Singaporing In The Rain

Phyl got up to go to the bathroom, and the room was still dark.

G- What time is it? Is it 10 AM yet? I don't want to sleep the day away.

P- Holy shit! It's 10 after 11:00!!! Half the day is gone!

G- Well, we didn't go to sleep until 4:00 AM. Let's hurry up and go see Singapore.

We were up and out of the room in 30 minutes. It doesn't take long to get ready when you've showered the night before, have only a couple shirts to chose from, have virtually no hair and aren't wearing make up. It was Saturday morning and the hookers were done but the area was bustling. We got directions to the metro about 5-6 blocks away and enjoyed our walk past sidewalk markets selling fruit, veggies, cooked meats and fish on ice. We purchased a metro pass that allowed us to get on and off the metro and buses as much as we wanted, needing only to add more money when it ran low. After a few minutes figuring out which train to take, we headed to Harbor Bay, thinking it would be like the River Walk along the bay. This turned out to be an error as it was a mall, ferry & cruise ship terminal. From the terminal, we did see Sentosa Island, a Universal Theme Park, just south of Singapore. After asking a man in the mall, we were directed to Marina Bay, our intended destination.

G- I'm starving! Before we leave here, we should eat something.

P- What do you want?

G- I see a McDonald's. Are you ready to cave in and eat a burger?

P- Yes, I am. With a very cold diet coke, full of ice.

G- Let's do it.

After lunch we took the metro to the City Hall Mall, exited and walked past City Hall, St. Andrew Church, and along the river. The sky was turning black and the wind was blowing. It felt fantastic, but did not bode well for walking around the city. We kept moving, but stayed close to buildings that we could duck into. Finally, as we waited to cross a major intersection, the sky opened up. We ran to a restaurant, along the marina, and waited with many other drenched tourists. Fortunately, the view was the Marina Bay Hotel, consisting of 3 glass towers with a platform across their tops. The platform connected the 3 towers, supported a restaurant and viewing area and looked like a ship. In the marina, in front of the hotel, hundreds of white balls floated on the churning waters. The whole scene was quite impressive and from what we heard, you'd have to sell a kidney to spend even one night in the hotel. The hotel was connected to the land via a really cool bridge, called the helix, but we were unable to walk across it due to the bad weather.

Once the rain stopped, we walked along the marina to the fountain statues that represent Singapore. We passed the concert halls called Theaters On The Bay that looked like big porcupines....

G- OMG! Look at that sign! It's advertising The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

P- I never saw that.

G- I cannot believe that you never saw it. I went several times to Sena Mall on Veterans for the midnight show. It was fun. More fun if you were drunk, of course. If we were going to be here, I'd say we should see the show. But I doubt it would be as fun. Plus, I'm scared to ruin my fond memories by seeing it now and thinking it's stupid.  But watching a large group of Asians doing the time warp would be hysterical!!!!

P- Yeah. I have the feeling that's what would happen.

We moved along past a WWII Memorial and the Singapore Rotary Club where we could hear a chorus singing Christmas songs. We sat and listened to the singing for a while and discussed where we'd be for Christmas this year.

It had been a long afternoon and we had walked several miles, so we returned to the City Hall Mall and sat in Starbucks drinking Mocha Frappuccinos and playing on line. We walked around the mall, amazed at it's size and the number of very expensive designer stores. Having had enough for one day, we returned to the hotel.

G- Ok, the girl at the front desk says that there is a coin operated laundromat just 2 blocks away. I'm excited at the notion of having my clothes cleaned in a machine and not in the hotel sink with dandruff shampoo.

P- Me too. Let's go do that. Bring everything.

We divided our meager clothes into 2 batches and washed. A guy slept on the bench next to us. Phyl took off her bra so it could be washed. Only afterward did we notice the camera. Hopefully it doesn't actually film anything! After folding our freshly cleaned clothes, we stopped at The Lavender Frog Porridge & BBQ Seafood Zighar  to pick up dinner.

G- You want to try one of the frog leg pots?

P- I don't think so. Frog legs taste like chicken and I've already eaten enough chicken.

G- Ok, how about fried rice and the scallop stir fry? The guy told me he could package it to go. I really want to go back to the hotel and eat in the air con.

P- That sounds like a good idea. Uh oh!

G- What's wrong?

P- I need a bathroom immediately!! My stomach just flipped over.

G- I saw a sign for one around back. Here, take pinky and the toilet paper.

I ordered the food and waited for Phyl. She returned with a look of relief on her face.

G- How was it?

P- Not bad. It was a western toilet and very clean, but thank gawd you keep toilet paper in the bag with pinky.

We ate our dinner, the best fried rice we have had since being in Asia and ironically, it is like the fried rice we get in Chinese restaurants at home. Then we showered........

P- You may want to wait a little while before taking your shower because I just took a cold shower.

G- What?  Why was the water cold?

P- I don't know, but it wasn't so terrible for me, but I know you could never stand it. 

I waited for about 15 minutes, then turned on the water and it was still cold.

G- What the hell?  I cannot take a shower with cold water!!!

P-  I'll call the front desk and see if there is some problem..................................  Well, you know that button next to the red light on the control panel?

G- The one we thought controlled the TV's electricity?

