Bali Birthday

Birthday in Bali

Well yesterday was a milestone - I turned 30.  I remember signing up for my yoga teacher training course thinking, what the hell am I doing - I don't want to be in 'school' on my 30th birthday?  I just figured it was going to be a same normal day, doing yoga (in paradise I might add) sweating, and hurting.  Well it was so much more and then some.  There are 24 yogis here and 3 teachers and I was completely surprised with some of the small things they did to make sure I enjoyed my day.  I got a sign in front of my 'spot' saying hbd and then when we closed our morning practice, the closing mantra was happy birthdays.  For tea time break, I got a cake and blew out some candles, and not to mention the flower display on my bed saying happy birthday 30!  So sweet.  All of these people were literally strangers 5 days ago and now they helped to make sure that my day was a success and it was.  I know that I'll be able to really celebrate my birthday and of course the holidays when I come home in 19 days.....yes 19 days!

So what's going to happen in 19 days?  I do know I'm ending on a high note in Bali (104)!  Not sure I do know I'll be flying business class back to the states !  I'm such a travel nerd and am already looking forward to a 8 and 13 hour flight back to the states.  When I get home, I'll be going to Chicago for the weekend of December 11th with my sister and cousin Sara.  Were staying at a park Hyatt right on Michigan avenue which should be fun during Christmas.  Can I mention that I can't wait to see a Christmas tree this year since last year I think I was in some random Muslim country during Christmas!!  

So I've began a job search in the Detroit area of Michigan....so yes to my readers, right now my heart is telling me to move back to Michigan.  I literally have so many options of where to live and I know the world is my oyster but nothing is forever and I can always move again if I totally hate it.  I'm really not looking forward to moving AGAIN in December or January this time from Wisconsin to Michigan but....it'll be what it will be.  I could go to India for January and study more yoga....what's worse, India or Michigan in the winter?  Will see how easy it is to find a job.  I've already had interactions with recruiters and company's call me, so fingers crossed I can start making some money and get back to that 8-5!  

Well final greetings and regards from ubud Bali.  I love it here, really.  This is some place I would always return to.  It is bloody hot though!  I had a few drinkies last night for my bday as a few of us 'yogis gone wild' went out.  I'm now recooperating by the pool and realizing that I'm already sun burnt....the Bali sun has no filter!  You would think I would remember this from when I was here 9 months ago.

XX Amanda

One year!!

Well I'm two days shy of my one year anniversary of traveling!  Holy crap!  This year has zoomed by and I know that I said the best two years of my life where living in England....well that has been replaced.  Right now I'm in Thailand, and I'll be honest with you it's not the typical Thai holiday that I'm on.  I've been doing yoga, lots of yoga!  I'm preparing for my yoga teacher training course in Bali which starts on November 16th.  

In the past year I've gotten to see so many things!  I've been to 46 new countries in the past year and actually revisited about 10.  I've jumped continents, from Africa, Middle East, Europe, Asia, Europe, Asia, Middle East, Europe, US, Middle East, Africa, US, Africa, and now again Asia.  A lot of people ask me what my favorite country is and I would have to say a few actually.  I really loved South Africa, so much so I just revisited it a month ago.  South Africa was the first destination back in October 2014.  Another favorite of mine is Sri Lanka.  Awesome country.  Can I give Uzbekistan honorable mention?  Also hands up for Singapore as someplace I'd love to live and Nepal, well that country will always hold a special place in my heart as I endured a large earthquake there and live to tell about it and met some awesome people.  I also reached my 100th UN county which was Zambia in September.  My goal was the reach 100 before I turned 30, which is now a few weeks away!

So I've had some scary encounters along my travels, but who hasn't as a single girl trampling around the globe and alone for a portion of the time.  Most recently was in South Africa.  It's a long story but glad that I didn't get robbed at 11pm at night.  The city seemed safe, but appearances can always be deceiving!  Another scary time was in Nepal during the earthquake.  The earth quake was one thing, but the after shocks were another.  After Nepal I went to India and gosh that whole place is just weird and sketchy.  I was constantly being stared at and always watching my back.  It's not a good feeling (and I was alone).  Another time was in Serbia, where I was taking a bunch of buses to get from Montenegro to Bulgaria and I had to change buses at 3am in Serbia and had to wait for 1.5 hours.  Something about waiting in an empty bus station, freezing and just feeling eerie!  Pakistan?  Who goes here, just in general going to this country was flipping scary but I made it!  Oh and I will never forget my interrogation in Israel.... I was leaving the country and before security got asked 100 questions about every passport stamp in my passport, then not only did this take 50 minutes of questions, I then go my entire bag torn through and lost of bunch of my liquids which were over 50ml, when the general rule of thumb is 100ml across the world.  Israel is some place I will never return too, but overall great country!

So what's going to happen next?  I still don't know!  I'm still waiting for that voice to motion me in the correct direction.  I need to make some decisions soon and I know I need to work again soon, where it will be I'm not yet decided!  

New Journey starts tomorrow!

Tomorrow I embark on another new journey, a new continent, new culture etc.  I'm headed to Thailand .... Finally!  Seems like all backpackers go here first but I guess I'm leaving it for the end.  I really wanted to do a whole SE Asia trip including Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, but due to time constraints it just won't work out right now.  I'm spending a good 3 weeks in Thailand, which 3 days in Bangkok to see some sights and friends and then over to the island of Koh Samui to get into yogi shape at absolute yoga academy (first recommended to me by my first yoga teachers)

After Thailand I'm headed over to meet a friend of a friend in Hong Kong!  We are both awesome travelers so it'll be nice to dine together and sightsee since as of yesterday I'm flying solo again for the next two months :(.  I also want to see one of my friends from CUW who lives there.  Should be nice....finally going to HK too!

My final destination on this trip before I head back to Michigan for the holidays is Bali.  Bali is where I chose to do my yoga teacher 200hr training (RHY).  It's in ubud where I spent a good 3 weeks last February just hanging out.  It's really nice there and thought it would be a good place to continue embarking on my yoga learning.  That starts November 16th.  I'll be spending my 30th birthday doing yoga, but hey I guess it's just another day!  

I got accepted to study with Saraswathi at SHRI K. PATTABHI JOIS ASHTANGA YOGA INSTITUTE in Mysore India for the month of January 2016.  I think doing this would be a great accompaniment to my teacher training course and to embark more on a Mysore/ashtanga journey and a guru.  I really want to try and make this happen so God willing I'll be able to still afford and travel to India to do this for a month.  

