When life is good, make sure it goes on for long and unchanged . . . Ubud is the answer here.

This note will be short. In a few minutes I got to leave for the fitness studio , meeting a friend. . .

However, as the issue of health and fitness is just on my mind, quick a reminder:

"A healthy person may have a thousand wishes, the sick one only one".

Let’s avoid belonging to the latter group. – and it is really easy to do here in Ubud.

Just do not neglect to pick the ripe fruit, which is dangling directly above your nose.

I am referring to the many offered and available Health Options, which you may not find so condensed and affordable in other parts of the world.

It is a little bit like the view from your room. It may be pretty, but soon becomes ’normal’ and does not stir your mind any more, but it still is pretty, isn’t it?

Very similar, when relating to a healthy attitude in Ubud. Health options are there in abundance, but because they are ’just normal here in Ubud’, we are not picking up the ever present signals.

Sure, there is a display for ’fresh juice’, a yoga place, spa therapies, local food cooking courses and many such more around every corner, and the yoga mats under the arms are additional walking reminders.

But are we always aware of what we can get out for us here, for our and the family’s life and health?

There was a sign in one of those numerous Travel Tour stands, which you find everywhere to make bookings for rafting and tours. The sign said:

SPECIAL !! Join our Three Day Detox program for only Rp 200.000 We guarantee results!

I was mildly suspicious and asked ’what does one get for this kind of money?’

The guy grinned: ’First morning you receive here a mild laxative and the two following days you come back and swear that you are not going to eat all day.’

He confessed it is only a joke, just to see if anyone jumps on. No one did so far.

However, as sure as the sun comes up tomorrow, this would work as promised on his reklame printout. Even without joining this most elaborately developed program.

Sometimes not doing as advertised is already having a benefit on our health systems.

My wife showed me a recent video about watermelons being injected with red textile color to make the appearance on the shelf more appetizing. OMG, what they do to make money - Finally I understand why I sometimes get red ears :o )

By the way, if you like to sleep in on Saturday when the organic food produces are being sold in Ubud or Sanur, do this instead-

You have a garden? It is easy and low cost to build a hydroponic pipe system with a small pump to circulate nutrients to the vegetable roots. No insecticide needed, you keep your fingernails clean and on three square meters you can grow more lettuce beans and vegies than a couple can eat. Just google the hydroponic suppliers in Bali. It is fun to build such a set up and you virtually see your healthy food growing several centimetres each day.

And since you may have opened the laptop anyway, also look for restaurants offering healthy food.

There are oodles of them.

Ubud is a mecca for healthy eating with words like organic, vegan, vegetarian, raw, and such adorning almost every sign and menus. These places have also adapted the more international market demand by providing the latest hip ingredient in the healthy eating craze. Flaxseed, acai berries, chia seeds, you name it.  (Funny, most of those ingredients are not Indonesian grown and we could have eaten such food way back at home already).

But in comes the ’reminder effect’ as per above.

A useful side effect of eating seriously healthy: Some of us want to lose a kg or two.

Easy done, those vegetable based menus are delightful, are usually ordered instead of "another small one" with a fresh juice on the side and although you eat until feeling full, you would have a hard time not to shred weight.

Again, use what is brought here to your doorstep. Ubud is a valuable environment to add many months, - probably years to your life.

Yes, I know, flat chat about sickness and health is boring, - unless there is a problem. Than we develop finer hearing. Far better to take preventative action. which is virtually forced upon us in this most remarkable small township. The widely known fact, that our brains are to a high degree creating the state of our health, is also taken into account. Just look at the many offerings for meditation, calming down, losing stress and more. All is there.

Then, on the day when you are all alone, aged 105, sitting under the tree in this rocking chair, you may remember the long lost friends who had such a good time meeting over babi guling (pork barbecue) five times a week. You may miss them, but what the heck - go back to reading your investors report about how your shares at Mac D. where doing. This brightens the spirit and balances with enough money in the bank to buy the organic sirsak /dragon fruit mix. Yammi!

(Maybe adding a tiny shot of Tequila? Needed for good health and anyway against those nasty bacteria).

This way it is not a bad wait until the 110-year wild birthday party. I’d sure like to join in.

Therefore, got to go now – although still unusual hot and dry in November, need to work up some sweat to make it to there and then.


To all our healthy living in Ubud -

Cheers – Ray