Bali: Ubud

After a short trip to Gili we headed back to Bali to stay in the island's cultural epicenter of Ubud. This jungle village is the Mecca for those looking to experience the full range of Balinese arts and culture. It's popularity was heightened by the book Eat, Pray, Love and the movie of the same title. The village is very touristy but in a far different way that Kuta. Whereas Kuta is filled with Billabong clad Aussies looking to surf and party, Ubud is all sarong wearing women looking for yoga and vegan food. Even if throngs of tourists is off putting, all can be forgotten from within the walls of Ubud's incredibly ornate guesthouses.

Walkway in our guesthouse's courtyard

Our room's front porch where we woke for banana pancake breakfast

Traditional Balinese Dance

Our first evening in Ubud we saw a performance of the Barong and Legong dance. Normally this show is held in the courtyard of the old Bali palace, but due to rain it was held indoors.

Rice Terraces

The hills on the outskirts of Ubud are terraced to cultivate rice. In earlier times terracing hills for rice cultivation was advantageous because it could yield two crops per year. Modern agriculture technology now allows flat fields to yield a superior three crops per year. However, flat fields of rice lack the beauty of the terraces.

The lush rice terraces

Rice scarecrow?

Enjoying a plate of rice on a terrace overlooking the rice terraces.

Coffee Plantation

Indonesia is a major producer of coffee, so much so that it's islands of Java and Sumatra have become synonymous with the drink. The island of Bali produces a fair share of Indonesia's coffee, including the ultra expensive luwak coffee. This coffee is produced by the luwak, a cat-like tree dwelling animal that loves coffee cherries. However it is a very picky animal and will only dine of the finest coffee cherries at the peak of ripeness. The luwak then "processes" the coffee and "deposits" the beans on the forest floor where they are collected by farmers for roasting and brewing.

Coffee cherries contain the coffee bean. The redder the riper.

The Luwak is a coffee coniseuer 

The roasting process

These twelve fine Balinese coffees and teas were free to sample

A cup of the luwak coffee was RP 50,000 ($4), a steal 

Tirtha Empul (holy water) Temple

Of all the temples I have visited in Asia, this is by far my favorite. Is isn't the most impressive in terms of size, architecture, or history, but it is one of the most unique and engaging temples around.

The temple is the holy site of a Balinese Hindu legend. In the legend a powerful king declares himself a god and has the people worship him. The god Indra is offended by the king's claim and raises an army to kill him. The king poisons the spring that Indra's army drinks from, killing every soldier. Indra turns the spring into holy water which revives his army from dead. Indra eventually defeats the king. The spring is still believed to have restorative powers from Indra.

To enter the temple, as with all Hindu temples in Bali, you must wear a sarong.

The holy spring

The water was a little chilly

The Sacred Monkey Forest

On the edge of Ubud is the sacred monkey forest, which is home to a Hindu temple and a large population of macaque monkeys. 

Entrance to the monkey forest

Monkey statue

The temple complex was filled with monkeys

Although you're not allowed to touch the monkeys, nothing is stopping them from touching you.

Gili Trawangan

Bali is a small island; it is possible to get from end to end by car in under four hours. However after two nights in Kuta the island did not seem small enough so we decided to head to the tiny Gili islands in the Bali Sea. The three islands are a popular respite from the busy beaches of Bali. Other than the unspoiled beaches and remote location, the absence of motor vehicles is the major draw to Gili.

Bye bye Bali

Hello Gili Trawangan

Some little girl is missing her flippers...

Not a car or motorcycle in sight!

Our quaint bungalow was amazing...until the island lost power. A working fan is a must for a pleasant night sleep.

Not that we slept much anyway...we stayed up until sunrise to watch the USA-Belgium match.

Although the soccer was disappointing, the barracuda steaks were anything but

"...but definitely the best seafood"

If seafood isn't your thing you can sample the local beef...

I'm gonna miss this place

Bali: Kuta

Bali is an island just east of Java. Despite being in Indonesia, the two islands feel like different countries. Java is primarily Muslim and urban where as Bali is Hindu and rural. Bali is also a much bigger draw for western tourists than Java. Our first stop in Bali is the island's most touristy city: Kuta. It is especially popular among Australians for its excellent surfing. From Mt Bromo we had a 10 hour bus ride to Kuta including a 30 minute ferry.

Storm cloud gather in Java as we set sail for sunny Bali

Prices are high on Kuta's main street but it's possible to find a cheap meal at local warungs in city's back alleys.

As with cheap food, you'll have to take to back alleys to find any Hindu temples like this in Kuta.

But if you're looking for tropical drinks and big waves, they are easy to find here

Bro-ing out at Mt Bromo

Mt Bromo is an active volcano in eastern Java. The volcano sits in the middle of a large caldera that is filled with a sand like ash from previous eruptions. Mt Bromo has erupted in 2004, 2010, and 2011.

From Yogyakarta we took a 14 hour bus ride to Cemoro Lawang, a small mountainside village near Mt Bromo. We stayed the night at a guesthouse before starting our pre-dawn ascent to the volcano. We only got two hours of sleep due to the Brazil-Chile World Cup match.

Our 14hr ride to Bromo was pimpin

View of Ceromo Lawang from our guesthouse

At 4am we took a jeep to the side of Mt Penanjakan to get a view of the sun rising above Bromo. Unfortunately the view was not all that great because Bromo is much shorter than the surrounding mountains and it was impossible to see it through the morning fog. However, the view of Bromo's neighbor, the larger and much more active Mt Semeru was very good.

Sunrise over Mt Bromo

Mt Semeru smolders behind the hordes of tourists

After the sun had risen, we made our descent into the caldera where Bromo sits in a sea of ash. From there you can climb Bromo on foot or on horseback.

The walls of the caldera rise in the distance

Sulferous gas rises from the bowels of Bromo

Bro(mo)s

Previous eruptions created the ash desert that surrounds Bromo

Bromo is much shorter than it's neighbors making it an easy climb to the summit 

Yogyakarta

Although their names may be similar, there is little in common between Jakarta and Yogyakarta. While Jakarta is big and traffic clogged, Yogyakarta is much smaller and far slower-paced. It is located in Central Java, two hours from Jakarta by plane. The city was described to me as the cultural capital of Indonesia, and it certainly lives up to that title. 

Sultan Palace

Although Indonesia is a democracy, Yogyakarta is a kingdom. The city is centered around the palace complex of the king.

Palace gate

Palace guard

Sitting room within the palace complex

Water Castle

Nearby the palace complex is a very strange relic known as the water castle. The structure once was a bathhouse for the sultan's daughters, but today it is completely dry.

Stairway to the castle

Castle ruins

Tunnels below the castle

Inner chamber

Prambanan

Just outside of Yogyakarta is the prambanan temple, the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia. It was built in the 9th century to commemorate the return of a Hindu ruling dynasty in Central Java after a century of Buddhist rule. It was abandoned a century later when the dynasty moved to East Java. The temple was destroyed in an earthquake in the 16th century. Of the 240 temples that stood in the prambanan complex, only the eight major temples and 8 accompanying shrines have been restored.

Prambanan temple complex

Ruins of smaller temples surround the reconstructed central temples

Close up of the main temples

A sarong is required attire for entering prambanan. This one was provided at the door.