P- That one.  It appears that it controls the hot water heater.  The guy said to turn it on and wait about 10 minutes and we'll have hot water.

G- Should we have known that?  You think that they would have told us when we checked in.  I've never seen such a thing before.

P- Me neither, and I wish I had called before I took a cold shower!!!

After my hot shower, we went to bed. It seems like feast or famine, because we cannot sleep without the air con, but we have been unable to control the temperature and it was freezing in our room. I awoke several times during the night and always heard the housekeeping cart in the hallway.

We'll Leave The RED Light On

We arrived in Singapore's Changi Airport at 2:30 AM and felt right at home since we had spent 19 ½ hours there just 30 days before. We were exhausted, but not nearly as miserable as the poor screaming toddler next to us as we waited for our bags. She wailed in that miserable way that only sleep deprived children can.


P- Is that man traveling by himself with that toddler?

G- That appears to be the case. Poor little thing. She looks so damn miserable. (We smiled at the man and he gave a weary smile back.)

P- (to the little girl in a very soothing tone) Shhhhhh. It's gonna be ok.

The little girl stopped crying, but continued to do that gasping head jerk that kids do when they try to stop crying. She stared at us.

G- It's gonna be ok sweetheart (soothing tone). You'll be put to bed soon.

She calmed down, put her finger in her mouth and her head on her dad's shoulder. We helped him put his luggage on a cart and watched as he walked away.

G- He may be a great dad, but he wasn't whispering the soothing words to her. Once we did, she shut up.

P- Poor guy! She's cute, but I'm glad she's going home with him.

We found our bag, withdrew money from the ATM which was no small task since we had not bothered to determine the exchange rate and had no idea how much money we were getting, and hauled our packs to the cab stand. Fortunately there is no traffic at 3:00 AM and it only took 20-30 minutes to get to our hotel, Hotel 81 Palace in the Geylang area of Singapore.

P- (as we turned the corner) I read on line that the hotel is in the red light district.

G- Well that would explain the hookers lined up down the sidewalk.

P- It is Friday night. I'm sure that's a big work night for hookers.

G- Yep. I couldn't care less. I just want to go to sleep.

As we checked into the hotel, a John and his 'lady of the evening' were also checking in. I raised an eyebrow at Phyllis.

P- (she whispered) It's Asian David Vitter and his hooker. They're probably just going upstairs to talk. Maybe his wife doesn’t understand him either.

G- Bwahahahahahahah!!!!

We were told that they didn't have a room on a higher floor, but that we could move up tomorrow. We were given a room on the 2nd floor at the end of the hallway. The room was tiny, but pretty clean. I checked the mattress and baseboards for bed bugs, or any other bugs, and Phyl went to take a shower. The bathroom had a pedestal sink and toilet on the same wall and a shower head came out of the perpendicular wall in front of the sink. There was no shower curtain, just a drain in the middle of the floor. That explained why the toilet paper was mounted very high up on the wall above the toilet. At least the water was hot!

By 4 AM we were in bed and falling asleep. We could still hear the cleaning cart rolling down the hallway. This seemed curious, but my delirious brain could not make sense of it.

Sex Offering

Sinar Bali allowed us to pay for ½ of a day and check out at 6:00 pm. This is a great feature because, it seemed that almost everyone's flight left at night. We were able to spend the day at the pool, then pack &amp, shower, and eat dinner before getting a cab to the airport. It had just started to rain when our cab arrived and it poured throughout the ride to the airport. When we arrived at the airport, we were informed that our plane had mechanical problems, had been replaced with another, but that the flight would be delayed 2 hours. KLM did give us vouchers for a sandwich and drink at an airport cafe. As we walked to the cafe to collect our refreshments, we noticed yet another offering (to the Gods)  There was one outside of every shop and some shops even had little alters mounted on an inside wall.  Of course they all contain a lit incense stick.

G - Look at that offering!!  It has a cigarette and a mint on top of the flowers.

P- It must be an offering to the god of sex!!  Give some flowers, eat your breath mint, and when it's all done, smoke a cigarette.

G- Hahahaha!!!!! And look, it's right across from the duty free liquor store.  That must be what the money is for; to buy the liquor.  How appropriate! 

As it turned out, the flight was delayed for 2 ½ hours and we didn't leave Bali until midnight.


P- It makes no sense that most of the seating is inside the area where you board the plane, but they won't let you into that area until just before the flight is about to board.

G- It's asinine. We're stuck in the terminal, which has very few chairs, while all of the nice chairs in the boarding area sit empty. I asked the guards when they'll start letting us in there, but they just said later.

P- It's also annoying that, in all of the Asian airports we've been to so far, you don't go through security scanning until just before you board the plane, so you can't even bring on water that you bought in the terminal.

G- Yes, that is extremely annoying. When we take that cheap Air Asia flight that has no services aboard the plane, we won't even be able to bring on water.

P- How long is that flight? 2 or 2 ½ hours?

G- Yes. Something like that. I sure wish they didn't allow smoking everywhere in this airport.

P- I know. It's killing me.

The rain stopped as we boarded the plane. We were surprised that we were served dinner, and KLM has pretty good airplane food. Then we watched Eat, Pray, Love; well we watched some of it. The flight was not long enough to watch the whole movie, so we got cut off somewhere in India.

