Feeling groovy

At the end of January I walked with a guide and a Canadian couple for two hours in the dark to the crater rim of Mt Batur, an active volcano in central Bali, to watch the sun rise. It sort of set the tone for February, which has been a really special time in so many ways. I'm feeling so grateful for my life and the people in it.

There is a large colony of monkeys living on the crater rim

Bali hasn’t been an easy place to run for any distance, but with Gede’s help I’ve had some spectacular runs. Twice we drove for an hour before dawn across to the coast so that I could run around the resort/golf course at Tanah Lot, where there is a temple complex on a small island that is accessible only at low tide. It’s not often one sees guys carrying surfboards across a golf course and outlined against a pink dawn. The second time I ran here I asked the pool guy at the resort if I could throw my sweaty self in the pool. There was a waterfall curtain at one end, which I stood under. A very refreshing end to a run. Both times Gede and I had breakfast afterwards at a small family-run warung.

Gede

Another morning we went to the Tirta Mpul temple, where I ran circuits around the "moat" and practised my race finishes along this straight stretch.

Nice weather for ducks — on a run just outside Ubud

I ran one time along country roads and through tiny villages where it seemed that everyone I met waved and smiled at me. Gede drove shotgun just ahead. Last week I wanted to do a 20K run (my longest since December). For nearly half the distance I ran in the beam of the headlights, with Gede following close behind me. After it grew light we ran into a bunch of school kids running a race through a small town, and it was fun to cheer them on. An old woman gave me a big smile and two thumbs-up. We finished at the main market in Ubud, where I’ve spent many mornings in the past month drinking Bali coffee and eating pisang goreng (hot banana fritters) and watching the morning traders and customers. 

My fallback run of 12 or more repeats of Dewi Sita has become a favourite easy one. I’ve continued to meet local characters there…

I've been hanging out a bit with Monique, whom I met in a café. She is a retired school principal from Paris and has travelled a lot in Asia. I’m planning to catch up with her in France in a few months. 

Another new friend is Joe, a firefighter/ocean sailor from Babylon/Fire Island in New York. I’m looking forward to catching up with him in NYC in the summer.

Early in February I met Patrick, who is from California/Hawaii and is now based in Ubud. We hit it off immediately and have spent a lot of time together playing Scrabble in cafes, tootling around on his motorbike, and having dinner. He is very laidback and fun, and I like him very much. 

Local writer Cat (author of Bali Daze) is always on my list of people to see. She has a generous spirit, and I trust her instincts about people. She put me on to a spiritual psychic, Novi, who gave me an amazing reading. It was like she had the script of my life in front of her. Lots to think about there…

In amongst all the fun and games was a steady amount of work and a regular dose of spa treatments of one kind or another. All very self-indulgent and lovely.

I was incredibly lucky with my choice of accommodation: the people at Cinta Inn just took me into their family. Really lovely people — Ary, Ardhani, Putu, Novi, Oka, Ketut, Yanti (who had her baby mid-month), Sekar, Benny, and more… Putu gave me a beautiful Buddha statue he had carved.

A conversation overhead at Cinta one morning resulted in a new friendship with Kasey and Rico, whose villa I visited twice and which I’ll be renting for two months next year. I also met artist Michele, from Austin, Texas, and jeweller Nita from Santa Fe, New Mexico. I find I have quite a lot in common with many of the people I’ve met in Ubud.

I’ll be back in Bali after a nine-day flying visit to Kuching to see “family” and friends there and catch up on work.

Good morning, Ubud

Jalan Dewi Sita is a short street linking Monkey Forest and Hanoman roads, a block back from Ubud’s main road. It is lined with cafes and warungs, losmens (bungalows for rent), reflexology and aromatherapy clinics, and shops selling locally designed clothes, hand-made soaps, leather goods, crystals and Tibetan thankas.

Parked outside Café Havana is a bright red Chevrolet.

A narrow, fast-moving stream dips beneath the roadway before disappearing from sight around a corner.

