Bali: Part 6, Ubud Finalé

One of the major attractions in Ubud is walking through the Monkey Forest. A section of forest has been left in the middle of the town for the monkeys to inhabit. The area is complete with a few temples and there is a road that passes through it, but it's closed to traffic and is instead used by the flocks of tourists who come to gape at our cute, though somewhat cheeky and occasionally annoying, cousins.

 

 

At the entrances one is encouraged to not carry any food or drink in. Monkeys have been known to snatch food from people's hands and even jump on people to get into their bags if they smell food. Of course this doesn't stop the locals from trying to turn a profit by selling bananas to tourists for the sole purpose of feeding monkeys and trying to get pictures taken with them.

 

A baby monkey enjoys the spoils of tourism.

The main temple within the Monkey Forest

 

 

Of course there's no guarantee that everyone will be perfectly safe simply by following the rules in the Monkey Forest. Monkeys are, after all, wild animals - as are humans - so sometimes there will be mishaps. This sign stands prominently outside the exit.

Ubud central would be Jl. Raya Ubud. It's the main road on the hill which contains the market place, several temples, the museum and various governmental buildings. A number of other important roads branch out from it and they make up the core of Ubud.

 

Jl. Raya Ubud, near the market place

 

Jl. Raya Ubud, one of the temples

One such road branching off is Jl. Monkey Forest which we found ourselves on when exiting the west side of the forest.

 

The west exit of Monkey Forest, facing north up Jl. Monkey Forest

I have previously mentioned that we were staying away from the louder streets on one called Jl. Bisma. It runs parallel to Jl. Monkey Forest, but until recently could only be reached by going all the way up to Jl. Raya Ubud, turning left twice and then coming back down the parallel road. However, due to prosperity brought on by tourism, that area is undergoing expansion, so now there is a small road that connects them very close to the Monkey Forest exit. It's also lacking signs or any indication of its existence.

 

 The road just out of the Monkey Forest

 

 The side of the same signpost visible in the above picture, displaying information about a guesthouse down the lane.

The apparent dead end, save for what looks like a pathway to your right.

Said pathway

The bridge you cross going into the south end of Jl. Bisma

As one heads up Jl. Bisma, one encounters quieter places to stay, more local houses and future guesthouses under construction.

 

 

Jalani Bisma does not reach Jl. Monkey Forest on older maps, even though they now connect.

I came across this scene - a traditional entrance being constructed.

Based on a few conversations I've had in Bali, I have been led to believe that there is a lifestyle choice actively encouraged by the government. If one does this, one is exempt from tax. It requires living in traditional houses - large-ish plots of land where the whole family lives, equiped with a shrine area where prayer is done.

It also requires that religious sacrements are adhered to. This includes (but is certainly not limited to) putting out Canang Sari, or daily offerings. They are to thank Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa. They are placed on small shrines and on the floors around the estates.

An example of canang sari. It's a small woven palm-leaf basket. There appear to be variations in what can be placed inside. I have even seen small sweets added to the contents. Traditionally there is betel leaf, betel nuts, lime and tobacco. Flowers are also added along with incense.

All festivals have to be acknowledged and celebrated, too. We missed a big festival by about a week when families take long lengths of bamboo (I think) and tie the ends over so a small eye is formed. These are placed all down the roads from every house and make a beautiful display.

While giving citizens a handy get-out-of-tax-free card can't be doing the government much good, it does wonders for keeping the culture alive. With capitalism working to change the economic mindset of the people, spurred on by tourism industry, culture suffers. Keeping Having both costs would pressure some to abandon tradition. The government has made one mandatory, but given each household the option of choosing which one for themselves.

The traditions and culture of Bali give us beautiful murals and architecture like this as common appearances on everyday walls, doors and other surfaces.

Tourism and commerce can also have its upsides and the people of Bali are learning to use it effectively. At this coffee shop flowers have been left out in a pattern  forming the word love, calling on both romantic and lost souls (the latter category being largely made up of middle-aged, Julia Roberts impersonating ladies). They are drawn to the flowers and often snap a picture. Then they notice something else.

