The Last Days

It might surprise you to know that I now find myself sitting cuddled up in autumn, in Melbourne, Australia! It seems so strange that this time last week I was waking up on a tropical island, about to take my yoga mat to the beach to greet the morning sun. I do not recommend this, there's just too much sand on the beach. But, I digress. How on earth did I find myself in Australia?

After my wonderful holiday with my parents I sunk into a bit of a travelling dip, the kind that makes you feel desperate for the proximity of loved ones and home. As I mentioned in my last blog, I was most definitely feeling ready to leave Ubud. For me, that funny little town had lost its charm, and suddenly I wanted my days to be about more than just yoga and delicious food. Ubud hadn’t changed, I had – and thank God! I'm pretty sure it’s a gift to feel that one is ready to move away from a more contemplative, relaxed lifestyle to one that has a different kind of purpose. At the beginning of my time in Ubud, all I wanted was to be there, to soak in all that it was. I did that – it was glorious and growth-filled and extremely special. But when you are in a magical place and the feeling of unhappiness starts to settle in, it’s a sure sign that it is time to move on.

But where to next? John has his flight booked and is arriving in Bali on 29 June and so my wanderings cannot take me too far. I think he would be most unimpressed if he were to arrive in Bali without me waiting to greet him! Thailand crossed my mind and I was very ready to jump on the next plane at the end of May (when my Indonesian visa finishes) and wander about there – try out the yoga and the food and the beaches of Thailand. But to be honest, there was something about that which didn’t make me feel excited either. In one of my particularly blah moments, my special friend Georgina, in an effort to help me shift my blahness, searched online for writing courses. It didn’t take her long to stumble upon a writing festival in Melbourne and suddenly I started to feel excited.  A writing festival? How cool! And, I love Melbourne! I have friends and family here and friends and family in Sydney and Brisbane! The thought of being with loved ones and exploring some civilised cities was wildly appealing. And so, within one evening it was decided. Thailand can wait! Off to Australia I go!

Unfortunately it’s not that easy to just up and leave for Australia, especially being South African. Our passport certainly makes for some interesting and expensive bureaucratic adventures. There were forms to be filled out, letters to receive, money to transfer and a visit to the Australian visa agency. I went down to Denpasar to apply for the visa with Georgina and Shailender, and after getting lost and then finding the place and then doing the deed, we visited a friend for breakfast. After breakfast we spent the day doing chores, filled with many mishaps, but ending gloriously with us sitting in a MacDonald’s car park eating delicious French fries and drinking Shailender’s coke because we both assured him that we didn’t want any of our own. The organic, raw foodies of Ubud would have been appalled by our fast food behaviour.

 

It was an interesting time being in Ubud and waiting for my visa. I was quite ready to leave but knew that I had nowhere to go, and I was desperate to really enjoy my last few days of being there. As life always works out perfectly, each day I was there was great and I felt that I was meant to be there – spending time with the people I needed to spend time with. I also spent one morning cleaning and rearranging my little cottage, I knew that I was about to leave it – but I felt a strong desire to shift the energy a bit. Gustut and Jeru helped with the rearrangement and we moved my bed to underneath the window, which meant I had two glorious weeks waking up and opening my windows without getting out of bed. It was so lovely to sit with my tea in bed and watch the morning creep into my little jungle garden – a a little corner of the world which will always have a special place in my heart.

During my wait for my visa a friend of a friend visited me in Ubud. I had only met Sam once while she was doing Peace Corp in South Africa. She was in Indonesia for a wedding in Jakarta and so was visiting Bali for a bit of pre-wedding adventure. After a yoga retreat she came up to Ubud to stay with me. I am sure she was quite comfy on the floor of my little cottage! I entertained her with a few of my best Ubud things to do. We took an afternoon scooter ride through the rice-paddies and then an early evening walk in my favourite morning walk spot. Unfortunately my favourite spot also seems to be the place for the teenagers of Ubud to get their cigarette fix! We visited two of my favourite warungs for dinner: best-indian-dish-ever on Thursday and cheap and delicious sticky-rice the next evening. Of course we had to visit Wayan for a coconut at his coconut stall, and once again he entertained us with his stories and antidotes. We were even joined on the bench by some fellow travellers! It was all quite fun.

