I have some friends coming to Bali so thought it might be useful to offer some tips and suggestions about coming here. I have also asked Neil for his thoughts as he has lived here for nearly 6 months. Here are our top 10 tips: 1. Fly with Garuda airlines. Why? Because you can have your passport stamped by a customs official on the plane, which will save you an hour in a hot arrivals hall in a slow moving queue to get your arrival stamp (you need this even if you have a visa). You need to flag … [Read more...]
Best spa in the world – In my element at Fivelements
Here is a post about one of those rare ten out of ten days…. Last Friday I spent my day at a healing and wellness retreat called Fivelements, located about 20mins from Ubud. I first heard about Fivelements through David Wolfe (sounds like he’s a personal friend of mine lol!) because he did a talk there a week before I arrived in Bali. I was disappointed to miss his talk but I looked up Fivelements as I knew it would have to be special if David Wolfe was going there – and I was right! The … [Read more...]
My new Bali cottage
It’s been three weeks since I moved into my first Ubud home on the edge of the jungle… What an amazing haven it has been! Time has slowed right down for me, there is no stress, no rush, no hassle at all. My day starts when the roosters wake me, some people might find the cock-a-doodle-do’s annoying but I love my new alarm clocks. Then I meditate for half an hour, with the ceiling fan on to cool me. When it's daylight Agung brings me a flask of hot water, I squeeze a lemon to make a hot … [Read more...]
Ubud herbal walk
During my first week in Bali I went on an herbal walk through the jungle and rice paddies to learn about local medicinal herbs. The word Ubud actually comes from the Balinese word ubad which means medicine, and many medicinal herbs and plants are grown in the region. I first met my guide Komang in Utama Spice, a shop which sells locally made natural skincare products based on ancient Balinese medicinal knowledge. I ended up talking to Komang for about an hour in the shop as he told me about … [Read more...]
Lilin Lovina Loca
On Saturday me and my buddy Neil hired a car and drove north to the seaside town of Lovina. I had expected Lovina to be little more than a few shacks on the beach so was surprised to find a well-developed, modern town (by Bali standards at least), with wide roads, shops and hotels a-plenty. The distance from Ubud to Lovina is only 84kms, but it takes us 4 hours to get there (max speed 60kms/hr) as we have to travel up and over a big mountain range on a very narrow, windy road. Thankfully Neil … [Read more...]
Cooking Class at Alit’s Warung
Today I had heaps of fun doing a cooking class with local lady Alit. She has been teaching cooking classes for over a decade and has a deft hand with the cutting knife and an endearing sense of humour. The class started with a guided tour through the local market, where we spotted lots of weird and wonderful things, including a basket of squirming eels. Every morning the market comes alive at around 4am as all the local women come to collect their supplies for the day; fresh flowers, … [Read more...]
My Vipassana experience (part 1)
A lot of people have asked me about my experience on the ten day silent meditation retreat that I completed a few weeks ago (Vipassana), there's a lot to try and capture so I will write a few posts about it. Here is my first one.... My Vipassana experience (part 1) I first heard about Vipassana (pronounced va-pash-na) about five years ago when one of my life coaching instructors shared a story about his profound experience as a Vipassana student. His story made me curious but I had never … [Read more...]
Bali on bike
Kiwi Lyn and her friend Chris the yoga instructor invited me to join them on a bike tour today with Bali on Bike, and what a brilliant day we had! We piled into a van this morning and drove to a coffee plantation, not any old coffee plantation mind you – this is where they produce the most expensive coffee in the world, ‘Kopi Luwak’. You might recall Jack Nicolson’s character waxing lyrical about this special coffee in the movie The Bucket List. So what makes it so special? Well…. There is … [Read more...]
Finding a place to live in Bali
It was still dark and quiet outside when I woke this morning, so I attempted to meditate for awhile to help allay the quietly expanding sense of panic that was beginning to bubble up in me. Today I have to find a place to live. How will that happen? Where do I start? What if I don’t find anywhere? This is the panic of my mind trying to railroad me. In response I try to focus on the feelings of calmness and relief that I know will come once I have this mission completed. I just have to trust that … [Read more...]
Sleeping in my car
Tonight I'm sleeping in my car. I’m not really homeless, I’m in transition :-) My Mum isn't happy about me sleeping in my car, but I’ve assured her that I’m perfectly safe, lots of street lights and apartment buildings and people around. My mission for this evening is to try to blow up my air bed, which has gone down. I haven’t packed the foot pump so I’m envisioning a few dizzy spells ahead. Rolling with the budget/homeless theme I am eating cheese and crackers and fruit for dinner, and I … [Read more...]
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