Friends. What's up?
I, I-Town Petersen, will be in Edinburgh for the Fall, pending a criminal background check. This is no small feat for yours truly, so wish me luck, and I would like to thank you much much for your kind words when I was deciding between Parliament and NOLS oh so many weeks ago.
I will also be driving down to the states in late August with a wonderful, rad, smart, kind and generous friend from my childhood (also my prom date/prom queen. not to brag...). As such, I will be spending at least a few hours in Seattle, Portland, Salem, Eugene and Medford on my way to Ashland for OSF. It would be a tremendous understatement to say I am out of the loop, but judging from your kind letters and overwhelming blogs, it seems as if at least a few of you might still be in the USA. What I'm getting at here is I would very much like to see whomever I can before I ditch this country for 4+ months. I'll try and take responsibility and make some phone calls, but feel free to call me as well if you think you fit the profile. Finally, if anyone is game, Death Cab is closing Bumbershoot on Monday September 1, and I am almost definitely going.
If it's not already apparent, yes, Timm and I are back in civilization. We flew into Anchorage yesterday afternoon, and Timm is leaving for CA Sunday, so we have less than four days to experience as much of this seemingly boundless state as possible. And two of those days we will be playing in a Frisbee tournament. We will probably have to recount the many, many, MANY amazing stories we have to share separately, since we will be parting ways so soon. But rest assured, we are home safe, and quite content with our decision to spend seven and a half weeks in Naknek, AK. And while I can't speak for Timm, and he can't really speak for himself since he's sleeping like a champ, I am fairly confident he shares my desire to see as many of you fools as possible before leaving on his next big adventure.
Much love
I Town
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Monday, July 28, 2008
So many sea lions...so little time
Hola from Ecuador! I’ve been here for about a week and a half so I figured it’s about time that I let you all know what I’ve been up to… Where do I begin… I guess I should start at the beginning-the moment I stepped of the plane. I arrived at about 9 o’clock after a long day of traveling. After successfully passing though immigration (the first test of my Spanish speaking abilities) I was sucked into a herd of Ecuadorian families smiling and waiting for what I assumed to be some long lost family members. So…I guess that’s when I spotted the soon to be familiar face of my program director, Fernando. He swept me away from the crowd and into the care of my new host mother. However at this same moment I saw my oh so lovely and most wonderful friend Lucia waiting for me with a balloon in hand. It was so amazing to have such a great friend greeting me in her home country. Thanks Luci.
The next night Kailey, Gwen, and I went to “Gringolandia” with Lucia and her friends Josh and Vero. We drank una girafa (a bong shaped (like a cylinder) tap filled with Ecuadors prized Pilsner beer) and danced salsa. The next day we spent bicycling on a beautiful path that overlooks the city. With the help of some duck tape to keep Luci’s petal intact and several glasses of freshly squeezed juice we biked and astonishing 20 Km along the mountain side overlooking a river and through a series of tunnels. It was really fun!
I’ve spent the past week on the boat touring around the Galapagos. I saw iguanas, bluefooted boobies, albatross, dolphins, and many more fascinating animals. I was also able to swim with several sea lions, lots of fish, turtles, and sting rays. It was so beautiful and if I knew how to post lots of pictures I would, but technology is something I have yet to master. (maybe they’ll be on facebook or on my Picasso account)
Anyways, just a little update from Quito. I love you all very much!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
eh?
Hey, it's me again! I know, I'm a big loser. The cattle drive (All these years, I have never actually seen one) began today at the park. There were cowboys running a muck everywhere and the cows stampede felt like an all day earthquake. Anyways, it reminded me of a book I just read. The book is called The Log of a Cowboy written by Andy Adams. The descriptions of the land and people are great. I don't know if any one would like to read it but I think the author does a great job of telling about a little-known profession in a little-known part of the states. I know most of you have never been out to the Mid-west (why would you want to) but yeah, I dunno, I think it's a good story.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Hats Off to You
After 10 weeks of rarely speaking to any one, I feel like I'm losing my ability to speak english because I don't excersice it enough. Luckily, however, the first weekend I was in Kansas I ran into two boys that went to my highschool at the Wakarusa Music Festival. Of course, I hadn't seen them in two years but I still took down there numbers thinking that I wouldn't actually need them. I am so thankful for that glorious moment. It took me 8 weeks but I finally got desperate enough to call them. I have spent the last two amazing weekends at their house. They took me to hippie shoppes for clothes and music(in the middle of Kansas, who would of thunk?), bars, house parties in Kansas City and in general some cool spots. I still don't talk to any one for five days at a stretch but it is nice to socialize on the weekends and I think I am regaining my oral skills so that I am not a total hooligan when I go home next week. Anyways, this reminds me of a story of how I could have always had it worse--
Two summers ago I worked at the Cheetah Conservation Fund outside of Otijiwarongo, Namibia. I met a man named Andrew who was getting his doctorate based on research about jaguar and hyena behaviour from the University of South Africa. One slow day at the research station, we went to climb the plateau overlooking CCF so that he could track a jaguar that he had collared some weeks before with a corresponding GPS. I don't remember how the conversation began exactly but he began to tell me how he came to live at CCF. He told me that some months before he was living alone in a field house located in the South African savannah for 10 months conducting research. He didn't come in to contact with anyone for the entire 10 months and he had 14 more months until he finished his project. He said that it felt strange at first not speaking to any people but he slowly adapted to his loneliness. Finally, the tire to his truck blew when he was out tracking jaguars in the middle of the night. Without a spare, he ran many frightened miles back to his hut imagining that he had become helpless prey and that he would be ripped apart by the same jaguar he had been hunting moments ago. When he returned home, he decided it was time to look for different accomodations. He searched for a place and a person that could house his project for many weeks. He said that he almost gave up and had resigned himself to the fact that he could die in the African wilderness and no one would ever know. However, Laurie, the founder/programmer of CCF and also a terrific lady, agreed to let him stay at her research station for the remainder of his project after just one lucky phone call. Her research is so successful that CCF is bordering on a resort. He had the freedom to conduct his research but there were also alot of people living on the site so that he could keep his mind sharp.
