In Bali

It’s our first time here and knowing virtually nothing about the place, we were eager to learn more.  How lucky we were, then, to have a small group of eight and a really great guide who was happy to share as much information as we could handle!

First impressions were great – warm smiles of welcome and happy greetings of “Good Morning Madam!” from everyone. 

Our first stop was the old Court of Justice at KlungKung.  This was a spectacular place with beautiful details and pattern everywhere.

Going inside one of these buildings revealed more spectacular paintings on the ceilings

Based on the great Indian Mahabharata epic story, the paintings are finely detailed and we spent a while taking photos and listening to Coc’s commentary.

As we did so, we heard a bit of a hoohah outside – what was going on?

We’d already learned that today was Full Moon and here in Bali, that was of special significance as it marked the end of Galugan and here was a procession of villagers making their way to the sea for prayers and celebrations.  As we drove through villages, we’d spotted the penjor outside each home and were intrigued by them.  Though we tried all day to get a photo of one we were not that successful!

I asked Coc about these structures, wondering if they were each made by the householder or if they were bought, in the same way we’d buy a Christmas tree.  He replied with a memorable statement, which said a great deal about life here in Bali, “They are homemade, Madam – it really doesn’t matter how they look, as long as they are made with love” – and of course, that statement was delivered with a wide smile.

The Kertha Gosa is situated on a busy street corner, with a traffic roundabout right there in the middle.  With red, yellow, white and black shrines to the four main points of the compass, women were bringing offerings the whole time we were there.  Having seen these offerings there in the Kertha Gosa, we began to notice them everywhere

Once again, Coc’s words were in my ear: “made with love”.

We loved looking around this place and there would have been sufficient patterns, designs and motifs on one single pillar to keep me occupied for months.  How about this one?

But it was time to move on.

 

Next stop, the Kehen Temple at Bangli.

Here were more mossy stones, fascinating little temples within the larger compound and no-one but us and a couple of others here.

Brightly coloured ceilings made venturing that bit further into the complex well worthwhile

and the odd, incongruous lightbulb stood out rather!

Once again, I loved finding the small details,

and admiring the handiwork of the people who left their offerings at each of the small shrines.

The ants were finding these very attractive, too!

We loved the huge, old banyan tree, too large to fit into one photograph!

Stepping carefully over the little offering on the pathway out of the temple, it was time to move on to our next stop, which I’ll continue in the next post.

Komodo

We’re going on a dragon hunt.

We’re not scared.

(because we have Harry with a forked stick with us)

We’re going to see a big one!

(they can run fast, too, says our guide PaulM, be careful)

All is quiet as we step forth into the forest.  We hear an exotic bird’s call and look up to try to spot it.  Harry laughs – it was his cellphone!

Ok, this is serious!  Look in the mud, there’s the trail from a dragon’s tail, freshly made this morning!  PaulM tells us that yesterday, a dragon ran out amongst his group and that one could appear at any time.  He’s telling us this to make us better prepared, he says, not to frighten us…

We obey the rules written on the board and note that someone has helpfully left a signppost behind

We creep around the corner and what’s there?

Watch your step!

Tadah!  Two large (12 – 15ft long) male dragons sitting there in a small clearing, watching as our little group took copious photographs.  One rose to his feet and shambled along a little way, alerting the two young men with forked sticks who were hopefully there to take care of us should a dragon make a run for it.

I tried to get a photograph of his fifteen inch forked and bacteria-laden tongue but sadly wasn’t quick enough to reset my camera.  But oh my, those feet…

that skin…those wrinkles!

No sooner had we left those two to their own devices, we spotted another, lurking in the trees.  This one, rather younger, stopped still as we passed.

We made our way back with a few stops to hear about the plants and trees which grow here, admiring a few wild orchids as we passed.

And then, we exited through the gift shop! 

We’d heard of the cheap strings of pearls on sale here and sure enough, there they were.  We did a little bargaining and took a couple of strings away with us at a good price – or so we thought.  Without Allan, our bargaining guru, we were a little less confident but stood firm on the price we were willing to pay, eventually achieving the deal.

Boarding the tender, we remembered how hot we’d been last time so made a bee line for the open doorway and sat on the jump seats.  No sooner had we done so than the heavens opened and it poured with rain.  We got slightly wet (understatement!)

But approaching the ship, what was this?  Were the Captain and his crew having a little kayaking fun?  Had someone learned from Harry’s lecture yesterday and cast a few adrift in open boats?

Well, no.  Want to buy pearls at good price, Madam?

