The World's Most Livable City!

Everyone we've known who's been to Melbourne has raved about it, and now we'll get to see for ourselves.  A bit of background . . . in 2008 we spent a month in Australia, most of it up and down the East Coast with a 4-day trip to Uluru, the iconic aboriginal site in Central Australia.  (Our original plan was to go to India for that month but changed our minds after the terrorist attacks in Mumbai just two weeks before our scheduled departure!)  It was obvious that we had just scratched the surface of this fascinating and diverse country.  We loved it and promised ourselves a return trip.

Originally we thought we'd spend up to a month 'doing' Southern and Western Australia on this trip.  But we kept adding countries in SE Asia and then threw in Christmas/New Year's in Fiji and a stop in NZ to see friends, and our trip was already into month four.  So we opted for a quick visit to one mutually-agreed upon spot and then another, 'bloody good' stay on our next trip.  Picking one spot was easy - Melbourne!

I began researching places to stay for a week or so. With several candidate accommodations in neighborhoods which meant nothing to me, I was kind of stymied. Then I remembered we had new pals there - Sally and Richard - a delightful couple we'd met in Varanas, India less than a year ago.  We'd been in touch via email, and I emailed Sally, asking if she could recommend one of the neighborhoods I was considering.  Amazingly, she invited us to stay with them!!  They live in the North Carlton neighborhood, a quick and easy transit ride to all the attractions of Melbourne.  And they were disappointed that we could only stay 9 days!!  How very blest we are!!

They happily met us when our flight from Bali arrived at 9 a.m. -

On the way into town from the airport, they apologize that they've booked a 2 day/3 night stay (starting tomorrow) at a friend's place on Philip Island and hoped that was all right with us!!  Oh I guess so :))  We get settled in their marvelous home and get a quick tour of the 'hood which is absolutely delightful - lots of local restaurants, shops. broad boulevards flanked with gorgeous old trees shading beautiful, wide sidewalks.  Melbourne has already enchanted us!

Philip Island - a favorite getaway for so many locals, is an easy 1-1.5 hour drive and it's another world.  We're staying at a family getaway, built by the papa back in the '60's and about 50 paces from the shore - beautiful!

Relaxing on the porch and catching up on the local news.

Tim and Richard and Pepi on the beach.

Sally and Pepi trying out the surf!

And one of the biggest treats of being here (THE biggest treat was yet to come!) was the abundance of wildlife - wallabies that came right up to the porch to drink from the ever-present water bucket provided for them.

Here's one intrepid fellow on his way to the bucket.

Yes, he was this close to us!!

And tonight we're off for the super, special treat on Philip Island - the Parade of the Penguins!

Bye Bye Bali . . .

We have one more week on Bali, 7.5 days to be precise as our flight leaves at 11:35 pm which is exactly 25 minutes before our 30-day visa expires! At 12:01am we will slide into day 31, and the Indonesian government is very rigid about their visas.  They are good for 30 nights, and if you don't leave before 30 nights becomes 31, well, who knows . . . ??

Bali being Bali, there are no shortage of places to stay; the challenge is finding the right place for us.  Lots of reading, scanning web sites, and we decide the best place for us is Sanur (dubbed '
'Snooze' by the LP set - a somewhat sleepy beach 'town' favored by expats and the older crowd.  And it's an easy 45" drive to the airport which is definitely a consideration.  Now, to find a place to stay . . . we stumble on the absolute most delightful place, Kembali Lagi, which we learn means 'Come Back Again' in Indonesian.  Reviewers have written glowingly about it with the most common comment being that it is always booked solid.  We give it a try and Camille, the owner, assures us she can squeeze us in if we don't mind a bit of a gypsy booking - namely, moving a few times over our 7-night stay.

What a perfectly wonderful way for us to end our stay on Bali!  We arrive on Valentine's Day and find a lovely, live floral arrangement with a HVD message from Camille and John, the owners.  Now that's classy!  Our first room is one of the smaller ones but still beautifully appointed and with the most delightful staff - they didn't get the 'we're staff, they're guests' training.  They are all Balinese, delightfully outspoken and funny and all speak perfect English.  It's small, intimate, and an absolute oasis.

One night we spend in the 'villa' an enormous (5-BR) house just up the street (only one other bedroom was occupied) and the last three nights in one of the larger rooms, right next to the pool, which I used several times a day.  In addition to all the other delights, KL had a well-stocked library of books which we both took full advantage of.

