Thursday, December 27, 2007
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM NEW ZEALAND!!!
Dearest Friends and Family,
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from New Zealand!!!!! I wish you all the love and joy this season has to offer you! May you be surrounded by the best of friends and so much love and joy and may your heart to so happy! This is a time to share with the ones you love. Share from your heart, not so much from your pocket book, but your heart, your love and share the joy you have with you. Open to your truth of who you are and let that being out and turn to your family and friends and say “Hey, I love you, you are and amazing being and I want for you all the happiness and joy there is for you no matter what.” So here I am saying exactly that to you! I love you! I appreciate you and think that world of you-even if I say it in a group email it is to you, individual and as a group, as we are all one anyway! So go be merry, happy and love! Merry Christmas!!
It's been lovely so far here in NZ! The weather the first day was gorgeous, warm, and clear blue skies with white puffy clouds. Rob and I got the car, made our way to Akaroa and the drive there was spectacular!!! All the rolling green hills, trees, blue skies, air so clean, the sounds of the sheep baaahhhing and the birds singing. It was so nice to see someone from home and be traveling with someone! What a beautiful gift!
We got to the top of this hill and was over looking the lake of Akaroa and the hills all around were just breath taking.
We got the house and “OH MY GOSH”!!! This place was gorgeous! Yes a little run down, needing a paint job but honestly who cares. With all it offered! We park at the door, the owners have all the windows and doors open, the man, Lou, calls out to us saying he’ll be right there, full of life and light in his voice. He introduces himself as Lou with such grounded New Zealand Cheer. He showed us the HUGE pool table, and when I say huge I mean huge, meaning it’s the size of almost two pool tables in the US! It had a gargantuan fireplace in the same room and windows filling all of one wall with a couch and vases behind it looking out on the huge grass yard with a large organic veggie garden beyond it-which we eat out of!!! YUMMY!!!
Next room over is the dining room with a Baby Grand Piano in it with the view of the mountains, fresh rolling green hills. Upstairs is where the real delicious part was. Our room……imagine a room with a Queen size bed, a dining table in the corner with windows looking in all directions in the corner, a fireplace next to the bed and then walking out on the extra large porch with a deep old looking tub OUTSIDE, with a bed with a four poled mosquito net hanging above it and a sun shelter pull down to guard from sun or rain or wind. So you can sleep inside or out! The view of the hills and the ocean from the other porch was just outstanding! So staying here by day of exploring Christchurch and looking around the place as well as just staying in laying in front of the fireplace sharing and cuddling as well as me getting well took up our days there. It was the most incredible, magical and best place I’ve ever stayed in my life and very romantical!
It was just incredible to take an outdoor bath with the stars above and the light cool breeze coming in from the ocean and mountains and take in the sounds of the cows mooing and sheep baaaing in the back ground. All the animal sounds came alive at night it seems. So gorgeous! The bathtub was so deep you could fit your whole body into it and possibly even put your whole head under without scrunching into it! Beautiful! Plus when you put on the hot water it is immediate hot water, almost scalding, so you have to be careful, but there was plenty to fill it and then some!!! So you can be warm, warm, warm!
And the food……it was……divine! We couldn’t have asked for more blessed food-Salmon cooked with the most glorious spices, asparagus, piles of veggies, salad, one night, other nights lamb, potatoes, more veggies and salads, and beef with lots of healthy things like steamed beets from the garden, served fresh to us each night. With breakfast being a HUGE bowl of cut fruit with all kinds of colors of Strawberries, kiwis, apricots, apples and many more, with toast, tea and ginger with lemon and honey for me!
It was so nice to be spoiled for those few days there. Moving on was hard but it was time after a few games of pool and a few delicious nights sleep there-us being the only people there.
Every where we went we found friendly people, so down to earth, authentically friendly, laughing, full of life and light. It was a delight to be around these people. To watch how they raised their children was even more of a delight. As they included them, they wanted them around, talked to them as people. It wasn’t as if they wanted them away, or they were too loud, or pestering them. They wanted to be a part of their lives, thoughts, ideas. They wanted to be a part of their lives inside and out. The children seemed so confident, so well rounded, so appreciated and appreciative. I’ve never seen anything like this in the west. It was such a breath of fresh air, I breathed a sigh of relief to have such love, laughter, joy, inclusion around at the next dinner table over or at the beach of a lake of everyone talking, playing, listening to music, working out problems and communication. This is how children should be raised, it’s just lovely to see a culture doing this and seeing how together they seem as adults.
