Same Ol’, Same Ol’ – and Movin’ On

April 5, 2011 at 6:57 pm (Bali, travel)
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Can’t say I have anything in particular to write about today, but it been so long since I posted here I feel like I just want to say something.  So bear with me while I stumble through this — maybe something cohesive will emerge.

Well, we’ve been trying to sell the 2+ hectare piece of land we bought when we moved here to Bali.  It’s located just about 20 minutes north of Ubud in a little village called Bresela, and is situated on a river gorge.  The land is terraced all the way down, although one should feel adventurous to take the trek — a bit of agility also helps.  Grab a mango along the way for a treat.  But down at the bottom, along the river walkpath, a nice surprise awaits.  An awesome lava cave, which would be a great place to set up a little meditation niche.  There’s also a waterfall across the way for even more ambiance.

Back up at the top on a clear day,   one might catch a glimpse of the mighty — but very coy — Mt. Agung off toward the east, past the ricefield.  A bit less shy are Agung Batu Kuru and its mates to the west/northwest, located along the next gorge over.  Now would be a great time to discover young coconut.  The farmer tenant will climb the tree and send down three in various stages of ripening.

Okay, so the ones we always had back in the states were the “old ones”, with some water inside and a very meaty, crunchier flesh —  here in Bali these are only used for making the coconut oil; the village ladies here will make you a liter of (cold-pressed) coconut oil for about US$1.50 (byob).  Coconut oil is so light and absorbs quickly into the skin, plus  it leaves that wonderful lightly scented aura about you.

The water of the young yellow coconut is a traditional remedy for congestion and digestive problems, but is also a great hydrating refreshment.  I’ve seen that gyms and health spas in the States are promoting coconut water as a workout rehydrator/re-energizer, and I’m guessing it doesn’t come cheap.  So I kinda gloat every time I drink some fresh outta-the-shell coconut water, knowing all I had to do was ask.

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Silent Island

March 4, 2011 at 8:06 am (Bali, Culture)
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Well another year has gone by as Bali approaches the sacred Day of Silence, aka Nyepi/ Balinese Hindu New Year.  On this special day everything will shut down on the Island.  There will be no incoming or outgoing or internal flights, broadcasts, or traffic; the streets will be completely movement-free; lights and other use of electricity will be kept to the barest minimum.  Silence and stillness will reign supreme for this singular Day.  This is declared and enforced by law.

The Balinese believe that this age-old ritual is necessary to restore balance to the island, ridding it of negative energies and evil spirits that have managed to creep in over the past year.  On this day, the eve of Nyepi, effigies of evils will be paraded through the streets of each village to a central location, then burned to the accompaniment of  fireworks, bamboo cannons and all manner of loud noises.  This is to scare the evils away, so that when/if they return hours later, they will think that the island has been deserted and be forced to take up residence in some other “populated” land.

Ogoh-Ogoh represent various evils & negative energies

Another version -- each group designs their own

Most of the ogoh-ogoh are totally handmade by the local village kids’ groups.  They are usually formed with a base of chicken wire with bamboo stick supports, then paper mache to make the full figure.

Proud designers and artists, smiling faces

They're everywhere!

Of course, I had to include some of the artists, who are always quite happy to oblige.

The hotels are granted certain leniency in the Day’s observance, but must take care to keep very low profiles.  Guests are generally served meals in their rooms, but are usually allowed to use the pool and engage in other quiet activities on the premises.  So if you’re ever in Bali when Nyepi is imminent, you can expect at least one full day of absolute peace and quiet.

My next post will happen when I exhale…see ya on the other side!

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Oh, the People You’ll Meet..

January 13, 2011 at 10:08 am (living abroad)
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The choice to experience life in a whole new and unknown land is like getting into a great big swimming pool for the very first time.  It’s at once exciting and frightening.  At least that’s how it was for me.

Oh yes, I had been to Bali three times already — but as a tourist.  This was a whole different ballgame, as I’ve mentioned before.  I guess what got me to the point of actually following through to the reality was the fact that I was so busy for the two months leading up to the move, that I just rolled with the momentum.  This was to be a permanent move for hubby and me (at least for the plannable, foreseeable future).  So it was necessary to finalize any and all pending business, legal and personal matters, making reliable arrangements for all the rest.  This included disposing of personal belongings that could not or would not be taken along… a lot of agonizing decisions, some of them just downright painful.  Things I could not part with went into storage, to be dealt with on some future return visit.

