Beautiful Beach and Bali Belly

We celebrated the first week at Green School with a trip to the beach.  The mother of one of Alexa's classmates is also resident den mother to the small group of students who board at Green School.  She was planning an excursion to a favorite, semi-secluded beach and suggested that we meet them there.

We drove east until we came to a small town that has a port for ferries running to the nearby islands.  We turned right at the ferry port up a narrow, curving one-lane road that climbed up hills until it was well above sea level.  Then the road ended abruptly, and we had to climb down a steep slippery hillside in our flip-flops, following trail dead-ends, until we came across a small shrine that indicated we were on the right path.  From there we continued downward following the sounds of voices playing in the surf until the path opened up on a small, white sandy beach in a natural inlet.

The beach was lined with beach warungs, - small, wood shack restaurants - and a small group of expats and tourists hanging out on the beach or spread out among the various warungs.  The group from Green School had arrived shortly before we did.  Alexa quickly joined her classmate in the water while Charlotte played on the beach.

It was a great day, the water was cool and refreshing, the vibe quite relaxed and mellow.  We had pineapple slices, sliced coconut water drinks, and I had a rice dish with fish, chicken and vegetables with a fried egg on top.  I had asked for just rice and vegetables but allowed myself to be persuaded to have the works.  After lunch, we spent time jumping waves, and I had a nice frisbee toss with one of the other dads, and we casually chatted with some of the other Green School families.

On the drive back to Ubud, we saw many women sitting by the side of the road with a few fish laid out beside them on a cloth being offered for sale.  Dewa said that they were from the fishing villages along the coast, but that you had to be careful because the fish often weren't fresh.  He said they sometimes injected the fish with formaldehyde to keep days-old fish from smelling and allow them to continue selling them.

He continuing by warning that the street vendors would use old-crumbly tofu, old chicken, dirty water, and reuse cooking oil without concern for the health of their customers.  Many of the people who bought from the street vendors were used to the food and could eat it without problem, but it wouldn't be safe for us to eat.

Later that evening my stomach started to hurt.  Soon I was suffering from full-blown Bali Belly, with nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and generally feeling miserable.  Now, four days later, and with the help of some Cipro, I am starting to feel back to normal.

On the beautiful beach, the nice multi-generational family of grandmother, husband, nursing mother, and baby, that ran the restaurant served me food that acted on my body like a poison.  It was a very foolish decision to have that lunch, especially with the fish, chicken and egg.  Sometimes being so open to suggestion can have bad consequences.

I'm looking forward to feeling back to my normal self here in Bali.  First there was the fog of jet lag, then disruptive sleep schedules, and then Bali Belly.  Today I took my first dip in the B&B's pool across the street, enjoyed the warm sun, and started to imagine a more active, healthier, daily routine.