Final Thoughts on Bali

Final thoughts on Bali:

When we first arrived, we were disappointed because we had imagined the movie version of Bali. After being there for a while, we came to love the people, we enjoyed learning about their lives and culture, and we grew to like Bali. We definitely preferred the feel of Ubud over the tourist areas of Kuta & Sanur, and we wish that we had spent more time in Ubud. If you plan to go, never believe anyone who tells you that Ubud is cooler than Kuta as the hottest days and nights we have ever spent have been in Ubud. That being said, we did enjoy Legian Beach and our stay at Sinar Bali Hotel, and we enjoyed meeting and talking to other tourists. The main tourist areas are so crowded and full of traffic, but there are many areas of Bali & Lombok that are very beautiful. We definitely recommend exploring both islands and not just staying in one spot.

Once on the ground, Bali is a cheap destination. For Americans, it is the time and expense of traveling to Bali that is the problem. While the Balinese are warm and friendly, the hawkers are relentless and wear you down to the point of exhaustion. While we understand that they are merely trying to earn a living, they destroy some of Bali's charm. Kuta and the boardwalk of Sanur are lined with shop after shop; all basically selling the same things. Many times we may have browsed in a shop or looked at their wares, possibly making a purchase, but because we were so harassed, we didn't dare even act interested. Fortunately we were isolated and protected inside the Sinar Bali Hotel compound and we think this is one of the reasons we stayed at the hotel so much. In addition to the hawkers, leaving the hotel compound was exhausting because the sidewalks are almost nonexistent or are in such deplorable condition that they are dangerous, forcing you to walk in the street most of the time. Motorcycles & cars park on the sidewalks and motorcyclists drive on them with impunity. It is often safer just to walk in the street but one must always remember that even if it is a one way street for cars, motorcycles can drive in any direction.

On Lombok we learned that while we like the less touristy areas, those areas also lack many services and choices to which we've become accustomed. Bali does have a large amount of western (primarily Aussie) food choices due to the large number of Aussie tourists.

We will never, never, as long as we live, forget our snorkeling experience at Bunutan Beach (behind the Ayuerveda yoga studio and organic restaurant). The coral and fish were breathtaking! And we hope to stay in touch with many of the people we met during our stay in Bali. We will also remember Bali as the place where we learned that Connor had been accepted by LSU Medical School. It was fortuitous that we were Skyping with Gina's mom & Connor when his acceptance letter arrived and we were able to watch him open it and experience that moment with him.

Finally, we recommend the Sinur Bali Hotel Jl Padma Ultara, Legian, Bali, Indonesia (0361) 751404 sinarbali@dps.centrin.net.id.

Scenes in Bali

All over Bali, along the roadsides, you will see these 'petrol stands' selling gas for motorcycles.  Most are kept in Abolute bottles, we guess because they're glass and 1 liter each.  It's a saftey thing!!





Also all over Bali, along the roadsides, you will see roosters kept under baskets. We were told that they could not be allowed to walk freely because they would fight with each other. Apparently they were only allowed with the hens one at a time.

In some of the traffic circles there are huge statues of Hindu Gods.  It's hard to snap a photo as we speed by.

In new construction, and in buildings that just appear unstable, long bamboo poles are used as support braces.

Geckos are to Bali what cockroaches are to New Orleans; but less horrible!  This particular gecko was about 10" long and 1.5" wide.  He was a bug eating machine and apparently a permanent resident at the Sinar Bali restaurant where he spent his evenings hanging out by the light bulbs eating unsuspecting moths.

This is a Warung for locals and adventurous tourists, like us, willing to eat as the locals.  You selected your items from the glass shelves in front and from the hot pots down the side, then you paid based on the items you selected.  Kind've like A&G or Morrison's Cafeterias.

Bali's version of Meals on Wheels or Nola Lucky Dog vendors.

The Balinese cargo van.  There is not a thing in the world that cannot be hauled on a motorcycle!!
 
 
 

Balinese in-line family sedan.  Wonder why dad's the only one wearing the helmet.  Kids........ we can always make more of them.  Mom........ her head scarf and Allah are protecting her.
 
 
 

Many women could join the bull riders in a rodeo.  They are fearless as they ride, side saddle, in their long sarongs, holding on to their stuff, as the driver weaves through traffic.  They hold onto nothing on the motorcycle, merely balancing.

Chicken Head Soup

I finally awoke and could open both of my eyes. The left one was only a little swollen and red, but I was good to go. One more day and everything should be fine. After breakfast, we took our purchases, and my fanny pack, Sarah, to the post office to mail home. Sarah was not working out. Imagine that! She was too awkward and cumbersome with the big backpack. I purchased another small backpack to use as a day pack and to wear on my chest when my big pack was on my back. Sarah was sent packing and did come in handy to cushion our purchases. We shipped our box by sea and were told it would take 3 months. Thank gawd we were not in a hurry to get it home. Our work done for the day, we returned to the pool. On the way we passed a street food vendor who had quite a crowd.

P- What is he selling?

G- Looks like some kind of soup. It sure smells good.

P- Oh my gawd! Come see this...............

G- What is it?

P- The soup has chicken feet and chicken heads, with beaks and combs on them!!! Yes. Most definitely chicken heads.

The locals looked at the horror on Phyl's face and started laughing.