Two summers ago I worked at the Cheetah Conservation Fund outside of Otijiwarongo, Namibia. I met a man named Andrew who was getting his doctorate based on research about jaguar and hyena behaviour from the University of South Africa. One slow day at the research station, we went to climb the plateau overlooking CCF so that he could track a jaguar that he had collared some weeks before with a corresponding GPS. I don't remember how the conversation began exactly but he began to tell me how he came to live at CCF. He told me that some months before he was living alone in a field house located in the South African savannah for 10 months conducting research. He didn't come in to contact with anyone for the entire 10 months and he had 14 more months until he finished his project. He said that it felt strange at first not speaking to any people but he slowly adapted to his loneliness. Finally, the tire to his truck blew when he was out tracking jaguars in the middle of the night. Without a spare, he ran many frightened miles back to his hut imagining that he had become helpless prey and that he would be ripped apart by the same jaguar he had been hunting moments ago. When he returned home, he decided it was time to look for different accomodations. He searched for a place and a person that could house his project for many weeks. He said that he almost gave up and had resigned himself to the fact that he could die in the African wilderness and no one would ever know. However, Laurie, the founder/programmer of CCF and also a terrific lady, agreed to let him stay at her research station for the remainder of his project after just one lucky phone call. Her research is so successful that CCF is bordering on a resort. He had the freedom to conduct his research but there were also alot of people living on the site so that he could keep his mind sharp.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Hawaii, Antarctica, and a road trip
My mom just left after coming up for a week-long visit. It was so fun to explore Exit Glacier and the Alaskan coastline with her, even though it was far too brief of a visit. I think that I talked more with her in her first 48 hours than I've ever talked in my life! I got a great snapshot of everyone back at home in Maine and what they've been up to.
Right now I'm wicked tired, but just wanted to say a quick hello. I'm thinking ahead to the trip home that'll be in mid-September... hopefully I'll road-trip back with my friend Krista from Illinois. She really wants to see Eugene, OR along the way, so a visit to Willamette might be in store. I'm really hoping to convince my brother Peter to join me for part of the trip at least. I miss him a lot and I'm hoping that we'll end up having at least one adventure together for our year off (he just graduated high school and is taking a gap year). He mentioned that he'll maybe go to Hawaii for a bit to work for some family friends, and I'm incredibly tempted to look for a job down there too. A lot of my current co-workers will be down there as well this winter, and it would be easy for me to get a job there with connections through boat people here, so it looks like I have a fun back-up plan if Antarctica doesn't work out. I do have a lot of paperwork and physical/dental requirements to complete before my trip down to the Ice is totally sealed in stone, so I'll keep you all posted. Hope all's going well with my friends across the country and around the world!
Right now I'm wicked tired, but just wanted to say a quick hello. I'm thinking ahead to the trip home that'll be in mid-September... hopefully I'll road-trip back with my friend Krista from Illinois. She really wants to see Eugene, OR along the way, so a visit to Willamette might be in store. I'm really hoping to convince my brother Peter to join me for part of the trip at least. I miss him a lot and I'm hoping that we'll end up having at least one adventure together for our year off (he just graduated high school and is taking a gap year). He mentioned that he'll maybe go to Hawaii for a bit to work for some family friends, and I'm incredibly tempted to look for a job down there too. A lot of my current co-workers will be down there as well this winter, and it would be easy for me to get a job there with connections through boat people here, so it looks like I have a fun back-up plan if Antarctica doesn't work out. I do have a lot of paperwork and physical/dental requirements to complete before my trip down to the Ice is totally sealed in stone, so I'll keep you all posted. Hope all's going well with my friends across the country and around the world!
Friday, July 18, 2008
any advice? consejos?
So Hilde arrived yesterday to Ecuador! "#$%/()==??¡?)&&JFTR%&%/! I am soo happy for that! She actually said she had spent 10 amazing days with Taylor in Montana... and Taylor... are you coming over in November??? that would be fantastic!
So Hilde arrived, a friend called Joshua came with me to meet her, we waited for a while... when I finally saw her I hugged her soo much I might have overdone it..hehehe beautiful anyway! She looked pretty tired, we wanted to kidnap her to go and experience some Quito nightlife but besides been tired she was just meeting her host family so... I did not insist. Anyway, she left for the Galapagos today and is back in a week! I am looking forward to seeing her.
Besides that, and after exciting times at the Galapagos and the subtropical rainforest I am finally doing an internship at the Communications office at the Ministry of Foreing Affairs. The first days were a bit boring as I did not have many assignments but now it is getting better. I had to do a couple of leaflets for a fair which will take place in Guayaquil next week. I basically had to say everything that the Government is doing for refuggees in Ecuador. I had to kind of rush and in 3 hours I learnt many interesting things, basically Ecuador has more than 90 000 Colombians from which 60000 are escaping extreme violence in their country. I learnt why is it so important to receive refuggees and understood better the status of a refuggee, they can actually work and live here which I find great taking into account the horrible situations they are coming from.
In general things are good I am going tomorrow on a long bike ride and a friend's bbq on sunday which should be good.
