A Barong dancer. Pic by me

Yesterday morning I took myself off to the hospital medical centre to get whatever anti monkey bite jabs were on offer.

As it turns out I ended up with 4- tetanus (I got a lecture from the absolutely lovely doctor- in fact, the whole experience was heaps better than the local medical centre back home- about the irresponsibility of letting boosters lapse- which I took on the chin) and a couple to protect against rabies- even though she was quick to point out that there had been no reported cases of rabies from monkeys in Bali… a fact which immediately brought my heart rate down. In true faking it style I had been all breezy about the whole incident, despite being more than a little concerned inside…concerned enough to leave my memory card in the side of this computer rather than replacing it in the camera which meant I couldn’t take photos out at Tanah Lot last night.

Anyways, all was done & dusted in next to no time. I was out of there within the hour with a full report for my doctor back home & detailed instructions about my next boosters- yep, I have to have 2 more anti rabies shots. Worry over, we can now dramatise the incident to our hearts content.
Speaking of Tanah Lot, we ended up out there at sunset last night (along with hordes of others) and stayed for a grilled seafood dinner at the clifftop restaurant. Surely one of the most beautiful spots to eat anywhere! And so romantic…and so wasted on my friend & I. We were both wishing (in the nicest possible way) that we had someone oher than each other there… I will post the pics when I work out how to download them from the iphone.

To the skies. The prevailing mood will be much the same as yesterdays post…because (again) in my monkey induced stress I looked at the chart I had brought with me for today, yesterday. That’s right, I was a day early…which means all of yesterdays Moon aspects will be today. I will, of course, get it right tomorrow.

I hope.

As Venus moves ever closer to the end of her time in Capricorn, she also gets closer to a sextile aspect with quirky, ever so unpredictable Uranus. More on this in the next day or so.

That’s all for today…unless this really dodgy connection stays online long enough for me to post the Mars in pisces piece I wrote on the plane on the way over & still have not been able to lodge.

Looks can be so deceiving

Last night when I told my husband that a monkey bit me he said “that is the one thing i was really worried about.” Actually, it wasn’t. He worried about me wandering and getting lost. He worried about me getting cheated by money changers, he worried about me drinking too much or having my drinks spiked. At no point  did he mention to be careful of monkeys.

Nor did my transits warn me of it. Yesterday the Sun and Mercury were conjunct natal Mercury and Mars was trine natal Mars. Seriously I should have been able to talk to the animals. Instead a petty squabble over whether the water bottle nicked out of my friends bag actually belonged to monkey or friend escalated quickly into an epic Jupiter/Pluto power struggle which the monkey subsequently won.

So it was off to the Apotik (chemist) for some broad spectrum antibiotics- not that anyone I told really seemed that worried about it- even though I was (although trying to pretend that I wasn’t). At the clinic thing near the monkey forest the attendant had the hide to be looking so closely & stopped just short of “is that all there is?” I think he gets hundreds of bites a day to swab off. Needless to say, I am off to get the relevant shots just in case.

So, we saw dancers and batik and monkeys and mountains & water temples & coffee made from cat shit. What we didn’t see were volcanoes. The fog was impenetrable. Glad I didn’t trek up the flipping thing.

Rice Terraces. Pic by me.

Today the Moon is in Capricorn, which makes it a seriously good day for business transactions. Mercury links to the Moon and the Sun into Pluto say to me that there are ways of getting what you want with a little Pisces ingenuity…& a sweet smile. I have today planned to do some serious bargaining over the upiquitous Bintang Tshirts & some other odds & sods. I will, however, stop short on the wooden penis- not only is it tasteless tat, but I so am not taking it to customs in Australia as “something to declare”. There are enough “loud & ugly” Australian tourisrs without me joining them. 

The Jupiter/Pluto battle of wills is still raging. This energy with be with us for a few more days yet. The Moon squares off with Saturn this morning. Given that Saturn is exalted in Libra & rules Capricorn, the sign the Moon is in. sometimes it is easier to give into structure and be done with it. I am prepared to walk away from those Tshirts in need…and go to a stall further down Jalan Padma instead!

