On Manifesting.........................

Many times on my journey, the conversation has turned to 'manifesting'...........in other words, the subject is how to attract that which you desire into your life.  I often say "I am a 'Master Manifester'".....now I say this jokingly......not taking myself that seriously, but honestly, the record shows I AM pretty good at it..................

I met a new friend in Bali who calls herself an Intuitive Healer...............As we were discussing this idea, she was impressing the importance and meaning of words to me.  I exclaimed, as I do often, that "I am on an Amazing Journey".  She said, "Of course you are. I have heard you say that several times. You are attracting it by saying that.".  She also went on to say that my journey was "A Maze with Zing".  And that it is.  This is not the first time I have had had the importance and deeper meaning of the words we use impressed upon me...................."Elaine, are you there?"

And as I further pondered this idea..............I realized that when I'm not saying, "I'm on an Amazing Journey", I'm saying, "I'm SO Lucky"........or if I feel 'Lucky' is a word I should not be using..........for some reason it is often thought too trite.........I say, "I am SO Fortunate", or "SO Blessed", or "I Love My Life"...............you get the idea......and that seems to manifest more of it.   It's so interesting how that works............and I guess the trick of it...........if it is a trick............or the 'key' to it is, that I really BELIEVE it.  I am SOOOOOOOOOO Grateful......so Blessed.......blah, blah...........and on and on and on it goes.  Believe me it has not always been this way............I've had my fill of manifesting the undesirable stuff too.

And that reminds me of my last post.........the part where when asked if I'm traveling "Alone"...I say, " I'm meeting friends".............well that has happened again and again......meeting Friends.......but they are NEW friends.........and I am so Blessed.  For all my Friends....................I am so Blessed.

Temple Bliss................

The last two days I have spent more time on the back of a motor bike than I have in my entire life up until now.....

The last two mornings I had the privilege of being in these temples......long before the tourists arrived.......






Goa Gajeh, The Temple of the Elephant Cave

Tirta Empul, The Temple of the Holy Spring





They were my Secret Gardens for those mornings.....





And in the afternoon yesterday.............I was taken for a 4 hour tour (sounds like the Professor and Mary Ann)....................my guide Nyoman and Me...........on motorbike...........

To see rice fields, a volcano, a coffee farm and an ancient temple............the afternoon ride was fun......but the sights were more touristy than I fancy...........I'm sad to admit, taking the time to upload those photos is a reminder of that I don't want to relive at this moment.

And it has me wondering about the three words every Balinese person can speak......"Where you from?" usually asked by someone trying to aggressively sell you something, or just as a greeting ....as though the answer has some meaning.......and the second most disturbing question to me, often asked.........."are you traveling alone?"  "Are you kidding?!" I think.  "NO", I reply.........."I'm meeting friends".........I say a little too exasperated.  It's hard to fly under the radar answering that question honestly.

I say all that knowing it is how these people make a living and somehow they learned it is good and acceptable behavior..........It just does not feel good being on the receiving end of it.  Understatement.

Also, I want to thank all those who asked if I was OK given the natural disasters happening in this part of the world............Of those locals I've consulted.........we are no where near.........all good here............

A Green Day............

There is a point to feeding your Soul first......................It feels SO right!

Meet Green Tara.........the Spirit of my new singing bowl.............

"The Green Tara is a female bodhisattva representing enlightened activity, and the ability to overcome fears, anxieties, and dangers.  In her mother goddess form, the Green Tara reaches out a compassionate hand to release sentient beings from pain and suffering and to invite them to an existence of bliss and happiness."




Works for Me...........................

About Color...............

Yesterday I shopped for my Soul..............

I gathered a Beautiful Handwoven Scarf, a Quartz Crystal and a Bell.......the last from a shop called Rainbow Spirit .............of course it was.

As I laid out my cache, the colors were not lost on me...............

.

Perhaps today will be a Green, Blue and Violet day...

Non Attachment....................

Every day I see Beautiful Women making 'Offerings' for Ceremony....................