Well, something that is on my head, and I don´t know what to do about it and would love some advice... is the following: After I did that week of translation in the Galápagos for the University, I got asked if I wanted to work from this September until January there replacing a woman that is pregnant and that needs to leave because she is soon due (she organizes the groups of students that come and things like that...)Yesterday I talked again with the head of the university and he insists in me going, he is going to propose a salary and I might not even have to pay for rent as they have dorms there and I can stay in one.The alternative would be for me to do distance education this semester while I work there...I have always wanted to live in the Galapagos for a bit and I don´t know when else will I have the chance. However there are things like been present at Uni, sharing time with Hilde (that really has a lot of weight for me) and to just focus on finishing my degree...so... I just don´t know what to do!!!!any advice?
Les extraño mucho!!!
besos y abrazos siempre :)
So Hilde arrived, a friend called Joshua came with me to meet her, we waited for a while... when I finally saw her I hugged her soo much I might have overdone it..hehehe beautiful anyway! She looked pretty tired, we wanted to kidnap her to go and experience some Quito nightlife but besides been tired she was just meeting her host family so... I did not insist. Anyway, she left for the Galapagos today and is back in a week! I am looking forward to seeing her.
Besides that, and after exciting times at the Galapagos and the subtropical rainforest I am finally doing an internship at the Communications office at the Ministry of Foreing Affairs. The first days were a bit boring as I did not have many assignments but now it is getting better. I had to do a couple of leaflets for a fair which will take place in Guayaquil next week. I basically had to say everything that the Government is doing for refuggees in Ecuador. I had to kind of rush and in 3 hours I learnt many interesting things, basically Ecuador has more than 90 000 Colombians from which 60000 are escaping extreme violence in their country. I learnt why is it so important to receive refuggees and understood better the status of a refuggee, they can actually work and live here which I find great taking into account the horrible situations they are coming from.
In general things are good I am going tomorrow on a long bike ride and a friend's bbq on sunday which should be good.
Well, something that is on my head, and I don´t know what to do about it and would love some advice... is the following: After I did that week of translation in the Galápagos for the University, I got asked if I wanted to work from this September until January there replacing a woman that is pregnant and that needs to leave because she is soon due (she organizes the groups of students that come and things like that...)Yesterday I talked again with the head of the university and he insists in me going, he is going to propose a salary and I might not even have to pay for rent as they have dorms there and I can stay in one.The alternative would be for me to do distance education this semester while I work there...I have always wanted to live in the Galapagos for a bit and I don´t know when else will I have the chance. However there are things like been present at Uni, sharing time with Hilde (that really has a lot of weight for me) and to just focus on finishing my degree...so... I just don´t know what to do!!!!any advice?
Les extraño mucho!!!
besos y abrazos siempre :)
Don't drink the cooler water.....Hilde says
I got back from France about two weeks ago and spent a week in Eugene at the olympic trials. Being in France was a great experience. I wish some things could have been different, but overall it was great. My last night in Aix I swam in a huge fountain in the middle of the city before running back to my apartment soaking wet at 4 in the morning to catch my flight. It was great.
After the trials in Eugene, I drove to Montana and spent ten days with Hilde. One of the highlights was going to Glacier. We spent two nights camping and hiking, and it was like nothing else I had ever seen. The first night we camped at a campground that didn't have drinking water. So we were left with just one nalgene of water......and some cooler water. By that I mean the water that is left behind after the ice melts, which means there are many mysterious particles floating around..... But desperate times call for desperate means, so, to Hildes dismay and disgust, I started to boil the cooler water. In the end, it had a fishy taste to it that made me decide to just go thirsty. Maybe Hilde should post a picture or two of that fiasco...
When we got back to Helena I went on a run behind Hildes house and, of course, got lost. I ended up running almost an hour and a half in the middle of bear country. Luckily, I made it back alive and just before Hilde and her family started to worry. That afternoon we drove to Butte for the National Folk Festival. We listened to blues, rock, bluegrass, reggae, country, zydeco, and more. It was a blast.
The ten days I spent in Montana were better than I could have imagined. I'm so thankful to have been able to make the trip. Thanks Hilde.
I will be in New York for a week visiting my sister and some other friends before heading back to New Mexico for a bit. Good luck to everyone. I miss you all
Taylor
After the trials in Eugene, I drove to Montana and spent ten days with Hilde. One of the highlights was going to Glacier. We spent two nights camping and hiking, and it was like nothing else I had ever seen. The first night we camped at a campground that didn't have drinking water. So we were left with just one nalgene of water......and some cooler water. By that I mean the water that is left behind after the ice melts, which means there are many mysterious particles floating around..... But desperate times call for desperate means, so, to Hildes dismay and disgust, I started to boil the cooler water. In the end, it had a fishy taste to it that made me decide to just go thirsty. Maybe Hilde should post a picture or two of that fiasco...
When we got back to Helena I went on a run behind Hildes house and, of course, got lost. I ended up running almost an hour and a half in the middle of bear country. Luckily, I made it back alive and just before Hilde and her family started to worry. That afternoon we drove to Butte for the National Folk Festival. We listened to blues, rock, bluegrass, reggae, country, zydeco, and more. It was a blast.
The ten days I spent in Montana were better than I could have imagined. I'm so thankful to have been able to make the trip. Thanks Hilde.
I will be in New York for a week visiting my sister and some other friends before heading back to New Mexico for a bit. Good luck to everyone. I miss you all
Taylor
Thursday, July 17, 2008
COUNTRY FAIR!
Alright, so for all of you who have not been to the Oregon Country Fair, YOU MUST do whatever you can to get there (may be a little more complicated for those of you abroad) but I am TELLING you, it is totally magical.
Album 1 | Album 2
The two links above are pictures I took at the fair, the videos below are videos I took at the fair.
Dragon Parade that came out of no where.
A stick man who came to life.
Drum tower, projecting tribal beats the whole time.
Album 1 | Album 2
The two links above are pictures I took at the fair, the videos below are videos I took at the fair.
Dragon Parade that came out of no where.
A stick man who came to life.
