Dolphins and Water Palaces

We were supposed to all go on a sunrise dolphin cruise this morning. We would be taken out in jekung spider boats (the local Balinese fishing vessels) to watch the sunrise and see dolphins. But as soon as we woke up, I knew I couldn’t go. My throat hurt really badly and I was starting to feel stuffy. I went back to sleep while Linda met up with the others to go. When I woke up again, I knew that I didn’t have strep...but I did have a cold. I’m sure I picked it up on one of the 4 planes I’d been in for 36 hours.

At breakfast, the women told me about the dolphin experience and I started crying. It was so amazing – they saw hundreds of dolphins leaping into the air and the sunrise was magical. But I knew I had to take care of myself if I was going to make it 10 more days.

Sunrise

Jekung spider boats

boats

A driver came to pick us up at 11 a.m. from Bali Golden Tour (his name was Winten), and drive us to to Ubud (back to the Alam Indah). On the way, we stopped for lunch overlooking some rice terraces. The view and the breeze were amazing. All the restaurants in Bali, for the most part, are open air. So finding a good location with a breeze is key. They also had many ponds with coy fish and a giant sign that said “Love” that we took photos with. 

Lunch with Love

We also stopped at the Taman Ujung water palace. This was built in the very early 1900s for the royal family as a vacation spot. The “resting place” for napping was a beautiful building in the middle of a huge pond that you reach by bridges. There were many steps going up to other areas of the property where you got lovely breezes and could see the ocean (not far outside the gates of the grounds). We were again stunned by meticulous carving, attention to detail, abundant gardens and breathtaking beauty.

Taman Ujung water palace

This was cool

View of the property

One of the bridges

Such a cool place

We arrived at the Alam Indah about 6:15 pm, and after dropping our stuff in our rooms (Linda and I had the same one as before), we walked over to the Lake Leke Restaurant for dinner and a show. They were performing the “Barong barong dance” - a traditional Balinese dance that tells the story of two rival kings who are turned into boars by a magical princess (or something like that). The women dancers were absolutely gorgeous in their traditional dress and fancy makeup. One in particular was so stunning it was hard to take your eyes off her when she danced. Food was a bit of an afterthought that night.

Beautiful dancers

Traditional dance

Our group with the dancers

Meanwhile, I was feeling pretty crappy and was quite congested. I decided to sleep downstairs in our suite so I wouldn’t get Linda sick or wake her with my nose blowing. Unfortunately, there is no AC downstairs, so I cracked the windows (I didn’t want to open them too big because I didn’t want any monkey visitors) and put the mosquito net around my bed. I was pretty hot though. And, I was having post-nasal drip so I kept coughing. Wasn’t a great night for me.

North Bali Excursion

Beautiful pool area

Poinciana shore

After a delicious breakfast, we had a morning yoga class led by Kim overlooking the palm trees and the ocean in a large upstairs yoga studio the resort let us use. We then headed on another trip with our friendly Poinciana drivers. First we went to a local weaver’s family compound. Here, he and his family make batiks. They are hand dyed and woven. The Balinese man who showed us around explained how he makes the different dyes from plants he grows on the property. He is the master dyer and designer. It was all quite impressive, and many of us bought a few things. They were pretty expensive, but after seeing all the work they put into them, it seemed worth it.

Batik maker

I bought this for Grandma B. to make into a blanket.

Next, we stopped at a local Hindu temple (as most are in Bali). This temple was on a cliff overlooking the water. It was very pretty and we had occasion to wear our sarongs for the first time. Before entering the temple grounds we had to be blessed with holy water and had some sticky rice put on our foreheads and the base or our necks.. Unfortunately, it was insanely hot and we were sweating like crazy during the tour that the local priest gave us, but we got some pretty pictures nonetheless. However, as we were leaving we saw there were stairs to the beach below and our drivers brought our boxed lunches down to the beach and we sat on a sea wall in the shade and ate. It was lovely.

Ponjok Batu Teample

Ponjok Batu Temple

Ponjok Batu Temple

With our temple guide

Our next temple of the day was a Buddhist temple – the largest one in Bali. It was totally stunning. The grounds were expansive and so lush and green. There were gorgeous flowers everywhere and several buildings throughout, though the most impressive was the main temple. It is quite large with an odd dome on top with a point. Surrounding the temple are terraces with green grass and directly in front of the temple is a lotus pond. We got some really great photos at this temple!

