We walked along a rushing stream – rushing because of the high rainfall received in the monsoon. Along side it were the ubiquitous shops, however most of the shops were closed on festival day. We certainly enjoyed the peace and lack of crowds that morning.
We’re going into the jungle now. We visited an area called Goa Gajah, or Elephant’s Cave in English. The cave, near Ubud, was used as a shrine since the 9th Century, although these steps down to the river were built much sooner. I can imagine monks and pilgrims resting in this cool place.
Surrounding the village are the rice fields. The Balinese has self-sufficient when it comes to producing rice. A traditional Balinese family is allocated a plot in which to grow rice. The surplus either goes to the village or to the government.
Bali is also a volcanically active place. The northern part of the country is full of peaks above 1,000m, the highest being the 3,142m high Gunung Agung. We’ll visit a volcano later.
Along with the flags, umbrellas, and gamelan, a mainstay of a procession is the barong – a creature from Hindu and Buddhist mythology. It’s a smaller, less dynamic form from the barong one sees at a Chinese new year procession. I guess they’re just a lot more laid-back in Bali.
Another wonderful water lily, this time larger and whiter.
We came upon a procession for Kuningan, the festival day, as we made our way through the village. On festival days, everyone from great grandparents, to young kids, get dressed in their ‘Sunday best’ and process from their family compounds to their village temple. With their colourful sarongs, flags, offerings, and mythical creatures, it was a vibrant sight.
Another common flower in the tropics is the orchid. Here is a nice yellow specimen.
This is the main street of Keliki, a village near the tourist centre of Ubud. Even though it’s barely 10km from the major centre, it feels like as if we’re in a different country. The roads were (relatively) quiet – well, there weren’t hundreds of motor scooters and cars vying for space. Aside from the scooters, you can see Hindu decorations at the roadside because it was a festival day.
You can’t be in the tropics and not see a hibiscus. I might have quite a few hibiscus shrubs in my own garden, but seeing them in their natural environment feels right.
Breakfast in the morning is a fusion affair. There was still slices of toast on the table, but the spread we liked most was a mixed tropical fruit kind. The coffee however was something special.
Kopi tubruk is the Indonesian version of Turkish style coffee. The beans are roasted dark and grounded to the same powdery consistency as Turkish coffee, however the water, instead of being boiled with the ground coffee, is boiled separately and then poured on to the grounds. The grounds are then left to settle for a few minutes before the coffee is drunk.
I quite like this coffee. It’s strong, but not at all harsh and bitter. And unlike Italian-style espresso, it doesn’t give me the jitters. With a little milk and sugar, it’s good start to the day.
Static and Silence 