🎶Happy birthday to me🎶

I stepped on to the veranda and sat at my table for breakfast. The gentleman at the next table/room introduced himself and we chatted a bit. Jeff and Janet just arrived last night from the UK. As in Amed, the breakfast menu was exclusively Western. I very rarely eat sweet dishes for breakfast, but I went for the banana crêpe, which was thicker than I’d expected and arrived with chocolate drizzle. Yum.

As I got ready to go, I discovered I’d left the mesh pouch to my Anker portable battery (without which my iPhone charge would not last a full tour day, between navigation, photos, and video) in Wajan’s van. I had checked the back of the van to make sure I’d brought everything, but I’d jumped out of the back seat in a hurry and didn’t check there. I could have done without it, but: it’s nice to keep the charger cable inside the pouch rather than loose in my shoulder bag; I hate to leave anything behind; and given my chat with Wajan yesterday, this seemed to align with the idea of me giving him some additional cash. I took a screenshot of the pouch online, sent it to Wajan in WhatsApp, and he confirmed that he’d found it and that he would be back in Ubud tomorrow afternoon.

My chosen activity for the day was (Birthday) Biking through Bali’s Hidden Beauty, an Airbnb Experience. As Airbnb homes are more localized and personal than hotels, Experiences are group tours but less cookie-cutter than with a tour company and are borne out of the host’s passion for the activity or skill.

I had packed specifically for this day my leather utility belt (similar to this one from the same Etsy shop owner). You know, like a fanny pack but bad-ass. It came in handy in Amed when I walked out to dinner at the beach and all I needed to bring was a little cash and my phone. Ultimately, I decided I had too much stuff I wanted on me that wouldn’t fit in the pouches, like my hat and bottled water and the Anker.

At 8:45, I walked out to the entrance on the main road to await my ride, which didn’t show up until almost 9:00, which was unusual in my experience with other drivers here. It would be the first and last element of the tour day that wasn’t absolutely perfect.

Groups are limited to 6 to maximize a positive experience for the guests, and today the group was just myself and one other person, Maddie from Kent. Sweet!

At Warung Tepi Sari, we met our host/guide, Nyoman, and had an opportunity to use the loo. Our first stop was at a primary school that a portion of the tour fee benefits. Nyoman went to school here! He and four of his grade school buddies started the bike tour business to live their passion and give back to their community. It was 9:30am and the adorable 1st graders were on their way out of school and home for the day already because it’s exams week for all the grades. The 6th graders were still taking their exams, which we could see from a peek into the classroom, but we didn’t disturb them.

Hindu shrines are everywhere on Bali, and I pointed to the one on the school grounds to ask about the offerings of flowers and incense that I’ve seen on the statues and in front of shops. Nyoman said they’re placed daily for good fortune, and today they include a bit of food, like crackers and coconuts, because it is the new moon.

The next stop was the Dewi Agrowisata coffee plantation. We received a tour of the cocoa and coffee trees, a cage of 3 luwaks, and the roasting area. Luwak coffee is made when the animal (which looks like a cross between a raccoon and a fox?) eats the coffee beans that fall off the trees, digests the outer layer, and poops out the rest, which is then collected, boiled twice, and roasted. I shit you not.

We were shown to a covered balcony with tables overlooking a green valley and served with both a coffee and tea sampler tray and some pineapple and mini-pancakes. Second breakfast! The pancake syrup was served in a teeny banana leaf. Adorable. The sample included: Bali coffee, 100% cocoa (just add hot water), ginseng coffee, mangosteen tea, vanilla coffee, rosella tea, turmeric tea, ginger tea, lemongrass tea, and coconut coffee. Maddie paid for an additional small cup of the Luwak coffee, which is reputed to be very smooth.

As we ate, I told Maddie it’s my birthday today, and she couldn’t believe it had taken me so long to mention. I’m not usually shy about making a big deal out of my birthday every year, because I have a grand time parading around like a special princess. I told Jeff at my first breakfast this morning, and I don’t know why I hesitated with Maddie.

Back at the warung, I had also for some reason warned/confessed/pre-apologized to Maddie that I take an obnoxious number of photos and videos. By the time we ate breakfast, I was comfortable enough to tell her, “Oh, you’re way worse than I am,” as she Instagram Storied her cup of Luwak.

We were allowed a leisurely amount of time to finish our drinks and food and take photos and were then shown to the gift shop. There was no pressure to buy anything, and it was the only stop on the tour where any additional cash might be needed. I have no space in my bags, but I bought a small pouch of the turmeric tea, pre-sweetened with honey and cinnamon, because I love it.

Next up was Mt. Batur and Lake Batur. Maddie showed me on the map how far north on the island we’d ridden. I had no idea we were going so far up! It was overcast and the summit of the mountain was shrouded in clouds but still a beautiful view from the lookout. The other thing I will remember about this stop is the people selling T-shirts and sand art because of how very aggressive and even desperate they were. I prefer to make eye contact and say ‘no thank you’ but that was not working no matter how many times I tried, which left me to cut them off and walk away. Complicated Western tourist feelings are complicated.

At almost noon, we began our bike ride descent through the countryside a bit south of Batur. I learned that the van we rode up in would be following us down, so I could leave my bag inside and ride unencumbered. I could have brought my utility belt after all! I had only a loose pocket in my Thai Elepants, so I thought I would hold my phone while I rode. Nyoman was not about that for safety reasons (OK, fine) and offered to hold my phone in his bag. Had I worn my belt, I probably would have photo’d and video’d my way down the mountain here and there. As it was, I retrieved my phone at stops but mostly I experienced the ride with my eyes and not through a screen. As a bonus, Maddie was packing her phone, a point-and-shoot, a GoPro, and a drone!