After January......will it be Detroit, Phoenix, Denver??  New Zealand??  I cannot decide yet...but NZ is sounding better and better and if the NZ $ gets stronger it will be a win win.  I applied for my working holiday scheme visa a few weeks ago and got approved.  So.....I just have to decide what is more important right now in my life.  Traveling some more and taking in new cultures and experiences outside of the US or settling down a bit more and getting a puppy?  Ha!  No puppy yet but sounds homey!

I forgot to mention....I'm flying business class from Cape Town to Bangkok through Doha on Qatar Airways and then Bali to Michigan business class through Korea on Dec10th.  I love flying business!  Thank u miles!  

The African travels

Tonight I sit in Mozambique!  Wow I cannot believe that I've been in Africa for almost 2 weeks now....Africa is not for me by the way.  I endured my first African bus experience the other day and needless to say I couldn't wait for a shower and a glass of wine!  But hey, it's all about the experiences right?  Since leaving Namibia, we've endured the 'real Africa'... Meaning the hustling, the hounding, and oh look there is tourists lets race up to them and try to rip them off!  I really hate that by the way.  Look I know that taxi ride is only $5 not $40.  And I know that paper necklace is $2 not $10.  Do I like to bargain.. No but do you have to in these countries... Yes it's only fair!  The Internet in Africa really sucks too and t-mobile barely services any counties here besides Zambia thank goodness!  

Anyways, there are also good parts to my journeys so far.  Namibia was a pleasant surprise actually.  I really loved that country and it is some place I would return too.  I also enjoyed the culture, being mostly German, (like me)!  Ha!  Anyways, the scenery was good, the people were friendly and the beer was cold, and it was cheap and I saw lions!  What's not to love?  From there and on over to Zimbabwe... Talk about a change of pace but coming here was meant for Victoria falls....and can I say they were amazing!!  Wow...and I can only imagine what they look like during the rainy season...reason to come back...I think so.  Zimbabwe is extremely and unnecessarily expensive, but you know that is what you get when you come across such an extravgent waterfall site!  We also crossed into Botswana for a day trip safari at the chobe national park.  Saw tons of animals and mostly tons of hippos!  I've seen a lot of wild animals since I've started traveling but never this many hippos!  I was super excited.  Did you know their biggest predator is you?  After seeing my full on dose of elephants and hippos, we crossed over to Zambia and saw the falls from the other side.  Not only did we do this, but we did our own version of Devils pool from the Zambia side!  Google it if you have no idea what I'm talking about.  And did I forget to mention that crossing into Zambia meant my 100th country!  Woo!  My goal before I turn 30 in about 2 months.  After Zambia we hopped over to Malawi where I found myself buying more souvenirs of course but this time African style.  I really cannot wait to get a house some day where I can decorate how I want with all of my treasures everywhere!  Then Mozambique.  

We just got here and I'm excited to see what is in store next.  From here until October 12 I'll be in Swaziland, Lesotho, and South Africa.  I leave then to venture off to Thailand, Hong Kong and Bali!  That's the plans for now!

Follow me on Instagram where I'm trying everyday to post more and more photos as I go along and as I get wifi signals in these crazy countries,  'edena2004' is my name

xx to all my family, friends and fans!  

Home Again!

Well I'm back in Pure Michigan (as I love it call it)!  only for a very short time, but back!  You ask why I came back after being here just 3 weeks ago for a month....well I will put it short.  I bought too much shit in Turkey!  basically.  Well I had a request from my mom to buy her another turkish lamp, after I decided I was going to drag that around with me for the next week and a half, I figured I might as well buy some carpets and lamps and other stuff for myself and have the chance to ship it home 'for free' (meaning take my mistake airfare I booked almost a year ago for $200).  So I'm back!  I would love to see anyone who I didn't see last time!

So I believe that I have my schedule planned out for the rest of this year!  Well often I say this and plans change but this is what I have planned:

Leaving from the US on September 14th - headed for South Africa.  From there we will fly to Zambia, and cross into Zimbabwe, onto Botswana, fly into Malawi and go to Mozambique.  Possibly go into Swaziland and Lesotho.  From there I will leave and head over to Thailand around Oct2 via Seychelles!  This would make country number 100 Malawi!  WOO (my goal)  In Thailand, I want to visit three different places for about 10 days each (not yet decided) to practice yoga.  Sofar thinking about Koh Samui for sure and 2 other islands perhaps.  After that I would like to go to Hong Kong or Singapore and do more yoga for maybe 10 days, before my yoga teacher training course in Bali from November 16-Dec8.  I should be full on yoga from Oct6-Dec8!  Happy Amanda!

After this you ask -- yes I'm coming home and will be back in the mitten on Dec10!  Still unsure if this will be the end of my travels....but time and my bank account will tell.  And don't ask me where i'm moving too -- but Detroit area is sounding friendly.  I cannot still decide if moving 'back home' (meaning Michigan) is too scary.....after living around the US and traveling the globe.

So for now i'm catching up on my pictures and doing some scans, uploading and editing and doing some research for Africa and Thailand.  Gosh sometimes I'm looking at a picture that I took and I forget which country I was in?

Upcoming schedule !

Upcoming schedule!

Well right now I'm in Marseille France,  it's lovely being in the south of France in June.  It's very warm, the streets are crowded and everyone is happy.  I've only been to Nice before and been wanting to come here for quite some time, I just wish I had more time.  I have a ferry that leaves tonight for Corsica and then I will meet up with Diane as we travel Europe for the next 3.5 weeks.

Yes, Europe!  We decided not to go to Western Africa, not because of Ebola, but mostly because it's rainy season and very hot there right now.  These countries don't have AC like the modern world so we decided to just spend some time in southern Spain and champagne country in France.  Sounds better right?

I booked my plane ticket back home to the states for my cousins wedding.  I will leave from Valencia Spain on July 15th.  Couldn't be more excited.  It will be nice to be home and see my family and friends.  Between now and then, I'll be in Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, France, including Corsica and Sardinia (Italy).  No new countries, but lovely ones and going to some places I've never been and also revisiting some places that I have been!  Really looking forward to my European summer!

