random and untitled update #1
Hello from Bali! My apologies for not updating sooner, but it has been somewhat of a whirlwind since our arrival. Brendon and I are finally settling into the groove of things.
The internet service is kind of spotty, so my blogging will be pretty random until I figure out some sort of routine for it, as it seems like we get the best connection at nighttime. Because of this, I'm not sure how I will go about updating my blog. So far, I've got two weeks worth of photos and random stories to go with them.
I'm not kidding when I say random, either (because that's just how it is here, no joke). In a nutshell, I've learned quickly, that the best way to adjust to the pace of the Balinese lifestyle is to just 'go with the flow', follow your instincts, accept the blessings as they come your way, and most important, laugh off any little frustrations that might test your patience.
Like the internet connection. (At this very moment, I am frantically typing at a million words per minute, hoping that I am not cut off whilst in the middle of uploading stuff). And I probably won't have time to edit my grammar and such, so cheers to that.
Someone hand me a bintang, please.
On that note, I will archive everything the best I can by dates. Feel free to to click on the calendar (on the right, in the side bar) to see what we've been up to. My success in uploading photos will also depend on how strong the internet connection is, so...we'll see how that goes, too.
Sooooooo...what have we been up to???
For now, I will start with how our day went today...the MELLOWEST day since we arrived. Pretty uneventful, but a nice change, because we have been going non-stop for the last two weeks, while our friend Mike was here. Unfortunately, we had to say good-bye to Mike yesterday. I'm pretty bummed. No more side-of-the-road robot dances.
Today, we took it easy and settled into our new place. We walked around our neighborhood. No car. No driving. No traffic. We strolled around, took our time, and went really slooow. Although, it was very hot - kind of like walking in a giantic, outdoor sauna, or a very large, enclosed greenhouse, if you will - it was relaxing. Oh, except on the main street, where we were dodging buzzing little mopeds and the occasional construction work truck making its way over dusty potholes.
We walked further to see if we could find laundry service. We found a little laundry place right around the corner. You can see quite a few of them along the streets of Bali. There are no laundry mats, just laundry services. You drop your clothes off. They wash and hang them to dry for you. You pay by the piece.
It's been raining in the evenings, and it's been very humid, so hopefully, we will get our clothes back somewhat fresh and dry. It could take one day, or two days, or maybe even three or four days. We'll see. That's been our mantra for the last two weeks, "We'll see..."
On the way back, we stopped by the Silly Snail Cafe. It's also a base office for the R.O.L.E. Foundation (Rivers Ocean Lakes Ecology Foundation).
A Balinese woman greeted us (shoots, I forgot her name), and we attempted to communicate back-and-forth between Indonesian-English and then English-Indonesian, by using the usual hand gestures, facial expressions, and head nods.
She asked if I had any children, then in turn, I asked her if she had any. I thought she said that she had 20 kids, as I repeated after her, "Duapuluh? Duapuluh?" I vainly attempted to count to twenty with my fingers, "Satu, dua, tiga..."
Smiling, the Balinese woman kept on nodding her head, "Ya! Duahpuluh."
(I thought to myself, 'how cute...she is so proud of her twenty children').
But, still very confused, I looked at her petite, little frame, and I asked one more time, "Duapuluh???"
After smiling, giggling, and gesturing through a good two to three minute conversation of charades, I finally figured out that she had only one child who is twenty years old, "Oooooh, okaaaay..."
It was pretty comical. While I thought she had twenty kids, she was probably thinking, "Wow, this girl can count to twenty really well..." I think I need to hire an Indonesian tutor.
The R.O.L.E. Foundation provides education to local women and children, and offering programs that cover areas such as:
- Women’s Literacy and Vocational Skills
- Children’s Environmental Awareness
- Eco-Friendly Business Start Up
- Environmental Restoration and Waste Management Projects
This looks like something I'd love to be involved with. If we end up staying in Nusa Dua, and if I have more time, I would love to learn more about teaching/volunteering here...but who knows, "We'll see..."
