Blogs from Ubud, Bali, Indonesia, Asia - page 58

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Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud November 17th 2006

I arrived from Darwin into Densapar Airport at Midnight!!! Totally in the dark so to speak!!, I had no Lonely Planet and no where to stay!!! My first taxi offer was 120,000 rupees for accommodation and 40,000 for my fare!!! All numbers that meant very little and I kind of started to regret my decision to do this free fall without a guide book!!! I found a fellow German tourist and got a gauge from his book just where all the hostals were situated.. Then paid for an official taxi 45,000 and headed for cutely named Poppies Lane II in Kuta by the sea… I got out my taxi and headed in a random direction, my first try was 250,000 and then a side street eventually provided me with my best offer of 55,000 (about 3quid!!)… ... read more
Kuta Beach!!!!
Little Village..
3 Temples...

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud August 12th 2006

We spent the last 2 days exploring the immediate vicinity of where we were staying. We walked all around savoring the sights and sounds that have now become so familiar to us. The sounds of Balinese music in temples and the traffic down main street (Jalan Hanoman, Jalan Monkey Forest and Jalan Jambavan). We spent a nice evening in the monkey forest where the inhabitants run loose and hold court every day..they are visited by the local human beings who are eager spectators of the endless frolicking and antics that the monkeys put on display. The monkeys seem to love coconuts and the stronger ones spend a lot of time tearing the coconut to get to the meat. Several tried to get close to us and one actually sat on Kyles head.... read more
Ubud City Sights
Ubud City Sights 2
Ubud City Sights 2

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud August 11th 2006

We are back in Ubud, which feels like home for us. The streets are busy with life and there always seems to be some kind of enchanting traditional Balinese dance or music being performed, which we can even hear from our room at night. We have enjoyed Bali so much that we extended our stay two more days! ... read more
Rice Fields at Ubud 2
Warung Nasi Gorong our everyday dining place at Ubud
Morning Prayer at Local Temple

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud August 6th 2006

We arrived at Ubud yesterday to experience Balinese culture. We are staying in the Nirvana Pension with a Balinese Hindu Family. The house is filled with Balinese Batik paintings and furniture with idols of Ganesha, Shiva and others. We have already discovered an Indonesian restaurant that makes good Indian food and had our first dinner of Alu Gobi and Paratha and have been able to move past Nusu Gorong...we enjoyed a 4 hour trekl thru rice paddy fields amidst lush coconut groves and had a lunch in a wayside place of Nuso gorong jack fruit and Coconut nectar. We then experienced Balinese Ramayana and a fire dance performance this evening..tommorrow we leave for Amed a village by the seaside. ... read more
Balinese Door
Balinese Hindu Temple 1
Balines Kites

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud July 29th 2006

Hey Yall, I'm back in Ubud, Bali now, which is where I spent my first night on the archipelago. The last 10 days or so have been crazy. After I wrote last Lynda and I headed up to a town called Bajawa in Flores to check out some traditional villages. We got a pretty sweet deal in a private car there so we spent a couple extra dollars to cut the trip from 14 hours to 7 hours, and to minimize the number of live chickens and puking children on our laps. It turned out to take two days though because around 4 pm the driver and his friend started acting really tired and said they would have to spend the night in Ruteng. Now, I'm all for safety, and these roads make the Seward highway ... read more
Lynda and Chaz
My obsession with micros
Hammock on the Ferry

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud July 25th 2006

Ok so I'm just putting this up so you guys will realize I put pictures on. The last blog was a half-assed effort at Bali and Gili Trawangan off the coast of Lombok. The pictures on this one are from Kuta Lombok and Sumbawa. This is taking hours so I'm having a (some) beer (beers). Hope you enjoy.... read more
This is how Marlboro makes their millions.
Future smokers?
Wedding Procession

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud July 13th 2006

If there is one thing I love about travel, it’s shopping. And if there is one thing you know about me, you know I am being facetious. Shopping is the last thing on my list. But as a visitor in Bali, I quickly learned that my raison d’etre was to spread my money around as quickly and broadly as possible. It began at the airport and $25 USD for a visa. I handed the guy $40 and got back a handful of Rupiah, the local currency. As I got my bag, a money changer was waving at me from behind her plexiglass window. Outside, I was offered any number of rides with unofficial taxis, at 20 percent off. Everything, Amy and I discovered, is for sale. And negotiable. Arriving in Ubud, away from the hardcore ... read more

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud July 3rd 2006

Hey People, So I'm finally here after a few days in a plane. I arrived in Ubud on Saturday the first, just two days after a bunch of you poor bastards took your boards. Ubud is the art capital of Bali, and with that probably all of Indonesia. Much of it is pretty amazing, especially the wood carving, Batik, and painting. Beyond that the sheer quantity is amazing. At first I thought no island the size of Bali could possible produce the volume of art supplied by this place, and then it all became clear. They are all artists. By saying this I want you to understand that I mean every man, woman, child, and even animal is an artist of one sort or another. Moto drivers, waiters, street cleaners, mechanics, and policemen all swing the ... read more
Lynda and I on a rented Hog
Me Lady in the Rock Field
This is what I do now

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud June 29th 2006

After a hair raising hour's journey on my suicike (suicide bike), stopping around 5 times to get directions, I've finally made it to Bali's second most important temple: Pura Taman Ayun. Surrounded by moats and covered with lotus blossums this 'Garden Temple On The Water' is truely amazing. Eeek! Suddenly, out of nowhere came 30 Indonesia kids, surrounding me, watching me write my diary and laughing! I was a bit lost as to what to do. I tried conversation but with no luck, I tried showing them a map of Bali and indicating for them to show me where home was, but again their response was laughter. There was only one more trick I had up my sleave: I'm from Man-ches-ter. Manchester United? David Beckham? Success! The kids joined in with a chorus of Rooooooney! and ... read more
Taman Ayun
Ida and the singing kids
Pura Taman Ayun

Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Ubud June 27th 2006

I'm still fretting and faffing. When will I relax? I'm driving myself crazy with worry that I'm out of my depth over here, not planning my travelling well enough or watching my budget closely enough.... Anyway, I jumped on the shuttle bus upto Ubud to escape the mad-touristyness of Kuta and am settled in a nice-ish hostel (losman), "Brata 2". Quite why I've been given a double bed and a single I don't know, but for 3pounds per night I shouldn't complain. That's another thing - the money here is driving me up the wall! I can't get my head around the currency at all and every time I go to pay for something I spill out a wad of notes from my wallet - the combined total of which is never enough (and we're talking ... read more




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