In the beginning.........

So many good times have been had that we simply couldn't find the time to report in!

Saturday 24th September
For a couple of the early arrivers - Kerryn & Dianne - a time to enjoy the sunshine and warmth was on the agenda as we awaited the bus.  After working on our tans on the banana lounges whilst we consumed lunch burritos, the skies rapidly darkened and suddenly there was drizzle which turned into torrential rain trapping us under the umbrellas.  As the rain increased the best place to be was in the pool and the warm water!

After a long tedious bus trip from Denpasar airport the rest of the W&P crowd arrived at Kamandalu desperate for food and great company.

After welcome drinks and settling into the beautiful rooms and surrounds of Kamandalu,  there was a flurry of eating by the pool followed by weary bodies heading for bed as exhaustion took hold.

Sunday 25th September

For the enthusiastic early risers yoga was calling.  Locating the'yoga hut' took significant navigation skills as the Kamandalu is built along a deep gorge which means plenty of sets of stairs and long paths winding through the traditional bungalows. The yoga hut is perched over the gorge surrounded by lush vivid green jungle. The delightful instructor Shantari made us work hard so staggering up the many stairs to locate our bungalows after the class was quite a stretch for some of us!

Everyone appeared for brunch looking looking far more energized and, judging by the volume of the conversations, very keen to catchup since the last conference. A leisurely brunch fortified us before we headed off to bathe in the holy waters -  an important ritual for those arriving in Bali.

Before praying and being cleansed we had to learn how to make individual offering baskets from leaves and to construct the huge layered offering baskets which the local women balance on their heads.  It was a stretch of everyone's craft skills but eventually we had enough made to  go to the Holy waters temple.
It was pleasing to note that we could use staplers to construct our masterpieces....phew! We were fortified by fresh coconut juice: straight form the coconut, and for those lucky enough too get a really young one we scooped out the soft white flesh. It's supposed to be very good for your digestion, as well as tasting great. 

But there were further challenges to come .......in fact it was an afternoon of challenges:

Challenge 1:
How does one tie a sarong that covers the important bits, ties on the correct side and allows you to walk and not shuffle? And then, when you accomplish all of  that, the final challenge is how you elegantly lower yourself to sit on the ground with your knees crossed without exposing your knees,  or worse your underwear!! A skill very few of us seemed to have acquired!!

Challenge 2:
How do some  'WWW' (Western white whales) women manage to climb across a wet slippery platform and climb down some steps into a pool of  cold chest high water without stepping on the large fish nonchalantly swimming around in the pool?? Not without some concern .........and some giggles.

We were at Tampak Suling Tirta Empul: very sacred holy waters which bubble up from the ground and through ancient stone pipes pour into the bathing pool. For ritual cleansing each of us had to follow an ancient procedure in front of each pipe which involved us immersing our heads and bodies into the Holy water pouring from the pipes. After completing the ritual three times then the challenge was emerging elegantly,  whilst sopping wet with a sarong wrapped around your legs restricting your movement!!

Challenge 3:

How do you try to modestly manoeuvre yourself out of dripping wet clothes in a change room which is not segregated and basically is a shed lined with lockers!  You will be pleased to hear that no photos were taken off this part of the ceremony. Somehow group action kicked in and we all stripped off and got on with it. I mean what was the worst thing that could have happened? No local Balinese man died of shock to see so many white, and some very wobbly, behinds!!

Challenge 4:
Dressed in our new sarongs and sashes we entered the temple compound to pray. Some of us risking or modesty by sitting on the ground, and others sitting near by. Praying consists of a number of repetitive movements and uses flowers, incense and wet rice to symbolise important aspects of life. The holy priest splashes you with holy water from a bowl, and then you are expected to drink 3 times from the bowl. The challenge is whether you refuse because you can hear Jenny's voice in your head saying "Don't touch it! " or whether you go with the flow and drink!!!?

After being cleansed and feeling very holy and peaceful, we headed back to Kamandalu to get changed and head into Ubud for the welcome dinner.  Mingle cafe was the venue. Mingle is owned by Alison, an old friend of Dianne's. The platters of tasty Balinese food disappeared rapidly, as did the delicious and deadly cocktails.

Tika, a local artist, joined us to talk about the Foundation she runs. It is responsible for sending poor children to school and we were inspired to help.

A quick bus trip home and we were all tucked up in bed early!

Your first correspondent. ...gradually adjusting to Bali time

Dianne