Offerings. Pic by me

When on holiday you can choose to immerse yourself in R&R or you can recharge through immersion in everything on offer. Bali assaults the senses- every one of them.

Last night my friend & I found ourselves in a seafood restaurant on the beach at Jimbaran watching the waves roll in, feeling the thunder roll around and eating freshly barbecued red snapper doused in a garlic and lime marinade with spicy hot sambal served beside it washed down with bottles of Bintang beer.

On that beach, listening to the roaming band playing corny songs, laughing with the toothless double bass player and feeling the wind toss my hair into a great big fuzz ball of knots, both of us finally relaxed. Sure the process starts (for me) with the first swim, but it was completed by the elements. My Gemini friend has a Pisces Moon too, so really gets the whole space & clearing of boundaries thing.

Lantern shop in Seminyak. Pic by me.

Earlier in the day we shopped in Seminyak, bargained for cheap beach dresses in Kuta, chilled out in the infinity pool at the resort & I had my feet cleaned off by a heap of hungry fish. How very Piscean. How very eeeeeuw. (One of my OCDs is having my feet touched, so I found it eeeeeuw indeed).

I am loving the bustle & the noise & the taste & all the little offerings the Balinese leave on pavements, roads & pretty well wherever. Some elaborate, some no more than a few grains of rice in a banana leaf.

By 7am yesterday morning, while walking Legian Beach I had been offered jiggy jig, helicopter, fake watches & to swap the t shirt I had on for a painting. And no, I accepted none of the above Gotta admire ingenuity.

Preparing a beach stall on Legian. Pic by me

In the skies the Moon is still in Sagittarius, enhancing the Jupiter expansiveness of this Jupiter/Pluto square which, incidentally, peaks today and which has been the theme of the whole of last week. Check the news from Libya as an example.

With Mars, the planet ruling Jupiter in Aries, in Pisces, the aim is definitely one of surging or fighting for a dream or even a dream of escape. Whilst Pluto in Capricorn is very much about governmental power & authority, the Mars/Jupiter influence is not to win power for its own sake. A very important distinction- whichever way this is playing out in your life at present.

Anyways, I am off to visit the mountains, temples and volcanoes (how very Pluto/Jupiter) today, so hopefully will have plenty of images to capture of these… plus the ubiquitous rice terraces and fornicating monkeys.

I hate time zone changes.

Which is why I am writing this at 5am Bali time. I feel like I have already been awake for way too long…the body is still programmed to the 5.45am Sydney time alarm clock. Anyways, the network is good at this time of the day & when the sun comes up I will head out for a walk on the beach before the crowds & the heat can join me.

The Moon is presently in Sagittarius, which is perfect for being on holiday & seeing new cultures…if, like me, you are lucky enough to be doing so .

Elsewhere in the sky, the big story is the Pluto/Jupiter square off. This has been an ongoing theme for the last few days, but really intensifies today & tomorrow. What does it all mean?

Pluto represents power, ambition, transformation (that word I hate), knock down/rebuild. In Capricorn this is around deep earth matters- stability, security. Capricorn also represents the corporation, governments, authority, career success…that sort of stuff.

Jupiter expands, makes things bigger, adds faith, optimism & confidence…sometimes over confidence. In Aries, this is done suddenly, on impulse, in a real Aries go forward way. A clash or square between the two is stimulating, exciting & challenging- especially if you have planets or chart points at 5-7 degrees Capricorn, Aries, Cancer or Libra.

Under this transit your ambitions may be roused in a big way- sort of like your own personal Grand Design. Expect opposition, expect some conflict, and make sure that you are actually right before arguing your viewpoint blindly. Obsession and over confidence are risks, so again, just be prepared to re-examine your course of action in need.

And Bali? I arrived yesterday afternoon, so have done little so far except find my bearings, stock the fridge with cheap Bintang beer, swim, talk & eat beef rendang…oh, and admire my freshly painted toenails from a pool lounge.