Drum tower, projecting tribal beats the whole time.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Some Estonian music
The Estonian - now certainly former - hip-hop artist Chalice performed in the 14th century Jaani kirik (St. John's Church) in Tartu. I took a foggy clip with my phone which I shall post below as soon as Google finishes processing it. In the meantime, feel free to listen to the track as it appears on his album Systeemsysteem.
Update: here's the clip from my phone.
For the auditory types
...or for others whose schedule in summer leaves you lots of attention to listen to audio on an iPod or in cat, I thought to recommend a few amazing resources I've located.
First, somebody sent me a link to podcast called Speaking of Faith, noting that they played the Estonian composer Arvo Pärt's Summa (listen) as background. I've listened to a few shows featuring authors as distinct as Jacob Needleman, Thomas Moore, and Rick Warren, found all of them easy to follow and enlightening. Highly recommended.
Second, a blog entry, provocatively titled Skip the Tuition gives links to 100 full courses from a number of universities. I've been listening to Yale's intro to political philosophy, having read most of the texts in Gutterman's similar course. Other linked courses include Time, Money, and Love in the Age of Technology, Justice, and Death.
Monday, July 14, 2008
So,
Fun fact #1 about Bali: Every Balinese is given one of four names at birth, depending on the order they were born in. Say you are first to be born, then your name would be Wayan, second Made (mah-deh), third Neomin, and fourth Ketut. After the fourth born, the cycle starts all over again. If someone goes by a different name, it is most likely a nickname or they are from another island. I've met many Wayans, Mades, Neomins and Ketuts. It gets a bit confusing after a while for me, but they seem to get along just fine.
After we left our hotel in Legion and on our way to Ubud, we stopped at the Bali Bird Park. I've never seen so many beautiful and colorful birds before. In fact, I saw some birds that I had no idea existed. The majority of the park is open and the birds just hang out, fly about. We even got to hold some of them.
Ubud is much more appealing than Kuta and Legion. There are less tourists tromping around, more rain forest and rice fields. It is a very peaceful place and the perfect location for a villa. Felice's villa is so beautiful. It is set directly in the middle of rice fields. The dining room table on the front porch looks out over the rice fields. So, you get to enjoy your dinner and a scenic view. Her back yard is lush with tropical plants and (my favorite part) an infinity edged pool. In the northeast corner of the yard is the temple, at which daily offerings are made. Felice rescued a frog from all the construction in the back yard and created it's own little home--we call it the Frog Villa. We also have cecaks (chee-chaks), which are little lizards that crawl arounnd on the ceilings in the evening waiting for the bugs to come out. The bathrooms in the villa only have three walls, leaving them open to the outside. I can't complain, though. I get an amazing view while I'm showering. My favorite part of the bathrooms, is Felice's bathtub. Literally, it is a carved out and polished boulder. This place is like a palace. Felice has hired a couple people as house staff. Kadek is our maid of sorts. She is so petite, quiet and very sweet. She is a five star chef too! We also have a security guard, Dewa, who comes at night to lock up the house and watch it. I still haven't gotten used to the whole house staff thing. It's hard to adjust to having people do almost everything for you.
Fun Fact #2 about Bali: The Balinese only eat with their right hand, because their left is always uncleanly (you wipe/clean with your left). I've found this a bit difficult to adjust to, considering I'm left handed. I find myself cheating at every meal. Otherwise I just look silly (it's harder than you think).
The first night at the villa, Legut (the head of the construction), brought us a traditional Balinese meal. Wrapped in brown paper is rice with small toppings of chilies and meats. There are no utensils involved, so you just eat with your fingers (I ate with my right this time around). At first I was really enjoying the meal. Then my mouth, my lips and my throat started burning uncontrollably! I looked up and I recognized the agony on the faces of the other three. Whatever the rice was mixed with was VERY SPICY! I tried to finish it, but I thought it might burn a hole right through me. We ended up laughing histarically, because of our reaction to the food. The next morning we followed Felice on her usual morning walk into downtown. She took us through the monkey forest, where hundreds of monkeys were just hanging around, picking at each other and chasing the tourists. My favorite were the babies, clinging to their mamas. I felt like we were in the Wizard of Oz, following the yellowbrick road to the kingdom of Oz. We spent the rest of the day downtown, shopping and spaing. I was given a spice bath. Basically, the woman rubbed me down with the roots of different spices and wrapped me up like a mummy to marinate. I waited for about 20 minutes while the spices heated up. It actually got really hot, but was very relaxing.The next couple of days, we barely left the villa. You don't really need to. In Bali, doing nothing is possibly the best thing to do with your time. In fact, time hardly exists here. One evening, Felice dressed us in traditional Balinese wear--a sarong, plain shirt and sash around the waist--and took us to a Kechak dance (dance of the frogs). The chorus consisted of a large group of village men, with flowers in their hair, sitting in a circle and chanting. Different characters came out from the temple to dance, dressed in very detailed and vibrant costumes. When the dance was finished, all of the women--still made up and beautiful--hopped on their motorbikes and went home.
Another morning, we were all eating breakfast at a little cafe and the book Eat Pray Love came up, which is a book I read previously to coming to Bali. It is about a woman who spends four months in three different countries for three different reasons. Her last stop is Bali. In the book she stays in Ubud and describes all the different characters she meets there. Anyway, Felice mentioned that the healer described in the book actually ran the shop right up the street from where we were eating. I thought that was very cool, but was surprised when Felice insisted on taking us to see her right after our meal. We ended up spending the entire day with Wayan the Healer and her crew of mini healers. She spent some time "reading" each of us (including palm readings), to decide the remedies we needed to keep healthy. I don't want to lay out what she said about me in this email, but if your curious ask me when I get back. She eventually took us upstairs, where we were rubbed down with beetle leaf and given our first dose of medicine (herbs really). Then we were given long massages with hands and heated limes. During this whole experience, I met Wayan's daughter, Titu, whom is mentioned in the book. She is a very beautiful little girl. Despite my beliefs about some of the things we had done, the day was an experience I have never had and will probably never have again.
