The Fine Art of Chilling

I think I may have used this title before in my blog while in Turkey.  Oh well, if you are really good at something, may as well repeat it.  I have the fine art of chilling down to a science.

Breakfast is served daily on my private lanai, including eggs, toast, fresh fruit and a whole pot of coffee.  Days are spent in the fabulous shops and galleries of Ubud, trying to decide how much money to part with for all the fabulous stuff.  A shower and afternoon massage at my guesthouse are a nice way to wind down the day.

Siam Sally's at Sunset

Another Caipirinha, please

This is usually followed by 2 for 1 caipirinhas at Siam Sally’s just before sunset.  Then comes the decision as to what fabulous restaurant I want to go to for dinner.  When I get back to my guesthouse, I might have cheese and crackers with a gin & tonic on my lanai… my room has a fridge and there is a large supermarket just down the street.  I even bought some candle holders and tea candles to add a little atmosphere to the lanai.

Mango body scrub, Lemon grass soap and Lavender body butter

What a wonderful end to an amazing trip.  See you all in a few days.

Our Intrepid Group - Jakarta to Ubud

                           Nova – Indonesia

Ket – UK    Maarje – Holland    Jack – USA    Neil – Canada   Marit – Holland

Sylvia – Poland/UK  Siobhan – Ireland Kim – Canada Mark – Canada Isabel - UK

                         Claudia - Holland

And then there was One

On Friday, we arrived in the beautiful town of Ubud in Bali.  I have been here before, but had almost forgotten the absolute beauty of this place.  In spite of all the tourist and travelers, this place still retains the magic and spiritualism that is Bali.



















Our last night was spent at Artini 2 Cottages in Ubud, another nice place.  Some people were extending their stay here, some were heading for the beaches and nightlife, some were going to other islands and others were joining the next tour of Bali.  This always happens on the last day of these types of tours… we were scattering like dandelion seeds.

Swimming Pool - Artini 2 Cottages

We had a wonderful farewell dinner together, thanking our guide Nova for all his help.  The next morning, it was sad goodbyes, with promises to keep in touch by Facebook or email.

Marit and Sylvia at the farewell dinner

I found myself a wonderful little guesthouse just down the road for a very reasonable $38 per night.  I have three more days in Ubud to just take it easy.

My new guesthouse in Ubud

Tanah Lot Temple, Bali

Tanah Lot Temple, Bali

Somehow in my last two visits to Bali, I had managed to miss visiting Tanah Lot, a must see on the island.  Thousands of tourists come out every evening from the beaches and resorts of Bali to see the sun set behind Tanah Lot temple, which sits on rock out in the sea.  As the Lonely Planet guide says, the hordes of tourists and vendors takes away from any kind of spiritual experience the place might offer.

That was no problem for us, however, as we were scheduled for 2 days of R&R at the Dewi Sinta Hotel just 100 meters from the temple.  It was very nice, and as the place “rolled up the sidewalks” at about 7:30 every evening, we spent a lot of time eating, drinking Bintang and telling crazy stories every evening.

Dewi Sinta Hotel pool

Daytime was very relaxing, with few tourists around the town and temple.  We could shop, eat and snap photos without the crowds.  Besides the temple, there was some absolutely stunning seaside scenery in the area.

Another seaside temple near Tanah Lot

I did brave the hoards of tourist to get some great sunset photos.

Bali Crossing

After our long traverse of the island of Java, it was time to cross the water to our next destination… Bali.  I must admit, I was expecting an older rusty version of BC Ferries, but was surprised when we came across a very small rust bucket ferry.  It looked somewhat seaworthy; Nova quickly got us tickets, and we clambered aboard as foot passengers.

Boarding our ferry

Nova told us that if the ferries were capable of sailing straight across, they would only take about 20 minutes.  However, this was not the case, and we took almost an hour to cross.

If you look at a map of Indonesia, you will see that both north and south of Java and Bali there are huge bodies of water.  The strait between the two islands is very narrow, so the current runs super strong, from north to south.  So our ferry motored north-east toward a deserted stretch of Bali.  As we approached the island, we turned south,  and caught the current towards the dock on Bali.

