice. the next day, we rented bikes and went riding in the rice paddies, which i must say is some of the most beautiful landscape i have ever seen. to answer the question on all of your minds - i did take one topple off the bike! ha, its not what you think though, it wasn't because i'm just lame and dont know how to ride a bike. i do, that's not the problem, the thing is the traffic! how do i explain... the rules of the road here can be summed up in one word - chaotic. thats not to say that traffic is not organized, the locals know exactly what they are doing. but to visitors, its rather difficult cuz the roads are narrow, people park and double park everywhere, endless motorbikes zoom around at really high speeds and you're just expected to weave around all the obstacles. so here i was, riding along my bike on a country road (with less traffic, but still traffic), when a motorbike came around the bend really fast. i freaked out, stopped short and so i toppled. i didnt actually hit the ground, but the bike did fall on my ankle, not ideal. that itself wasn't actually that bad though, but thinking as much, i walked on it quite a bit the rest of the day, which was a really bad idea. it became quite swollen and unhappy with me. but now, two days later, its almost 100% back. part of the adventure...
 
what else - the weather is hot hot hot. in the 80s and 90s every day and humid. but i love it! even at night it doesn't really go below 70 and sometimes remains hotter than that. we had a downpour last night, but now the sun is out again. and even when it rained, it was still in the 80s. the people here are some of the nicest and most hospitable you will find anywhere i think. just an example of the balinese kindness - as i hobble down the road, i'm asked about every 20 feet by locals on the sidewalk what happened to my foot, if i'm ok, do i need help and advised to go to get "good balinese massage" to heal it. i think its a very rare thing these days to find people who care so much about the well-being of strangers. its a very nice atmosphere to live in.
 
loving ubud so much, i've decided to stay here for a few weeks before going to the beach on the north shore. i'm also trying to extend my time in bali in general. the visa rules are technically strict, but its well-known that the rules can be broken for a small price. the man who runs my hotel is helping me with this, so i will probably get to stay in bali until mid-april. that is what i hope.
 
being that my hotel doesn't have a phone and calling from the booths cost $1.20/min, internet is all i have for now. i know i made some promises of calling, but until i figure out a cheaper way, i will continue to email. thanks for all the emails so far, its soo nice to hear what's going on at home. keep writing me!
 
well, i think thats long enough for now. i'll write again soon. take care everyone. and family - please dont worry! i'm alive and well and very very happy to be in one of the most beautiful places on earth!
 
love to you all,
Courtney