Turtles!

We went down to the main kuta beach area today to visit the Bali Sea Turtle Society (BSTS) (BSTS facebook page). The centre finds the turtle eggs laid on the beach and transfers them to the protected turtle hatchery, that looks like a giant turtle. This gives the little guys a better chance of surviving until they hatch and can be released to the sea.





This is not the regular nesting season for turtles but a clutch of Olive Ridley turtles just hatched this week. This turtle grows to an average adult length of 70 cms.


As a way to build awareness, solicit conservation donations and generally entertain tourists, you can release your own turtle. J and I of course decided to release two turtles. I named mine Tony and J named his lazy. True to his name, Lazy was the last to make it to the water when we released all the turtles. A total of 79 baby turtles were safely released into the ocean.






These little ones face a dangerous journey to adulthood. This journey is compounded by human pollution and garbage. As I stroll the beach much of the garbage I see is plastic bags, cigarette butts and straws. Please reduce plastic use, recycle, don't litter and invest in reusable shopping bags and straws such as these lovely stainless steel straws.




“Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.” ― Chief Seattle

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Ants in the pants

Yesterday we had a very full itinerary. We hired a driver and went to Uluwatu temple, Uluwatu cave and Padang Padang beach. The Uluwatu temple is full of macaque monkeys, much like the ones in Ubud forest. The Uluwatu monkeys seem a little more mischievous than the ones in Ubud. Almost immediately one jumped up on J's shoulder and another grabbed my shorts and bit the hem. However, they are undeniably adorable.


We trekked down the sketchiest stairs ever to get the cave that opens out to Uluwatu beach area. The area is mostly full of people surfing further off shore but the cave area itself was beautiful to view. The stairs were stone and concrete and one narrow section was elevated in mid air with no rails on either side. There are the extra obstacles of avoiding the little Hindu basket offerings, called Canang Sarileft here and there (stairs, sidewalks, entrances etc). "Canang Sari is one of Daily Balinese hindus people offerings. Canang Sari is made from young yellow palm leafs, Flowers, and foodstuff an art form assosiated with every ritual in Bali. Balinese believe in the forces of the invisible worlds dictates that offerings be created with a spirit of thankfulness and loving attention to detail. Balinese always offering Canang sari every day, except there are some one death around village." quote source: http://www.nakbali.com/canang-sari-daily-ritual-offering/

Check out this video of Uluwatu Cave to see the amazing cave and dodgy stairs. As J says the best stuff is often at the end of a lot of stairs. We enjoyed lunch over looking the ocean on the cliff on the other side of the cave.


We stopped off at Padang Padang Beach. The sheltered cove was amazing and we just had to swim in it. Unfortunately there were no changing rooms so we ducked into the bush and changed into our swimsuits. Thankfully no people, or monkeys, stumbled upon us.

After our full day we spent the evening watching some tv and eating almonds. As we were eating I noticed an ant on the duvet, and then another, and then a whole troupe. The almonds that J was feeding to me we're out of a bag completely full of ants. It's really our fault since we broke the rule of no food storage in the room. Last time we broke the rule in a hut in the Andaman's in India we had a cockroach invasion. So we dumped the almonds into the garbage out side our room, in the attached outdoor shower. I watched them march out of the bin, thousands in single file, each one with a tiny almond crumb. This morning J dried off with the towel after his shower. Unfortunately it was covered in ants, one of which bit him. I call it ants in the pants but really there were no pants at all.

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The streets of Bali

I've been slacking on the blogging for a while. I call it running on island time. That and being horrendously sick. Some call it Bali Belly (Bali Butt might be more appropriate) but what ever it was it came with reinforcements of a sinus cold. After three days we broke down and used a course of our emergency antibiotics, and within 24 hours we started to feel better. I just have the last bit of a cough hanging on.

So to be honest we've basically accomplished nothing the last little while. Finding lunch each day was the biggest accomplishment. We have been enjoying the terrific food at the 2nd Bali Buddha restaurant located much closer to us (in Kerobokan) than the one in Ubud. I love their vegan Nasi Campur. They also have a little health food store attached where we get snacks and fresh coconut water.


