First Day in Ubud

I have long been told by previous travelers to Bali what the best mode of transportation will be. It's certainly not public transportation. "Taxis" are around but they usually seem to be just people on the street with some free time trying to make a buck. Though Bali is relatively safe for single women travelling, they tend to drive crazily to get you there faster so they can get their next customer sooner. Not to mention the idea of just getting on a random guy's scooter who says "taxi" at me doesn't really sound appealing. So... today I joined the masses.

That's right. 

I went to a place in town to rent a bike where they train you how to use them. It was not hard to pick up, there are very few controls for an automatic. The main part was getting down the balancing, turns, and getting used to driving on the left side of the road. Everything you are used to is reversed. This is trickiest when making right turns. Whenever you come to an intersection, you look right-left-right, then turn right... into the left hand lane. I admit I was a little timid at first, but after a few days I am used to merging in with the flow. Slow is the key, all movements I make need to be deliberate and readable. The Balinese become one organism on the road, lanes expanding and contracting like breath at need. It's quite lovely to experience. 

My first order of business, explore Ubud (pronounced Oo-bood) and the surrounding region. This was so easy on a motorbike. Long walking distances become easy jaunts. And 12,000Rp ($1.30) worth of petrol fills your tank and lasts you 150 miles. Not bad! So the first thing I decided to do was go to the mandatory Monkey Forest, at the end of Monkey Forest Road. Since I had been driven to my home, I had no idea where on the map of Ubud I was. I asked some locals for some location advise with a map. I later realized that his place is much like Thailand in that people don't use maps here unless you're foreign. They told me where I was, and looked convinced enough. Well, I was facing a different direction on another street. Fortunately I was on a motorbike because the detour I took trying to get to my destination turned out to be far. I would have lost a whole day with this blunder on foot, but it turned out to only take me on an hour or so detour of very enjoyable scenery and neighborhoods. I'm able to see so much more than I would have without this scooter. I'm so thankful. And yes, Mom, I'm being careful.

Statues and artwork adorn so many of the buildings here.

Bali is primarily Hindu. In the Hindu epic, the Mahabarata, Krishna explains what God expects of an offering: "Whosoever offers to me with devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water, that offering of love, of the pure heart I accept." These are some of these offerings. The women present them regularly throughout the day with devotion in ceremonial dress. They are everywhere: by entryways of homes, on cars, all over the ground. I'm constantly watching where I step so as not to offend. 

Balinese attire for women. Lace tops, Batik Sarongs, Silk Belts. 

I found a temple in the villages that I had to stop and look at. This is the entryway. Interestingly, the architecture of important places I've seen have been level with the ground. Yet the main entryway door has an ascending staircase leading up to it, and descending back to ground level on the other side. I like this metaphor quite a bit.

The temple interior. Offerings are of course all over here as well.

 After much joy-riding I finally made my way to the Monkey Forest. I was expecting to be assaulted by the monkeys for food. Surprisingly, they left me alone if I didn't act intentionally toward them. More aggressive however were the hawkers just outside the gate. I politely declined and kept walking when one woman starts chasing me yelling "Miss, Miss!!" I first just wanted to ignore thinking it more persuasion, but I turned around and she said, "You put rock" I'm like... what? She says "You see other motorbikes here?" I say ya, she says "Look at rock" So I look at the one other motorbike. Sure enough, there is a rock on the seat. She informs me this is so the monkey won't bite your seat. Strange, but OK. So I put a rock on my seat.

 Here's my ride! And the anti-biting-device.

The approach. 

Usually this only happens if you stand still looking at one too long. 

They think you have food. If you start walking generally they give up.

Monkeys doing what monkeys do.

Lots of this going on.

Monkey Baby!

This is what happens in the Monkey Forest if you feed them,

watch the guy in the back. But sometimes multiples on or around you will break out into fights over your food, during which you are considered a target as well! I didn't feed them.

Random side note: I discovered my favorite chips here... for 65,900Rp!!!!!!!!

Jeez man that's $7.50 for a 5 ouncer! I can wait 2 months.

Bali

 

 Morning sunrise over Phuket, Thailand.

