Good Bye, Bali--Trading One Paradise for Another

As we fly to Taiwan, then to Seattle and Portland, we are filled with emotion and gratitude over the wonderful experiences we have had and the anticipation of going back to the world we know much better.

It’s been the best vacation of our 37 years of marriage.  Perhaps that is because Shanti and Skyler joined us for the first week and because it was the mellowest and most stress-free trip we have ever had.  In four weeks, we accomplished less than we typically do in a one-week vacation or one weekend at home, but that was okay.  It was part of the plan. 

We learned to savor the moments, the beauty, the people, the smells, the music, the food, and our time together.  And to be content with getting just one or two things done per day, like a hike, Pilates, a Rotary meeting, an excursion, nap, writing, photo editing, more book chapters read, etc.

We will miss the extraordinary tropical beauty, the artful architecture, the people, the evening walks through the village to dinner, the food, the spiritual pageantry, mangoes for breakfast, $12 massages, the torrential monsoon showers, and interesting conversations with just about everyone we met.

Doorstep offering

We will also miss the small things—the roosters crowing at dawn, Balinese smiles and courtesy, the friendly Bali dogs, the sounds of birds and insects, small offerings to the gods at every doorstep and rice paddy, and the sweet smells of incense and fragrapani trees.  And big things, like our plunge pool and air conditioned bedroom which made the heat and humidity bearable.

Travel and living in Bali is relatively easy, compared to most other developing nations.  We can see why many western ex-pats live here year-round.  We first fell in love with it in 1979 and elevated it to a romantic pedestal. We were shocked to see how it had changed by 2008, and even more since then.  But like children, places grow and change.  Some of those changes aren’t necessarily good, but of all our travels, it is still the one place other than Oregon that we will always love.  Goodbye was hard, very hard.

Clean Water is precious

As we leave one paradise, we look forward to returning to another—Salem, Oregon in the good old US of A.  We’re looking forward to returning to our friends, co-workers, responsibilities, drinkable tap water, our own cooking, our regular workout routines, speaking English all the time, Great Harvest bread, good red wine, a nice martini or Manhattan, our own bed, high-speed internet, understanding what is going on, and above all, feeling needed and productive.  And maybe even cold, mosquito-free foggy weather.

The rice just beyond our plunge pool is now amber and ready for harvest next week.   It’s time to go home to our other paradise.

Rice paddy from the edge of our compound