And I’d been worried about being obnoxious with my phone. At a few points on our downhill bike journey, Maddie paused at length to set up her gear, either the drone or positioning her GoPro on her chest harness. She never once apologized for the amount of time it took, or even said ‘thank you for waiting’.

So it seemed I was overly concerned about the space I take up in the company of someone who has never considered the amount of space she takes up. I think the ideal balance to strive for is somewhere between: we can often replace ‘sorry’ with ‘thank you’. I think some awareness and gratitude on her part would have gone a long way and would be healthier than my impulse to apologize were I the one taking up others’ time.

Ultimately, I was glad that she was documenting our experience so many different ways. She offered to share the footage with me via Dropbox, which I am super excited about as we rode through such a variety of beautiful vistas: open rice paddies, both harvested and awaiting harvest; one of the Indonesian president’s homes; small villages with children smiling and waving, and shrines, and papier-mâché gods; main towns that allowed us to become part of the chaotic traffic patterns I’ve written about. We made stops at a community temple and a family compound housing 19 people. At the latter, we paused for tea and peanut crackers and learned about family life there.

The conclusion of the three-hour ride was back at Warung Tepi Sari, where tables overlook yet another gorgeous rice paddy. We were given a fresh bottle of cold water and a cold, wet cloth for freshening up. Nice touch! Lunch was a generous portion of nasi campur, mine with tempeh.

A few more photos and then we rode back into main Ubud. Maddie showed me some of the GoPro footage, and it looked amazing.

[Update from the future: I had a feeling in this moment that I was never going to receive Maddie’s footage. She is 22 and the most impressively self-involved person I’ve ever met. I believed she had the best of intentions but would not follow through, and that unfortunately proved true. We exchanged Instagram messages, and I asked twice over the following months for her to share her footage, and it never came.]

The tour was scheduled from 9:00 to 3:00, and I arrived back at the listing at 4:00. As with Frank’s wine tasting in New Zealand, it was nice that the host guided his guests through the experience at a leisurely pace rather than minding the clock.

The only other thing I had planned for the day was to drop my charger cable at Mac Dewata. I carried my laptop with me (in its wool sleeve.. ugh) so as to test the cable upon being fixed, but I arrived late enough in the day that they needed to keep the cable overnight, plus they have their own Macbook Airs for testing.

From there, I wasn’t quite sure what to do with myself and I was carrying my laptop with a 45% charge that I was saving for emergency use. I wandered a bit and noticed that my neck and shoulders felt a little tight, probably from carrying too much stuff in my shoulder bag on a daily basis. And then suddenly, I saw all the spa signs. I mean, I’d seen them already, but I guess it’s like car advertising on TV.. you just ignore it unless you’re actually in the market for a car. Of course I will have a birthday Bali massage!

There were many, many to choose from, and the one that attracted me had “family” in the name and it was set back off of the alley I was meandering through. I chose the most basic menu item, a traditional Balinese massage. I was first led to a cushy chair on the outside entry, and a basin with warm water and flowers was brought out. A man took my shoes, cleaned my feet, and provided me with a pair of flip flops to wear inside a small room with two massage tables. He gave me time to undress and I got on the table face down.

A traditional Balinese massage turned out to be the standard massage I am familiar with, what we call in America a Swedish massage, which was just fine. The pressure was firm but not too much, and I relaxed thoroughly without falling asleep, as often happens. I was surprised when I turned over halfway to find that my massage therapist was a woman! I didn’t realize there had been a switch.

I dressed and went back out to the tiled entry to find a tea tray awaiting. I sipped my tea and Googled tipping practice. I hadn’t been tipping for meals as it’s not expected but I was glad I looked up spa service tipping because it is more customary. I wanted to tip my massage therapist directly, as suggested in the posts I’d read, but the man who’d greeted me when I arrived explained that it was his wife that had massaged me. A true family business. The massage price was 90,000, and I gave him an additional 30,000 to give to her (or however they arrange their business, I guess). The total of 120,000 is about $8.50 USD. Jaw-dropping.

Before dinner, I wanted to drop off my laptop. I stopped in the same pharmacy where I’d bought dental floss sticks because I’d seen frangipani essential oil but didn’t have any more cash on me at the time.

After being curious about the fragrant flowers with a yellow center and white petals that I was seeing everywhere, I looked them up and learned that what the Indonesian call jepun is called variously in English either plumeria or frangipani. A-ha! I knew plumeria was associated with Hawaii, and frangipani was some kind of Eastern plant, but I hadn’t put it all together before.

I bought both a frangipani oil and some Tiger Balm, the white ointment rather than red as I’d never used it before. Apparently, in Asian cultures, it’s used for everything. Insect bite? Tiger Balm. Upset tummy? Tiger Balm. Headache? Tiger Balm. Chest congestion? Tiger Balm. And of course, muscular aches? Tiger Balm!

I regrouped in my room, looking through photos from the day (alas, very few of mine came out well).

For dinner, I landed at Juice Ja. I pretty much gave up on the idea of having authentic Balinese cuisine here. The closest I got tonight was linguini with jasmine tea-soaked raisins.

Back in the listing, I showered off the sunscreen (got a little burnt anyway on my right shoulder and elbow, as we rode south with the sun to the west) and bug spray and the massage oil out of my hair. I shared some social media posts captioned “Gettin’ my kicks at 46”, and the birthday greetings began coming in from home as the morning of the 14th began there, my dad via text and several posts to my Facebook feed. My fellow traveling friend, Francesca, who also has family in France and is thus keenly aware of time differences, had sent me greetings just as the bike tour day began, which was lovely.

And I put my birthday to bed at 00:45.