If it’s Saturday It Must be Suadi Day!

We made our way down to the lobby full of eager anticipation. We exited the lift and looked around anxiously. Perhaps he hadn’t come? Then we spotted a corner of the lobby that seemed to radiate sunshine - and up leaped Suadi with a Megawatt smile on his face :o) The smile grew bigger and even more dazzling when we presented him with a picture of himself with our daughter and son-in-law on their honeymoon. And when we gave him a large canvas print of himself alongside his multi-coloured Kubelwagen - well, he was simply speechless.

Suadi seems like a member of the family. We met him last year when he took us out in his Kubelwagen and he was an instant hit. We trusted him so much that we recommended him to our daughter for her honeymoon. Once more he proved to be the perfect guide. So here we were again, safe in the knowledge that today would be memorable for all the right reasons :o)

What’s special about Suadi? Well, first and foremost he has an excellent command of English, combined with a good sense of humour. Secondly, he never ever tries to take advantage. He will not take you to restaurants, art galleries, wood carvers, batik merchants or any other place where he might get a commission. He simply finds out very quickly what really interests you …. then provides it in style. And as for the Kubelwagen: there is simply no better way to explore inner Bali. In an air-conditioned van you are isolated from your surroundings. In the Kubel you hear all the sounds in every village, smell all the fragrances from every temple and every home, and you are on open display to the people you pass, who often wave enthusiastically as you chug by :o)

So off to the car park …. and surprise number one. The multi-coloured Kubelwagen is now resprayed gleaming white! We clamber aboard, roof firmly stowed down, and clatter off towards Gianyar. Along the way we are, inevitably, stuck in the traffic jams of Denpassar. As we sit, motionless like trapped rabbits, queues of touts rush up to sell us ancient recycled newspapers. Suadi winks and says “Pretend to be Russian” while I respond to their “Where you from?” with “Cymru …. Llanfihangel fhyn Nhowyn….” It has the desired effect and they rush off, baffled, to find someone who speaks a recognisable language. Suadi grins more broadly than ever.

When we reach Gianyar Saudi shows us where the local market is and then goes off to grab a quick breakfast. We descend into the narrow aisles and brush through rows and rows of dried fish, chicken carcases, live chickens, mountains of eggs and stall after stall of veggies. We are in search of Mangosteen but find none. We go back to join Suadi and wedge ourselves into a tiny pavement cafe with a bunch of curious locals. We spend the next half-hour drinking and exchanging banter with them. Tremendous fun! We also learn that the locals call Mangosteen “Mangus” which is why no-one could help us find any!

Back into the Kubel, we head for the Sideman valley. This is a stunningly beautiful agricultural region where the terraced valleys are used for growing peanuts and veggies as well as rice. We stop repeatedly as yet another breath-taking vista opens up. Tottering uncertainly along the narrow paddy walls we walk deeper into the scene and ever more magnificent views open up before us.

Of course no trip in an open-topped vehicle would be complete without a torrential downpour. And so it was that we hastily pulled up the hood and then blundered along through a vertical waterfall, splashing through flooded roads and villages on the way to Tirtengangga.. It was terrific fun! We didn’t bother fitting side-screens as the rain was so heavy and so vertical it didn’t penetrate inside the car. As it eased up we stopped at a small Warung for Satay and Bintang. This little place was being run by two young schoolgirls, yet the food was spicy and delicious (although, sadly, the Bintang was warm, for they had no cooler)

Then, on to Tirtengangga …. Where we were refused entry! A wedding was in full swing, so we waited patiently ‘till the groom skipped by followed, at some distance, by a sweet bride. She apologised profusely for keeping us waiting but in truth it was a pleasure. (However we did wonder why the groom had abandoned her and gone on ahead to the reception!)

Tirtengangga is an odd sort of place. It consists of a few large pools filled with huge fishes and random statues. It’s overdone by several magnitudes but interesting enough. Best bit was the market outside, where we finally found our “mangus”.

From Tirtengangga we moved down to the east coast and the old Royal Water Palace of Ujung. This had mostly been destroyed by the eruption of Agung in 1963. A Hotel complex was built overlooking the ruins and ran successfully for several years. Then a joint effort between the Dutch, Chinese and Baliness saw the gardens restored in 2001. Sadly in 2003 the Bali bombings destroyed the Tourist Industry overnight and the Hotel was bankrupted. So, if you want a nice villa overlooking the most beautiful gardens …..contact the bank in Jakarta!

These gardens are everything Tirtengangga is not. Beautifully proportioned, sparingly but exquisitely planted and landscaped over several levels. All this and a small herd of the friendliest deer who are tame enough to hand-feed. Of course there is always a downside: The area gets very few tourists but does support an enthusiastic young guide. He naturally latched, limpet like, onto Jan. First he introduced his mother. Then his wife and two children and, finally, his father. Thus the torture began:

This intense young individual knows the entire history of every piece of stone re-laid, who funded it and when it was put in place. He carries photographs of the gardens pre-eruption and produces them so we can see (not really) how the new compares with the old. He knows the names of every one of the old King’s 24 children and can point to them all individually in the many photographs that adorn the walls. Over and over again. He insists on regurgitating this information endlessly at every corner of every reconstructed path and wall.

Finally I could stand no more, gave him a year’s salary to make him disappear and fled back to the Kubel. And back to Sanur at the end of a really enjoyable day. With the enticing prospect of one more excursion with Suadi before we head back to Wales.

Next episode? “Sunday is Sanur Day”

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