Bali Week 2

Teaching the kids the Chicken Dance

The kids have been busy learning songs and dances for a fundraising event (you may have seen my Facebook invite asking people to give me their Skype names). The kids sang the Indonesian Anthem and I also taught our kids how to do the chicken dance. If there's one legacy that I want to leave....

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Hanging with the locals

Everyday I walk along the beach by my house. There is an area where the locals bathe and as I walk by everyone is naked but they are always smiling and waving at me, perfectly normal. I'm sure I've now met everyone in the village. It's wonderful! Everyone knows me and always shout, 'hi Jenny, where are you going'?

I have a new friend called Wayan...of course. His brother is also called Wayan. My new friend is Wayan #2, his brother is Wayan #1. His mother is also Wayan and so is his cousin.....

People, both young and old, also seemed mesmerized by my camera and I get asked to do impromptu photo shoots lots of time. I've promised everyone that I will send them copies of the photo's.

My new friend ....Wayan (#2)...of course!

Fishing on the beach

Ubud

The volunteers had a day off so I was nominated to haggle with a taxi driver to take us to Ubud, 1.5 hours drive away. After driving the price as low as possible (cos I am Queen of haggling) I found our man, Kamang and off we went to Ubud.

Perched on the gentle slopes leading up towards the central mountains, Ubud is the other half of Bali’s tourism duopoly (first being Kuta). Unlike South Bali, however, Ubud’s focus remains on the remarkable Balinese culture in its myriad forms.

We visited Mandala Wisata Wenara Wana (Sacred Monkey Forest). Lots of monkeying around (ba da boom). Loads of grey-haired & greedy long tailed Balinese macaques who are nothing like the doe-eyed monkey on the brochures. I literally got attacked by by the stupid monkey's, who kept trying to steal my purse hanging around my neck. I actually fought a monkey!

The rest of the time was spent shopping! What happens when there is nothing to buy in our village and you let 5 pent up shoppers lose in a shoppers/ cultural paradise? We went nuts and spent a fortune!

The volunteers

Dumb Rich Westerners run out of water

Our water stopped and we all needed a shower. We know the local people bathe in the river down the beach so we decided we should as well. As we were walking down the beach (like stupid Westeners) we heard, 'Hi Jenny, where you going'? It was my friend Wayan #2. I explained we had no water (in our fancy villa) and were off to wash in the river. He kindly let me and my friends all into his little shack of a house and use his families shower. They are the most amazing family and I can't believe how welcoming they are to us dumb rich Westeners, who ran out of water.