Ubud Market & Rice Fields

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Geo: -8.51927, 115.263

Today I went to the Ubud market to buy a new blouse and belt/scarf for Temple. I actually did it too, and of course I got a few more things.

After the market, I went to a restaurant called the Dirty Duck. I'd been there before for dinner at night, and remember thinking that I had to go again during the day to see the fantastic fountains in the light. I've put some pics of them here, as well as some pictures of the rice fields that lay just behind the restaurant.

I got the new Temple clothes because I am going to an important cremation ceremony in Ginyar tomorrow. A high-priest died about 2 months ago, and the town has been preparing his cremation/burial ever since. It's a big deal; people from all over the island are making a pilgrimage there to see him off. I asked my new friend Faith if she wanted to join me, and she is!

After the cremation we're going to head up to Pura Besakih, (http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-2762244-pura_besakih_bali-i?action=describe) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_Temple_of_Besakih) the biggest and most important of the temples on the island. I've heard no trip to Bali is complete without it, and since we'll already be in our best Temple clothes - why not?

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Photos

Brand new repair on the right wall
You can even see the finger marks from the new mud being moved.

Dirty Duck - fruit
These were growing in the garden at the Dirty Duck. No idea what they are, they were growing on a vine. Just thought they looked interesting.

Micromanagement
Now this older guy was giving such specific instructions to this younger guy on how to hoe this rice field, it was all I could do to not go over there and ask him to give the kid a break.

Nice lady who sold me some fruit
The fruit in the left basket is called 'snake fruit' and it isn't hard to know where it got its name. When you peel it, the inside pieces look like a bunch of peeled cloves, but it tastes sort of like pineapple. The fruit in the right basket, which I don't remember the name of, has little white sections inside like orange segments, but they were soft and fleshy and just tasted sweet not really like anything I can relate to. They were both yummy!

Reflection of palm tree in rice patties
You do NOT want to know what I had to climb up to get this shot. I can't even say because I don't want to freak out my Mom, I promised I wouldn't break my neck on this trip.

Rice field workers
The lady far to the left is shaking the whole kernels in a flat bowl, releasing the husks/shells into the wind. The ladies to her right are collected the husked rice, and pouring it into the bags. The lady on the far right takes the filled bags, on her head, to the big stack of bags. I watched them work while I ate my lunch, and felt a little guilty as I sipped my ice-water in the heat.

Rice patties
Here's an example of how the farmers are selling their rice fields to rich foreigners to build villas. As a result, the money that used to recirculate in Bali goes out of the country. And the farmers are stuck with catering to tourists when the initial payoff is spent, because they have no industry to fall back on. That's why the 2002 bombing in Kuta was so devastating for the local people, because they realized for the first time that when the tourists aren't coming, they have no means to survive, they aren't self-sustainable anymore.

Sunset over Ubud 3
Just for you Marc, one third land, two thirds sky. =)

Comments

[joannesp]

From Mom Also can't wait to hear all about the high ceremony. I am so happy you are getting to see it. It sounds awesome. It was so cool to talk to you today, makes you feel a bit closer than half way around the world. Love You Lot
s!!!

[sehoaglund]

Love reading about your travels I am still catching up but I am enjoying hearing about your adventure! Beats AOL!

[rrsquared]

I'm addicted ... I can't wait to read about the ceremony you attended! And see more pictures! :) You've done such a wonderful job documenting and sharing your trip. Again, thanks for that. Not only do we get to know you are safe, but we
get to see many things we may never experience otherwise. Can't wait til you're home, tho! :):):) luvs from ur sista' from another mista'!

[rrsquared]

Is that a statue of frogs? I MUST have one!!

[rrsquared]

Cute pic!

[rrsquared]

It's everywhere!

[rrsquared]

Thank you for answering my questions ... before I asked. :)

[rrsquared]

What a sweet sister. A great pic as well. :)

[rrsquared]

Trippy...

[rrsquared]

Whatever you climbed was worth it (sorry mom). What a beautiful shot!!

[suzettesp]

It is! All sitting on eachothers heads!

[suzettesp]

Yeah, now if he'd only made a comment on this blog like you do so nicely for me! I need some more feedback, it's not fun being the only one talking! Good thing you are taking such good care of me Becky! (Ya think the guild was a little s
trong there? Maybe it'll work on him....)

[suzettesp]

=)

[suzettesp]

Yep, nothing is what you expect when you really immerse yourself in a foreign culture. It's like Bill Bryson said in his book about the experience of traveling - Neither Here Nor There, "Suddenly you are five years old again. You can't re
ad anything, you only have the most rudimentary sense of how things work, you can't even reliably cross a street without endangering your life. Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses." <br><br>I ate this fruit and I didn't die, I ate the other one and was fine too and then I shared it with some other foreigners I met the next day. We traded the little bits of info we had about Bali with each other like kids showing each other their new toy. I really do love the everyday wonder of traveling like this. It's exhausting not having even the slightest semblance of a daily routine, but it has this wonderful payoff of making me feel completely alive at every moment of my day.

[suzettesp]

I'm preemptively telepathic. =)

[suzettesp]

Damn young people never do anything right! LOL!

[suzettesp]

Re: From Mom Hey thanks for reciprocating the love, I'm glad you guys appreciate the stories and pictures I'm posting. This is the only time I've ever kept a regular journal, and I'm glad I'm not the only one enjoying it! The cremation
ceremony was fantastic! Really something to see, I'll definitely make an entry for it. Love, Suz

[suzettesp]

Re: Love reading about your travels Hey thanks Steph! Glad you can enjoy a little bit of this sunshine. There is more than enough to go around =)