Bali 2013 - Day 6

Now that we've settled in to our regular location, I feel a bit more relaxed.

 Up at 6:00 this morning to shower, get dirty clothes together to take to the laundry, open all the windows to let in the sounds and smells of Bali morning, sweep the porch, fill the water bottles, and catch up on writing.  We've been accustomed to having a big thermos of hot tea delivered to our bungalow each morning around 6:30, followed by breakfast around 8:00, but things have changed.  Made's father had a stroke a while back (and has reached the age of retirement for banjar purposes), so various village and temple responsibilities now fall to Made to take care of.  Kadek has two young children and also has temple and family responsibilities.  So now we're on our own for breakfast.  Not a big deal, since there are several great restaurants within a 10 minute walk.

When everyone was ready, we set out for our day.  We started by dropping the laundry off next door at Agus Laundry, then went out to the road for breakfast at Sari Bamboo.  The food here has always been delicious, freshly prepared, and very reasonably priced.  Their iced lemon tea is just about perfect, too.  Macaela had banana juice and banana jaffle, followed up with pisang goreng (fried bananas).  I couldn't resist choosing one of the wonderful entrees instead of traditional breakfast fare.

After breakfast, the kids walked back home to lay around and chill for the day.  Ibu and I decided to explore side streets.  We noticed a for rent sign for a joglo style villa with one bedroom and a guest house for only 10 million per month (rupiah, that is), and decided to go check it out.  It wasn't really a side road, more like a side path, but it leads down into the rice fields behind Sari Bamboo.  There were several private villas, some great views, and even a spa if you venture far enough back.

We had not planned to be out and about in the sun, and we didn't have our hats, so when things started to heat up, we headed back to Londo.  Made stopped by to check on our plans, and we decided today would be a good time to visit Tegallalang for more shopping.  It was sad to see the number of shops that seemed to be closed permanently (many were closed for the afternoon due to a local ceremony).  Also, it used to be that you could drive through this village and find a huge variety of carved and painted wooden items - toys, puzzles, windchimes, mobiles, key chains, flowers, sculptures - almost anything.  Now what we mostly saw was shop after shop of the same things.  There are loads of shops selling glass or mirror mosaic things.  It seems like all the imagination and creativity we used to see has been replaced by duplication.

Since we were so close, we asked Made to take us to Petulu (15,000 per person to enter the village) to watch the herons come to roost.  Now, this is something I've done before, way back in '95, and at the time we parked, looked around and said "OK, now we've seen it, can we leave?"  And it is kind of like that; it's a bit dirty, and there's not much to do.  But, I enjoy birds, and it is pretty cool to watch the hundreds (thousands?) of herons come in from all over the surrounding countryside and return to their few favored trees.  You can easily see which trees those are as you drive through the village.  Don't stand on the white parts of the road!  After you've wandered around a bit, you can cross the rice field to the tiny warung and order a fresh young coconut to sip on while you watch the show.  The sign here claims they have the best view of the birds, and the owner also loans out his binoculars.

After all that excitement, we had Made drop us on Jl. Monkey Forest for dinner at Jaya Cafe again.  We ordered tuna steak, baby back ribs, "Chicken Gordon Blue" and a BLT.  All were great, except the BLT, which just didn't make the grade.  We tried to contact one of our regular drivers for a ride back home, but he was taking people to the airport.  So we walked.  Just past Ubud Music on main road, we finally hired transport back to Londo for 30,000 (five years ago, it would have been 10,000).  Off to bed, for there is a big day tomorrow.

Bali 2013 - Day 2

After breakfast, Made came to take us to Celuk.  This is the silver village, and it is an all-day trip for us.  This year we brought a selection of loose stones to have made into jewelry.  It isn't a long trip from Ubud, but there are not many (if any) places to eat there, so we usually try to eat hearty before we go and take snacks for the kids, because we know it means a late lunch.

We arrived at the shop of Wayan Suwarsa, our favorite silversmith, and realized that we had left the stones back at the hotel.  Made and Jake turned around and went back, and Ibu, Macaela and I started shopping.  Our regular people were not there, and I think we overwhelmed the shop girl.  She seemed relieved when Chandradewi finally showed up to assist us.  We chose several new pieces from their stock, and ordered several more to be made with our stones, along with some special pieces for ourselves and for friends.

On our way back to town, Macaela and I noticed a nail salon advertising OPI polish, and we determined that would be where we will go for our manicures later (and maybe pick up some OPI colors on the cheap).  Not to be deterred by our experience at Nomad, we opted for lunch at Jaya Cafe on Jalan Monkey Forest.  This is a restaurant that we had enjoyed on our previous trip, and still rates high with us.  They have good food at reasonable prices, and an upstairs dining area that we prefer.  It gets good breezes, and we can watch the goings-on on the street below while we wait for our food.  Plus, they have free wi-fi, although it didn't work for me - I think you need to be downstairs for best connection quality.

After lunch, we walked back up the street towards Jalan Raya Ubud and checked out several properties along the way.  Sri Bungalows, where we have stayed on our previous trips to Bali, has undergone new construction and enlarged their restaurant.  They used to only have a small dining area, used mainly for breakfast for their guests.  Now they have a full service restaurant with a great looking menu.  One can even choose to dine near the pool or on the edge of the rice fields.  All of their rooms were full, but they were able to show us their new spa and riverside yoga room.

We also looked in at Sagitarius Inn, where the rooms were basic and clean.  They have a good restaurant, the location is good, the grounds are nice and well kept.  Peeking through the gate at the Ubud Inn, we couldn't help but go in.  Everything was in bloom - I don't think I've seen that many flowers in one place since my last country club wedding.  Unfortunately, the room they showed us was less than impressive and smelled musty.  I hope this was not a good representation of what they offer, because I'm not sure the beautiful grounds would make up for the room.

We were all tired from walking, and wanted dinner somewhere close, so we walked the short distance to Casa Luna.  We have always loved the food here, but found the staff to be a bit arrogant.  I come for the Fettuccine a la Casa (I think that's what it's called) - home made fettuccine noodles with ham, asparagus and avocado in a lemon cream sauce.  I get the same thing every time, and it's always great.  We also got to enjoy the live music from next door while we ate.