Brahma Vihara Arama Buddhist Temple

with Buddha 

So lush

Gorgeous temple

(Quick side note about bathrooms in Bali - they are usually bowls in the floor with places to put your feet and some sort of spicket or water sprayer nearby.  No toilet paper. Luckily, Linda told us to purchase these things called "p-styles" which allow a woman to pee standing up like a man and not need toilet paper. This thing came in really handy throughout our time in north Bali and Ubud!)

Our last stop of the day was the Banjar Hot Springs. These are hot mineral springs that flow out of the heads of gargoyles into a large pool. I wasn’t sure about it before we got there, as some reviews said they were way too crowded and dirty, but when we arrived, we couldn’t believe our luck. The springs were not crowded at all, and we all got into the warm and soothing waters. (This is the benefit of visiting Bali during rainy season – less tourists).

Banjar Hot Springs

Enjoying the water

All the ladies

Throughout the day, my throat started getting very sore. I became increasingly worried that I had strep throat. We got some lozenges at the gas station, but nothing seemed to help. By that night, I really wasn’t feeling well. Luckily, the Balinese people are big on ginger water and tea. The hot water with fresh ginger infused in it really helped my throat. 

Waterfal Excursion - Bali

I woke up very early - probably because my body still hadn't adjusted to the time change. I decided to go for a pre-breakfast swim in one of the gorgeous pools. As I swam, dozens of little birds were swooping in and out, grazing across the top of the water and flying all around above me. I don't know what type they were, but it was so amazing to watch. The employees said they like the water.

After an amazing breakfast, the Poinciana drivers took us to the Yeh Mampeh waterfall. One of the drivers, Nyoman, hiked to the falls with us – and good thing because the path had washed out in a few places and we had to either go around or forge the river. It was a very enjoyable hike through the jungle. I felt like I was in Animal Kingdom – except all the gorgeous plants and trees were real. Wild fruit trees were everywhere – pineapple, “smelling” fruit, mangos, rambutan, cacao, banana and more. When we reached the waterfall it was stunning. It was very powerful because it had rained for 10 straight days about 10 days back. We were told repeatedly how lucky we were that the rains were over and we had good weather. This is still rainy season, so we could’ve been the unlucky folks who had 10 days of straight rain.

Example of morning breakfast

Our guide warned us that the waterfall was flowing so hard we needed to stay on the periphery so we didn’t get hit by rocks. We stayed on the periphery – but we still got pelted by little stones. It was pretty amazing though – probably 200 feet high and just gorgeous. In a different section we could even sit in the bubbling water like a whirlpool and get rained on from an offshoot of the waterfall above. To make it even better, we were the only ones there.

We relaxed the rest of that day – I got another massage and a pedicure for the equivalent of about $15.

Massages are outdoors at Poinciana 

Musings from a Married Woman

So it's September, and I've been married three months.  And my husband and I both have new jobs and life is flying by at the speed of light and I'm a terrible blogger.  Point in case: I haven't written on this thing since April.  I suppose I'm too busy living life to reflect on it?  Perhaps.  It is seriously insane how fast time goes - I feel like I'm going to wake up tomorrow and be fifty! How come time didn't go this quickly in those long years of middle and high school, where all I wanted to do was get to college?

Sometimes I'm thankful for the time going by quickly.  Like on work days.  Now that I'm working at Bank of America as a contractor, as opposed to at CBCC where I barely had time to eat, time at work sometimes lags.  The fact that I'm not busy 100% of the time has come as something of a shock, but apparently, this is normal??  In many ways, I'm much happier.  I have a manager who doesn't really care where I'm working from (thus I work from home every Friday) and no crazy HR women to tell me my skirt is .5 inches too short or chastise me for wearing a warm hat when it's snowing outside.  I love the freedom of corporate life - people are treated like adults.  Insane! What I'm doing isn't that fascinating - a lot of writing and editing around annual enrollment for bank employees.  Needless to say, I now know an incredible amount about benefits - which has actually come in quite handy when Matt and I had to enroll in a healthcare plan through Red Ventures, his new workplace.  I also have the opportunity to take nice walks outside in Uptown Charlotte, which I never could have done at CBCC for fear of being mugged.  lol  Finally, with other friends working uptown as well, it's nice to have lunch companions upon occasion.

