Bali Dreaming

I’ve been meaning to add more to my Bali trip posts but so many things got in the way. I have been trying to reduce the number of projects I am involved in, this year as a way to slow down and reclaim some peace and quiet for myself. I am still involved with copywriting (usually for clients who want custom-designed websites) but I am slowly also reducing this from my plate too.

bali dream resort ubud
This is Bali Dream Resort, a little hidden gem in the paddy fields of Gianyar, Ubud.

Anyway, I am back and that is all that matters.
I still hanker for Bali because it was simply an amazing island. The people were lovely and everyone had time to stop and chat which is saying a lot! I am not saying people in Penang aren’t friendly but there’s magic in Bali.
rice fields of ubud
The view of rice fields just behind our hotel room

Nic and I spent our entire 6 days in Ubud, wandering about on the rented scooter (strangely branded Scoopy) from Bali Dream Resort. Everyone whizzes about on scooters in Ubud and by everyone I mean the locals as well as the angmohs. And boy are there plenty of angmohs! Ubud is artistic and cultural but it is also a haven for yoga studios and vegan cafes and juice bars. As I mentioned, people here retire to bed early. By 10pm, most cafes and shops are already closed. This was something to be grateful for, as it meant we returned to our hotel and slept early too!
The sun rises really early in Bali so by 6am, it is bright and sunny (somewhat like our 10am in Malaysia). I remember waking up at 8am and feeling the heat of the sun on my face from the window.
When we arrived at the Bali Ngurah Rai airport, we were raring to go despite the fact that we had woken up at 5am to catch the Penang-KL flight at 6.50am. We had landed in KLIA2 on transit but whiled away our time till 10.50am before our KL-Bali flight called. Jana, who is a regular visitor to Bali, told us that we can walk out and hail a Bluebird taxi instead of taking the airport taxis.
I felt annoyed at being harassed by a super persistent young chap who kept tailing us as we walked out of the airport arrival area. He kept asking us what price we wanted. Anyway, we managed to cross the road just outside of the airport and quickly jumped into a Bluebird taxi.Taxi fees from the airport to Ubud are about RM90 one-way for an hour plus trip.
Nic Sim
Nic in his relaxed mode atop the bamboo tree house

The taxi driver was called Wayan (yes, everyone is either Wayan, Made, Komang or Ketut – they’re really telling you their family ties and hierarchy. Wayan is the first born, Made is number two, Komang or Nyoman is the third while Ketut is the fourth. I was curious – what happens if there is a fifth child? Wayan the taxi man tells me the title Wayan gets reused! To know if the person is a male or female, there is a Ie or Nie attached such as Wayan Ie for a male firstborn or Wayan Nie for a female firstborn). During our entire trip, we met a few Wayans, read about one Nyoman (who owned an art gallery) and more.
It was interesting to have a conversation with a local – a first for me as a traveller. I love going to Thailand – that’s a country I’ve visited many times already – but I never have had a proper conversation with the locals. My Thai is limited to short phrases and words so it’s usually English or nothing.
In Bali, Nic and I had an excellent time conversing with the locals because Bahasa Indonesia shares the same roots as our BM. At breakfast each morning, we spoke at length to the resort’s staff and satisfied our own curiosity of the many different things we observed. The other resort guests at the other tables often looked our way as we chatted animatedly to the staff. We looked like Chinese (and for most travellers, this meant China people) but we spoke the local language.
For once, we could speak and understand each other and exchange information about our own countries.
Our taxi driver managed to persuade us to stop by 2 places on our way to Bali Dream Resort. One was a large silver jewellery shop in Celuk. It was a hot day so the air-conditioned shop (which was clean and modern) was a welcome respite. We pretended to be interested in the silver earrings, rings and more but I wasn’t in the mood to buy anything. I just wanted to check in at our hotel and have a cool shower. Fortunately, the girls at the shop didn’t bug us to try on anything so we left after 20 minutes. I believe the taxi driver gets something for popping by with tourists.
bali swimming pool resort
The view of the glorious pool from our room

I thought this was the end of the silliness but he brought us to a place that offered us free kopi luwak. What is it with tourist traps like these? Is it a first-time visitor’s curse? I don’t drink coffee but we got out of the taxi and strolled into this mini garden with a meandering path.
The petite girl in charge gave us a running commentary on the coffee plants, cocoa plants etc. I did inform her that we are from Malaysia and yes, we have the same plants/shrubs in our country. Finally, we stopped in front of a cage. She pointed out the Asian palm civet cat which was lying curled up in a ball inside the cage. The animal gazed at us with boredom and misery spilling out of its eyes.
bali temple architecture
Balinese temples are so iconic. This was taken near the Celuk silver shop.

