Great day trip from Ubud thanks to ideas supplied largely by Filo(a sincere thanks for all the info you've posted if you read this) up to the temple at Batu Karu. I discovered that if a child has not lost one of their first teeth yet they aren't allowed to enter the temple beyond the outer section. We were told this applies at all temples. Strictly speaking the mother of such is barred too-but though I did point out that I was one of those they shuffled me through while my little four-year-old had to stay out. He didn't mind; he was being entertained by a truckload of local schoolkids that had brought offerings and prayers. He loved it when they left all standing up in their truck waving and shouting 'Hello'. Hang on isn't hello what you say when....
On to the Jatiluwih ricefields and to Munduk, including a walk to the waterfall. The road along the ridge above the twin lakes with the view of the lakes on one side and all the flower gardens on the other is truly beautiful and I noticed some little guesthouses through here which I fancy checking out for a potential stay next time.
Maybe it was the time of day when the heat has subsided and the breezes pick up, the sky threatens rain and the light dapples, but I loved Candi Kuning and the Temple on the Lake and the markets. Btw of all the bags of spices I bought from the Candi Kuning markets the only ones disallowed were a bag of cardamom in which the customs officer found two little (dead)bugs. She said she couldnt risk it and fair enough. Also confiscated was the 'saffron' which I was kind of prepared for as I'd read on the forum that it wasn't entirely kocher, being mixed with safflower. I'm sure you can get good quality saffron but not at the price I paid. I was pleased as punch that they let my vanilla beans through though. Now I have a few bags of them and have to figure out what to do with them . How much custard can you eat?
We also went on a very manageable day-trip to see the Barong dance at Batubulan , to the Bird and Reptile Park and then to Tagallallang to see the ricefields and do a spot of wholesale shopping.
Everything was fun if a bit mass touristy but I will just rave for a moment about the Bird and Reptile Park. I'm not really a theme park fan, I was ,to be honest, luke-warm about the parks but I'd heard that you could hold iguanas and so on and thought that would be nice for the kids. When we arrived and were told the price I choked . $100 for our little family of four. Hadnt expected that. Partly it was just that the exchange rate was so bad that day, as in the USD was buying over 11,000 Rp. Anyway needless to say a couple of hours later we were saying 'best hundred $ we've ever spent'. It was like being in your own private Wonderland and you're Alice chanting over and over 'Look at that and look at that and what about this'.Even the birds of prey show which could have been hokey was brilliant and we all got to don the leather glove and hold the owls and eagles. Seeing the two magnificent Macaws (not very Indonesian I know)who interloped on the raptors show flying around and around our heads was quite wonderful. My little one fulfilled his dream of seeing a Komodo Dragon in its considerable flesh and even took it in his stride when it gobbled down a couple of cute bunnies (they were dead).
Then the Reptile Park: getting to hold the iguanas and turtles was such a highlight for my kids, I thoroughly recommend these parks for families.
Well lets face it :Ubud is in very large, pleasurable part all about food ..... I've figured out that one particular Balinese genius is that they seem to have a way of appropriating or incorporating other cultural traditions effortlessly into their own or dishing it out better than the original. I don't know, maybe regards the food it comes from the foreign owners,cooks and managers that abound? Who cares when you can have the best pasta outside of Naples and the nicest potatoes with the exception of Brussels, in Ubud? The pasta came from The Three Monkeys Cafe ( Monkey Forest Road) which became quite a favourite, never had anything less than wonderful there. The potatoes with the most delicious -and cheapest-tenderloin steak came from Cafes Des Artistes(JL Bisma) Yum. Went back twice when we just couldn't ignore our craving for some red meat.
My 11 -yr-old won the prize for being the most authentic food consumer as everywhere he went he just ate Nasi Campur. He must have tried 25 different versions. His favourite by far was at our guesthouse in Sidemen, home-cooked by Ida. Our other no-brainer for eating was Casa Luna-their signature Paella yummy, the lemongrass fish soup delicious, salads great.......Café Wayan was great too and I thought the environment lovely(but I think anything that family does is gonna have a special aesthetic).Then there was Tutmaks. Their chickenburger has just got to be had -delicious. Also the coffee ,which was the real reason for visiting there every day. Some addictions you just cant leave at home.
A culinary highlight was most definitely the Balinese feast we had at Rumah Roda Cafe(JL Kajeng) . All you need is at least four people and 30,000 Rp per head (that's $5 aud folks!) for a banquet of 15 dishes, all using veges from the family garden, fabulous sambals, great tempeh, fried peanuts, tuna in banana leaf...on and on. What a treat. Book a day in advance.
The only duds we had as far as meals were concerned was the buffet at the Indian restaurant whose name I forget and shall never have cause to remember on JL Hanoman and also Dirty Duck on the same stretch. Very ordinary imho. My own disappointment in myself in the culinary stakes was that I was too gutless to try the sate from the street vendors despite the fact that they smelt better than anything else and I was sorely tempted. A little voice said 'not really worth the risk' but in reality they were cooked at such a high temperature I'm sure they'd be fine.
Saw a Kecak, fire and trance Dance at Padang Tegal (JL Hanoman) and have to say though I enjoyed it anyway the troupe felt a little jaded. Everyone that is except for the little guy whose job it was to bring the 'chak chak' chant back. I'll never forget the utterly committed 'chak chak' he'd rip forth,and all the size of him, with such earnestness . Pity the rest of his cast didn't take a leaf out of his book (: . My sister had, a year previous, seen a rural village troupe doing the Kecak and said the chant went right through her chest so powerful was it and the guy who went into a trance was totally convincing. Next time....I've heard the performances of the Kecak at the ARMA museum on full and new moon nights are exceptional.
We watched the Frog Dance, a special kids story, at Laka Leke, Nyuh Kuning( on Monday nights, free if you eat there).It was delightful and my two were entranced at the antics of the kids dancing as monkeys and lions.
My favourite encounters with the gamelan though, the sound of which I love, were just the chance driftings across the ricefields near our digs or picking up snatches from the local village rehearsal.
Any jazz fans might like to get themselves down to Pengosekan to a little bar/café which I think is called Balawan on a Friday night. Balawan is also the name of the muso I think and the place belongs to his family. The guy does his own interpretations of some standards, some originals and lots of improvisation. No question, he is a virtuoso guitarist (or whatever it is he plays, it looks like a double-fretted guitar but sounds like a synthesizer). He was relatively recently signed by Sony.Can just go and have a drink and/or meal and listen, no cover charge, starts about 8.30pm.
While I'm still in Ubud... if youre in the vicinity on Saturday mornings there is an organic market outside Pizza Bagus (not sure if this is JL Pengosekan or Hanoman strictly speaking ) 9amish. Not big but some real quality stuff. Local organic farmers and producers bring their goods in, like a farmers market. I bought the most beautiful Cempaka body butter there. Also lots of interesting looking potions , turmeric tincture etc and bags of delicious peanuts and coconut and so on.Magic.
Speaking of magic, Sidemen and Amed next.