We drove through the mountains and stopped at a resort for a dip in the hot springs but ended up staying over for a massage, dinner, a dip as well as a great night sleep, a lovely breakfast and then a very filling breakfast.
Driving through the vastness of the green valleys, the turns and twists, the clouds hanging just over the tops of the mountain tops and then breaking through to the blue sky at the beach, watching the ocean pound onto the pebbled grey beaches was just titillating to all the senses.
So driving south on the west side to all the jutting lush mountains coming out of the land, next to the sea was just a sight to be had for our longing eyes for nature. Here I was, “stop here”, “now here”, “oh, oh, stop here”. That was me, I couldn’t get enough. So many photos in so short of time. I’ve almost already taken my 1200 photos on my camera in the past week, of course that includes a few videos as well!!!! Much to share once I am back.
Now we are at France Joseph Glacier, near Mt Cook and it rocks the most so far! It seems like each place gets better and better. The blue glacier the moves a foot a year, maybe it’s a month, but I think it’s a foot a year, is powerful in its stature. It stands strong, powerful, unmovable yet feels like it’s moving all at the same time. The tall green mountains surrounding it are just stunning, whether in sun or in cloudy weather, it’s just miraculously amazing!
If you have never been here, you must come if you love nature. The sound of the birds, cows, lambs baaaing every where and so delightful to listen too. I can’t imagine eating the deer they have here for meals but they have lots of deer farms.
It’s to nice to hike by day see glaciers, nature, smell the freshest air I’ve smelled in a long time. As well as finding lots of organic foods and fallen back in love with nuts and dried fruits, YUMMMYYYY! They don’t have lots of organic and they aren’t much into health, but it is getting bigger over here and it’s very nice to see and taste when we can find it. Oh and driving opposed to busing it, this is like heaven. To go when you want to go, do what you want to do, I am really loving it. Plus listening to music in the car, windows down, fresh air in your face, feet sticking out the window, when it’s not too cold.
Some days are so gorgeous here, but other days I have 3+ layers on and a rain coat. But I have to say, it’s so far a lot warmer then expected and the landscape makes up for the chilliness!
It’s funny this place seems western but it feels like it’s about 40 years behind with it’s small towns, laid back attitude, things closing at 5pm, and when they say that Greymouth is the largest city on the west coast, well if you say a town with two main streets in it a large city, well, hummm…..that’s pretty amazing! So it feels a bit small and backwards but it feels absolutely amazing here!!! I am delighting in this place, enjoying all the hikes and nature.
The other day nature took me by the hand and started talking to me, showing me things, teaching me lessons. It was a beautiful lesson. It gave me a lot but I’ll share with you 3 words it shared with me: Love, Believe and Trust. These are some powerful words. The message was to be as the stone-strong and powerful within yourself, be as the tree-bend with life, allow for change of direction and acceptance, be like the river flowing around things, ever changing, going through and around things, being absorbed yet being part of. It told much more but nature has much to say and it asked to be listened to more and more. So to be silent with her, it is the best! Listen me, hear what life and the ones around you have to say. This is the important thing of the now. Who you put around you and what you put around you is what is important so take a look around, who and what is around you? Do you like listening to them? Do you want to hear more? Do you listen to it/them? Do you enjoy them?
My lesson is to listen more, enjoy life as a gift everyday and every human that crosses my path. Thanks for being someone that has crossed my path and that is in my life today. I send you love, Merry Christmas and have a very safe and Happy New Year!
Remember someone out here is thinking of you, no matter how far away I am, I am here, I feel you and love you. Love, Heather
Many hugs to you!!!!!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from New Zealand!!!!! I wish you all the love and joy this season has to offer you! May you be surrounded by the best of friends and so much love and joy and may your heart to so happy! This is a time to share with the ones you love. Share from your heart, not so much from your pocket book, but your heart, your love and share the joy you have with you. Open to your truth of who you are and let that being out and turn to your family and friends and say “Hey, I love you, you are and amazing being and I want for you all the happiness and joy there is for you no matter what.” So here I am saying exactly that to you! I love you! I appreciate you and think that world of you-even if I say it in a group email it is to you, individual and as a group, as we are all one anyway! So go be merry, happy and love! Merry Christmas!!
It's been lovely so far here in NZ! The weather the first day was gorgeous, warm, and clear blue skies with white puffy clouds. Rob and I got the car, made our way to Akaroa and the drive there was spectacular!!! All the rolling green hills, trees, blue skies, air so clean, the sounds of the sheep baaahhhing and the birds singing. It was so nice to see someone from home and be traveling with someone! What a beautiful gift!
