Part I. New Surroundings: I got the call at 4:35AM. After another night of restless sleep I was actually grateful to have a reason to get up. It was Robin: there was a birth, would like to attend? “I’ll be right there,” I said and hung up the phone. I threw on a pair of yoga pants, a t-shirt and my flip-flops. I paused before leaving and looked fearfully...

All week I have struggled with writing. I have written a lot, trying to recount every intricate object I see, the myriad of smells and tastes and the beautiful scenery that surrounds me. It is so different from home, and I want to share it with everyone.  Most of all, selfishly, I want to know that I have the skill to write about it. But writing is a lonely act and,...

I am beginning to think that I am a visitor in my own home. My first week here has been like a one long episode of the Discovery Channel with all the creatures I have discovered that take up residence in my home. For example, there are the ants. Two species live here, I believe. Inside my room there are the very tiny ants – a third of the size of the ants at...

Despite the relief of the oppressive heat, three straight days of afternoon rain makes for an extremely restless Devin. Thus, around 4:30 I was fully ready for a trip into Ubud, despite having already made a journey there during my now regular morning walk. I reasoned that I needed cash as an excuse and decided that maybe I would do some shopping or grab a beer at...

Today I experienced my first real thunderstorm in Bali. I say experienced, because I did more than simply watch it, I immersed myself in it. 2PBB2GWQX265 For the past three days, we’ve had afternoon rain at around the same time in the afternoon – just after 12:30 – with almost clock-setting timeliness. Each day, a thunderstorm threatens in the...