Matt, so far, is having a rough start at his new job.  Red Ventures, while a very cool and luxurious working environment (they have an indoor basket ball court, bowling alley, gym and more), has proven to be a bit of a let down in terms of actual job description.  Upon being hired, he was told he'd be helping RV expand their mobile services - instead, he was placed on a team that seems very set in it's ways, will not listen to his mobile expertise, and had no knowledge of him before he was thrust upon them.  His manager is a younger female who feels threatened by his experience, and sees his more serious work personality as being evidence of a "bad and insubordinate" attitude.  However, he has made many friends there and hopes to be able to switch teams in the near future, which I believe will greatly increase his work happiness.

Outside of work, Matt and I have been traveling a good bit lately.  We went to Jonas Ridge to my grandparents' mountain house with another couple for a really wonderful weekend about a month ago.  This past weekend, being Labor Day, we took a trip to Asheville where we went to the Biltmore and went on a 3.5 hours zip-lining adventure as Matt's belated birthday present.  It was a blast, but we've decided Asheville isn't really our scene.  Apart from hippies, the city seemed full of idle wandering weirdos dressed in all manner of offensive and scandalizing dress, clearly high as kites and in no way adding to the betterment of society.

This coming weekend we will be going to Chapel Hill and Raleigh for my friend Maggie's wedding.  We'll see Krystle, my old roommate, as well as Mitchell, a friend from high school who recently moved to Raleigh.  On Sunday, I've also arranged to go and visit Professor Gless' wife, Frieda (my old study abroad professor) and their little girl, now over a year old.  I'm sure it will be very difficult to see them in that house, knowing Professor Gless won't be coming through the door with a tray of tea.  How lonely they must feel without him.  If his brief presence in my life could have left such an impact, I can only imagine what it must be like for the wife he left behind and the daughter he never knew.

On to happier musings, married life is great so far.  It's so very nice to know that at the end of a long day, there is someone there to love you and be there for you - and to watch ridiculous shows on Hulu with you.  We have recently discovered a show called "Horrible Histories" which is a British comedy show featuring brief skits relaying historical, but horrible, facts from various time-periods throughout history. Some common segments include "Terrible Tudors," "Vicious Vikings" and "Rotten Romans."  A bit Monty Python-esque in it's humor, we both love it - and it's nice to spend most evenings laughing together.

As far as the wedding went - well, it was a dream.  An absolute dream.  As my dad said, "This must be the most beautiful wedding on a shoestring budget anyone ever had."  The day was lovely with blue skies and white fluffy clouds - and a light breeze.  The shade from the giant pecan trees offered a cool setting for the ceremony, and no one seemed overly warm - even me in my giant gown.  My bridesmaids were absolutely gorgeous in their baby blue dresses, the hydrangeas we all carried were perfectly elegant, the first dance (a waltz) went wonderfully, even though Matt forgot the order he had decided upon, we just made it up as we went, and it was splendid.  The food was really outstanding - and I owe a huge thanks to Lynn, my old colleague, for doing such a spectacular job of it for only $10 a head.  No one would've known it was Zaxby's food - and I suppose most of it was not, as she catered the menu specifically to what I requested.

I danced my heart out at the reception, and the huge front porch severed as a wonderfully ample dance floor.  In the end, I couldn't have been happier with the way it turned out.  What a wonderful day to remember for the rest of our lives.

And the honeymoon in Prince Edward Island?  What can I say?  It was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.  It was every bit as beautiful as the Anne of Green Gables movies made it out to be, and even more lush and green than I expected.  It was a quiet sanctuary with food beyond compare (all being grown/raised on the island); spectacular views from lighthouses, bluffs and red dirt roads; and the friendliest people you will ever meet.  Seriously, if it wasn't so cold in the winter, we may seriously consider moving to Canada.  There is something to be said for a people who are universally so kind.  When I left my brand new iphone in a restaurant, I had no fear two hours later when I realized it was gone.  I knew it would be there.  And sure enough, it was in the safekeeping of the genial waitress who said, "I knew you'd be back for it!"

