It’s been a long travel day and we finally reach our villa in Bali. (It feels weird to even write that; we’ve come a long ways in many ways) The hotel manager opens the gate to our villa and Sabrina, Lydia, and Elisa walk inside. I did not tell the kids what kind of hotel we were staying at and haven’t provided any details despite Elisa’s persistent questioning. As soon as they cross the gate, they are excited. Our villa is a courtyard, with a living room and bedrooms facing each other. In the middle, our own pool. Lydia says “I’m so happy” which is quite a thing for her to say. She loves the simple, modern, wood and concrete atmosphere. As soon as we are settled Sabrina and Elisa are using the pool. We snack on the appetizers the hotel provided.
Later that night Lydia and I head out in search for an ATM which GPS tells me is about 750 meters away. As we walk we encounter unkempt dogs, off leash, some sleeping, some pacing in front of properties. I don’t think the dogs are a threat but it is unnerving. The roadside is a mix of small shops and fields with the only light provided by the small shops. As we walk alongside a field I turn to my right and a full grown cow is staring back at me. This quite startled Lydia. If you haven’t guessed already, we are city folk. Up past the cows are two dogs prowling the middle of the street at which point Lydia and I turned back. Cash wasn’t that important. There is always room service.
I’ve been taking kids on vacations for a few years now as my photo memories remind me (thanks Google Photos, thanks Facebook). I’m not a great planner and I tend to stress over the logistic details and whether the kids are happy. It never exactly feels like a vacation for me although I’m not sure I know what that would feel like. As I write this, I am looking out at our pool. It is raining. I am taken back to Russian River and a cabin we stayed at. It was notable for a few reasons. We didn’t camp. It was during the period of years my mom also went on these summer vacations. My dad decided to quit smoking on this trip. And we swam in the river in the rain. I think the last two items were connected.
Back to this vacation, it started on a bit of a downer. The week before the trip Aidan hurt his knee wakeboarding. A MFPL tear caused by a kneecap dislocation and a slight meniscus tear. The MFPL tear needed surgery which meant Aidan had to stay behind. Aidan was afraid before the surgery and in quite a bit of pain after. A six month recovery process is in front of him.
With Aidan in the hospital bed overnight, we first flew to Singapore. For some reason I really like Singapore. Something about the moderness of it, some historical buildings and English being spoken. We spent three nights there and did some sightseeing and exploring. I even tried a taste of Sabrina’s Durian McFlurry which I must say was truly horrible. Actual highlights included the botanical garden, the man made gardens by the sea (and light show), and wondering around Chinatown.
With both Bali and Singapore it’s obvious there are layers of richness which we can’t access. Can’t access because we are self (screen) involved. Can’t access because we are not connected with locals. For me, I like a mix of insular time and a mix of being pulled into the local scene. My proxy for local scene is walking and reading about the communities.
In a few hours we will start our trek back to Beijing. We will say goodbye to this villa and the amazing in room catered breakfasts. We will say goodbye to the scooters zipping past on the wrong side of the road. We will say goodbye to the whisper of another kind of life and fall back into our own. Our own lives which would not be recognizable if we were not in them.