There are moments on this trip where I read every second of every minute for days straight – and then at other times, not at all. There are book exchanges at homestays or small bookstores filled with stories that backpackers left behind. And so it goes; you end up reading whatever random book calls out to you and is a decent price, aka less than $2.

(photo via Flickr)

I have noticed that the last 3 books I have read all relate to India in some form or another, which is psyching me up to have at go at backpacking through that contradictory country. I have also noticed that I end up reading books about a place right before going there, only to wish that I still had that book in hand while in the place itself. Most of the books are fiction and by the time I finish, I am obsessed with the author, and desperately need to know the story of his/her life.

These are my reads so far:

(Don’t hate)

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I would love to hear any recommendations you have for books I should keep an eye out for.

One Word, Two Ways: Offering

By Farrell

August 18, 2012

One Word, Two Ways

1 Comment

You know how it goes…

When we were in Bali, Albert asked a taxi driver if he had ever been to Lombok. Lombok is an island to the right of Bali, and is rather close and straight forward to get to.

The taxi driver laughed and said, “No, no. We Balinese have trouble holding on to money and saving since we make so many offerings and there are so many ceremonies.”

(photo via here)

It is true. In Bali, some people make 35 offerings a day to the gods. I never really thought about how much money they spend on their offerings before. To sacrifice so much for something you believe in is not something I am accustomed to in my daily life. I wasn’t sure if it was a beautiful thing or if it made me sad.

This song, which a dear friend gave to me on a mix several years ago, randomly came up on my iTunes today. It has been a rough week to say the least for her, and for many of my friends actually. So I’m offering it back to her, and to each of you. xo

Gotta’ Wonder

By Farrell

August 17, 2012

Inspired & Inspiring, Travel

1 Comment

Doesn’t everything feel so intense when you are traveling? I guess it is unavoidable to sometimes wonder why we are on such a trip. Sometimes thoughts of home stab me. I am not really someone that likes to miss out on things. And there are times when I really question, what am I doing? I could take the rest of the money I saved for this trip and just go home.

Then there are other times when we end up in JUST the right place. The place that we need to be at that moment. I know my mom would say that you are always where we need to be and yeah, yeah, yeah, sure. Sometimes that place sucks. I hated Phuket for some reason. I wanted out of there the second we got a room. It felt like Daytona Beach or something. Really trashy.

I have realized that you really find out the things you like and don’t like when you travel like this. It takes effort to get to places and you have to be honest with yourself about what you are really trying to do with your time and money.

(image via Flickr)

So, I guess as I am writing this, I am realizing why I am on this trip and why I always wanted to take a trip like this – to get to know myself better. Also, as my Mommom would say, “Why not?”

Sometimes, the answer can be that simple.

Paradise

By Farrell

August 14, 2012

Travel

3 Comments

After a plane, two public “buses”, one VIP coach – or pimp mobile (see below), one tuk tuk and one small boat, we have arrived in the most beautiful place I have ever been.

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Railay Beach, though part of mainland Thailand, is only accessible by boat as it is surrounded by limestone cliffs. I couldn’t help but have great expectations as we busted our asses trying to get here. There were times when I mumbled, “this place better be amazing.” Oh and it is, It so truly and wonderfully is.

There are no cars, and barely any people as it is low season. Plus, the island where they filmed the movie “The Beach” is so close and most tourists go there. After we found our 7 dollar a night accomodations (it’s rugged) we walked around this place with our jaws dropped. I kept looking at everyone we passed with an usually unreturned expression of excitement.

(photo via here)

There are cliffs and caves and little paths and hikes to hidden lagoons all over this place. There are three beaches, one which you have to rock climb or swim to at low tide. There are caves to swim into and sunsets that will make you cry. There are a gang of monkeys that stole my Gatorade right out of my hand.

Because of the landscape, people are here mostly here to rock climb. It makes for a great, laid back atmosphere – and cool people around.

I am having trouble uploading my pictures, so bare with me on the minimual ones that I have included. As always, there is so much more to come.

One Word, Two Ways: Repeat

By Farrell

August 11, 2012

One Word, Two Ways

1 Comment

Every week we select a word and each base a post off that word. This week: Repeat.

I am not sure when or where I picked this song up, but for a couple weeks now, it’s been running through my head. It’s a ridiculous song (like most that get stuck in your head) and I can’t shake it. So I figured I would share it with you and maybe it will make my brain stop playing it over and over.

“Why do songs get inextricably stuck in our heads? Experts say the culprits are earworms (or ‘ohrwurms,’ as they’re called in Germany). No, they’re not parasites that crawl into your ear and lay musical eggs in your brain, but they are parasitic in the sense that they get lodged in your head and cause a sort of ‘cognitive itch’ or ‘brain itch’ — a need for the brain to fill in the gaps in a song’s rhythm.

When we listen to a song, it triggers a part of the brain called the auditory cortex. Researchers at Dartmouth University found that when they played part of a familiar song to research subjects, the participants’ auditory cortex automatically filled in the rest — in other words, their brains kept ‘singing’ long after the song had ended…The only way to “scratch” brain itch is to repeat the song over and over in your mind. Unfortunately, like with mosquito bites, the more you scratch the more you itch, and so on until you’re stuck in an unending song cycle.”

(More of this article at How Stuff Works)

REPEAT

Wash rinse repeat

Come on in and take your seat

Rinse ring spin

Do it all again

Soap stain, reframe

Pour the whole sink down the drain

Wake up

Make up

Pour more coffee in your cup

Rinse ring spin

Do it all again

Bath salt revolt

Anything for a jolt

Rinse ring spin

Do it all again

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*Image found here

Eight Limbs

By Farrell

August 8, 2012

Holistic Living, Travel

2 Comments

It had been awhile since I’d gone to a yoga class. It wasn’t until I saw The Yoga Barn in Bali that I felt a deep desire to go. Yoga Barn is the type of place you could only dream of. There are little bungalows, endless class offerings, a cafe overlooking the outdoor yoga studios and a spa — all with a jungle vibe in the middle of rice paddy fields.

