Ubud Bali Indonesia WOW!

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Well after having spent a few days here I am starting to get the reason why people love it here. The people are very nice and will always welcome you with a smile and a Hello. I really am happy with my move to the second hotel Ubud Terrace as it puts me much nearer everything. It so clean and quiet. The garden is beautiful and well maintained. I go into my room in the afternoon and they have place flowers everywhere, the steps, the sink, the nightstand, the light fixtures unbelievable. They wear flowers in their hair Men and women, they embrace the natural beauty surrounding them which is so wonderful and refreshing. The last few days I have been doing some exploring with a driver and alone. I told you last time I was taking a cruise with young man from hotel on Motorbike. He took me to look at rice paddies and a old temple sight in mountains with a place called Elephant cave. I was not so impressed with cave but the area was beautiful if you didn't look to close at the litter. It really is so sad to see so much garbage everywhere. They will learn and I am sure things will get better but for now just skim over it. There are rice paddies everywhere it is amazing. I will have a few more pictures of them in this blog but probably won't be taking anymore, I mean how many rice paddies to you need to see to get the idea.
I went to a village up in the mountains and had a wonderful lunch with Wayans family. They are a country people so it was very simple but delicious they were very gracious to me. The language barrier was bit of the problem and lots of smiles and nods were exchanged but we had a nice lunch. Wayans family have a small chicken farm where they raise them and then they are shipped to somewhere else so the dirty work is left to someone else. Of course they had a few dogs running around amongst the chickens so was interesting. After lunch the driver Yoman took me to a high mountain lake that was really beautiful. The mountains being old Volcanos really reminded me of Hawaii in many ways. The lake was being visited by tourist and locals as it was sunday so quite busy. My camera ran out of Batteries so don't have pictures of that. They grow lots of vegetables and strawberries in the area so lots of produce at the market. I love going to the market and checking out all the plants as well. All the plants are much the same as Hawaiis as well with lots of Orchids of every kind really beautiful. It is so hot here and humid that after 5 or 6 hours I was exhausted and anxious to get back to hotel and pool. I feel so lucky to have found such a great hotel they have been so kind and the garden is beautiful. Every morning they bring my breakfast (mostly pancakes with banana and coconut, fruit plate and Bali coffee) to my veranda. I feel so spoiled. Then I take a swim and get ready for the day. Sounds rough huh! LOL Anyway I am having a really nice time and have been just enjoying my time even if it is a little lonely being the only American around. The Euros mostly travel in couples and the Aussies are mostly centered at the beach. The other night I went into a restaurant and someone yelled out aren't you the American? She was a French woman I had met briefly when I first got to Bali in Kuta. Believe me when I say it other than the film crew (which are mostly Aussies) I may be the only American outside of the ones living here which I have yet to meet. Yesterday I spent the morning watching the film crew for the movie Eat, Pray, Love starring Julia Roberts. The book which I read a few years ago is partly based in Ubud so they have been here doing the filming not sure who is her love interest but if it is the guy I saw yesterday I don't really know him but very cute. Anyway that took up the morning oh yes she is stunning! When I see the movie I will have seen this scene many times as they keep shooting over and over again. Her kids were there with the Nanny they were as white as rice little redheads. They have lots of fancy cars for them to take back to the Four Seasons which is where she is staying of course. Last night I went and saw a local show which they have everywhere. I have only been to one but plan on seeing a few more in the next few weeks. The place they did it was so beautiful with carvings everywhere. Sometimes it is like being in some fairytale with all the beautiful ornate buildings. They are a spiritual people so everything seems to center on the Hindu Goda with sacrafice and offerings. The dancing is simialr to Thai dancing but they are more dramatic especially with their eyes. They open them very wide as I guess they are showing the whites of there eyes for effect. Anyway I met several of the performers before the show and they put me front and center so had a great view. They had a little sign with name on it attached to the chair with a Thank You Kim very sweet. Today I haven't done much yet as it is only 10;30 am. I did my morning swim and now this. Now for the great part, this afternoon I am booked into a Spa with incredible room and view for 4 hours of pampering. I won't go into details as I will save this for next blog. Hope all is well in your part of the world! Cheers!

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Photos

Woman working Rice Paddies
I tried to capture but they are so deep in the field but there are many people working them

Rice Paddies
Gorgeous

Elephant Cave A sacred Place
Not a great picture but gives you an idea of what is being worshiped in the cave. I was told that the reason the dress the statues in gardens and temples is because if you place them they become like a person so need clothes. I am sure more to it but driver limited

Old Temple Grounds
These were old bathing areas. The Temple grounds are mostly just rocks but with small areas to explore

Waterfall near Temple
Just pretty

Another Rice Paddy
I love how they tiered these

My Motorbike drive Marde
He was a lot of fun and good diver even if it is a bit scary on the back of these bikes with all the traffic.

Wayans Family
A very rural area high in the mountains surrounded bu, yes rice paddies

The Dance
Amazing! You should see the building just incredible

Male Dancer
Awesome and the music is so loud and powerful

Amazing dance
She was so limber and precise quite something to see.

Dancing
Enjoyed this so much

She was a Fantastic Dancer
This one was in all the dancing and was really amazing to watch. This was a very acrobatic dance. Lovely to watch her.

Interesting Costume of Old King
It was something watching them with all the theatrics cannot wait to go to another one

Comments

[Lesia]

gosh, sounds lovely. the dance show is quite similar in appearance to the one we saw. your accomodations sound lovely. so are the pancakes like rotai (sp) those things made on the griddle? enjoy. no sure that you are getting these messages or not. maybe I am not doing something correctly

[Laura]

let's become Balinese Dancers
love the photos! Thanks for writing such great descriptions!

[philmore]

Oh1 the Travails of the good life...sounds so great! glad you're having a great time. Tell Julia I said hey.

[Norma]

New sights
Thank you again, Kim, for the visual. Just thinking about the flowers, especially the orchids, being placed around the room is a comforting thought. The motorbike ride to see the rice paddies would be positively delicious. I can imagine the lovely warm air blowing through your hair. Of course the shows with the silks, the colors, the building sculpture and the dancing would be such a thrill. Great thoughts. Norma

[Lisa]

gods are everywhere
It is amazing how everything does have to do with gods... The good luck, the bad.. the faults it is not even their fault, it is because the gods decided it...That is why they have no worries. How cool that you were there for the filming. I wonder if this will make ubud more popular ( I personally will be bummed). I hope you are starting to see the clarity amidst the insence smoke. I am glad you made your hotel switch and am meeting some people. Wayan was more than thrilled to see his family. They were smiling nonetheless. Most of the time they don't for pics. He stared at the picture for about 30 minutes. We are thinking about you and I am glad you are having a full Bali experience. Can't wait to reminice (ok don't know how to spell it) , and it will have to be over a drink. Sampa Jumpa! Lisa