And the family (below) and friends that were left behind — the poignant goodbyes and farewells…

Home Family Gathering

Our first Bali Family

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We knew no one over here, except for our Balinese friend/driver/tour guide, Wayan and his family (above right), and a couple from California we had met on our last visit here.  We met many Balinese people along the way during our first year and a half, mostly in the course of doing business and trying to locate necessities.  Oh, and we became friends with our (American) neighbor when we finally contracted a villa.  It probably took us that long to get settled in comfortably, what with the needed renovations and household necessities.  So we were basically on the road every day, running errands.

Then, suddenly, it happened!  We started meeting other westerners (as well as easterners) who were living among us all along.  It was at times a whirlwind of activity and new acquaintances.  So many other expats — who would have known?   From everywhere!   California, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, Utah, Indiana, DC, Washington (state), Canada, Australia, France, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Turkey, Greece, South Africa, Germany, England, Ireland, Nigeria, India, Japan, China, Iceland, Vanuatu, Philipines – just everywhere.  These are all people (including the Americans) that we never would have met or known had we  stayed in our cozy familiar little corner of the world.

It is so interesting to be able to know so many people from so many different parts of the world.  Not only does it reinforce the perception that people everywhere are still just people, but it infuses a sense of camaraderie unlike any other.  All share, to some degree, that sense of adventure/curiosity that allowed us to make the leap… a huge risk by the standards of so many… but so rewarding an experience.  Whenever I stop to contemplate, I’m always reminded of the Dr. Seuss book  ” Oh, the Places You’ll Go (and the People You’ll Meet)!”

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Holidays Schmolidays

January 7, 2011 at 10:18 am (Holidays, humor)
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Okay, so this is the third time I’ve started this post.  The first two times it somehow turned into a bit of a rant about all the government-decreed holidays here in Bali.  (There are 13 holidays declared by the national government, and an additional 14 days decreed by the Balinese provincial government…that’s alot of holidays).  Anyway, I guess I was just trying to work through the shock of seeing all of these days in print on the same page.  I’m over it now, thank goodness.  But being over it kinda leaves me with nowhere to go with this post.  So excuse me while I ramble on…

A Welcome Ceremony for Guests at nearby Resort

The thing is, it can be so easy to get your panties all in a bunch living here in neverland.  But it’s so much better to find the humor in it and get a good belly laugh instead.  I’m trying!

The last month (two months, really) have been like a never-ending Fourth of July celebration.  It all started with the Hindu holiday of Saraswati, which occurred in November.  It involves all kinds of lavish offerings to the Ganesha, the god of Knowledge.  It also precedes the really big holiday of Galungan, which I know has some traditional religious or cultural significance, but I have yet to get the same explanation from any two people.  The degree of anticipation of this (Galungan) and of Kuningan (occurring 10 days later) is a frenzy of temple and banjar activities, leading up to a huge pig roast, Bali-style.  Ya, you probably don’t wanna know!  Not too bad, though…I’ve been to a few.  You only must be sure to ask what it is that’s being offered.  Some of the “delicacies” are just way too foreign or repugnant to this American palate.

So, to get back to the celebration…  Indonesians, at least the Balinese, have an irresistible fascination with fireworks, any kind, all kinds.  And though “illegal”, they’re pretty easy to come by.  And this year, for some reason, everyone and his brother seemed to get in on the action.  The fireworks mostly started out in November and early December as the bang poppers or little cherry bomb types — a lot of noise, but no show — mostly beginning in late afternoon on through until about 10pm or so.  All up and down the ridges of the gorge where I live, all around us.  About mid-December (Galungan & Kuningan), the fireworks activity started picking up, starting earlier in the day (sometimes at daybreak) and going a little later into the night.  The week between Christmas and New Year was the almost never-ending climax.  Everyone broke out their very best — all the lights, sparkles, booms and whistles almost ceaselessly for about 10 days.  It was absolutely incredible!  I even read a report that they had to keep the arriving flights circling the island for about an hour on New Year’s Eve — there were just so many light shows happening everywhere at that time.  But it was said that many of the pilots were afraid to attempt landing their carriers amidst such random and unpredictable explosive displays.

Well, what was the point of this post?  Beats me.  Oh yeah, I was looking for the underlying humor in the midst of my rant about all the holidays. .. guess I’m over it.

