Bali – July 2023 (Part 1)

Bali – the land of spirituality, love, and kindness, where beauty surrounds you in the lush and emerald nature, the sweet scents of flowers and incense of offerings, and the ever-present smiles of the Balinese people. 

What a dream come true! I thank my cousins, our most gracious Haitian and Balinese guides, and the wonderful group of women with whom I had the privilege of sharing this journey. Their presence and ever-present good humor and laughter contributed to making this trip an unforgettable experience. I am ever grateful for the harmonious rapport built with each other and the love and friendship so readily offered. This trip had it all. 

But first, let’s talk about getting to Bali. It took us over 24 hours to reach our destination. We boarded a plane in Miami with a layover in Doha, Qatar, with sufficient time to tour the city, enjoy a Qatari dinner, and shop at the Souk. I enjoyed Doha. I found it more approachable and human than Dubai, and it was a special treat for this soccer fan to visit the sites of the latest World Cup of Soccer. From the little I saw of Doha, I experienced a place where beauty, art, and culture find an easy place among the luxury and opulent modernism of these new cities on the Persian and Oman Gulfs.

Visiting this part of the world offers a broader worldview where you can feel and experience the shifting balance of power that gave way to the BRICS coalition in a changing world where the Occident is not necessarily the evident dominant partner. When I travel to these places, I am more than convinced about the need to fund and modernize the infrastructures that support our way of life and allow for opportunities for our middle class to grow and thrive. 

Doha’s airport is phenomenal. It is a city on its own, with multiple restaurants, a park, and many stores, and where 30 million passengers go through annually. It is currently being expanded to accommodate 50 million travelers annually. It is a significant transportation hub that bridges the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia. There are quiet rooms where travelers suffering from jetlag can sleep and recover from long flights to their final destination.

It took us 14 hours to reach Doha from Miami, where we left early Monday evening on a Qatari flight. We flew over the Atlantic, Europe, the northern part of Africa, and Asia to arrive in Doha. After a shower and some sleep at the Airport club, we boarded another plane to Bali on a flight that would last another 10 hours. 

We landed in the Capital City, Denpasar, at 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday. We were on the other side of the globe and had traveled through time to reach our first destination, Ubud, where we arrived by bus one hour later, early Thursday morning. At the airport, we met Lenny, our Balinese guide, who would become, in no time, the latest member of our family and a comforting and efficient presence throughout the trip. There were no problems she could not solve. She was petite but was an absolute boss who acted as a general in charge of quite an undisciplined army of women exhausted but giddy at the thought of what awaited us on this trip.   

Our resort was located in the middle of rice fields. It is impossible, even in the darkness, to miss the beauty and serenity of the place. You can feel the vibration, noise, and scent of the vegetation, the flowers, and water everywhere. It had rained the entire day and evening before our arrival during the dry season. The rain had eroded the slope of the roadway, and part of the pavement had collapsed into a deep ravine. We exited the bus and walked the last half mile to the resort. Our adventure had started. 

When I finally reached my room and showered, I fell head first into bed, for we had an early morning excursion to the nearby temple and the environs with only five hours to recover before breakfast. 

Stay tuned for more about our time in Ubud.

To be Continued