My passion for moving on is waning. But here I am again, in a different place on the opposite side of town, hearing new sounds, seeing new sights, and soaking in the differences.
I’ve been in Bali sixteen months. I’ve made friends, settled into a community, and in March I’ll be permanently installed in a home of my own. But for the next four weeks, until the house becomes available to me, I’m in a sweet efficiency apartment overlooking two temples and twenty tiled rooftops.
The family temple is the area behind the ornate doorway in front. The second temple is on the roof in the upper right corner.
Southwest view and more rooftops
My closest neighbors here are building a house twelve inches from my balcony. Even by Bali standards that’s very, very close! You’d want to be on excellent terms, and we are, the Munias and me. My neighbors are a pair of white headed munia. How do I know this? They don’t exist anywhere else I’ve ever been and the name is unfamiliar. Google of course! It took about ten minutes. It helped that I knew that here a sparrow is a pipit and a thrush is a kutilang. The munia is neither a sparrow nor a thrush, but…oh nevermind!
Mrs. Munia in her nest
I called them a pair, but I suspect they’re a threesome. There’s a fair bit of flustering about in the palm fronds. They’re building a nest with gusto, all three of them. And they play sky tag during their breaks. I’m here for a month. If I’m lucky I’ll get to watch the whole bird birthing process. They don’t seem to find me at all intimidating, nor do they appear to require privacy for their intimate business. That’s exciting! Well…you know what I mean!
And because Gwen, my favorite sister, always needs to know exactly what my current residence looks like, here we go Gwen, this is for you.
Here’s the kitchen area with a new rice cooker, my first! Sitting in front of the cooker is a bowl of salak (snakefruit). It’s my favorite healthy snack. We won’t talk about the unhealthy ones!
This is the view from the kitchen. My chair and laptop are positioned in the doorway to catch the westerly cross-breeze. It was divine and kept this 85 degree day cool!
This is the wall opposite the bed with a large lumari, aka wardrobe. The palm tree at the edge of the balcony is the Munia’s home.
I’ll spare you the bathroom photos and just say it’s sufficient. Flush toilet, shower with hot water, miniscule sink and mirror.
There are only four apartments. I’m the upper right. There are two more on the left.
The number of moves I’ve made in my life has now exceeded anything even remotely appropriate. I’ve packed up and relocated over 50 times. I wonder if there’s a psychotic label for someone who does that. Who does that????! But it’s in my chart, my astrological birth chart. I had already moved about 42 times when I enlisted the services of Anita Doyle, a brilliant astrologer. She was in California, I was in Minnesota. I’d never met the woman, but over the course of the one-hour phone reading she proceeded to tell me my life story and beyond. The information had a profound influence and propelled me in a new direction…still moving, but now with purpose and intent.
However, all that chasing about could be coming to an end. I hatched my eggs long ago, the chicks are grown, and I’ve finally found a corner of the planet that suits me. I think I just might stay.
writing for self-discovery 
Jan 31, 2014 @ 08:16:00
As does your sister, I love pix, so thanks for this article. It looks a lot like my upcoming home sans kitchen area. Traded for a/c and will let someone else do the cooking. This looks beautiful. Think of all the memories you are creating in these moves….and the new friends as well. Love your new neighbors and look forward to meeting them 😃
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 16:00:37
The same builder did the place you will be staying, and one of the daughters from that family married a boy from this family so she lives here. Small world.
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 08:24:13
Your new home looks lovely, nice views and space. You must be getting excited for March when you move into ‘the one!’ I miss salak, it was one of my favourite fruits in Indo, Pete couldn’t bear it but I’d easily munch trough 3 or 4 at a sitting, There’s something about that sweet/sour crunch, occasionally there were maggots in them but that never put me off! I’m glad you are enjoying your Bali life, Sherry xxx
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 16:04:56
Oh yes! 3 or 4 salak (thanks for the spelling correction!) at a sitting is NOT a problem! For me, they improve upon and replace apples. You never get a mealy, grainy salak! But I’ve never seen one with maggots. Really?
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 18:18:51
YES! Pete’s lunches at the Uni in Jakarta were beyond disgusting – most of the peeps working there died of dysentery, malnutrion or worse – Typhoid was one of the biggest killers. I kept begging him to eat the salak but he wouldn’t…..so you see, a salak or two a day, keeps the doctor away! 😉
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 19:25:00
Good thing you got him out of there! Jakarta is a place I’ve no desire to see, ever. Speaking of a salak or two a day, have you heard of Mahkota Dewa Tea? It has amazing medicinal benefits. I finally bought some. You boil the dried pieces for a couple of minutes then drink a cup a day. It’s bitter, but I think one can acquire a taste. I need a little honey in mine, but it’s possible I’m drinking it too concentrated. It isn’t supposed to have much color and mine is amber. The tea is also believed to cure various diseases and ailments including cancers and tumors, to reduce the uric acid content in the bloodstream, lower blood pressure, and to burn cholesterol, because it contains the key organic compounds needed by the human body. It’s cheap as beans and if it can do even half of what it claims, I’m sold!
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 16:22:14
I agree with Gwen, it’s nice to visualize you in your home. lots of love, B
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 19:37:02
Ok now I wish I had a hot plate to boil up that tea. Will it help me lose 20# too? Oh my, I love snake fruit but will eat it a bit more attentively now and what’s with the Poisonous restaurant? Yikes.
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 20:14:20
I believe the poisonous restaurant that Lottie was talking about in Jakarta was the cafeteria at the University where her husband taught. And if you want an automatic hot water pot, you can get one here and have your tea, coffee, whatever you want!
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 22:07:27
I sure do hope you stay. I’d be sad if you left. Stick around. The older we get the more fun we’ll have.
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Jan 31, 2014 @ 22:31:15
That’s the truth! And I WILL become fluent in Indonesian! I just tried to navigate my online banking site. It’s probably not too smart to just start clicking on words that are absolutely meaningless to me. I eventually found what I was looking for, thankfully! But something like that is great motivation to persevere in my studies.
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