Young coconut... My usual breakfast...
as it is the best to start with all the adventures at the beginning... :)
I know this is not the first day in Bali... but you may all excuse me for the late post as I was just enjoying my time here.. breathing every little hint of air full with this new and interesting smell..makes you want to discover all! The smell of a tropical country enriched with the cempaka flower insent smoke mixed with the smell of freedom... oh I love every single moment of it from the moment I landed!
When I arrived I quickly found a hotel in Kuta, in the middle of the busy nightlife, dropped my luggage in the room and ran directly to see the see... to hear how the waves crash on the sandbank of Kuta beach... that was the happy moment I realised I made it, I have arrived... I was dreaming of this moment for more than a year.. and here I am... I made it!
Already the very first day just after renting a scooter I hit the road and in the traffic jam with this white European face of being lost I am helped to find my way by a Balinese, Kadek who became my true guide in this journey. By now thanks to his amazing stories about the culture and Balinese Hindu religion I have learned many interesting stories about how people live here in their everyday lives.
I only meet good and very exciting people here... I have a lot of helpers... through Internations, I have already met Hilde and his husband Bart in Belgium when they were spending their holidays in their country of origin... as I arrived here they provided me a huge pack of useful advices and offered their help in anything I needed. Hilde even drove me around for almost a whole day in order to help me finding the best location I would like to stay and rent a house... I also found some enthusiastic raw food lovers in Ubud and already made a big raw feast together one day... not to mention the guys in the surfshop who gave me a really good surfboard to try it for free for a couple of days so I can decide if I like it or not... and of course this is not the end of the list...:)
Balinese still follow the moon cycle more than we do. Their calendar is even the moon calendar. They are absolutely right, the moon has effect on everything. It is worth checking when we should plant or collect the fruit but also when we should go to the hairdressers or do manicure... not to mention the effect of the moon to the swells... :) After all this you can imagine how important the full moon celebration is.... a unique experience for sure! Kadek, my friend promised me to take me to a Balinese full moon ceremony... I was so much looking forward to it... the night of the full moon he knocked on the door of my hotel room with a traditional Balinese dress in his hand... the top was amazingly decorated with golden flowers and the sarong (skirt) was long and tight I could not sit on the motorbike as usual and had to sit sideways like the ladies in the old times on the horse... thank god I did not need to drive... :) the ceremony starts with offering some flower and small pieces of food to god and people are meditating and praying sitting next to each other on the ground... there is no exact time when you expected to arrive at the temple... no speech made by the priest... you arrive anytime you can.. you sit down in the row... and you stay as long as your heart says to stay. Of course I was the only white around but all I got were welcoming smiles... God welcomes everybody who would like to pray no need for exams or baptism etc... after praying people stay around the area sitting, eating, chatting.
My day is usually governed by the swells... surfing is first.. but lately waves were not good, so I had time to look around on the island. I had a 3 days trip going halfway round the island. I have seen the temple of the ladies situated in a lake, an amazing waterfall in the mountains, hot spring water baths, scuba diving and snorkeling on reefs, the temple of the rocks build next to the sea, the temple of Tanah Lot which may only be approached during low tide as in high tide the sea protects the calmness and silence of temple. Oh, and I almost forgot that my guide, Kadek brought me to his little village hidden in the jungle... the real Balinese untouched village. The house is surrounded by coconut trees, jackfruit trees and banana plants unbelievable for us, isn't it..
When I got back from the trip I moved to my present location Canggu. I will talk about tis later with the help of a few photos...
We all have our own little bungalows, like mine next to the pool. This ensures the privacy you need... even if you are not really alone. Living so close to nature you really get used to the funny sound of the gecko living just above your bed, the lizards running all across the wall, the frogs singing in chores next to the pool, and the birds, bats and all sorts of other noises, the sound of nature... no worries it is not freaky... it feels absolutely natural... positive!
