In Reply to: memories posted by steph on Thursday, 5. February 2009 at 22:48 Bali Time:
I think the first time you go to Bali you either connect or you dont.
From the very first time i went to Bali I fell in love with everything, even saying to a friend "i WANT to live here" Yes the shopping is good but its the people, how they live etc. i enjoy really get to know them & have spent many nights sitting on the curb chatting with the locals (gosh, forbid if you do that in melbourne you're considered gutter trash), its thier smiley faces even though they dont have 2 cents to rub together & i love their easy going life style & manner.
My trip in march last year was one that was to be filled with both joy and sadness. I had booked all the tickets and made arrangements to travel with my two sisters. This was going to be our "last" sisters holiday together. Unfortunitaly by the time march rolled around my middle sister was too sick to travel with myself & my younger sister.
We called our ill sister "our butterfly", you wouldnt believe it, right from leaving MLB & arriving at SYD we saw butterflies, everywhere we went in Bali...you guessed it butterflies. it was like a sign that she was with us. while in bali i got a back tattoo...3 butterflies, one for each of us girls.
My younger sister and i still had our holiday in bali & enjoyed it, but had a lot of "if only sis was here" or "sis would of loved this".
We took many photos. a lot more than what you normally would, even if you were a first time traveller to bali.
spent two weeks in bali, back home in MLB for one week before travelling to NZ for two weeks to be by my ill sisters side.
she loved all the photos & got much delight from all the funny photos, you know the ones with people taking their ducks to market on their scooters etc or the whole family of 5 on a scooter or their dodgy building works.
went back to NZ in aug-sep for 5 weeks where my youngest & I nursed our beloved middle sister until she passed away in our arms.
before she passed we had so many convo's with her and told her we had both pick out a place in bali that we will both vist each time we vist. My youngest sister loves Uluwatu (she's a surf chick, so it figures) and thats the place she has picked. me, being brought up on the beach most of my life & loving sunsets, love Tanalot temple.
I am travelling back to Bali mid-end of march again this year. my first full day i am heading out to tanalot and letting ornamental butterflies go in the sea.
my youngest sister & i will also being going back in nov this year too.
there is something that connects your souls there, that is very much lacking in western way of life.
may peace, love & light follow your Steph