UBUD, BALI, INDONESIA
At the south end of Ubud is the Mandala Wisata Wenara Wana, or Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, a site dating back to the mid-14th century. It's a series of temples, moss-covered statues, stairways, bridges and walkways, set within a thick jungle of giant banyan trees and strangler figs, and it's a really beautiful, ancient, and mysterious-looking place. The forest is also home to about 240 monkeys, or more specifically Balinese macaques, which are fed daily by the keepers (and the visitors).
After breakfast, we walked down the street from our hotel to the sanctuary to check it out, being careful not to step on all the little food offerings the shop owners place on the sidewalk every morning to placate the spirits, a ritual specific to Balinese Hinduism. (Apparently the spirits are partial to rice, flowers, and Ritz crackers. Who knew?)
Perhaps the most dramatic place Chris and I visited in the forest was the strangely monkey-free Holy Bathing Temple, at the bottom of a dark jungle ravine partially covered by the hanging roots of a huge banyan tree. The stone carvings here, as throughout the park, were intricate and beautiful, covered with a thick layer of green moss. The most dramatic figures here were two huge Komodo dragons looming over a cliff, looking down at the stream below--recent additions sculpted in the 1990s.
The rest of the park was lush and beautiful, too, and the monkeys, which had the run of the place, were amazing to watch. There were adults, youngsters, and cute little baby monkeylings, in family groups and alone, and they were everywhere--in the trees, wrestling on the ground, playing in mud puddles, and trying to grab things from visitors! Quite a few of them (the youngsters, mostly) actually jumped on my back and head, and tried to grab whatever was in my pocket and unzip my backpack! Most of them were just having a good time, although one adult monkey, for whatever reason, decided he didn't like me, and came at me with teeth bared like he was going to attack! That was a little unsettling, although these are wild animals, after all. In any case, it was fascinating to watch their behavior, much of which is very human-like.
In the evening we attended an outdoor performance of some Balinese dancing, another one of Ubud's artistic specialties. We saw two traditional dances, both featuring the gamelan suara, or human orchestra--instead of musical instruments, an a capella chorus of more than 50 men provided rhythmic singing and chanting accompaniment to the dancing.
The first dance we saw was the kecak, part of the Hindu epic Ramayana--the story involves the kidnapping of Prince Rama's wife Sita by the demon Rahwana, and her rescue. Some elaborate costumes and very mannered moves; quite dramatic and interesting. The second was the trance dance, or sanghyan djaran, wherein a single dancer riding a large hobby horse is lulled into a trance by the singers and kicks around a bunch of burning coconut husks without being burned. And yes, it's as weird as it sounds.
One final surprise tonight: After leaving the dance performance, Chris and I walked into an internet cafe' and ran into the same four Canadians (Ed, Colin, Bridget, and Candace) that we first met in Fiji, and then ran into again in New Zealand! Yes, the girls that won the crazy hat contest and their boyfriends--looks like they're traveling on more or less the same itinerary as us, as they were in Australia the same time we were! We traded a few travel tips, then jokingly made plans to meet again somewhere in Thailand. I really won't be at all surprised if we do see them again.
At the south end of Ubud is the Mandala Wisata Wenara Wana, or Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, a site dating back to the mid-14th century. It's a series of temples, moss-covered statues, stairways, bridges and walkways, set within a thick jungle of giant banyan trees and strangler figs, and it's a really beautiful, ancient, and mysterious-looking place. The forest is also home to about 240 monkeys, or more specifically Balinese macaques, which are fed daily by the keepers (and the visitors).
After breakfast, we walked down the street from our hotel to the sanctuary to check it out, being careful not to step on all the little food offerings the shop owners place on the sidewalk every morning to placate the spirits, a ritual specific to Balinese Hinduism. (Apparently the spirits are partial to rice, flowers, and Ritz crackers. Who knew?)
Perhaps the most dramatic place Chris and I visited in the forest was the strangely monkey-free Holy Bathing Temple, at the bottom of a dark jungle ravine partially covered by the hanging roots of a huge banyan tree. The stone carvings here, as throughout the park, were intricate and beautiful, covered with a thick layer of green moss. The most dramatic figures here were two huge Komodo dragons looming over a cliff, looking down at the stream below--recent additions sculpted in the 1990s.
The rest of the park was lush and beautiful, too, and the monkeys, which had the run of the place, were amazing to watch. There were adults, youngsters, and cute little baby monkeylings, in family groups and alone, and they were everywhere--in the trees, wrestling on the ground, playing in mud puddles, and trying to grab things from visitors! Quite a few of them (the youngsters, mostly) actually jumped on my back and head, and tried to grab whatever was in my pocket and unzip my backpack! Most of them were just having a good time, although one adult monkey, for whatever reason, decided he didn't like me, and came at me with teeth bared like he was going to attack! That was a little unsettling, although these are wild animals, after all. In any case, it was fascinating to watch their behavior, much of which is very human-like.
In the evening we attended an outdoor performance of some Balinese dancing, another one of Ubud's artistic specialties. We saw two traditional dances, both featuring the gamelan suara, or human orchestra--instead of musical instruments, an a capella chorus of more than 50 men provided rhythmic singing and chanting accompaniment to the dancing.
The first dance we saw was the kecak, part of the Hindu epic Ramayana--the story involves the kidnapping of Prince Rama's wife Sita by the demon Rahwana, and her rescue. Some elaborate costumes and very mannered moves; quite dramatic and interesting. The second was the trance dance, or sanghyan djaran, wherein a single dancer riding a large hobby horse is lulled into a trance by the singers and kicks around a bunch of burning coconut husks without being burned. And yes, it's as weird as it sounds.
One final surprise tonight: After leaving the dance performance, Chris and I walked into an internet cafe' and ran into the same four Canadians (Ed, Colin, Bridget, and Candace) that we first met in Fiji, and then ran into again in New Zealand! Yes, the girls that won the crazy hat contest and their boyfriends--looks like they're traveling on more or less the same itinerary as us, as they were in Australia the same time we were! We traded a few travel tips, then jokingly made plans to meet again somewhere in Thailand. I really won't be at all surprised if we do see them again.
posted by John Kuge at 11:23 PM
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