We got to the top of this hill and was over looking the lake of Akaroa and the hills all around were just breath taking.
We got the house and “OH MY GOSH”!!! This place was gorgeous! Yes a little run down, needing a paint job but honestly who cares. With all it offered! We park at the door, the owners have all the windows and doors open, the man, Lou, calls out to us saying he’ll be right there, full of life and light in his voice. He introduces himself as Lou with such grounded New Zealand Cheer. He showed us the HUGE pool table, and when I say huge I mean huge, meaning it’s the size of almost two pool tables in the US! It had a gargantuan fireplace in the same room and windows filling all of one wall with a couch and vases behind it looking out on the huge grass yard with a large organic veggie garden beyond it-which we eat out of!!! YUMMY!!!
Next room over is the dining room with a Baby Grand Piano in it with the view of the mountains, fresh rolling green hills. Upstairs is where the real delicious part was. Our room……imagine a room with a Queen size bed, a dining table in the corner with windows looking in all directions in the corner, a fireplace next to the bed and then walking out on the extra large porch with a deep old looking tub OUTSIDE, with a bed with a four poled mosquito net hanging above it and a sun shelter pull down to guard from sun or rain or wind. So you can sleep inside or out! The view of the hills and the ocean from the other porch was just outstanding! So staying here by day of exploring Christchurch and looking around the place as well as just staying in laying in front of the fireplace sharing and cuddling as well as me getting well took up our days there. It was the most incredible, magical and best place I’ve ever stayed in my life and very romantical!
It was just incredible to take an outdoor bath with the stars above and the light cool breeze coming in from the ocean and mountains and take in the sounds of the cows mooing and sheep baaaing in the back ground. All the animal sounds came alive at night it seems. So gorgeous! The bathtub was so deep you could fit your whole body into it and possibly even put your whole head under without scrunching into it! Beautiful! Plus when you put on the hot water it is immediate hot water, almost scalding, so you have to be careful, but there was plenty to fill it and then some!!! So you can be warm, warm, warm!
And the food……it was……divine! We couldn’t have asked for more blessed food-Salmon cooked with the most glorious spices, asparagus, piles of veggies, salad, one night, other nights lamb, potatoes, more veggies and salads, and beef with lots of healthy things like steamed beets from the garden, served fresh to us each night. With breakfast being a HUGE bowl of cut fruit with all kinds of colors of Strawberries, kiwis, apricots, apples and many more, with toast, tea and ginger with lemon and honey for me!
It was so nice to be spoiled for those few days there. Moving on was hard but it was time after a few games of pool and a few delicious nights sleep there-us being the only people there.
Every where we went we found friendly people, so down to earth, authentically friendly, laughing, full of life and light. It was a delight to be around these people. To watch how they raised their children was even more of a delight. As they included them, they wanted them around, talked to them as people. It wasn’t as if they wanted them away, or they were too loud, or pestering them. They wanted to be a part of their lives, thoughts, ideas. They wanted to be a part of their lives inside and out. The children seemed so confident, so well rounded, so appreciated and appreciative. I’ve never seen anything like this in the west. It was such a breath of fresh air, I breathed a sigh of relief to have such love, laughter, joy, inclusion around at the next dinner table over or at the beach of a lake of everyone talking, playing, listening to music, working out problems and communication. This is how children should be raised, it’s just lovely to see a culture doing this and seeing how together they seem as adults.
We drove through the mountains and stopped at a resort for a dip in the hot springs but ended up staying over for a massage, dinner, a dip as well as a great night sleep, a lovely breakfast and then a very filling breakfast.
Driving through the vastness of the green valleys, the turns and twists, the clouds hanging just over the tops of the mountain tops and then breaking through to the blue sky at the beach, watching the ocean pound onto the pebbled grey beaches was just titillating to all the senses.
So driving south on the west side to all the jutting lush mountains coming out of the land, next to the sea was just a sight to be had for our longing eyes for nature. Here I was, “stop here”, “now here”, “oh, oh, stop here”. That was me, I couldn’t get enough. So many photos in so short of time. I’ve almost already taken my 1200 photos on my camera in the past week, of course that includes a few videos as well!!!! Much to share once I am back.
Now we are at France Joseph Glacier, near Mt Cook and it rocks the most so far! It seems like each place gets better and better. The blue glacier the moves a foot a year, maybe it’s a month, but I think it’s a foot a year, is powerful in its stature. It stands strong, powerful, unmovable yet feels like it’s moving all at the same time. The tall green mountains surrounding it are just stunning, whether in sun or in cloudy weather, it’s just miraculously amazing!