There is a notice next to them on the table. It mentions a free biscuit to any who instagram a picture of their "love flowers" along with a certain hashtag. It draws people in, it makes them thankful (as indeed the notice hints at by first thanking them) and will often lead to sales as well as publicity.

While we're on the note of coffee shops, I'd like to give a shout out to Falbird. Popped in for a quick coffee and wasn't disappointed. It's located along a commercial street south of and at right angles to the main market street.

Ubud has adapted itself well to being a tourist hub. It has lots on offer and learns what customers like. There's also the added bonus of the people being very friendly.

There are also some surprising things on offer.

There's also a level of humour. Anyone who spends more than ten minutes walking around Ubud will learn to hate people calling "taxi" at them (yet also be secretly grateful of the abundance for those times one wants a taxi).

I felt like giving a shout out to BAWA, the Bali Animal Welfare Association. They are a great non-profit organisation that does lots of good and rely on donations to survive.

One thing of high importance in Bali is conservation. Due to tourism there is a big influx of plastic which is causing lots of damage to the environment. For this reason people are trying to find new ways to counter this. Here is one fantastic idea - reusable straws.

Glass straws

Bamboo straws

I shall end with mentioning this organisation, the Fair Future Foundation.

http://www.fairfuturefoundation.org/

 They work with  the Bali Sari Foundation and it is their mission to give healthcare to all poor, sick, disabled and disadvantaged people regardless of race, religion, age, skin colour or origin.

Of course this requires funding, so where do they get their money? Well, they do get some donations, but 80% of their funds  from one place - the Fair Warung Balé. It is a restaurant on a side road off Jl. Raya Ubud (the same road that has the temple where we watched the fire dancing mentioned in the previous post).

Anyone visiting Ubud should have a meal here or, failing that, at least drop by to offer them a donation. Their work is vital in bringing free medical care to those who would otherwise receive none.

We learnt about them by accident. They are an organisation

BALI: Part 5 Touring

Bike Tour

Bike tours are common place in Ubud, if not Bali in general. The company we went with (Celebrity Bike Tour) was one of many bike companies. The object is simple, ride bikes around while seeing some of the great sites in the area. It should be noted that I use the word "ride" in the most generous of interpretations as the activity we engaged in was little more than sitting and steering.

Being a volcanic island, mountains are in abundance and so the aim of the tour is to drive groups of tourists to elevated locations, equip them with bikes and send them back down the mountain, using back roads to avoid most of the traffic. However, before reaching the selected biking location, there are a few stops to be had on the way.

PURA GUNUNG KAWI

 

 

Pura Gunung Kawi is one of the oldest temples on Bali, in addition to being a funeral complex. It spans both banks of the Pakerisan River and dates back to the 11th century and is thought to be dedicated to king Anak Wungsu.

Being a place of religion, it also holds to some rather archaic ideas, as seen here in their third rule, which forbids ladies to enter the area during their period.

 

Another necessity was attire. One must be dressed correctly to enter the temple grounds, so we were asked to wear a traditional wrap-around. 

 

Who says men can't rock the skirt?

 

Properly attired, some friends listen to our guide as he shares some of the history of the Gunung Kawi.

Our first task was to descend into the valley.

 

 

This was a curiosity I couldn't identify. On the sie of this tree is what appears to be a web catching the light, but when looked at more closely appears to resemble strands of hair more than it does web. Perhaps this is a perculiar kind of spider web, or perhaps it is something made by the tree or a parasite plant.

 

Close by the river at the centre of the complex someone in our partly spotted a spider referred to scientifically as Nephila maculata and commonly as the giant golden orb weaver. They're harmless to humans, by all accounts, but as their legspan can reach 20cms, they can be daunting to see.

Anyway, our guide overheard the commenting and pointing out of the spider and decided to enlighten us. Next he performed something that looked like a kangaroo hop and carefully snatched the spider right out of the web. He then showed us it was harmless by letting it run over his hands, as one would a pet hamster.

 

 

The offer was extended to any brave enough to hold out their hands. I remember something like a ticklish sensation, though more akin to goosebumps when it picked its way over my hand and wrist.