We have also survived the the uniqueness of Bali streets. There are sidewalks but as soon as it is congested, which is most often, they fill with speeding scooters which some how manage to dodge the pedestrians. There are about 20 scooters to each car. Tourists can easily rent them, which only adds the the chaos. We've seen everything transported on them. One scooter had 10 full water cooler bottles, another a family of mom, dad, toddler and a crib mattress! Then there are the taxis. Many are with out incident but some make you feel like you must be on candid camera. The one we took yesterday was speeding and weaving in and out of traffic like nothing I have ever seen. (and I've seen a lot of crazy taxis). At a red light he jumped forward as a kid as crossing just to make her jump. They both laughed though. Somehow the dogs seem to know how to navigate these roads (most times). In fact I once saw a dog wait until 2 tourists were crossing and then he ran along side them to cross. The open sewers are also another hazard. Most of them are covered but then there will be a surprise one missing when you least expect it. Neither of us has fell in, yet.


On one of our walks we came across a very enthusiastic fellow who assured us we could win fantastic prizes hidden within the free promotional material for a new hotel. We had nothing else to do so we obliged. Of course when I opened mine I was absolutely guaranteed to win one of the following; week of free hotel, $500.00 or a digital camcorder. We just needed to get in their company car and go down for a tour of the hotel (time share) and we would get one of these prizes (the scratch off area would be revealed after sitting through the presentation). We declined.

Today we found a Mexican place and had decent chips and salsa. We had a nice chat with the waitress about being vegan. She brought us out our bean tacos and as usual J bides his time until someone else tries it first, of course that's usually me. I bit into a gross cow taco. I wish "beef" and "bean"did not look so similar when scribbled down on an order pad.

I did however finish an enjoyable book, Peace is Every Breathwhich is quite an easy read on incorporating mindfulness into every day life. It also had a nice explanation of the Buddhist notions of emptiness and non-self:
There is no entity separate and apart from everything else; what we call our "self" is made entirely of "non-self" elements. Emptiness likewise refers to the absence of a self that exists apart from everything else - the way a flower, for example, cannot "be" by itself alone, but rather is made of non-flower elements such as the seed, fertilizer, rain, and sunlight. If you take non-flower elements out of the flower, the flower no longer can exist. Emptiness does not mean nothingness of nonexistence; it only means there is no such thing as a separate "self" entity. All phenomenon rely on all other phenomena to manifest. This is, because that is; this is not, because that is not. To contemplate emptiness is also to contemplate interbeing (sometimes called "interdependent co-arising").


(photo above is from the same book)


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Mostly monkey business

A recent highlight was today's trip to the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary which is home to tons of Long tailed macaque monkeys They are absolutely spell binding with their adorable antics. We spent a few hours just watching them eat, play, bathe, argue, and tease the tourists. They are not really afraid of people and I'm quite sure they'd quickly gain the upper hand in any human/monkey altercation. One reached right into my purse pocket, which was empty as I alway remember the cardinal rule; never, ever trust a monkey. One little monkey, who was being chased by a large one, flung himself onto my lap while shooting the chasing monkey a smug "nah nah a boo boo" look. Then he scampered off. Out of no where a bunch of monkeys just starting jumping into the little cement pond all at once, as if they had planned it. They tumbled down on each other, leapt from the overhanging branches, swam under the water and generally created monkey business. Here are a few photos of one the monkeys sweet on J










After the monkey forest we ate at the tranquil and delicious Bali Buddha. I had a great raw vegan lunch of salad rolls, pate and crackers, mint lemonade and a chocolate tart. At the attached heath food store, we picked up some all natural shampoo made from coconut and scented with frangipani flowers.

Last night we went back to the large grocery store near by. We found some mystery white juice at the fresh juice bar. When we inquired about what it was, they pointed out a fruit I'd never seen before and called it "Indonesian fruit". We bought it. All I can say is the taste is best described as highly objectionable. Speaking of objectionable fruit, I also detest Snake fruit, which gets its name from the scaly skin, which also should have served as warning to me not to eat it. It tastes like a creamy onion apple, and it smells. On the other hand I adore the succulent Mangosteens.

