And so the crazy-ass journey continues!

07 Jul And so the crazy-ass journey continues!

Wow! So here I sit, finally enjoying the convenience of computer, kettle AND fridge running all at once without a power outage and believe me, this has been no easy task!  Yes, I know…  I will choose to live in the jungle where things really are done ‘jungle style.’  Challenging?  Absobloodylutely!!!  Frustrating?  Absofrigginlutely!!!  🙂 But one baby step at a time I am getting there and this time next week I will return from a few days in Darwin to stabilised electricity allowing me to FINALLY open the warung.  I may even just be laying back in my long awaited bath with my long awaited hot water system (a first for the jungle I might add), gazing out at the stunning beauty that surrounds me in this incredible place I for now, call home.  At this point there is but one word that comes to mind…. Holy-friggin-shiiiiiiiiiiit!!!   Haha, what an epic journey it’s been! 4 months of trials and tribulations, lessons learnt the easy way and lessons learnt the hard way!  It’s been refreshing to witness my own inner strength at these challenging moments and the positive subconscious programming in the form of ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’ and ‘where there’s a will there’s a way’ that have rang true in my mind and inspired me to keep moving forward when really, all I wanted to do was crawl in a hole until someone else finished the job for me!   

Over the past 4 months I have experienced so many ‘ups and downs’, I’ve been misguided and misled, I’ve been ripped off, I’ve even had my credit card stolen from right under my nose and yet, as with everything, there is duality and I have been guided, I have been supported, I’ve achieved so much and had the most beautiful Angels come into my life to assist and support me in this foreign land.

So here we go… back to the beginning…

BIG LESSON number one!  When you make an agreement… it IS set in concrete!!!  So, finally my house arrives and after 3 weeks of beautiful blue skies, this day it decides to pour with torrential rain turning the river into a torrent of raging waters that arose so high, the sole bamboo bridge access into the land was nowhere to be seen.  The following morning I awake to the news that my builders decided the conditions were extreme and refused to start work until all pieces of my kit home had been carted by somebody else, through the jungle to my foundations, and on making this decision dumped the whole house on the ground beside the river and took the 2 hour drive back to Sanur.  Well, if you follow my writing or know me at all, you will know that there was only 1 thing I could do in a situation like this and so I laid on my bed in the homestay room I’d been renting for the past 5 weeks whilst waiting for my house to be built, and bawled my eyes out until there were no more tears to cry 🙂 Then I got up, took a few big deep breaths and got on with it!  I asked the local workers to carry the house to my land, which they happily agreed to do at a price 10 times higher than expected, just adding to the stress of it all.  With no other choice available, I agreed but the price just wasn’t sitting right, and after consulting with other Westerners on the land I was encouraged to ask them to stop work 10 mins into the job, pay them for 2 hrs work and find other workers from the village to do the job for a cheaper rate.  WELL, this decision had repercussions don’t you worry…and moments later I find myself standing in front of a group of 10 or more men, trying to explain myself via interpreter to a very angry ‘head of the valley’.  Long story short, I was told that “if I took this course of action, no one in the local village would help me, I would have to get workers from a neighbouring village, and if there were any problems after doing that, I was not to come back to the local village for help because NO ONE would help me.  They explained that “they all had jobs, they were out fixing water pipes and going about their work and when they hear Lyn needed help, they all stop to help Lyn, and that the price was so high because the conditions of carrying these heavy loads to my foundations, WERE extreme”.   Suddenly the $1500 AUD price I’d been quoted in relation to the daily wage of $10 didn’t matter so much, all I knew was that I didn’t want to support another village and I was grateful knowing the job would be done by those most accustomed to these jungle conditions, grateful for this group of men willing to do the job happily, no questions asked, no whinging about conditions.. and eternally grateful knowing that my building could finally begin!!  As scary and stressful as this whole incident had been, I left the jungle later that day for a 3 week break in Australia feeling a sense of empowerment, and a sense of gratitude for that little part of myself that had found the courage to speak her truth in this situation, as petrified as she may have been, and yet on the other hand, apprehensive as to any future repercussions that might occur as a result of these actions…