P- Is it good?

Locals – Yes. Very good.

Hawker -You buy?

P- Um, no. Thanks anyway.

G- I'd taste it because it smells good. Just don't get heads and feet in your bowl. It smells like it has a nice chicken stock, lemon grass, and veggies. But I'm not even remotely hungry.

P- It does smell good, but I don't think I could take the chicken eyes looking up at me.

G- Oh, please. The eyes aren't in the head. It's just a skull.

P- Ok. But I still see the sockets, which means the eyeballs must be floating somewhere in the broth.

G- Might I remind you that you take live, squirming crawfish, pour the poor bastards into a cauldron of hot, spicy water, then when they're cooked, you rip their heads off and suck the juice out, careful to pick out the fat in the heads, then eat the tails with the shit line on it.

P- I don't care. That's different!

G- It's not different. It's all in what you grow up eating.

P- Maybe so, but I'm still not eating soup with chicken heads and feet in it. I don't even like chicken breast, I'm surely not eating a head.

G- Ok, Gladys, you don't have to. Move along.  Oh look!  The bakery cart is passing us.  Would you like a chicken head pastry?

P- No Agnes.  I'm not eating anything made with a chicken head!!

We returned to the hotel and washed some clothes in the sink.

G- Did you wash the clothes with the shampoo in this packet?

P- You mean the one the hotel provides?

G- Yes. The dandruff shampoo that looks like a vitamin C or energy drink packet.  The chick on the packet looks like she's pouring it into her mouth.

P- If that's all we have, then yes that's what I used. I like to scrub with the soap powder, then let the clothes soak in the shampoo so they'll smell good.

G- Ok. And since we're washing our underwear in dandruff shampoo, we never have to worry about dandruff in our nether regions.

P- I do constantly worry about that. You're crazy, Agnes!

For our last dinner in Bali, we returned to Patrick Warung. The food is good, the selection is good and the girls who work there are friendly and sweet. Plus, we agree with the sign, they really do have the coldest beer in Bali.

Beer v Ice Cream

P- Good morning!


G- Ugh! Morning. OMG! Now both of my eyes are crusted shut.

P- Just stay there baby and I'll wet your bib with warm water.

After chocking up a pound of mucus and bathing my eyes 2 times, I was able to open them and go to breakfast. For the love of God, we wish we didn't have to sit outside in the heat and humidity to eat breakfast. Basically, EVERYTHING, besides sleeping, occurs in the heat and humidity. It's a bad thing for someone with a cold. Phyl says it's a bad thing for everyone except someone who loves to be miserable. Oh, and I forgot to mention the mosquitoes that eat us during breakfast. We have to put on mosquito repellant before we even go to breakfast. Blech!!

Breakfast makes us hot, so we jumped into the pool to cool off. After a while, we decided to go to the beach. Hello! We are in Bali, on the Indian Ocean, so we must go back to the beach before we leave.

We ran the gauntlet through the alley, dodging motorcycles, and were encouraged by the sunshine when we arrived at Legian Beach. We were immediately approached by a hawker renting beach chaises and umbrellas. We negotiated 30,000 ($3.00 USD), he wiped down the cushions and we planted ourselves for the afternoon.

P- Ah! This is the life!

G- Yes. I could get use to this. I do miss our own ice chest full of beer.

P- Well, Wayan said he had an ice chest of cold beer for sale.

G- We may have to purchase some.

P- As soon as we go in the ocean I'll need a beer to quench my thirst.

G- Why in the world would the ocean make you thirsty?

P- I don't know, Agnes, but it does. Maybe it's the salt.

G- Well, close your mouth and you won't get salt in it.

P- Well, bite my ass and if you don't need a beer, I'll drink 2.

G- Freak! Any excuse to drink a beer.

P- I don't need an excuse, I'll drink beer whenever I want.

We sat on our chaises and watched a group of naked kids playing in the surf. Thank gawd they were not trying to woo-woo us! Then we watched a group of surfing kids. It sure looks like a lot of work for a very short ride. Kind've like climbing 3 flights of stairs, at a superslide, for a short ride down. Then we watched a large, very built French speaking man take a surf lesson and head out into the waves.

P- This should be fun to watch!

G- Yes. That dude is so big, he'll neve get up.

P- I got to give it to him for trying! It looks more like work than fun.

The guy did finally get up and managed to ride a short wave. We were pretty impressed. Then he brought the surf instructor to his son, who looked about 4 years old, and the instructor took the little boy to the waters' edge with a boogy board. He showed the little boy how to stand, bend his knees and hold his arms out for balance. The little boy mimicked everything the instructor did. Then the instructor took him into the waves. The little boy clung to the boogy board as he flew up onto the wave crests. He was very brave and even when knocked off, he jumped right back on. Then the instructor got a regular surfboard and took the little boy out.

G- Look at this! The little guy is on a full board.

P- It's going to really suck for his dad when he rides a wave much better than his dad. It's always easier for kids to do things like that.

G- How cute is he? Yes, lower center of gravity and lack of fear.

In short order the little guy zoomed in on the board while dad was still floundering in the waves. Mom was taping the whole thing...... of the little boy and dad was being ignored. When he was finished, he was beaming!! He strutted onto the beach so proud of himself! We clapped and mom smiled at us.