One of the reasons we chose Sanur was its description as a 'walking town' - the long, sandy beach and walkway runs nearly 7 km.  It's a bit of a walk to the beach but we happily make our way there one morning, stake out our patch of sand, and head into the water.  It's an okay beach and we paddle around in the water which is a nice temperature and then, AND THEN . . . A N D  T H E N . . . Tim spots something in the water which we both have to look at twice,  It can't be, NOOOOO - we're swimming, we're in the water with a HUMAN TURD!!!  OMG, we are out of there so fast, on the verge of hurling all over the beach!!!  We had read that some of the beaches in Kuta, the uber tourist beach part of Bali, have been utterly fouled but had no idea the fouling had reached all the way up to Sanur.  How very disgusting and how very sad . . . back to the swimming pool for the duration!

Fortunately, there are a host of wonderful restaurants all up and down the main drag; we find an Italian (Massimo's) restaurant and an Indian restaurant (best butter chicken we've ever eaten!) which are totally delightful.  And we spend a wonderful, relaxing week at KL, getting to know Camille and John (both expat Americans) as well as lots of other guests from all over the world.  Loved staying here . . .

So bye, bye Bali.  We're glad we came; no trip to this part of the world would be complete without a stop in Bali.  I think if we'd come 10 or 15 years ago we would have liked it a whole lot more.  Now it felt over-touristed and in danger of being a victim of its own success.

Off to Australia!!

A Most Unusual Souvenir

On past trips we've brought home things that were easily portable . . . CD's of local music, small hanging doo-dads, Christmas ornaments . . . but the local wood here on Bali is calling us and keeps calling us!  Easily portable?  I think not!  We have been traveling for over three months with one backpack each, weighing in the neighborhood of 7kg or 15 pounds!  We have one more flight, to Melbourne Australia, and then our long haul flight (14.5 hours) home.  For a small fee, we can add a checked bag to the Melbourne flight and the checked bag home is free.  We wouldn't have to schlep this hefty souvenir through too many airports or past the eyes of doubting customs officials . . .  so the decision is made:  we're taking home Balinese wood!

Now we have to find a lumberyard and figure out exactly what we're taking home.  Our puzzled driver (our request leaves him speechless) assures us he can find us a yard, we just have to decide what we want.   We have absolutely no idea what we're going to make with this exotic wood, how much we will need to make our mystery creation, or how much it's likely to cost . . . minor details!

Our still baffled drive takes us to a lumber yard/art furniture 'shop' which, for me, is like a discount designer shoe store for most women and for Tim is sheer heaven.  And these woods are mind-bogglingly wonderful - dense, beautifully grained, and lushly colored in shades of rosewood and mahogany (can you tell I love wood??).  There isn't one variety that either of us recognize but we begin traipsing around the yard, to the amazement of the workers as well as our driver.

 That is a single piece of wood standing in the rear of this photo (and Tim with a glassy-eyed stare)!

While we were negotiating for our wood purchase, I was fascinated watching this fellow cutting this huge piece of wood, lengthwise.  He was standing on a block of wood - barefoot! - with no safety equipment whatsoever - using a chainsaw (Stihl) with this humongous blade to slice this thick piece of wood!  This was the second cut; he'd already cut the opposing half.

While I watched he actually completed the cut, one huge piece fell away, he jumped down, and proceeded to polish the edges of his cut - amazing!!

Pretty much on the fly, we designed a pair of tables for use in the living room with our favorite lounge chairs and agree to return to pick them up on our way out of town in a couple of days.  Here we are inspecting the final product - two half moons and six legs.

We have no idea if we paid a fair price (total cost - about $85) or we were totally scammed and, frankly, we don't care.  We are both delirious over this gorgeous wood and can't wait to see how our tables turn out!!

Now this is a souvenir!!

Catpoochino or Kopi Lewak in the Flesh

It seems like almost everyone has seen The Bucket List.  And if you haven't, you probably have your own 'bucket list' - namely, things you intend to do before you kick the proverbial bucket.  If you saw the movie, you probably remember one of the most amusing scenes early on when Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, strangers, find themselves roommates in a hospital where they're both being treated for terminal conditions.  Morgan, in his low-key, understated way takes Jack down a notch or three by describing the origin of Jack's pretentious coffee beans, kopi lewak.

