wonder and wander Archives - Page 2 of 2

Why I started Moments

Feb 27, 2018 | Lifestyle, Moments

To bring back the good old Tumblr vibes.

To record the little snippets of life.

To keep me writing candidly (without feeling the need to edit myself so much).

To keep my blog more active.

To share my favorite little memories.

To get photos off my camera roll.

To express myself.

To revisit later on.

To remember.

PS- I made a new section on my site called Moments.

might change the name of the page later on but this is where I’ll be posting more frequently and casually.

Expect a lot of throwbacks on there!

A few things I’m grateful for today.

The unexpected 15-minute nap after work.
This giant clam shell still intact.
The glow of sunlight through the windows in the studio.
The mangroves in the backyard lagoon.
The mist on the mountains.
The fleeting moments just after the sunset.
My home is my island.
Officer Scruffles watching me watching him.
The sound of the shutter on my camera.

What are you grateful for today?

MEET Wayanna Batik

Sep 5, 2017 | Create, Meet

Meet Wayan and Anna, together they make Wayanna Batik! I met this wonderful pair in Ubud, Bali. Wayan is the batik artist who creates beautiful batik paintings inspired by nature, and Anna is the project manager who is building the brand.

Tell me about yourself: your name, age, where you’re from, what do you do?

My name is Wayan. I am 33 years old from Ubud, Bali, Indonesia. I am the batik painter.

I am Anna. I’m 33 years old, living in Bali. I am the project manager.

What is Batik art? History of batik? Process?

Indonesia is the home country to batik, it is ancient technology. Balinese people have kept this art from generation to generation.

The batik art involves drawing on a fabric with hot wax. This wax separates the drawing from the dyes that are painted over it. The batik artist then paints over the drawings, removes the wax by heating, then dries and sews the fabric, and prepares it for the shop.

How did you get into Batik painting? What did you do before you started Batik?

I have been painting since my childhood: by pencils, by acrylics on on t-shirts. I was working with my cousin on his fabric work. Then as my family’s homestay business grew, I took care of the homes we rented out. And then 2 years ago, I started to help my cousin with his batik. Now I have my own batik project with Anna.

What inspires you? Where do you draw your inspiration from?

Nature is the main thing which gives me inspiration. And most of my paintings depict nature.

Favorite spot to eat in Bali?

I like to eat at Made’s Warung (my uncle’s warung😊)

Tell me something I probably didn’t know about Bali.

Did you know about the *ceremony of cutting teeth of all 13 years old boys and girls?
We do it for sign that a person is now an adult.

*The mesangih or mepandes, is the ceremony wherein the Balinese smooth away the fang-like qualities of human teeth and, in doing so, smooth away the savage aspects of the soul.

What is your favorite quote?

Akuadalahkamu, kamuadalahaku (I am you, you are I).

So all people are the same and what you do for people, people will do for you.

The main idea is to live in peace and love.

Three words to describe your art?

Amazing, unique, beautiful. 😊

Hard handmade work, with magical colors and unlimited ideas.

Any goals you want to accomplish before the year ends?
How about in the next 5 years?

I want to have regular monthly orders before the year ends.
I hope my batik project will grow more popular and will develop the brand – Wayanna Batik brand!
I want to have my own house in the next 5 years.

Advice you would give to your 10-year old self?

Be honest. Follow your heart always.

Check out more of their work on their Facebook page @ Wayanna Batik

Where we stayed in Ubud

Aug 26, 2017 | Travel

Someone asked me where I stayed in Bali, and I thought it would be a good idea to share some of these places…

Of all the places in Bali, this AirBnB in Ubud was my favorite.

We planned to stay for 3 days, so I wanted to make sure we had a comfortable spot to call home while we explored the town. A requisite when I was looking up accommodations for Ubud was that it had a kitchen, an outdoor shower, and a private pool. When I found Wayan Budiana’s home on AirBnB, I was immediately heart eyes over it.

The details

This home in Ubud has everything you’d want in a vacation home and more. It is listed as a brand new family villa which can house up to 6 guests comfortably, and is hidden away in nature, but is very close to the main Ubud town areas. The open floor plan give the home a very spacious and airy feel, and the floor to ceiling windows and sliding doors brings the outside in and provides much of the natural light. Both the showers are partially outdoors, and i was obsessed with the wooden kitchen table and benches. There’s even a goldfish pond at the entrance!

We walked around on our first day to nearby rice paddies and the cutest little cafes and shops, and rented a scooter from our host to get around for the remainder of our stay.

What do you look for when you choose an AirBnB?

Never used AirBnB? Sign up using this link for an extra $25 off your first stay!

All Good in Ubud

Aug 22, 2017 | Travel

The clouds have blocked the sun from shining through my window, and my eyes flutter awake at 8am.

Good morning Uluwatu!

Our plans for today are simple. Eat breakfast (we went to Nyoman Local Food and ate on their boat table). Catch some surf (for Ian), and pack up again – because today we are…

On our way to Ubud!

