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Puris Saraswati on Jalan Raya
in the centre of Ubud |
Tamar and I practiced tai chi together this morning for the first time. We tried to remember the form we learned from
Sue Chang quite a few years ago now but were both a bit rusty. Fortunately we both know the 24 form so at least we could practice that one together.
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| Jalan Raya |
Around mid-morning we drove into Ubud (T&J have hired a car which makes getting around much easier) as we had to stock up on some provisions.
Ubud has changed dramatically in the 13 years since I last visited - Simone was only 8, now she's nearly 21. The traffic during the day is horrendous, bumper-to-bumper crawls along the streets, of which some are now one-way, including the popular Monkey Forest Road. Where before the main traffic consisted of motor scooters and the odd taxi, it's now congested with private vehicles, mainly the smaller SUVs.
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The famous Casa Luna
now celebrating 20 years in Ubud |
It is an even more popular tourist destination now and a greater magnet for expat communities. Some of the places I remember
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| A modern store |
, the Casa Luna cafe/restaurant and Puri Saraswati (where we first stayed) and almost the same. The temple next door, instead of being mostly empty was full of tourists. The ramshackle and roughly-built shops have been replaced by glass-fronted boutiques with white-tiled floors - the rough, uneven footpath is still the same though. The large markets on the corner of Jalan Raya and Monkey Forest Road are still there, but have been completely rebuild with a more sturdy and larger complex of buildings.Warungs selling water and the usual range of snacks have been replaced by 24 hour convenience stores. Many things have not changed, like taxi drivers sitting on the footpath smoking, chatting and propositioning passers-by. There is hardly anyone offering scooter taxi rides now as many of the tourists/expats hire their own now or just catch taxis.
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| Inside Cafe Luna |
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| Antipasto Arabia and juice |
We decided to have a snack in Cafe Luna with its almost wall-less interior and outlook over the valley at the rear. The simple decor has hardly changed and the food and service was still excellent. I had an Antipasto Arabia which consisted of a minted yoghurt, dukkah (a
mixture of herbs, nuts and spices), guacamole sundried (sunburnt!) tomato and toasted Turkish bread with a lime, watermelon and orange juice. Delicious.
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| Har's garden |
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| Selecting the fresh produce |
After stopping at the supermarket for provisions, headed north along Raya Andong through the beautiful countryside and then back via Sriwedari to get some organic vegetables. There is a strong vegetarian/vegan community here and a strong emphasis (for some) on organic produce. We stopped at Har's organic garden for some tomatoes, but came away with a pumpkin, eggplants and handfuls of herbs. He's a really interesting guy and a great salesman.
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| This land is not for sale |
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| Detail on a house entrance |
The area around Sriwedari is very beautiful, and only a very short drive north of Ubud, so there's a lot of pressure now on landholders to sell their land to developers wanting to build resorts and villas for the tourists. Not only here, but all around Ubud. Some, as you can see in the photo have taken some fairly dramatic measures to indicate that their property is not for sale.
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| Warung Jepun |
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| Sambal Matah |
While in Sriwedari we stopped at Warung Jepun, a local warung (restaurant/cafe) for lunch. John & I had the local nasi goreng (fried rice with egg) and Tamar had a fish curry made from fish caught that day. Both meals were very good, especially with the home made
sambal matah,
a famous raw sambal from Bali. It is a freshly made
spicy lemongrass and shallot relish with various amounts of chilli, ginger, garlic, lime and shrimp paste which is an ideal accompaniment to fish and chicken dishes.
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| Warung Little India |
Later that night, Tamar had another gig, but first we had to have dinner, this time at Warung Little India. Only a hole-in-the wall restaurant, but providing Indian and Thai meals prepared by a chef who had lived and worked in India and brought recipes back with her. We had mushroom, paneer (cheese), prawn and goat curries. What was interesting was the distinctly different flavours of each one and the mildness of the curries. Balinese curries don't have the burning hotness of Indian curries so the flavours come through more strongly. We drank the bottle of Italian Prosecco that I'd brought form Australia which worked well with the milder curries.
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| Tamar and Cool Tone |
Then it was off to Lezat's for the evening's entertainment. Peter, the young Dutch owner is into blues and rock, and offers live music a few nights a week. Tonight it was Cool Tone a local band playing (as John says) from the Ubud songbook. Essentially famous rock songs from the 70s popular with the mainly western patrons who love hearing their old favourites. It's like a time warp. Tamar and other guest singers featured during the night to the appreciation of the crowd who danced along to many of the songs. All good fun. The band was great, especially the guitarist who could emulate a number of different styles and sounds and wasn't afraid of a little solo work. His guitar-based introduction to Pink Floyd's The Wall lasted longer than the song itself! There are other musical styles being played in Ubud, but virtually no original music which is a bit sad. Also a bit sad is what seems to be the demise of reggae music which was very popular with the locals last time I was here.