Passing another ferry in the strait

We hopped off the ferry, and as usual, our minivans were waiting right there with our drivers (yah, Intrepid).  It was another long and twisty drive to our next destination – Tanah Lot.

Coffee, Cloves and Rubber

After our Bromo climb, it was time to head back to a more gentile Java, the historical plantation area of East Java.  Like Goldilocks, we found the perfect climate, not too Hot (the tropical lowlands), not too Cold (the high alpine volcanoes), just right (plantations at 700 metres elevation).

The familiar minivans took us to the scenic hills near the town of Kalibaru, and the lovely Margo Utomo Agro Resort.  After our long travels, this seemed like absolute luxury.   We checked into our comfortable fan cooled rooms, checked out the huge pool, and proceeded to really chill.  A couple of the ladies indulged in spa treatments by the pool.

The open air dining area was very nice, and both Jack and I indulged in our first glass of wine on the whole trip (very expensive in Indonesia).

After lots of delicious Indonesian food on this trip, I decided screw it, I feel like some Beef Stroganoff.  All I can say is mmm, mmmm, mmmmm!

The next morning, we were up to freshly made individual omelets, and something the Dutch girls (and the rest of us) have been craving… fresh cheese from the on-site dairy farm.

We then hopped into the minivans for a short drive to a plantation that was over 100 years old.  It was very interesting, in that they grew, and processed, coffee, cloves, and rubber.

  

We wandered amongst the coffee and rubber trees, being shown how they tap and collect the rubber sap.   It was then inside, to see how rubber sap is processed into the rubber we are familiar with.  Unlike spices and coffee, this was all new to me, and quite interesting.

The first process is mixing the rubber sap with powerful acids.  We were all a bit horrified to see the friendly workers doing this with their bare hands!

Processing rubber sap with acid

We saw less daunting processing and storage of the coffee and cloves.  I got some excellent shots of the historical building interiors, complete with old machinery and signs.

A 100 year old rubber press

It was then off to the beautiful plantation house for snacks and fresh hot Java coffee

Sylvia, Claudia, Siobhan and Ket

Suddenly, to the traveller's surprise, Gollum appeared

Crossing the Land of Mordor

Bromo crater is to the left of the front cone

We left PPLH in the afternoon, heading east through Java, then turning south towards the high mountains.  Our minivans passed through dozens of villages, climbing higher and higher in elevation.  The air became thinner, colder, and the vegetation changed from tropical to alpine.

We arrived at Yoshi’s Guest House, a quirky mix of Alpine and Balinese architecture (yes, I know we are still in Java).  We settled into our even stranger rooms, multiple stairs and lofts for the boys in the group.  Candles in the dining room kept things cozy during a brief power failure, and we tucked into a wonderful group dinner once the lights came on.

We were up at a very early 3:30 AM, had a quick coffee, and bundled up to protect ourselves in the cold mountain air.  4 wheel drive Jeeps were waiting to take us even higher into the mountains on some very rugged and narrow roads.  We arrived at the lookout hike parking lot, and put on facemasks to protect our mouths and lungs from the swirling volcanic ash (thanks Nova, our guide).

Ponies were an option, but we all chose to climb, huffing and puffing in the thin air.  I had on my wonderful new “headlight”, and the whole thing was quite surreal climbing in the dark, ash kicking up from all the people and horses; it felt like we were in another world.

Mt. Bromo lookout

Sunrise over Mt. Bromo crater

The sun rose over the crater basin, and the whole Lord of the Rings Land of Mordor came into view.  The entire morning felt like the scenes of Frodo and Sam heading towards Mt. Doom, including crossing the plain, and climbing the caldera.

Thousands of pictures were snapped as the light increased, and we continued to gasp from the cold high mountain air, and the volcanic ash.  Entrepreneurial vendors served hot coffee, and we got what turned out to be the best group picture on my camera (future post).

People and horses clambered down the lockout trail, now visible in the morning light.  We found our Jeeps, and snaked down the switchback roads toward the Bromo crater plain.