Our guide saved the best trick for last.

Coming up the far side of the river, we came to the old temple grounds.

 

 

This portal represented the aim entranceway into the older sections of the temple. It is customary to walk with hands apart, palms up when approaching the portal, slowly bringing them up and together as one walks through. This is a sign of bringing your physical and spiritual sides together.

Beyond the portal lay the cliff face where the candi (shrines) had been cut into the wall. Before that, however, was an area off to the side where the ancient temple grounds had been cut into the stone of the cliff. Shoes were not permitted to be worn in this area.

On the far side of the temple buildings (before the obligatory souvenir shop) stood the candi, carved carefully into the side of the cliff, a reflection of the ones cut on the far side of the river.

 

 

A single shaft of light peering between the trees.

OKA

Our next stop en route to bike riding was a coffee shop of sorts. Coffee and cocoa beans are grown in the area, but their trump card Luwak Coffee (also known as Kopi Luwak or Civit Coffee).

 

On first description, Luwak Coffee sounds like a weird concept. The coffee is made (partly or entirely) with coffee beans that have first been ingested and defecated by Asian Palm Civits (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus). The reason for this is two-fold. Firstly, the claim is that the civits only select the best coffee cherries to eat. Secondly, the enzymes in the civits' stomaches are said to reduce the bitterness in the coffee.

 

Display civit cage. 

 

Cocoa beans growing.

 

The different stages of preparing Luwak Coffee. The closest bowl contains beans collected from civit poo, the next the same beans after being cleaned, then various stages of them being roasted.

 

The same bowls from the opposite side.

 

Here a young lady roasts coffee beans over an open flame. 

 

There are also a variety of spices that are used to make the various styles of coffee that are offered at OKA. 

Then our party was seated at a table and brought a selection of teas and coffees to sample. There were a few I took to, but it was interesting to note how much sugar was added to some of the drinks. A few were saturated, as we discovered when we reached the bottom of the glasses.

I found the coconut coffee to be my favourite. Their Bali Kopi was, sadly, lacking, but then all Bali Kopis have paled in comparison to the one I had in Sidemen.

 

The list of teas and coffees in order. 

 

The drinks themselves in the same order.

In our coffee tasting we were asked if we wanted to try Luwak coffee. It wasn't particularly cheap by Bali standards (IDR 50,000), but only amounted to around €3.

While I can agree that it's not as bitter as the usual coffee, I don't feel it's special enough to warrant the attention it gets.

Preparation of the Luwak Coffee.

 

My cup of Kopi Luwak.

Others sampling the Kopi Luwak:

 

 

 

 The wedding couple.

Next came a stop for breakfast (or possibly a light brunch, as it was too late for breakfast in the official capacity).

The view from the place was spectacular, though owing to only having my phone's camera with me, these pictures cannot capture the light as effectively as I'd have liked.

 The dark patches on the volcano are not shadows, but rather burns from the last time the volcano erupted.

 

What is not captured properly is the fact that alone the entire ridge of the mountain is a treeline. Obviously this ground is fertile and the trees strong enough to resist the winds.

 

Here's my attempt at a full view construction.

Friends enjoying their meal.

 

Inside the restaurant is a statue of Garuda, the winged bird-like creature who is the mount for Lord Vishnu. At his feet are pieces of volcanic rock from the volcano that can be seen from the balcony.

Biking Back

Finally we were ready to bike down the mountain. Our guides dropped us off by a small house where a selection of bikes had been set out. We each chose a bike, as did the guides who would accompany us.

At the outset of our journey.

The places we drove through changed from being more rural with open farmland to being small pockets of communities and back into open land again.

 

It's common place to see people riding motorcycles without helmets on, even if those driving them are not even in their teens. 

 

 

 

After a while we came to a halt on a hilltop whose view commanded the surrounding rice paddies.

 

 

After leaving the fields the landscape took on a determined air to grow more and more residential, villages and towns became the norm, until we stopped in a town where our guides gave us lunch.

Part of my lunch, all traditional and delicious.

www.celebritybiketour.com