Turning up to Trivia wearing our new acquisitions, we waited to hear how our master shopper had fared in the pearl market and held our breath as he told us how he had bought five strings for the same price as we had paid for two!  Since two of those strings were for me, I wasn’t complaining – but oh my, we have a lot to learn!

So tonight, we’ll all be girls in pearls – once we’ve dried out, that is.

Update on Tuesday, March 6, 2012 at 11:01PM by Gill Thomas

In answer to your questions, NewLondon, we could choose between a one hour (short) and a two hour (1.5km) walk in the forest. We had to takea guide and be in the company of a ranger - it was not possible simply to stroll independently around and we were counted frequently to make sure all was well. The walk was flat, on compacted mud paths (which might have been boggy had the rain come earlier). As far as I can tell, everyone saw at least one dragon. Though there are only between 1 and 2k living on the island, some saw a couple more. The group just yards in front of us saw 5 - we saw 3.

The weather was hot and humid but overcast. We wore hats and took water, walked slowly and quietly, stopped frequently to listen to the guide speak about the trees and plants. We chose the longer walk because who knows if we will come this way again? Pleased we did - but whether those who went later and got soaked to the skin agreed, who knows? (Actually, I do - our friend did so and wouldn't hvae missed it for the world!)

Such fun

At this stage of a cruise, we’ve settled into a routine.  A sea day is a chance to catch up with things, meet friends for a chat and generally take things at a slower pace.  Sailing between Darwin and Komodo, the weather was warm and sunny and the atmosphere was happy and relaxed.

Breakfast outside is a treat after a few wet mornings and it made a great start to the day.

We were sailing through the Timor Sea, with just an oil rig on the horizon.  The waters here were glassy and still and we find it fascinating how the character of the water changes each day.

I wandered around the ship, finding few people around at this time of day.  Since the advent of Kindles, the ship’s library isn’t quite so well used but is still a good place to sit and read and watch the world go by.

Not that there’s much passing traffic!

Looking at today’s programme, we decided that we’d go to the lecture about Captain Bligh.  Harry Chittick is an excellent speaker and having stumbled across several references to The Bounty in this part of the world, even I, the non-historian, was interested to learn more.  Sure enough, it was an hour well spent and we found ourselves overwriting rather a lot of misconceptions about the man, thanks to Harry’s excellent research and enthusiastic storytelling.

Where did the morning go?  Already it was lunchtime and the Indonesian buffet lunch on the pool deck was very tempting.  Not only that, but one of our friends had hit a winning streak – drinks were on him

The food is so good and these international lunch buffets are a great chance to try one or two different specialities.  Those green pancake style rolls were delicious with a sweet, nutty filling.  Mmmmm.

Later in the afternoon, it was time to get the grey matter going.  Would our friend’s lucky streak continue?  Well, it did stretch as far as the music quiz but sadly, didn’t continue to Trivia, where we were a point or two short of the winners.  Never mind – good to give someone else a chance, eh?

With a cup of Lady Grey tea and a cupcake to see me through until dinner (!) there was another day gone.  We had dinner to look forward to in Prime Seven, one of the speciality restaurants and then a show in the theatre.

As I sit writing this, we are approaching the island of Komodo which is looking green and rather lovely in the morning sunshine.  We gained an hour last night, so the ship is waking up slowly.

We are having a wonderful time!

Relaxed

It’s Sunday morning and we’re still here in Darwin, having had an overnight stay.  Though we love going off on tours and joining our friends to visit new and interesting places, after a couple of weeks of this we were ready to kick back a little.  Though we had tickets for a visit to a wildlife park, we decided to return them and to do our own thing today.

We’ve found the Australian tourist experience to be very packaged and rather controlled and as Tracy commented on my previous post, the places we’ve been have not necessarily been those we’d have chosen as independent travellers.  Still, we’ve had fun and when time is limited, the packaged “experience” guarantees a successful outcome.

Anyway, armed with a map, we jumped on the city shuttle bus today and caught a number 4 bus to the Sunday market at Nightcliff, as recommended by Judy the Pilots wife.

Catching a local bus is an experience in itself and offers a huge opportunity to observe people going about their everyday lives – which of course, is right up my street.  Sitting waiting for the bus in Darwin city centre, we held our breaths as a group of people hurled some pretty foul language in the direction of another.  On a quiet Sunday morning with few people about, this was the last thing we expected.  But we were to be further surprised when one of the group came over to us and offered profuse apologies for the outburst and for the bad language, saying that we should not have witnessed such behaviour from him and that he was very sorry that we had.   Another surprise came when we stepped onto the bus and offered payment for four tickets, to be told “This one’s on us” by the driver.  Again, something which we’d never expect to happen at home.