Ice cream selling hawker – You buy ice cream?

G- Sounds good, but right now we're drinking beer.

Ice cream hawker – Beer and ice cream good.

G- No, beer and ice cream do not go well together at all.

P- Maybe in your world. You got any popcorn to go with our beer? We'd buy that.

G- Come back later.

Hawker – Ok. 10 minutes?

G- No.  Longer than 10 minutes.

We had just gotten our second round of beers when the ice cream hawker returned.

G- No dude. Not yet.

P- Still no popcorn in there?

Hawker – No popcorn. Ice cream.

G- Come back later.

Finally we bought an ice cream and the aggravating hawker went away happy. After a few hours, we headed back to the hotel.

P- What a relaxing afternoon.

G- Yes, because most of our afternoons are so stressful.

We ate dinner at a place called The Corner Bar that Rob had raved about for pepper steak. He said it was “lovely”. When it arrived, it was steak, cooked in a gravy and black pepper. We had expected it to be a steak cooked with green peppers and onions. Oh well, it was still “lovely”! The only thing we did find odd was that it had a nice gravy and should have been served with rice, but this was the one time it was served with french fries instead. Go figure!

Eye Wide Shut

P- Good morning.

G- Morning.  Uh oh!  I can't open my eye.


P- What do you mean you can't open it?

G- Well, let me be more specific. MY LEFT EYE IS STILL CLOSED, EVEN THOUGH MY RIGHT ONE IS OPEN, AND IT APPEARS TO BE CRUSTED SHUT!!!

P- Let me see it. Oh my gawd! It is totally swollen and red!!! Stay there and I'll get a warm rag for you to wipe it.

G- Great! Aside from my morning mucus expulsion, I was starting to finally feel better.

P- Well, that makes me worried. Maybe you should take your antibiotic.

G- No. I only have one prescription and it's too soon in the trip to take it. Besides, I'm not running a fever and, based on the color of the mucus,  I don't have an infection.

P- Well, we need to go to a pharmacy to see what they suggest.

We ate breakfast and called, via Google phone, all of the nurses we know. Finally, we reached Phyl's Aunt Faye and Uncle George, the doctor, who deduced that my tear duct was clogged with mucus. Great! We went off in search of a pharmacy. Along the way, we passed a group of children hosting their own little parade. They played symbols, drums, and some kind of sticks. Two of the kids were dressed in a dragon costume. It was cute. Unfortunately, we never could get a clear answer about why they were doing it, but it had something to do with the Galungon celebration.

At the pharmacy we purchased a theraflu type tablet to break up my mucus and some eye drops. I always have to get the freaky things. We then went to the Bintang grocery to buy some cough drops and a washrag.



inside the Bintang Grocery

 P- No washrags. Maybe we should look in the baby department.

G- I don't see anything here that would work, besides bibs.

P- What about this one?

G- Too scratchy. I already look like cyclopse. I need something soft?

P- This one is soft and it has a cute little bear on it.

G- Alright. That one will do. I just need something to keep moist and use to wipe my eye.

P- And here's a little squirt bottle that you can use for a Neti Pot.

G- It was a big mistake not to bring my Neti Pot, but it was just to big and awkward. I think this will work and it's only 40 cents. Let's try it.

Just outside of the grocery, in the parking lot, was The Scooby Doo Burger & Hot Dog stand. It was most unusual; it was surrounded by a counter with soda shop stools and in the center was a BBQ grill. We decided to have a burger and were very excited that it did not come topped with a fried egg. We ate and watched the people come and go. At one point there was a major traffic jam and nothing was moving, not even the motorcycles. Horns were honking and the drivers were getting crazy. We paid and headed up the street, back to our hotel. As we walked, we had to dodge motorcycles that were driving on the sidewalk.

P- This is ridiculous!! Isn't this illegal?

G- Well, I'm kind've doubting it because they're passing cops and the cops don't seem to be the slightest bit alarmed.

P- (to a cop as we passed) This is crazy! They're on the sidewalk.

Cop – (smiling) Yes. Crazy.

G- Well, apparently it's not a problem for him that they're on the sidewalk because they're almost running over his feet and he's not doing anything to stop them.







Adiyanti





Back at the hotel Phyl put drops in my eye and Adi gave me hot water to disolve my antimucus tablet. Not too bad of a taste; it reminded me of lemon/lime Theraflu. Of course the walk had made us sweaty messes, so we jumped into the pool and floated for the remainder of the afternoon. We watched as new guests arrived, and we were soon joined in the pool by Mike and Hannah from New York. They were the first Americans we had met since leaving home, and they had already been to China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, & Malaysia. They were a wealth of information and we just enjoyed talking to other Americans. Their next stop was Australia.



Mike & Hannah













We ate dinner at the hotel restaurant, Indonesian dishes: Nasi Goreng (fried rice with chicken and topped with a fried egg) and Sayur Hijau (green vegetable with prawns or chicken served with white rice). Both were quite tasty. I coughed myself to sleep as the new medicine began to break up my head and chest.

Cak-Cak

Performance occurred at the patch on top of the cliff.