If you have never been here, you must come if you love nature. The sound of the birds, cows, lambs baaaing every where and so delightful to listen too. I can’t imagine eating the deer they have here for meals but they have lots of deer farms.
It’s to nice to hike by day see glaciers, nature, smell the freshest air I’ve smelled in a long time. As well as finding lots of organic foods and fallen back in love with nuts and dried fruits, YUMMMYYYY! They don’t have lots of organic and they aren’t much into health, but it is getting bigger over here and it’s very nice to see and taste when we can find it. Oh and driving opposed to busing it, this is like heaven. To go when you want to go, do what you want to do, I am really loving it. Plus listening to music in the car, windows down, fresh air in your face, feet sticking out the window, when it’s not too cold.
Some days are so gorgeous here, but other days I have 3+ layers on and a rain coat. But I have to say, it’s so far a lot warmer then expected and the landscape makes up for the chilliness!
It’s funny this place seems western but it feels like it’s about 40 years behind with it’s small towns, laid back attitude, things closing at 5pm, and when they say that Greymouth is the largest city on the west coast, well if you say a town with two main streets in it a large city, well, hummm…..that’s pretty amazing! So it feels a bit small and backwards but it feels absolutely amazing here!!! I am delighting in this place, enjoying all the hikes and nature.
The other day nature took me by the hand and started talking to me, showing me things, teaching me lessons. It was a beautiful lesson. It gave me a lot but I’ll share with you 3 words it shared with me: Love, Believe and Trust. These are some powerful words. The message was to be as the stone-strong and powerful within yourself, be as the tree-bend with life, allow for change of direction and acceptance, be like the river flowing around things, ever changing, going through and around things, being absorbed yet being part of. It told much more but nature has much to say and it asked to be listened to more and more. So to be silent with her, it is the best! Listen me, hear what life and the ones around you have to say. This is the important thing of the now. Who you put around you and what you put around you is what is important so take a look around, who and what is around you? Do you like listening to them? Do you want to hear more? Do you listen to it/them? Do you enjoy them?
My lesson is to listen more, enjoy life as a gift everyday and every human that crosses my path. Thanks for being someone that has crossed my path and that is in my life today. I send you love, Merry Christmas and have a very safe and Happy New Year!
Remember someone out here is thinking of you, no matter how far away I am, I am here, I feel you and love you. Love, Heather
Many hugs to you!!!!!
Friday, December 14, 2007
OFF TO NEW ZEALAND TOMORROW!!!
Hello there,
Yep that's right!! And I'm so excited! I get on the plane the first thing in the morning and then land down at 2:05pm!!!!
OZ has been great here in Bryon Bay! I've loved it. So many artists, fashions, the beach is stunning and gorgeous. Everyone is cooking themselves in the sun!!! I am getting well, cough has gone away by huge percentages!!!!
I send you hugs and kisses from OZ! I'll talk to you in NZ very soon! Have a blast in all you do! I am excited to get onto some of those mountains! Time to do some serious hiking!
Love and hugs, Heather
Yep that's right!! And I'm so excited! I get on the plane the first thing in the morning and then land down at 2:05pm!!!!
OZ has been great here in Bryon Bay! I've loved it. So many artists, fashions, the beach is stunning and gorgeous. Everyone is cooking themselves in the sun!!! I am getting well, cough has gone away by huge percentages!!!!
I send you hugs and kisses from OZ! I'll talk to you in NZ very soon! Have a blast in all you do! I am excited to get onto some of those mountains! Time to do some serious hiking!
Love and hugs, Heather
Monday, December 10, 2007
Driving on the OTHER SIDE of the Road!!!
Hey there lovelies,
Wow Australia is brilliant! In fact I really have to acknowledge that it's nothing really of what I thought it would be like-well except great beaches and green. But I thought it would be more mountainous, but it brings me new surprises everyday!
For example, everyone told me Nimbin-don't go there, too many drugs, hasseled all the time for weed, others said it's beautiful. Well luckily I went with my gut. I went, it is stunning, so laid back, yes lots of weed but I was only approached once on the next to the last day there. It had rocks jutting out from the rolling green mountains, rivers and water every where, the people were just lovely and it was so much cheaper then other places-fruits and veggies-YUMMMY! Oh and it had the best bookstore I have been in for a long time.
