I woke early this morning. My left ear was plugged and I couldn’t near anything from it. Maybe it was the hours in the pool yesterday. Maybe it was seeing Nyoman, the reflexology oriented healer, for two days in a row? Maybe my body is preparing to go home, my ears and sinus’s go through strange adjustments when I first arrive in a tropical country. First, my sinus’s begin to run and drain. Then, my left ear gets sore and often plugged. After a couple weeks, all that disappears. Maybe my body is reversing it’s adaptation for my going back to dry Colorado. Normally, I get a nose bleed on the flight home or soon after, the membrane complaining of suddenly being robbed of moisture!
Having virtually no dairy in my diet with the exception of occasional ice cream bar, my sinus’s are fine. I’m sure the hours snorkeling in salt water removed any thing needing cleansing! With all the lemon juice I’ve been drinking (which cuts mucous in the body), I’m feeling pretty clean. And I’m walking in a green, moist, rain nearly every day tropical humidifier!
I sat on the front porch of my bungalow writing. The internet wasn’t working again so I couldn’t check email or do any surfing. An hour later, I ordered breakfast. It’s so nice having breakfast delivered to me sitting on my front porch by a smiling friendly face. Bayu, Miki and Wayan are the staff here who really know how to serve and love doing it. Wayan it new. Miki has been here nearly 15 years!
If anyone wants to volunteer to serve me breakfast on my porch when I get home, apply here. It would only be for a couple weeks until I can wean myself off that habit! Volunteers….send a sample menu and references assuring me that you can make a great coffee. Well, maybe I can do the coffee part!
Sitting on my porch sipping coffee, I really had to work to get oriented. I’ve got only a few days here before leaving for Kuta and my flight to Singapore. Half my stuff is still in storage at Dewa’s so I’ll have to sort through that. In some manner, I need to weigh my pack and see if it fits within weight restrictions. Air Asia has very inexpensive flights but allows only one carry on and one checked bag. If you pay for your checked bag in advance, it’s cheaper. I paid for 25 kilo’s (55 pounds) when I bought the ticket which is the least expensive way to pay for extra weight. I’m uncertain how much my pack will weigh with shopping and hope that is enough. Now, with the large Buddha, I’ll have to leave many things out of my daypack and put them into my checked luggage.
Pulling my thoughts back to being here now, I sorted through possibilities for what I wanted to experience while still in Ubud. The first thing I was clear about was getting a motor bike so I could be more flexible in my travel options. Then I headed for the laundry.
It seems the entire town is having a sluggish start! On the way to the laundry, I saw that my favorite local restaurant, Artini’s, but it is still closed today. Then, the laundry was closed. I walked back to meet friends in Kafe’, they weren’t there. On my way back to Dewa’s, I found another laundry that was open. Yes, it a sluggish return to “normal life” here after NYEPI.
Wanting to write some more and have access to the internet, I was headed to Moka when I ran into a man on the sidewalk who is staying at Dewa’s. He was so happy with his excellent breakfast, mostly with the delicious croissant! He told me he went to Casa Luna because Moka was closed.
Adjusting again, I went to Casa Luna and the croissant is excellent. The Americano needed emergency assistance but was beyond resuscitating! No amount of milk or sugar was able to remove the strong bitterness which smack the mouth on the first sip and lingers long after swallowing.
My waitress stopped to visit and we talked about coffee a little. She said their barista was sent to Australia for training but was still on break and asked me how my coffee was? I told her the truth. I’ve seen really nice espresso machines all over town including here but they don’t do a very good job. And Casa Luna has a cooking school! The pastries and food are excellent but coffee isn’t all that important to them apparently.
The almond croissant however will linger long in my taste buds and memory as a delicious treat. Maybe I’ll order one next time without the coffee!
Here’s part of my orienting, the internal selection process that’s taking place. After a day of “being” and no doing NYEPI, it is an effort to shift gears. The entire Blainese world was quiet. No airplane passed over Ubud. No motorbikes, no cars, no conversations except for the few conversations at Dewa’s.
I’m realizing that I have looked at so many gorgeous things, I’ve stopped seeing them. I’ve taken some pictures of what I look at but don’t see. Glancing up from my writing, I notice fresh orchids in the vase on my table, a lovely bamboo forest behind the restaurant, frangipani trees bloom just over the railing near me, soft music plays in the background and an eager staff watches for the next opportunity to help someone.
There might be some things I want to add to the color of my home?! So, I’ll visit some markets and this time really concentrate on seeing what is in front of me. In my mind, I’ve censored out some things because I only have so much room to pack. I know the brain can’t handle all the visual input available so censures most of it out. Here, there is a lot of visual input.
However, I’m also remembering that I am here now and if I see something I really like, I can ship it by sea mail. Sea mail is inexpensive but takes two to three months to reach the US.
There are several healers in the area I’d love to see. Wayan asked me to help her get a couple messages out through the internet. I want to go back to the healing waters which I rode by with Dewa but didn’t visit. And I want to sit and enjoy doing nothing in paradise while savoring each moment here.
I’m a bit apprehensive about returning to the US! People live isolated lives there compared to SE Asia. In the US, conversation revolves around stuff: politics, sports, weather, work, being busy, etc. Here, conversation is first person: I’m thinking I want to teach Yoga when I get home; I’m going to change jobs when I get back because I want to experience more….; I don’t know what I’ll do when I get home but it won’t be what I did before because I realize I really didn’t like it; I’m learning that I like….; I’m organizing my life so I can have three vacations a year; My next trip will be to ________ because I really want to experience ________.
A man I met last night, Jojo, told me how much he enjoys the conversation when he travels. For whatever reason, people really connect and look at each other. As he travels, he is also realizing that he lets himself get so busy when he gets back to the US, HE doesn’t have or take the time to connect. Not a good way to go through life!
The pace of life in the US essentially feels like ZOOM! Keep up or get run over! Except for NW Kansas….it’s much quieter there! And, of course, mom and dad are there. I’m not looking forward to leaving all the little individual shops I frequent here and walking into my first King Soopers or Super Target which feels absolutely overwhelming at this moment. I’m not looking forward to the news which I’ve hardly seen here except for occasional headlines but which is dominated by bad news in the US.
What I am looking forward to is seeing friends. I’m going to enjoy sitting on my porch on a nice warm morning listening to my birds. I will enjoy sipping a delicious “Larry’s Latte” made with freshly roasted beans from Stumptown!
I’ll enjoy drinkable water running out of the tap, having my own home over my head, taking a hot shower, doing laundry and getting my clothes really clean. Washing the road film out of my backpack, day pack, computer cover and passport wallet.
I’ll enjoy driving my car again, well, eventually. And camping and hummingbirds and planting my garden and seeing spring bloom and starting a new area of work and meeting new friends and…..that is a long list as well.
Back to now and savoring being here. I’m off on my motor bike to take things back to Dewa’s and then go to the temple on Monkey Forest to see the ceremony. Then I’ll go to the grocery store for some supplies and head out of town to visit a small village that makes batik wall hangings.
I’ll be smelling extra well so absorb all the aromas of blooming trees and flowers as well as the incense of daily prayers offered five times per day. I’ve grown accustomed to the fresh blossoms of Frangipani and may buy some essential oil to bring home with me.
Now, off to experience! The days are dwindling!