We have found a beautiful hotel, cliff side, at Ahmed. The infinity pool slips seemingly into the ocean which meets the blue sky; a monochromatic dreamscape. The flowering trees and lush gardens protect our little nook of a patio that we use to sleepily hide from the world. It has been a workout, Bali. Somehow expecting to be carried away immediately didn't prepare me for the work that would be necessary to fully appreciate this strange little Island. But as we slide into our 3rd month here, more adventures under our wings, we are finally clicking with Indonesia and its very unique charm.
Leaving Ubud was exciting and a little sad. We had fallen into a nice rhythm in our perfectly located, glorious home. We slept in, spent the mornings at the wonderfully cool pool, sipped local coffee and ate crazy fresh fruit. We attended to work back at home on our computers while sitting in the exquisite gardens and we prepared dinner together, dancing to Spotify's top 80's music list. Other nights we would stroll a few meters to our favorite restaurants, watch the Balinese Dancers at the spectacular Royal Palace or wander the lively, colorful streets. The sun would set majestically out our glass front doors as we cheers with cocktails. Then we would usher in the night with enormous fireflies blinking and our friendly gecko comically "talking" to us. Who would ever want to leave this?
An adventure loomed in front of us and it beckoned us to see more of Bali. Mount Batur, an active volcano (one of the smaller ones on the island) was just over an hour's drive away and a major attraction for hikers. Seeing the sunrise from the top is said to be a once in a lifetime experience, clearly we HAD to do it! As we got closer to the impending date, I realized there was no way in hell, with my RA already having a rough go on walks through the rice terraces, that I could go with my family up to the top of this volcano. We decided my husband and our daughter would go and I would rest at a lovely hotel waiting for them. I pictured tropical drinks and beautiful views.
The town that is in the crater of the original volcano (what you climb is the current steaming peak) and is surrounding the crater's lake, is a shit hole. This town seemed to be plagued with one star reviews and not much else. Surely that is wrong though...right? So many people hike the volcano, it has to be kinda cool... right? Wrong. It was objectively beautiful, but the flies and filth were inescapable. Our driver unloaded our bags and hovered, reluctant to leave. He knew before we did that we didn't want to stay there. After 4 hours trying our best to find food, comfort and enjoy this little fishing village, we decided we needed to pull the plug. We quickly shifted to a new plan that would take the family up the mountain at 2:45am and as soon as they got back down, we'd leave. The money we'd already paid on another night there was of no concern when weighed against the feeling of being trapped there. Our driver later told us that he laughed when he got my text, showing it to his family saying "you see?!? I knew they wouldn't want to stay there!", he also said he was concerned we'd have bedbugs and that he was glad we hadn't showered there because the water had obviously been stored for the last 2 years in a tank that had not been cleaned. Lovely. It wasn't the fun we had hoped we would have had and it did plant the seed that maybe we should just go back to Ubud, but knowing that Ahmed was many people's wow spot in Bali, we continued on.
I do have to stop here and say that the trek up the volcano did not disappoint. It was a serious challenge, extremely steep up and back down, but my husband and daughter made it and the photos from the top were amazing! The stories they told were wondrous and funny and even included a shitty monkey stealing their bananas. I'm seriously over the monkeys.
So here we are, finding our way in the northeast region of Bali. We jumped on a scooter and rode the hills through the micro towns that sprinkle the coastline, hair blowing in the wind (aka no helmet, cause 'it is too hot for helmets and we don't have any'). It was just my husband and I this time, but we have piled the 3 of us on one scooter in true local fashion. It scared the crap out of me when we first arrived, the erratic busy streets seemed to allow drivers to make their own unique path and driving on the opposite side of the street was stressful, but now I realize just how fantastic it is to see Bali this way. We found a wonderful store filled with exotic finds like peanut butter, and it had a selection of wine! I actually clapped my hands in glee at the sight of rows of glistening bottles. We returned to the hotel, swam in the perfectly warmed pool, air dried on the porch daybed and fell asleep together, my daughter's hand nestled in mine just like when she was little.
I might have been too rough on Bali. I do think everyone should back off the perfect paradise talk and give a dose of reality to their descriptions because it is more difficult, and uncomfortable (unless you stay at the Four Seasons or some other similarly expensive spot), but I realize its a pretty interesting reflection of my current life. As my daughter pointed out, this trip has not taken place during some sort of family catastrophe. And she is right, my health scares have been insane (I do not consider RA to be the same level of concern or panic therefore not counting), my daughter is not on the precipice of self destruction and we are all living our best lives. We are by no means living perfect lives (I know it looks like that), but we are really really REALLY lucky. The last 6 years have thrown everything imaginable at us and we have weathered the storm together. Now that it's blue sailing in our day to day lives, the comparison to vacation bliss isn't nearly as dramatic and thus, we have the incredible gift of not being awestruck by Bali. Now that is perfect paradise.