The other exciting news is that J and I were accepted to attend the three week Sciences of the Buddha meditation retreat. "In the beautiful setting of Plum Village, from the 1st until the 21st of June 2012, with Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village Sangha, scientists and Buddhists will practice sitting together, walking together, and sharing their experience and insight with each other. The practices of mindfulness and concentration can help scientists to be better scientists and in this way, Buddhism can act as a source of inspiration, suggesting directions for future investigation and discovery. Conversely, we will explore how insights from science can be useful, not only to develop technology and improve our material comfort, but to reduce the suffering of individuals, families, and society. This retreat will bring a lot of joy and confidence in both traditions as we find out that good science and good Buddhism can be much and do much for the wellbeing of the world." Thich Nhat Hanh is one of my favorite Buddhist authors and he wrote the amazing book Being Peace It's an accessible for read for Buddhists and NonBuddhists. I love it so much I've purchased many copies for family, friends and for the prisoner book program.
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Re-Entry

We arrived home on Friday, January 22, 2010 to Canada's wicked winter weather. To view the photo album please click; Indonesia Album

We are slowly adjusting to the frozen wasteland and the brutal jet lag. I am waking up at 5am and I am NOT a morning person.

Getting Schooled by a Mad Momma Monkey - Ubud, Bali

This morning we went to the Ubud Sacred Monkey Forest, filled with wild long tailed macaque monkeys (aka moustache monkeys). We paid the park entrance fee, even though we could just visit the monkeys hanging outside the entrance as well. My previous hypothesis proved correct again; where ever there is tourists and monkeys, there will be someone selling bananas. I bought the obligatory monkey bait, and since I had no bag to hide them in, I was quickly liberated from my bananas. When a squealing pack of monkeys run at you, you give up the goods.



They are super friendly, a little too friendly in fact. One scaled up the side of Jason and tried to take his umbrella out of his bag pocket. Jason snapped some great shots. He took some amazing pictures of mommy monkeys and their teeny tiny babies. When he was going in for a close shot of one of the babies, his or her mommy came running up and slapped Jason across the forearm. Jason said it was quite gentle but she was letting him know he was too close. The monkeys have hands that look eerily like human hands, right down to the fingernails. We also watched some inventive parenting with a watchful mommy hanging onto the end of her tiny infants tail while he played.


The photos are copied from Jason's photo stream. To see them in higher resolution check out this link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/devildotbunny/

Other than that it has been a repeat cycle of walking around, eating (mostly at this great super veg friendly place Bali Buddha), pool, reading (almost finished my 4th book) & sleeping. When I am on vacation I feel very in the moment, giving my full attention with out worry of what comes tomorrow. All we have is this one precious moment.

Goa Lawah - Bat cave photos

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Critter capers

I thought I'd better get a blog up so those who are not on facebook know that I have not disappeared. We've been taking it pretty easy in Sanur beach area.

A few days ago we took a speed boat out to manta point and 2 other sites for snorkeling. We were informed that the 50 minute ride was a little choppy. Tossing around in a dryer would have been smoother. I actually have a bruise on my left shoulder from slamming into the side of the boat repeatedly and violently. There were 6 tourists on board and all but 2 tossed their cookies, often several times. I and the Swedish guy where the lucky ones. He took medication and I was medication free. Sadly it remains my one superpower to be able to take violent transportation and not puke. Of course perhaps I did not puke because all my energy was focused on hunkering down and holding on for dear life. Unfortunately, as previous evidence has alluded, Jason was one of the 4 pukers. He puked so much that he actually blocked out large sections of the boat trip.

We did make it to the first stop, manta point, which is this area by a rocky cliff where the giant mantas gather to have the fish clean them up. The waves were insane and I could not get off the boat to snorkel even though the guides said go ahead. It's funny, on vacation I always become acutely aware that I am now and adult and that others will freely allow me to put myself in danger. Even with my little vest I am sure I would have drowned. The guides went in as did 4 of the other snorkeler/divers. Jason had to endure sitting on the boat (with me) while the rest did their thing. It's hard to believe but once the speed boat stopped it seems to get even more gut wrenching and it bobbed up and down, back and forth, like a cork. I am very disappointed I missed the manta rays but we went to 2 more sites and i snorkeled at both. I got a great picture of a moray eel with my waterproof camera (most trip photos will be posted when we get back). At the last site the painful realization manifests.... we still have the same ride home. Truly this was Jason's last boat ride.

Other fun stuff; apparently the big lizard (the water monitor i mentioned in a previous post) loves bread. I couldn't help myself and fed him a little from my table, which he gobbled up. There is nothing quite like a 2 foot lizard with forked tongue begging for a little bite of bread. I realized soon that the lizard was eyeing up the adorable pair of birds that were trying to get their share of bread. This put an end to the bread buffet as I did not want to be responsible for the side of bird.

