new words & phrases

whenever i travel, i always end up learning the most pointless words and phrases. . .  so far. .

here’s some of what i have learned:

• kekuatan – power
• gimbal – dreadlock
• terlalu mahal – it’s too expensive
• aku tidak akan menyerah – i will never give up
• mengapa? – why?

amirah and i are back on bali! we took the fast boat back from the gili islands this morning. we just spent five of the most glorious days of our lives there and are equally excited to start our work back on java – check out amirah’s gili photos here.

tomorrow, amirah and i are flying to yogykarta. we start our language training and then work the week after.

we have no complaints and we feel extremely blessed and content. but, most of all we are just incredibly excited!

more to come soon! i cannot wait to share photos and write more. my personal journal has yet to be filled and that alone is a long and funny task!

{photo from the antique market in jakarta }

Tags: amirah, bahasa indonesia, gili islands, indonesia, travel, words

hello gorgeous

made it to bali!

this place is remarkable. it’s the size of connecticut except with 3 million people. nearly 95% of the population is hindu – incredible considering over 88% of the rest of the country is muslim. the smell of incense to the gods is everywhere and it reminds me of india and nepal.

kuta, the backpacker paradise of bali is so similar to thamel in nepal, it’s scary!

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“it is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.”

- ernest hemingway

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i slept the entire hour and thirty minute flight over from jakarta last night (lion air = much like ryan air). once i arrived, i had a difficult time finding someone who wasn’t ripping me off entirely for a taxi//motorbike to a hotel, so i walked for nearly thirty minutes out of the airport until i found someone who was more helpful.

the place i stayed at last night was ridiculously overpriced and dirty, but today i’ve moved on to a glorious little bungalow that is even cheaper than the one before. although i haven’t made it past the incredibly touristy kuta yet, i think this place is going to treat me well!

i’ve been having a little camera trouble these past few days – i think it’s just the heat and the moisture, but i think everything is fine. other than that, i have no complaints!

its 90 degrees out, the beach is within walking distance and i just found a torn up copy of the hunger games in the hotel. (i read all of my other book yesterday in the airport. . . so i’m down to only three). it’s hard to believe i am really living this right now.

gorgeous bali, i cannot wait to see and experience more of you!

amirah gets in in just three short days and i cannot wait to share this with her!

{photo from jakarta}

Tags: amirah, asia, bali, beach, book, flight, island, jakarta, travel

leaving jakarta. . .heading to bali

i’m leaving jakarta today. i finally got a cheap flight out of here and by 9:00 tonight, i’ll be in bali!

bali is one of those places i have wanted to go to for most of my life, so i really cannot wait.

the past few days i’ve been impressively lazy. i went to the pool, read my books, walked around, spent time on the rooftop, etc. i have  no complaints and i am so happy to be here.

i’ll write more soon!

{photos from around jakarta // near the antique market}

Tags: asia, bali, color, indonesia, jakarta, market, photography, travel

lessons learned: no. 1

travel is all about being okay with change. change in our plans//change in our attitude and perception //change in most every area of life.

so here’s to learning new lessons about change each and everyday.

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“life changes in the instant. the ordinary instant.”

- joan didion

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lesson no. 1: public holidays = change of plans.

i went to book a flight//bus//train//anything today to bali, but it turns out everything is 2x the price because the ascention of jesus holiday on the 17th. i don’t really know what is happening this week in accordance with the holiday, but i know that everyone is off and traveling too!

i’ve decided to spend another night at the same hostel and another day in jakarta before trying to find another way to either bromo or bali. i might have a companion or two with me on the journey, but all that is subject to change. i’ve loved the past two days in jakarta, but knowing all that is on this island and the surrounding ones, i am curious to see what else is in store.

recap of day two in jakarta: another early wake up//yoga on a rooftop {i cannot even begin to tell you how much i have missed this!} // fruit breakfast and tea // email and research time // explorations with my new favorite travel companions – bobby from indo and marjos from the netherlands.

all i have had to eat and drink these past few days is street food//drink, so we’ll see if i am healthy in the morning! regardless of what happens, it has all been deliciously warm and spicy and wonderful.

instead of photos, this time around you can enjoy my dancey travel song. i listened to it on the flight into dubai and it has put me in a ridiculously good mood ever since!

Tags: indonesia, jakarta, rooftop yoga, travel

selamat datang

jakarta.