In the class I went to, the teacher was talking to us about the eight limbs of yoga, the first of which is ahimsa – the practice of non-violence. I thought to myself, “I can start with that. Being kind to myself and others – causing no harm. That should be easy.”

Suddenly, I felt a stinging sensation on my cheek and slapped it. I looked at my hand and it was covered with the guts of a huge bug. I started to laugh hysterically. The only thing that would have completed the moment was if I looked to my right and my sister was there laughing with me.

(image found here)

One Word, Two Ways: Fruit

By Farrell

August 4, 2012

One Word, Two Ways

22 Comments

Each week we pick a word and both base a post off that word. This week’s word is Fruit.

I have been seeing this beautiful fruit called salak fruit all around the markets here in Ubud. The way they look is so inticing to me, I knew I wanted to try some. But it wasn’t until yesterday when a friend offered me one that I actually got a chance. I fell in love with the first bite! It is like a combination of lychee, potato and coconut pulp all in one. When you peel the salak, it looks like snake skin. They are amazing.

Salak (Salacca zalacca) is a species of palm tree (family Arecaceae) native to Indonesia. It is a very short-stemmed palm, with leaves up to 6 metres (20 ft) long; each leaf has a 2-metre long petiole with spines up to 15 centimetres (5.9 in) long, and numerous leaflets.

The fruit grow in clusters at the base of the palm, and are also known as snake fruit due to the reddish-brown scaly skin. They are about the size and shape of a ripe fig, with a distinct tip. The pulp is edible. The fruit can be peeled by pinching the tip, which should cause the skin to slough off so it can be pulled away. The fruit inside consists of three lobes, each containing a large inedible seed. The lobes resemble, and have the consistency of, large peeled garlic cloves. The taste is usually sweet and acidic, but its apple-like texture can vary from very dry and crumbly (salak pondoh from Yogyakarta) to moist and crunchy (salak Bali).

(Via Wikipedia)

Can one bad apple spoil the bunch? I was home cleaning a couple of nights ago and decided to play a few random episodes from the This American Life archive. The episode I stumbled upon first is called, “Ruining It for the Rest of Us”. It’s prologue told the story of a research experiment studying how one bad apple can affect a work environment.

The researchers found that not only was a bad worker unhelpful to the group but that once a jerk, slacker or depressive was introduced into the environment, the other group members quickly began to demonstrate the same bad behaviors. Tricky trick.

You can listen to the whole episode, or just he prologue here.

*Image of Veruca Salt in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory via here.

Noteworthy

By Farrell

August 3, 2012

Inspired & Inspiring, Travel

1 Comment

We have been traveling for almost a month and a half. Some random things we have learned throughout our journey:

~ The cheapest ticket is not always the right one.

~ There is always room to change. You have to find the courage first.

~ They don’t sell peanut butter everywhere.

~ If you ask someone how much something is, divide it by four and that’s how much it really costs.

~ It takes a couple of days to really get a feel for a place.

~ Not every meal has to be the most amazing meal you ever had. Sometimes you just need to eat.

~ Sometimes, out of nowhere, you will feel sad.

~ Relaxing and doing nothing is an art.

What’s On Our Plate?

By Farrell

July 31, 2012

Pictures, Travel

2 Comments

So many of my foodie friends have been asking about what we have been eating, so I thought I would tell you.

Since we arrived in Bali, we start the morning with a hunt for good, cheap coffee. They have what is called “Bali coffee” here. It’s pretty good – sweet and grainy, but smooth. It is kind of like drinking hot chocolate without the milk.

For breakfast, we might have something like Malta Toast, which is honey, avocado and sesame seeds. Interesting combo that brings back memories of the affair I once had with honey.

Around lunchtime we sometimes share a noodle dish, make a sandwich or grab a smoothie. They have fresh fruit and smoothie stands everywhere. Last night I had a mango banana smoothie and it was divine.

(Gado Gado with Peanut Sauce)

(Milkshake)

Almost every night, we head to the night market which consists of about ten vendors that BBQ, deep fry and cook fresh fish like Barracuda, Red and Black Snapper, Tuna, Prawns and Mahi Mahi.

(Fried Fish)

Albert has Mei Goreng almost every night. It is a traditional Indonesian noodle dish with egg and chicken. They also serve Gado Gado which is a vegetable medley with tempeh (!) and tufu.

(Mei Goreng)

Delish!

One Word, Two Ways: Moment

By Farrell

July 28, 2012

One Word, Two Ways

1 Comment

Every week we pick a word and each base a post off that word. Check out the whole series here. This week, the word is: Moment.

defining moment: a point at which the essential nature or character of a person, group, etc., is revealed or identified.

(Image found here)

I think this might be my favorite song of all time.

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Do you know how hard it is to actually live in the moment? This is something people spend a lifetime trying to achieve.

No matter where I am, I tend to get caught up in the same distractions. I have found that whether I am in Cleveland or New Zealand, I have the same insecurities, fears and distorted beliefs.

This picture is of a billboard in Wellington, New Zealand. I could not have seen it at a more perfect time. I think the key to this traveling experience for me will be to live in the moment as much as I can.

Two tips that have helped me:

1. Pay attention to your senses. When things become only sensory, you really feel the moment.

2. Focus on your breathing.

Try it out, whatdya got to loose?