Some forty five minutes later, we found ourselves in the bustling market at Nightcliff, amongst a crowd of local families out enjoying the sunshine and the relaxed atmosphere there.

Not as extensive as the Salamanca markets in Hobart, as Judy warned, this was nevertheless a colourful diversion and we spent a happy couple of hours browsing the cheap and cheerful trinkets on the jewellery stall

and trying on shoes – yes, that pair did nicely and found their way home with Jane.

Enjoying a cool smoothie in the shade, we spotted a newspaper headline which sent a shiver down my back

Nasty!  What happened next, we wondered?  The answer was to be found here in a story entitled “sunk fisho plucked from river”!

Returning to Darwin, we strolled around the centre which was a little empty on this Sunday afternoon.

With only the pearl stores and the souvenir shops open, we resisted both and returned to the ship, regretting later that we had forgotten our original plan to spend the afternoon in the art gallery.  Oh dear…the heat addles my brain so!

But a peaceful afternoon sitting on the balcony, watching the yachts return home is not to be sniffed at, and of course, there’s always other interesting things to spot.

Jellyfish.  Lots of them.

I’m not sure what type of jellyfish this is – any suggestions?

Anyway, with the sun setting behind a few clouds, we stood on our balcony with G&Ts in hand, and said goodbye to Australia.  As we did, I  leaned over the rail and looked towards the front of the ship and watched as we sailed into a rainstorm.  Most peculiar to stand in the dry and see the torrential rainfall travel along the length of the ship until, some twenty seconds or so later it reached us.  Fortunately, we were standing under cover, so after marvelling at the amazing weather here in the tropics, we stepped inside to join our friends for dinner.

Next stop, Komodo, where we hope there will be dragons.

Oooo!

Jumping crocs

When I told one particular friend with Darwin connections that we were headed here, she said “I’ll bet you go to see the jumping crocs”.

She was right.

Yesterday afternoon we headed out of Darwin, along the Stuart Highway towards the Adelaide River.  Turning left onto the Arnhem Highway, we drove through lush mango orchards and then wetlands until we reached the bridge.

We knew we’d arrived when we saw a huge concrete jumping crocodile by the side of the road, because this was another of the high profile visitor attractions of the area.

The Adelaide Queen is one of a handful of boats running similar activities and I was glad to see the young family who arrived at the same time as this horde of tourists didn’t lose out – they took their trip on a smaller boat and were able to escape the rest of us!

No sooner were we moving, than the still, calm river water was disturbed by a slight movement.  The first croc was heading towards us.

It was around now that any misconceptions were dispelled, because the chap doing the commentary referred to this creature by name. 

“Oh here’s Scary Croc”, he said, “he’s got things worked out all right”.

He certainly had, because no sooner had he swum to the side of the boat, a pork chop was dangled over the side and he was coaxed to jump for this bait.

Now, picture the scene – fifty or sixty people with cameras all want to take a shot of this creature and all choose to move to the same side of the boat at the same time.

Could have been interesting!

Some were determined and found a way forward, others simply stood back and waited for the next croc to appear on the other side.  Because they came thick and fast once we got going and yes, every single one of them had a name.

Most were pretty lazy and simply put their heads up, though one or two leapt a few feet out of the water to satisfy the crowd.

We’d never seen crocodiles at such close quarters before, so found it interesting but at the same time, rather disconcerting because what we were really seeing was a kind of circus show.

I’m sure there are strict controls on what is allowed, that animal welfare agencies and suchlike are content with what’s going on, but for me, I found it just that bit too practised. 

I found it to be almost like a theme park ride, except the crocodiles here were real living animals and not animations.

Beautiful and scary though these creatures were, I was none too sorry when we turned around and headed back to the pier, especially since the kites and eagles had begun to swoop around.

On the way back, having hitched a ride with another group because our vehicle had a flat tyre, we stopped at the very interesting Window on the Wetlands centre, which had a viewing platform from where one could see for miles in every direction.

We learned all about the Humpty Doo Rice Project

and really enjoyed gazing over part of this vast country.

Last night, the menu featured several Australian specialities to mark our last night in the country.  Sure enough, there amongst the starters were Crocodile Fritters!  The eight of us around the table ordered a couple to try and then did our best to describe the flavour/texture without much success.  All were agreed that it didn’t quite match the delicious barramundi fish which all but two of us chose for our main course (or the banana bread and butter pudding, for that matter).

An half hour or so of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert was an “interesting” way to round off the day!