This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
Harmonious sounds like a strange way to describe a person. Maybe a furniture arrangement or an orchestral piece. Certainly not a lawyer. Upon speaking with José though, Xanadu’s effervescent and generous host, it seems like an apt way to describe him.
Maybe you’ve met José before.
He’s our social host and all-around good guy who now calls Xanadu home. And while you might know him as the friendly Chilean dude who makes your stay just that little bit more memorable, you probably don’t know the life-altering events that brought him to our hillside abode (or why he thinks Marcus Aurelius would surf if he were alive).
We recently talked to him about his law career, his first surfing experience and his love for chicken. We hope you enjoy learning more about our legendary host!
Hey José, how are you? How’s the change of seasons in Lombok going?
Hey! Very well, thanks. It’s funny… you can see the whole water cycle here. In the morning, it’s super hot and now we have this huge black cloud on top of us. So soon, it’s going to rain for one hour and then it’ll stop. As we speak it’s a super nice temperature.
Typical wet season weather. Do you prefer this time of year?
Well, I’ve only been here for a year, but I’ve already witnessed both seasons – dry and rainy. Rainy is beautiful. It’s so green everywhere, which is super amazing. Between dry and rainy I would say rainy is my favourite.
Sounds amazing. Can you tell us how you ended up at Xanadu?
I’m originally a constitutional lawyer. I studied law and then did a Master’s in Constitutional Regulatory Law before working in politics for 10 years.
The Chilean government, which I had the honour to work with, had to deal with massive violent riots in 2019. Then, when all this was cooling down, the pandemic happened. So it was a lot of work for us. At the same time, I got married and divorced.
It was a crazy time for me. After I finished my public service though, I realised I’d served my country and done my job. Now I’m on my own. I have no kids and no mortgage. I decided to travel to Europe for three months then have three months of like surf, surf, surf.
And that’s how I came to Indonesia. I met a good friend in Indo who knows Ola (one of Xanadu’s founders). He mentioned that she ran a surf retreat in Lombok.
At the time I hadn’t heard of Lombok. I was new to surfing but I took a leap and moved here to Xanadu. It was only Xanadu Village at the time.
About your surfing. How did you get into it? Was it love at first wave?
Funny story. I was exposed to surfing when I watched Point Break for the first time when I was 10 years old. I was like, “Oh my god… this is so cool”. The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ frontman Anthony Kiedis had a cameo role in the movie, and that band along with Pearl Jam are one of my favourites; and all of them are surfers. So I was always thinking that surfing is an amazing thing to do – hopefully one day I will get to try it.
Then, when I was 31, My mom died.
I’m an only child, so we were super close. After she passed away I dropped her ashes in the ocean at a place called Pichilemu as she requested. I’d been there a couple of times, but never to surf.
So here I was in Pichilemu for the first time with nothing to do. Like, literally nothing. And while I was there, I thought, if not now, when?
I wasn’t a good swimmer. I was actually terrified of the ocean. I would panic.
That’s totally normal. It was also a highly emotional time for you too. Did you hire a board and wetsuit or take a lesson?
Do you know Chacha Ibarra? I booked a lesson with him and during this lesson he asked me, “What are you doing here in Pichilemu this time of the year? Like, no one is here now”.
I explained to him my situation and he was super kind, super supportive. At some point he said, “You know, you’re terrified. I can tell that you’re super scared and you need to relax. It’s important for surfing that you’re at peace with what you’re doing. And especially you”.
I remember he was tapping the water as he said this. He then told me, “This is your mother here now. She’s taking care of you”.
So, I caught a wave and got up on the first try (it was whitewash, but still)!
This feeling of sliding on water… I don’t know. It triggered something that has remained there ever since.
That’s an incredible story. Chacha Ibarra is one of the godfather’s of Chilean surfing. What an amazing experience. Are you still on the longboard or have you gone over to the dark (aka short) side?
I’m mainly on a longboard, but Kayan (our Surf Director) has been helping me move to a twin fin. I really like it!
To be honest, I’m usually going a little bit more on the longboard. But now when the dry season comes and we have bigger swells, I’ll use the twin fin more.
And what about your favourite Lombok surf spots?
Mawi, Ekas and Tanjung Aan are my top three. They’re all different waves, with a mix of long, friendly rides and steep drops. My goal is to surf Desert Point in hopefully two or three years from now.
Kuta is also a very good place to go. In Kuta Beach we have three different spots and the waves are just perfect. The feeling of getting into the water at sunrise at first light when its glassy… it’s so beautiful.
You spoke earlier about your reticence in the water when first learning. Do you have advice for other beginners and intermediates who want to feel more comfortable in the water?
I would say repetition, because it becomes more familiar. I study surfing too. I watch videos of surfing at least for half an hour every day. I’m looking at the feet, I’m looking at the arms. I’m a little bit of a nerd!
And breathing. Breathing is something that is so important in life. It’s the first thing you do when you’re born and the last thing you do when you’re gone.
If I’m scared or if I’m feeling frustrated with my session, I just breathe and let go.
Talking about surfing and breathing, surfing is an extension of life. It shapes you but it also reveals parts of you that you didn’t know you had. Do you have a philosophy learned from surfing?
I’m very into the stoic philosophy and all these things in my 40s. And I’ve learned that you really can’t control anything in life, just like in the surf.
And then you need courage. This is one thing that I found super cool about surfing. When you’re scared of a big wave that’s coming at you, the best way to prevent being hit by the wave is to face your fear – you have to paddle towards the wave, like, literally facing your fear!
You need discipline. Like in anything in life, you need discipline to improve.
You also need justice because most of the time you’re surrounded by other surfers, so you can’t catch every single wave. You have to share.
Finally, you need the wisdom to know that some days are going to be bad. Some days it’s going to be crowded. Some days you’re not going to feel as good as you want. What can you do?
Just enjoy what you have that day and come back again tomorrow.
I mean, it’s all straight from Marcus Aurelius’ book Meditations. I actually think he would be surfing all the time if he were alive today!
Haha, well said. Last but not least, for people thinking about booking with Xanadu, can you give them a little insight into what to expect (besides epic waves and amazing food)?
You don’t have to worry about anything. You don’t even have to load your boards onto the shuttle!
You have a local team here who have been surfing for over 20 years. They’ll take you to the best waves, make sure when you finish surfing that you get back safely and ensure everything is ready to go when you are. So you can really relax… like in a dream. You can just drift away and surf at the same time.
And what would I say to invite people? I would invite them to enjoy a week of unexpected joys and unexpected laughs, lots of surfing and beautiful nature all around you.
Sometimes we surf and there’s a turtle or a fish jumping out of the water. There are monkeys all around. Chickens everywhere, man. You’re driving and a chicken is crossing the street all the time. It’s so crazy, it’s so funny. I have developed this love for chickens! Everything is so funny here, so relaxed.
And people. This is the beautiful thing about Kuta. People are kind. A lot of things go very slowly. You could stop at a minimart to buy a bottle of water and it’ll take 10 minutes. But the people selling it to you would look into your eyes and give you a smile.
Then they’d say have a nice day and really mean it. I think that’s pretty special.
Well said. These are the reasons why we love Lombok so much too. Thanks for your time José. We’re so stoked to have you with us. Here’s to many more years of calling Xanadu home… and eventually surfing Desert Point!
Haha. Thanks guys. Thank you very much.
