Bali

Bali is beautiful. The landscape and people are so peaceful and gentle. We spent the first few days in Kuta, the main beach resort. This was two days too much. It is a touristy place full of too many loud Aussies. Our Aussie friends from school warned us of this and pleaded with us not to judge all of them by those found at Kuta. We stayed in a rather nice boutique hotel though and enjoyed the food and the shopping that Kuta had to offer. We did hire a car and driver one day and explored around visiting a temple and did some snorkeling. Cole managed to meet some locals and kept himself occupied surfing and checking out the nightlife. The highlight of Kuta was definitely watching the sunsets at the beach. Everyone would gather to watch and awe at the sight. Musicians would play, there would be soccer and volleyball games going on, the hawkers were out in full force, and mostly people sat and basked in the beauty.
After Kuta we spent 7 days in Ubud. Ubud is the cultural centre of Bali and was certainly incredible. So many images and memories will be stuck with us forever. My highlight definitely was a bike tour we did. We were picked up early in the morning and driven to the ridge of one of the active volcanoes on the island (last eruption was 1963). Here we had a great breakfast looking over onto the lake with a view of the three craters of the volcano. From here we were driven to a little interpretation centre where they process coffee. I got to see how coffee was roasted the traditional way over an open fire. Bali has their own style of coffee. After roasting they grind it into the finest powder imaginable, it is then served as a sort of instant coffee or basically camp boil-up coffee. Strong, with a sludge about an inch thick in the bottom. We also got to try some of the most expensive coffee in the world, Lemack coffee. This coffee is gather from the feces of a cat-like animal, the Lemack. (Yes you read that right) Apparently the cat only eats coffee beans that are at the perfect stage of ripeness. Funny, it sort of tasted like s--t too. (Of course this leads to many questions I didn't ask like: Who figured this out? and If the cat is eating this stuff why isn't it digesting it? Maybe it is like corn) Anyway we started our bike ride after this tour. Since we had gone up to the volcano the biking was downhill and easy. The countryside was unbelievably beautiful and very traditional. We saw women walking to market with bundles, baskets and whatever balanced on their heads. People bathing in the streams by the side of the road. Priests leading a group of worshipers to the village temple. Workers at every stage of the rice production, tilling, planting, weeding, harvesting, and thrashing. Our guide was great and he spent a lot of time explaining everything to us. We even got to try thrashing the rice. We visited a family compound and saw how most Balinese still live. It is interesting as each region specializes in a certain craft or trade as well as rice production. The village where we visited a family were mat weavers. Others would be wood carvers or painters or some other trade. In the family compound there will be 5 or 6 extended families living communally. Everyone has a role in the production of their craft and rice production. Even the old granny had a job to do. After our ride we were treated to a feast of smoked duck and other wonderful treats.
We did a number of other things in Ubud that were all great. We went river rafting on Christmas Day. The scenery along the route incredible. We saw tropical birds and monkeys. We were pummeled by waterfalls dropping from the 30 metre high canyon we were in. At one point there were reliefs carved into the rocks for about 500 metres.
We rented scooters and headed to a beach on the other side of the island and got lost and separated on the way back.
We ate and ate. The food was fantastic. Maureen and Cole took a Balinese cooking class and so we will be able to try some of their food at home.
We went to the Kecak Fire Dance with a chorus of 100 men. We went to a Lebong Dance at Ubud palace. Both we unique and another highlight.
The markets and shopping were plentiful so Maureen had a great time shopping. Everything imaginable is available. She has become a master bargainer.
I rented a mountain bike a few times and went exploring the countryside. Again the sights were astounding such as men gathered in a circle massaging their cocks (oops did that come out wrong, roosters that is) and then pitting them against each other.
I've left some pictures which can't do Bali justice.
Maureen checking things out in the market.
The reliefs on the rafting trip.
Women throughout the countryside carried their loads on their heads. This lady was carrying a basket of offerings to the small temples in the rice fields. All the fields are terraced and she would make the 3 step up to the next terrace without skipping a beat or dropping her load. This was the area we stopped to thrash rice and we soon gathered a troop of children and other curious locals.
It was difficult to get a good photo of the dancers because of the light but the movements were so graceful and beautiful.

Cole's Here

Cole arrived last Monday. The week has even gone by faster with him here. Monday was a holiday so we did have a bit of a chance to show him around the neighbourhood a little bit. He has spent some time at school with us and managed to check out things downtown. I took my 'personal day' Friday and we did some bike riding and checked out Batu Caves. Batu Caves is a Hindu Shrine. The caves are enormous. The entrance has a flight a flight of 272 steps leading to the Temple Cave. We were informed as we climbed that each step taken on the stairs adds one day to your life. (I might do this a few more times in the next year) At the foot of the stairs is golden statue of Muruga, a Hindu deity. It is about 100 feet tall and is quite an impressive sight. The caves go back into the mountain quite a distance and there are a number of Hindu shrines within the caves. In February they celebrate Thaipusam. Thousands of Hindus descend on Batu Caves, the men pierce their tongues and cheeks with metal skewers and attach hooks through various parts of their body as an act of penance and to honor Murgura. The women carry large coconut milk pots to fulfill their vows of penance. I think they get off a little easier.


Cole with a friend inside Batu Caves.






Here is a clip of a section of the road that we bike up to Genting Highlands. You can see how quiet, green and beautiful the ride is.




Last night we took Cole down to the center of Kuala Lumpur. This is really only the third time we have been there since we've come. We got caught in a major traffic jam getting there and got lost for about an hour on the way home. I don't imagine we'll be heading back there too often. It is a great place to just walk around and enjoy the sights and sounds of a big city though. We went to dinner at Jalan Alor. This is a street restaurant area. The food is local, good, and cheap. After that we wondered the streets checking out the sights. I've included a couple videos of hip-hop dancers. On one corner the dancers gather and the groups challenge each other. A performer from one group will do a few moves and then the other group will send out someone to respond. They really are quite talented.



















Cole left this morning for Penang to spend a day or two. He will then catch the ferry to Langkawi, an island on the east side of Malaysia just south of Thailand. He took up an offer of one the parents of a student in my class and will stay at the Sheraton Beach Resort.(The dad is the GM of the resort.) A rough backpackers life. Maureen and I are left this week to take part in all the Christmas activities. Today we are attending a couple of open houses, one is a cookie exchange thing and another is an invitation from one of my parents for Gluhwein n' cookies. On Tuesday we are going to the Canadian High Commissioners residence for a carole sing and party, complements, of course, of all the generous Canadian taxpayers. (Merci by the way.)
Friday was the staff Christmas party. It was a great event. We were able to bring Cole along and he got to see how wild teachers can be. The food was good. The dancing lasted until the wee hours. After we headed out to one of the local establishments. Maureen and I were chased out not too long after we arrived by the smoke (everyone smokes here) and the loud music. We left Cole hooked up with some of the single teachers who managed to take good care of him.

On Friday school is out at noon and we head off soon after for Bali. The blog alas will be quieter than usual for a while. We are in Bali until December 30, we then return to KL and head off to Laos on January 1st. We are in Laos until the 10th of January. School starts up for us on January 12th.
Maureen and I hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas and New Year. Right now the pangs for home are strong as we miss friends, routines, and yes even the snow. All of you are in our thoughts and we really wish you the best.