Then next day, we went on an Elephant Safari and whitewater rafting. We rode elephants for about 45 minutes through the jungle, which was a very bumpy experience. Our elephant played the harmonica. My favorite part was feeding them. They know you have food, so their trunks just search you up and down. We got to feed the babies too, who were much less disciplined and smothered us. They'll get the food, even if it's in your mouth. After we finished with our elephant friends, we walked down 400 concrete steps from the top of the gorge to the Ayung River at the bottom (Ayung means beautiful in Bahasa). There we met Neomin, who would be or river guide for the day. Rafting through the jungle was phenomenal. I felt like I was Indiana Jones or something. We saw tropical birds and stone carving son the walls that weren't covered with lush vegetation. We swam a little too and stood under waterfalls. When the trip was over, we had to walk up the hill 200 steps. On our way home, Wayan picked us up some Arak, which is the Balinese form of moonshine. Interestingly, it comes only in plastic bags, not bottles. Felice invited her friends Rex, Catherine and Sandi over--three very cool cats--and we had an Arak Attack party (no pun intended). We had some great conversations but Meg, Katie and I pooped out before the adults (around 9...Selena, you would be so ashamed).
The following day was our July 5th, but July 4th in the U.S. So, we had to celebrate somehow. We couldn't find any sparklers, so we decided to try something Felice had been raving about--ear candles. What are ear candles? Well, basically you lay on one side and the lady lights what looks like a really skinny ice cream cone made of some kind of hide. Then she sticks the non lit end in your ear and you wait while it burns down towards your head. Meanwhile, it sounds like fireworks in your head, crackling and popping. Afterward, they unwrapped each of our ear candles and let us gawk at the wax that came out of them. Sandi had the most. Quite an original Independence Day celebration, I'd say.
A few days later we left again for the Melasti in Legion, because Felice was flying out. The evening before she left, we had a farewell dinner and group bonding on the beach.Felice spent the majority of her last day at the spa, while we swam in the ocean and laid on the beach. Rex and Catherine drove up with Legut to have a drink with us and drive Felice to the airport. Now it's just the three of us monkeys left here in Bali. We went out to experience Kuta's night life again and had a great time and made lots of friends. Our night may have ended around 5 or 6 am. The next day, we lay on the beach in recovery and then went boogieboarding in the huge waves. Something I can do! That night we went out one last time, before we had to leave in the morning. Though it was fun, we ran into a lot of uncomfortable situations.
On our way back to the villa, Wayan took us to the zoo. At first I was annoyed that I was paying $20 to go to a zoo, but I soon found out it was money well spent. All of the animals were very close, and moving about. I saw lions and tigers and bears! I also saw a black leopard (which looks like a jaguar with faint spots) and a GIANT orangutan, who spit at everyone. Rightly so, I think. I wouldn't be happy locked up in there, either. The crocodiles were enormous! We actually got to hold a baby croc.
The next couple days were spent recuperating from lack of sleep at the villa. One night, we found the key to the motorbike parked in the garage and braved the Bali highways. Katie speaks Vespa, so she was pretty well versed with the motorbike. I trusted her enough to drive us to a jazz bar, where we listened to Bali jazz all night. One of the traditional instruments is the gamelan, which looks sort of like a marimba and is played with something resembling a hammer. The gamelan in this band was a very nice touch. Overall, the band was very impressive.
The last couple of days we spent at very peaceful resort in Pemuteran, a coastal town in northeast Bali. On our way, we stopped in Lovina to see if we could swim with dolphins. We hadn't even gotten out of the car, when a flock of locals surrounded us trying to sell us this and that. The dolphin thing was a miss and we decided just to head to our hotel. The sand on the beach in Pemuteran is created by volcanic rock and is black. Mixed in the sand is all kinds of broken off coral. The water is turquoise blue. Our first night, we hiked up a small mountain behind the hotel. We reached the temple at the top and watched the sunset. From the top, we could see miles and miles of Bali's valleys and the volcanoes on the island of Java. That hike is probably one of my favorite parts of this trip so far. The next day, we had a boat take us out to the reefs so we could snorkel. While our first adventure snorkeling was amazing, this time was phenomenal. The water was crystal clear and the life on the reef was so colorful. However, I started to notice that every now and then I would get a twinge of pain somewhere on my body--kind of like a bee sting. Come to find out, there were tons of tiny jellies floating all around me and stinging me. I noticed they were getting the other girls as well. Nonetheless, snorkeling at those reefs was unbelievable. We basically spent our time at Pemuteran on the beach, relaxing. Our last morning, Katie left to go horseback riding through the jungle and on the beach, and Meg and I went snorkeling again. This time we went just of the beach. I forgot to mention that Indonesia heads the world's reef restoration projects and the largest, most productive one was right off our beach in Pemuteran. Reefs everywhere have been deteriorating and bleaching due to human activity, pollution, dynomite, global warming and other reasons. In Pemuteran, a non-profit has placed metal structures where the reef is dying that are hooked up to a low voltage cable. This structure releases energy, which attracts the coral and gives them more energy to live. Of course, this attracts all the species that live in and off of the coral. Like I said, this is the largest and most productive reef restoration project in the world, and it survives solely on donations. It has no funding. Pretty impressive I think. Anyway, Meg and I wanted to check out these structures, so we snorkeled again right off the beach. It was very cool to see them in action, but the jellies were worse in this part and we were being stung left and right. So, we got out pretty quickly.