A week or so later, I receive photos from Bali… I finally had my house 🙂

And so the adventure began again.  Where to begin?  Where to buy furniture, what prices to pay, how to avoid being ripped off, how to get it transported to North Bali…Well, all I can say to this is I found out the hard way pretty quick smart.  My initiation to Bali shopping was, on day 1, paying approximately double what I should have/could have for the day bed cushions I had made for the warung leaving me $450 out of pocket… and on the very same day, having my credit card stolen from right under my nose!  Looking back on the credit card experience I see now how this process was extremely well organised, from the initial being guided to a certain ATM machine after being told the others were not working properly, then at the completion of my transaction being distracted for a brief moment by one man as my ejected card was stolen by another who then left the store… When I looked back to see no card I think it’s stuck in the machine and the man that initially distracted me comes over pretending to be my best friend helping me retrieve the card, which at that moment I feel eternally grateful for by the way!  Then somehow he makes my pin come up on the screen for all to see which makes me even more determined to get my card back, and yet in the stress, panic, craziness of it all- I still think he is trying to help me!!   Unbeknownst to me, he sends my pin via text message to his partner in crime who’s by now well and truly at a nearby ATM with my card, and now my pin… and you know the rest of the story!! L  When the limit is up, he returns to find me still standing at the ATM machine, stressing about how I am going to retrieve my card and once again, my so called friend distracts me, whilst ‘the stealer’ puts my card back in the machine, making it look as though the ATM just miraculously ejected it.  Lucky for me I happened to glance back to see this taking place and when he saw that I saw, and when I yelled at him for stealing my card he took off out of the shop like a $600 richer rocket!…  It could have been worse though… if I had of got my card back without actually witnessing the return I would never have realised it had been stolen and therefore may not have cancelled it!  Note to self… and all other tourists… NEVER USE THE ATM MACHINES IN SUPERMARKETS!!!

Thank goodness there’s duality in everything and whilst I was experiencing the ‘shit’ aspects of what goes on in Bali, including all of the lies and deception even though these people’s lives revolve around religion and ceremony, the most beautiful ‘local Angels’ came into my life organising so much for me at ‘local prices’ without any expectation….  And so, after 10 flat out days of finding my way around Denpasar, exhausted I headed home to the waterfall, to my new little house and the community of Westerners and Balinese that reside there, to welcoming hugs and huge smiles from all… including the men whom I had silently hoped would not hold a grudge toward me. 

Honouring the Balinese tradition, just a few hours after arrival I was to experience my first Balinese ceremony in the form of my house and warung blessing , believed by the Balinese to be necessary in order to keep ‘bad spirits’ out of the house.  The ceremony lasted a couple of hours and entailed making offerings to the Gods, sipping and spitting of holy water (which I somehow managed to spit all over my sarong and amuse the Holy Man immensely 🙂 )  It was truly a beautiful  ceremony and after an almost full moon fire, I spent my first night like a Goddess, in my glass house, in a big teak four poster bed, sliding doors open, breathing fresh jungle air and reaping the rewards of my persistence and determination. 

So what’s it like living in the jungle?  Well…waking up each morning to the embrace of Mother Nature and her healing energy, night-time campfires, like-mindedness and conscious conversation, wandering a couple of hundred meters up a jungle path to be massaged and energized by a powerful waterfall or laze on the sun-heated rocks, or a few meters up the path for a $20 Balinese healing massage or to fill your bottle with pristine spring water is all part of the daily slog here in the jungle. 🙂   What’s interesting is that, over the past few weeks there has been a constant flow of Westerners who through word of mouth, have been staying for days and even weeks on end in the homestay rooms or huts on the land for relaxation, fasting and healing purposes.  Something is surely changing it seems and people are finally realising that this is the path to true health and healing, for these people- gone are the days of popping pills to supress the symptoms! In preparation for the warung opening, it’s been the perfect opportunity to begin teaching a few of the local Balinese some of my Ra Food recipes including orange bircher muesli, delicious coconut cream/fruit chia breakfast, black rice sushi, jacama vegie stack, salads, raw bliss balls and of course, my chocolate recipe which has been a huge hit here in the jungle!  And Wow! What a heart-warming experience teaching has been- seeing the eagerness to learn, and for one beautiful Balinese woman- a mother of 3 young children, watching her smile return and energy lighten, as though it has given her a new passion for life. 

And so whilst I am sure I will encounter more challenges on this crazy-ass adventure called ‘My Life’… for now I look forward to growing a beautiful spray-free garden in the incredibly rich volcanic soil, laying back in my ‘hot’ bath gazing out at the stars, spending time with beautiful like-minded people, opening the warung and offering healing foods to waterfall seekers/ retreat groups as well as getting my own retreats in conjunction with Poinciana Resort up and running, with the first one coming up in August if anyone is interested 🙂  9 Days of rest, relaxation, juice fasting or raw food, sun, sea, yoga, massage, dolphins, sound healing, beach fires and more  for just $1795.00

And if anyone is looking for a jungle adventure of their own… or wishing to heal and regenerate in nature or just sit and Be with your own inner spirit, we have 5 simple and spotlessly clean homestay rooms, with spring-water showers and flushing toilets at the waterfall and 4 huts for those wishing to really experience the nature here.  Let me know if this is of interest as we would loooove to welcome you to our little healing valley… seriously, there is something that happens when people come here, you will leave feeling different, guaranteed!  Create your own retreat…. Juices and raw foods are available at Warung Ra, fresh spring water is available in abundance as are fresh coconuts, and there is fasting support, massage and healing therapies on hand for anyone wishing to take this option..

If this resonates, send me a message and I will put you in touch with Gede from the homestay who will organise accommodation for you… 

Lotsa love everyone xx