From Legian With Love on the Beach in Indonesia

 

bali2I was in love the moment I laid eyes on the beach. It was beautiful and warm, and strangely magical too. I know it sounds like a cliché, but I have never felt so at home in all my life. As John F. Kennedy once said “We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch – we are going back from whence we came.” Those words could not be more true to me at the time.

Bali captured my heart from the first moment I stepped off the plane almost 10 years ago. It was my first time out of Malaysia and Singapore and I took to the island immediately. The people were friendly and always had a warm smile, the food was something I had never tried before and the landscape was the stuff of legends and dreams. Granted I was on a tour (my first and last!), but I saw enough of this beautiful island to know that I will return again and again.

On my most recent trip to Bali, I ended up staying near the Legian beach. My friend and I made it a point to wake up early one morning just so we could take a walk over there. For someone who finds it very difficult to wake up on a regular work day, this was certainly quite an achievement. The 15-minute walk to the beach was lovely and dare I say much too short. We came across locals getting their shops ready and going about their morning prayers with offerings to the Hindu gods. It was a refreshing sight from the somewhat crowded Kuta scene.

As we approached the beach from a little pathway, we started smelling the distinct saltiness in the air. And then, there were the sounds of the waves crashing onto the beach. For a bunch of girls coming from a city, this was a real treat. Legian beach looked amazing in the morning light. I never felt more energised and inspired. Maybe it was the fresh air or maybe it was the way the sea looked that very morning. It was made all the more special as it was a wonderful time spent walking about, taking pictures, and talking about life with a dear and good friend.

Needless to say, I went back to the beach everyday after that. And everyday, I saw the same people, the same dogs, the same surfers. Yet, it never seemed boring or mundane. Far from it! I always felt a sense of familiarity and calmness. It was strangely different but in a wonderful way. I suppose I knew from that day on that my sense of wonderment will never cease as long as I continued travelling, as long as I continued discovering the world and as long as I opened myself up to new experiences.

I am pretty sure there are far more beautiful beaches in Bali or anywhere else in the world, for that matter. But the beach in Legian will always have a special place in my heart for letting me see how important it is to savour every moment. Like everyone else, I have my regrets. However, it all seemed to have disappeared when I set foot upon that beach. Whatever happened in the past eventually led me there and I will be forever grateful for those moments.

As we go about our daily lives, we seldom stand still and take in all that nature has to offer. We, more often than not, take a lot of things for granted. But it is places like Bali that remind us that there is so much more to life than the things we own. There is so much to be inspired by the beauty and the people that surround us. It may not be a beach in Bali, but I know now, more than ever, that beauty is around us wherever we may travel to.

If only we took the time to discover it. If only we took the time to accept what it can teach us about ourselves.

About the Author:
Name : Kavitha Subramaniam is an amateur travel blogger and photographer, I am learning as much as I can about writing, particularly travel writing. I am constantly inspired by the people I meet on my travels and I can’t wait to discover more of this amazing world.

Thank you for reading and commenting. Please enter our next Travel Writing competition and tell your story.

From Inspiration Travel Writing Contest

We hope you enjoyed this entry in the We Said Go Travel Inspiration Travel Writing Contest. Please visit our Travel Writing Contest page: Click hereto learn more and share your story. Thank you for reading the article and please participate by leaving a comment below.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

We Said Go Travel