Ten years from now, make sure you can say that you chose your life,
— Mindy Hale
you didn’t settle for it.
Hello!
A Cali Girl in Bali is pretty much exactly like what it sounds.
My name is Kate and I’m a Southern California native, a traveler, a millennial, a dreamer and a woman who is desperately in search of her life’s purpose. I’ve traveled to over 56 countries in the last two years in an attempt to get to every country before I turn 30 (don’t worry, I still have time)… but somewhere along the way my priorities shifted a bit. I didn’t just want to see every country in the world while doing work I was slowly starting to hate (editing academic dissertations in case you’re wondering); I started to finally want to work at a job that actually fulfills me, one that I’m passionate about. I wanted more, I want more. I just didn’t know exactly what.
The only thing I knew when I decided to settle in Bali was that I would never be able to get the sense of fulfillment I was looking for in my life and work if I continued to hop from country to country every other week like I’d been doing. I needed someplace to slow down and figure things out… someplace like Bali.
It wasn’t random, it wasn’t coincidence and it wasn’t because of Eat, Pray, Love. I chose Bali because it was the one place I had traveled in over two years where I truly felt like I could transform my life, a place where the impossible felt possible. I know that sounds cheesy and you may be rolling your eyes as you read that, but I don’t care because it’s truer than true. There’s a magic about Bali and a vibe that is unlike anywhere else in the world. Everyone on this island is constantly seeking to improve themselves: financially, spiritually, emotionally…. whatever it is, they all just seem to want to be a better person. Being surrounded by people who are working on themselves on such a scale isn’t just inspiring, it’s intoxicating. And in the last six months of living here I’ve changed more as a person than most people change in years.
And it’s this life-changing magic, this intoxicating motivation that I want to share with all of you: all from the perspective of one Cali girl’s love for the small island in the south Pacific that is Bali.
On this blog I’m going to share with you both the heavy stuff and the light stuff. I’m going to give you all my Bali travel tips and suggestions – from where to eat like a local, how much you should actually be paying for things, and which places are touristy because they’re actually amazing and which aren’t worth fighting through the crowds to see. And I’m also going to share the deeper stuff – weird/strange practices I’ve tried that actually make you more focused and disciplined, what my struggles have been and how I’ve overcome them (and continue to do so), and everything I’ve come to learn about life, health, and happiness in the last 6 months. In short, everything that life looks like when you’re living on the beautiful island of Bali.
I hope this blog inspires you and helps you plan a trip to Bali (especially because it’s a place I think everyone needs to visit at least once in their life). I hope you find some useful tips and that it gives you a new perspective on this small but rather famous Southeast Asian island.
And especially, I hope this blog inspires you to want more, to strive to both be better and do better in every way, and I hope it makes a tangible difference in your life – as much as Bali has made on mine.
But if not, at least I hope I can I help you get off the beaten tourist Bali food path of just trying nasi goreng (fried rice) when you’re here and maybe save a couple of bucks on a taxi to/from the airport and a scooter rental. 😅
Pretty much, if you find this blog useful in even the most MINUTE way, I’ll feel like a success! (It’s a low bar, I know, but hey… you gotta start somewhere right?)
Love,
Kate
acaligirlinbali.travel.blog 