We arrived at Uluwatu about 15 minutes before the dance was to start. Pinky made an appearance, for which we paid a nominal fee and were given 2 squares of toilet paper.  We had to pull some of our personal stash from the bag.  We walked up the stairs to the temple, careful not to engage any monkeys which are much more aggressive than those in the Monkey Forest. Phyl says they were also bigger. We watched several monkeys rip items from people's hands and run off with them. Exactly what Phyl was afraid of.

P- I told you we had to be careful for the monkeys.

G- These are much more aggressive, but just stay away from them.

P- I'm not too worried because so many of these other people are encouraging them by having stuff out for them to steal. Just hold on tight to the camera.

G- Got it, Gladys. We'll snap a few photos and be on our way to the dance.

The temple was perched out on the edge, at the top of the cliff. Unfortunately, it was a very cloudy evening and the sunset at this temple is supposed to be fantastic. We did enjoy watching all of the men in their silky, brightly colored sarongs that everyone was required to wear. Some men did a better job of getting in touch with their feminine sides than others. We made our way to the seating and prepared for the Kecak & Fire Dance. The dance is the most unique Balinese dance because it is not accompanied by musical instruments, but 70 men imitate the sounds of musical instruments and provide sound effects. Throughout the performance, they make a cak-cak sound.

The performance was unusual, but very enjoyable. We were disappointed that the clouds completely eclipsed any views of the sunset.  We stayed after the performance to take photos with the performers, and walking back to the van was a little scary because it was dark and the monkeys were screaming in the trees.  If Gladys could have had me carry her, that would have happened.  Instead we held onto each other and walked, very quickly,  under the trees and screaming monkeys.  We tossed our borrowed silky sarongs and sashes onto the pile and headed to the van.  It had been a long day and we were happy to get back to the hotel and have dinner at the restaurant.

Gusti Bad Man

We really liked Ubud and wished that we had stayed there longer, but we were so ready to leave after the 5 days of heat exhaustion that, at the time, we couldn't even entertain the possibility. There were a few things that we still wanted to see in the area, (for which we needed transportation)so we arranged for Made (Maday) to take us back to Ubud for the day. We left at 9 AM. Our first stop was just south of Ubud in the stone carvers area. Made had said for us to just yell stop when we wanted to stop, and true to his word, the minuted I yelled stop, he did; right in the lane of travel. Apparently it's fine to stop whenever you wanted, as long as you pulled over to the left as far as possible. It sure does make things easy, unless you're the person driving behind us.


P- Gi, look at the guy up there. He's carving limestone into flowers.

G- That's cool. And look at the tools. Just like the wood carvers, he's just using metal pieces, I guess they're chisels, and a malot.

P- He said the black ones are carved from lava.

G- They're very pretty. Look. A butterfly just landed on my shoulder. You think it's a good omen?

P- I know it's a hell of a lot better than a bird shitting on your shoulder.

G- Such sage words, Gladys.

We watched the man chisel his limestone for a while, walked around the yard looking at the beautiful pieces, all of which were too heavy to carry home, and got back into the van.

Next we stopped at a batik shop. We watched ladies, and some men, sitting around a little fire, with a little pot of melted wax on top, drawing designs, on fabric, with wax. They dip a little instrument that looks like a measuring scoop with the world's tiniest funnel on the end, into wax, then tap the tiny funnel end (maybe it looks like a tiny humming bird beak) onto the fabric to apply the wax. Then the fabric is dyed and the designs are painted in. They make everything from shirts to sarongs to dresses to silk ties and scarves. It is very pretty. You can tell if a fabric is true Batik because the color & design is the same on both sides of the fabric. A design that is pressed onto a fabric is lighter on one side than the other. In addition to the batikers, there were several women weaving with large looms.

After the batik shop we stopped at a wood carving shop. Our guide explained that the men (we have only seen men carving the wood and women sanding and polishing) learn wood carving from their fathers and begin at an early age. Of course, the same techniques are applied here as at the other wood carving shop we visited............ larger chisels for the initial carve, gradually becoming smaller for the fine cuts..............the piece is held with the legs and feet.........the carvers are sitting on the floor with their metal files next to them on an old cloth............no doubt with rampant backache. We were looking for something similar to the eucalyptus Buddha on a lotus leaf statue we had seen at the prior place, but we could never find one. We ended up purchasing a Hindu Goddess bust carved from Mahogany. Our guide wrapped it very securely for shipping.

Our next stop was Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave), carved out of a mountain in the 11th Century. It is believed, based on a 14th century Javanese poem, to have been the dwelling of a Buddhist priest. The ouside of the cave is carved with crazy faces of animals with an elephant head right above the entrance.

P- The priest supposedly slept in one of those 2 carved out areas near the front of the cave.

G- Ugh! Looks terribly uncomfortable. I hope he put down a layer of palm leaves first.

P- And how tiny must he have been? I'm too tall to lye down in them. And he supposedly meditated in the smaller carved out areas in the back.

G- Gawd, the smell of incense is killing me. Not much to the inside of this cave, but I can see why it would make a great dwelling.

The cave is in a valley, to the left. In front of the cave is a rectangle (about 40' by 20') carved into the earth, with 6 goddess statues pouring water from vessels into ponds of ???? holy water. Even further to the right were several flights of stairs, leading down to a stream, in a lush, green rainforest. Near a waterfall was a fallen statue of Buddah. I was guided around the fallen Buddah by a little old man.

G- How cute is he? He's so spry for as old as he is.

