I had an absolutely incredible week in Bali with Gareth...far better than I ever imagined... Anyone who has ever turned their nose up at Bali (myself included) should come and check it out for themselves ...it has so much to offer beyond boring beaches and resorts, and has some of the richest culture I have come across in all of Asia. The people are simply beautiful- so peaceful, happy and smiling all the time, saying hello without trying to sell you anything and I've had countless conversations with locals who are just interested in who I am and where I'm from. Obviously the super touristy spots like Kuta are a bit gross and stereotypically bogan, but if you avoid those spots, then there is so much more to see and experience in this Indonesian hub of joy and spirituality.
Gareth and I were amazing travel buddies... We created the most perfect itinerary of adventure mixed with a bit of relaxation. White water rafting and swimming in the currents that sucked us downstream, we actually thought we were going to die (such an awesome thrill with only a few cuts, grazes and bruises in the end). We visited temples where there is such a strong sense of peacefulness and happiness, did a full on yoga class at Yoga Barn with poses I'd never come across, went snorkelling, sailing, did a banana boat ride, kayaked through caves, spent an afternoon playing like kids at 'water bomb' on all the slides,
indulged in full body and leg massages, bike rode around Ubud and stayed in a private villa with a pool that overlooked luscious green rice paddies, made flavoured popcorn in a 7-11, ate too much mee goreng, got drunk on bintang beer, hiked up a volcanic mountain, hung over
at 330am (after
2am pickup... on barely any sleep because after a few large bottles of bintang the night before, we suddenly needed a leg massage and facial but everywhere was closed so someone called someone who called someone who came to pick us up on motorbikes and took us to some place we didn't even know where we were and then somehow managed to walk home quite pissy and next minute it's time to wake up!) Anyway, we climbed that darn volcano in the dark with torches for about 2 hours to the top (1717m) in time to watch the sunrise - absolutely incredible!!
Afterwards, we stopped off at a Hindu temple where the locals come to cleanse themselves as part of a ritual. It was the craziest experience - heightened by the fact that it was a public holiday so there were many more people than usual! We had to get stark naked and cover ourselves with sarongs, then stand in a long line in an outdoor concrete, temple-like public bath filled with cool fresh water. There were 11 fountains spurting out water - each of which you rinse your face, head and hair underneath and maybe pray and offer a little thing of food and then move along the snaking line to the next fountain through the communal bath with everyone pressed right up against each other, laughing, smiling and exuding so much joy and happiness. After we had been 'cleansed' we changed back into dry clothes (in a communal male/female locker room- awkward!!!!) and wore special sarongs with a yellow sash in the main temple to pray.
It was so great to be a part of this, thanks to our awesome driver who spoke pretty good english and lived in Japan for the last 15 years. I actually ended up hanging out with Made a bit after Gareth left Bali and we became good friends :)
Ultimately Ubud
I actually love Ubud to bits. It's so cute and sort of almost a bit french-y - boutique, arty farty fancy shops and cute windy little roads - heaps of contemporary arts and crafts shops, and all the houses seem to look like temples, scattered between the classy shops!! It's not too touristy here and westerners that are here look a bit more cultured and relaxed. It's a very yoga-focussed, peaceful and spiritual place but also with a calm buzz, and after the brilliant yoga class I did a few days ago I have decided to stay here for another week or so and do a bit of a yoga retreat for myself :) there are lots of gorgeous little cafes with organic foods and vego options, freshly squeezed juices etc and one day (a relaxing chillout one) Gareth and I just sat in 'Kafe' for hours - ordered Bircher muesli for breaky with a few freshly squeezed juices and milkshakes, then played a few card games, read some magazines then ordered lunch - delicious spicy pumpkin soup with more drinks. We had a staple diet of at least 3 magnums a day and plenty of other chips, chocolate and crap, with the thought in mind that we've both put on a bit of weight, plan to be healthier next week so this was a last hurrah! :)
** Stupid traveller moment no. 3 **
I shouldn't forget to mention the day we got stuck with scratchy cards that said I had won 2 t shirts and Gareth was the special prize winner with 3 stars so he wins one of 4 things- book of vouchers, $1000, iPad or a holiday. Of course you had to go to the peninsula hotel to look around before claiming your prize ... Knowing it wouldn't be the iPad, but also wounding if maybe there was that slim slim chance that this wasn't a joke, we decided to go on an adventure and see what would happen. Naturally, 3 hours later, the newly weds, Mr and Mrs Gareth Wilkes have chatted to a talented salesman from the uk about buying a membership at the hotel (kinda like timeshare) and had a full hotel inspection only to tell him we're not in a position to buy right now and we just wanted to claim the prize of a book of shit vouchers, 2 shit t shirts and (thank golly) a free lunch!! Mum, couldn't help but think of you the whole time!! Oh haha and of course the Balinese guy who gave us the scratchies in the first place told us he'd get a higher commission if we were married so we pretended to be, like I said above, but then worried we'd get sprung (no rings, no changed names etc) so explained the lie by spinning this crazy stupid story about having a secret marriage because my parents are Polish and not accepting of boyfriends who aren't also Polish etc etc!!! Hahaha
I'm a bit sad that Gareth just left because this is the first time I've been on my own in a while now, but I'm also kinda looking forward to it! :) Not sure where to after Ubud tho... That's what I plan to work out this week!! I'm feeling I might actually be done with Asia for a bit! And feeling quite strongly about working in Poland- maybe some volunteering or something but need to look into it!! Back to my almond choc-orange mud cake now ... Mmmm.....
** Solo traveller gets emotional **
Wow, so the past few weeks have been a whirlwind, emotional, spiritual, self exploration rollercoaster ride, but I feel I have come out the other side ready to face challenges and start my extraordinary life which I am so blessed to have been given.
