It’s been two weeks already since I left Bali, and I am now back in Nice with my family. Going back to Europe felt like my three-month stay in Indonesia was just a vivid dream that disappeared as soon as I woke up. I lived incredible adventures, saw incredible landscapes, and most importantly, met incredible people.

What marked me the most during my stay was the kindness of the Balinese people. They’re smiling all the time and stay positive no matter what happens in their life. I have never seen people so happy to share their culture with strangers and welcome them on their land like family. I remember my first cab driver, Nyoman, who invited me to visit his village the very same day we met, and called me brother right away.

This generosity and warm welcome felt good, as I was dealing with some personal struggles at the time. But Bali took good care of me. Maybe the recipe for happiness is as simple as this: endless smiles, extreme generosity, magical temples, healthy food, and a close connection to nature?

As I am writing this, sitting on my comfortable couch in my modern living room on the French Riviera, my mind is teleported to the night when I crossed the jungle on a scooter, feeling the fresh wind in my hair and the full moon lighting our road, surrounded by palm trees and rice fields. Or that day when I visited a local school, full of beautiful kids learning about entrepreneurship and AI as if those were the most interesting topics in the world to them. I hear the ancient sounds during a healing session within a pyramid in the middle of nowhere, the music I danced to during my first ecstatic dance experience, or the shaman reading my soul from her cabin in the woods. I also recall the magnificent sunrise on top of Mount Agung, the highest volcano in Bali, where my best friend, whom I’ve known since we were 5, told me that he was about to become a father.

Some travels feel like yet another touristic visit that you can cross off your list. And then there are others that deeply change who you are. That inspire you. That become a defining moment in your life and stay encapsulated inside of your heart for years to come. Bali is one of them.

I have many exciting things to tell you about in the next couple of weeks. Two projects that I have been thinking about for a very long time are almost ready to be unveiled. If you don’t want to miss any of it, sign up to my newsletter here.

In the meantime, I hope that your day is going well, you, the reader of this post. If not, remind yourself how the Balinese people deal with a bad day…

Smile.