Everyone knows Bali is the Islands of the Gods. Bali has beautiful beaches, amazing spots to surf! It also, has the best ‘pampering relaxation packages’ from the basic and affordable to the most decadent, lavish and expensive! And then, there is the local people and the amazing energy which surounds the Balinese people! But, there are also lots of other reasons we have chosen Bali for out signature Retreat destination, most of which you have never really thought about!
Here is a Blog from our Ground Management team, who makes sure all our guests enjoy every moment of their Retreat with Lie Change Retreats. Have a read…. this is why we choose Bali Bui Retreat Company to look after you! Their knowledge, experience and wisdom is the best available in Bali.
http://lifechangeretreats.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/footer-logo.png00adminhttp://lifechangeretreats.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/footer-logo.pngadmin2019-08-28 02:45:482019-08-28 02:54:3710 Interesting Things You Probably Didn’t Know about Bali!
What fun did we have at the Transform You Retreat in Bali! 7 days of relaxation, rejuvenation, and re-setting our plans for the future.
So what did we do? ‘A Lot’ is the short answer, but let me go through the Retreat highlights.
Everyone arrived at the Retreat venue on Saturday 18th on schedule and were escorted to their room to freshen up, unpack and relax a little before our first get together and Welcome Ceremony. The OO’s and ahhh’s as the ladies walked into their rooms was gratifying as one can never tell how the retreat venue will ‘rate’ to the guests but everyone was very happy with their room, location, and inclusions.
After our Welcome Ceremony, the Management and staff invited to attend a special Balinese Blessing Ceremony to ensure we had a safe and happy visit to the Resort. It was very special as we were linked and blessed. I will remember this ceremony for many years to come. It was so unexpected and very beautiful. It will be an inclusion in every Retreat package in the future at this venue. The ceremony set the standard for the exceptional service that we had from each and every member of the Alam Sari team.
Each day of our retreat started with peaceful meditation or laughter yoga, followed by a delicious breakfast. Fueled for the day, we had our retreat workshop, which over the week included, hypnosis, exercises, and tasks to reset our thinking. Over the years, we build habits around everything we do. Planning is no different. Eventually, we do things, automatically, almost by remote. So it is the same process, we don’t even think about, and even if we didn’t achieve goals last year, we set them the same way this year. The retreat workshops are designed to change the way we think, and thereby change the results we are getting.
Retreat Highlights
Pyramids of Chi.
This was an amazing experience. The timing of this Retreat meant we were lucky enough to be visiting the Pyramids during Full moon, so the package was upgraded to include the Full Moon Ritual. Amazing! We started with a short introduction to the process, so we knew what to expect. Then we were ‘smoked’ to cleanse our energy and spirit! We formed a circle around a huge open fire pit,
Spiritual Sound Healing Experience
the spirits, birds, and animals of the 4 directions were called in to join us! (An amazing Shamanic experience) we burnt our sabotages and let them go plus offered our dreams and wishes to the spirits to bring us guidance on… as part of the fire ceremony.
Then it was into the Pyramids for Sound Healing. If you have never experienced this, you should, it is amazing. You will resonate to one or many of the sounds. Everyone agreed…. the whole experience was life changing! Beautiful, emotional, time stopping! Just very hard to describe! Afterward, we were treated to a fantastic vegetarian meal of musleman curry, rice, dessert, and a sweet drink.
All in all, a wonderful night out and confirmed The Pyramids of Chi as a definite inclusion in any retreat hosted in Bali!
Karsa Spa Pampering Package
Included in the Retreat package was 2 – 3 hours of pampering. I choose for the group a ‘special’ Buddha Package that included a 60-minute massage, a Chakra Healing and a facial. Wow and more Wow! The staff at the Karsa Spa were brilliant. Relaxation + and topped off with the Chakra Healing – everyone was in blissful land ……
Cultural Excursions
We visited an elementary school as we had brought with us donations of rubber balls, reading books, pencils, paints, crayons, etc for the kids to use at the school. The kids loved the balls. The teachers loved the art equipment and reading books. We loved the joy on the faces as we sat and chatted to them. It is an inclusion in each Life Change Retreat to give back to the communities that we visit in some way. So, this visit definitely ‘ticked’ my boxes for the contribution!
Monkey Forest
Great place to visit, in fact, I would say, a must do, in Ubud. We saw small (tiny) baby monkey’s, grumpy old monkeys and every type of monkey in between. They tried to steal the bags, water, and phones off unsuspecting tourists, but fortunately, we had our wits about us and escaped in tack. It was a lovely place to visit.
Tirta Empul Temple
On our tour around we came across the Tirta Empul Templand where, if you wish, you can take part in a purification ceremony. Lorraine and Vanessa decided this would be a great challenge. The water is freezing cold and you have to be for about 45 minutes. The ceremony included changing into bright green robes, creating a blessing, giving blessing to the temple. What a wonderful experience this was for the two ladies.