During the day, motor scooters, taxis and minivans pass by in a steady, noisy flow, and tourists pick their way warily along the broken footpaths.

At one end is a large sports field; at the other, a temple complex. The road slopes up to meet both, like a bow.

I have come to love this street, which I run up and down twelve times each morning from 6 a.m. There are mostly only local people out and about, a few stray dogs, and always some startled-looking poultry debating whether or not to cross the road.

Kids wearing school uniforms congregate at the soccer field for morning sports training. They arrive on foot together in clumps, often holding hands with their friends, or are dropped off on the back of mum or dad’s scooter.

A gaggle of women with infants settle in their regular spot on a shop verandah, after grooming themselves in the stream. They chat and laugh together easily. Later in the day they may be seen begging for money from tourists.

A minivan owner uses a hose to wash his vehicle on the roadside. A father carries a baby and holds the hand of a toddler as he strolls slowly along the street, stopping every now and then to allow the child to rest. Two young men wait for their lift to arrive to take them to their jobs. An old man wearing the traditional Balinese wrapped skirt walks his golden retriever on a leash. A blonde woman heads to the nearby market to buy the makings for the morning devotional offerings to demonstrate to the tour group she has brought from Arizona. A cyclist wearing blue-and-white lycra rides circuits, pedalling hard up the hill near the temple.

I am the foreign woman running back and forth, back and forth, as the sky steadily lightens. For that half-hour, I am one of them. We all greet each other, “Good morning! Selamat pagi!”

Back to the future

I could have stayed on in Australia. It’s comfortable and familiar. I know I could pick up where I left off there in an instant. I had most of my stuff with me, in a suitcase, a carry-on bag and a laptop backpack. If I’d set off in May 2010 with the idea of travelling the world for a couple of years, I would have had that and a bonus six months and I could have honestly said I’d had a ball. But it didn’t cross my mind to stop what I’m doing. A stay of six weeks in Oz is just another piece of the whole jigsaw, and that’s the way I like it.

I like to establish routines wherever I go; I love to catch up with old friends; and I’m always grateful to make new friends. Australia offered all that, and it was fun and productive. Now I’m in Indonesia for six weeks, and I’m going through the process again of adjusting my routines to suit my location.

Just days into the new year in Melbourne I made a new friend in Linus. We met in the street when we were both headed to the Tan for a run. We ended up doing half a dozen runs together and a lot of talking. Running just keeps on giving and giving…

I saw some great films: “Searching for Sugar Man” with Martyn; and the hilarious British black comedy “Sightseers” with Bill T after he and Barb returned from the US and reclaimed their apartment. (I moved to a new apartment next-door for my last five days.) I also loved “Seven Psychopaths” and “Samsara”.

In Geelong I spent a few hours with my niece Chloe and her boyfriend Jarred. We found the place where Martyn and I lived for four months in 1998. Walking up the driveway I felt very aware of the huge changes that have happened in my life since I last walked away from that house.

Another quick visit to Albury to spend a couple of nights with brother Col and Tracey, who were away over Christmas. I fell in love with their dog, Jess. What a sweetheart she is! Quick catch-ups with old friends and family.

Dad was over from New Zealand for a 90^th birthday celebration for a family friend on the Queensland Gold Coast, so after flying up from Albury I spent a day catching up with him and with Allan, a friend since we were five.

Two nights in Brisbane rounded off my Oz trip. Really enjoyed a 10K early-morning run along the Brisbane River with niece Cassie. Then spent a couple of hours catching up on news with nieces Jaye and Kellie, and their partners Chris and Jamie. Also checked out the Asia-Pacific Triennal exhibition at the Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art.

I’m now back in Ubud, Bali. I’ve gone right around the world (New Zealand, Canada, the US, the Caribbean, Iceland, Italy, Ireland, Malaysia, Singapore, Oz) and come full circle since I was here with the Kuching Wees last April.