I never dreamed we would actually meet the critter that produces these beans!  Yes, we visit the coffee and tea plantation where the kopi lives . . . and eats . . . and poops!  A bit of history . . .the Dutch were the first settlers/colonizers of Indonesia and the first Europeans to set foot on Bali.  Somehow they managed to convince people to remove the local coffee beans from the poop of the kopi, clean them (thoroughly), and brew them into coffee . . . and, amazingly, sell it as a delicacy!!  Made me wonder if that was the original meaning of 'Dutch treat'!

Kopi lewak beans in the raw and their original form.

The source (producer?) of this exotic coffee is a ferret/fox-like creature who spends most of his time sleeping, especially during the day.

The raw beans are washed first (and second and third!!) and then roasted, by hand, for upwards of two hours!  I get a chance to do some roasting . . .

And finally we have a tea-tasting - 12 varieties of lovely teas all free but no kopi lewak!

That we have to pay for - at nearly $4 a cup which is really pricey.  And, frankly, we'll stick with our Guatemelan beans from Costco!!

Some of the dozen tea samples and our lovely hostess.

On our way out, we actually see a coffee bush, the first time for us. . .

The Artisans of Ubud

You only have to walk a block or two along Ubud's main street to realize that this is an artisans paradise.  The wood carvings, the fabrics - especially the batiks - are absolutely world class.  A trip through the local market just reaffirms that; in fact, it is overwhelming and other than a sweet, hanging, handmade sailing craft, we don't buy a thing.  We are told that a driver-escorted trip out of town is well worth the cost so we hire this talkative fellow whose English is punctuated by numerous English slang expressions and his manic enthusiasm is contagious.  Off we go . . . to visit a woodworkers outlet, a batik factory and whatever else we have the time and energy for!

First stop, the woodworkers outlet.  Outside are a number of men, sitting on mats, carving away, holding their pieces with their feet!

I think these men have probably been doing this all their lives as have their fathers before them . . .

Their skill and artistry is obvious.  The creations we see in the showroom are truly amazing.

Next stop, the batik factory - another amazing and beautiful product, the result of generations' of skill.

This lady painstakingly dyes these strands which are then incorporated into beautiful batik patterns.  Another approach is to weave them by machine, using a very old method - jacquard punch cards!

There are shelves and shelves of these cards, each one reflecting the complex weaving pattern necessary to create a batik.

 A jacquard pattern in operation . . .

One of the enormous looms creating batik . . .

A loom operator making a 'handmade' batik.

Painstakingly rethreading one of the looms . . . 

Of course there is a lovely gift shop on the premises which we wander through . . . for a weaver, this is absolute heaven!

Next stop, the cave temple complex.  Outside is the usual gamut of shops, the owners of which insist I need a large scarf or sari-type garment in order to enter the temple.  Not so - that's only for women (or men) who are somewhat scantily clad (which we are not).  The simple sash was free!

 The large fish pond is in the middle of the complex (that's the cave temple in the background).

The pool is filled with fish but the water level was so low that the fish were swimming on their sides!

There's another temple (Buddhist I think) farther up the mountain but it is a blazingly hot and humid day so we decide to forego the hike.  Tim announcing he's not going another meter up this hill!

These enchanting faces adorn the walk up the hill.

It's way past time for lunch so we're off for a much-needed break - lunch and a cool drink!

Balinese Dances - Take Two with Fire

So THE Balinese dance is the Kecak Fire Dance and THE place to see it is at the Hindu Temple, a lovely open-air, three-sided seating venue and it takes a moment after we sit down (right in the front row) to realize - there are no instruments!

Our front row seat - waiting for the show to start.

Now this should be interesting indeed.  Our first performance, the Legong Legend, was accompanied by musicians playing instruments that are definitely an acquired taste . . . or sound.

And we actually get a program that describes, in somewhat fractured but nonetheless intelligible English, the sequences of this story in dance.  The audience fills up quickly, and the dance starts with  a huge troupe of men filing out on the floor (I count around 30).

They sit down and begin chanting, in a a kind of three-part harmony which is very compelling (and a lot easier on the ear than the Legong instruments).  And then the action begins . . .

