om travel
S
ome years ago, I read Elizabeth
Gilbert’s beguiling novel Eat Pray
Love (and watched the movie),
in which the heroine finds inner
peace in Bali and I longed to go.
However, I’d also heard that the island had
sold its soul to mass tourism and that these
days peace, inner or otherwise, was hard to
come by. Ever the travel optimist I booked
my flight.
My heart sinks a little as I sit in a traffic
jam on the road from the airport, but once
we by-pass built up Kuta (the brashest of
Bali’s resorts), I soon see rice-paddies, and
pass through small villages, each stone-
walled house with its own family shrine.
We stop at Sangeh Monkey Forest (not
an animal park but a 17th century Hindu
temple complex surrounded by a garden of
sacred nutmeg trees), which was, according
to local legend, created by the monkey
king Hanuman. Moss-covered paths lead to
Pura Bukit Sari, a grey-stone temple also
blanketed in green velvet, with a fierce eye-
bulging statue of Garuda at its core. There’s
only a handful of other tourists around and I
begin to relax.
Four Seasons Resort at Sayan, located
on the banks of the Ayung River, is located
just two-kilometres from the town of Ubud,
considered Bali’s cultural and spiritual heart.
Its design echoes the environment – teak
bridges, lotus ponds and organic vegetable
gardens, with villas nestling in abundant
gardens. The main circular building, with
a stunning lily pond roof, is inspired by a
simple rice bowl. It is heavenly.
I swim off my jetlag in the infinity pool
with river views and then head off for an
‘afternoon nap’ at Dharma Shanti Bale – a
beautiful open-air yoga pavilion with a rice
paddy outlook. Here, I’m suspended in a silk
hammock while I listen to the life story of
the Buddha told by Ibu Fera, the resident
wellness mentor and former Buddhist nun.
Deeply soothed in my cocoon, I don’t resist
the urge to snooze.Tropical tastes
Sokasi is an intimate open kitchen on the
riverbank, where you can join Chef Wayan
for a sensual lesson in traditional Balinese
ceremony cuisine, such as bebuk betutu
(slow-roasted duck), which is cooked for
12 hours in an underground clay oven. Oh,Kate Wickers enjoys an Eat
Pray Love adventure in
Bali, Indonesia’s magical
yoga island
Worldmags.net