Oh, one of the books is "Who can you trust. Your health at risk" by Toni Jefferys. He talked about women who wear bras, did you know if you wear a bra for 12+ hours you increase your chances of cancer by 19 times more. Or even worse the ones that do 24 hours increases their chances by 113 fold for cancer! He also talks about plasics, cell phones, and all kinds of things.
Oh, I went to this most incredible art gallery, not having any idea what I'd find. But it's the best art I've seen in a long time of people. One art piece was of this man who is a doctor. Did you know there is a vaccination in OZ for Cerivical Cancer. Yep, I saw it on TV and what thinking "yeah right" but then I saw this painting, his name is: Ian Frazer, he believes cervical cancer can be wiped out within one generation, this is his lifes work! How beautiful is that!!! So ladies if you want to help you and your friends, this maybe the way to go. I'm going to see if I can get him on the phone for a chat.
Anyway, after meeting some lovely friends in Nimbin I went on to Mulwillembah-say that three times fast!!! I didn't connect at first but man oh man, it's a place I could stay for a bit longer. Rivers, ocean near by-from what they said, cute little shop, a salon that on it's sign said "you don't leave until you "love it". How great is that! And a cafe that said "a place to meet and eat". I want to own a place that says that. LA needs a place to meet people and eating is a good thing too! I met a French woman there that was great fun, we instantly connected. We may meet up in January to go trek around Tazmania together and maybe drive a car across to Perth, we'll see! She fixed us some fabulous chocolate cake and let me tell you, it was lovely! And her salad for herself was as if it was for a customer in a restaurant!
Oh, I forgot, I have learned how to drive on the OTHER side of the road!!!! Yep that's right, I do the turn abouts and everything now thanks to Dougs lovely instructions and trust of me driving his van! How great and such lovely freedom. That will get me ready to drive in my next country, yep that's right my next country is coming up in less then a week! Can't believe 2 months has passed so quickly here in OZ.
I'm off to NEW ZEALAND!!!!! Rob is coming over and we are going to have a blast trekking around and exploring AND having Christmas and New Years there together! So nice to have someone from home here with me, I'm completely THRILLED!!!!! OH and guess what, New Zealand will be my 31ST COUNTRY I've traveled in in my life! I'm so excited! I do come back to OZ so I'm not done here, thank goodness as it feels like I've barely even touched OZ.
This place is so huge I just can't see seeing it in even a year. I mean you can see the highlight possibly but not close to everything it has to offer. Just taking the bus 1 hour here today back to Byron Bay, if I was driving I would have stopped at least 2 time to check things out! It's definately a place a car is a good thing!
Oh, but the sand is so clean it squeaks when you walk on it, so white and soft too! I went to the Sanassin celebration with all the Osho people! It was very simple, nothing like I've seen before but it was nice to be in the energy of Osho peeps!
The place I stayed in Nimbin was just exquisite as it was right on the river so I went swimming in the river, read in the grassy field, walked through the farms through such lushness you could hardly believe a place exists. I love the weather here, it rains a bit and sometimes hard at times, but normally not all day, it just gets it on and over and then it's warm. Sometimes hot. But mostly it stays a lovely short sleeve whether from day break to night fall when you may put a long sleeve shirt on. It's gorgeous weather! Perfect for me anyway. When it does get hot, like it did this weekend the sun feels like it is going to scorch your skin. I luckily haven't gotten a lick of sun here-too scared of it really!
This is funny, I'm finally, after 2.5 months of being out of India, just now finally starting to show my arms and wear my spagetti strap tops without a top over it. Once in a habit it's hard to change it. Last time in India it took me years to wear shorts! Funny what you take with you of those things.
So I have got something that I never have gotten-I got the Whooping cough, yep that's right. Some have called it the 100 day cough but I found the most amazing herbalist today that gave me quite the concoction that just about kills me with the taste- so I'm sure it will kill this thing, with some pure vitamin C and she says I should be well by Saturday! I'm experiencing all kinds of things on this trip. If you haven't had this peticular cough I say to you "you don't want to experience it". Unless you want to cough so hard you think you are going puke or die as you can only breathe through your nose and not your mouth. But other then spitting up things you feel fine, unless you talk that is. That's the worst offense that makes you cough! : )
It's all new experiences. This is the first time in my life I've gotten ill 3 times in a year-The Universe is talking to me, telling me to slow down every step of the way, and now with the sore thought it's saying "stop talking". Ok, so I will. So I'm here at my friend Dougs relaxing, helping him out a little and just catching up on little things.