Well London a week ago was fab!  Just great!  I enjoyed every part of being in the United Kingdom and everything felt so familiar.  The weather was cool and mostly sunny which is rare!  I just enjoyed going into marks and Spencer's and boots, tesco, and costa!  I met up with a former colleague of mine that I worked with when I lived there which was so nice!  Had our fair share of lager and vino!

After my short 4 days in London, I ventured off to morocco.  I had a nice place there so to be honest I didn't leave too much!  The weather there was pretty hot so walking around wasn't that pleasant.  I spent a good 4 hours walking around the medina in Marrakech but was slightly disappointed.  Maybe if I had someone to walk around with and stop at cafes and drink mint Moroccan tea with I would be happier?  Nevertheless, I get annoyed when every local is trying to sell me something on the street and talk to me in every language besides English.  They wanted to sell me everything which to be honest I wasn't having it. The souk is cool, but I've been to a lot of souks!  And since I cannot buy anything cool due to lack of space in my bag, well what's the point.  And the smell of the souk awful from all the horse carriages near by.  I think the warm humid climate soaked in the stench.. Anyways I was happy to chill out and smoke shisha in my hotel :)

23 days!  Not that I'm homesick or anything.... But I will enjoy these 23 days in Southern Europe feeling nostalgic and loving life drinking wine and champagne and eating tapas!

Israel! And more updates...

It's been a really long time since a proper post.  For some reason I've gotten out of blogging, but I shouldn't be lazy, I have a lot of free time, blah blah.

Anyways, right now I'm in Israel and I'm going to make a proper attempt to try and catch up on some posts.  I've been a lot of places since I was in the Balkan countries.

Israel was a spur of the moment decision to visit really.  I didn't know where I was headed after spending time in the Stan countries with my friend.  I knew that going to Israel, Malta, Andorra, San Marino, Belarus, and morocco where at the top of my list in terms of 'europe' area and easily accessible to my next destination in the end of June - Western Africa.  

Well maybe I should update you all on where I'm headed first...

For now I'm in Israel until June 11 then I'm headed to London Town for some relaxing and revisiting my former British life.  Then I'm headed to morocco for 3 nights but only to Marrakech.  That's country 92!  Then flying back up to Barcelona and i will probably rent a car and drive to Andorra and stay there for two nights but probably go into southern France and check that out too.  Andorra county 93!  Then after this were planning on Western Africa.  These countries include, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Senegal, Mali, cote d'vore, Togo, Benin, Ghana and maybe more.  These plans haven't been finalized yet but then I'm hoping to fly home around July 15-20 for about a month.   Toronto already is booked (road trip from Sebewaing) for July 24th weekend.  ('Maybe I should just stay put....NEVER!)

So Israel!  Wow I'm getting goosebumps just being here.  It's absolutely amazing with all the religious sites here and re learning everything again that which I grew up with.  It's crazy how I've forgotten all these biblical stories but I'm remembering really quickly.  So far I took a tour to Bethlehem and Jericho.  I saw the place where Jesus was born and also where the manger was laid.  I saw the shepherds field where they were when the Angels came to them to tell them about the birth of Jesus.  Wow!  Today I took a tour to Nazareth which is where mary was and where she was told that she was going to give birth to the savior (even though she was a virgin).  Then off to the Sea of Galilee where Jesus walked on water and gave food/fish to thousands.  We passed through Cana on the way where Jesus turned water into wine....and the list goes on.  So many magical things!  I'm literally walking on the footsteps of Jesus!  On Wednesday I'm doing a full day tour to Jerusalem to visit the old and new parts.  

In addition to all this history, tel aviv is actually a really cool city.  I'm at a hotel which is right on the beach, I mean the Mediterranean Sea!  The sunsets are amazing and the feeling is good seeing all the people out exercising along the boardwalk.  I've met some really cool people on my tours as well.  Vincent and Jackie I hope you're reading!  They have been encouraging me to like write a book or something about my travels.  I'm not really that good of a writer so I thought I would at least try to revamp the blog.  

Until next time.  Cheerio !  (Getting ready for a bloody lovely time in the UK)

Nepal Earthquake

Ok I'm taking a time out and apologizing to all my fans out there for not blogging in so long.  I think that last post was some time in the Balkans and since then I've been in Japan and South Korea and now in Nepal.  Well I decided to do a quick post to talk about my experience or a day that will remain in my head for a long time, April 25, 2015 around 11:56am.....

I've been in Nepal for 12 days since the 25th and have been staying in pokhara since the 15th.  I'm here on a 21 day yoga course/retreat.  It's really nice and calming etc....well it was.  The 25th was a day to remember for more then one reason - first the last day of my 4th cleanse - second the biggest earthquake to hit Nepal in over 80 years.  

I just finished doing my gastro intestinal cleanse with 3 other girls at the retreat.  We finished around 11am and were so ready for our first meal in 4 days.  We were tired, mentally and physically.  Upon huffing and puffing up to the 5th floor of the yoga center I'm sitting there with two of the three girls and we are awaiting our soup which is the first thing to be eaten after this enduring cleanse.  All of a sudden the whole building is shaking like mad.  We're on the top floor and we pretty much grab each other's legs in a panic mode.  I didn't know how to react, it's like that feeling where you are dumbfounded....like what do you do except pause for 15 seconds and feel the building shake and wonder if you are going to collapse in a matter of seconds....

Well thankfully - we finally came to our senses after 30 seconds or so and we stammered down the flights of stairs to the bottom.  I'm carefully grabbing the hand rails and walls so tightly and trying to hang on and continue to hope the floor beneath me doesn't collapse!  Finally we make it to the ground level and everyone else at the center is standing in the garden area which probably isn't the safest area since if the building were to fall, it would fall right on us!  The shaking lasted for about 3 minutes I reckon...not the entire time was it as strong as when I felt it on the top floor.  

After the shaking stopped, I stand there, not scared really, but just thinking, oh my goodness did I just go through an earthquake?  Surely it wasn't that bad because the building is still standing and everyone is alive in front of me?  After the quake the Internet went out for 2 days at the center so I wasn't able to read the news except hear it from other people who had Nepal cell phone plans.  Some people were staying it was about a 5.0 earthquake and then I finally hear someone say it was 7.9.  

7.9!!  Holy shit.  Well actually I don't know crap about earthquakes I'm this Midwestern girl who doesn't have to endure catastrophic events like earthquakes, hurricanes, monsoons, etc.  but what does 7.9 really mean?  Yeah it means bad!!!  Soon people where getting news updates on their phones saying how hundreds of people have died, soon after that it was thousands, and more.  Kathmandu was struck really hard.  The city is old, the buildings are old and the infrastructure isn't great.  Many famous sites collapsed in kathmandu.  It's so unfortunate and surreal that I was just there only 12 days prior!