On my 6:20am flight I was able to see the sunrise from the air. It was beautiful. I was feeling a mix of sadness and excitement.  I wasn’t ready to leave Thailand, but then again I’d probably feel that way after 3 months in Thailand too. Bali should be fun.

My first glimpse. Notice those ominous clouds!

Upon arriving at Bali, I realized I had 0 plan besides go to Ubud. And then I realized I had done no research on my options of even how to get there.  I just assumed there’d be a bus like in Thailand. Realizing my error, I started talking to people in line around me at customs. I met a nice gentleman from New Zealand who was moving to Bali, and he gave me great advise. The Taxi mafia has more or less complete control of the airport in Denpasar. If you can find 8 people going to the same route as you are you may be able to charter a shuttle van, but otherwise it’s the Taxis. There is no negotiating in this monopoly, and fees are exorbitant for Bali. My acquaintance suggested that I hire a taxi into Kuta, the biggest tourist hole in Bali, and hire a metered taxi further for the hour trip to Ubud. I paid 55,000Rp ($6) to be driven 10 minutes to Kuta.

 Snapshot of the free-for-all that is Balinese driving.

I've seen a family of 5 on one of those motorbikes!

The first thing I noticed in Bali was the heat. It's sweltering and humid. Nothing seems to quite dry all the way here, either. Arriving in Kuta, it seemed an overrun tourist Mecca. I spied a coffee shop that advertised free internet café so I went inside to do some research. Seeing a foreigner like me at the station by my side, I decided to ask him if he knew of a good way to get to Ubud. Turns out, this was the best question I could have asked to the right person. His name is Steven, and not only does he have a home-stay available in Ubud where he lives with his Indonesian wife, but he walked me to the bus station, helped me get the best deal, and set me up with an inexpensive driver to transport me to the place from the bus stop, just outside of central Ubud!  I took the deal seeing the pictures of the place online and it is lovely. 

 Steven

 The waiting area of the bus stop. 

Bali is a mixture of humble surroundings and gorgeousness, 

each comes upon you without warning.

The streets of Kuta.

The bus ride was an hour long and super entertaining. The driver certainly showed up any Thai drivers I've seen. The streets are small, and this bus was big. He owned the road. It seems that might makes right on the streets of Bali. At one point he needed to make a U-turn and there were no openings. So what did he do? Start driving. He stopped 4 lanes of traffic (2 each way) on this highway to make his u-turn. Everyone else just had to stop when he chose to go. I was laughing pretty hard, but that's because I was in the bus.

By the way, it's monsoon season here. It's still hot all the time, and mostly overcast or sunny, but there are flash storms that don't just rain, or pour, they dump. I witnessed my bus ride going from dry to flooded streets in the space of 30 minutes. I think we were going through a particularly poorly designed street for runoff, but still. Our bus leaked, and we all got a little wet. Then after 45 minutes had gone by, that's it, it was over. From what I hear, this is a usual occurrence in the evenings here during monsoon.

Cars kept trying to go through the deep waters before breaking down.

Finally we were going to make it through a clearing, then an impatient driver behind the stopped bus who couldn't see around floored it around us right into the flood and broke down... sigh.

We got stuck behind these drivers for a while.

Despite some watery traffic, we arrived safely and my driver was there to shuttle me home as promised. So here I am, living in luxury for $11/night. I have a computer, internet, webcam, beautiful surroundings, a bug zapper, water cooler and heater, hot water shower, private bathroom, a huge window with a view to a backyard jungle, flatscreen TV with a drawer full of DVD's, fridge, a lady who will clean my room, and Balinese artwork on the walls. All my neighbors are locals.  It is the most amazing thing that I ever could have hoped to find, and it just flew into my lap. Namaste Bali!

Short Thai Performance Clips

From the traditional... to the extreme. I'm sure you can tell which is which.

Final Days in Thailand

 Raman, Rikke, Mads, and I. The rest of my all too short time in Thailand, 

I spent relaxing and enjoying the company of my 3 friends. They are such easy company. 

Some bazaar fruit.

Hand carved soaps at the night market. They smell so nice.

