Bali 2016

Poems Mom you planted the seed. Wanderlust brought me here. Gratitude and love. Bamboo reaches up to the sky Then curves down and holds us in its arms Sunlight filters through the feathery leaves. Haikus Bali offering Clear mind, clear voice and pure heart Gaia Oasis. Ocean’s heartbeat all Through the night. Roosters calling A […]

Arriving last night at Mimpi Menjangen resort at the northern tip of Bali, we boarded boats for a 45 minute ride to Menjangen island to celebrate the final day of Galungan.  Greeted upon arrival with a tropical downpour, we enjoyed the drenching and then proceeded up to a ceremonial area of the National Park area […]

On the mythic path We find love right where we are We go deep within Rooster crows pre-dawn In darkness open to the light Goddess guides us home Sun rise, dolphins swim The gift of life is this water Blessed with gratitude Seeing myself clear So many mirrors at once Love is the answer

Our final evening in Gaia Oasis was spent at the grassy performance area next the ocean’s waves rhythmically accompanying a full gamelan orchestra, singers and dancers following dinner. The Wayan Wong dance of the Ramayana story is recognized as a World Cultural Heritage treasure for its uniquely rich and ancient traditions preserved even now. It […]

We visit the preparatory blessings of the masks for tonight’s Wayan Wong to be held at Gaia Oasis on this our last evening here. First we go to the temple housing the sacred masks that are not used for public performances at 6 am for a blessing of those masks. Then as tradition directs, we […]

With Ganesh the bus driver, we glide beneath penjors, past pi-dogs searching for the last remnants of yesterday’s offerings. Up winding hill roads, over volcanic pot holes, slowly, steadily, we navigate a path to gluten-free enlightenment sometimes succumbing to the lure of cosmic shopping. White flowers, colored flowers, silent yearning for connection to the feminine […]

Day 6 Highlight Dolphins Dawn Playing Rising before dawn to the shouts of fishermen outside our rooms at the beach preparing 14 fishing canoes to take us at 6 am out into the nearby waters to watch dolphins at play, Rocking gently in our little boats, 2 of us per boat plus the fisherman, we […]

Day 5 CLEANSING Two hours of driving into the mountains — up and up to Batur mountain range — to take us to Beji Songam temple, and Ulun Danu Songam nearby, the mother temple of the water of Bali, preparing for the once every ten years celebration for cleansing the water. It’s inside the rim of […]