Yesterday, was great, yet it's the thing that took me to getting well to worse. I hiked Mt Warning!!!!! Have you ever seen the movie/cartoon Fern Gully? If not, see it! It's one of my favorites and it's based near Mt Warning. It's about fairies of the forest and how humans come and cuts the trees, leaves garbage, doesn't care for the earth and one of my favorite parts is when a human carves their initials in a tree and she takes his hands and asks him "can't you feel it's pain". The trees feel and talk and people well.....we have our own ideas...It's a gorgeous tale and the fairies are sweet and sexy!!!! Just in case the story line didn't take you in! ; )
Mt Warning, most people get up it in 2 hours and down in 2 hours. Well, even ill and forcing myself to slow down I got up in 1 hour and 25 minutes. I guess you can say I miss hiking, I miss nature, I MISS BEING PHYSICAL AND WORKING OUT! But I got it yesterday. And the great thing is the clouds parted right as I got there for 30 minutes and the view of all the green hills below was stunning. Actually the hills around it are hills from a crater. Mulwillumbah sits in the middle of an old crater and all the hills around it is just the crater edges! Stunning! I saw this one tree so huge around it would take 6 or 10 human to hug it and touch fingers, and so tall, well I have no clue how tall it is. With all the vines on it, making it even bigger around and green leaves and root every where. Huge bolders here and there, so large, it makes you feel like a midget.
It was lush out there, it sprinkled a little, showed me great views and OH, the frogs croak in different notes and thought "my friend Scott would love to be recording these little critters". I imagined recording all of the notes they sang and put them to music or on a piano to make them croak per key-How fun is that!!! Nature at it's best out there!
So you can say I'm loving OZ, though it feels like I've seen little of it. But hope to see more once I am back. Everyone keeps asking when I'm coming home. I wish I knew an exact address, but I'm sure I will by January know when. But right now I can say this between Feb and April unless I find work-more than likely March or April though!
I think the laid back spirit of the people is wearing off on me, thank goodness, how great! I'm not stressing over things I normally would. Like today, I didn't book my bus in advance as I didn't know I was supposed to so I called them and they said to go pay at the station. I went down and they said they couldn't accept payment unless I wanted to take a chance of the bus not stopping for me and me losing my money. So there I was on the side of the road with my bags, my two friends helping in the sun waving down the bus! It stopped, the driver told me it was illegal to give me a ticket but did it anyway and I was on my way to Byron! YES! NO stress, NO worries! Love it! They do like their rules here though, I'll say that but I was happy he was willing to bend them for me!
I loved seeing all the towns on the way down as I listened to my ipod playing Alison Krause, I love her voice! I love Oh Atlanta, but don't have a clue what her lyrics are for the chorus, pretty funny, I've listened so closely but I can't seem to get it.
So I'm going to pass this on, it's by Richard Bach, he says this "the opposite of loneliness is not togetherness, it's intimacy", thanks for sharing that with me Edgar! It's lovely! A good thing to meditate on and really feel!
I have met some great people the past week or so of my trip here and I am grateful, some I may see again, some we shared some lovely experiences and conversations. The owner of the hostel in Mulwullumbah was just beautiful, great spirit, fun, gave us ice cream every night at 9pm for free, played games with us until 11 or 12am! He made my stay there and he was sad to see me, the French girl-Steph and Adriane leave! It's like we all bonded in those 3 days! I love it!
Out there they have something called Water Dragons, they are huge lizards! And I think they are vegetarian! Tassie, the owner of the hostel in Mulwillumbah, showed me how to feed them grapes! I'd hold them a certain way, move it around a little to give it a challenge or maybe it eats bugs and makes it seem like a bug, but then it gets it in it's mouth, slowly, very slowly holds it and starts to squash it. It has very small teeth so it eats slowly. Good for digestion, smart bugger! I love the nature here, and there was more then just him, a whole family of them under the porch. I've seen them every where. Today I saw one in the hostel visiting, until it saw me and wobbled out on all fours!!!
Ok, I'm off. I love you, I wish you all the happiness in the world and if you want to come out and play I'd love to see you! Can you believe it's almost Christmas and a New Year-this year ZOOMED by! Love and hugs to you, Heather
Wow Australia is brilliant! In fact I really have to acknowledge that it's nothing really of what I thought it would be like-well except great beaches and green. But I thought it would be more mountainous, but it brings me new surprises everyday!