Now, I am back at the villa with about a week to go and more adventures in store. Sorry about the rambling. It's late and I am tired. I hope home is happy (or wherever you are) and I miss you all!
Love Meg
P.S. One more fun fact about Bali: the elite class here are called the Kok. Fitting?
Fun fact #1 about Bali: Every Balinese is given one of four names at birth, depending on the order they were born in. Say you are first to be born, then your name would be Wayan, second Made (mah-deh), third Neomin, and fourth Ketut. After the fourth born, the cycle starts all over again. If someone goes by a different name, it is most likely a nickname or they are from another island. I've met many Wayans, Mades, Neomins and Ketuts. It gets a bit confusing after a while for me, but they seem to get along just fine.
After we left our hotel in Legion and on our way to Ubud, we stopped at the Bali Bird Park. I've never seen so many beautiful and colorful birds before. In fact, I saw some birds that I had no idea existed. The majority of the park is open and the birds just hang out, fly about. We even got to hold some of them.
Ubud is much more appealing than Kuta and Legion. There are less tourists tromping around, more rain forest and rice fields. It is a very peaceful place and the perfect location for a villa. Felice's villa is so beautiful. It is set directly in the middle of rice fields. The dining room table on the front porch looks out over the rice fields. So, you get to enjoy your dinner and a scenic view. Her back yard is lush with tropical plants and (my favorite part) an infinity edged pool. In the northeast corner of the yard is the temple, at which daily offerings are made. Felice rescued a frog from all the construction in the back yard and created it's own little home--we call it the Frog Villa. We also have cecaks (chee-chaks), which are little lizards that crawl arounnd on the ceilings in the evening waiting for the bugs to come out. The bathrooms in the villa only have three walls, leaving them open to the outside. I can't complain, though. I get an amazing view while I'm showering. My favorite part of the bathrooms, is Felice's bathtub. Literally, it is a carved out and polished boulder. This place is like a palace. Felice has hired a couple people as house staff. Kadek is our maid of sorts. She is so petite, quiet and very sweet. She is a five star chef too! We also have a security guard, Dewa, who comes at night to lock up the house and watch it. I still haven't gotten used to the whole house staff thing. It's hard to adjust to having people do almost everything for you.
Fun Fact #2 about Bali: The Balinese only eat with their right hand, because their left is always uncleanly (you wipe/clean with your left). I've found this a bit difficult to adjust to, considering I'm left handed. I find myself cheating at every meal. Otherwise I just look silly (it's harder than you think).
The first night at the villa, Legut (the head of the construction), brought us a traditional Balinese meal. Wrapped in brown paper is rice with small toppings of chilies and meats. There are no utensils involved, so you just eat with your fingers (I ate with my right this time around). At first I was really enjoying the meal. Then my mouth, my lips and my throat started burning uncontrollably! I looked up and I recognized the agony on the faces of the other three. Whatever the rice was mixed with was VERY SPICY! I tried to finish it, but I thought it might burn a hole right through me. We ended up laughing histarically, because of our reaction to the food. The next morning we followed Felice on her usual morning walk into downtown. She took us through the monkey forest, where hundreds of monkeys were just hanging around, picking at each other and chasing the tourists. My favorite were the babies, clinging to their mamas. I felt like we were in the Wizard of Oz, following the yellowbrick road to the kingdom of Oz. We spent the rest of the day downtown, shopping and spaing. I was given a spice bath. Basically, the woman rubbed me down with the roots of different spices and wrapped me up like a mummy to marinate. I waited for about 20 minutes while the spices heated up. It actually got really hot, but was very relaxing.The next couple of days, we barely left the villa. You don't really need to. In Bali, doing nothing is possibly the best thing to do with your time. In fact, time hardly exists here. One evening, Felice dressed us in traditional Balinese wear--a sarong, plain shirt and sash around the waist--and took us to a Kechak dance (dance of the frogs). The chorus consisted of a large group of village men, with flowers in their hair, sitting in a circle and chanting. Different characters came out from the temple to dance, dressed in very detailed and vibrant costumes. When the dance was finished, all of the women--still made up and beautiful--hopped on their motorbikes and went home.
Another morning, we were all eating breakfast at a little cafe and the book Eat Pray Love came up, which is a book I read previously to coming to Bali. It is about a woman who spends four months in three different countries for three different reasons. Her last stop is Bali. In the book she stays in Ubud and describes all the different characters she meets there. Anyway, Felice mentioned that the healer described in the book actually ran the shop right up the street from where we were eating. I thought that was very cool, but was surprised when Felice insisted on taking us to see her right after our meal. We ended up spending the entire day with Wayan the Healer and her crew of mini healers. She spent some time "reading" each of us (including palm readings), to decide the remedies we needed to keep healthy. I don't want to lay out what she said about me in this email, but if your curious ask me when I get back. She eventually took us upstairs, where we were rubbed down with beetle leaf and given our first dose of medicine (herbs really). Then we were given long massages with hands and heated limes. During this whole experience, I met Wayan's daughter, Titu, whom is mentioned in the book. She is a very beautiful little girl. Despite my beliefs about some of the things we had done, the day was an experience I have never had and will probably never have again.
Then next day, we went on an Elephant Safari and whitewater rafting. We rode elephants for about 45 minutes through the jungle, which was a very bumpy experience. Our elephant played the harmonica. My favorite part was feeding them. They know you have food, so their trunks just search you up and down. We got to feed the babies too, who were much less disciplined and smothered us. They'll get the food, even if it's in your mouth. After we finished with our elephant friends, we walked down 400 concrete steps from the top of the gorge to the Ayung River at the bottom (Ayung means beautiful in Bahasa). There we met Neomin, who would be or river guide for the day. Rafting through the jungle was phenomenal. I felt like I was Indiana Jones or something. We saw tropical birds and stone carving son the walls that weren't covered with lush vegetation. We swam a little too and stood under waterfalls. When the trip was over, we had to walk up the hill 200 steps. On our way home, Wayan picked us up some Arak, which is the Balinese form of moonshine. Interestingly, it comes only in plastic bags, not bottles. Felice invited her friends Rex, Catherine and Sandi over--three very cool cats--and we had an Arak Attack party (no pun intended). We had some great conversations but Meg, Katie and I pooped out before the adults (around 9...Selena, you would be so ashamed).
