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Last night and today I completely indulged myself, and hired a driver.
I had been struggling to get on some obvious tours; a single guy is not the tour operators' idea of a good punter, so they charge 50 to 100% extra (!). So when I discovered there's a well developed circuit of ex-tour drivers available to respond to every whim for about 50% above the cost of a tour, it seemed an (expensive) no-brainer.
What delight. Remind me to become personally wealthy; having a driver is fabulous!
I'm one day I went to
Culuk village
Home of jewellery-making, in particular watching a silver ingot being drawn into an unbroken wire several metres long, to allow it to be turned into intricate earrings
Butuan
Where an entire family of artists live in one home making every form and style of local painting.
Mas
Where i saw local form of carving in crocodile wood, sandalwood, ebony, mahogany, and, er, others.
The Elephant Cave
A combined Hindu and Buddhist temple from the 11 century, discovered and sacs ares by the colonising Dutch in 1923. This included washing in the 7 statue fountain of youth. I kid you not.
Kintamani village
Atop the edge of the huge volcano which, mercifully, hasn't erupted for a bit, but has left us with breathtaking views and beautiful lake (Batur lake). I had lunch in a restaurant perched on the edge of the crater (top tip, when you are sat on a mountain top, don't pick the pram crackers from the buffet. They blow away. I estimate only 5-10% of the prawn crackers served actually get eaten
Kopi plantation
(see separate posting)
Tegalalang
Beautiful tiered rolling rice fields. No point in describing these. Words just don't capture it.
Ubud
The King's Palace and a whopping Market.
I've missed one - a fabulous temple which I pitched at 500 years old, and was told it was turn of the century!- but i don't know what it was called.
Along the way I learned lots about Hinduism here, which is far and away the dominant religion. There are over a hundred thousand temples just on Bali. For a population of 4 million, that is going some. the little offering they leave out three times a day. Then there's the fact that no one will make a decision at midday or twilight, how menstruation and temples don't mix, how un-great I look in a sarong, the astonishing poverty, the cost of sending kids to school here (as a proportion of income, we have literally no idea, and there are no state schools) how there are three colours of bamboo, how women are married between 18 and 23, and guys between 21 and 26, exactly how rice farming is back-breaking work for the whole family and much more.
It's a relief. I was afraid that in the crass gaudiness of the surf resort in which I am staying, I might not get to see the real Balinese.
I have found them to be a kindly, resourceful, resilient bunch, playing a difficult hand with grace. In particular, there's not one ounce of envy or frustration at the advantages available to the first world invaders.
- comments
Will H Nice post. Sounds like another world and very humbling. Keep writing!