17 Nov - 19 Nov 2009 Ubud


Southeast Asia
Republic of Indonesia
Never mind Indonesia, welcome to Bali, the Island of Gods
Ubud
Monkey Forest Road
Ubud Terrace Bungalows +62361975690 ubud_terrace@yahoo.com
Stylish and spacious double room (garden bungalow) with breakfast for two, for IDR 160,000.- or US$ 17.- per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Ubud Terrace Bungalows, which we would highly recommend, and for directions:
S 08° 30.93' E 115° 15.55'









Stepping back several centuries and meeting (i) creative double-ikat weavers (unique to Tenganan, gringsing is a complex and time-consuming double ikat process in which both warp and weft threads are pre-dyed), (ii) traditional egg painters, (iii) skilful basket makers, (iv) precise lontar carvers and (v) entertaining gangsa (a Balinese xylophone-like instrument) musicians at Tenganan, home of the conservative Bali Aga people (the descendants of the original Balinese who inhabited Bali before the Majapahit arrival in the 11th century CE).



Discovering the two sides (maybe Yin and Yang) of rather touristy Ubud, the town (i) where all that is magical about Bali is combined in one easy-to-love package: from nightly cultural performances on stages humble and grand to museums filled with works by artists whose creativity flowered here and on to the unbelievably green rice fields that spill down myriad hillsides to rushing rivers below; and (ii) where aggressive touts from the East (“Taxi?! Tour?! Massage?! - Cheap, cheap!”) and pompous charlatans from the West (“Astrology?! Therapy?! Rebirth?! - Cheap, cheap!”) milk their international victims.



Click below for a summary of this year's travels
2009 Map Konni & Matt


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Destination: ,

16 Nov - 17 Nov 2009 Candidasa


Southeast Asia
Republic of Indonesia
Never mind Indonesia, welcome to Bali, the Island of Gods
Candidasa
Rama Bungalows
Comfortable, new double room with breakfast for IDR 220,000.- or US$ 23.30 per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Rama Bungalows in Candidasa, which we would highly recommend, and for directions:
S 08° 30.69' E 115° 34.37'








Testing both (i) the famous local black rice-wine aka dark brem (IDR 25,000.- per 0.5-litre bottle) and (ii) the golden arak of almost grappa quality (IDR 20,000.- per litre) and afterwards exploring the Taman Tirta Gangga at Tirta Gangga, a traditional but still relatively young water palace with pools, moats, canals, fountains and statues which had been built by Amlapura’s water-loving rajah in 1948 CE but was heavily damaged (a) in the 1963 CE eruption of Gunung Agung and (b) during the state-instigated political killing that rocked Indonesia only two years later.
“If you feel lost, disappointed, hesitant, or weak, return to yourself, to who you are, here and now, and when you get there, you will discover yourself, like a lotus flower in full bloom, even in a muddy pond, beautiful and strong.” 


Watching the graceful, typically Balinese legong dance, characterised by flashing eyes and quivering hands, performed by a young girl elaborately made up and dressed in gold brocade.


"Dance me to the end of love
Oh let me see your beauty when the witnesses are gone
Let me feel you moving like they do in Babylon
Show me slowly what I only know the limits of
Dance me to the end of love..."


Dawdling along the secretive country roads and hidden back lanes of East Bali (i) where green rice terraces spill down hillsides under swaying palms, (ii) where wild volcanic beaches are washed by pounding surf and (iii) where age-old villages soldier on with barely a trace of modernity.



Click below for more blog posts about fantastic dance performances 
22 May - 04 Jun 2013 Seoul (Sajo Dance)
27 Apr - 01 May 2011 Chidambaram (Bharathanatyam Dance)
01 Jan - 03 Feb 2011 Madiha (Devil Dance)
26 May - 02 Jun 2010 Siem Reap (Nymph Dance)
19 Nov - 18 Dec 2009 Lovina (Legong Keraton)

 Click below for a summmary of this year's travels
2009 Map Konni & Matt

Visit the Konni & Matt Online Albums and order high-res travel photos
Konni & Matt Travel Photos


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Destination: ,

15 Nov - 16 Nov 2009 Tirta Gangga


Southeast Asia
Republic of Indonesia
Never mind Indonesia, welcome to Bali, the Island of Gods
Tirta Gangga
Homestay Rijasa +6236321873
Twin room with breakfast for two for IDR 100,000.- or US$ 10.60 per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of Homestay Rijasa in Tirta Gangga, which we would recommend, and for directions:
S 08° 24.68' E 115° 35.30'









Travelling the twisty coastal road around the east tip of Bali which climbs up on the side of 1,175-m high Gunung Seraya and where the views out to sea are breathtaking, passing through numerous small villages where people were carving prahus (fishing boats with dug-out hulls and bamboo outriggers) and painting them in bright colours.
"Bali is one of my favorite places in the world. In one of my past lives, I believe I was living on the island of Bali."
 


