Day 6 (Tues)- Bike Ride!

I have to start adding the days of the week because every day really runs together, especially with us being 12 hours ahead here! The Sun over here is HOT so I have been a little bit more tired and slow moving, hence the post delays. But thankfully water, mocktails and the pool are helping me stay cool 😂

Waking up early has been a really enjoyable practice, especially since the mornings are so cool! Jen (my roommate turned bestie) and I got up around 6:30am and made our way to the outdoor dining area to continue through our business homework. Some other friends joined as well and it turned in to some really moving conversations (as it always seems to) about things these women have overcome from infertility to infant loss as well as general conversation of what they have learned about being a mom and a small business owner. We also have conversations around the day to day struggles of running a business, our fears, our hopes and our new business ideas! I shared one of my future small business dreams with 2 of them who are actually able to help me take some first steps to make my dream a reality!! That’s the beauty of being in a mastermind with people in different industries and with different skill sets than my own.

Over breakfast, we had the retreat coordinator Agung teach us more about Balinese culture. It was fascinating to learn about everything from religion to family to housing to societal norms. The majority of the population is Hindu so seeing the way they perform regular rituals honoring their connection with the spirit, one another and nature is quite moving.

After breakfast we headed out for our excursion of the day- a 3 hour bike ride through the countryside and small towns of Bali! I’m not going to lie, it was quite intense 😂 It was mostly downhill which was nice because we didn’t have to pedal too much in the strong heat. Buttt that meant holding on to the breaks for dear life while navigating pot holes, motorcycles, trucks, stray animals and uneven/unpaved paths. Thankfully we all have great attitudes and laughed our way through it but my wrists and butt will take a while to fully recover lol. It was BEAUTIFUL though and a lovely way to see the towns up close, tour a multi-generational family compound (the way majority of the people here live), enjoy some local desserts and even see a science center where they are working to bring fireflies back (the population is almost extinct here). Fireflies have special meaning for them- representing their ancestors and a guiding light. It was quite interesting to learn all about fireflies, their breeding process and see each stage of their growth up close. I will never take our NC fireflies for granted ever again!

After the bike tour, we had lunch at a beautiful restaurant in town and headed back to the resort for a much needed cool down in the pool. Everyone headed back to their rooms to get dressed for dinner but I stayed out a few final moments. I didn’t know but my friend Kelsey snapped the photo of me “with the resort to myself” ❤️Lue lisää