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Plagued by wanderlust since I can remember, I would ride my bicycle all over my rural town to feel like I was going somewhere. I would pretend I was in far- away places. My wonderful stay-at-home Mom took me on treks to local spots but my desire to go to places farther and more exotic was unfulfilled. As I child I studied the Encyclopedia and National Geographic magazines and I daydreamed of someday traveling to other countries. In my teens and early 20's my friends resembled the United Nations representatives. My desire to learn all things foreign continued: foods, dress, language, music, etc. At 17 I jumped at the chance to be a student missionary in the Dominican Republic. Once I started a career I would spend my salary on travel. My first self-paid overseas trip was to Bermuda. But the ultimate, I though, would be to live and/or study abroad. Living in Spain x2 allowed me to conquer two other goals, traveling Europe by train and learning a second language. My bucket list is still long, but I never give up hope or attempts of slowly chipping away at it during my life-time.

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Thursday, June 23, 2016

Kuta - A memorial to the lost

Bali has been on my radar screen of dream places to visit someday, for most of my life. In my mind the word "Bali" would trigger visions of warm days, beautiful beaches, vivid attire, beautiful wood furnitre, pretty flowers and soothing music.

I remember when tbe bombing happened in Central Kuta on October 12, 2002. With only three years back in the US, after my Spain study abroad experience, and a fairly new Indonesian sister-in-law, I had a strong link to a all things foreign. It was really upsetting to hear the news of terror in paradise. Why would someone(s) end lives in such a beautiful place? My thinnking was as if, beauty means, safer. As a naive 20 something year old, terriorism was difficult to comprehend. Fast forward 14 years later, with all that has happened and continuesto happenin the world, I can view the realities differently.  Terrorist don't care about beauty, happiness or people. Their main goal is to terrorize. So much so that another terriorst bombing was carried out, in Kuta, by the in terriorist group three years later.







In the wake of such tragedies, the Balinese built a memorial to the 202 lives lost and made certain that the pub (Paddy's Pub) where the bombing occurred was rebuilt O
(On a different location)


After the bombing and dedication of the memorial, the Balinese have been showing  their committment to tourism by holding a 9-day fesitval each year called the Kuta Karnival - A Celebration of Life. The festival which happens in October, features foods, dance and sports on the beach. The very popular Kuta Karnival festival allows locals to demonstrate what makes Bali such an amazing place.

For more information about the festival go to: http://www.indonesiapoint.com/festivals/kuta-karnival.html

Copyright 2016. Vivienne Lettsome. All rights reserved.

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