Beautiful Bali

After our wonderful time in Laos we spent a few days in Thailand.  First we stayed in Chang Rai, in the north, and visited a museum about the Golden Triangle, an area known for opium production.  The museum was high-tech and interactive, one of the best we've been to in Asia.  It traced the history of opium production through to today and its effects on society.  Then we spent a couple nights in Bangkok.  On our first day we had a chance to see the world's largest weekend market.  It certainly was extensive.  They sold everything from clothes to ceramics to garden tools.  It was easy to spend about four hours just in one of the sections of endless rows of stalls.  The next day we visited the impressive Royal Palace compound with its seemingly never-ending wats, temples, and ornate decoration.  We also visited another famous wat that has a HUGE gold reclining buddha in it.  Then it was an early flight to Bali.  The pictures do better justice to our time here to far than words could.

The first day we took a taxi south from the airport to a beach called Pedang Pedang, known for great surfing.  We had trouble finding a room until we luckily stumbled upon this gem.  It was certainly rustic (fan, thatched roof and bamboo building, outdoor cold shower, separate outdoor squat toilet) but charming and welcoming.  From our porch we could watch the surfers and the beautiful ocean.  At night we listened to the waves.  Two surfers were staying in the room next to us for months and were really friendly.  It was a great, low-key way to start our time here.

The beach nearby was gorgeous and practically deserted.  We were wishing we'd had time to stay one extra night.  But we had already booked our room at Le Meridien on the west coast so we left around noon.

Before the hotel we stopped to see Pura Ulu Watu, a famous seaside temple near Padang Padang.  It's set out on a cliff.  The temple compound is full of grabby monkeys so you have to guard your camera and take off jewelry.  The temple was nice but it was really the view that made it worth it.

Ahhhhh...the view from our balcony at Le Meridien.  The room was beautiful and it was so great to be back in air conditioning. The pool area was very fun, complete with a long waterslide.  There were private covered beds along the ocean's edge that you could relax in.  Our two days here were mostly just spent relaxing by the pool.

This is the temple Pura Tanah Lot that was a five minute walk from the hotel.  This picture was taken from their golf course.  It's apparently the most photographed temple in Bali (and there are a LOT of temples) because of it's picturesque setting out on this island of rock.  The clouds and sunset behind it were pretty amazing.  Luckily for us there were also a bunch of food stalls nearby so that's where we ate lunches and dinners.

After Tanah Lot we went to a small town called Munduk in the central highlands.  This was very different from being by the beach.  The area is much cooler and rainier than the coast.  It's lush, green, and there are rice fields and plantations throughout the area.  We hired a guide to take us on a walk that led us through cacao, coffee, and clove plantations and to two waterfalls.  Along the pathways we saw jackfruit, durian, bananas, pineapple, mango, and many other tropical fruits.  Later that night we were invited to a Bali wedding.  The groom was our hotel owner's grandson.  The reception was very relaxed with people coming and going as they pleased.  The bride and groom spent a few minutes greeting each guest.  We had some dinner from their buffet and many homemade sweets.  We were honored to be included and it was neat to see this cultural ritual.

That's all for now!  We're obviously loving our time here and have just joined up with our friend Andrew.