If you don’t know about the civet or cat shit coffee, try this Wikipedia entry on kopi luwak. I did try this coffee once when a friend brought it back to Penang but since I am no coffee aficionado, I had no idea if I was drinking good coffee or not. I wasn’t so much disgusted about the process as I was about the commercialisation of the coffee and the force-feeding of coffee cherries to the civet cats. Just so you know, kopi luwak of all kinds and brands are sold in supermarkets in Bali. It’s like Penang white coffee. Everyone and their uncles are hawking this coffee.
Finally, we were asked to climb up a bamboo tree house and have a seat while the girl went off to prepare some sample drinks for us. She came back with a tray of shot glasses with colourful powders. Each glass was labelled. She poured hot water into each glass and encouraged us to try the different teas – red ginger tea, lemongrass tea, lemon tea, roselle tea, mangosteen (peel) tea and more. Luckily Nic mentioned he didn’t want any kopi luwak so that wasn’t served. Our taxi driver, Wayan, sat with us. He was served a larger cup of coffee (that was perhaps his “treat” for bringing us there).
bali swimming pool resort
I know, I am crazy over the pool. Our hotel had not one but two pools.

I really didn’t want to buy any but our sense of obligation got the better of us (after all, we sampled some 10 types of teas and sat around chatting for a good half hour while enjoying the evening breeze at the top of the bamboo tree house). We bought a small packet of lemongrass tea for an atrocious amount of rupiah.
I was thinking, if we don’t get going to our resort and check in, I was going to show my displeasure. I was already quite sticky and hot by this time, traipsing around a coffee plantation and all.
Perhaps Wayan just wanted his free cuppa but whatever it was, he started to head towards Jalan Penestenan Kelod, Gianyar. The roads were narrow but I was enthralled by the passing scenery and Balinese architecture. It seemed there was a temple around every corner or a pair of stone carvings adorning each home entrance.
Women in traditional attire (kebaya with sarong and colourful sashes) were swaying delicately down the narrow pathways and roads. They’d sashay down the road with piles of carefully arranged fruit and offerings balanced atop their heads. It was such a delight to watch!
(Later, I realized these women were on their way to the local temple for prayers. It seemed that every other day some prayers or ceremony was happening in Ubud and you’d be amazed at the scores of women who’d carry offerings on top of their heads).
Wayan got lost a few times trying to locate our hotel. Eventually, he stopped us at the side of a road so that we could ask around. It turned out that our hotel couldn’t be accessed by car; the pathway was simply too narrow. The hotel sent a golf cart around to pick up our luggage while I went to the reception for the check-in.
All my tiredness flew away the moment we were led to our room. We were steps away from a serene pool! That was such a balm for my fatigued soul. Since it was already quite late (5pm ish), we decided to just rest and relax in our hotel. Travelling can be tiring despite the fun and excitement. We also settled for a quick dinner of nasi goreng at the hotel cafe.
indonesia teas in bali
Indonesian teas of all colours in Bali

Stay tuned for the next episode.
 

When Ducks Can Make You Filthy Rich

We just got home from a lovely, absolutely lovely 6 days in Ubud, Bali. What have I been missing all this while? I always thought Bali was ultra commercial until Jeanette and Mariam kept urging me to go and experience it for myself. I am so appreciative that I did. I can’t believe this island has eluded me for so long.

nic sim & krista goon
Nic likes to make crazy faces when I take selfies. This is one of those moments when we were waiting out the rain at Wayan Kunang-Kunang’s.