As I mentioned before, Ubud is so lovely because its not tooo touristy, has strong culture and all the houses look like temples - including the guest house I lived in for 2 weeks, happy lovely people, and an overall peaceful spiritual vibe. So it should have been perfect... But of course it was the first time I was alone in a month, I was spending all this time doing yoga and therefore being super introspective and reflective and suddenly I felt like I'd been stripped bare, was now dealing with emotions from events over the past year, and I completely lost touch with who I was and what I wanted. I didn't even want to be in my own company! Which was a very horrible feeling. I cried at the drop of a hat and didn't know what to do about it because I couldn't see a solution- going home didn't feel like it would help - I didn't feel 'homesick' per se!! I was craving a hug but even that didn't seem like a long term solution. I had no idea where I wanted to travel to next and that was overwhelming me in a negative way as opposed to a I-have-the-freedom-to-do-what-I-want positive way! ... And you all know I'm the worst decision maker at the best of times!! Binge eating 25c paddle pops and $1 magnums, banana cake, carrot cake etc certainly didn't help my cause!
Eventually I talked to a few random people in Ubud -as if it were fate - who suggested a few things... At one of my low points, sitting in my favourite cafe, the lady next to me started a conversation about the solar flares - which I had no clue about - and explained that these flares are causing disturbances with technology and emotions... and i was like Umm EXCUSE ME?!???!! emotional disturbances??!! yes that's me!! I suddenly got all D&M with her and she recommended a few things. Firstly, a lady called Awahoshi who does crystal bowl meditation... she looked like a goblin/alien/angel from another planet, so calm and peaceful. she plays these crystal bowls which sound absolutely magnificant and the vibrations go right through your body and reverberate in your ears... there was one point where I remember not knowing exactly where my body was in space. At the start of that session, I randomly selected 2 cards from a pack - kind of taro/spiritual type cards ... one had the word 'extraordinary' on it, which I loved, coz it reminded me of that fact that as a kid, I used to think that I could be/would be extraordinary one day... but I had lost that feeling living day to day and doing the routine norm! The second card was a picture which I really connected with - dark purple and yellow swirls with this deep mysterious eye in the centre. That picture represented 'Awakening'... which I feel like I did and still am experiencing. The second person the solar flares lady put me in touch with was a girl from Australia who lived in India for a long time... we just had a good chat and she was quite tantric and talked about trying to experience life through your body not your mind. I think I will always over-think things and have the constant pro-con argument in my head over any decision to be made, but if I can learn to not worry so much about not having made a decision and also to experience things through my body more, I can find more happiness within. For example, she asked me what felt good... and I said singing... she asked why and (she told me later) my eyes lit up, I straightened my back and opened my chest and 'sparkled' saying that I love the vibrations that run through my body, hearing the sound and wanting to make it better and immerse myself in it... and she was like YES that's it - in that moment, when you're singing and feeling blissfully happy, you are living IN your body and the mind is more quiet!!!! I actually understood this!! So, after a few little chats and a reminder (which I prob knew but just needed to hear again) that what I'm going through is normal, I relaxed into just experiencing being in Ubud. It's funny, I could have just left because I wasn't having a great time there, but for some reason I couldn't, I obviously felt like I had to work through it and come out on the other side a stronger happier person. Over the next few days I had a bit more clarity and made a decision - WOW! ... I felt like a little kid who just mastered riding a bike without trainers- I bought a one week unlimited yoga pass at a different yoga place and therefore stayed in Ubud for one more week!!! And I immediately started feeling more positive. I still wasn't sure where to next but was less stressed about the decision and felt good about having a week to mull it over in ubud rather than empty lost and drowning in possibilities like I felt the week before!!
I made a beautiful friend, Made, who I mentioned earlier. (His English was really good, having grown up in an American family and then working in Japan for 15 years). I visited him in his office most days and then in my last week we actually just went and spent the day kayaking, having coffee in the mountains and shopping for some artwork. He was the final piece of enlightenment for me, and after hours of chatting in the car and finding similarities in our personalities, he managed to uncover a few other deep dark hairies for me to mull over and work on!!
The yoga was awesome. Ubud really is the place for it - it's where people from all over the world come for their teacher training and some of the poses are like nothing I'd ever seem or done in Australia - sometimes I got myself into positions I didn't think was possible... and other times I watched other people get into positions that were definitely NOT possible for me! haha Pouring with sweat every morning I felt full of love, life, energy, motivation, ethusiasm, and wonderful inspiring messages and morals provided by the yoga teachers. One really cool class was 'flying yoga' where we had to become very touchy and intimate with eachother, climbing and hanging and making pyramids with downward dogs. I discovered so many wonderful little organic, vegan, vegetarian, eco-friendly (soy skim half strength chai latte haha) cafes and restaurants and indulged in good wholesome meals (... well plus a fair few amazing desserts.... hehe c'mon I'm still kish!)
So, it's funny, after not even wanting to go to Bali in the first place, I now feel like it was meant to be. I had to get down to my core a bit to re-discover a few things, deal with old emotions and help prepare me for the rest of the year. I by no means feel like I'm totally together now, but who is?! I still go round in circles with decisions, not knowing where to next and if it's worth spending X amount of money on Y. But I am definitely more content with it all.
Right now I am in Hong Kong staying with Holly. It's so nice, we had a good girly chat last night and it's nice to have some homey comforts for a few days. I will head to europe next week ready for .... POLISH LANGUAGE COURSE in Krakow, which I'm super excited about!! :) and after that, not sure - maybe a topdeck tour, or if I make some friends in the course, maybe I can travel with them a bit? Sorry for such an in-depth waffly account of my emotional experiences rather than what I saw/did over the past few weeks, but that's not what those weeks were about!
