The Journey to Bali...
Patience (or the ability to fall asleep while sitting upright on command) is definitely something that I’ve picked up along my journeys. Take a look at any map and you would think making your way from Java to Bali would be a piece of cake. With two islands so close to each other, what could be the problem? Lol. How about a main “highway” the size of two bicycle paths stuck together for entire country’s means of transport… oversized buses, transport trucks, and interweaving motorbikes! You’re just bounded to get stuck in traffic! Making our journey down the country, it also didn’t take long before we were desensitizing from seeing a family of four (with small children) zipping past us on a disheveled motorbike. Apparently there is no accurate translation from English to Indonesian for “local safety standards”? After a twelve hour bus ride from Probalingo to the port, a one hour ferry ride to Denpasar, Bali, and a three hour bus ride, we were finally in Kuta, Bali.
Oh Kuta, Bali… if I will ever remember anything from this place is that it was filled with persistent hawkers that didn’t seem to take no for an answer, too many narrow interconnecting streets congested with tourists “attempting” to drive their rented motorbikes, and local prostitutes stalking you down the street at night persisting on offering “nice” massages to you. I will never forget that night. As the young lady literally chased me down the street, I really just felt like telling her, perhaps if you invested in better teeth (as she was missing a few and had a gap in others) and got rid of your unibrow, just maybe you would be better advertised to others. However, fearing that her broken understanding of English may think that I was actually interested, I decided not to say anything and quickly walked away. I should say however, that there is some good to this part of the island. Apparently if you want to try surfing and learn how to for the first time, this is the place to be as the waves break consistently small offering any new beginner a good run for their money.
After two nights here, we decided to make our way to Ubud, Bali. Filled with apparent Balinese cultural/spiritual appeal, historical attractions, and beautiful architecture this place will be sure take your heart away and make you want to come back again. Detail is something that this region takes great pride in and it clearly shows. From the intricate hibiscus wooden carved doors of your hotel room, to the stone gate statues protecting owners/tourists from bad spirits, to the quality of workmanship put forth in their in their wooden carvings and jewelry, no corner was missed at all. Aside from the occasional hawker pecking your ear for a “taxi” or “transport”, the people were genuinely friendly as well.
On one occasion, once I purchased a wooden carving from a local artist, he conveniently guided us by motorbike to our next destination. Saving a few Rupiahs, we then decided to rent our own motorbike and make our own path through the city instead of hiring a local driver. We must of saved at least 250K RP doing it this way. With roads filled with winding ways and brilliant rice fields, I was finally at my inner peace. Go straight to the artist for a buy instead of the local market and you save a considerable amount of money, we must have paid a tenth of the cost compared to what the local market was selling the same items for. For wooden carvings and sliver jewelry, head to Mas and Celuk. Don’t forget to go to Monkey Forrest as well. I’ve never had so much fun playing with “locals” here. Like a three year olds on methamphetamines or crack, I found myself extremely amused as I would get up super close and personal feeding the little guys with bananas! The only sad part would seem to be that the only food they ate (and became dependent upon) was from the tourists feeding them. Still – a great way to kill a hot afternoon. If your a coffee connoisseur, this should definitely be on your check list as well.
About a 30 minute drive out of town and you can visit a variety of coffee and spice plantations. Fresh Chili’s, vanilla, cocoa, lemongrass, cinnamon, coffee beans, etc... You name it, they’ve got it. These “plantations” are a tad touristy as most of the setup has been made for the foreigner appeal, but still nonetheless quite entertaining. Most places will also offer free row of taster drinks as well (Lemongrass tea, hot chocolate, Bali coffee, ginsing tea, and the infamous Luwak coffee) to help advertise their products. And for those of you who didn’t know, Luwak coffee is known to be the most expensive coffee in the world (at approx. $700/Kilo). What makes this coffee so expensive one might ask? Well for starters, it really is “shit” coffee. A cat like creature called the Asian Palm Civet eats the coffee cherries when they are still on the trees. Once in the digestive track of the animal creates some chemical reaction that makes the beans more aromatic and less bitter. After that, well...you know, they take a dump. Locals then have to sift through the grounds to find the droppings before they can process the beans. Don’t worry, before they serve it to you, the beans go through a thorough washing, sun drying and light roasting before it is served to you. If I had to describe the taste however... Nothing different than a bold roast back home but I question you to ask yourself this...how often you can say you've drank a cup that's come out of an animals ass!?!? lol.
Dolphin Watching in Lovina, Bali, Indonesia:
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