They seem to work effortlessly, with rhythm, balance, cooperation.............and Serenity................



These beautiful offerings last for one day only.........made every single day in one exquisite form or another......with materials bought fresh at the market each morning.

Another lesson in non attachment to what we make and for what purpose.................

Monkey Business.....................

This morning I took a walk in the Monkey Forest...............

Begging for a Caption.............

Only sees a Little Bit of Evil?

Message to the Universe..................

I booked my trip to Bali on the spur of the moment............my guides as my guide...........

"To Ubud", they said................"JUST DO IT!!!"

So I did.  Not knowing where I'd stay........and really no time to think about it with the rest of my journey spinning in my head.  I was also advised not to worry about it.  So I did not.

But then a message came to "book early" and it was already late..... and as a result, all the recommended places to stay were fully booked.

Yet somehow I was led to this little homestay, I now call home for a bit.  A lovely place. But very rustic......the good news is it is clean and nice and safe and in the center of this tiny bustling city and only costs 100,000 Indonesian Rupies............the eye rubbing equivalent to $10 or so US or Australian per night.  Breakfast included.....hot water shower....en suite bath.......

The less than perfect part is it is bloody hot here..........sorry for the crude speech, but I've been in Australia for a while................

And I am longing for a pool............a pristine..............pool...........like the ones in the brochures......so this morning I took a walk..........early enough to be able to walk the streets without fear of being run down by motorbikes...........Shangri La is not perfect............

I quickly found this.................

and fully booked at $350 US per night..........

Ever curious, I walked a bit further and found this...

And this and more.................








And what I found they all had in common.........




Were Spas...............hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Perhaps I can enjoy the many pools of Ubud, Bali after all.................my vessel is calling for attention.

To be continued................

Offerings and Ceremony................

This morning I awoke to the making of Ceremony.............



It is the full moon............

A Day filled with Offerings in this part of the World....

In front of every entrance...........on every corner..........at the base of every alter............they appeared.........




Nearing the end of the day, the smell of incense prevailed.................

More than once I stumbled on a Beautiful Woman in her Secret Garden praying........as I quickly extracted myself........wishing it was ME.........as her............Consumed with Spirit...........that way.............

As I write this evening........with the Ceremony deeply underway........families still wave at me as they pass..........no one is late for this one................

I hope I can take this day with me and begin to incorporate this depth of Beauty and Offering into my life........

Happy Full Moon!

Translation Please..........................

From time to time...............I had no idea what folks were sayin' in this part of the world...............

Like this.......as I was struggling with a coffee machine one of my first days out and about.........

A friendly fellow brushes past me and says with what seems like marbles in his mouth............

"Atsacumpulkatedpaceuvaquimantasnit?"   I turn to my translator with a blank stare and she says...............

"It's a complicated piece of equipment isn't it?"

And just today, I asked a guy behind the counter of a beautiful cafe if the sandwich I had picked out would keep until tomorrow morning...............he replied,

"dyaaveagrilla"..............."excuse me?", I said with a furrowed brow.........again, a little more clearly he said, "d'ya'avagrilla?"

"OHHHHHHHHHHHHH," I replied,  "DO I HAVE A GRILLER?"

He explained it would be better heated up.........

And as I waited for my lunch to be served a man slips by my table and says straight at me.............

"ellothereguday"...............I reply, "of course"........pretending to understand........I laughed myself silly as I deciphered what he said.

And yes, this has been fun................and I can't believe this part of my journey is over............I have really settled into this amazing lofty land........I even cross the street now without confusion..........looking right now not left........and the coins are familiar to me as are the slippery bills....

I will miss it.........and most of all I will miss my friends here. I have never felt so welcome anywhere else in the world.

And now I'm off to a small island north of here.......and a new adventure.

"Unless we change our direction, we will wind up where we are headed."     

  ~ Confucius

Please just send me a sign..............................

And we have a choice of this...................












or..............

this................