So these are my feelings in the short.  I could go on but details could be a bit boring for the average reader.  Since the big boy hit on the 25th around noon, I've feel many many aftershocks and tremors.  They wake me up at night and it's not a comforting feeling.  It's not 3.5 days after the big boy, and the tremors are stopping.  I haven't felt one in about 20 hours.  

Nepal is in serious need for help now.  I'm considering after I'm done here at the yoga center to do a few days of volunteering before I leave Nepal.  I will leave on May 12 and not rush out of the country like my mom wishes.  Sorry mom!  It's too crazy in Kathmandu and that is the only point of exit in this country as it's the international airport and no land borders are really accessible.  

Macedonia & Montenegro

Well after Kosovo and Albania were such a bust I had heard good things about Macedonia so I was ready to move on!  I went from Tirana to lake ohrid which was my first stop in Macedonia.  I only stayed here one night but honestly would of loved to spend a few had my schedule allowed it.  I left Tirana about 9am and got there around 2.  I checked into my place (got ripped off by a taxi cab on the way There) oh well, and walked around for a few hours and had a nice evening meal.  The hostel was really awesome, maybe one of my favorites in the Balkans.  I stayed at sunny lake hostel.  Lake ohrid I found to be super cute.  I really liked the architecture here and the small town feeling.  I think that the city would be so much better in the summer time.

The next day was super rainy and chilly.  I had a Nutella breakfast up on the roof/deck and watched a movie during the rainy morning with some guys from Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.  I didn't really want to venture out into the cold by finally I left for my bus around 1pm.  I was now headed to skopie which was about 3 hours away.  When I found my hostel, I asked about bus tickets to my next destination (budva) and then basically walked back to the bus station to buy them and had a nice dinner with some people I met at my hostel.

The next morning I walked around Skopje.  Finally a capital city in the Balkans that was good!  I was used to prishtina and Tirana and Podgorica being so horrible.  Skopje had a fortress which I climbed up too and some markets which I strolled through.  It just so randomly happened as well that there was a solar eclipse happening this day and I went out to the square with some people from the hostel to view it.  I think that last time I remember doing this was in 3rd grade with mrs. Chores.  Wow that was a long time ago!!  Skopje was cute, glad I came.  I walked around and got a few coffees etc until about 4pm and went back to the hostel to prepare myself for the long bus journey to budva that evening.

My bus to budva left at 7pm and ended up arriving around 640am the next day.  I basically went back the same way I came, through lake ohrid and close to Tirana and up along the coast of Montenegro.  This was actually my second time to visit Montenegro,  I went there in 2012 and stayed in kotor and visited budva for a day.  I have a friend who was staying there so I decided to make the journey to stay there and see my friend.  I remember Montenegro being so beautiful and I had some time during this trip so why not?  Well it was a long journey (in the opposite way of my travels) so surely had to be worth it!!  My friend and I who I had met in Beirut ate ourself through the old town of budva and walked a bit along the shore etc. We had endless amounts of Turkish coffee and teas and just enjoyed the company of each other and the city and relaxed!  So much fun and I love Montenegro !

I was bound for Podgorica to nis, Serbia, to Sofia after two days of being in budva.  Wasn't ready for this trip but it was about 26 hours long with a long stop in Podgorica and short stop in Nis in the middle of the chilly night.  I had met this girl in Podgorica bus station in the cafe who was very interesting,  since we both had over 5 hours to burn we walked into town with our big packs on and she showed me around.  This girl was traveling with no money and was singing, hitchhiking, and couch surfing her way across Europe!  Wow very inspiring!

Kosovo and Albania

So after dropping off lizard I headed to Kosovo.  I spent two nights here but really only one full day.  I explored the city which only took a few hours and headed for some lunch and literally didn't leave.  The restaurant was also owned by the same owner as the hostel so I chatted with them and got some free drinks and hung out.  There wasn't too much to see in prishtina so I wasn't too worried that I spent my Monday doing nothing!  I think the highlight for my time in Kosovo was noticing the extreme differences once I crossed the border from Serbia into Kosovo.  All of a sudden mosques were present and the buildings were either burnt out looking or brand new!  You could definently see the presence of a war that took place here not that long ago.  In prishtina I suppose the main sight was strolling along the pedestrian street and this bill Clinton statute which I could care less about.  The people in Kosovo really like Americans because they were one of the first countries to help them during the war time.

Tuesday morning I took a very early bus to Tirana.  The bus left at 5am and got there around 10am.  Small mini bus where people were standing, I felt like I was back in Sri Lanka!  Ha.  The border crossing was a nightmere into Albania and there were a few people on the bus that had to talk to the border control police.  Fun times.  Well when I finally reached Tirana I unloaded my things at the hostel and went to venture around.  I only stayed here for one night as I could already tell there wasn't much to see.  I walked to the square and then climbed this clock tower to get a great overlook of the city square.  That was probably the highlight of my trip in Tirana.  I think that Albania would be so much better in the summertime but I guess I'm here in March so you do what is good now!  I went to the ticket office later to get my bus ticket for lake ohrid which is close to the border of Albania and Macedonia.  I would leave for here the next morning at 9am.  Again walked around some more and then got dinner at a great restaurant near by my hostel which has had the best food I've tasted in the Balkans this time around!

The biggest thing I could think of being in Albania was the movie taken!!

In my opinion both Albania and Kosovo were kind of a bust but I think they would be so much better in the summertime!  I will come back hopefully during this time again

Ljubljana and Belgrade

After a 3 hour bus ride from venice to Ljubljana we finally arrived and checked into our hostel.  We stayed at a really cute place just outside of the old town.  We had a few hours of day light so we venture out right away and had a walk around.  Ljubljana is super small and cute so you can pretty much see it all quickly.  We stopped at a cafe and I had some wine and lizard got a cappuccino.  She is loving the cappuccinos here in Europe that's for sure.  We saved climbing up to the castle for the next day.  After a short hike we made it to the top.  Afterwards we did a little bit of shopping, lizard got a new pair of yoga pants since the style of athletic gear in Europe is so different and stylish she had to get some.  We got some snacks for our long train ride tomorrow and also went to the train station to get our tickets.  