The following day was our July 5th, but July 4th in the U.S. So, we had to celebrate somehow. We couldn't find any sparklers, so we decided to try something Felice had been raving about--ear candles. What are ear candles? Well, basically you lay on one side and the lady lights what looks like a really skinny ice cream cone made of some kind of hide. Then she sticks the non lit end in your ear and you wait while it burns down towards your head. Meanwhile, it sounds like fireworks in your head, crackling and popping. Afterward, they unwrapped each of our ear candles and let us gawk at the wax that came out of them. Sandi had the most. Quite an original Independence Day celebration, I'd say.
A few days later we left again for the Melasti in Legion, because Felice was flying out. The evening before she left, we had a farewell dinner and group bonding on the beach.Felice spent the majority of her last day at the spa, while we swam in the ocean and laid on the beach. Rex and Catherine drove up with Legut to have a drink with us and drive Felice to the airport. Now it's just the three of us monkeys left here in Bali. We went out to experience Kuta's night life again and had a great time and made lots of friends. Our night may have ended around 5 or 6 am. The next day, we lay on the beach in recovery and then went boogieboarding in the huge waves. Something I can do! That night we went out one last time, before we had to leave in the morning. Though it was fun, we ran into a lot of uncomfortable situations.
On our way back to the villa, Wayan took us to the zoo. At first I was annoyed that I was paying $20 to go to a zoo, but I soon found out it was money well spent. All of the animals were very close, and moving about. I saw lions and tigers and bears! I also saw a black leopard (which looks like a jaguar with faint spots) and a GIANT orangutan, who spit at everyone. Rightly so, I think. I wouldn't be happy locked up in there, either. The crocodiles were enormous! We actually got to hold a baby croc.
The next couple days were spent recuperating from lack of sleep at the villa. One night, we found the key to the motorbike parked in the garage and braved the Bali highways. Katie speaks Vespa, so she was pretty well versed with the motorbike. I trusted her enough to drive us to a jazz bar, where we listened to Bali jazz all night. One of the traditional instruments is the gamelan, which looks sort of like a marimba and is played with something resembling a hammer. The gamelan in this band was a very nice touch. Overall, the band was very impressive.
The last couple of days we spent at very peaceful resort in Pemuteran, a coastal town in northeast Bali. On our way, we stopped in Lovina to see if we could swim with dolphins. We hadn't even gotten out of the car, when a flock of locals surrounded us trying to sell us this and that. The dolphin thing was a miss and we decided just to head to our hotel. The sand on the beach in Pemuteran is created by volcanic rock and is black. Mixed in the sand is all kinds of broken off coral. The water is turquoise blue. Our first night, we hiked up a small mountain behind the hotel. We reached the temple at the top and watched the sunset. From the top, we could see miles and miles of Bali's valleys and the volcanoes on the island of Java. That hike is probably one of my favorite parts of this trip so far. The next day, we had a boat take us out to the reefs so we could snorkel. While our first adventure snorkeling was amazing, this time was phenomenal. The water was crystal clear and the life on the reef was so colorful. However, I started to notice that every now and then I would get a twinge of pain somewhere on my body--kind of like a bee sting. Come to find out, there were tons of tiny jellies floating all around me and stinging me. I noticed they were getting the other girls as well. Nonetheless, snorkeling at those reefs was unbelievable. We basically spent our time at Pemuteran on the beach, relaxing. Our last morning, Katie left to go horseback riding through the jungle and on the beach, and Meg and I went snorkeling again. This time we went just of the beach. I forgot to mention that Indonesia heads the world's reef restoration projects and the largest, most productive one was right off our beach in Pemuteran. Reefs everywhere have been deteriorating and bleaching due to human activity, pollution, dynomite, global warming and other reasons. In Pemuteran, a non-profit has placed metal structures where the reef is dying that are hooked up to a low voltage cable. This structure releases energy, which attracts the coral and gives them more energy to live. Of course, this attracts all the species that live in and off of the coral. Like I said, this is the largest and most productive reef restoration project in the world, and it survives solely on donations. It has no funding. Pretty impressive I think. Anyway, Meg and I wanted to check out these structures, so we snorkeled again right off the beach. It was very cool to see them in action, but the jellies were worse in this part and we were being stung left and right. So, we got out pretty quickly.
Now, I am back at the villa with about a week to go and more adventures in store. Sorry about the rambling. It's late and I am tired. I hope home is happy (or wherever you are) and I miss you all!
Love Meg
P.S. One more fun fact about Bali: the elite class here are called the Kok. Fitting?
Friday, July 11, 2008
untitled
I have never been a morning person but I can now say that I enjoy watching the sunrise. I begin my days at five every day so that I can be at work by the time the sun is peaking over the hills. The crack of dawn happens to be when the birds are the most active. So I wanted to share with you all one beautiful sunrise over the tall-grass national prairie preserve. I highly suggest a live viewing.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Monday, July 7, 2008
San Fransiscsup!
Hey yall!
I just returned to SLE (salem's airport code) Last night after a big ole trip to the bay area with the Selinas (Tom Salina and Selena Levy) and it was GREAT! Got to hang with Emily Cafaro and Chris Monaco, as well as see my aunt who lives in Oakland etc... IT WAS AN EPIC TRIP! There were a few sea lions (note, not nearly as many depicted in that photograph), a ton of tourists, some fireworks and a lot of Dead Heads!
