day one in bali, continued
upon arriving at the hotel which the two australian gentlemen happily escorted me to, i found myself unable to open the door to my room and had to call the bell hop for help. i struck up a conversation with wayan, who asked me what the purpose of my visit was. i told him i wished to stay in a village, that i was hoping to stay in a hotel only one night and that i wanted to explore the country. after a brief, and seemingly nervous, pause he said, “you can come to my village with me… it’s a very beautiful place… i just have to ask my wife if it is okay.” i agreed and we made arrangements for me to switch hotels so that he could take me to his village himself two days from then.
the next day, the australian men invited me to join them for lunch and massages. excited to explore a bit of this overwhelmingly congested city, i agreed and found myself navigating my way through a city that was truly unlike any other i had ever encountered. although there were many modern, western looking stores and restaurants, the culture, feel and flora were distinctly non-western. my excitement grew as we passed countless warungs (small street-side restaurants and shops, often in makeshift buildings), ornate temples, people dressed in traditional clothing and thousands of motorbikes kicking up dust in their wake.
afterwards i bid farewell to my new australian friends and checked into a smaller boutique hotel just down the road where i met manorous, the chain-smoking, always smiling, thought-provoking, fun-loving, ever-caring manager of operations. we spent much of the evening and the next morning chatting about life, adventure, dreams and love.