Click below for more blog posts about peculiar fishing boats
16 Mar - 20 Mar 2012 Banda Aceh (Boat on the Roof)
16 Aug - 15 Sep 2011 Tanjung Karang (Wreck of a Wooden Fishing Boat)
14 Oct - 25 Oct 2010 Galle (Srilankan Oruwa)
19 May - 21 May 2010 Rabbit Island (Converted Fishing Boat)
29 Oct - 03 Nov 2009 Mabul (Sabahan Jungkong)

Click below for a summary of this year's travels
2009 Map Konni & Matt 

Visit the Konni & Matt online albums and order high res travel photos
Konni & Matt Travel Photos


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Destination: ,

13 Nov - 15 Nov 2009 Tulamben


Southeast Asia
Republic of Indonesia
Never mind Indonesia, welcome to Bali, the Island of Gods
Tulamben
Puri Madha Bungalows +6236322921
Adequate double room with breakfast for IDR 100,00.- or US$ 10.60 per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Puri Madha Bungalows in Tulamben and for directions:
S 08° 16.45' E 115° 35.50'









DM Konni: Scubadiving, together with experienced local dive guide Bagong from Puri Madha Dive Resort (US$ 20.- per dive, all inclusive), the 120-m long shattered hulk of the US Navy cargo ship USAT “Liberty” (delightfully encrusted with beautiful coral and swarming with dozens of species of colourful fish) which was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine near Lombok in January 1942 CE and, taken in tow, was beached at Tulamben so that its cargo of rubber and railway parts could be saved.



Click below for a summary of this year's travels



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Destination: , ,

12 Nov - 13 Nov 2009 Lovina


Southeast Asia
Republic of Indonesia
Never mind Indonesia, welcome to Bali, the Island of Gods
Lovina
Kalibukbuk
Hotel Angsoka +6236241841 angsokafamily@yahoo.com
Spacious double room (garden bungalow) with air-con and breakfast for IDR 175,00.- or US$ 18.50 per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Angsoka Hotel in Lovina, which we would highly recommend, and for directions:
S 08° 09.67' E 115° 01.56'

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Dodging (i) suicidally overtaking (on both sides) motor-bike drivers and (ii) ruthless truck drivers who seemed to be on a (head-on) killing spree, with both species happily being united by their frequent honking, and cruising along the crowded northern coastal road which is lined on both sides with a variety of Balinese houses, exuding beauty, balance and functionality, always equipped with little family temples located in the holiest corner of the property (in this part of the island mostly the south-eastern one thus pointing towards Gunung Agung, the holiest place on Bali as this is the site of the Pura Besakih - the Mother Temple), and often still decorated with penjors, up to 7-m high, lamp-post like arching structures with decorated ends, leftovers from the Galungan festivities in October, which are creatively made from bamboo and rice straw.



Driving through a peculiar landscape which is strewn with a moonscape of boulders from the catastrophic 1963 CE eruption of 3,142-m high Gunung Agung and passing through vast old lava flows from the volcano down to the Bali Sea.

Spotting rontal palm trees which looked like new arrivals at army boot camp, as they were shorn of their leaves as fast as they grow them in order to meet the demand for inscribed lontar books.



Click below for a summary of this year's travels
2009 Map Konni & Matt

Click below and see more Konni & Matt Pictures
Photos 2009-18 Bali


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Destination: ,

11 Nov - 12 Nov 2009 Balian Beach


Southeast Asia
Republic of Indonesia
Never mind Indonesia, welcome to Bali, the Island of Gods 
Balian Beach
Jero’s Surfer Homestay +6281338466448 baliansurferhomestay@yahoo.com
Stylish and clean double room for IDR 150,00.- or US$ 15.90 per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of Jero's Surfer Homestay at Balian Beach, which we would recommend, and for directions:
S 08° 29.93' E 114° 57.94'

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Exploring two of the most beautiful Balinese temples: (i) the pura Taman Ayun, surrounded by a wide moat, the huge main temple of the Mengwi kingdom, which survived until 1891 CE; and (ii) the pura Luhur Batukau with its cool, misty atmosphere (and with a big sign at the entrance: “Those who are not allowed to enter: mad ladies/gentlemen.”), located on the slopes of 2,276-m high Gunung Batukau.



Wandering through the centuries-old rice terraces near Jatiluweh, exhausting our ability to describe green and following the water (as it runs through channels, tunnels and bamboo pipes from one plot to the next) in Bali’s subak, the system of irrigation that ensures everybody gets a fair share of the water.



Click below for a summary of this year's travels

Click below and see more Konni & Matt Pictures
Photos 2009-18 Bali


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Destination: ,
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