For example, everyone told me Nimbin-don't go there, too many drugs, hasseled all the time for weed, others said it's beautiful. Well luckily I went with my gut. I went, it is stunning, so laid back, yes lots of weed but I was only approached once on the next to the last day there. It had rocks jutting out from the rolling green mountains, rivers and water every where, the people were just lovely and it was so much cheaper then other places-fruits and veggies-YUMMMY! Oh and it had the best bookstore I have been in for a long time.
Oh, one of the books is "Who can you trust. Your health at risk" by Toni Jefferys. He talked about women who wear bras, did you know if you wear a bra for 12+ hours you increase your chances of cancer by 19 times more. Or even worse the ones that do 24 hours increases their chances by 113 fold for cancer! He also talks about plasics, cell phones, and all kinds of things.
Oh, I went to this most incredible art gallery, not having any idea what I'd find. But it's the best art I've seen in a long time of people. One art piece was of this man who is a doctor. Did you know there is a vaccination in OZ for Cerivical Cancer. Yep, I saw it on TV and what thinking "yeah right" but then I saw this painting, his name is: Ian Frazer, he believes cervical cancer can be wiped out within one generation, this is his lifes work! How beautiful is that!!! So ladies if you want to help you and your friends, this maybe the way to go. I'm going to see if I can get him on the phone for a chat.
Anyway, after meeting some lovely friends in Nimbin I went on to Mulwillembah-say that three times fast!!! I didn't connect at first but man oh man, it's a place I could stay for a bit longer. Rivers, ocean near by-from what they said, cute little shop, a salon that on it's sign said "you don't leave until you "love it". How great is that! And a cafe that said "a place to meet and eat". I want to own a place that says that. LA needs a place to meet people and eating is a good thing too! I met a French woman there that was great fun, we instantly connected. We may meet up in January to go trek around Tazmania together and maybe drive a car across to Perth, we'll see! She fixed us some fabulous chocolate cake and let me tell you, it was lovely! And her salad for herself was as if it was for a customer in a restaurant!
Oh, I forgot, I have learned how to drive on the OTHER side of the road!!!! Yep that's right, I do the turn abouts and everything now thanks to Dougs lovely instructions and trust of me driving his van! How great and such lovely freedom. That will get me ready to drive in my next country, yep that's right my next country is coming up in less then a week! Can't believe 2 months has passed so quickly here in OZ.
I'm off to NEW ZEALAND!!!!! Rob is coming over and we are going to have a blast trekking around and exploring AND having Christmas and New Years there together! So nice to have someone from home here with me, I'm completely THRILLED!!!!! OH and guess what, New Zealand will be my 31ST COUNTRY I've traveled in in my life! I'm so excited! I do come back to OZ so I'm not done here, thank goodness as it feels like I've barely even touched OZ.
This place is so huge I just can't see seeing it in even a year. I mean you can see the highlight possibly but not close to everything it has to offer. Just taking the bus 1 hour here today back to Byron Bay, if I was driving I would have stopped at least 2 time to check things out! It's definately a place a car is a good thing!
Oh, but the sand is so clean it squeaks when you walk on it, so white and soft too! I went to the Sanassin celebration with all the Osho people! It was very simple, nothing like I've seen before but it was nice to be in the energy of Osho peeps!
The place I stayed in Nimbin was just exquisite as it was right on the river so I went swimming in the river, read in the grassy field, walked through the farms through such lushness you could hardly believe a place exists. I love the weather here, it rains a bit and sometimes hard at times, but normally not all day, it just gets it on and over and then it's warm. Sometimes hot. But mostly it stays a lovely short sleeve whether from day break to night fall when you may put a long sleeve shirt on. It's gorgeous weather! Perfect for me anyway. When it does get hot, like it did this weekend the sun feels like it is going to scorch your skin. I luckily haven't gotten a lick of sun here-too scared of it really!
This is funny, I'm finally, after 2.5 months of being out of India, just now finally starting to show my arms and wear my spagetti strap tops without a top over it. Once in a habit it's hard to change it. Last time in India it took me years to wear shorts! Funny what you take with you of those things.
So I have got something that I never have gotten-I got the Whooping cough, yep that's right. Some have called it the 100 day cough but I found the most amazing herbalist today that gave me quite the concoction that just about kills me with the taste- so I'm sure it will kill this thing, with some pure vitamin C and she says I should be well by Saturday! I'm experiencing all kinds of things on this trip. If you haven't had this peticular cough I say to you "you don't want to experience it". Unless you want to cough so hard you think you are going puke or die as you can only breathe through your nose and not your mouth. But other then spitting up things you feel fine, unless you talk that is. That's the worst offense that makes you cough! : )
It's all new experiences. This is the first time in my life I've gotten ill 3 times in a year-The Universe is talking to me, telling me to slow down every step of the way, and now with the sore thought it's saying "stop talking". Ok, so I will. So I'm here at my friend Dougs relaxing, helping him out a little and just catching up on little things.
