Thanks you two! rhk- you are going back this year, aren't you?

Mohan- never bargained for the massages, they are just really cheap in Ubud. The Refelexology place I went to ALOT is called Touch on Monkey forest Hotel, right next to Adi Cottages and across the road from Pertiwi Hotel. They are very good and have delic. ginger tea when you are done.

As far as the manufacturing goes we went with a company that is run by an ex-pat married to an Indonesian, hopefully they will be ok, I had herad that about other places and deadlines.


Uluwatu-

So it was about a 45 minute drive from Nusa Dua to Uluwatu. The road is windy and uphill but I really loved all the scenery in Bali so it was a nice drive. Uluwatu's official name is Pura Luhur Uluwatu. Considered to be one of the 6 most important temples in Bali it is on the South west part of the island on a cliff that overlooks the ocean. Supposed to protect the balinese from the the evil ocean spirit. Was not aware there is an evil ocean spirit but that's what the temple is for.

Made had been telling us about the uluwatu monkies, seems these monkies are suppose to be the most aggressive on the island, probably because they are constantly taunted by tourists. These are fat monkies and although I did see them steal a few baseball hats I think they are in choots with the locals who charge you a minimal fee to get the hat, sunglasses or whatever else they scoff back. It's a monkey scam :) Anyway, Made said he would protect us from the monkies for free and we stayed close to him at all times guarding our cameras from monkey hands.

When we first arrived we were outfitted with purple sarongs with yellow sashes. it is very beautiful, a walk along a wall that overlooks the ocean along a cliff top up to the temple which was closed off. There is a small amphitheater at top where at sunset they perform the Kecak dance. Now we had already seen one performance of this dance in Ubud at night. It was really dark and hard to photograph, fantastic in person. But here we were at sunset at Uluwatu and thought what a beautiful local to see it again. Tickets were 50,000 R each ( same as we paid in Ubud), the setting is unbelievable and recommended a go see.

The Kecak dance gets it's name from the chak- chak sound that the guys in only black and white checkered sarongs with red sashes recite. It's based on apart of the Hindu Ramayana legend which some guy explains here http://www.edwebproject.org/bali/gallery/kecak.html.

We got a front row seat and Made sat with all the other drivers across the amphitheater from us. He also used to perform in this dance in Ubud. It was about 8:30 by the time we got back to Ubud another long but great day.

Pictures from Uluwatu and below that Kecak Dance at night in Ubud

http://picasaweb.google.com/bandaidh...y=AEKd68f8xAU#

http://picasaweb.google.com/bandaidh...y=PsXewEsA_3Y#

Next: Biking in Bali

we are going back with gpanda in may '10...

did the fire scare you when they kicked it at the end?? i suggest people sit in the 2nd or 3rd row... its a fantastic spot....and yes those monekeys were the most nasty we saw...even worse than the ones in florence...

Are you serious, Bob? That's when we'll be there! Uh oh, I feel trouble coming. :)

Italy...Bali...You are so Eat Pray Love. Waiting for your India report.

And this is making me want to return to Bali despite similar monkey experiences and a bizarre cremation adventure. Spent a month there in the '80's - My Australian friends thought it was "spoiled" even then. But sounds like it's still magical.

Hey Crosscheck, have not read the book(tried to, couldn't she bugged me) but hear that alot, quite different circumstances, and no plans for India anytime in the near future, unfortunately.


Yeah, I never get it's the whole spoiled rhetoric. Progress eventually hits everywhere or most places in some way, helps the economy in most cases places can't be kept held back because certain travelers, think a place gets spoiled by tourism. I don't know ,just don't get that way of thinking. So yes, despite what your Australian friends think , I think it is magical and wonderful.

Biking in Bali:

We arrived on a Wednesday. That first Monday, with a really bad sunburn from only 2 hours at the pool w/ sun protection 30 we went on a biking tour. Note, I never burn, have olive skin, grew up in S. Florida, that SEA sun is STRONG! Be careful :) Anyway set up to be picked up from our hotel around 8:30 -9 am by the bike company. 350,000R ( 30 bucks) by
www.baliecocycling.com. This was a full day returning around 4 pm.