Off to Belgrade!  Serbia.  We left the EU and ventured closer into the deep Balkans.  The journey was quite an experience for lizard I think - and I was happy that her vacation but a little more off the beaten track,  we were going to Serbia!  Former Yugoslavia !  We had to leave Slovenia where we got a passport stamp and then entered Croatia another stamp and then left Croatia and entered Serbia another stamp.  Lizard was excited of course I love my stamps too.  It's like earning something haha!  

We finally got to Belgrade and it was cold wet and rainy.  I knew that our guesthouse wasn't too far from the train station and I had the place into my phone so after we got in we walked about 15 minutes uphill and arrived.  We asked the hotel manager for a good recommendation for dinner since we didn't eat too much all day and she gave us a good recommendation for local food which was literally across the street. We ordered a couple of dishes and it was a lot of meat, potato, and cheese!  Yum.  The food was good and lizard also enjoyed it.  The next day we walked around a bit - went to the fortress and tried to keep warm.  It was about 3 degrees C.  And just damp.  Not fun!  We went back to our place early and relaxed and got warm. The weather forecast was looking better for the next day.  Next day we went to the biggest Orthodox Church in the world.  It was lovely one the outside but on the inside it was all under construction!  Huge disappointment I must say.  But nevertheless we walked to it and saw it.  The rest of the day we spent shopping.  Both my sister and myself got a new pair of Adidas sneakers.  My Merrill sneakers were getting holes in them so I couldn't pass up a 35$ pair of new sneaks.  

Lizard left early the next morning.  I went in the taxi with her to the airport around 430am.  I was super sad to see her go and really sad the rest of the day kind of!  I enjoyed having company and most of all her with me.  I took a bus back into town at 5am and went back to sleep until 9.  Bus to Kosovo at 12.  Continuing the Balkan adventures!!

Venice (time with sissy)

Well lizard arrived safe and sound into venice airport on Saturday evening.  Truth be told I'm sure that I was just as tired as her even though she just was en route for the last 18-20 hours.  I got her and we hurried up to the water taxi which was leaving in about 20 minutes from the airport.  Finally upon getting into the boat to take us to the main island (so to speak) we were able to catch up and go over her trip and more.  I texted her boyfriend and mom to let them know that lizard safely arrived.  I was so excited to have someone with me and not just someone but my sister!!

After a couple of stops on the taxi we got to the one that was closest to our guest house for the next two nights.  It was already really dark out and if anyone of you have been to venice you know it's like a maze.  Yes literally a maze.  I knew that the walk to our place was around 5-10 minutes but that's if you take the right route.  Well let me tell you again thank goodness for Google maps and T-Mobile!  We found our place without a hitch but finding the guest out reception person was the key!  We waited for a while and after about an hour I was able to find good enough reception to call this dude and come to find out he was in the door next to us!  Both of us tired and just wanted some bed to sleep!  

The next day we awoke very early and got out into the square at the first thing.  We got some amazing pictures because there weren't those tourists hanging out in the square feeding those damn pigeons.  Really who wants to do that?!!  After checking out the Rialto bridge and st marks square we ventured for the sea side and found a place that sold 5 euro cappuccinos.  Not bad considering the place a couple steps away was 8.50!  Geez.  Anyways we went cafe hopping so to speak and walked around some more.  I found a place that sold really cheap traditional Venetian masks so I got a couple that I will later put into pictures frames.  Two masks for 5 euros not bad.  We finally were hungry enough for lunch around 3pm and found a cozy cafe and sat outside with the sun beaming on us.  It was really warm in the sun but no sun it was a tad chilly!  

This city is pretty much about walking around and getting lost I told my sister.  Literally.  We also went into a few shops and looked around.  Nothing major to see and since we were both tired and jet lagged we honestly just chilled a lot.  We got up again early the next day and had a walk about the city before our bus was to leave at 2pm (or so we thought).  We had to take a city bus and walk for about 20 minutes to get to our bus stop for Ljubljana.  Before we did this we enjoyed some gelato.  Lizards first try!  So exciting!  We got to the bus area with plenty of time and I asked a few hotels and shops around that indeed this is where the bus company to Ljubljana picked us up.  After waiting and now quite a bit of time after the scheduled departure time, I called the bus company and turns out they didn't even have a bus that left at 2pm although my email and ticket says that!  Well trying to make a bad situation into a good one, I knew that our first nights stay in Ljubljana was a loss but now we needed to stay the night again in venice.  We ended up finding a decent hotel near the bus stop and we're now scheduled on the bus at 11am the next day.  Honestly, my sister and I were just happy to chill.  We didn't want to go back into the city and see the masses of people we just hung out at the hotel and then my sister wasn't feeling well so it was actually for the better.  

Next morning, we enjoyed a free breakfast at our hotel and ventured to the bus area and it was there nice and early!  Thank goodness!  Onto Ljubljana we go!  Country number 78!

Liechtenstein and more!

It's been forever since a blog post.  I'm so sorry it won't happen again.  I certainly can't say it's because I haven't had time because trust me I've had loads of relaxing time with my sister which has been amazing.  

I'll break down this much needed blog post into a few so not to bore anybody.  As my followers know I went to nyc to catch a flight to Milan and then onwards to Tokyo on mar 27.  I landed into Milan on mar 5 in the morning.  I had a rental car that I picked up in the airport that I would use for the next two days for my adventures.  In Europe it's pretty customary to get a manual car and if you get automatic it's usually really pricy.  Turns out they were out of manuals so I got an auto for free!  Strangest automatic car I've driven but nonetheless it was nice for 100 euros for 2.5 days!  I cannot express how good it feels to be in Europe and so pumped to get my fresh new passport with an EU stamp!  Finally.  Anyways onwards the drive through Italy and Switzerland and onto country number 77, Liechtenstein!  This country is so small it's crazy but honestly once you enter you can totally realize that it's different.  Different by the signage and other small things that I notice because I'm a traveler.  It had the Switzerland / Germany feel to it which is of course fine with me because some day I will live in Germany I just know it!  They also used the Swiss franc for their currency but I believe widely accepted euros.  Anyways I stayed in Liechtenstein for the night in this small village called Triesenberg (even sounds German - love it).  The village was really close to Vaduz which is the main city in Liechtenstein.  It was up on a hill which I may add was super snowy and icy!  We're in the alps baby!  This is where it's warm on the bottom and cold on the top!  But you can't beat the views at the top just incredible.  I drove around Vaduz a little bit and rode by the castle which is actually inhabited by one of their leaders so you can't go inside.  I ventured back to my hotel for the night and was so tired I literally just crashed.  Tired from the jet lag and not sleeping too much over the past few days.  I woke up early and had this amazing breakfast overlooking the snowy alps.  Amazing.  I didn't want breakfast to end and of course stop eating Nutella !  It's ok only to eat Nutella in Europe I've decided.  