Our AirBnB host helps us get a driver named Putu to take us to Ubud, with a couple of stops along the way.

I was still in dire need of an American power adapter to charge up my camera and laptop. We got one at a stall outside of Bagus Supermarket while we were picking up some groceries. We also purchased a prepaid SIM card from Telkom Cell which had 12GB data for 30 days, and it was only 150,000 IDR (about $11.25 USD). I highly recommend this plan for anybody passing through Bali and whose life is recorded on social media. So worth it!

The drive took about 2 hours during the afternoon traffic. I was getting carsick so I *forced* myself to take a nap (only kind of lying, because I’m also known for falling asleep on car rides).

We arrived at a small unmarked road looking for our next AirBnB home, and after a quick phone call made by Putu to our host, a friendly face pops out from a family compound right next to us, introducing herself as Chantik (she is our host’s relative) and she leads us through a smaller road beside it. There, we found our secret private villa – and it is amazing!

If you’re ever in Ubud and you’re looking for a beautiful place to stay that’s close to town, but gives you a sense of privacy – check out Wayan Budiana’s AirBnB! If you’re new to AirBnB, click here to get $25 off on your accommodations.

(I wrote a blog post about this AirBnB here.)

As tempted as I was to stay in and enjoy the pool, we got up to explore our area. The evening air was cool, and we wandered off the beaten track. The road was completely run down, but a man on a bridge that leads nowhere gestures to us to take a little hidden path just past the banyan tree. We walk down some sketchy steps and over a bamboo bridge and find ourselves amidst a rice field. How cool is this?! Right in someone’s backyard.

We continued our trek through Penestenan street. I felt inspired here. I wanted to paint.

I walked up to a couple of different places offering batik painting, but most were closed since it was almost 6pm. I saw a small shop with the lights off but the door was open. There were beautiful batik materials hanging and draped in all sorts of fashion. I walked in and was met by a beautiful woman named Anna sitting on the floor working away on her laptop. She tells me her boyfriend is the artist in residence and I inquire about taking a class. It’s settled, tomorrow I will be back!

On the way home, Ian stops at a moto vendor selling chicken satay and sticky rice. And we head to our AirBnB to relax in the pool, make dinner, and watch movies.

It’s all good in Ubud!

We made it to Bali! | Day 1 in Uluwatu

Aug 18, 2017 | Travel

We made it to Bali!

ULUWATU DAY 1

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It took a 13 hour flight from LAX to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, and then a 5 hour flight from Taiwan to Denpasar. I immediately noticed the amount of tourists flooding the airport hall towards baggage claim. There were a lot of them, and we were part of it. I don’t know how but somehow I packed verrrrry light for this trip and only brought my Deuter backpack. I was very thankful for this because that meant I didn’t have to wait in line for my bags, and I wouldn’t have to worry about losing my luggage.

*Pro Tip: Use the bathroom before you head to immigration because (1) there will be a long line, and (2) it’s harder to find a bathroom once you leave the airport.

We stepped out to the arrivals area and were greeted by about a hundred hoteliers and taxi drivers holding up signs with all sorts of names on them. I prearranged a pick up with a guy named Mario who we were referred to, but after half an hour of searching for him and feeling lost, we decided to go with another taxi driver who approached us asking if we needed a ride. The drive was a 1.5-hour sensory overload ride from Denpasar to Uluwatu. It was about 4pm and traffic was peaking. Lucky for us, our taxi driver knew all the backroads so we barely had to stop. The road was bumpy, the air smelled of fuel, and I got a little motion sickness. I didn’t care, I was having the time of my life. By about 5pm, we finally arrived at Batu Jaran Hill – our beautiful AirBnB clifftop cabin.

Can you believe it only cost $55 USD per night? After a quick dip in the infinity pool, Ian rented a scooter and we zipped off to Pantai Suluban beach just in time for a magnificent red sunset into the ocean’s horizon.

To get there, we traversed down many flights of uneven steps and ended up below the cliffs and marveled at the beach access. It’s known locally as Suluban Beach (“sulub” meaning to dodge) because surfers may need to crawl beneath the cliff rocks. We stopped for dinner at Delpi Waroeng at the top of the cliff, and I got my first taste of the Indonesia’s most popular meal – nasi goreng (fried rice).

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low res images / high quality memories

I was too excited to sit in our BnB, no matter how beautiful it was. So we moto’d around Uluwatu looking for a power adapter and a SIM card, but to no avail. By 9pm we had retreated back to our cabin and got some much needed sleep.

*Note to self: always remember to pack universal power adapter! We could not find it in all of Uluwatu (that we saw, and we stopped many a mini-mart).

I barely took any photos on this first day. I was soaking it all in and prioritized the present. And didn’t want to risk bringing my camera while we were scootering around at first. But I do want to take more photos in the coming days!