Not surprisingly, this is a story of a king, his queen, a marriageable-age daughter and . . . well you know the story, many forms, many cultures, amazing the universality of these stories!  Each chapter  is accompanied by this remarkable mens chorus with its compelling chanting which enhances the action and fills in the gaps of the action.  Here are some photos . . .

And then we come to the climax of the evening - the fire dance.  Yes, this is a real fire, and yes it was this close to us.

The fire burns down to hot coals in a few minutes and this becomes the 'stamping ground' for a possessed rider on a 'hobby horse' who repeatedly gallops through the coals - barefoot!!  The hobby horse is life-size and the rider holds the sides of his horse while he gallops around the floor. The scattered coals are pushed back into a pile after each romp through them.

As he 'gallops' away from us, we can see the bottoms of his feet which are as black as the coals.  After about 10 romps through the bed of coals, he's done, the audience is exhausted just watching this, and the show is officially over.  Whew!  This was quite an evening!!

Out and About in Ubud . . . Our First Balinese Dance

All the guide books state that the one thing you absolutely must do in Ubud is attend a performance of  a traditional Balinese dance.  Along with the usual 'welcome to our guesthouse info' our room book has a list of all the performances as well as the venues, dance companies, days/times, and costs.  This is obviously a well-orchestrated attraction as you simply need to look at the day to see what's playing where, when, and for how much.

There are two dances I would like to see (Tim patiently goes along with the plan!).  One, the Legong, is performed at the Palace; the other, the Kecak Fire Dance at the Temple, a setting that gets rave reviews.  Both are an easy walk from our cottage.  Tickets bought at the Tourist and Visitor Center and we're off to do some exploring.  Along with the room info book, a lovely, rather slick magazine was left for us - Ubud Life (?).  Normally I just ignore that sort of thing but one article caught my attention.  A young jeweler/silversmith from Canada moved to Bali years ago and has set up an apprentice program . . . in the local prison.  Her works, along with those of the inmates, are sold in her shops (Jewelry for the Soul), two of which are in Ubud.  I'm not 'into' jewelry but I am most curious about these shops and the program.

Only one wrong turn later, we make our way to the shop which is delightful, staffed by a lovely young woman and full of very affordable, imaginative creations.  And, yes, I did buy a couple of pieces!

Tim taking it easy in the jewelry shop after some very strenuous shopping.

On the way back home, we pass an intriguing shop full of exotic wooden creations.  Turns out they are from East Timor - a place that rings some distant bell of political upheaval and devastation 10 or so years back . . . what really captivates me is this wee one, son of the owner, who was so sweet and friendly . . . 

On to the dance performance!  It starts at 7:30 but we're advised to arrive as early as 7:00 to get good seats.  We arrive at 6:50 and the 'good seats' are in short supply.  Our not so bad seats are to the left of the stage, right behind one of the musicians' pits.  Their instruments are unlike anything we've ever seen . . . a wood percussion upright xylophone thingee and a kind of horizontal cymbal on steroids, both of which are very loud.  I mean very, very loud.  We were far enough back that it was tolerable but we watched a number of people seated on the opposite side of the stage (behind the other musician pit) actually get up and leave less than halfway through the performance.  

Taking photographs during the performance was forbidden, but I quickly realized that only flash photography was forbidden.   

Waiting for the dancers.  

We were handed a very brief program which told us that there were 8 segments to this performance; we had trouble figuring out how they fit together but in toto they portray the history of a local tribe, the Legong (I believe!).  Legong dancers enjoy a very respected place in Balinese society; they are remembered for their dancing decades after leaving the stage.

The first appearance of the dancers . . . since they were standing still, this photo is clear.  Unfortunately, a lot of the upcoming ones are blurry - whirling actions, no flash allowed and minimal light, my wee camera couldn't compensate, but I hope this gives you some idea of what we saw.

I found myself unconsciously trying to mimic the action of the dancers' feet (especially their toes) while watching them.  I admit, I can't get my feet or toes to do any of these moves!!

There were eight segments in this performance, and each one meant an elaborate costume change.

This was one of the mostly-male dance segments.

And here come the ladies . . .

Just getting dressed for each of these segments must have required a major backstage crew!

Just try flexing your toes like this!!

One of the last dance segments . . .

And this was the splendid finale . . . those are women atop each of these male dancers!

This was a long evening - upwards of 90" - and I'm still not sure I 'got' the Legong history/legend lesson but glad we decided to see this - absolutely unique!