Travel Diary: Bali, Indonesia | The Island of the Gods

“My senses have been on overdrive from the moment I arrived in Bali. The suppressive heat makes me feel like I'm physically melting but I've found two trusted cool down methods: extremely large chilled coconut and/or a dip in the ocean.⁣

In the mornings I like to go for a walk when the humidity is 98% but the temperature is at it's coolest. I pick a few frangipanis from the ground and inhale their sweet familiar scent before I turn a corner and smell the unusual combo of burning trash and burning incense rising from the ground. ⁣

If I don't watch where I step, I might squash a devotional offering to the Gods, or I might step in dog poop. There's a distinct dichotomy in Bali.⁣

Stray dogs bark, motorbikes honk at me to get out of their path, and I hear a beautiful language I don't understand but love to listen to. It's taken me and my senses a while to adjust, and some hours of the day it’s still overwhelming. ⁣

But I can see why so many people fall for the Island of the Gods.” - excerpt from my journal, day 2 in Bali.