We were last picked up there was a full van of about 10, we sat in front. I think about 1 hr. 1 hr 15 min to Lakeview restaurant in the area of Mt. Batur w/ a view of the volcano for a breakfast buffet to fuel up.Met some guy Frank,I think, who sat with us at breakfast and I think he was from Oklahoma taking a little vaca by himself. Was a nice guy. We originally planned on doing an early morning hike one day
up the volcano for sunrise and breakfast but almost every overnight and early morning it rained, poured ,so decided next time.

After breakfast we drove to a , I guess it was a coffee plantation. They grew a lot of fruit there as well and the kid who was to be our bike guide gave us a tour of there first. Telling us about the different things that grow in Bali for consumption. We also saw the little animals who's crap produces some of the most expensive coffee in the world LUWAK COFFEE! We sat in an open seating area where we could try one type of coffee or tea for free and pay for others, we ordered 4 different ones including the Luwak coffee. Quite good!After that time to taste the various fruits. I'm not big on super tropical fruits so I didn't much care for them but Robin liked them. Back in the van to pick up the bikes.

Ok so I am probably the least athletic person I know. That said I geared up and got on my bike for a 2 hr. mostly downhill ride, at first. The scenery was beautiful, the poor dogs that occasionaly darted out at me freaked me out and it was HOT! NO amount of SPF was going to save me from sunburn on top of sunburn which led to little blisters. I had to douse myself in aloe for the next week and looked like rudolph by the end of the day. Along the ride we occasionally stopped. Once at a typical Balinese family home, by a temple or 2, under a banyan tree, at a woodcarver. At each stop we were given fruit and new bottles of water. After 2 hours and across a bridge to the last pitstop we were given a choice, keep riding to the restaurant which was a mostly uphill ride or get in the van. Mistakenly I chose the former and as opposed to being in front of the pack downhill, I was the last one going uphill. It was hard! And half way through I thought Eff this, got off my bike and waited in some village for the van who was following us to pick me up. Ah, a/c! Robin was a trooper! She rode the whole way.

At the restaurant in a beautiful setting we all sat down
for a buffet lunch. It was a nice spread, we each also had a bintang and then back to Ubud. I don't usually like beer and never really drink it but I liked Bintang,maybe the heat
made it taste so good. I liked tis company the guides were great, entertaining and really attentive.

http://picasaweb.google.com/bandaidh...y=p02-gTZm3qc#

Next white water rafting woohoo

I've been following your report and enjoying it. I just checked out your photos of the Kecek dance in Uluwatu area. I'm adding that to my list of things to do when I go. Thanks, keep it coming.

laartista,

Thanks for the great report. Am heading there in a couple of weeks and can't wait to try some of the stuff. Your driver sounds great. Could you send over his details and how much it cost? Or if anyone else has a driver they can recommend, I would greatly appreciate it!

Su

We used Putu ...one of the many. He can be reached at www.mybalifriend.com. Have used him on 2 different trips. Great sense of humor...he put up with rhk and the panda in the same car.

Thanks Robbie, Suy

to answer rhk-no wasn't scared from fire dance although the one at night I was getting covered in so much ash that I finally moved back a row. The daytime one the kicking was not as violent, more subdued so no ember made it our way.

suy - my driver that I used is

I Made Suka

Hp 081 647 41286

[email protected]

His website is www.ubudinfo.com and her website for balinese dance is
www.balifriend.net/sri

He is great! Not a guide, a driver, but is from Ubud and will tell you anything you want to know about the culture, food, sights etc. I will use him whenever I am there.


