Eat.Pray.Love.

Eat,Pray,Love.Having read the book, and already had the opportunity to travel to both Italy, twice, to Eat delicious pizza and India to, well not Pray, but explore and be in constant awe of my varying surroundings with each passing day; what else to complete Elizabeth/Julia Roberts' tour, as well as my own personal journey in the East? Bali of course. Again, diverging from the original film, not to find Love, but maybe to fall in love with Bali itself.

Tribute is paid to my bestie, Marcia, whom I've explored most of the world with, and who had been my shoulder, my listener, someone to bust a gut with and just 'be' as kindred spirits over the last almost 3 years, with our home base as Seoul. Marcia and I started out on our week long adventure to Kuta, Bali. The Bangkok of Thailand. Busy, touristy, loud. We hit the trail running the first morning, North to serene Ubud. Finding a place to stay was only made difficult due to the beauty of each passing hotel. We chose a more rustic, traditional feel with a cabin/cottage set in a jungle area with a small stream running within ear's shot. Pool, shopping, dinner and traditional fire dancing summed up day 1 in Ubud. Fire dancing. Yep, neat to watch, chanting, dancing, costumes, story telling, but, we unexpectedly got involved in the finale. Turns out the venue had been changed for this day since it was calling for evening showers. This venue had a roof, but was still outdoors. Turns out smaller than the other. The relevance to this, is that buddy dressed in a horse outfit, lit corn husks on fire and proceeded to kick them around to show his ability to touch open flame with his bare feet. First kick was directly at us, but a bit over calculated now because of the close proximity of the audience. Well, Marcia goes flying back on her chair, legs snap, burned leg. I slid back and lose my sandal which proceeds to singe, along side the bag with my purchases in it. Best part? I was video taping it the whole time. Mostly you hear, "Holy shit...are you okay?" followed by laughing. Good times.

Next day we visit Ketut. The medicine man who meets with Elizabeth from the book. Same dude who plays the role in the movie with Julia Roberts. You sit up on his house porch with him for about 15 minutes. Nothing is free, but 25$ isn't a lot considering he's 98, and bless his soul, is getting old. He read my palm and back of the neck. A darling to talk to, and some simple fortune telling. Live to be 100, 2 kids, influential, successful. Fancy enough, Marcia and I have identical paths ha ha. Balinese Fun Fact: Children are named based on the order they are born. First born is named Wayan, Second is Made, Third is Nyoman, and Fourth is Ketut. Then it repeats. Hence Ketut is the 4th born in his family. Then they are given nicknames based on their hobbies or job.Later that day our driver took us to a coffee plantation, and I drank shit coffee. Haha. Literally. The plantation is set among rice terraces and jungle atmosphere. Stunning. The deal with the coffee is, they feed these civits red beans, the beans ferment in their stomachs and the farmers collect the beans, boil them, grind them and make coffee. Apparently one of the most expensive coffees in the world. Taste? Meh, I'd go with Starbucks over it lol.Monkey Forest, was just that. Lots of little buggers wanting food and perhaps sneaking their way into your backpack if they smell something of interest. Monkeys there are kind of like our squirrels. Besides the opposable thumb, they are just kinda pests, but are neat to watch in the wild because of their human features.

Next onto another Indonesian island, Lombok. To the Gili islands. A popular destination for Bali goers. A speed boat away and paradise awaits. We stayed on Gili T, one of the 3 islands side by side. Horse drawn transportation or bikes get you around this island, no motors permitted. The water is stunning shades of blue, the massages..cheap and awesome, sunsets are breathtaking and the atmosphere relaxed. A perfect combo for a few days rest.

Lastly, to Nusa Dua (Bali), where the rich folk hang. We decided to splurge for our last night and 2 days. Swim up bar overlooking the ocean, waterside massages, great service and outstanding food sums up our stay there. In the evening we went to a traditional Balinese restaurant,where they invited us behind the grill/kitchen for a photo shoot. Again, good times and laughs there after.Marcia and I concluded our pseudo Eat Pray Love tour on a high note with a red eye back to sunny Seoul.

Now back in Canada, the travel bug has behaved thus far, well I say that as I'm currently on a flight back from visiting Marcia in Nova Scotia...but as I was saying. I think once you get bit by the infamous bug, the incredible, addictive infection never really leaves your blood. So for now I'll resign from travel adventure tales. But it's all just temporary.See ya on the flip side...