I have come across some interesting signs which reinforces why I don't buy antiques when travelling; "Antique furniture: Made to Order" Now perhaps there is something lost in translation and they mean reproduction furniture, but who knows. We saw a lot of fake antiques in China.

Today we went to the Goa Lawah AKA Bat Cave Temple which is a Hindu temple home to thousands of fruit bats. The temple is built around a large cave filled with the bats, and apparently hungry pythons on the ground waiting for their flying fast food. We did not see the pythons but we saw the mass horde of squeaking bats, with wing spans of 1 to 2 feet. They are quite adorable but they stink, like really stink. Bat poo is nasty.

After the Bat Temple we stopped a little road side Hare Krishna Vegetarian food stand. We each had a dish, an order of rice and 2 bottles of water for $2.00! So far the cheapest meal in Indonesia.

Moustache monkeys & mangosteens

Today we took a car and driver and explored north Bali. We stopped at a large Hindu temple where I saw two cats swiping the offerings left by devotees.







We also went to large botanical garden and stopped at a Buddhist & Hindu temple. It was ok but am very spoiled by the amazing Buddhist temples we saw in India and china. At a later stop, We did a short 20 minute hike down too a large, breathtaking water fall.

The highlight was the monkeys I call moustache monkeys as they look like little old men with moustaches. Their real name is long tail macaques. They were gathered on the side of the road and of course I had to stop by and see them. And anywhere monkeys and tourists gather there will be someone selling monkey treats. I bought some bruised, over priced bananas as I am a sucker for monkeys and the old kukum (grandma) like lady selling them. So in reality I supported local women and fed monkeys. A word to the wise when feeding monkeys toss them the food, do not hand it to them. Sure they are adorable and sweet but you can't trust them. They are like little people with a low moral code, and high thrill seeking. Thankfully I already know that rule and I was not monkey mugged. And leave your hat, glasses etc in the car (as the driver insisted I do).

On the way back we stopped and bought mangosteens, my new favorite fruit! Mmmmmmmm

Luckiest bird in the world

We took it easy today and basically hung out at the pool. While at the pool a great Aussie woman rescued a little baby bird that plumeted into the pool from an overhanging ledge. She placed him on the edge and he ran soaking wet into the flower bed.

Unfortunately there was a 10 inch Water Monitor Lizard in there who promptly chomped onto the bird. We both started yelling at it and the lizard jumped into the pool and took off. She recaptured the bird and we located a folded up banana leaf bowl and placed the bird in it and then in a tree. I did not hold out much hope.

I stuck around and watched the area for a few hours (hey it's vacation, no agenda!) and the little guy sprang back and jumped down from the tree all dry. His one wing is missing some of the key long flight feathers but he can run really fast. The lizard came back and chased him but the bird out ran him and I came up to guard. (I know a lizard has to eat but he can eat some anonymous creature I don't know). The birds parents showed up and are hanging out with him.

I hope he can recover with the big fall, near drowning, traumatic rescue, and lizard chomping. When I left the Aussie lady was back and delighted to see him alive. I departed and she was keeping an eye on him.

In other news, Jason finally met his goal of being a "nacho nacho man" in Asia with today's lunch of... You guessed it, Nachos! Trust me, from our experience, Mexican food is hard to come by in asian countries.


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Tuna Roll Deja Vu

For those who don't remember the Great Tuna Roll Incident of 2008, click on the underlined section for a recap. I seriously feared a repeat today. We went snorkeling around Bunaken island after a boat ride from Manado. I can always get out of the boat. The problem is getting back in, which I must say is an act against physics. They did have a ladder this time but of course it did not have enough rungs on it. It had a scant 2 rungs with the bottom one skimming the surface of the ocean. So imagine this, me trying to hoist my legs up to shoulder height and then stand up on the bottom rung. Again, that just goes against physics. I managed to shimmy my knees up to the rung, which resulted in burning calf cramps, and then yank myself into a standing position. I am left with a huge bruise on the left knee but the good news is the obscure dent in the right knee has popped back out. I vow deep knee bends and repeated practice exits from the 2nd rung in the pool ladder before the next snorkeling trip. At least I did not have to be rolled in like a giant tuna.