I am going to include this as part of the next Bali Retreat. They came out with smiles, ear to ear, very reflective and very happy that they took the plunge and trusted their intuition and just went for it. Those of us who watched from the sidelines were quite envious!
Markets – Shopping and Eating,
Every retreat must have shopping included! and Ubud is an amazing place to shop. You have choices of markets, boutiques and very exclusive outlets to venture into and save yourself some serious money. We spent time in the markets – everyone filled their souvenir lists; we visited silver factories; batik factory and lots of specialty shops. Bracelets, essential oils, pottery, buddha’s, yoga equipment and really anything you can imagine they sell somewhere. Shop till you drop …….. so we did and the ladies certainly got their fill!
The restaurants are amazing and whether you want local Balinese food or international cuisine you will find your choice in Ubud. Alam Sari kept us very satisfied with a very extensively breakfast, generous and tasty lunches (different taste every day) and we ventured out at night!
The Shaman
The Shaman was a Retreat optional extra! All the ladies decided “Why not?” and what an experience for them all!
The stories left us in awe and laughing at his antics so no recap of our adventures will ever be complete without mentioning the Shaman. Such a character. If you have seen the Pirates of the Carribean you have ‘met’ the Shaman! He was amazing. Look for the Video I have uploaded of him sharing a ‘laugh’ with Vanessa, the Laughter Yoga Lady.
Transform You Retreat Summary
We had fun and laughed so loud. The Balinese culture – the dancers, the Shaman, the staff, the kids, all were memorable moments! The friendships built added so much value to us all and the enjoyment of our retreat. We arrived as strangers and left as family, knowing that we would keep in touch and meet up again regularly.
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Sri Lanka lies in the Indian Ocean a short flight from India. The main export is tea. But Sri Lanka is more than just tea. Sri Lanka is Bali 50 years ago…. But with far more archaeological importance than you could ever imagine!
UNESCO Heritage Sites
Sri Lanka is home to eight UNESCO World Heritage sites and it houses more archaeological wonders than most tourists ever expect. It is a small country where both Hinduism and Islam have both had a huge influence. There are mosques and temple complexes found everywhere throughout the country, however it is Buddhism that really underpins the Sri Lankan Culture.
Sigiriya
No journey to Sri Lanka would be complete without a trip to the 1600 year old Sigiriya Citadel Rock, a 200 metres high mountain of rock standing large and tall over the plains of Dambulla. The summit can be reached by visitors by climbing 1200 steep, well-worn steps and twisting ladders to the first plateau where we catch our first real ‘breath-taking’ view of the surrounding countryside. It is amazing. Those with some strength left, it is up another 200 steps or so to the summit and the ancient citadel and elaborate Buddhist city of Alakamanda, and home of a former royal palace, dating back to the 10th Century. There are only ruins remaining but use your imagination to picture the magnificent structure, some 7 stories high, housing some 1000 chambers and inhabited by the Kings family, servants and palace aides.
Simple Sri Lanka
The climb to the summit is not for the fainthearted but it is worth every ‘out of breathe’ step. You pass murals and frescoes of nymphs and Buddha statues of Gal Vihara and the ancient relic shrine of Hatadage. One wall is so highly polished, yes even after all these centuries, that it still reflects sunlight to light up a frescoes you would otherwise not see.
The trip down Sigiriya is quicker but the views and artifacts you pass by are just as fascinating.
History
Sri Lanka is a tropical Island with two main climate zones. There is a wet zone, covering the south-east quarter and a dry zone covering the rest of the country. The island contains no natural lakes except a few small flood plain lakes but has hundred of man made reservoirs. The earliest of these built over 2500 years ago, the more recent… 800 years ago. How forward thinking were the Sri Lankan people. They still today have no issues with water. The irrigation canals and drains to move water from the mountains to the plains pre-date Christ and most were built in 6 to 3 BC! Just imagine that…. Triangular drainage canals, that still work to this day, built BC.
During the period 1984 to 1986 three lakes were built, mainly for hydroelectric purposes. These were Lakes Kotmalé, Victoria and Randenigala and were built by impounding the River Mahaweli and were deliberately constructed at different elevations. The water is collected and then moved to where it is needed for farming purposes (and to generate electricity) via drainage canals similar to those constructed centuries earlier. It is amazing system and the Gardens below Sigiriya shows them canals and drainage systems in operation.
People
The people are friendly and welcoming. The food delightful, nothing like Indian which was a surprise. You will see kids playing cricket everywhere, fishermen on poles and bargaining in the markets. It is vibrant, colorful and your senses will be overpowered by the smells and sights. It is delightful! Amazingly, not too crowded, which was a surprise.
When people told me that Sri Lanka was how Bali was, before tourists, I was skeptical… but they are right. You move back in time in a good way, when you visit Sri Lanka.
No matter where you go in Sri Lanka you will constantly be reminded, there is way more than ‘tea’ to see here.
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