As the Year of the Dragon winds up and the Year of the Snake approaches, I feel very conscious of all the blessings in my life and excited about every day.

2012: Annus mirabilis

What an amazing year it's been! This time last year I was in Santiago, Chile. I'm still in touch with some of the people I met there.

From Chile I returned to a wintery New York for about a month, where I ran the Manhattan half marathon in a blizzard. I then went to Texas for a get-together of the Dead Runners Society, which I've been a member of since 1996, and which included running the Austin half marathon. To Oz via Venice Beach for a quick visit to Albury before joining pal Joanne in Singapore. We took the train up through Malaysia to join the Kuching Wees in Kuala Lumpur for another half mara. To Sarawak for a couple of weeks, then to Bali, again with the Wees. This was the first of four consecutive weekends of competing in a half marathon: in Bali; Rotorua (NZ), where I stayed with my father; Vancouver (Canada), where I caught up with pal Sarah; and in Portland (Oregon), where Dead Runner friend Nangel and I ran the Hippy Chick half marathon.

On to New York, which really feels like home, for two months of training with great friends and racing over short distances (4 to 6 miles). A quick flit down to St Kitts in the Caribbean to meet up with Renee, a writer whose book about selling up and sailing off into the sunset I'd been told about and really enjoyed.

On the back of the summer training in New York I ran my best half mara time since 2009 in the Reykjavik half marathon held in August. I scored a third place in my age group against runners from all over Europe. The week before the race I spent on a trek in the volcanic interior beneath a massive looming glacier. Made friends with runner Maggy, originally from Namibia.

Florence in September was gorgeous. The Wees joined me there for 10 days. Min and I got some runs in around town, and we made some sightseeing trips to Siena, San Gimignano and the Cinque Terre. Met and spent time with Bettina, owner of the apartment I rented, and with artist Clare, and was chuffed to catch up with Albury best pals Sue and Neil. En route to Milan I stopped in Bologna to catch up with "B" buddy, Di. (We met in Bali in 2010 and have since caught up in Berlin, Brighton Beach in New York, Bologna ... and recently Melbourne.)

Back to New York for the rest of the autumn racing season. The Staten Island half was my ninth for the year. Hurricane Sandy devastated parts of New York in late October, leading to cancellation of the New York City Marathon, which would have been my fifth marathon and my second one in New York. Two days later I flew to Dublin, where I learned of a 25K race in Cork. An enjoyable run and a first place in my age group. Caught up with pal Marc, whom I met in Chile, and who showed me some of the country around Limerick and the west coast.

The final two half marathons for the year were in Penang, where I celebrated a joint Year of the Dragon birthday with Min and Sam and the Kuching contingent; and in Singapore (another first place). I'd flown with the Wees from Kuching, where we rested up for a week after Penang, for our fourth half marathon together in four cities for the year, and my 12th in 12 months in nine countries.

Besides all the training and running, I spent time with special friends in Santiago, New York, Reykjavik, Florence and Ireland, who all help make the world feel like my home. I saw lots of wonderful art and architecture, enjoyed some amazing theatre, walked through stunning urban and wilderness landscapes, read lots of great books, and watched many wonderful films and documentaries.

I've managed to stay on top of a demanding workload, and feel immense gratitude to my clients for continuing to send me interesting jobs. Some new doors opened during the year through referrals.

In Australia for the end of the year I spent some time with my mum and visited my home town for a few days over Christmas. It was a great chance to see family and good friends there, as well as my dogs Butch and Charlie, who are happy and healthy and very loved. I'll see my dad next week.

When I decided in late 2009 to sell up and live my life as a vagabond, I didn't doubt it was the right thing to do. But I don't think I could have predicted how amazing it is to live this way, and how well suited to it I seem to be. I've been really blessed with people who have come along everywhere I've spent time and made me feel at home in their world. Thank you!

Catching my breath...

I was hoping to get into the routine of updating this blog at least weekly, and here it's been almost a month since my last entry. Apologies to the two or three people who read it!

