- Friday Aug 23 10:45am local Balinese time -
Oh my, this land is getting into my blood. I have been
meaning to write a post for the last 24 hours but at every turn there is always
something else to do….
Well here I am. Its Friday and I feel fantastic. Brian is
slightly under the weather, but like a good Smerik he pushes on. Sickness is
for other humans J
Let’s start with a recap. As things were left last, we were
lazing on the beach of north Bali, on the idyllic resort strip of Lovina, 10 km
west of Singaraja, historical colonial capital of Bali.
Aside from the previously mentioned activities of swimming,
drinking, gambling, lounging and generally using as little energy as possible,
we went out for a night on the town. There is a cool bar called Kantin21 that
caters to the local tourist population as well as western minded Balinese. They
had a cool band that only played American music and whats incredible is that
the singer had an incredible voice, did all her singing in English, and, when I
tried to talk to her about her performance, doesn’t speak a shred of English.
Most impressive. It also featured the most extensive cocktail menu I’ve seen to
date in Bali. I got something like an Arrack Mojito (Arrack, Lime, Mint, Sugar)
and could have bought such classics as a negroni (that sounds so horrible in a
hot climate) or new favorites like an Arrack Level 10 (literally featuring 10
different ingredients and almost certainly a painful hang over in the morning).
Another curiosity I have encountered is Balinese women do
not dance. Only the Balinese men. So the only people dancing were westerns (of
both sexes) and local men. Kind of curious being twirled around by a 50 year
old man, but hey, you only live once. Another thing is that drinks you buy out
are almost guaranteed to be watered down. The only guarantee is buying beer.
Otherwise, you whiskey or vodka has been diluted by as much as 50%. Crazy! And
prices for a bottle are insane. You pay $60 in a supermarket for Red Label
Johnny Walker. Nonsense.
So after a night of half strength drinks and fun
dancing/music, we settled in for beautiful viewing of the full moon (Purnama).
Over the cloud and in the sky, the moon is bright and beautiful. Truly a lovely
sight.
A look from our accomodation over Nyoman Warung. Awesome people, namely Anik and Domingo. Warm, open and definitely enjoying our company, though not as much as we enjoyed their's.
In the morning (feeling decidedly less hungover than I
expected) I found Brian once again hard at work in the kitchen.
Today’s preparation: French Toast and Potatoes. Just like
Amerika! They were delicious even without being able to find cinnamon. He has a
real talent for cooking in less than ideal conditions. The only issue was he didn’t
make nearly enough potatoes. Everyone scarfed them up in no time at all. But he
was forgiven when he presented a second plate of toast. So good!
Our plans were to leave for Ubud at 2pm, so that mean the
next 3 hours were strictly devoted to lounging and swimming. I took a couple
dips, drank a beer, ate some Mie Goreng (fried noodles and egg) and generally
thought as little as possible. Happy.
Our main man Domingo, ever present crooner and lady killer
After some heartfelt goodbyes to our happy Lovina crew of
Anik, Domingo, Gita, Wong, Sharon, Norman and Paul, we made our way to Ubud the
same way we came.
Norman taking selfies
Nyoman's Warung in Lovina, Go there!
Our Aussie Brother Paul
Up to Bedugul, down to Mengwe and over to Ubud. The road up
is composed of treacherous switchbacks and suicidal truckers but we made it
alive. We even managed to stop on the way for some delicious strawberries.
Brian was offended at the price $1/lb essentially, but it was quickly forgotten
in their delicious flavor. And our travel companion Lauren just so happened to
share about 5 friends with the gentlemen who happened to be lounging at the
same road side stop as us. So after a 15 minute break full of funny
coincidences, tasty treats and Balinese red bull, we hit the road again.
The
way down is much less treacherous and enjoyable, but upon reaching Mengwe we sorta
went off the reservation. There is no direct road from Mengwe to Ubud (no
matter what the locals tell me, there is no straight shot!) so it was guessing
game of twisty roads, split second decisions and mostly gut feel. And amazingly
(or not so J) Brian got us home without a hitch. We only
got “lost” once, and it was more a lapse of confidence and pure confusion.
