Monkeys Swim and Monkey Dance

This morning we took a stroll through Ubud, to catch up on some gift shopping and do some people watching. As usual there are preparations going on throughout the town at various temples. Ceremonies are almost a daily event here and sure enough the traffic suddenly stops as the tinkling sound of a Gamalan is heard. Crowds throng the pavements as the gamalan passes by, followed by golden canopies and a line of immaculately dressed ladies. At the rear come the drums and gongs and all the men from the temple. Finally a massive log-jam of scooters, impatiently waiting to buzz off down the choked streets.

As we walk down Hanoman we watch ladies reverently putting out offerings and then blessing them with holy water. Sometimes it is a food offering, sometimes flowers and occasionally it’s a fag and a breath mint!

We are heading for Ubud’s Monkey Forest, which is probably one of the best in Bali. We have been to many Bali monkey forests and nearly all are characterised by clusters of market stalls, litter and undernourished and aggressive monkeys. Ubud is very different.

The grounds are lush and beautifully landscaped. There are wardens everywhere looking after the interests of the monkeys. There is also plenty of evidence that these monkeys are well fed and well cared for. As a result they are still curious and mischievous, they are still quarrelsome, but they are not the belligerent little thieves you see elsewhere.

In the centre of the forest is a pool and it was here that we stood, rooted, watching a group of monkeys dive-bombing each other in the water. They were swimming about under water like little furry submarines to ambush each other. Then emerging, grinning and chattering, to swarm up the branches and dive again. It was enchanting to watch all this natural exuberance and we found it hard to drag ourselves away.

Ubud did yield a couple of disappointments. We saw a woman sending her children along the street to beg from tourists. That was the first time we have witnessed this in Bali and it was disappointing to see that they were successfully collecting quite a bounty. Then there was the food. We ate in the Lotus Pond, which was once a reliable venue. The location remains as impressive as ever, the service as polite as ever, but the food was poor and overpriced. A trip to Casa Luna was equally disappointing: poor food, high prices (and for Jan the highest price of food poisoning.)

Then, back to Junjungan for the highlight of our stay there. The village puts on a Kecak (Monkey Dance) every Monday. It’s performed in the village temple under flaming torchlight. Virtually every active male in the village takes part in a cast of around 100. The five girls who perform the main roles are delightful and the whole performance is one of the most authentic you will ever see. It is often performed in front of an audience of six or less, yet the whole thing is presented with a vitality that proves that the performance matters to the players far more than the proceeds from any audience.

When the performance is over the girls rush over excitedly to meet the few foreigners who have witnessed their beautiful dancing. They don’t seem at all disappointed to find how few we are and grasp our hands to say thank you.

Junjungan is 3km from Ubud. This performance is so much better than the tired pantomimes put on by the hotels and restaurants. Do try it!

Don’t miss the next Blog: “Sail away to Lembongan”

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