Boom boom boom… the electro music seemed to drown out the sound of the waves crashing on the beach. The water was beginning to come through the windows and into the room, the rug was saturated, and my shoes began to float, my feet didn’t feel wet and I started dancing….dancing on the water…. what is in that rakija?   1 am New Years day, Malinska, Krk.

Happy New year!! I am flooded with good energy and I don’t want the world to stop spinning. The sun rises, sets and clouds float unnoticed over our heads, let us be more aware of each day and let us enjoy our times of happiness and gratitude. Ahhh…. Everything just begins when it is time to move on, by Monday I will be on the road again and the fog of the past will roll in.

It was a typically cold evening on the 31st, and after a celebratory late evening meal and rakija, I contemplated going out for the evening. My mental state was that of a mime, perfectly still and observant in a world of chaos. Festivities were just beginning and the bands were setting up for the last night of the year. I befriended a few locals at the grocery store a few days earlier and my gmail account had an unanswered invite to a DJ house party that night in Malinska.  I layered up, brushed my teeth and packed my tooth-brush for what I thought would be just another night.

15 km of hills, frost and the occasional reflective glare of wild dogs brought me to the church center. It wasn’t hard from there to distinguish the direction of the party, the bass from the speakers echoed through the empty alleys and streets, if I were a zombie there would be only one place to go. I was greeted by a house of about 12 people, and two DJ’s. The setting was extremely laid back, in that everyone was sitting in the 1970’s style living room drinking rakija out of classy crystal glasses. No dancing, but the records were spinning. I sat next to the Christmas tree which looked like a cross between a palm and a pine, and was given a glass, with a tall pour, (that was the end of Julian Wong for the night). With conversation rarely being in English I took off my shoes and started some yoga practice, then I joined up in an English conversation about Parkour.

I followed the crew to the beach to see the fireworks, and started feeling a bit odd. The boom of the music was still going round in my head and continued to play while the fireworks exploded over the ocean. The water was also so dark and clean that I was having trouble determining which direction was up and which was down. Boom boom boom wave crash wave crash boom boom boom….. Like a mantra I was feeling the sound and earth.

Next thing I knew I was back at the house, on the dance floor, barefoot, melding my body to the sound of the music. The sound of the waves had not stopped and I was beginning to feel like I was stuck on a beach during high tide, the water was just beginning to touch my feet, and I knew that if I were going to have a good time I would have to leave behind my clothes and start swimming. “What is in this Rakija”!!? I shouted. A long time of no response, similes and a bit of laughter, my dancing neighbor finally responded, “Oh, I forgot to tell you …. We all decided to mix a few grams of MDMA, with the Rakija for the party”. “We all”…”like all of you decided to do this and didn’t tell me” I responded. MDMA….MDMA, I searched the undergraduate Chemistry degree data base stored in my head, and actually pinpointed a lecture in Organic Chemistry 108b, MDMA….Ecstasy in its most pure, crystal form. “Ecstasy”? I shouted “Yeah” was the response….”.Sweeet” Laughs. Everyone at the party had started saying “Sweet” and it was starting to get annoying, but I was feeling way too good to be bothered in any way.

“Listen closely and watch what I am doing, do not do the pose like this” You can see how many people understood.

It all made sense now, the water coming from the windows, the dark reflection of the sea, this was all part of my subconscious, and the serotonin was pouring in. I was literally plugged into the DJ and everything was everything I had ever wanted. I started getting hungry and I noticed a girl dancing like a UFO dipping a spoon into a classic red keg cup, she offered me some and after a taste it turned out to be a kale smoothie with Brazilian hazelnuts. What was in that rakija!!

I think that at least half of the class will be too scared to come back

I returned to the consciousness of Julian Wong close to mid-day, I had scratches and cuts on my back, and after a while I remembered trying to take the party to ancient abandoned church. In the kitchen I was greeted with huge smiles and great vibes. After a little chit-chat the conversation shifted to spiritual practice and Sun Gazing. “We must be aware that suffering is an optional state of being”, “Our options are limitless”…The girl with the smoothie from the night before and her boy friend were on a spiritual path and were big proponents of Sun Gazing (the practice of gaining nourishment from the sun) and the “5 Tibetans”, an ancient yogic practice from the Himalayas.

World cycle tourist and Croatian yoga instructor

After a few hours of new practice, I promised my new friends I would return and pedaled back to Omisalj. What a night, and how interesting to meet others on the path. It was past midnight by the time I got back to my small cave abode. With less than a few hours of sleep in 48 hours I was surprisingly energized from my earlier practice of the “5 Tibetans”. I lay in my sleeping bag and closed my eyes, the sound of waves returned and I visualized a powerful sun guiding me across the sea, I then fell into a deep asleep.

RIP beard, new year, new face, take a few minutes ago