After having enough time in this tiny country I ventured on through Austria.  The majority of my drive that day was in Austria with a nice pit stop in Innsbruck.  Wow another great mountainous view of a city.  It was lively and vibrant!  So sunny and chilly but that didn't keep the people from coming out and about.  I had lunch and a few coffees here and walked around for a bit.  Got some amazing pictures!  I was going to go to the top of the ski hill for some views but the ticket using the lift was 35 euros so I decided to skip out.  Then I wanted to visit the sworski crystal store museum which is based in Innsbruck but this was closed for remodel!  Bummer.  Ok what to do - continue walking around and soon I got back into my little Fiat and ventured south back to Italy towards Verona which would be my next stop.  I stayed in a small place outside Verona called Rovereto for the night.  I didn't get too much sleep because my sister was now almost boarding her plane in a few hours to join me in venice so needless to say I was up texting her to make sure she made her connection in Chicago alright.  Such a generous sister to give up my sleep for this!  

I suffered a bit the next day but honestly being in Verona for the day can't make anyone suffer.  I just love this city.  I first visited Verona in March 2012 so it was lovely to be back again.  The weather was super warm in the sun.  The streets were flooded with people and the square was hopping.  I didn't do any of the touristic things like climb the tower or visit the amphitheater since I did those the first time.  I just wandered and wandered about and had a nice pizza lunch and vino in the square.  Followed of course by a mandatory Italian coffee.  Love Italy!  Well it was soon time to make the rest of my journey to venice to meet my sister by 7pm which is when her flight had landed.  I knew that she had made her connection into Copenhagen since she was able to find wifi and iMessage me.  I was so excited to see her in a few hours!!

35 hours in NYC

Well I'm stateside but for a really short time.  I'm basically here to catch a flight that I booked back in May of last year as a mistake fare through Expedia.  Or maybe it was Priceline?  Anyways, being back in nyc it's like no time has passed?  It doesn't even seem like I've been traveling since end of October and out of the country since November 21st!  It just seems familiar but is now March 4th!  Anyways, it's been snowing like mad here.  Well maybe not mad, but any snow falling to me is mad!  It's March for crying out loud!  Ha.  I went to the drug store yesterday and the first thing I put in my hands was Imodium and multi vitamins!  Yay for American products.

Its been now about 52 hours since I've left bali and I'm pretty sure that I've gotten about 9 hours of shitty sleep during this timeframe.  I even had the coziest hotel room in soho Manhattan that is super nice but no, couldn't sleep past 2am.  And I didn't fall asleep until 10pm. Gosh I really need to sleep on the flight tonight to Milan because once I land in Milan I'm renting a car and driving to Vaduz, litchenstein! Country number 77!  

What should I do today in nyc?  I was going to go to the theater and watch the fifty shades movie but I reckon if I go to the theater during the day today I'll pass out.  It's 630 and I've downed my first latte of many today I feel.  I have to check out at 11am and it's so wet and icy out and the last thing I need to do is hurt my foot again!  Brunch is definently in order!  Maybe walk the brooklyn bridge?

More to come as I continue this around the world journey,  next up Milano, Italia!!

Traveling for 4 months straight is...

If I told you that traveling for 4 straight months was easy I'd be lying.  Of course, I know that my way of traveling is a lot more easy compared to a lot of other backpackers who are doing the very same thing.  I have really covered some ground though in 4 months.  Starting out in South Africa - gosh that seems like ages ago - then flying back to the states and doing a weekend in Jamaica (yeh mon forgot about that trip) then flying to the Middle East and covering my head for 3.5 weeks.  Oh and then there were the former USSR countries of Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan (random places that everyone frowns when I tell them I went here).  My long layover in Istanbul where I spent a grand at the bazaar getting home furnishings for that house someday when I finally settle down.  Wedding in Pakistan, yup that was a great experience.  Followed by the clearest bluest sandiest and most awesome hotel in the Maldives.  Sri Lanka - yup that was next where I finally entered Asia and wished I had two more weeks to spend my time.  Now over to my future home some day singapore - myanmar and now here I am in bali, Indonesia relaxing - working on my tan on a daily basis and practicing yoga.  I have visited 17 new countries since I started!  17!  That brings my country total to 76!  The goal still being 100 before I'm 30 next November.  The whole trip has had its ups and downs - and overall has been such an amazing experience that I will never forget.  

Some tips I'd like to share or things that I've learned on this trip:

1).  Always have USD$ on you, all denominations.  No matter what country you visit everyone knows dollars and in a lot of countries, even the menus have usd prices and they even charge you in usd and sometimes it's a hassle if you give them local currency!  

2).  Don't travel with a good friend for longer then 1-2 months at a time.  Shit gets old, fights happen, friendships end - period.

3).  Call home often.  Yeh I'm working on this, but luckily I have free texting in a lot of countries and Facebook to tell my parents and sister that I'm still alive.

4).  Take breaks.  Yeh it's ok, the other day I didn't do anything.  I watched 4 movies.  It was awesome.

5).  Keep in touch with friends.  Just because I'm not in the US I've been still trying to keep in contact with old co workers and my friends.  It's important.  I think people forget that I'm only a text away.  Gotta love t-mobile - and that's number 6!

6).  Get t-mobile unlimited data/text plan - 88$ with taxes out the door.  Best phone plan ever for international traveling

7).  Make friends, add them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.  touch base meet up again.  Sounds easy but it's not.  I've already ran into and met so many people but I always forget to ask to connect.  You never know when you might visit their country and need a place to crash or a friend to show you around

8).  Check bank accounts daily!  Or as much as you can.  I have a good habit of this, especially when I'm taking money out of a foreign atm.  I always like to keep track of the exchange rate used.  I also want to closely monitor my accounts because you never know if someone is watching you and reading your cc numbers especially when traveling.  Anyways you should do this all the time regardless.

