Bali, you make me smile.

“We are going to Bali, we are going to Bali.. Oh my god, we are going to Bali!” Alina and I were jumping around the apartment the whole evening, packing our bags while singing Bollywood and Persian tunes.

Feelings: This is going to be the best trip of my life. I’m going to see beautiful temples, stay at a beautiful hotel and experience wonderful things.. and boy was I right.

Thanks to Sameer’s parents, we got to stay at Le Meridien for 5 nights. It was absolutely beautiful and was located by the beach right by one of the most beautiful temples in Bali called “Tanalot” (the one in the water that you see every time you google Bali on the internet). It reminded me of the hotel Khaleh, Yasmin, Argentinian (on the road again) lady and I stayed at in Maui. We’d be out for most of the day and come back and hit the pool practically every night. We’d have chicken fights (I was the undefeated champion of course) and went up and down the slide until our bums hurt. We’d lie on the benches and watch the stars, and sit on our balcony and sing songs. (One night Alina, Sameer and I just sat on the balcony and sang songs for hours (mostly bollywood because we’re huge fobs) it was a lot of fun.)

We didn’t want to do the typical touristy stuff. We didn’t want to sit in air conditioned buses with ill speaking tour guides. We wanted to see the “real” Bali and so we rented motor bikes and headed off. We drove like the locals, swerving in and out of traffic, fitting into the small spaces and honking uncontrollably. It was great fun. We drove uphill and we drove downhill. We drove in the heat, the rain and even under the stars.

The inner city roads were filled with cars, bikes, dogs, cows..you name it, I saw it. A family of 5 would fit onto one bike. Every time we’d reach a stop light the kids on the bikes would turn and wave, as would the children on the roads. I felt like a movie star. The streets were filled with temples, big ones and small ones. There were shops filled with beautiful wood carvings and stone carvings, mostly of Hindu Murtis. We’d pass beautiful rice fields and other Hindu figurines on our way.

Bali has two seasons. One dry and one wet. We arrived in the beginning of the wet season. We’d constantly get stuck in rain for this reason and would have to find refuge wherever we could. I didn’t mind it much because we’d always seem to discover new beautiful places that weren’t on the map. We were able to find beautiful “non touristy” streets and we even had the chance to share a wonderful meal with some locals. We couldn’t help but talk about what our lives would be like and what we’d be like had we been brought up in a place like Bali. I would probably be a totally different person.

I remember the ride up the mountain, heading to Besakih temple. God it was breathtaking. There were endless rice fields (I saw the Balinese in their cute pointy straw hats plating and extracting.. just like how you see them on the discovery channel). As we headed up, the scenery just got more and more beautiful.

We all met at the base of the mother temple. It was shocking because we all lost one another on our way. Parting ways at different times, yet we all seemed to meet at the exact same time at the exact same perfect place. We each wore surongs (it was mandatory) and headed inside the temple.

BEATY. PEACE. POWER. LOVE. Those were the words that came to mind while I was there. The pictures and the videos don’t do the temple justice. We learned while we were there, that it was not any ordinary day, but the day the Hindus celebrate the coming of the new moon. We were able to pray with them and we learned many of their rituals. I sat next to two beautiful little Balinese girls. They smiled, waved and tried to speak to me with whatever English they knew. They taught me how to pray, giggling at the little mistakes I would make. They were adorable, I’ll never forget them.

I walked about the temple and felt so at peace. It was just so incredible and powerful. The sounds, the smells just created this wonderful feeling inside me that brought me to tears while I prayed. I was able to see a beautiful sunset as I was leaving the temple, it was unreal. We drove back in the dark, air hitting our faces, stars above us.. I felt so alive! (I tried frog legs that night, and boy was it yummie!)

It was one of the best days of my life.
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We took our bikes and headed for the volcanos. We passed the most beautiful rice fields on our way that day. We drove into Ubud and saw all the beautiful temples and wood and stone carvings (Ubud is known for their endless wood and stone carving shops)
We stopped for refreshments and met some locals. I began talking to the old lady shop keeper. The catch was that neither of us spoke the same language, she said things in her language and I said things in mine, but we still understood one another. She watched Bollywood and kept mentioning how much she loved Sharukh Khan, it was adorable!

By the time we got to the volcano, our bikes gave out. We saw a huge truck (the one’s that transport cows) and decided to ask for a ride. The driver laughed and agreed. So there we were, standing where the cows usually do with our helmets, holding on for dear life. It was like a scene out of a movie. I felt so cool.  We walked, ate and chilled by the volcano. It was a rainy and dark drive back, we got into a little accident but we made it out alive. I love my friends.

The whole trip was just so amazing. I really felt like I was truly living my life. I faced many fears and it felt wonderful. There were many times I needed to pinch myself just to remind myself that I was really there, experiencing these things, seeing these things.

It’s not about the beaches like everyone thinks. It’s the endless rice fields, the ancient Hindu temples, the wood and stone carvings and the rich culture. The beautiful sunsets, the starlit skies, the volcanoes, the local children, the motor bikes rides and the company of good friends that made Bali so incredible. It was the best trip of my life.