Zoom Zooming to Freedom

At the beginning of my Ubud journey I gave myself at least one month to walk. To walk everywhere while the rest of the Bali soul searchers were vrooming around on scooters and motorbikes. And boy, did I walk. To and from yoga, an hour walk somewhere and an hour walk back. 10pm at night walking and early morning walking. That and my daily yoga pretty much exhausted me, leaving me wondering why finding myself was so tiring. It is definitely the right way to keep fit, but the problem was that the majority of the walking I was doing was all taking place within the mini-city of Ubud, where the constant barrage of cars and scooters and people can send anyone’s zen thoughts straight into chaos.

To get to the beautiful rice paddies I needed to walk for at least half an hour which meant that by the time I was ready to breathe in the beauty of nature, I was already ready for a break. One afternoon I was awoken from an afternoon nap by the sound of a chainsaw, frustration led me back onto the street with the intention of exploring a little side street before my yoga class at six. I had been telling my friend Laura that very afternoon that I would not be getting a scooter and would continue to be a walker, but it seems that destiny had other plans. As I was walking up my street (noisy, littered, busy), I saw a man Graham who I had met at an event the previous Friday. Graham passed by me and then did a u-turn and came to chat. Within minutes I was on the back of his scooter and flying out towards the rice fields. My usual forty minute walk blurred into five minutes as we reached the quieter roads, surrounded on each sides by homes and villas surrounded abundantly by lush green rice fields, trees and jungle. My heart opened! My stomach loosened, and I breathed it all in.

Last weekend I gave Graham a call to ask if I could take him up on the scooter lesson offer. He readily agreed and what ensued was three afternoons of scooter lessons, Graham patiently guiding me, reminding me, taking control from behind just before I hit that truck or went into that ditch. On the third day I was eventually ready for my first ever solo-ride, and Graham using his well-cultivated connections organised a rented scooter for me at a great price as well as a brand new helmet (no cooties for me!). As soon as I got onto my scooter, switched on the ignition, looked left and right, said a little prayer (or rather, a very big prayer) my heart once again bloomed! I was off! Riding on my own, feeling the wind whip past me, the scooter and I becoming fast friends – I was FREE! I was in heaven! I could go wherever I wanted, I could explore more and see more and do more!  I am so very lucky to have been thrown onto Graham’s path, many years ago he was a driving instructor in Ireland and so I could not have asked for a better teacher to guide me in the somewhat scary art of scooter manoeuvring. He is just another of the miracles that I have experienced in being on my adventure and in my flow – how many people would give up three afternoons to teach a person they've just met how not to be wobbly while riding a scooter?

  

So now, the life expectancy of my time in Ubud has tripled. I was thinking of going to Thailand but not yet, me and Ubud – we’re not done yet! With this new found freedom I can spend more time out and away, finding sweet little warungs far off in the rice fields in which to eat and write and be. So, this is me on Zoom Zoom! My beloved scooter. And of course, the angels are never far from the scene – my keyring (a present from Brigette and Jane for my last birthday) reminds me how protected I am when I'm out there claiming my freedom.

In the middle of my first week of scootering, I took another journey, this time leaving Zoom Zoom and my helmet at home. My friend Colleen, whom I met in Jakarta a few years ago, and who is also, coincidently from Hillcrest, invited me to her friend Nila’s restaurant for a Balinese ceremony. The restaurant is in Kimtamani, an hour or less drive from Ubud and is facing the majestic Mt. Batur – a smoky, powerful volcano which seems to exude healing from its very slopes. The restaurant has been open for a year and I think the ceremony was a blessing for the restaurant, the land on which it stood and a show of gratitude for what has come from it.

Colleen and I arrived early and sat looking at Mt Batur, finishing off the coconuts Colleen had bought us in Ubud and simply enjoying being there and in a different space. The ceremony started about two hours later and Colleen and I sat and watched – both as guests and as part of the family. We were dressed in full ceremony garb and were shown how to be part of the different ritual prayers. Holding up a flower in prayer three times during the music and then holding up empty hands, being flicked with blessed coconut water and then sipping it four times from our hands. I really cannot explain the details of the ceremony but it was fascinating to watch, to be a part of, as it was both sacred and so very every-day. At least once or twice a member of the family’s phone rang and they answered it, while the priest was in full chant. There was constant chatter when the family was not expected to be part of the rituals, and they smoked and playfully argued about what happens next or what offering to put where.

The detail and symbolism of each item is amazing and far too complicated for me to work out. Each item in the offerings has meaning and the preparation can take days and weeks to complete. There are handmade baskets and offering paraphernalia, rice, fruit, incense, sweets, cooked chicken! At the end of the ceremony everything is eaten, either by the people or the animals, as it is now regarded as blessed food.

At the end of the ceremony a beautiful spread of food was put out which we were invited to share in. Nila is an organic chef and after the rather intense energy of the ceremony, Colleen and I ravenously tucked into the beautiful food. We spent the rest of the day there, ensconced in the beauty of the volcano, the mist rolling in and out, eating chocolate, the ceremony fruits and drinking the most gorgeous lemon, ginger and honey tea. I napped and meditated in direct view of the volcano, feeling loved and healed by her energy. It was the most beautiful day, which Colleen and I ended off with a perfect and deep Balinese massage back in Ubud. That night I had the best sleep I've had for a long time, happily exhausted from a day of generosity so abundantly shown to me, and filled with deep gratitude at being here and being blessed with such beautiful experiences.