On the trip we saw a variety of fish with the highlight being a leather back turtle! The coral was not as vibrant as in other trips and was quite damaged. However, we saw a great deal of soft coral which was new for us. My awesome new inflatable snorkel vest worked great, giving me that little bit of buoyancy and feeling of safety. The new shorty flippers were also terrific and such a space saver. Unfortunately either I missed the back strip of my upper legs with sunscreen, or it wore off. So now I will sit on the plane to Bali in the morning with searing bacon butt. We will be heading to Sanur beach area in Bali which looks great. We are taking a little break from the more rustic hotels and going to the Bali Hyatt. I am looking forward to the giant pool and the non-smoking atmosphere. (Did I mention that it seems most men smoke here, and you can smoke pretty much everywhere?)

Observations from Planet Indo

The title of this blog is in homage to the book I read on the flight between Barjamasin and Manado, Lost on Planet China, a funny account of one man's trip through China. So here are some of my observations of Indonesia:

Fire Ants
Now I know if you have been following me on facebook you are probably tired of me ranting on about the fire ants but I must rant a little more so you can get the full view. To recap; While in the orangutan tour I stumbled into the middle of a huge gathering of army of fire ants. Naturally I was most concerned with leaping gazelle like (ok drunk giraffe like) out of their way to avoid harming any of them, and taking a sandal full if them along for the ride. I shook them all loose but one of them was victorious in leaving me a swollen burning big toe.

I looked into these little creatures and apparently they diabolically bite in a circular fashion in order to remove the maximum amount of skin, spray the area with an acidic substance that burns and also calls over all their buddies to join in the attack. Now that's just mean. To see this in action click on "Fire Ant Bite" to get a glorious photo of their handy work.

Paradox of Security
When entering into malls and hotels there are metal detectors, security guards and people checking under cars with mirrors. The domestic flights at the airports are interesting. First off I have yet to be asked for my passport. Secondly there are signs pointing out the limits on liquids and the need for them to be in a plastic bag. I was worried about my 15ml of eye drops but then I saw people going through with thermoses, 2 litre bottles of water, 500 ml pop bottles and so on. By the way, opening a pop bottle on the plane after a change in air pressure means it will explode all over. Trust me, I saw it happen. Then on one flight, despite the clear no smoking signs, I could definitely smell cigarettes from the general vicinity of the cock pit, that and the door between the pilots and the passengers failed to remain closed. As interesting as it is, the flights and travel have all been good and safe :)

I am a Walking Freak Show
Again I know I mentioned before on facebook that people stare, point and laugh at me. However it continues to the point that today children followed me around the grocery store pointing wildly and laughing hysterically. One of the children followed me out into the street, staring like a deer in the headlights. I am not sure if his expression was awe, shock, fear or some combination. I think I would attract less attention dressed as a Sasquatch, then again with my stature and frizzy hair perhaps I do resemble one.

Dogs
While we were careening down the winding road to our first hotel in Manado we came around the bend to find a dog in the middle of the road taking a crap. Like right in the middle of the road, and the speeding taxi was not about to stop him. I would think it would scare it out a little faster, but no, the taxi swerved around him and we continued on. There are dogs all over Manado & according the the guide book some people do eat dog on this island. Jason has taken to calling the dogs NumNums, which is an attempt to make it less disturbing. That being said, it is no different than the momma boar and her boarlets (Bacon and her Bacon Bits) discussed in the previous post.

Smell Adventure
I consider myself a fairly seasoned traveller and I have some across my fair share of smells around the world. However I have topped my previously "worst smell ever" (experienced in Thailand) with a smell on the street yesterday that can only be described as fermenting feces and fish heads. Sadly many areas lack proper sanitation and water systems. Access to clean potable water is a big issue now and I think it will become even more so in our changing climate.

Tomorrow we plan on snorkeling Bunaken Park and then the next day we fly to Bali. I am hoping Bali will offer a bit more to do, better accommodations and better food than we are currently finding. Today we switched from our hotel that was outside of Manado to one that is right downtown. The previous hotel was far out, higher priced and had worse food selection.

funny, large primates... & orangutans

We just arrived in Banjarmasin after spending 2 nights on a boat viewing the orangutans. The boat is smaller, 2 levels and had a crew of 4 (cook, captain, guide and the deckhand). We sleep up top in the open air with a mattress and mosquito net. On the first day we saw several types of monkeys (proboscis, macaque, gibbons) from the boat as we travelled down the river. On the first day we stopped at a feeding station, used to give supplemental feed to orphan/injured orangutans that were returned to the wild. We watched as a large male ate his bananas and cassava root. He was an intimidating fellow!

