Day 5 of 10 Goa Garba

This morning we took a bike ride through the countryside. It was raining, but not the typical Bali tropical rain storm, which we have been experiencing a lot lately, more of just a sprinkle. The bike ride is always my favorite. Being outside of the touristy area, I have seen some funny things while on this bike ride. People pooping in rivers, and then just down the river, teenage boys bathing in it. No joke. This time around, however, I didn't see anything that laughable and/or gross.
For the first time in Bali, I was cold. It felt refreshing. The drops hit my skin, the air against my arms going down hill gave me shivers, but then going back up a hill... I LOVED IT. What is usually pretty easy when eating food, was such a good challenge while detoxing. I purposely wouldn't put my bike into easier gears, to get that extra work out, and my heart rate up.

Group ride, minus 2, in the rain.

One of the stops along the way is the Goa Garba cave. Fascinated by myth and tale, I can't seem to find a well researched story. There is a temple, called Pura Pengukur-Ukuran, a place where all things are measured, i.e., mental, spiritual, and physical strength, and was built in 1100's. The temple was a used for a school, where potential religious leaders could learn. It was divided into three sections. The first was the dormitory/kitchen area. The second section was the educational area. The third was an area for meditation and prayer.

Entrance to the temple Pengukur-Ukuran, Pic taken in 2015 as
it was too gloomy and rainy this trip to get a good shot!

Below the temple, down a hill, is a place called Goa Garba. Goa means "cave" and Garba means "in the belly of the earth". A strong man, with aspirations to be the prime minister of the kingdom, built a separate entrance to the temple, all by himself, that also lead down to Goa Garba (see image with me on stairs). His name was Kebo Iwa. In this cave that he built, he meditated for 42 days without food. It is also that he practiced his war skills, having had to go through a series of challenges before he obtained his physical and spiritual powers. During the training, he defeated everyone. No one could beat him. This is why Goa Garba has become popular for people who want to gain physical and mental powers.

Can you imagine, moving those big slabs of stone by yourself?
Kebo Iwa was one tough dude.

There were many different areas to meditate, but Kebo Iwa did his here.

A little closer of the insides of the cave.

After the bike ride, we had a Conscious Cleanse workshop. This workshop goes over the emotional and mental side of our health. What are we afraid of? What is holding us back from our fullest potential? How can we ignore the inner critic in our head? Lola lead us through a meditation, then asked us questions, and we answered them in our journal. The biggest solutions to most of my fears/issues, s and has always been, self-care. Exercise, eating the foods that nourish me and ignoring the ones that make me sick, daily affirmations when I feel like I'm not enough, or I'm afraid I am going to fail. Playing! We, as adults, forget that play is so important! 

Lola also talked a lot about blame and making choices. When we blame others for why we are the way we are, it takes away our power. Stop blaming everyone, and instead, look in, and get honest with yourself. The only person who has the power to change you, is you.

Now on to the dirty stuff. To end my day, I had a colon cleanse. I decided to get one early in the retreat because it feels like something inside me is blocking my enemas. The night before, I finally did have some stuff come out of my bum, but not my usual. So during the colon cleanse, I thought for sure I would get a big load. However, the place I went, wasn't my favorite due to the lady who did the procedure on me. The center is called Cocoon, and it's beautiful, something out of the Jetsons. It has a gorgeous view out the back, and the inside of the building felt like something from the future, with its white lights between the beams, and rock pathways. I'll take a picture next time I'm there. I was brought into a room, and told to strip down from the waist, and put on a robe. The lady went over the process, but I couldn't understand a second of her English. In the past, it was a slow process, but we did four fills, and it was over in less than 10 minutes. Each fill being approximately 2 liters of water, and then letting out the water, while pushing on my tummy, and "watching" the stuff go down the tube. But there was one problem, I couldn't see the tube, so I had no idea if stuff was coming out. Each fill felt like I had IBS the entire time. That chilly, yucky sensation of having to get to the toilet or your ass is going to blow... yeah, that feeling. The last fill, I felt like she didn't really let it all out. She instructed me to go to the bathroom, and I was in there for 20 minutes, pooping water, and no toilet paper. Seriously. I was using paper towels, and cursing her. I also pooped water and small bits of mucoid plaque up until I went to bed. The lady never came back to check on me, nor talk to me about what came out, or her thoughts, etc. She was not my favorite. I asked Lola, and apparently another girl here had the same bad experience, so Lola is going to go have a talk with said lady. Lola always saves the day.

I'll leave you with the quote of the day on our inspirational board:

"Let today be the day you love yourself enough to no longer just dream of a better life, let it be the day you act upon it." -Steve Maraboli