Monday...Nyepi Eve
Up early this morning, need to get provisions for tomorrow, and prepare for the Ogoh Ogoh parade tonight. We had also received a call from the tailor to say our clothes were ready, so we needed to pop to Kuta to try them on
What to do for breakfast? Although we have things in the fridge , we decided to go out and try Cafe Mano , if we could find it ! All I knew from recommendations was that it was by la Lucciola. The Avanza had been borrowed by two other family members , and they were out earlier than us , as previously they had told us they were off to Breezes at the Samaya
So we ordered a taxi , and asked the driver to take us to la Lucciola, and we would work out things from there. Soon we were being dropped off on the carpark, and I casually asked the driver if he knew where Cafe Mano was. He took my 25,000 rp, shrugged his shoulders and drove off. So, with what little language I know I asked the car park attendant if he knew wher it was. With a smile, and a pointed finger , he directed me to the other side of the car park, and sure enough, there it was.
A very small, badly signed place, but none-the-less a superb beach front location without the pretenciousness (word for the day) of La Lucciola. I had a full brekkie, with a really good cappucino for 40,000rp, and I'm sure we will be back here again
From here, we got into another Bluebird and drove down to Kuta Square. We were redirected down Sunset Road as a lot of Jl Raya Kerobokan was starting to be closed off for the final assembly of the Ogoh Ogoh figures and mounting onto the bamboo carry frames. At Kuta in less than 10 minutes, we pop into Gloria Jeans for a very vanilla chiller and over the road to barter for some fake Adidas for my completely adorable ( she's still reading) step daughter.Starting off at a ridiculous 650,000 for them, I managed to seal a deal at 220,000 including a Bintang singlet.
Off we head to Bemo Corner and to Bagus tailor, we try our clothes, and we will have to return as some minor alterations are necessary,We walk back to Hard Rock cafe and pop into the Mini Market next door(ish) for some cold drinks.Today is very hot and humid, and fluid levels need to be topped up at all times. We head off along Jl Pantai Kuta in search of a taxi, and it's not long before we get a ride to Bintang Supermarket
Here, we ask the taxi driver to wait on the car park, while we stock up in readiness for tomorrow. We buy veggies, fruit , snacks , water , toilet rolls , and a few other day to day things, and queues are massive. If ever you did need a VIPVOA to avoid a queue, today I can categorically state that the line up at Bintang was far worse than ANYTHING I have ever experienced at the airport.This must be where these queues are rented from to scare people into parting with their hard earned?
The taxi had waited for best part of half an hour, with patience and a smile, he proceeded to pop the boot to allow us to put our shopping away. Off we go back to the Villa, get the ice into the freezer, and most other things into the fridge
While we were away, Wayan had turned up at the Villa with our Babi Guling, he chopped it all up for us, and we have a boat load of pork which we have shared with him and his family, we have paid 800,000 between us for a medium sized piggy, and it looks divine, although the smell in the fridge is tainting all the ice !!
It is now almost 4pm, and Wayan is coming to take us to the Ogoh Ogoh parade, on our way back to the Villa, we saw all the local figures unveiled and ready for participation.An amazing sight, and truly spectacular in their size, construction and detail
Wayan shows up, as ever, on time. I drive the Avanza as far as I can possibly get, which is close to the intersection of Jl Umals II and Jl Raya Kerobokan. Parking the vehicle in a fashion akin to abandonment, we then walk around the corner and take a seat on one of the ledges of a local shop
Within half an hour, the locals assemble, flame torches in front, almost miltary style. The Ogoh Ogoh's appear from the side road and on to the main road and head for Seminyak. What a truly amazing sight, and the locals beckon us to join in and follow the quickly increasing crowd , walking towards the intersection of Jl Petitenget. Ogoh Ogoh's of all shapes and sizes, some with lights, some truly grotesque, some funny, but all manic and scary in their own way. I took several photos, I hope they do the whole thing justice
I have to admit, as I walked behind , and in between several villagers , I started thinking about how little these people have, but how willing they are to share what few things they do have.With a few tears rolling down my cheeks, my emotion was noticed by a couple of locals, who seemed to nod in appreciation of my emotion. To be part of their most important night of the year was overwhelming and certainly something I would love to do again
We finally reached our destination of the crossroads, where several more Ogoh Ogoh met up and headed back towards Kerobokan, As we had two small children with us, we decided this was now a good time to head back to our car and get back home to leave these wonderful people to enjoy their night
We all mounted the Avanza, and typically me, I reverse out into Jl Umalas II , right in between 2 lots of Ogoh Ogoh... we just followed at walking pace, and again, no-one said a thing about Pilot Wharfie being amongst their parade in a headlighted chariot
Back to the Villa, I can't wait to upload my pics, and I do some before retiring to bed
Tonight was one of the best night's of my life, thoroughly enjoyed being amongst everything, and I go off to sleep a very happy Wharfie. Tomorrow is Nyepi, and looking forward to respecting a deeply cultural and meaningful day on the Balinese calendar
More tomorrow...and thanks for reading...WHARFIE..xxx