Highlights were: eating in the Charlottetown culinary arts school, hiking the Greenwich boardwalk in the PEI National Park, watching the sunset from the red cliff beach of Cavendish, seeing the Anne of Green Gables spots and meeting some of the author's descendants, eating hand-made chocolate in Victoria-by-the-Sea, staying in the Westpoint Lighthouse with a view over the red beach, finding sea glass, taking a carriage ride to a private beach, watching the Anne & Gilbert musical....and more.

We also took a detour on our way back to Halifax before coming home to see the Bay of Fundy (which has the largest tidal change in the world).  We were able to walk on the ocean floor during low tide, about 50 feet below where the water would be only a few hours later.  It was really incredible and a very unique experience.

To sum up the several months since last I wrote: I'm very happy.  What can I say?  Married life must suit me. :)

We're married!

With my bridesmaids

Groomsmen (aka. boy band)

Victoria-by-the-Sea

Boardwalk at Greenwich, PEI National Park

Sunset on the Cavendish cliffs

One of the 65 lighthouses.

The real Anne of Green Gables house 

Westpoint Lighthouse

Near Westpoint Lighthouse

Bay of Fundy - on the ocean floor

Goodbye to Gilbert

This past weekend, someone I felt like I knew personally most of my life died.  Jonathan Crombie (aka Gilbert Blythe) - my first crush - passed away from a brain aneurism at only 48 years old.

Most of you know my obsession with Anne of Green Gables - after all, I'm going to Prince Edward Island for my honeymoon.  I decided at age 5 that I was going to P.E.I. on that most romantic of adventures to honor the most romantic of movies - but only once I found my own, personal Gilbert.  I wasn't sure it was possible.  After all, who could live up to that dashing boy with his laughing eyes and his loving gazes?  Someone who could tease, challenge, respect and care in equal measure?

But at long last, I have found my Gilbert.  The man that could finally hold a candle to the fictional character I've compared every man to my entire life.  And so this summer, I am going to take the trip I've been dreaming of for 22 years.  I want to take Matt on a stroll down Lovers' Lane, pick apples in the orchards, walk the red beaches, and hold hands on the bridge of Barry's Pond. 

Anne of Green Gables (and it's squeal, Anne of Avonlea) aren't romantic movies in the common sense.  The Anne movies are really just a coming-of-age story.  Yet the unassuming, pure, quiet beauty - and all those passionate gazes - make them most romantic series of all time (in my humble, completely unbiased opinion).

I fell in love with Anne, Gilbert, Diana and all the other characters around age 4 when my grandmother introduced me to the VHS movie sets (each movie was 2 tapes).  I could sit enraptured for the first 4 hours, then return the next day and watch the next 4 hours.  From those earliest days, when I didn't even understand half the words they used (like "tresses" - which means "hair"), I understood a deep-rooted kindred spirit in Anne.

My mother says she's not sure if I love those movies so much because I am so much like Anne, or if I'm so much like Anne because I love the movies so much.  I don't really know either.  But there is something incredibly good about a movie that can capture the heart of a 4-year-old, and remain her favorite movie at age 28.  A movie that you put on in your parents living room and they groan "again??" but by the end, everyone is sitting there, enraptured by the world it has created, tears rolling down their faces.

And it was in this way that I came to love Anne like a twin sister, and Gilbert as the representation of great love.

This past weekend was all about wedding planning - getting details finalized, including the trip to P.E.I.  When I heard that Jonathan Crombie had died, it was such a strange feeling. Almost like the man of my childhood was passing away, as the man of my future came to be.

Granted, the character that Jonathan portrayed so perfectly, will never die.  He will live on in the hearts of girls for generations to come - he will light up screens across the world with his charming smile.  He will never be forgotten - and in that way, Jonathan will never be forgotten.  I suppose that's one plus of being an actor - when you play a memorable character, you will live on forever.

I have a feeling this summer, when we are in Avonlea on Prince Edward Island, that there will be tributes to Jonathan Crombie's loss.  But there will be celebrations of his life as well.  For me, I will meet him again and again - as he was in his 20s - each and every time I re-watch those movies (and recite all the lines in my head). I pray that my future daughter will know him as well, and her daughter, as they watch those movies and fall in love with that world as I did.