Yesterday, was great, yet it's the thing that took me to getting well to worse. I hiked Mt Warning!!!!! Have you ever seen the movie/cartoon Fern Gully? If not, see it! It's one of my favorites and it's based near Mt Warning. It's about fairies of the forest and how humans come and cuts the trees, leaves garbage, doesn't care for the earth and one of my favorite parts is when a human carves their initials in a tree and she takes his hands and asks him "can't you feel it's pain". The trees feel and talk and people well.....we have our own ideas...It's a gorgeous tale and the fairies are sweet and sexy!!!! Just in case the story line didn't take you in! ; )
Mt Warning, most people get up it in 2 hours and down in 2 hours. Well, even ill and forcing myself to slow down I got up in 1 hour and 25 minutes. I guess you can say I miss hiking, I miss nature, I MISS BEING PHYSICAL AND WORKING OUT! But I got it yesterday. And the great thing is the clouds parted right as I got there for 30 minutes and the view of all the green hills below was stunning. Actually the hills around it are hills from a crater. Mulwillumbah sits in the middle of an old crater and all the hills around it is just the crater edges! Stunning! I saw this one tree so huge around it would take 6 or 10 human to hug it and touch fingers, and so tall, well I have no clue how tall it is. With all the vines on it, making it even bigger around and green leaves and root every where. Huge bolders here and there, so large, it makes you feel like a midget.
It was lush out there, it sprinkled a little, showed me great views and OH, the frogs croak in different notes and thought "my friend Scott would love to be recording these little critters". I imagined recording all of the notes they sang and put them to music or on a piano to make them croak per key-How fun is that!!! Nature at it's best out there!
So you can say I'm loving OZ, though it feels like I've seen little of it. But hope to see more once I am back. Everyone keeps asking when I'm coming home. I wish I knew an exact address, but I'm sure I will by January know when. But right now I can say this between Feb and April unless I find work-more than likely March or April though!
I think the laid back spirit of the people is wearing off on me, thank goodness, how great! I'm not stressing over things I normally would. Like today, I didn't book my bus in advance as I didn't know I was supposed to so I called them and they said to go pay at the station. I went down and they said they couldn't accept payment unless I wanted to take a chance of the bus not stopping for me and me losing my money. So there I was on the side of the road with my bags, my two friends helping in the sun waving down the bus! It stopped, the driver told me it was illegal to give me a ticket but did it anyway and I was on my way to Byron! YES! NO stress, NO worries! Love it! They do like their rules here though, I'll say that but I was happy he was willing to bend them for me!
I loved seeing all the towns on the way down as I listened to my ipod playing Alison Krause, I love her voice! I love Oh Atlanta, but don't have a clue what her lyrics are for the chorus, pretty funny, I've listened so closely but I can't seem to get it.
So I'm going to pass this on, it's by Richard Bach, he says this "the opposite of loneliness is not togetherness, it's intimacy", thanks for sharing that with me Edgar! It's lovely! A good thing to meditate on and really feel!
I have met some great people the past week or so of my trip here and I am grateful, some I may see again, some we shared some lovely experiences and conversations. The owner of the hostel in Mulwullumbah was just beautiful, great spirit, fun, gave us ice cream every night at 9pm for free, played games with us until 11 or 12am! He made my stay there and he was sad to see me, the French girl-Steph and Adriane leave! It's like we all bonded in those 3 days! I love it!
Out there they have something called Water Dragons, they are huge lizards! And I think they are vegetarian! Tassie, the owner of the hostel in Mulwillumbah, showed me how to feed them grapes! I'd hold them a certain way, move it around a little to give it a challenge or maybe it eats bugs and makes it seem like a bug, but then it gets it in it's mouth, slowly, very slowly holds it and starts to squash it. It has very small teeth so it eats slowly. Good for digestion, smart bugger! I love the nature here, and there was more then just him, a whole family of them under the porch. I've seen them every where. Today I saw one in the hostel visiting, until it saw me and wobbled out on all fours!!!
Ok, I'm off. I love you, I wish you all the happiness in the world and if you want to come out and play I'd love to see you! Can you believe it's almost Christmas and a New Year-this year ZOOMED by! Love and hugs to you, Heather
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