. . .

hello 13th biggest city in the world.

hello traffic that just won’t budge.

hello beautiful, friendly people who sing when they talk.

hello early morning light.

hello delicious, sickly sweet, floral tea.

jakarta, i like you a lot already and cannot wait to see more of this beautiful country.

. . .

so, i made it safe. the trip was long – 25 hours inthree  planes, but i survived and have good memories along the way. nyc to dubai was the longest, but even that wasn’t terribly bad. i watched loads of good movies and sleep a little.  my time in dubai, although brief was inspiring. i loved seeing the place – especially this.

i got into jakarta last night at 10:45 or so and made it to this tiny, cheap airport hotel with this dude. he is in indo to surf for three months to work. it’s amazing to think people really do get to live like this!

i got up incredibly early this morning and after eating a breakfast of spicy rice //fried egg (sorry i don’t yet know the name. the woman just brought it to me this morning along with that delicious tea), i found a taxi and made it to this swanky, mid-range hostel. it is honestly nicer than most of the places kelsey paid 3x as much for in europe.

today’s agenda = a long walk, a good night’s sleep and a plan for getting here and here. and later. . . this place. . .

thanks for sharing in my journey. if you know of any places i should see // experience during these first few weeks, please let me know!

{i will try to post photos as soon as i can. i am traveling without my computer and small camera this time around, so photos will be sparce, but stay tuned for some as soon as possible.}

* also, special congrats to kelsey on her graduation {tomorrow, n.c. time}!

Tags: airplane, indonesia, jakarta, sights, tourist, travel, traveler

off to indonesia

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“not i, nor anyone else can travel that road for you.
you must travel it by yourself.
it is not far. it is within reach.
perhaps you have been on it since you were born, and did not know.
perhaps it is everywhere – on water and land.”

- walt whitman

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ten months ago, i was on a plane headed home. four a.m. tomorrow i’ll be boarding another plane. . . this time i’m heading east.

if all goes as planned, in two short days i’ll be in this crazy city!

in three weeks all seven of us {daniel, nicole, amirah, jen, kevin + greg} will be in indo starting work. . . but before that. . . i’ll be hitting up more of java, bali, and the gili islands. amirah gets in in a few weeks {*make sure to check out her fabulous blog !} and we are so excited to see the beaches and the bright, blue water together.

i think excitement stage finally set in this afternoon.  life = wild right now {visa//sub letter//credit card//financial aid issues all day! *note: if you know of anyone in chapel hill this summer without housing. let me know! i have an empty room and i’m getting desperate! everyone keeps backing down and it’s the cutest little house ever!}

yesterday, kels and i drove to d.c. and back and although my time was far from productive, it was still fun. how can i can complain when i had a few hours  here?!

i certainly didn’t think i would be on a plane ten months after the big bad gap year. i had thought i did a good job of convincing myself and everyone else around me that i would stay home for a while, but . . .

that didn’t last long.

i feel so  incredibly blessed and i really couldn’t be more excited. thanks everyone for your continued love and support.

indonesia – i cannot wait to meet you! next time i write i’ll be in a brand new place // new time zone.

cheers!

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also:

+ sarah’s fab summer blog

+ this

{photos from doha and ameerika!}

Tags: airplane, asia, clouds, east, friends, indonesia, quotes, sarah, travel, trip

what life has looked like these days

all images of chapel hill // home life and some of the adventures in between.

this is what life has looked like these past few days, but tomorrow all of this is about to change. . .

“i think i would sum it up in this way: life is not a story about me, but it is being told to me, and i can be glad of that. i think that is the why of life and, in fact, the why of this ancient faith i am caught up in: to enjoy God. the starts were created to dazzle us, like a love letter, light itself is just a metaphor, something like that exists outside of time, made up of what seems like nothing, infinite in its power, something experienced but not understood, like God. relationships indicate something of the nature of God – that he is rational, that he feels love and loss. it’s all a metaphor and the story is about us, it’s about all of us who God made, and God himself, just enjoying each other. . . i think we are supposed to stand in deserts and marvel at how the sun rises. i think we are supposed to sleep in meadows and watch stars dart across space and time. i think we are supposed to love our friends and introduce people to the story, to the peaceful, calming why of life. i think life is spirituality.”

- donald miller

* * *

that’s one of the reasons i travel. . . why i’m always packing up and leaving. . .

one of these days i’ll stay put, but for now, i’m ready to go again.

Tags: campus, chapel hill, davidson, family, friends, home, life these days, quotes, travel, unc