And if you really need one..............

It's been a long trip...............................

More Stories from the Distant Planet............

We stayed at a Sheep Station............ near the middle of Oz.............

Seriously Remote............and where the best folk live.............

We departed the Ranges....

Through Fields of Blue...........

To a Canyon............

That is Sacred.



There is so much more to this story.  At this date, I believe I need time to digest the experience of being in such a remote and beautiful area of this world..............a result of the invitation of a lifetime............

With Deepest Gratitude, I Thank my Host for this Experience.

Another Planet.............

I have just returned from what seems another planet..............

A place that had been sooooooooooo dry for so long.....








Yet was..............suddenly......

Awash with flowers after torrential rain...........







With anticipated color.................

and..............

more.............







And it was.........

Heaven.

Blue on Blue..............

It has been a very rainy dry season in Port Douglas....

But this day, the sun came out.

Opal Reef, one of 2,900 reefs that make up the Great Barrier Reef...........

Another Very Good Day............













Lest we are tired of all this water and sun............. I am headed south now.......where I hear it is much cooler and rainy.....it is early spring in this world down under.........I will try to keep in touch........best as I can, but I expect to be mostly unplugged for awhile.

A Walk in the Woods.......................

We turned into the Forest, Our Guide, My Group, and Me....

And almost bumped into this very LARGE tree.

It's name......Strangle Fig.........hmmmmmmmm.

What we learned today it that you cannot determine the age of a tree by it's size.

But to me, this tree is.............

Fiber Art.........

I could have stayed there for hours photographing it, but alas.....we had to keep up the pace.........there was.so much to see..

Like this Peppermint Stick Bug.........it's name from the scent it gives off when jostled............

And this Bumpy Satin Ash...............

It's fruit larger than golf balls and just as hard.....

And the Cassowary Plum...........the most beautiful blue!!!

Our Guide Adrian stopped to make this drawing on a wet river rock with chalky pebbles from the river bed........

And all of this enjoyed under the canopy of giant Fan Palms..........

We had time for a swim...........

Are those Orbs I see...........?

Good Good Energy in the Rainforest................

And ended the day looking for crocs.........

This traveler was happy to see only the baby......










There are 3,500 species of plants in Northern Queensland...........the Rainforest here is the oldest in the world..........It has a deep quiet energy.............a place I'd like to spend more time in.

Our guide for this trip, Adrian, lives off the grid in the middle of the Rainforest with a waterfall in his back yard........he used to own a busy hair salon in Sydney........

I asked him how it was to drop out.........he has no internet.......no tv...........seems like an informed fellow.....

He said the build up to changing his lifestyle was more scary than doing it....he said once he made the decision it was really easy........he said he just went from a life filled with 'busy-ness" to a life filled with peace..........

Food for thought.....but he picked a very very special place to be............and he is with people every day with his job. Charming guy.

In the meantime......Light Entertainment......

On this journey.......in the words of my friend, quoting the gal from Gee's Bend.........

"I's a'growin' a quilt".......

Houston.........we have a problem...............

Dear Folks...............

I have just spent the last two days in most amazing places..........where I took most amazing photos.........that seem to want to stay in this little net book for now.............Perhaps there is a reason for that.....maybe I need to stay with the images a bit longer before letting them loose.......

I have been in the Daintree Rainforest and to the Great Barrier Reef...............two World Heritage sites in as many days.............

Perhaps I just need to hold that close for a moment or two longer............

Yes..............and dream of a little MacBook Air for my next journey............sorry little net book, I love you too!!!

Another Very Good Day............

We started our journey at Mile Beach....

Where the tide was...........

..........out.

I have never experienced peace like this...........






Quiet.... Quiet.... Quiet.....Peace.

Cape Tribulation...........

Captain (oops) not that yet...Cook.... was here......

I learned today that he was brilliant and having a very bad time here.......God  bless him for his talent and perseverance.

Windfall Walk

Gathered on the way to Lookout Point....
Port Douglas