P- I was having trouble getting past the teeth that were the color of yellow corn.

G- Yes, they were terrible. He told me that an earthquake felled the Buddah statue in 1917.

P- I can't make it down by the waterfall. The rocks are too steep for my knee, but grandpa sure did scamper down there with no trouble. Could you see the statue?

G- Well, the large bolders are the statue, but I couldn't make out very much of it due to the moss.

P- Look at that huge banyan tree!

G- The roots system is incredible!! And look at that lizard eating the offering.

P- What's it's eating?

G- Fruit and I think some rice.

P- It's good to be a lizard or a bug around here. You're well fed by the daily offerings.

G- Look at that lotus pond. What an idyllic little setting. I see why the Buddhist priest lived here.

Sweaty and tired from climbing all of those steps, we climbed back into the air-conditioned van and drank some water as Made began driving us to the Monkey Forest.

G- Made, please tell Phyllis she doesn't have to be afraid of the monkeys.

Made – No. They ok. Just take off earrings, shiny jewelry, and sunglasses.

P- You should put the cameras in your bag.

G- Gladys, I am not walking through the Monkey Forest without my camera. I'll keep the black one out and hide the silver one. Ok?

P- Ok, but if the monkeys snatch your camera, you're gonna have a stroke.

Made – You be ok.

G- We'll be fine, Gladys. Calm your nerves.

We entered the forest and hadn't gone 30' down the path when we encountered several monkeys and heard a big ruckus in the trees. I looked back at Phyl and she looked a little freaked out, but so far she hadn't run..

G- Look at these monkeys. They're only mildly interested in us. They show no signs of attacking.

P- I don't like the noise the others are making in the trees.

G- They're way up there and they seem to be fighting amoungst themselves. While their attention is diverted, we'll just walk along quietly. Let me take your picture. Stand still.

We walked through the forest and saw hundreds of monkeys sitting, eating bugs off of each other, swimming, running and eating. We saw many mommy monkeys with tiny little babies clinging to their bellies. Of course, the little babies were the cutest. We stood next to a European family as they watched a group of monkeys playing in a tree. The daughter, maybe age 11, was so excited to see a juevenile, but she hadn't noticed the babies. I tapped the mom on her shoulder to point out the babies, and the woman nearly jumped out of her skn. Monkey Forest rule #1 don't feed the monkeys unless you want more attention than you've bargained for, and rule #2 don't touch anyone because it scares the shit out of them. Phyl & I walked off laughing. We saw the cremation area, the cemetary, and the temple, then headed back to find Made.

We had told Made that we just wanted something cheap and quick for lunch. He said he'd take us to a place with a nice view. The restaurant's entrance should have told us that this was not what we were looking for, but we were quite captivated by the view which included a deep, lush ravine with a river at the bottom. It stretched as far as the eye could see in either direction. We were seated and given menus. After reviewing the menus, we quickly decided that the restaurant was too expensive for a quick lunch.

G- I don't want to stay here. We don't have much time and it's more than we wanted to spend for lunch.

P- I totally agree but I hate to get up and walk out of here.

G- Well, I don't like the idea of being forced to eat here simply because Made brought us here.

P- I agree.

G- The view is spectacular, but today's lunch is just about eating to stop our stomach's from growling, it's not an experience.

P- I agree that I want to leave too, but I just feel weird about it.

G- Ok, get up. We're going.

I explained to the waiter that his restaurant was lovely and the view was beautiful, but that we wanted something very quick. He tried to tell me they could be quick, but we said thank you and headed out the door. Made was surprised to see us back so soon. He shrugged his shoulders at the hostess and off we went. I don't care what arrangement he has with that restaurant to bring people there, it wasn't what we wanted that day. We had Made drop us off at the market in the middle of town and we walked to Dewa Warang, the restaurant where we ate the ginger cashew chicken when we stayed in Ubud. Unfortunately, it started to storm while we ate but we could not sit and wait for it to end. We put on our ponchos and headed out into the storm. We were scheduled to meet Made at 3:00 pm and it was 2:30 pm, but we still had to walk into the rice fields to purchase a painting we had previously seen that we now wanted.

P- Damn! There is no way we can walk all the way to Gusti's hut, way in the rice field, and get back here in time to meet Made. Whah! I want that painting.

G- Maybe there is some reason this is not working out. Maybe we're not meant to have that painting.

P- But I want it.

G- Well, so do I. We saw motorcycles on the path the day we walked it; I'll ask one of these guys if he'll drive me in on his motorcycle. It should't take more than 20 minutes total and I'll only be minutes late for Made. You wait here for Made.

P- Ok. You remember the painting I want? The one with the blue sky and the volcano in the background.

G- I remember.

Fortunately, the rain stopped and I found a man, named Agung, who agreed to take me. I jumped on the back of his bike and off we sped. For the record, I am no fan of motorcycles, I was certainly not wrapping myself around Agung like a snake, and was not wearing a helmet. I told Agung that we needed to hurry, but that I wanted to be safe. I tried to hold onto the little handle on the back of the seat, but there were times when I had to grip Agung's waist, like when we went up a hill at about a 45* angle.

