Bali Heart & Soul

A typical day could include a tranquil morning, followed by breakfast and yoga. Mid-morning spent participating in Sam and Matt’s soulful university-accredited creative writing course and photographic prompts through our immersive journeys and opportunities, before heading out to take in any number of Ubud’s scenic and cultural attractions. Afternoon is time for an authentic Balinese massage, before heading into Ubud center for dinner chosen from a wide variety of restaurants. Jane will hold intimate Dancing Hands circles in the quiet moments, providing a holistic experience to expand body and mind, heart and soul.

Activities in and around Ubud may include:

• Participating in a traditional Balinese Melukat Water Purification ceremony.

• Choice of easy-to-moderate hikes to spectacular waterfalls, including Tibumana, with its picturesque cascade and refreshing swimming pool

• Exploring Ubud’s traditional marketplace, and batik, woodworking and silversmith shops

• Museum and gallery visits, including work from renowned artists like the legendary I Gusti Nyoman Lempad, German expat Walter Spies, and Antonio Blanco, the Spanish artist known for his stylized paintings of Balinese women.

• Performances of the classical Legong, considered Bali’s most graceful and expressive dance, held nightly in the Ubud Palace.

• Honoring and connecting with the soul of the Balinese traditions with visits to Pura Gunung Kawi and Gunung Lewa temples.

• Near-daily dances with JANE’s Dancing Hands, the Pura Vida, and the Source Energy that flows through her.

**In past events, we’ve asked for each participant to be at a medium level of physical strength. As far as I know, we won’t be swimming with the whales as we did each day in Tonga, (it’s not on the agenda), or hiking up Machu Picchu in high altitude as we did in Peru, but we’d still love for your to check in with us if you are having any restrictions with your physical or emotional strength and balance. Let’s talk in transparency about where we are and what you may need. Some, but not all may wish to learn to surf. Obviously, if you’re not a swimmer, we’d say you could sit on the beach for that. 

Excursions

To be spaced throughout the Bali Heart and Soul experience, as per time and inclination.

A full-day trip to Bali’s Bukit Peninsula, home of the spectacular, cliffside Ulu Watu temple. Includes a mid-morning visit to Padang-Padang, one of the island’s most picturesque beaches, followed by a temple tour led by Wayan Lukarni, a longtime friend of the Georges, and one of Bali’s first female surfers. She will then act as our personal guide and interpreter at an absolutely spellbinding kecak trance dance, performed on the temple grounds, followed by dinner at nearby Chempaka, the warung, or Balinese café, she owns and runs. 

An overnight trip into Bali’s highlands, staying at the Lakeview Hotel, perched high on the wall of an ancient volcanic caldera, overlooking the sacred Lake Batur. Led by Made II, voyagers will enjoy two easy-to-moderate hikes, one to a temple dedicated to the towering Mt. Batur, followed by another to the temple Pura Ulun Danu Batur, one of the island’s two most important water temples, there to participate in a simple purification ceremony. Lunch will be served by Made and his wife Wayan in their family home on the shores of the lake.

A day trip to the famous beach at Kuta, the Waikiki of Bali, where those inclined can take surfing lessons from Sam and Matt aided by some of Bali’s most renowned surf instructors, or simply just lay in the sun and watch the cavalcade of characters pass by. Followed by a glorious communal seafood dinner on the sands of Jimbaran Bay, vantage point for Bali’s most spectacular sunsets.