Then we docked along the edge for the night. The next day we went to another feeding station and saw several orangutans; moms and babies and assorted single adults. Unfortunately there ended up being around 20 other tourists there and some were not respecting the rules of not touching or feeding directly. So we left early and walked around the area. We were fortunate to come across a wild boar mom and her 6 piglets (boarlets?). I nicknamed them Bacon & Bacon Bits. (I've always imagined that if I ever had an acreage I'd rescue a few livestock and give them ironic names like for chickens I'd call them: noodle & nugget). That night we again docked along the river to watch the amazing fireflies. It is hard to describe but they twinkle in the palm fronds like Christmas lights. I've never seen anything like it. One even landed on me & was quite neat to see up close. However, we soon had to abandon our first dock site. We could hear loud splashing and palm frond trunks snapping. After the crew and us debated whether it was a crocodile or an orangutan, we decided it sounded like a strong and angry orangutan. Then we moved down the river! There is a potential that orangutans that are released may come looking for food on the boat. The idea of waking up to a hungry, large, strong, hairy red primate going through your stuff is rather unsettling. We did in fact see one female orangutan at the second feeding station eyeing up a banana bunch on a docked boat.

So now we are in Banjarmasin for the night with plans to fly to manado via Jakarta in the morning. Manado is in a good snorkeling area so we are hopeful we can find a place to stay. Today we went out to the mall and more so than in other areas of Indonesia we are quite the spectacle. If I interpret the stares, pointing and laughing correctly, we are quite hilarious. I just respond with a big smile and everyone smiles back and continues to giggle. In all fairness we are both giants by local averages.

wedding crashers

So yesterday, Dec 27 (today in Canada), we had a 3 hour drive to Semarang. Along the way the driver asked if he could stop to say Hi to his friend who was getting married. We of course agreed. The driver insisted we come into the reception. So here we are in this beautiful, formal Muslim wedding where everyone is dressed in their finest, with all the women in gorgeous Hijabs, while Jason and I are in beach ware. Everyone is smiling and so friendly but I wonder if they are thinking "who are these slobby wedding crashers?" And of course the reception was being filmed so we will live on in memory and digitally! We proceeded through the entire reception line with me extending my one hand for shaking to which each person grasped it in both hands. Only after did I clue in that I was supposed to extend both hands in a closed prayer like stance and then they would grasp them both. Then many people wanted us to stay and eat! Not only did we just finish a huge breakfast we did not want to insult anyone with our need for vegetarian food, so we declined, which was also probably insulting, but I hope not too much!

So we made it to Semarang and were put up in the Hotel Grasia by the airline who had to change our flight until today. The hotel is decent. clean, free wifi, free breakfast, tv, AC, and all for about 35 CDN a night (free for us). Last night we found a veg place in china town called, HA HA Vegetarian, and had a great meal with the nicest owners, who refused to take our tip. Afterwards we asked the owners where the Buddhist Tak Kay Sie Temple was and they insisted on driving us! We decided they seemed fine and we hitched the 10 min drive with the family to the temple. Once at the temple and older lady insisted on taking us around so that we placed the incense in the correct order at the different altars. After a friendly man chatted us up about the area. We did get into and odd conversation about washrooms in which the man commented that it was a pity that I, as a woman, could not just pee into the river easily. I must say it was the dirtiest river I have ever seen!

In all my travels this has been the most friendly place!

one more day in Borobudur

We are staying one more night (tonight) in Borobudur so that we can take a direct flight tomorrow to Pangkalanbun by the Tajung Puting National Park to see the orangutans. We will be picked up by a river house boat and stay on it for 2 nights and trek into the jungle to see the orangutans.