I had remembered the path as being wider and mostly paved. Unfortunately, my memory proved incorrect because the paved part of the path was only about 12” wide and, due to the recent rainstorm, the mud on the sides of the path was completely saturated and slippery. We encountered many ruts and patches where we fishtailed. Agung was clearly not enjoying the ride and seemed very nervous. The going was excruciatingly slow and at times, I had to get off the bike so he could walk it through a rut or up a small hill. Several times we met motorcycles going in the opposite direction and we had to pass each other in a space about 2' wide. When that happened, I had no idea what to do with my legs that were sticking out unless I clamped them to Agung's thighs, which I was not doing. Basically, it sucked! I kept looking at my watch and was stressed to see the time ticking away at a rapid pace. I also kept apologizing to Agung because it was taking much longer than I had told him when we agreed on a price, and because the conditions were so bad.

Finally, after 20 minutes, we arrived at Gusti's hut only to find it empty. Agung called to a man working in the rice field behind Gusti's hut and was told he had went home, down the side of the hill. While I took off my poncho and found the painting, Agung disappeared down the side of the hill in search of Gusti. Thankfully, he returned in just a few minutes, Gusti in tow.

G- Hi Gusti. I was here, with my friend, 2 weeks ago and we were interested in one of your paintings. I'm back to buy it.

Gusti – I don't remember.



Agung

 G- (seriously doubting the veracity of this statement) My friend and I were walking the path and you climbed that tree and got us a coconut, cut it open for us to drink the juice, then cut up the meat for us.

Gusti- No. I don't remember.

G- It doens't really matter. I see the painting we want and I'd like to buy it.

Gusti – (Took his time opening the windows, and acted uninterested in making the sale – a VERY unusual way for a Balinese to behave.) What was the price we discussed?

G- You told us it was 100,000 rupiah but that we'd negotiate the price.

Gusti – No, I don't remember.

G- Ok, whatever. I have to hurry, so will you take 60,000 rupiah for the painting?

Gusti – No. I can't sell it. I have people who are coming back to buy it.

G- Yes. You have me, from 2 weeks ago, and now I'm back to buy it.

Gusti – No. I can't sell it.

At this point I am totally pissed off and ready to beat Gusti to a pulp. I got that look on my face (some of you have seen it) with pursed lips and furrowed eyebrows, that says 'you are a dick and a liar'. I raised my eyebrow and shot Agung a look. Agung had been watching and listening, and after I shot him the look, he and Gusti engaged in a terse conversation that I could not understand.

G- Agung, he's not going to sell me that painting is he?

Agung – No. Gusti bad man. (He climbed back onto his bike.)

G- (I gave Gusti another 'go fuck yourself ' look and climbed onto the bike.) Shit!

Agung – Shit!

G- That damn, lying Gusti!

Agung – Damn Gusti! Gusti bad man.

G- Yes, he is a bad man. And after all we went through to get here! Dammit!

Agung – Dammit!

Having Agung repeat every curse like a parrot made me start to laugh. I wondered if he'd just continue to repeat me if I slung every curse in my arsenal. I found it amusing. I tried one last time.

G- Oh well, Agung. I hope the gods are very angry with Gusti and he is punished. Bastard!

Agung – Yes, me too. Bastard!

Agung and I had now bonded. Neither he, nor I, were as nervous traversing the sodden ground on the way back. We chatted about where I was from. When I told him America, he exclaimed, “America! Oh, Barak Obama. He in Indonesia last month. He live here when young.” This is the same reaction we have received from every Indonesian and they are very proud that America's President lived in Indonesia.

By the time Agung and I decended the 45* hill and drove up the street, 45 minutes had passed. I knew Made & Phyl would be relieved to see me, but I had no idea that she had been freaking out for the past 20 minutes. When I negotiated a price with Agung, he had started at 50,000 and I had negotiated him down to 30,000, but after all we had gone through, I paid him the 50,000 and thanked him profusely.

G-Sorry it took me so long

P- Oh my gawd! I am so glad to see you! I was about to have a heart attack!

G- Well, I know it has been longer than we thought, but why are you freaking out?

P- I started thinking that I sent you off on a motorcycle,with a man we don't know, because I wanted some painting. When you didn't come back, I was thinking you could be raped and murdered up in the rice field.

G- That's a bit extreme, don't you think?

P- Maybe so, but my mind was running away with me and I kept thinking about Natalie Holloway,

and that I just sent you off with some strange guy into a rice field for a stupid painting and I may never see you again! Then I asked Made if he thought I should be worried and he told me maybe so. I really started getting panicked after that. I went back to the place where you found the guy with the motorcycle and asked his friend if he had returned.

G- Ok, ok calm down. I'm fine. When you found out he didn't return, why didn't you just think it was taking longer than we thought? The path was horrible from the rain and it was further than we remembered.  And, you saw Agung, he's not very big.  I could take him!! 

P- I was irrational at that point.  Oh, yes.  I know that you think you're big and bad, but your not.  I'm just so glad you're back and safe. Where's the painting?

G- Gusti would not sell it to me!!! (I told her the story.)

Made – Not all Gusti are bad man.

G- Well of course not, Made. But that Gusti was a very bad man. Even Agung thought so and he spoke to him in Balinese.

It was nice to be back on the bus. Made told us that we'd still be on time for the Kacak Dance at the Uluwatu Temple. We sat back for the long ride.