Blogs from Munduk, Bali, Indonesia, Asia

Sometimes I can’t help thinking we in the west have gone just that little bit mad. We seem determined to live our lives at a thousand miles an hour, each day a constant rush to get ahead, simply to buy more shit we don’t really need. Stuck on the hamster-wheel, we find ourselves trapped in the kind of high-pressure jobs needed to somehow eek out enough to afford a house, the cost of which is, of course, astronomical. What’s more, in some insanity, the fortunate few are pressured to borrow way above their means for a home much grander than they actually deserve, forking out yet more in loans for fancy cars to park in the driveway. The truly delusional then end up hiring staff, realising they’re way too knackered working overtime to be bothered with ... read more

We definitely want to stay longer in Munduk Moding! It’s a beautiful place to relax in but also offers a range of activities. Yesterday, Saturday, we trekked to two nearby waterfalls with a hotel guide. After setting off down the road through the village, we soon turned off onto a narrow concrete path just wide enough for a motorbike, which led into terraces cultivated with a huge range of different trees and plants, and tiny villages with homes hidden amid the trees, clinging to the slopes. Everywhere here is steep! The farmers grow a mix of crops together to maintain soil fertility – orange trees with carrots, cabbages with chilli plants and coffee trees and so on. Every now and then we had to step to one side as a pair of brothers made their way ... read more

Next time I get to Bali, I will book a whole week in Munduk. I will bring my bicycle, and every early morning I will go cycling up and down the Central Mountains. North of Munduk, towards Tigawasa, Selat, and Gitgit, there are countless little roads running through the forest, unknown to tourists, and pretty much unused even by the locals in this sparsely populated area of the island. It rains pretty much every afternoon there. These strong showers usually don’t last more than an hour. It’s the perfect time to take a nap, or find a coffee house to taste Luwak Coffee. After the rain, beautiful white clouds of fog lift above the green hills: it’s picturesque! Early morning and late afternoon (before and after the mid-day heat) is the best time of the day ... read more

Bali called me home to rest. Worn out after Kuta and craving alone time I sought out her nuturing highlands for solitary revival. Just dance The local ferry slowly chugged across sunlit waters. Sampling the hard seats and crowded floor napping space, I opted to sit alone on the scorching bridge, enjoying a therapeutic overview of our glide across the sea. I broke my journey in Ubud, arriving in the nick of time to queue for Yoga Barn's famed and oversubscribed estactic dance session. I met Jean-Francis en route, a fellow virgin to Yoga Barn's cultesque weekly highlight. After a deliciously nutritious dinner we joined the 118 others ready to do their thang. The rules are simple, no talking, no photos, no recording and the rest is up to you. As meditatively expressive music transitioned to ... read more