May 7, 2015
KUTA to UBUD - 40km by bus
Bliss Cottages and Spa 650000 IDR ($50.21) Double includting AC, wifi, breakfast  

 
Inland to Ubud

The Hotel taxi offered to take us to the Perama bus office for 60000Rs. We instead picked one up a minutes walk at the main road for 10000 (using the meter). Many taxi drivers will take you on the "extended" and not necessarily the "scenic route". That is where a mobile phone and google maps comes in real handy to keep the fellas honest;)
   
 
The Perama bus to Ubud was a good choice. A very comfortable air con bus (1 hour 15 minutes with one stop.) After the cutoff inland from the beach, the road got considerably narrower and consequently more congested. Soon the rice paddies, temples and small towns made for welcome change in scenery. Before we knew it we arrived at Perama's office in Ubud. We left our bag with them while we b-lined to the busy little Taco Casa Restaurant we spotted on the way in. 
The taco salad with shrimp was to die for and Dave thoroughly enjoyed his fajitas. We won't go hungry in this town.... soo many wonderful choices. 
 
We checked out some scooter rentals while we were there and negotiated a great rate of 35000 Rs per day ($2.67) for at least 3 weeks. Dave loaded our backpack between his legs and dropped it off at Bliss Cottages, 4 km north, where we reserved our first 8 days then came back for me.

 
Ubud Bliss
 
Women with beautifully woven baskets on their head made their way to the large temple to make offerings. Spirituality permeates the communities and even the landscape. The majority of homes have beautiful and often very elaborate family temple structures with their thick straw roofs, neatly etched. Offerings of fruit, rice, herbs and flowers on eco-friendly hand woven little bamboo plates left on their steps.

The expanses of rice fields are broken by occasional tall umbrellas shading religious icons and white ribbons fluttering in the wind to deter the little birds.

Traffic on the main thoroughfare is busy but not hectic or chaotic as in India. No incessant horn blowing. People appear more relaxed.

Our spacious room at Bliss Cottages was on the second floor of one of the lovely Balinese style houses in the well groomed gardens. From our balcony, we overlook the rice paddies and on clear day can see Mount Batur and Mount Agung, two active volcanoes in the distance. We are content. 

 
May 8 to 12, 2015
UBUD and around
Bliss Cottages & Spa 

Happy Sounds
 
The only sounds we hear as we sit on our balcony are the ducks quacking happily in the rice field, the birds singing and the chirping crickets. All so peaceful. We chose the right spot on earth to recharge.

Having the scooter here gives us a lot of freedom not to mention the savings by not having to rely on taxis. 

Over breakfast we met Ronnie, a retired teacher who is here with his Thai "companion" Pim, a considerably younger woman with ready smile and very limited English skills. He's lanky and has straggly salt and pepper shoulder length hair, is gentle and has the patience of Jobe. A great teacher I'm sure. 
 
He is clueless about computers and has a geeky friend back in Chicago do his downloads, uploads and general maintenance on his iPod and Kindle. He makes me laugh. He had open heart surgery done in Kathmandu a year ago by the surgeon who operates on royalty there in other words he was in good hands. He just returned from his yearly check up in Kathmandu. His friends there insisted that he stay on but his decision to leave may have saved his live. A week later the devastating 7.9 earthquake hit. Pim is from Chiangmai and never bothered to get a scooter driving license because her uncle there has a high position in the police department. All it takes is a call to him when she is presented with a ticket. She has a fear to ride a scooter here and Ronnie doesn't ride so that they spend a lot on taxies when they want to see the sights. 


Gunung Lebah Temple

One of the biggest temple celebrations which takes place two times a year at auspicious time is in progress, the reason for the beautiful baskets laden with offerings we watch many women carry. The celebration lasts three days. The only way foreigners can enter the temple grounds during this time is if they adhere to the strict dress code. 

The hotel provided both of us with sarongs and a sash and for Dave also an udeng, the traditional head dress men wear. And so at sundown we made our way to the Gunung Lebah Temple along with hundreds local families, dressed in festive traditional clothes. 
 
We followed the steep path down the ravine. The Temple is a stunning sight with its multi teared spired meru towers all lit up for the occasion. We could hear the Gamelan orchestra from afar. Every devotee performs a small ceremony in front of statue prior to entering the temple grounds. Decorations made of delicately cut bamboo adorn the entrance. The women effortlessly carried their baskets on their head towards the inner courtyard. We were not allowed beyond this point. A 30 minute ceremony took place and the gamelan band played as one group departed and the next group entered. 


Naughty
 
Ubud has an abundance of culinary choices that are bound to satisfy even the most discriminating palate. It didn't take long for us to find several favorite places to dine. 

Naughty Nuri's across from Neka Museum became the place for our occasional oh so decadent succulent BBQd ribs fix. It's always lively and easy to meet fellow carnivores. And for me, a person who thinks of herself as a 75/25 vegetarian/ carnivore, a great place to splurge. 
 
One night we struck up a conversation with a delightful couple we ended up having many more fascinating and stimulating meals with. Andrew, a Canadian, and his American wife, Pele. He is columnist, writes column about investing and he authored 2 books: "Millionaire Teacher" and "Global Expatriate's Guide to Investing". They lived in Singapore for 6 years where Pele tought at an International School. They are leaving Singapore and planning some extensive travel, after all Andrew can write his column from anywhere. Coincidentally they were also thinking of trying to get residency permit ( for Pele) in Portugal. Andrew has dual Canadian&British passports. So pretty much the same boat we are in. They also want to buy a compact camper-van. So basically we'll be testing the waters first and hopefully blaze a successful trail.  

 
Day Trip to MOUNT BATUR and BATUR LAKE 
   
Regardless of which direction one sets out on Bali, it is bound to be a scenic. 
 
We embarked on side trip to Lake Batur, about 41 km North of Ubud. The temperature hovered around 80F and, together with the breeze on the scooter, translated into a pleasant journey. We passed through charming villages some specializing in wood or stone carving, others carving out a living growing coffee plantation or fruit orchards in this fertile volcanic soil.  Along the way we picked up some oranges from one of many roadside stands. They are a delicious addition in my lime, soda vodka concoction. 

Time got away from us at the Pura Batur Temple. It is perched on ridge overlooking Mount Batur and was surprisingly not overrun by tourists. We came prepared with our own sarongs. Throngs of sales ladies loaded with cheap sarongs and trinkets swooped down on us anyway. Few tourists means few sales for them. Still, they break out in disarming smiles and wave us goodbye as we moved on. 

For lunch we stopped at busy Sari Restaurant. We sat on long bar overlooking the volcano and Lake Batur. Lunch was buffet style with plenty of choices. 
 
We continued on the ridge for a bit and followed a steep hair pinned road down to the lake valley. We kept it short it was getting late. 
 
 
On the way back we chose a different route. Made a stop at coffee plantation where we got a taste of local chocolate and disappointing coffee. The grounds were beautifully groomed, planted with a variety of fruit trees. The guide pointed out a cage with several civit cats. (actually related to the meerkat.) That is where the so called "Kopi Luwak", the most expensive coffee in the world comes from at $600 per pound. It is carefully collected after it has made its way through their intestinal tract. 
 
We got back to Ubud at dusk.