Today we celebrate exactly one year in Bali. Life is full of surprises. When we came it was never our intention to live here. However, immediately after our arrival, the airports closed. These days we are so comfortable, we may stay for a very long time. Our home at Keramas Sacred River Village is a paradise. We hope to offer retreats and classes soon. Here’s a close-up view of a day in the life….
Last week Lama D and I went out to lunch in Ubud, which is a cultural center city one hour away. He dressed up in his Bhutanese Gho.
We tasted Bali lobster for the first time, freshly caught from the ocean nearby. Delicately steamed with sauce, it was a special treat!
Lama D is showing off his new white tiger shirt. The retreat center is surrounded by jungle and clean air.
This is a statue altar on the property. I am fascinated by the Trimurti statues with three heads. Some of these are very old, dating back to the pre-Hindu period where everything was Shiva-Buddhist. We have much to learn.
This is the entrance to a garden at the retreat center. We are waiting for our ride to the city to do shopping.
The restaurant here at Keramas specializes in traditional Bali dishes. I helped take some photos for their menu.
Chicken Satay with sauce, is a specialty they offer on their new menu.
Our food is very simple and unrefined. The industrial kitchen here has everything we need. Lama D insists on doing all the cooking and I don’t mind. Today is vegetables and dark red Balinese rice. Sometimes we add feta cheese and grass-fed New Zealand butter. Last week we found a source for pure olive oil, which Lama D knows from Bhutan, because his mother makes it! They call it “Ponzi Makku” oil.
I helped take some photos for a special promotion last week. The Balinese dinner is served at a table in our small river that flows through the retreat center. It is very clean and refreshing, so the guests can keep their feet cool while they eat.
Lama D gives a Tibetan Kunye massage to a guest suffering from a sore shoulder. It’s all better now!
Keramas retreat center owner, Ketut, is our special friend. He is very talented builder and inventor. Today he and his father are doing a blessing for a new building in a new garden that will be used for ceremonies. The blessings he has wrapped in cloth, will be buried under the foundation at the four corners.
Ketut’s father is a priest. He came over for the morning to do a ceremony for the new building. He is using flowers, incense, and special prayers to protect and solidify the new structure on the property. It will be used for gatherings and ceremonies such as weddings and special occasions.
Today I’m at the entrance to the new garden, waiting for our ride to go shopping….
Lama D is waiting for our ride too. It’s a very laid back life….
Earring breakfast in the dining room, we are the only guests today. Red rice, cauliflower, parsley, and feta cheese. WOW!
I want to show you my daily walk to see the animals. It’s like doing the Khora around a Buddhist stupa. The walkway goes around the 7th century temple clockwise. The temple is up toward the left side.
This is the cow Daisy and her young calf. His name is Wayang, which means “first born”. He knows me and tries to eat my hair.
The ducks have their own area on the farm. Their eggs are delicious! Sometimes Ketut incubates the eggs so they hatch into ducklings!
Today the owner Ketut (in white) is overseeing the preparation of roof tiles for the new building. His staff is painting the tiles to protect from the rain. Ketut is very talented, and the garden is going to be amazing!
Keramas sacred River Village consists of many individual small guest houses, each with a bedroom and bathroom. All the houses are built in traditional Balinese style, without architect. The houses are made of all natural materials, so they can breathe! I am very fond of this reclining Buddha.
The Black Sand beach is a 5-minute bicycle ride from our house. Just grab a bike and go!
This is the classroom or “Yoga Shala”. It is a wonderful place to meditate or study. Our Keramas river flows underneath the building, and alongside it. The building is constructed all all by hand in the traditional manner with no architect. Just examine the roof, and you will be amazed at the skill of these people!
This is Ketut, the owner of Keramas Sacred River Village. He made a beautiful ceremony for us after we arrived and I honestly felt like I was being married into the family. He loves Lama D, who helps him every day in little ways by turning the lights on and off, and feeding the fish. We don’t know what the future holds. Lama D and I hope to offer classes and retreats here. We are both preparing amazing materials to teach wonderful practices in Buddhism and personal transformation.
Lama D enjoys coconut ice cream at Akasha restaurant in Ubud. Now that we’ve been here in Bali for one year, even being together every day, we have not had one argument. It is totally amazing. We both took a huge risk to be together and come here. So far it has all turned out beautifully. We look out for each other and I feel safe. The title for this blog post was his idea, and he selected the photos.
Thanks for stopping by! Please stay safe and be well in this amazing world!
Sri Jana