So I know that I have been away from writing my blog for a while but that just means that I have been having an incredible trip and did not want to take the time to document all I have been doing. So, basically traveling in Bali was a life changing experience for me. When I arrived at the airport I met this French guy Pierre who shared a cab with me from the airport - definitely saved me a couple of dollars and was really glad that we were able to meet. After the cab driver dropped me off at the hotel I knew I was in Paradise! The hostel (more like hotel) was incredible. "The Island" was literally a perfect paradise with more experienced travelers and Australian professionals looking for a cheaper holiday. The place had a pool in the centre and a rooftop bar and lounge areas. As soon as I walked in I jumped into the pool and met Matty and Renee (a guy). Matty is British and comes from a smaller city "Chester" outside of Manchester. He was traveling with two friends; Oz, and Aussie, who is seriously a world traveler and Shaun - a friend from back home who lives and works in Australia. I also met a beautiful Brazilian girl, Giuliana who you will later find out has been my little angel along this trip! The first night a huge group of us decided to go out for dinner at a Mexican Restaurant, Mojo's. After that we went out and had drinks at a restaurant where we shotgun beers and did tequila shots (my favourite). Then headed to the well know party spot - Skygarden , a five floor party area that has different music on different floors. We all had a blast and the next day we all decided to do it again. We had a blast again and really became a much closer group. The next morning before I even knew what was going on Giulana told me to get packed because we were going to Ubud with the boys - without hesitation I packed up my stuff and left along with them. This might have been the best decision of my life - it was the decision that allowed me to be free and really get to experience the life that I want to live.
When we arrived in Ubud the boys went to work to find a place and Giules and I sat at the bar with the bags and drank a "bintang." The boys found us an incredible place for something like $15 a day. The Ubud Lesari was a little piece of heaven. Ubud is a vibrant city with beautiful food and people. One of the days I was there I wandered into a mans yard thinking that it was a temple - honestly it was incredibly well kept, he was quite proud of his home and welcomed us in. I also manned up at went on a motorbike to tour the rice fields around Ubud which are incredible! Giules and I were motorbike superstars - well to be honest I just sat at the back of the motorbike while she drove but still. We stopped at one spot and played soccer with a group of kids - you can have the most amazing experiences in the most unexpected places. You just have to be willing to allow yourself be open to whatever comes.
After Ubud, Giules and I headed to Lombok with the boys - this was probably the most important thing for me. The boys reason for heading to Lombok was to climb the Volcano, Rinjani. I had no idea what I was getting myself into but I knew that I had to have this experience. Initially, I was worried that I would not be fit enough to keep up with the boys, but I figured that regardless this was going to be something for me. On the first day up the mountain, I knew I was going to be okay. I stuck to the front of the group with Shaun - and in the end I managed to beat all of the guys up the mountain - granted Shaun hurt his knee the first day so I will give him that :P We hiked for 9 hours that day in the hot heat, so literally we ate dinner and went to sleep but that was not after experiencing the most incredible sunset and being able to see the stars so clearly you can see the Milky way. We woke up at 6 the next morning to continue on our hike up to the Summit. We hit the rim around an hour later it was incredible, we could see the cone of the volcano and also the route that we would have to climb to get to the summit... at this point I was still feeling good about it! We continued to hike but this time we had to hike downhill for us to get to the lake and the hot springs! It was a nice walk down and the hot springs were a nice treat when we got there. After we finished lunch at the hot springs we headed out for a hard 3 hour trek uphill - like grouse grind style but not as well maintained up to basecamp 2! I am not sure what happened to me that day but I definitely overcame a lot! I decided to walk ahead of the group there was this fire inside of me and I wanted to let it out! I hiked up to the top in 2 1/2 hours really fast considering how long it takes most people and got to the top and felt this huge sense of pride. I knew that I was going to make it up to the top of Rinjani tomorrow and I was going to celebrate this huge achievement! Once again absolutely exhausted from the 10 hours of trekking we all headed off to bed early. Shaun, Matty and I all woke up early for the trek to the summit. Giules wasn't feeling well and so she decided to opt out. We started our trek up in the pitch black it was really scary, but I figured if I could reach the summit then I could get through anything in my life! The hike to the summit takes 3 hours and after the first hour I was freezing cold and really scared but I kept on going - at about the 2 hour mark and literally climbing up the mountain side that has a path 4 feet wide and step deathly cliffs on either side Jannis - one of the german guys in our group just about fell off the edge and I freaked out. I started to panic and held on to a rock and just cried. I honestly thought I was going to die - I was really scared and alone and my flashlight went out and was not working. Nathan, another guy in our group, grabbed my hand and told me we were going to do this and I followed him up the mountain to the top and once at the top I let out a gut wrenching scream - I had done this and NO ONE could take this away from me. The pride and sense of accomplishment that I felt that day will be something I will remember forever... that and that amazing sunrise and view I got to see!
People.... I am BACK finally after all I have been through the many tears and months of sadness I am back.
After Rinjani, we headed to Sengiggi, a cute little holidaying town and rested for a couple of days before heading to the beautiful GILI islands! Janene told me before I left that this was here favourite place in Asia and I could see why. It was a little piece of heaven. WAter that you can see for miles in and beautiful beaches with a great night life. We hung out there for 6 days - lounging, eating and drinking! When we left the Gili's I was really sad because I knew that this meant that after two and a half weeks with our group we were all going our separate ways. The boys were going to Java and Giules to Thailand.
I decided that my trip had to be extended because my new sense of self and happiness was something that I needed to continue to explore. I decided to come to Australia for a bunch a reasons: there was a cheap flight from Bali, I wanted to have a positive Australian experience etc etc.....
So.... HERE I AM NOW in Perth learning how to surf running along the beautiful seawall and chilling out with good people!
Let the journey continue... not sure where I will end up but I know that I have never felt this sense of happiness in my life!
Sarah Gayda gave me a journal when I graduated high school and on it's cover it said "Go Confidently in the direction of your dreams, live the life you've imagined." So that is what I am going to do... Live the life I have imagined - an amazing life!!!
So much love to you all,
Love,
C.
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