A little bit about Made- the best driver ever!
I was given the name of a driver by a friend of my cousin who also does business in Bali. Guy never got back to me. It was Wednesday, we just got there and the next day and Friday would need a driver to take us to our appointments.First day there after we dropped off the bags and before we changed our room when went searching for a massage. About half way to Monkey Forest from the hotel a small non descript place. The massage was great 2 hours for 90,000 R. Anyway when we left as we were walking back just as we had been walking to, approached every 2 feet by a guy offering taxi services. We found a smile and a no thanks did the trick. However there was something about this one guy, perhaps his smile that made us stop. We told him we were going to be there a while and would need lots of driving. After a bout of negotiating we settled on 350,000 R p/ day alittle over 30 bucks. We told him to be at our hotel the next morning at 8 am to take us to Denpasar.

Over my stay in Bali Made drove us and then just me a total of 12 times. NOt only to and back from our appointments but also on trips to sights around the island and to the airport when each of left. We adored Made! The one day he could not make it because of a ceramony he had to attend he sent his brother Wayan to drive me.

After the first day we just gave him 400,000 each time, they were long days and the wages there are so low an extra couple of bucks to us makes a huge difference to him. I also gave him a tip at the end before I left.

We kind of spoiled Made I think, took him to lunch every day he drove us, he always ordered rice except the day we went for Indian food which he did not like. I introduced him to Vanilla skinny lattes at Starbucks which he did like but didn't care for the scones. We took him sightseeing and on the boat with us and after Robin left even on the days he did not drive me, he stopped by the hotel to say hi and see if I needed anything.

We had some great conversations with him. His English is pretty good, not stellar but he had some funny one liners. I taught him a different Italian phrase everyday. His wife works for the government but is also a Balinese dancer and performs in the shows in Ubud. He has 2 children, 2 dogs ( which he cares for very well) and his inlaws live w/ him, his parents are deceased. I consider Made like family now, Can not say enough good about him. Always on time, always patient ALWAYS smiling! He kept us laughing, he kept us safe, and will always be my driver whenever I return.

white water rafting.

We found our rafting company through one of the guys at Touch Reflexology. His brother works for them. Telaga Waja rafting is the name of the company. If you go to the spa they will book you the trip for 50,000R, pick up at 9 am drop off around 3pm. There are about 7 different rafting companies that ride the Telaga Waja river, I think they are all pretty much the same.It is 1 1/2 hr from Ubud to the river.

When we first arrive at the river we are outfitted with helmets, rubberbands on our sunglasses, plastic bags for our belongings that are put into another waterproof bag and tea. A quick walk through the rice paddies down to the river the rafts can hold as many as 6 + the guide. In our raft, just me, Robin and the guide. Very quick instruction and the only thing I really remember from that is when he said boom boom lean back laying down so your head doesn't get ripped off by a tree limb. I heard Boom Boom OFTEN!

I had never been before so was a tad bit nervous, it was Robins 3rd time, once in S. America, once in NY. About 10 min. in our raft is stopped and we are ordered to get out walk in our shoes through the water, really regretted wearing my ecco cross trainers, and take a stairway along side the river. Seems there is a big drop, too dangerous for us. The guides basically throw the rafts over and others collect them at the bottom. Kind of crazy. Then, Half way down the river of about a 2 hr. ride we make a pit stop to see a waterfall and have a drink, We got bintangs and treated our guide to one. Mabe not the best idea giving our guide alchohol, lol. Beer is pretty steep on the river, no competition, I think 25,000R each. After our beer we continue to raft. I had nothing to compare it to but Robin said it was a pretty fast ride consistantly fast more so than the others she had been on.

At the end there is a drop, a little scary, but fun, it was a blast! 100 hundred steps up to a shower area. We were the only idiots who did not bring a change of clothes. We were soaked!!!! Another 50 or so stairs to a treetop cafe where we had a lunch buffet. The last 100 stairs up to the road where the car was parked were the hardest,they were tall stairs and not one of us was not winded. The hardest part of the whole day were those stairs. One would think I would be used to it living on the 4th floor of a 1500"s Fiorentine walk up, but no, I wasn't! That said, can't wait to do it again, the rafting that is.

Pix below: Next up Indonesian cooking class

http://picasaweb.google.com/bandaidh...y=G2myzdmH3z8#

laartista,

Thanks much for the contact details. Sounds like he is a gem!

