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| Giant abalone shell sinks on the grounds of Puri Bagus Lovina. |
“Sightings on the Beach in Bali“
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| Tom spotted a local woman with straw on her head after we went back to Sumbersari. |
What a unique feeling it was, returning to the villa, after a five day stay in Lovina that we completed the visa extension process. It was like coming home. At 2:00 we picked up our stamped passports for a departure from Indonesia on October 30. Four weeks from today we’ll be heading to Kuta to board the red eye flight to Sydney after midnight on the 30th.
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| In four weeks, we’re going to Kuta to board the Red Eye flight to Sydney after midnight on the 30th.Boats on the waterfront. |
In our old lives, after a short vacation/vacation, it was easy to fear the return to reality; its piles of mail, messages and back-to-work responsibilities. Then there were the piles of laundry, the old food to throw in the refrigerator, the need to quickly get to a grocery store and fill the car with fuel.
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| Statue with a lei of fresh blooms on the lawn. |
Sunday nights were particularly difficult as memories of time away would waft from our minds and the painstaking process of getting up and ready for work to face yet another day of the necessary grind most of us have experienced in our daily lives.
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| Flowers by the sea. |
Of course, there are those of you who love your work and feel no anguish at the return of a journey. For the rest of us, it was only after several hours back into the groove that we could finally relax accepting our 40, 50 hours or more of the weekly “rat race.”
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| Small lily pond. |
The rhythm of life in this period escapes me almost now after all these years free of such responsibilities and constraints. Returning from the resort yesterday we experienced none of the above frustrations.
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| The infinity edge of the pool at Puri Bagus Lovina. |
We loaded the laundry hamper with our dirty clothes that the two Ketuts will make on Monday. Our dinner was prepped and ready for us once we unpacked and changed into our bathing suits. There was no snail mail, messages we had not already processed, no need to go grocery shopping or fill the tank with fuel.
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| Boat and tower in the bay. Gede, the resort manager at Puri Bagus Lovina suggested patrons don’t go into the ocean due to poisonous coral. |
“How did this happen to us?” We’ve often asked ourselves this question. At dinner over these past nights at the resort, we often discussed how we remain in awe of our lives, affordable with a strict budget, freeing in ways we never imagined and filled with endless experiences far exceeding any expectations we may have had in our lives and ultimately in our travels.
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| Statue in the garden. |
Yesterday, with a late 1:45 pm checkout in order to get to immigration by 2:00 pm, I spent the morning in the bar preparing the post. On several occasions, a variety of resort managers stopped by to thank us for our posts and for highlighting the resort.
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| A father, a son and a nephew serenading diners during dinner. |
As we were leaving, they all were present to wish us well. Gede, the general manager, asked to take a photo with us for his own keepsake. We were flattered by their appreciation as we were appreciative of their kindness and attentiveness.
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| Heart shaped flower arrangement left on our bed in the resort. |
Today our own Gede, visited to ensure we’d enjoyed his recommendation of the resort in Lovina located in his home town where he’d grown up and his parents and siblings are still living. We couldn’t thank him enough for the fabulous recommendation.
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| Tangle of trees along the shore. |
Today? Easy day. Sunshine. Happiness. How did this happen to us? May it happen for you as well!
Photo from one year ago today, October 1, 2015:
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| This was actually a dine in restaurant in a small strip mall in Savusavu, Fiji, with two tiny tables for diners and minimal cooking space for the cook. For more details, please click here. |