9).  No brainer here, but keep track of your miles!  I've flown a ton since I've started and a lot of my flights have been booked on miles.  But when they aren't, I'm making sure to fly with a carrier that is affiliated with united, or ba etc.  

10).  I'm struggling to find 10 tips, shall I just say enjoy the ride?  Don't think about the future and focus on the present.  I'm always telling myself not to worry about finding a job when I'm finally done traveling, but gosh I find it hard not to check in every other day on LinkedIn and make sure my resume is all up to date.  Not sure why?!!!

Balinese spa day

Well my yoga studio was closed on both Sunday and Monday for staff outing.  I decided to make the most of this bad situation and get a lot of sunshine and lots of pampering!!  The spas here are incredibly cheap I must say.  You can get a lot for a little basically.  On Sunday I had my first experience of a true Balinese massage.  The massage was really good too and these women know what they are doing.  It's a full both massage with oil.  The massage cost itself is about $4-5 and with tip you can easily spend still under $10!  For an hour!  I had my massage after lunch at this great raw food cafe.  I told the woman that I would be back tomorrow and sure enough same time same place on Monday.  However on Monday I splurged and decided to not only get this 1 hour fab massage, I also got a facial, and a hair cream bath which is basically a facial for your hair.  3 hours of pampering and before I knew it my bus back to my hotel was leaving.  All of this cost about $28 and that was with the tip.  I can't believe it.  Not only is the service affordable but it's also very clean at this salon, the women are friendly, and it's good quality!

Before I leave I'm sure to get many more massages, another facial, mani and pedi and some waxing.  

So far bali is treating me very well, outside of bali belly!  I love it here!!

Valentine's Day - World+Amanda=true love forever!

It's now February 15th here in Bali and I'm reminded of one thing, getting that text message early in the morning much earlier then my flight to Tahoe was supposed to leave and getting told that grandma quietly passed away during the night.  It was something that I've never experienced or at least not remembering (I was super young when my moms dad passed and not born when her mom passed).  Losing a grandparent is hard and I can say this as I wasn't even that close to grandma or at least couldn't spent as much time with her as I wanted to always living really far away etc.  but I made sure that every time I was home I made a visit to G&G.  I just remember the good times playing checkers and her letting me win.  And then the endless hours playing trouble and card games!!  I know you are looking down on me now grams.  

And I'll never forget the horrible drive from Chicago back home to michigan for the funeral.  Ugh!  Not missing that snow right now

Well today my yoga place is closed and also tomorrow. I guess it's yoga In the room!  So I slept in and went for breakfast and then stayed by the pool for 90 Minutes.  That's honestly all my skin can take without sunscreen and it's super hot out and finally not raining.  I'm going to venture into town today and grab lunch and maybe do some shopping!

So Valentine's Day!  Yes I hope all of you with your significant other had a great day.  I know my significant other is the world and yes we're having a lovely time.  We love each other and love getting to spend time together everyday.  World + Amanda = forever.  Nothing can take away these experiences!

Bali Day 1 & 2

Bali!  Finally here - I've really been looking forward to coming here since I booked my flight from Myanmar here.  Oh that seems forever ago.  

I have stayed two nights so far and am now approaching my third.  Needless to say time is already flying. For the first two nights I stayed in a very local guesthouse very near by to the place where I'm practicing yoga, yoga barn.  I only booked two nights to get myself acclimated etc.  I got in real late the first night and the next morning I venture off to the yoga barn and did 3 classes.  Enjoyed some coconut water and some healthy salads.  This morning I took a nice sleep in, and checked out and moved into my new space!  I'm at this really nice resort actually and I got a great deal where it works out to be about $16 a night for this $65 place!  I'm so lucky.  I will stay here for 15 days at least and then I have two more nights and I may just stay here!  The staff is so friendly, they have free bikes that I can use to bike into yoga, and the food is amazing and very reasonably priced.  I have really no reason to leave because they also have yoga classes, restaurant and spa !  I'm definently getting a facial and a massage one of these days!

As for the yoga vibe here, it's really good.  On the first day my first class was vinyasa. Typical style and the instructor was from the states.  The second class was called nada yoga.  I have never tried this style so I thought that I would give it a go.  This class is based all on sounds and it's actually a really mediation style of yoga. Needless to say that your mind adjusts to the sounds which in turn create vibrations for mediation.  This was the first half of the class and the rest was more personal where you got very close to others in the room and looked them in the eyes etc.  very intimidating ... Not sure that I will do this style again but it was fun to try.  My third class was restorative yoga which is even more slow paced then yin.  Great way to end my first day.  Today since my morning was spent having a lay in, and then checking out, I laid out by the pool until he rain came and then of course when the rain came it was time for me to bike to class.  I enjoyed a yin class tonight and my hips are hurting now!  Most of the people at these classes are westerners, a lot of people actually from the states and UK.  Very few locals practice here but I've seen a few.  The vibe is good, everyone is very hippie style (no offense to anyone) and I wish that I could actually try and dress like more of the people here.  I just don't have that style.  And seeing all these cute tattoos that resemble yoga on all these girls is making me want one!  I've never had one, so I'll be thinking this over and over and over again!

Tomorrow I will make it up for sunrise flow yoga!  No sleeping in!  

Everyone needs to experience bali at least once in their life.  It's really cheap here considering its a huge resort area, and the people are friendly and the weather is good.  Come ALL!

What's next? Thoughts, ramblings, experiences!

Bali bound tomorrow.  I can hardly contain myself.  My flight leaves tomorrow at 830 which means I have to leave here around 530, but I'm up writing this blog.  

I had a lot of time to think today and after talking to a lot of fellow travelers I've made up my mind on a few things.  First of all, every single person I talk to says 'go to new Zealand' including one of my best friends who is constantly telling me what to do (I mean this is a good way Diane).  Anyways, I met this awesome American couple who were in their early 60s maybe and they were from Montana.  Who would think that I meet such awesome people from there.  They were on my night bus last night and I throughly enjoyed speaking to them.  They have been everywhere I swear!  And now they are leaving Myanmar tomorrow as well and going to Bhutan!  So awesome that these two retired individuals can enjoy life and travel!  I only hope that I find a soul mate who wishes to do that same one day!  Anyways, amongst our many discussions about travel I discovered they have lived in Africa, New Zealand, and a few other places.  They have taken their children when they were small all over the South Pacific and to some really remote islands.  How awesome?!!!  Long story now shorter, they begged me to go to New Zealand and work.  Seriously were like 'you would be foolish not to go'.  They have been there over 10 times and love it!  Wow who goes to New Zealand 10 times?  It's so far away.  Must be good!  Then today I met a German girl who is going to NZ to work!  Actually her next stop is there!  Ironic?  I think something is telling me something,  

Then I met another girl in my hostel from France who is going to India to do her yoga teacher training course in March. Seriously are all these coincidences happening to me in the last 24 hours?  She gave me the name of the place in Kerala India and it looks really good on paper.  I wanna keep in touch with her to get her reactions on this yoga shala.