 

The next morning I left Sam asleep and creeped out to catch the shuttle which would take Laura and I for our little Gili Islands holiday. In true Bali-style-super-duper organisation, we waited for the shuttle for over an hour, with Laura and I calling each other to exclaim that they still have not come! Eventually we were in the shuttle and then at Padangbai and then on the ferry and off to Gili Air! The term ‘gili’ actually means little island, although when one talks about ‘the gilis’ in Indonesia, one is referring to the three gilis that are grouped close together just off the island of Lombok. The most popular gili island is Gili Trawagan, although it is also the biggest drunken party zone and not somewhere to go unless that’s what you’re going for. My family and I have gone there a few times (not to get drunk and party mind you) and I didn’t really feel inspired to go back. Laura and I chose to go to Gili Air, which is a lovely mixture between absolute doing-nothing island bliss and the option of having delicious dinners and a dose of night-life.

 

We stayed at Bintang Beach, and spent our days eating, reading, swimming in the most gorgeous calm turquoise water, having soul-filling chats and exploring the island. There is absolutely no motorised transport on the island and so all you hear is the clip-clopping of donkeys' hooves and the creaking of wagon wheels. On Monday we went for a snorkelling trip which was really fun. We saw some turtles in the first two stops - amazing! One swam all the way to the surface and popped its little turtle-ly head out the water. Sadly the corral is pretty much dead around the islands, although in the last stop there was a lot more colour and some very awesome looking fish. We had pizza and salad for lunch on Gili Meno. It was really great that we were able to explore a tiny bit of the last of the Gili island trio.

On the ferry back to Bali I was telling Laura how I really wanted to get to Australia soon and was so hoping that my visa would come through so that I could book my flight and vamoose. At this moment I reached into my bag for my phone and a new email had just come through – my visa! HOORAY! I was so excited! After a slightly hair-raising shuttle trip back to Ubud I arrived home and booked my flight to Melbourne. The cheapest one by far was leaving on Thursday afternoon, meaning that I had only one day and one morning left in Ubud. Eek! On Wednesday I spent the morning with Laura and then for dinner with my Balinese family. Just before I left for the Gilis I found a replacement tenant for my little cottage, Syreeta, and she had moved in to try it out while I was away. I was staying at Georgina and Shailender’s place as they are in India at the moment and so it all worked out perfectly. When I was advertising the cottage I mentioned the creatures who inhabit it – really to warn off anybody who was seeking a luxurious garden cottage. However, Syreeta said that she had actually been drawn to the cottage because of the creatures! She also likes particularly hard beds, which means that her and the cottage are a match made in heaven! On Wednesay evening we had a lovely dinner with Gustut and Jeru, it was a ceremony day – Galungan, hence the delicious feast! During Galungan the streets are decorated with penjor, tall decorative bamboo poles with with offerings hanging on the end. 

 

As I packed up my stuff in the cottage and said goodbye to the family, and then to Ubud the next day, it all felt absolutely right. I was really ready to move on. My little cottage, my gorgeous little Bali home, was in the hands of someone who would love it as much as I did. Of course knowing that I’d be back in Ubud with John in a month’s time made it a whole lot easier to leave! I was so excited to come to Australia, to see all my special friends and family and to have a whole new and very different experience. I was very ready to swop my scooter for the train, and my flip-flops for some new boots! 

Parents, Friends and a Jakarta Reunion

My solitary Bali adventure was welcomingly interrupted by the arrival of my darling parents.  As I sit here on my little verandah, I'm still glowing after the time I spent with them.