 

Same ceremony - Taking guests to their Villa

 

 

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Five Years On

December 7, 2010 at 8:06 am (humor, living abroad, travel)
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This is a little anecdote I posted elsewhere a while back and I just thought it might make some readers smile.

Well, I’ve been living in Bali now for 5 years, and I must say I’m still havin’ fun. It’s alot like living on another planet. Halfway around the world, in another life, I would be plugging away at my day job. But today I’m hanging around our villa while a local craftsman is refinishing all the teakwood trim in the house. This will cost me less than $95 USD, including materials and labor for 3 or 4 days work. Are you listening, America?

Every time I call the local plumber, he shows up at the villa within the hour and charges about $2.50 for the house call and labor, plus he goes to the store to purchase any parts that are needed (usually less than $5). Can you hear me now?! When we moved into our villa, the 3x4x2-meter (that’s 9x12x6-feet) step-down plunge pool was hand dug and completed (with underwater lighting, drainage, pumphouse, etc) for about $7000. I could go on and on, but I wouldn’t want to give the impression that everything is so cheap. Electrical service, cars, computer accessories, and most state-of-the-art technologies are pretty much on par with US prices.

This is a third-world developing nation, and there remains a lot to be desired, but everything you could want for is here — one only needs to find it. Ah, and therein lies both the challenge and the adventure! I cannot begin to tell you what a blast that has been. When we first arrived here, I believe we managed to have at least three good pee-ur-pants belly laughs every night. Now we’re so used to the bizarre, we’re probably down to two or three a week.

So my worker has gone home for the day. I watched him earlier as he worked on the railing along the 2-1/2 meter elevated terrace. He climbed over and walked along the outside and balanced himself in a squatting position to reach the lowest areas, never once wavering or grabbing the rail to regain balance.  Sometimes I’m just awestruck at the way things are done here. Let me elaborate.  When they were building our pool, local village women were hired to carry out the excavated dirt and rocks and carry in the concrete and cinder blocks.  There was a constant parade of the women balancing three – four blocks on the top of their heads or balancing one pail of concrete on the head and carrying two more buckets in their hands.  I’m sorry I don’t have any photos to post here, but maybe I’ll remember to get some one day.  It’s a sight that certainly goes against everything we take for granted in America, but these ladies seem perfectly happy to have the work — it means extra money for upcoming ceremonial offerings. That’s another story altogether, and perhaps I’ll get to tell you about it someday.

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The Basics

December 6, 2010 at 5:58 am (Bali, humor, living abroad, travel)
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I’m living my dream here in legendary Bali. It’s a beautiful tiny island in the middle of the Indonesian Archipelago, anchored in the Indian Ocean. The entire inland of the isle is divided by countless gorges. Some are river gorges, some host ageless terraced rice paddies.
They all make for stunning views and scenery, but there are no bridges spanning these chasms, so you have to go around them to get from point A to point B. This makes a road trip somewhat more interesting and time-consuming. But then again, the old saying about time being relative takes on a whole new meaning here. One just has to learn how to sit back, enjoy the sights and relax…you’ll get there when you get there. And chances are that when you do get there, wherever there is, you’ve just missed whoever you went there to see. The Balinese are famous, or infamous as the case may be, for their total lack of timing. To them, later may be later today, or maybe tomorrow, or perhaps next month.
Learning the ropes. Some of the things we had to learn here was how to slow our pace, curb our impatience and accept those things we cannot change. In the process, we get a lot of chuckles and outright belly laughs from our experiences. Follow along as I post various insights we gained while learning the ropes of living abroad.

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Lifelanes Bali

December 6, 2010 at 5:55 am (living abroad, travel)
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Ever dream of living in a tropical paradise? I did. And now I do.

Many expats tell the same story about how they came to be here.  Took an exotic vacation, fell in love with the island, the people, the culture, went back home and just had to come back.  That’s pretty much the way it happened for me.  Came back two or three times before I actually got up the nerve and determination to pack up my life and just do it.  After all, they always say “you never know if you don’t try”.  So I did.  I’ve been here now for about six years, and now I want to share some of the joys, humor, frustrations and fears, people, places and things I’ve experienced and met along the way.
(By the way, I never really got past “political correctness 101″, so if you are a big supporter or torch carrier of that agenda, read my future posts at your own discretion. )
My posts may wander about, sometimes then, sometimes now, but if you want a fairly chronological run-down, check out my blog

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