 Crossing the Bromo plain

We zipped across the ash swept plain, passing people and horses, heading towards the Mt. Bromo caldera.   I should clarify that Bromo is the lower crater in the picture, not the high cone.  It was still quite the challenging climb, especially considering the conditions.

After the Jeeps parked, we crossed the plain on foot, then headed up the trail and stairs to our destination.  As I was climbing, I looked to my left, and could swear it was the exact same slope the Hobbits climbed on Mt. Doom.

Gusts of wind kicked up fine volcanic ash as we climbed, and we had to stop and close our eyes, choking and coughing in the hellish conditions.  And yes, it was great fun (in that adventurous way!).

 

Swirling Ash on the Bromo caldera climb

We arrived at the top, and the smell of sulfur and steam greeted us.  We peered down into the deep crater, steaming with an occasional rumble.  We heard that some time ago a couple of French tourists went past the boundary markers at the top, and tumbled into the steaming crater… how horrible.

We descended through the gusting ash clouds, completely covered.  We now had fine dark grey volcanic ash in our hair, ears, eyes, nose, mouths, lungs, shoes, socks and all over our clothes.

The Jeeps zipped us back to our hotel, where we had what felt like the best showers of our lives.  All the clothes had to be wrapped in plastic for cleaning once we got back to civilization.

A hard climb… yes… but also a true sense of accomplishment! 

A Perfect Morning

Morning broke in the rain-forest, and the chorus of insects was replaced by a chorus of birds.  As the air warmed up, we showered outside in our very private bathrooms.  Another perfect meal awaited us, this time hot coffee, fresh tropical organic fruit, pancakes and toast.

After breakfast, it was out to the Centre’s gardens, learning about medicinal plants and herbs that they grow here.  We also checked out the organic vegetable gardens, as well as the giant trees that were only planted 12 years ago.

 

We then walked in to a nearby village, using the new greetings we had learned in the local language (not Bahasa Indonesian, which we have also been working on).  We were to have yet another cup of coffee, this time served to us by a local institution, Sophina, a feisty 92 year old who sends all the villagers out to work in the rice paddies with her famous Java coffee.  What a character… she was hilarious!

She pounded the coffee with a huge mortar and pestle combination, before putting it in cups, and pouring the boiling water.  This is similar to how coffee is made all over Indonesia, with kind of a dark fine “sand” of coffee in the bottom of the cup.  I have gotten to really like it.  I bought a small bag of it to give to my friend Chris who works at Starbucks (hello darling, if you are reading this).

We then headed out walking over some absolutely beautiful rice terraces, taking in the lush green beauty of the countryside.

It was back to the Centre for another mostly vegetarian meal, then off to a special room to learn about a medicinal tea made from local roots and spices.  Among other things, there was lemongrass and cloves in the tea, so it smelled heavenly, and really soothed the throat.

We then piled into minivans, and headed across Java again, heading high into the mountains for our next adventure, climbing Mt. Bromo at sunrise.

PPLH Seloliman Environmental Education Centre

After Yogyakarta, it was off to PPLH Seloliman Environmental Education Centre, this time by local bus, rather than our usual minivans.  Actually, at the bus station, we did transfer to a minivan for the last of the ride to the Centre.

PPLH was Indonesia's first environmental education centre established in 1990.  It is a non-profit  NGO, and receives support from donors, organizations and governments around the world.  Current programs include promoting organic farming, gender and community empowerment programs, soil conservation and reforestation, to name a few.

It is in a perfect setting on the edge of a tropical forest on the slopes of Mt Penanggungan in East Java.  There were wonderful little chalets to stay in, complete with cozy mosquito nets.  We were also pleased to discover that each chalet had an outdoor bathroom.... cool.  After disposing of a couple of gigantic spiders in our room (yup, more giant spiders, Laurie), we settled in.

All meals were included at the Centre, as it was fairly isolated from larger towns.  The food was mostly vegetarian and organic (with one meat dish), sort of like Kalani in Hawaii, but done much better.  We were also pleasantly surprised to find out they served Bintang beer, so we had a couple of cold ones with dinner.

After dinner there was a short lecture from one of the Centre's staff, then we watched a BBC show about the wildlife of Indonesia.  It really made you want to explore further off the beaten path in this fascinating and diverse country.