And this is why:

I scooted down to Nusa Dua early on the Monday morning of their arrival. The ‘villa’ where we were staying granted me an early check-in and I napped the morning away until I was sure I heard the voices of my arriving parents. I ran upstairs to hug them HELLO!

We spent the week lazing by the pool, eating Easter eggs brought from SA especially for me, and generally hanging out together. We had delicious meals at some lovely restaurants as well as just ordering-in from a local restaurant when we didn’t feel like getting out of our swimming cozzies. One day after a beach visit, my mom had a craving for a tuna roll and so we stopped by the supermarket, fetched our supplies and headed home. I drank my tea and ate my sarmie in the pool. How lovely!

Tea in the Pool!

We had sunset drinks on the jetty near the villa, watching the planes fly in and out of Bali while another holiday-day came to an end. Ironically the view was of my favourite bridge – perhaps because I love it so much!

Sunset from the Jetty

After Nusa Dua we all moved up to Ubud. My Balinese family had told me that they wanted to cook a meal for my parents when they came, and so when my parents visited my little cottage a huge feast was laid out on my long wooden table. It was so lovely, they made such an effort to welcome my parents and I know for sure that the food that Jeru cooked is usually only reserved for ceremony days. We had yellow rice, chicken, fish sateys, tempe, peanuts and coconut shavings, small vege omelettes and a plate of veges. Wow. It was a real feast and I think my Balinese family were just as happy for an occasion to eat such delicious food! It was so great to sit and watch my two worlds collide for awhile and have my ‘families’ meet one another. My mom had brought some gifts from South Africa for them and they all went pretty crazy over the marshmallow Easter eggs!

My two families and our feast!

My parents stayed in a gorgeous hotel in Ubud which I obviously made full use of and swanned in and out like I was a paying guest. The glories of luxury after months of rustic living with the roosters and geckos! Early on the Saturday morning I met my dad at the entrance to the hotel for our first ever scooter ride together and then a morning walk in my favourite morning walk spot. I wouldn’t say it was the easiest scooter ride for either of us as the weight was rather unbalanced! As I was going down the hill my dad was so certain I would not be able to break and so pressed against my back in the futile hope that this action would make us break!

He was saying “break break!” I was saying, “stop pressing on meeeeeeee…”

Needless to say we survived the 1 km scooter ride and had an awesome walk. My dad offered to drive us home, which was a little less dodgy than the way there!

The gorgeous hotel!

My dad left on the Saturday, much to our sadness. But, his departure did mean that we could settle into some girly activities. We met Courtney for dinner that night and then had a very slow scooter ride home. My mom was trusting but a little nervous and asked me to slow down when I was going 20km per hour. By the next night she was quite comfortable however, and sat eating an icecream on the back while holding on with only one hand! She seemed to see me as simply an extension of the scooter and pushed and shoved and grabbed at me as she was embarking and disembarking. I had to remind her that I was a person and not something she could use to find her balance!

Transport Bali Style!

We went to have the best-facial-in-the-world with Eagle and then onto sunset dinner at Sari Organik.

Goddess Pampering!

On Monday we met my other new family Shailender and Georgina for breakfast (at our favourite breakfast spot) and then up to the site of their under-construction yoga retreat. It was wonderful to have my mom there to meet the people that I spend so much of my time with. Of course her input into the design and décor for the retreat was much appreciated!

Georgina, Momsie and Me!

And, all to soon it was time to leave Ubud and the beautiful Komeneka Hotel (which I had moved into when my dad left! Comfy bed! Air-conditioner! Breakfast! Pool! ). But all was not lost! My mom and I were off to Jakarta to visit old friends and old haunts. The car trip from the airport settled us back into the Jakarta traffic scene and two hours later we stumbled into our friend Sandy’s home, so glad to be there, at last! We had convinced our friend Christine that she needed to come back to Jakarta while we were there for a visit and it was wonderful to all be together again. Sandy, Christine, my mom and I, sat up until after midnight on Tuesday talking talking talking. I was so exhausted, but the late night was so worth it!

