After my Australian interlude, which I realise now had lasted 11 weeks...(my how time flies when you are having fun!!) I found myself in Bali, having arrived July 13. Well it didn’t exactly happen by accident but as usual my plans came together fairly quickly once I finally decided it was time to go again. Thanks to Sarah from Flight Centre in Brisbane.
I decided on Bali as it was reasonably close to Australia, warm, just about everyone I know has been there and loved it. But not everyone, I do know a couple of people who don’t like it and they are people whose opinion I respect. I always say though, you have to try things for yourself so here I am.
The trip over with Pacific Blue (Virgin) was uneventful. Completely uneventful in fact, I still cant get used to paying all that money for an airfare, then having to pay for rubbish food, drink and entertainment. But I was happy about the fact that after a 6 hour flight and 2 hour drive I had escaped the Melbourne chill and felt warm again, in the sunshine, by the ocean at my new home for the next 2 months, Villa 3 at Bayside Villas, Candidasa! I was greeted at the airport by Kardek, a friendly Balinese man, dressed in traditional garb. He led me to a comfy air-conditioned van, in which we made our way north east to Candidasa.
I spent the first couple of days getting my bearings, checking out what was available in the little township that is Candidasa. Basically it consists of one road lined with hotels, restaurants, souvenir shops, the obligatory DVD/CD shop and a couple of small grocery shops. There are loads of motorbikes,or scooters really, that are the transport of choice. The funniest thing I have seen so far is a guy riding a bike with his girlfriend as a passenger behind. She was holding a corn cob in front of his mouth from behind so he could eat it while riding. Classic!!
I went to a local restaurant where you CAN get a meal for about AUD $2 and had a manicure and pedicure for about AUD $14 total so yes it is pretty cheap here. Again though, like Costa Rica, some weird things are expensive. The wine is about AUD $6 a glass, which isn’t too bad except the wine is rubbish! Cocktails are about AUD $8 which is cheap for cocktails by Australian standards but when you compare it to beer that is only $2 its expensive...or is it just that I am unemployed at the moment...maybe..:)!
So after a couple of days of floating around, settling into a routine and getting to know Brad, the owner here who is fun and a ‘can do’ kinda guy for the guests, I realise it is only 4 weeks until 10 August. What significance does this have, I hear you ask?? Well way back in February when I was in Costa Rica and dropping out of TEFL (teaching English to speakers of a foreign language) school I signed up to do the course online. You work at your own pace (and I use pace loosely) but have a 6 month deadline from the submission of your first unit. Mine was submitted on 10 February in a burst of enthusiasm. Having put in a huge effort, I had completed TWO units by the time I arrived in Bali! Now it would be wasteful not to complete the course so you know what that means...18 units in 25 days...eek!
I think I work better under pressure and expressed as much when I was offered an extension. I submitted Unit 3 on 17 July and today finished Unit 11, so I am making significant progress compared to the months between February and July...rah!
Hence there is not much to report as yet from my time here. A typical day is to get up and meditate, do yoga, go have breakfast in the restaurant here as it is included in the room rate, take a swim in the pool here, sunbake a little while reading, take care of any other business I have. I try to have started studying by 12noon and change it up a bit by moving between my room and the restaurant to work. I eat in between, maybe go for a walk but only if necessary to top up supplies of water, herbal tea or potato chips (a personal weakness!). I am doing much better with my other weaknesses .....wine (or alcohol in general) and chocolate, not having had any since arriving. No wait, I had a beer the day I arrived. The study takes most of the day but not too solidly.
While this may sound a little boring, I feel like I am achieving something by completing this course and hey, if you have to study, it might as well be somewhere you have never been before, right..:)??
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