Tom is a beast of a man and drove the entire length of the trip.
As soon as we crossed into Cali, we could see the haze of the wild fires.
We did a lot in the city, Haight/Ashbury, Fisherman's Wharf, Golden Gate Park, Chinatown, Amoeba Music, Telegraph in Berkely, Chris took us to Bakesale Betty's for an amazing chicken sandwich...
Overall, this was a funloaded trip... I can't do it justice with this post, I will upload pics onto the facebook in the near future. Miss you all. samm
I just returned to SLE (salem's airport code) Last night after a big ole trip to the bay area with the Selinas (Tom Salina and Selena Levy) and it was GREAT! Got to hang with Emily Cafaro and Chris Monaco, as well as see my aunt who lives in Oakland etc... IT WAS AN EPIC TRIP! There were a few sea lions (note, not nearly as many depicted in that photograph), a ton of tourists, some fireworks and a lot of Dead Heads!
Tom is a beast of a man and drove the entire length of the trip.
As soon as we crossed into Cali, we could see the haze of the wild fires.
We did a lot in the city, Haight/Ashbury, Fisherman's Wharf, Golden Gate Park, Chinatown, Amoeba Music, Telegraph in Berkely, Chris took us to Bakesale Betty's for an amazing chicken sandwich...
Overall, this was a funloaded trip... I can't do it justice with this post, I will upload pics onto the facebook in the near future. Miss you all. samm
Question...
No offense, but some of the nicknames on here are throwing me off. Who might bebopper be? Or anyone else not using their name in their title? Thanks!!
Saturday, July 5, 2008
in the FUTUUURRREEE
Hey everyone, hope y'all had a fantabulous Independence Day! Mine was pretty sweet...I got paid TIME AND A HALF at my wonderful job, so it was RAAAD.
OK so here is a question for THE FUTURE:
My birthday is Aug. 5th and I would just LOVE to see some of you. So write back letting me know if you will be either near So. Oregon or somewhere cooler (yeah good luck with that) that is only a car ride away. Because I want to meet up!
OK so here is a question for THE FUTURE:
My birthday is Aug. 5th and I would just LOVE to see some of you. So write back letting me know if you will be either near So. Oregon or somewhere cooler (yeah good luck with that) that is only a car ride away. Because I want to meet up!
Thursday, July 3, 2008
On a SunBow
So, I've finally made it to the farm. I've been there for 4 days now, and it has been great so far. I'm tenting out under a sweet tree right next to the rasberry bushes that I can freely pick and eat from. I share a community kitchen with 5 other people who are living on the farm actually all together there are 8 people living on the farm. It is a crazy mix of people but for the most part we seem to be getting along.
My experience on the farm is different than what I expected. I spend the morning helping out on the farm: weeding the tomato plants, fertilizing with fish meal (my stuff now smells like fish), working the tractor etc. My afternoons however are spent in a class type setting. We sit on his porch and he lectures and gives me lots of books to read and look at. It is great because I can basically ask him anything I want about farming, and he is sort of forming a base for my knowledge about farms and how they operate.
The pace of farm life seems very different. Just coming into town the world seems to move much faster. On the farm there are always things that need to be done, but there doesn't seem to be sense of urgency, maybe just a sense of tiredness. I don't know. I've only been there for a bit, but so far so good.
I hope everyone continues to have amazing life adventures.
My experience on the farm is different than what I expected. I spend the morning helping out on the farm: weeding the tomato plants, fertilizing with fish meal (my stuff now smells like fish), working the tractor etc. My afternoons however are spent in a class type setting. We sit on his porch and he lectures and gives me lots of books to read and look at. It is great because I can basically ask him anything I want about farming, and he is sort of forming a base for my knowledge about farms and how they operate.
The pace of farm life seems very different. Just coming into town the world seems to move much faster. On the farm there are always things that need to be done, but there doesn't seem to be sense of urgency, maybe just a sense of tiredness. I don't know. I've only been there for a bit, but so far so good.
I hope everyone continues to have amazing life adventures.
Kahlil Gibran on Children
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are set forth.
I know that this excerpt is not directly relevant to any of your posts, but I think that it is beautiful so I wanted to share it anyway. If you haven't already read The Prophet, I recommend adding it to your summer reading lists. It has been on my shelf since my aunt gave it to me for my high school graduation in '05, and I finally decided to open it up before work today. The simplicity with which Gibran articulates his incredible wisdom allows easy access to his deep analysis of humankind.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are set forth.
I know that this excerpt is not directly relevant to any of your posts, but I think that it is beautiful so I wanted to share it anyway. If you haven't already read The Prophet, I recommend adding it to your summer reading lists. It has been on my shelf since my aunt gave it to me for my high school graduation in '05, and I finally decided to open it up before work today. The simplicity with which Gibran articulates his incredible wisdom allows easy access to his deep analysis of humankind.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Guess what?
I'm going to the Ice!
Yesterday I was awoken by a job offer over the phone for a position as a dining attendant in Antarctica! Not just as an alternate in case someone drops out, like I had been told was all that was left this late into the hiring- a primary position, where I will definitely be going! I'll be at McMurdo Station from the beginning of October through the middle-end of February, and then hopefully I'll be bumming around New Zealand for a bit after that.
Sorry, mom- I guess I still can get a little farther from home.
Yesterday I was awoken by a job offer over the phone for a position as a dining attendant in Antarctica! Not just as an alternate in case someone drops out, like I had been told was all that was left this late into the hiring- a primary position, where I will definitely be going! I'll be at McMurdo Station from the beginning of October through the middle-end of February, and then hopefully I'll be bumming around New Zealand for a bit after that.
Sorry, mom- I guess I still can get a little farther from home.
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