Later that night, we got into our comfy mosquito netted beds, falling asleep to the chorus of insects in the rain-forest.

Oooops, I did it Again

Well, those of you who know me well know that I have been battling skin/foot problems for about 4 months this year.  I was so worried that it would cause the cancellation of my Indonesia trip.  Luckily, with some intensive care and powerful drugs, it seemed to be under control when I left Canada.

Well, guess what.... about 4 days into the trip it came back.  I recognized it immediately as the same symptoms that I had 4 weeks ago.  Then, I had to go to the hospital everyday for a week for intravenous antibiotics.  Well, here I am in a hot tropical third world country with the same problem.

I did not have any antibiotics, except those for diarrhea, nor any proper bandages.  I improvised very creatively with what I had available, with some help from my roommate Jack.  Once we got to Yogyakarta, I asked my guide Nova to take me to a pharmacist.  I asked for doxycycline, but they did not have any.  Instead they offered a very powerful antibiotic that did in 3 days what the typical medicine did in 7.  I also bought some proper disinfecting solution, sterile cotton swabs, gauze, and tensor wrap.

Only 2 days later, it was not getting worse, indeed, it seemed to be improving.  As we do not hit civilization (Ubud) again for several days, my guide and fellow travelers talked me into going to a clinic (thanks Isabella).

Nova helping me sign in

Nova and I took a bekak (bicycle richshaw) to a nearby local clinic.  It was not a clinic for travelers, but one used by local Indonesians.  It was fairly simple, but I felt quite comfortable there.  We signed in and waited to see the doctor.

Waiting area in the Indonesian clinic

The doctor is in

The wait did not take long, and we went in to see a female doctor, complete with stethoscope and head scarf.  She was very nice, and spoke some English.  To be completely clear, Nova provided translation.  She had a look at the infection, and the medications and supplies I had been using (I was smart enough to bring them).

She said the antibiotics were working well, and to save the last pill from the 3 day supply.  She confirmed that they were indeed very powerful (don't worry, Laurie, they are Pfizer, and I am bringing the packaging and info home).  She prescribed some anti-inflammatory drugs, along with a better antiseptic cleaner, as well as more gauze and medical tape.

I know this is going to sound funny, but I think she had a better handle on the situation than my doctors at home.  They take more time here, and are also used to more simple scrapes and infections.

I was going to re-bandage myself when a lovely nurse, Maria, came in with a sterile cart.  She did a fantastic job of dressing up the whole thing, showing me what to do myself.

I did not have to go to an Apotik (pharmacy), the drugs and supplies were all there, and available within minutes, including detailed instructions on their use.  Then there was the bill.... 1/2 hour consultation with a doctor, including nurse Rp 107,000 ($10.70), and prescription drugs and medical supplies Rp 106,000 ($10.60).  Total bill just over $20 CAD, and they took my Visa card!

I was just there this morning, and am at the internet cafe this evening, feeling even better.  Better yet, the ankle/foot is looking better still.

I will be cleaning and dressing the ankle twice a day, and wearing only shoes and socks outside the hotel.  I feel just fine, will be watching the situation carefully, and have the full support of my fellow travelers.

You know what, this whole situation has been just fine (and I just figured out how to add captions to pictures on this blog... LOL!)

** Side note - it may not be until Ubud (Bali) that I post again - we are out climbing volcanoes and having other adventures... do not worry ** 

Prambanan Temple

Prambanan is a Hindu temple situated in central Java that, like Borobudur,  was also built in the 8th century.  It was almost completely destroyed by several earthquakes, including one that caused heavy damage in 2006.  It is still in the process of being repaired/rebuilt.

Sunset at Prambanan Temple

Borobudur Temple

Borobudur Temple, in Central Java, is the largest Buddhist Temple in the world, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  It was build sometime between 800 and 900 AD, and soon after was completely buried by the volcanic ash of Mt. Merapi.  It lay hidden for years, until it was "rediscovered" by Sir Stamford Raffles in the late 1800's.  It was almost completely disassembled, the base reinforced, drainage put in, then reassembled using no mortar as in the original construction.

Some blogs need few words.