It felt so good to be back in Ubud after 3(?) days away.
Solid Wifi, a hot shower and our happy friends made us feel like we had genuinely
returned home.
Adding to that, Wednesday was Ryan’s Balinese half-brithday
(yes, the get half birthday. And their calendar is only 210 days long, so they
get a lot of birthdays in the their lifetime). It was a very cool of taste of
Balinese religious life for me. There was a mountain of offerings (prepared by
Prita’s grandma) and a small prayer ceremony conducted by Prita herself.
We
prayed, offered our thanks, and feasted in a most special way. We had both a
whole duck and whole chicken for Dinner! The preparation was special, the birds
were prepared in the Betutu style, taking 24 hours to cook and featuring an
abundance of Balinese herbs and spices. I’ll let Wiki do the legwork on
explaining (Here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betutu)
but I can say this; fucking tasty!
The flowers behind each ear and rice on the forehead signifies a half birthday
Bebek and Ayam Betutu
After that big feast, and a congratulatory Fortaleza
shot for the successful ride home, we were pooped. Brian and I passed out.
HARD.
That was good though, because we had a fishing trip planned Thursday
(yesterday) morning at 5am. Even with our preemptive sleeping we still were
late to our meetup spot by 15 minutes. A circle K in Ubud that has all the
essentials for any Balinese on the go.
Sugary coffee, Sweet cakes, Roast Chicken flavored Lays, and
some dinner rolls that were oh so buttery and we were on our way. Our fishing
expedition took us just north of Klungkung on the southeastern portion of the
Bali coast. Once there (Brian and I were definitely in it more for the
experience than for any real sport) we found we were sport fishing. Jigging to
be exact. The prey was Bonito and Snapper, maybe Mahi Mahi if were lucky. Oh, I
forgot to mention, we were with our best buddy and all around amazing guy Qull!
He is quite the fisherman, and I think our (Brian and I’s)
collective bad luck brought our quota down because after 4 hours of fishing we
were unable to get anything.
In Bali, the issue of luck, of spirits and of Karma are front
and center. So to say someone has bad luck carries connotations beyond one
moment or place. In our case though, our luck quickly turned as Qull took us a
most delicious place for post fishing rejuvenation; a local restaurant
specializing in fish. Fish Bakso (meatballs in broth), two types of fish Satay,
long beans (green beans) and copious rice made all our fishing woes disappear.
Like I said, our company was pleasant, our food was delicious and our moods
were high. But exhausted. I nearly fell asleep on the ride home and Brian
passed out faster than the door could close on his side of the car. And safely
back home from fishing, we did more of the same. Sleep. Lounge. Talk about not
catching fish, strategize our last 5 days in Bali and generally soak in the
gorgeous atmosphere.
In our rush out the door to fishing, we definitely forgot
sunscreen, so I got a little scorched, but luckily nothing too crazy. I was
able to fashion a little sun protection out of my tshirts so while I probably
looked like a crazy man to the other Balinese fishing, my extreme whiteness was
protected another day.
And I bought a drum! Yesterday was extreme success as my
shopping needs are almost fully taken care of. Now just planning on how to get
it all back home. We ate a simple dinner of Mie Goreng (really a favorite of
Brian and I’s) and listened to audio I took from our drunken nights in Lovina
(don’t worry, you will never hear them), played a video game or two and rejuvenated
ourselves again. Really, our life has been one exhausting happiness to the
next. I expect no sympathy.
And that is where we stand. It is 10:15 on Friday morning,
we are cleaning clothes and preparing for a 2 hour journey to the south and
Kuta. Kuta is like the Las Vegas of Bali, crawling with tourists (in this case
drunken and obnoxious Australians) full of over priced hotels and drinks. But I
have never been and Brian scorns my pre-judgment. Although it does come from a
compilation of everything I’ve heard from both locals, expats and the internet
community. In any event, it will be fun, because we make it fun!
Cheers and good tidings. Looking forward to being home in a
few days.
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