Ubud and massage

Had a mini lie in and made breakfast at the crack of 0900. All the locals seem uber-friendly with smiles and lots of hand together prayer type greetings all round. Fortified with a fruit salad and toast, we decided to spend the morning exploring Ubud's shops, temples, palace and market. Ran the gauntlet of "Taxi Taxi" up Monkey Forest Road, pausing to inspect menus, shop fronts and interesting Balinese temples (which were everywhere). The pavements were in serious need of repair and driving looked quite risky for the uninitiated…..

Popped into the local ex-Royal Family's palace- the descendants are still in residence and were having breakfast. Once we penetrated the compound, past the scary face statues, we came across a band practice. 30 or so teenagers were playing some traditional Balinese music - sounds quite out of tune to the unaccustomed ear: lots of xylophone, bells and drums.

Next up was the village temple, but as we weren't kitted out with sarongs, were not allowed to enter. A treat lay just further down the road - an amazing lotus pool with more Balinese architecture at the end. Seemed a good location for dinner as a traditional dance was on the agenda for the following evening.

Heat was kicking in and it was time to break for lunch. Ambled to an LP-recommended eatery called []. More "Taxi Taxi". Opted for a veggie bean fritter option. A-lo had Satay. I then made the mistake of suggesting we went the long route home. 2 litres of perspiration later and a few choice comments about he distance/heat later, we booked a massage at the Shangri-La spa.

A-lo went for the 1hr 30 Balinese, I opted for the 1hr 30 lomi lomi. She was assigned Tina, I got a charming young gentleman called Ramu. I hoped it wasn't the kind of establishment that offered a "Happy Ending". Both massages were bliss, although both concentrated on knotted shoulder muscles. Cup of ginger tea and a fruit salad to finish and we were on our way fully relaxed.

Every where seemed quite dead for dinner, so we opted for cheap and cheerful - starter, 2 mains and 2 Bintangs for a fiver. Saw two traffic incidents - one involving a rather chubby english girl who had toppled off her motor bike. Probably some issue with faulty shock absorbers…..

En route back home was a bar where a 5-piece blues band were belting out some old favourites. A rather drunk looking middle aged woman was dancing like a tree on acid on the balcony - her falling down skirt provided as much entertainment as the band. Knocked back a couple more Bintangs until they finished the set.