Every night we’d go to the night market, sight see, bargain, and eat great food. On my final day we went sunbathing at a pool and ate lots of exotic ice cream. My flight to Bali was broken up in 2 sections: Chiang Mai to Phuket, sleep in a hotel, then 6:20am Phuket to Bali. Before needing to get on my flight to Phuket, I had a few hours to kill. So what did I do? What any sane person with time to kill in Thailand would do: get a massage! This was my 3^rd massage in Thailand. I’ve had foot massage (which unadvertised is just mostly feet, and always includes arms legs shoulders and head), Thai massage (prepare to become a pretzel), and this one was back/shoulders/head/face. Oh man, this one was the best one yet. At first I was a bit worried because I was waiting 20 minutes with Mads who was receiving massage next to me before the therapist showed up.  Then 2 guys came in. I wasn’t expecting this. This is the first time I’ve ever seen male massage therapists in Thailand, and I was a little uncomfortable with the idea at first, but soon my fears were put to rest.  At first this guy was going soooo soft like he was afraid I’d break. But I was finally able to communicate “more pressure” to him and after that it was the best massage I’d had in Thailand. And talk about the best way to send me off from the country.

That night I flew into phuket and had a short 4 hour sleep at Dee’s Bungalows, th sister hous to Naiyang Cottage. They are very good quality for 800B /night in the beach area. Big cozy bed, AC, hot shower, kitchenette… if only I had more than 4 hours there.

This is why I'm excited about my toilet:

 The standard Thai toilet. Squat and aim, folks.

Oh and the hose is your toilet paper.

 All too soon the taxi driver was knocking on my door. Thank God for this, as my alarm had failed to go off and I would have missed my flight! So I gave my driver a good tip for that.

And now here I am, flying out of Thailand and eating chips that Lays should make in the States. It makes me sad. This country is so wonderful. I can’t wait to come back. I feel like I was just starting to get the hang of it all. 10 days is way too short, but it was so worth it. I am excited for my new adventures, and I can’t wait to come back.

PS. check out the Ko Phi Phi post again, I added pictures. And make sure to watch the link to the Muay Thai Boxing.

Trekking

 The next adventure I chose was the one day trek. For 700B it included trekking around and between 2 Karen villages (Hill Tribes), a visit to a waterfall with a hovering bamboo bar over the river, elephant riding, lunch, and bamboo rafting. I'd say for roughly $23 that's well worth it.

 The early stages of the Karens' rice paddies. They primarily harvest rice and soy after the King gave them an incentive project called the King Royal Project to get them out of the opium industry. This has saved their culture and given them education as well.

 The village of the White Karen.

 The women are very skilled at weaving. 

                                            Cute.                                 Our guide demonstrating the maiden's costume.

They are called "White" Karen because the girls wear white until they are married. After the first marriage they can never wear white again, though they can remarry multiple times with no stigma. Each girl must have a black pig to raise and then slaughter for the wedding feast to feed the village as dowry. 

Here's a young girl I bought a scarf from, notice she is married already. 

The more elaborate designs  like these can take up to 3 days to complete.

I bought one for 90B and felt guilty afterward realizing I was paying her $1 / day.

 The small footpaths we trekked between the villages have aqueducts alongside to feed the paddies.

The beautiful waterfall in between villages. Jesse, that rock in the middle of the left picture's waterfall reminds me of a place we ate lunch together while backpacking!

The hike and the waterfall were of course lovely. The jungle we trekked through was full of teak trees, orchids, butterflies, bamboo, and crazy looking bamboo bridges like this.

At the hovering bamboo bar, I got a Thai version of Cup o'Noodles that had even my lips burning. Lunch was the classic tourist fare that Thais think will be safe for us all: Rice, red broth with potatoes and maybe 2 slivers of chicken floating in it, and vegetables with sauce. Whenever you order meat in a dish here, prepare to look for it. It's gonna be skimpy. The first thing I'm doing when I get to NZ is eating a huge bloody steak.

After lunch we went elephant riding. Two of us shared the top seat on each one. I got the biggest male of the group and shared him with a guy traveling from Amsterdam. It was fun... but let me tell you something. Elephant riding is a workout. Every step this Goliath took had us swaying side to side AND back and forth, and there's no seat belts or handle bars on this baby.

The driver just sat right on his head with his legs dangling down in it's face like no biggy.

It looked much easier to balance there too because the elephant balances his head for his vision anyway.