Su

loving the report and thanks for the drivers name...i may use him if putu is busy on certain days...

Loving the report.....what happened to the Indonesian cooking class review? I need to know!

This is a great trip report. I am planning a trip to Singapore in June 2011 with my kids. From Singapore, we'd like to travel to Bali for a week. Is the end of June an OK time to go to Bali or is it the rainy season? Any tips you have on the best time of year to go to Bali, would be helpful. If Bali is bad in June, is there any place else in SE Asia you would recommend? We need to go when the kids are out of school. Thanks.

Great trip report, laartista!

We will be in Ubud during the last few days of April and the first few of May. We're staying at the Komaneka at Monkey Forest. I would love to have your restaurant recommendations for Ubud.

_______________________________________________
Vic's travels: http://my.flightmemory.com/vogilvie

Thanks Guys, totally forgot about this report,

Barefoot: I'll try to get the pix up from cooking class.

Since January 09 I have been back to Bali for 5 weeks in Nov/ Dec. 09 Stayed in Ubud the entire time except for a week on Gili T. I return back there around April 12 for another 6 weeks as now my business is based there in manufacturing.Soooo I'm alot more familiar with it there as I am going back more and more often. So happens a friend from college has been living in Ubud for 5 years after 2 years in Bangkok and 7 in Nepal, so she's been a wealth of info on things Bali to me.

Kristen: Have not been in June, will tell you November was ungodly hot, and my hotel in Ubud ( a small place ) has no generator. There are rolling blackouts, some towns worse than others. Parts of Ubud it's once every 10 days or so, other parts on the outskirts once a week usually MOnday or Tuesday evening from 7-10 pm. January was rainy but not as hot, so that's all I can really give you re: weather. I am no expert on Asia, just started traveling there within past 2 years.

Orlando- Your hotel has a good location, there are a ton of good places to eat, you can't really go wrong. If it's where I think it is on Monkey Forest, to your left out the hotel on MF Road is

Cinta ( really good, a bit more $$ in Bali world), also continuing to your left, across the street,

Cafe Wayan ( has cake & pie- yum and good desserts aside from the food, in case you get a craving)

Still walking that direction:

3 MOnkeys ( Yummy but again a bit more)

Art Cafe ( great for lunch) big portions, good prices, cool atmosphere plus way behind it is a great spa, can't remember the name but there is a healer masseur there, 30.00 for 2 hrs ( also more $$ than usual)

there's a new Cuban place just opened walking toward Haunaman (sp?) supposed to be good

Bali Budda- great for lunch

Laughing Budda Bar ( great tapas & pad thai) + free wifi

Greenhouse is good for a drink I don't care for their food

Barbuque: pretty good coconut crusted fish

Ari's Warung- good but more expensive

Best reflexology is TOUCH ( small place across from
Greenhouse on MF Road ) 6 US for 90 minutes

Anything else, if I know will be happy to answer
Happy & safe travels guys

Oh and I have been to Mozaic for an expat dress up party, I'll post thepix, pretty funny, food was o.k, but not justified in price in my opinion, whole place was a bit too slick for me, most expats who live there just go for a drink or two tops. I know it's a popular place on this board so it's just again my opinion :)

La Artista, I just wanted to throw a thank you your way for this report. We were there, on a last minute trip, last week. It so happened that when the thread was topped recently, I was doing some last minute scrambling for info and got the pleasure of reading it. (oddly, almost the same thing happened back when you were writing your Morocco report awhile back and we were prepping to go there)

So, anyway, we had an idea where we'd spend a night in Ubud, away from where we were staying the rest of the week, but the Ubud night's accommodation didn't work out. After our driver exhausted us with some not so desirable alternatives, I remembered your report. And so the Adi Cottages worked out for us and our young daughter very well. What nice people. Thanks for that.

Hey thanks Clifton!! Funny I remember that about Morocco!!! That is still my most favorite trip!!

I'm glad Adi worked out for you. It's not fancy but location is great, you get what you need and the staff is the best!! So you are very welcome :)