So there's my thinking wrapped up into what is next?  And then there's my love for singapore!!  I'm always thinking ahead in fact I'm always anxious and actually quite impatient.  Although I'm having a wonderful time traveling I do often think about what it would be like to not be living out of a backpack?  For those of you with a closet, feel lucky right now!  

I booked a really nice guest house in ubud for nights 3-17.  I got an amazing deal through Expedia.  They have free bikes so I can bike to yoga and there is a pool and it's very secluded.  I'm stoked!  Can't wait to get there and get my yogi groove on!  I'm also considering avoiding Facebook for a week.  See what it's like?  Really get my zen on?  I don't know if I've ever gone one week let alone 24 hours without Facebook but I'm hoping to give it a try.  Wish me luck and more when I arrive in Bali !

Myanmar

Myanmar the land of undiscovered territory.  I've quite enjoyed my time here considering after going to Singapore and changing my flight and not initially even wanting to come here, it's been great!

On the first day/night - I stayed in Yangon.  There is quite a bit to see in Yangon so I knew that I needed to get started.  There are these really nice pagodas which are covered in gold.  I went to see the main one at first starting around 4pm so that I could catch the dusk setting.  Wow, seriously there is so much gold that it's hurting my eyes.  I went back to my hotel after spending some time here and actually met a nice taxi driver who turned out to be my driver to the bus station the next day.  On the next morning I ventured out quite a bit despite my foot still hurting.  I went to the market, sule pagoda and the lake with a palace which kind of reminded me of the summer palace in Beijing.  At the market, I bought some thanaka face wash, and these jade beaded cup coasters. I also got to experience the true thanaka experience where this woman out it on my cheeks.  The Burmese believe that this is great for the skin and also protects against the sun.  Very cool experience.  At night I headed towards the bus station which literally is only 12 miles away but took over an hour and half!  I got to the bus and looked inside and witnessed the best upcoming bus journey of my life.  This coach was 3 rows, 3 single rows.  All of the seats reclined back and all the passengers were given a blanket, head pillow, water, and other toiletries.  I couldn't believe that I was riding this awesome bus in Myanmar!!  The bus journey was about 9 hours to Bagan and I managed to watch a couple of movies and fall asleep for a few hours.  

When I got to bagan I met these two Irish girls who were also traveling and we happened to be staying in the same hotel in bagan.  We shared a taxi there and went to the only open cafe at 5am and basically waited for sunrise and a chance to freshen up before we took on the day.  We rented bikes from a nearby woman renting them for 2$.  So cheap!  We biked around bagan and stopped at a few temples/pagodas on the way to 'old bagan'.  My foot seriously wasn't having too much more of this biking or walking nonsense so after biking for a few hours we went back and I called it a day pretty much.  I took a long bear nap and rested then had some dinner at a near by restaurant.  

The next day in bagan, I rented an electric bike this time in hopes to let my foot rest.  I literally drove around everywhere in fact I wore that electric bike right out that I had to change around mid-day to a new one because the battery died on the other one.  Scary situation!!  In the afternoon, I rode my bike to a nearby really posh hotel.  Not staying at this posh hotel, but it sure seemed like I was.  I found the awesome looking infinity pool and laid out my stuff and immediately was given a beach towel and menu by the staff.  I ordered a drink and some lunch and literally hung out all afternoon here!  The pool was nice and it had a great view of some nearby pagodas which wasn't a bad view.  I got some sun and continued to nurse my foot.  Later I went back to the hotel and said by to my Irish friends who were taking the overnight bus to inle lake, in which I would join them the next day as I decided to take the day bus to inle.  

The bus to inle wasn't quite as posh as the other one, but still rather nice.  The bus ride was supposed to be about 7 hours but turned out to be closer to 9.  The road from bagan to inle was a winding one through the mountains, but the views were amazing.  A nice journey to take during the day.  I arrived at inle around  5pm and just settled in for the evening.  I booked another night for this hotel in inle and then booked my overnight bus back to bagan for the 9th arriving on the 10th.  The Internet was actually working in my room here.  First place!  The Internet in Myanmar is not that good and if it actually works it's really slow.  That ok though.  So then yesterday I booked a boat tour from my hotel for someone to take me out on the inle lake for about 6 hours.  The boat ride was amazing.  The views at morning were awesome and I got to see many Burmese fishing which was a neat experience.  We then stopped off at many local shops and handi craft stores where I got to see how the wooden boats were made, umbrellas protecting against the sun, cigars, silver and gold, and lotus/silk scarf etc making.  I'm sure they were hoping that I bought a bunch of stuff but I managed away with a little bit.  Inle lake is also really known for its floating temples and floating gardens.  Very interesting!  After the boat ride I was tired and just hung out at the hotel and saw my friends.  The rest of my time here is spent staying off my foot as much as possible and taking an overnight bus back to Yangon.  

Bali bound in less then 48 hours!!

2016 home?

I'm currently sitting in my king size bed overlooking the window to my hotel room on the 24th floor overlooking the city of Singapore and the marina bay. I'm so lucky really I am!  Not many people get a chance to experience this!  I'm really happy today, probably the happiest day this week.  I've been busy in Singapore just exploring the food, culture and yoga.  I've done 9 yoga classes in just 5 days and plan to finish up tomorrow with 2 more.  My foot is still hurting unfortunately, it even appears to be feeling worse!! I really shouldn't walk anywhere, but really how feasible is this?!  

I'm sad that I'm leaving here soon.  It really went by too fast.  I'm not even excited about Myanmar because I know it's going to be hard there - hard in a way of the country is behind on a lot of things.  I know that after a week there though I will be in Bali!  That is something to look forward too!  Gosh I hope that my foot is feeling better before I go to bali!  

I'm already planning my return here.  Gosh it's just too good!!!