Nothing much has changed: I'm still very busy with work, and I'm still running. But I'm now in Melbourne after spending 10 days in Kuching and a couple of days in Singapore.

Kuching is a home base. I love my Kuching family. Min rode his bike while I ran on a couple of mornings, which is the next best thing to running with him. I also lucked out with runs with fellow Aussie guests at Batik on a couple of mornings, especially with Jan who is often in Kuching from her base in Kuala Lumpur.

The ever wise Emily always manages to shine a clear light on anything that is troubling me. She's a treasure.

Kuching is always a busy place for me socially now, and it's always great to see the special people there who have been so nice to me. I wish I wasn't so pooped in the evenings, though; not everyone likes to conduct their social life around dawn, which seems to be my preferred time for catch-ups!

Min, Sam, and the kids Sean and Sara, and I flew to Singapore on Friday, 30th November for the Singapore half marathon.

After my very mediocre performance in races in Asia this year, I was chuffed to run a fairly decent time given the muggy conditions. It was good enough to get me first place in my age group based on net time. (I started in the second wave of runners.) The race organisers produced the most comprehensive statistics I've seen: I was 842nd out of 7,462 runners overall; 142nd out of 2,249 women; and 1st in my AG (out of 7). I finished ahead of 86% of all runners, including 79% of all the men. I passed 1,133 runners and 4 runners passed me. It was a pleasing finish to a year in which I ran 12 half marathons in 12 months in 9 countries.

We caught the show "The Jersey Boys", based on the Four Seasons, after the race. Love the music!! And I caught up with my friend Lorraine.

I really must spend more time in Singapore one day...

In Melbourne I'm staying on the river, right in town, with easy access to lots of running paths. I've joined in with a running meetup group for a couple of 10K Sunday morning runs and an evening run around the Tan (the path that circles the Royal Botanic Gardens). I've also run on a couple of mornings with people I've met through that group, as well as on my own. It's so pretty along the river, and I couldn't be closer, so it's not too hard to talk myself into going out for a solo run. In the mornings there are lots of crews from the various boat clubs that keep boat houses nearby out training, their trainers cycling along the riverbank keeping tabs on their technique.

This time in Melbourne is also a great opportunity to catch up with some special friends—Martyn, Bill and Sal, JB. I've seen a few films (the best was "Seven Psychopaths") and a couple of exhibitions, but my main focus is work.

My mum arrives this week for a few days before she and I head up to Albury for Christmas.

Bridge of thighs

Something like 30,000 runners competed in Sunday's international marathon, half marathon, 10K and fun run on the Penang Bridge. That's 60,000 thighs...

I had spent a night in Kuala Lumpur en route to Penang in the hope of catching up on zeds after a sleepless flight from Dublin. My thinking must have been a bit squirrelly (to borrow a Jack Reacherism) the next morning, because I opted to take a taxi the 500 km to Penang instead of my one-hour flight when the forecast thunderstorms rolled in. By the time the driver Frankie and I had agreed terms, and he'd transferred me over to his brother Chong's cab because it was Frankie's son's eighth birthday and he was taking him to KFC for a treat (well, that was the story he gave me...), the sun was poking through the clouds. It ended up being a gorgeous morning!

Caught up with the Kuching contingent for dinner: Min and Sam, Sean and Sara, Stephen and Alfred (running their first marathons), Swee and young Nick (Ivy and Keiren were sick), Laffy and Eng Hooi. By the time I got to bed it was 9.30 pm, and I had the alarm set for 11.30 pm. I got about an hour's sleep. Our early start was to accommodate walking through town (where the karaoke bars were still in full swing) to the race shuttle bus pickup spot, then getting out to the start to watch the 2 a.m. marathon kickoff. Our half started at 3.15.