The Pyjama Party Participants

The next day we had our Manyano Angel Day, which my mom initiated back in 2008 in Jakarta. It is an afternoon of inspiration, sharing and spirituality. Usually it is also an afternoon of many cups of tea and delicious food! I had my first ever encounter with the indian dish payasam – AMAZING, it’s a Indian porridge/pudding and is made with sago/tapioca, condensed milk, raisins and cashews. YUM! Our friend Marilyn is also the cheesecake queen and would always make cheesecakes for birthdays and other special occasions. She did not disappoint this time, and I enjoyed my pieces immensely!

The Manyano Angels

My mom’s favourite restaurant in Jakarta is a place called FJs. It is here that they make her favourite meal: chicken gorgonzola risotto (insert drumrolls here). All of us flowed onto dinner at FJs after a gorgeous day of sharing at Manyano. We all left feeling quite satisfied (and yes, I had another piece of cheesecake when I got home!) and my mom said that her meal was everything she had hoped it would be! Mine was pretty damn good too.

Dinner at FJs 

One of the very very special things about staying at Sandy’s house was that I got to see and cuddle my two little dogs, Bella and Falomo. Sandy and her family offered to take our dogs and look after them when we left Jakarta in 2011. These two little bundles of black hair and love really gave me lots of companionship when I lived in Jakarta in 2010. We used to go for neighbourhood walks every night; I walked the dogs and prattled along to the Learn-Spanish-Mp3s while trying to stop them from using the road and immaculately manicured lawns as personal toliet spots. During that gap-year (yes, there have been a few in my life...) having them around made me feel less lonely when I felt so far away from all of my friends. I would love to say that when I saw them at Sandy's they remembered me, but I'm not sure – they were totally excited to see me, but they’re really totally excited to see everyone. They are such happy, loving little creatures. It was good to see them and I feel that I really did say goodbye to them for real this time, knowing that they were happy and loved made me feel much better about not having them close to me!

Bella, Caitlin, Falomo!

On Thursday we moved to our friend Laura’s house, but not before visiting our favourite little salon for pedicures and hair cream baths. I had my fair-share of pampering when my mom was around as on Saturday morning Laura, my mom and I went to have another all-time favourite experience: hot stone reflexology…mmmm….! Laura also took us to watch the school play her daughter, Kyra, was working behind the scenes in - an awesome rendition of The Wizard of Oz!

There were so many things I loved about being back in Jakarta. I saw this bustling, busy city with new eyes. Yes, it is crowded and polluted and the traffic is atrocious, but there is also so much happening and there is an effort to create more green spaces and parks. One of my favourite experiences was going to Skye Bar, a restaurant on the top of a tall sky-scrapper. It was epic! We got there just as the day was officially closing down, and the view of the city was spectacular. After drinks on the rooftop, we moved into the restaurant and had dinner looking out of the enormous glass windows. Pretty flippin’ cool.

City Lights!

All too soon it was time to say goodbye and return to Ubud. We had the best time in Jakarta and most of all it was just so special and fun to be with old friends again. I had a good little cry saying goodbye to my mom, as it had been so nice to be together again. I was not quite ready to return to my solitary life! As the car drove away to take my mom to the international terminal, she opened the ridiculously small aeroplane window of the car and waved manically out the window, squeezing her arms and face through the tiny space. She got the reaction she was going for, as I stopped my crying and laughed at the scene and her smiling face.

My holiday with my parents was marvellous, and it was great to have them there to talk about my next moves and my plans for the next couple of months. I can feel in my bones that my time in Ubud is nearly over. I’ve got to the point where I'm ready to move on, and as I ride my scooter and look around at the bustle of Ubud and the rice-paddies, I feel quite content to be here now – knowing that I’ll soon be somewhere else.

Where to next? I'm not really sure...Watch this space!