Hangin' in Ubud

I'm back in action! Although you definitely haven't heard the last from Rashmi either. I'm pretty much recovered from my bout of food poisoning. We arrived in Ubud 2 days ago by shuttle bus. On the ride we happened to be riding with 2 other Californians who both left their jobs at Google and decided to go on a year long trip around the world. Pretty crazy coincidence!

Ubud is supposed to be the cultural heart of Bali, much like Yogya/Jogja is the heart of Java. There is also a strong organic food movement in the town as well. It was supposedly started by a restaurant called Bali Buddha which we went to check out our first night in town. The food was great, although more than we were used to paying. The best part though were the born again hippies sitting around in robes and talking about love energy.

Next morning we moved to a more comfortable hostel after much searching. This consisted of me lying with our packs by the side of the road in the shade while Rashmi ran back and forth looking for a place with the right comforts and price. My excuse was the food poisoning. We eventually settled on one that was well priced and the owner was very nice. We've struck up quite a relationship with him!

That afternoon we went to a local warung known for their roasted suckling pig. It was really crowded in there with both locals and tourists. We had to squeeze in by the wall of people and luckily were able to snag some seats. The pig was prominently on display at the front being carved up for the diners within. It was quite delicious, similar to the Chinese roasted pig I've had before except a little spicier. It even came with crunchy skin that I know my mom loves! I spent the rest of the afternoon recovering from the tail end of my food poisoning.

Rashmi and I decided to make that night a date night. We went to a popular traveler's restaurant called Nomad's and had the best meal we've had since coming to Indonesia. Perhaps it was because we just felt very comfortable in the surroundings. The ambiance and service was very much like a fun upscale restaurant in America. The food was great too and we even got to have black rice pudding for dessert. It was a great change from the places we had been eating at before.


Following dinner we went to see a "Ramayana Kecak Fire and Trance Dance." Kecak is a form of Balinese dance that involves many men chanting and moving with a certain rhythm. In this case these men also acted as a monkey army in the Hindu epic of the Ramayana. During all the chanting around a pillar of fire, characters from the epic would come out in costume and act out a particular episode of the Ramayana. In our case it was "The Death of Kumbakarno." After they finished the story, they created a large bonfire of coconut husks in the middle and a man in a "trance" danced about the fire in what looked like a rooster costume. Suddenly, he ran directly through the burning coals of the fire, kicking and scattering coals. One rather large husk stopped just 2 feet from my seat. Attendants then quickly swept these coals back away from the shrieking audience members and back into the middle where the trance dancer would proceed to kick and spray the coals in a different direction so that no observer could feel safe. No one was actually burnt surprisingly, including the trance dancer, who eventually was dramatically restrained and cleansed. I have some video and pictures. The video is far too large for me to upload but check out these pics, especially the trancers feet!




The next day we set of for the local Campuhana Ridge walk. It was great to feel fully healthy again and to be out walking about in a more natural setting. We spotted some rather large lizards scuttling about near the river bed and when we got up on the ridge we had magnificent views of rice paddies and tropical rain forest. The trail also led through some small hamlets of artists that had some impressive artwork although it started looking the same after awhile.



On the way back we stopped by the Neka Art Museum which has a collection of Balinese artwork. It was cool to learn a little bit more about the artisitc development on Bali, although it seems that most painted art was done in the 20th century when it was introduced by Western influences. We were pretty drained after all the walking, and shuffling about the museum tired us out even more. As we walked home, impending afternoon rain clouds loomed so we had to alternate between brisk walking and jogging. We got back to our hotel just as it really started dumping rain.

Tomorrow we head out to Gunung Batur, a mountain area with a crater and lake within. From there it's up to Lovina for some much needed time at the beach.

This is a picture of me at a local Ubud temple.