It was a very long 21.1 km and very hot, even though it was still dark when I crossed the finish line around 2.5 hours after I started. It was my slowest half ever. [My official chip time was 2:16. I had forgotten that the clock had started 15 minutes earlier when the men's race began.] Min and Sam had to walk because of injuries. Amazingly, and so typically of Sam, she rescued a tiny kitten along the route and carried it inside her top for the last 4 km. It is now with one of the Penang girls who was competing and who has worked with Min's firm here in Kuching.

I got back to my digs – a very lovely heritage building in a secure compound – where for half an hour I couldn't raise anyone to open the gate. It was still dark. I was dripping with sweat. The laneway isn't lit. I was feeling a bit vulnerable and very, very annoyed. By the time someone finally heard the bell and opened the gate, I was in a bit of a lather. After my dummy spit, a shower and breakfast, I worked on an urgent job until I couldn't stay awake any longer. Had a nap and then finished the job and got it off to Polly in Hong Kong.

The gate in question... My room at Clove Hall was the one upstairs, under the gable.

Dinner at an Italian place on Weld Quay was to celebrate Min's and my Year of the Dragon birthdays: mine in October and Min's yesterday. There were about 16 of us. A nice finish to a whistle-stop visit to Penang. I didn't see anything except the bridge and the exterior of the Eastern & Oriental Hotel as I flashed past it in the cab on the way to dinner. I stayed there, in a grand waterfront room, in 1991 on my only other visit. I must try and get back to Penang again and take another look around.

Eastern & Oriental Hotel, Penang

A very easy flight direct to Kuching this morning. I spent the two hours working and trying to ignore the kid behind me who kept kicking my seat. Obviously, I still need to catch up on my sleep...

Living the life of Riley on the Liffey

I've been staying in an apartment right on Dublin's River Liffey, overlooking Ha'penny Bridge.

Dublin ticks a lot of boxes for me: the city centre is compact and very walkable; there is some beautiful architecture; the food is great; it's got cheap and cheerful public transport; there is running support; and it's got a fabulous arthouse movie theatre. The Museum of Contemporary Art is closed for renovations (though they currently have an exhibition of Sidney Nolan's "Ned Kelly" series in a small ancillary building), and I didn't manage to get to the National Museum this visit, but I wandered through Trinity College and saw The Book of Kells and the fabulous Long Room of the library.

Trinity College Library

I'm now a member of the Dublin Running Meetup Group. I had two runs around the huge urban Phoenix Park with Shane and Nicole and a few others, one at night in the drizzle and the other mid-morning on the weekend. Both runs were around 10K.

Deer and the Papal Cross, Phoenix Park

The Irish Film Institute is just a few cobbled streets away on the other side of the river. I've seen three films: "Room 237" (various theories on symbolism in Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining"), which was a waste of time; and two new French films: "Rust and Bone" and "Sister", both of which I really enjoyed.

Tom Canton as Dorian Gray

I couldn't visit Dublin and not go to the theatre, and I was incredibly lucky to be able to see a stunning production of James Joyce's "Ulysses" at Project Arts Centre and, at the Abbey, Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray". Both were fabulous treats.

Grant Smeaton in "Ulysses"

I've had a little breather this past week before another really busy work period starts, so I was able to take a few days off and go down to Cork and over to Limerick. In Cork I ran a 25K race called the Great Railway Run from Cork to Carrigaline. I didn't spot a railway line anywhere along the route, which hugged the shoreline for about half the distance and was very scenic. I was pleased with my time for the first 20K (1 hr 53 mins), but I flagged a bit in the home stretch. As I was the only woman in my age group I scored first prize: a basket of cosmetics.

Cork is a nice-looking small city on the River Lee and estuary

From Cork I took the train to Limerick where I caught up for the afternoon and evening with Marc, a friend made in Santiago a year ago. We had a fun few hours driving over to the Cliffs of Moher, from where on a clear day you can see the Aran Islands and five counties. It was windy and misty, so we couldn't see much at all, but you could still get a sense of the grandeur of the cliffs.

We couldn't see any of this, except for glimpses through the heavy mist