Yesterday we went to the Borobudur a huge and ancient Buddhist monument with over 500 Buddha statues. We went before sunrise and saw the sun peek through the over cast sky. On Christmas eve we had the amazing experience of meditating at the Mendut temple. It was a great place to do Tonglen Meditation , which is a method of connecting with suffering and awakening compassion. I had a lovely & peaceful experience.

the chicken incident

It's not really my fault, but all the same, one local thinks I am obsessed with chickens. Mind you the chickens here are quite striking. They are really tall, like 2 feet, skinny and with long long legs, the better to out run your camera with. (I know this as I made Jason make several attempts at getting a shot of these elusive creatures. Perhaps one of the many signs when added together does in fact make me look a little chicken obsessed). There hasn't been a huge abundance of critters so of course on this mornings trip to the temples I made several observations to our guide about the chickens scurrying about. He in turn humoured me with facts about how the chickens return home at night on their own etc, & i remarked in awe about the difference in stature and plummage to our fat factory farmed chickens; I submit to you evidence #2. but seriously you have to see these freaky athletic chickens! Then conversation at some point turned to the fact that we are vegetarian. So of course all of this led to our guide taking an impromtu detour to show me a chicken market with the many types of chickens available that are used for singing/crowing competitions. I saw jungle chickens, fancy chickens, white chickens, and even one very prestigious lazy chicken who had the best cage. So there may now be a misunderstanding that canadians love chickens or that I am just a weirdo.

Ps the guide informed me that cooked jackfruit tastes like chicken. Seriously, you can't make that up.

Borobudur

We are staying in the amazing Amanjiwo Resort which is breath taking with each room a villa and an amazing pool. It is is surrounded by misty hills, rice paddies and jungle. There are geckos, grasshoppers, butterflies, finches and giant bumblebees all around. It is an ironic place to contemplate the terrific book I am reading on how individuals can end world by donating their share to aid agencies. The book moves beyond guilt and proposes a calculation system to determine how much each person, based on income, should give. I highly recommend the book as it delves into a detailed ethical analyses of not only our responsibilities but how, even unintentionally, we in developed countries contribute to poverty in developing nations; The Life you Can Save: Acting Now to End World Poverty Written by Peter Singer, (click the title to learn more and read an excerpt).

The food, people and sights have been amazing. Everyone is so kind and lovely. This morning we had a slightly funny incident. As many of you know Jason & I are long time vegetarians but recently we have been cutting back on dairy, and avoiding eggs as well. The hotel staff are aware we are vegetarian and have been so accommodating. Jason ordered the the fruit salad this morning and the waiter soon came back to explain that it contained yogurt. Jason misunderstood the option for replacement of the said yogurt and ended up with a lovely fruit salad in a bowl of orange juice. ;)

This morning we are heading out to see some small temples and this evening we will spend time with some local monks, meditating and chanting! I will report more on that later.

Jakarta

Today was our first full day on vacation. We slept 15 hours last night and are still feeling the jetlag. We went to a Buddhist temple this morning that is from the 1600's. We also went to a great vegan restaurant called "the loving hut". At one point we ended up in a store similar to home depot to escape the rain. I have never seen rain like this! Tomorrow we fly to Borobudur. I am trying put my new blogger iPhone app with this post so we'll see how well it works :)

Why We Travel

An excerpt from Why We Travel: A Love Affair with the World by Pico Iyer; "We travel, initially, to lose ourselves; and we travel, next, to find ourselves. We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate. We travel to bring what little we can, in our ignorance and knowledge, to those parts of the globe whose riches are differently dispersed. And we travel, in essence, to become young fools again-to slow time down and get taken in, and fall in love once more." - I could not have said it better myself. The entire article is well worth the read.

Our next adventure takes us on our longest journey yet; 5 weeks traipsing through Indonesia. We leave December 19, 2009 and arrive in Jakarta and stay at the Hyatt. After a few days we will head to Borobudur an ancient Buddhist temple and stay at the Amanjiwo Hotel. I am looking forward to hiking, meditation and reflection. After this we are planning time in Borneo to visit Orangutans at the Tanjung Puting National Park

We arrive back in Calgary January 22, 2010. The rest of the time in Indonesia has yet to be planned. I look forward to the wandering.

PS I also look forward to the chance to read some good books. My vacation book list includes: The Life You Can Save: Acting Now to End World Poverty, In the Face of Fear: Buddhist Wisdom for Challenging Times, Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You, & What the Dog Saw

PS I've included a photo of the gear I am taking. One back pack, one purse sized carry on. The essential gear I have includes; flippers, snorkel/mask, camera, clothes (in red stuff sack), Iphone (with roaming turned off so I don't have a repeat of the enormous mexican phone bill) running shoes, flip flops (plus one pair of slip on vans that I'll wear on the plane), big bag of medicine (grey and burgundy bag), bag of toiletries, travel towel, jacket (takes up too much room! - the black roll next to red stuff sack in the picture), 4 books ... & still lots of room!