Myself and the Amsterdam Fellow.

Who can resist feeding elephants?

OK, to be fair the baby got most of the bananas out of the whole herd.

Our next activity was bamboo rafting.

On the raft there was one guide in front and 4 passengers behind. Immediately as we boarded the raft and pushed off from land my spirit began to soar and I felt the most at home as I have since arriving in Thailand. Every summer I spend all my time with  my loved ones on the pristine rivers of Humboldt County and it felt just like it. The guide pushes the raft along like a gondola with a thin bamboo staff. His skill was incredible. The length of the raft and some of the obstacles we came against provided a huge challenge, and he sailed through rapids and tight turns and squeezes with aplomb.

At one point the guide handed me the pole... I was leading the whole raft! Thanks to Jon's kayak training I did alright reading the timing of the water and the rafts needs, but I eventually lost control when I couldn't find a hold for the pole in deep water. What a blast! Our raft group was so fun. We spent the majority of the time standing and balancing the rapids. I felt freer and happier than I have in a while. I felt home. I was even able to jump off and swim alongside the raft for a while. Everyone else was whining about the water temperature but I'm from Humboldt, YO!

This picture is super terrible quality because it's a photo of a photo, but you get the idea.

Sunday Market

So I thought that the normal night market was big. I need to pull new words out of my vocabulary to describe the Sunday Market. It was colossal! This market shuts down the streets, and takes over the entire center of the city, and people come in from all over to shop, sight see, and show their talents. It was one street away from my guest house, and extended across the whole center of the city from one side to the other. There were points in the evening where it was so crowded that you were flowing in rivers of people and couldn't even see the wares! Fortunately I'm taller than a lot of people here ;) and had good views of the whole event. I got there before the crowds and did most of my shopping then. After that it was pure experience. I saw dancers, exotic fruits, bizarre foods, many blind singer/performers, lady boys, every kind of ware under the sun you can imagine and many that you can't!

 One huge potato chip spiraled around a stick and coated in cheese.

I was in heaven.

Black jelly anyone?

This is a Buffalo. Who know!

Vendors and performers line the outside and insides of all the streets.

Don't just stop in the middle of the traffic flow,

it'll swoosh you right past what you want to look at!

I experienced an interesting phenomenon at this market as well. I have been traveling in this loud bustling crowd for a few hours now, and I'm used to its business. I was looking at some crafts and haggling with a vendor. Then all the sudden she stops talking. I keep talking and she's just looking at me. I get a bit confused then give up and turn around to leave. As I start walking away to the next vendor, something's wrong. The market is frozen. No one moves. Everyone is standing still, no one speaks. I freeze. What's going on?! Adrenaline going, I notice the music on the loudspeakers has changed. Apparently, every night at 6pm they play the national anthem (its less than one minute long) and every Thai stops what they are doing and listens quietly. OK so I felt like a jerk after talking and moving around through half of it before realizing what was up. Ha! Well, I'm a Farang (white traveller) so I bet they are used to that sort of thing and probably forgave me.

Here's some videos of some cool street performers:

 

I don't recognize this instrument, but it's so amazing.

I had to listen to this musician for a while. It's so entrancing.

At the end of the largest market strip there is the largest temple in the city: 

Wat Phra Singh. 

There was a special gathering there that evening which I heard was an early association with the Chinese New Year. People lit candles outside. Inside monks were chanting and tons of prayer cards hung for luck.

Each prayer card had 5 20B bills in the slots, and over the bills you could place a card for each person in your family you wanted to bring luck. I did one for my family (but I didn't want to take a picture of this part as it seemed disrespectful). Each card has the Chinese animal of your birth year on it, and you write the name of the person, their birth date, and age on it. Hanging the card brings good luck for the year to your family. So Family... you're in luck! :p

At the end of the evening I was walking back to my room for the night and I ran into some friends from Ko Phi Phi: Ram, Regga, and Matt! AMAZING! I had just prayed that day that I would find some wonderful people to spend the evening with. I had made some short connections earlier, but none lasting. Look what life brought instead :) I love serendipity. And I'm so thankful for this adventure.
Next time: Trekking to the Hill tribes, elephant riding, bamboo rafting. I'm going for the gold ladies and gentlemen!