All I see is Green!

I used to think that Seattle was the greenest city that I have ever lived in. It's well known as the Emerald city, and even in the darkest days of December with the gray days looming like a thick fog, green is the dominant color.
Spending time in Ubud, Bali, I have come to appreciate the color green again. The city itself is known to house some of the finest Balinese culture in the country, and even though tourism is big here, the culture is still strong and lively. The city itself contains many temples and statues and a lot of concrete. But as you see people giving offerings on every sidewalk and doorway with flowers, herbs, foods, and incense, the feeling of living in a city slowly dissolves. There is nature within the city. Additionally, taking a bide ride outside the city reveals the most beautiful color greens I have ever seen. Five minutes out of town and every where you look rice patties in all states of development and use are coloring the countryside with multicolored greens. A green so green that I can practically feel the chlorophyll running through the veins of these grasses. The rice patties act like engines that drive the economy here. In my opinion, the rice patties are very important to the peoples of Bali both economically and culturally.

While spending the last 5 days here in Bali, Briana and I have finally taken the rest we desperately needed on our travels. We actually stayed at a guest house longer than 3 days in a row! That was very comforting. After dealing with a GI bug for the last week, we are finally feeling better, and looking forward to traveling more. When I feel sick in a foreign country, all I want to do is return home to the comfort of my own kitchen, where I can prepare healing foods and teas, and be surrounded my loving family and friends. We gave our best playing doctor with one another giving acupuncture, herbal medicines, homeopathy, and the love needed to heal our guts. With patience and a calm mind (i.e. okay, this is not a parasite, but just traveller's diarrhea), we where able to continue to enjoy our time here and look forward to traveling more, like booking a ticket to Kathmandu, Nepal! Yes, that's correct. We are heading to Kathmandu in less than a week, and depending on where we volunteer, we will travel in India for 3-4 weeks then return home to the States/Canada. Ah...a new excitement in the coming days.

A couple days ago Step and Heather decided to visit the healer/herbalist here in Ubud from the famous book "Eat, Pray, Love." We sat and observed as this healer read the their palms, looked in their eyes and mouth ("say ahhhh"), tapped on their bellies, palpated the contours of their faces, and looked deep within their beings. I was impressed with some of the palm readings that came up for my brother, and so was he! She finished off the reading with a handful of herbs and supplements to take by mouth, and ordered Step and Heather to drink this turmeric tea she prepared for them. They both remarked that they felt much better after the intake and treatment. Definitely, an entertaining 30 minutes to say the least :)

Jacob and Christy flew into Dempasar a couple days ago, and we met up with them recently in Ubud. After holding the seat cushion and Briana's hand rather tightly as Jacob drove his rented jeep through the streets of Ubud (he's a great driver...it's just that there are no traffic rules at all...everything goes including driving on the wrong side of the road) we toured Goa Gjah (Elephant Cave) just a few km out of town. Here we were required to wear sarongs, and we paid a 17 year old local guide to tour the grounds with us, and learned much more than if we were to walk around with our Lonely Planets. We walked inside the Elephant Cave and saw 1 meter x 2 meter sitting holes/caverns, where masters would instruct students and then meditate. Check out the pictures under Ubud to see these images.

Then after getting caught in one of the heaviest downpours while riding bikes, Briana and I showered and dried off, and met Jacob, Christy, Step, and Heather for a New Years Eve dinner at 5pm. Yes, we've been going to bed around 9 or 10 every night! Last night though, fireworks were going off until around 12:30, so we did stay up for the New Year!

Happy New Year to everyone!

I've updated the Bali pictures...so check out the new ones off Picasa http://picasaweb.google.com/drewsinatra/Bali?feat=email#.

Off to Kathmandu! Brr!!!!