Sorry if I sound like a complete fan-girl of Bali. I am enthralled. Head over heels. I think I shall retire there and start my resort.
A friend asked me what I found special.
Ubud has all the right architecture right down to the old, gnarled frangipani trees the locals call “pokok Jepun”. This is not to be mistaken with “Jepang” as Jepang is how the Balinese call the Japanese. So I am still puzzled about the difference between Jepun and Jepang.
bali temple statue
Perhaps I shall ask the Balinese the next time I get there (see? I am already planning my next trip despite the fact that I hate connecting flights. We had to take a Penang-KL flight, transit a few hours and then take KL-Denpasar. The same thing when we came back.)
Anyway, I loved that Ubud is like a village. It is small enough to feel familiar yet full of interesting nooks and crannies waiting to be discovered. Like the words I saw written on a white wall behind a goal post near Jalan Hanoman – “100% Love Is The Goal”. These little amusing moments strike me as whimsical yet fitted perfectly with the character of Ubud people (the angmohs and the locals alike).
Over the years, Nic and I realized that the vacations we craved weren’t just about going some place famous and taking snaps all day long. I was never that sort to begin with. Nic and I love meandering down little lanes, stopping for a chat and a drink, taking a longer time just to savour the day. That’s how our perfect little holidays end up anyway.
We never liked overwhelming ourselves with the must-do’s and the must-see. I think part of the reason is that we both strive to find meaningful connections with the people and the places we visit. So this time, we didn’t see Tanah Lot nor did we go up to Kintamani. We didn’t do Mount Batur or Goa Gajah or watch dolphins. We knew that we’d be back and we’d have plenty more trips to do so.
Ubud stone statues
Ubud is known for its excellent stone carvers

What we did do was make friends with the locals. We met Wayan Kunang-Kunang when we ran into his shop to take shelter from the tropical storm (you never want to ride a scooter when rain pelts you like bullets). We met Made Lasil at Neka Art Museum and he showed us how to play the bamboo instrument called ‘rindik’. We exchanged stories with Eka, Deksri, Mellany and Sari, the wonderful staff at Bali Dream Resort where we stayed and had a good time learning Indonesian words and finding that we had so much in common. Others like Wayan, our taxi driver, was so thankful when Nic gave him more than he asked for in taxi fees.
bali dream resort ubud
The delightful resort we stayed at…Bali Dream Resort, tucked away in Jalan Penestanan.

We learnt so much about Nyoman Sumetro, the owner of Bebek Tepi Sawah restaurant, when we toured the art gallery located next to the famous restaurant. Sure, we had stopped by to partake in the famous bebek or crispy duck (Mariam exhorted me to try it) and truth be told, Nic’s ikan gurami panggang tasted a lot better than my ultra-crispy half bebek! Bebek Tepi Sawah is so successful that it spawned more than a few outlets across Indonesia and there is even one in Singapore. That explained the Ferrari parked right out front! (It was covered modestly with a silver plastic car cover but nothing can hide the voluptuous shape.) Another bebek place that I didn’t get to try was Bebek Bengil a.k.a Dirty Duck Diner along Monkey Forest Road. Bengil is the local word for dirt (or “daki”) hence dirty duck. Perhaps next round!
ubud rice field
The rice paddy fields behind our resort

It is conversations with the locals that I loved best. It was funny to know that what we call “telur mata kerbau” is called “telur mata sapi” over there. It became a joke among the staff of Bali Dream Resort because each morning, as we ordered our American breakfast, they’d ask us how we’d like our eggs. We’d all laugh when we said “telur mata sapi” and then they’d repeat to us “telur mata kerbau” with a straight face but later burst out laughing because they couldn’t help it.
swimming pool ubud
The pool, just steps away from our room

Ubud is a slower pace of life, where shops are shuttered at 9pm (even Starbucks Ubud) and people are in bed by 10pm. The air is cool in the evenings because of all the rice terraces, trees and rivers.  Ubud is also the place where you will find a “pura” or temple every couple of steps. Religious and cultural events are a nightly feature.
One night, we witnessed a full procession of traditionally-dressed Balians as they celebrated yet another religious festival in full pomp. A Caucasian lady with a yoga mat slung over her shoulder asked us if we knew what was being celebrated (Ubud attracts a lot of Caucasians on a health and rejuvenation mission – yoga, vegan food, smoothies, retreats, the full works). We had no idea. But the procession went its way and finally she stopped a Balian and asked him what it was all about.
Pengosekan in Ubud is where Elizabeth Gilbert of Eat, Pray, Love found Ketut Liyer, the palm reader whom we were told, only read foreign palms (he also charges higher rates). Ketut Liyer is old, in his 80s and still ranks as the most famous palm reader in all of Bali, thanks to the book and the movie.
ubud bali pool
Family life, having kids and being spiritual are a mainstay of the Ubud people. Nic and I felt a bit like oddities because Wayan, our taxi driver thought we were both on our honeymoon as we didn’t have any kids tagging along! (Ubud is very family-friendly. Families with kids in tow are everywhere, mostly Caucasian. This is not the sleazy Bangla Road of Phuket where lady boys are openly parading. I read later that there is a happening gay scene in Ubud which I seriously witnessed not!)
So consider this an amuse bouche for more of Ubud tales to come. I shall be back with more!