after our aborted trip to sideman and a few days to get our bearings i persuaded the family that we really had to go to Bangli. Now some of you may recognise the town as it is famous for its rumah sakit jiwa - hospital for psychiatric patients, but it has so much more to offer.
but not quality hotels. two are mentioned in the english and german guide books, but we never found one of those (it was the most basic one), but we did find the Bangli Inn. The only things it has to recommend it are cleanliness and a very friendly maid. If you must stay there: it is loud at night and early in the morning, being close to the market and the breakfast is truly horrendous (even the javanese lady staying there was subjected to the jam jaffle that constitutes brekky).
Having said that, Bangli is so awesome that we were quite happy to stay there. The market is superb, catering to the local population. the large square inside covered market sells textiles and homewares and all around it on the outside is the food section. one side has cooked food. we spent hours eating and shopping- and the prices!
At night the main street gets blocked off and a giant food market appears. we always got take away, but the place was full of locals eating excellent cheap food. a photographer's and a gourmet's dream.
There is a famous temple that i took the family to as my husband was insistent that he finally be allowed to visit one. We had bought the kids their own ceremonial clothes that morning to wear there and they looked very cute. next door there was cock fighting going on and my husband peeked over to see. most interesting for us was the noise of the cheering- very melodic, quite unlike anything i have heard in australia or europe.
The Bangli Hill (bukit bangli) affords interesting views, not only of town, but also the hinterlanda and the coast. a nice wwlk. we were there on dusk and could hear a gamelan in town and see the storm clouds approaching.
the weather in bangli is mild and makes walking a joy. on the way down the hill families were heading off to temples to pray. apparently bangli is famous for its many ceremonies.
on the way back in to town we helped some very lost tourists, who were trying to return to ubud and then found the source of the gamelan- a women's orchestra preparing for a competition, they invited us to stay and listen.
we didn't have so long in bangli, just a couple of days, as we were meeting a balinese friend from melbourne and her family in kuta, but we did manage some great walks- some along more ricefields and also to a sports' field where students were practising marching drills for yet another competition. we stopped there at the balai to watch and chat with the sport teachers when they had finished and then with the policeman on patrol.
wandering around the streets was a hoot. the locals were unbelievably friendly and welcoming, but there is no tourist infrastructure and the owners of the hotel weren't at all helpful.
would i recommend staying in Bangli- you bet, apparently there is a hotel near the hospital not mentioned in the guide books.
if you are on a budget, eating at the stalls is dirt cheap, nutritious and yummy.
finally- the cheapest internet on bali? 4,ooo rp and hour!
next stop: kuta for the first time since 1986! my friend was booking in to satriya and so i used the internet in bangli to check its reviews on btf. they were good, so i made a call and got the internet rate over the phone, pleased not to have to go shopping for accommodation and to be able to see my friend briefly over breakky before she headed off to her parents in negara. mind you, when i was making the booking and the guy asked me where i was arriving from and i said Bangli, there was a moment of silence from his end. i assured him we were only there on holiday, but i'm not sure that it actually made it any better in his eyes.
please email me if you want to know more about wonderful bangli.
next stop : kuta