Bali: Day 2

We hired a driver for the day, Mr. Jaga, and asked to see a temple and some of the sights of Bali. We weren't particular about which temple or what other sights to see. I always wonder if this "up for anything" attitude is a breath of fresh air for drivers or if it makes them wonder, "Who travels this far without any idea of what to do?"

Mr. Jaga's first suggestion: local tea tasting. I'll be completely honest and say that neither one of us were too fired up about this, but we channeled our inner traveler spirits and agreed to a tour of agro-forestry and local products.  Our tourguide introduced us to several varieties of coffee, let us try our hand at processing coffee beans, and then led us to a table to try some of the beverages.

The novelty coffee is Luwak Coffee.  A luwak, which is some sort of mammal, eats coffee fruits and then deposits the seeds when it relieves itself. The recovered seeds are make a fabulous and very pricey coffee. In addition to a sample of luwak coffee, you can sample up to 12 different teas and coffees:

The presentation is even better:

Like the good scientists we are, we read the description of each tea before tasting, held the beverage up to the light to get a good look at clarity and consistency, and then took a respectable sip so the both of us could share.  There were only one or two cups that we did not care for; the rest were exotic and refreshing, as one would expect everything in Bali to be! Most surprising was how much we enjoyed sitting down in the educational coffee zone, letting our taste buds have their own vacation, and marveling in the surprise event of the day. Usually one expects a forest trek or river cruise to be one of the highlights of a trip, but I think Ryan would agree that sipping tea and coffee brewed from the beans that escaped the butt of a luwak was one of our favorite experiences of Sanur.

We purchased our top three to enjoy back in Okinawa:

We said farewell to the agro-tourism industry of Bali and moved on to one of the well-known temples of southern Bali: Pura Luhur Uluwatu.  This cliffside temple offers great views of the incoming surf. Before going anywhere, we had to take care of our attire.  Mr. Jaga and I wore pants and so only needed a scarf.  Ryan was wearing shorts and needed a sarong before entering the temple grounds.  When in Rome...

We were not permitted to enter the temple due to a ceremony taking place. The grounds around the temple were lovely enough, and we drank in the mystery of it all. Most intriguing was the size of the waves coming towards the cliffs.  They were some of the largest waves I've ever seen but very calm, beginning far away and rolling in steadily and with some control.

We took a walk to a lookout just north of the temple, and what a view!

We were reunited with some of our old friends from Malaysia on our stroll out to the viewpoint: long-tailed macaques. One jumped on my shoulders on the way out, going for either for my earrings (my reality) or my camera that I'd been swing as I walked (more likely, but not nearly as good a story).  These monkeys had zero fear of us, which made me extremely uncomfortable. A little boy nearby had no problem with the brazen macaques, and after a while I let Mr. Jaga know that we could leave anytime.

Mr. Jaga suggested an area that was under construction but that was still open to visitors. The appeal of this area were larger-than-life statues of Hindu gods and significant religious figures.  We agreed.

We arrived at the park and were not unimpressed with the sheer size of the sculptures. Mr. Jaga motioned to a large head in the distance as we approached. One can see these sculptures from a good distance they are so large. There was a good variety of smaller sculptures: incredible detail and frightening figures in some cases! I have to wonder why western horror movies don't take a lesson from eastern religions when coming up with their creatures. I don't mean to be insensitive, but some of the faces made me want to find religion.

We had a bit of fun as well:

The afternoon was getting the better of us, and we asked Mr. Jaga to take us back to our hotel for our last quiet evening in Sanur.  We had just enough light for me to photograph the grounds of the Mentari Sanur, which we would recommend for its clean simplicity and proximity to some great walking, dining, and little shops in Sanur.  I have to say that the US could take a lesson from some of the hotels and B&Bs in east Asia.  Why must a Holiday Inn be so drab and boring?!  Why not put a statue by the pool, or plant pretty things along the walkway?  One of the perks of vacationing near the equator, I suppose.

Ryan and I always like the little sitting areas near the front door. Not much in the way of a view, but perfect for a little smoke in the fresh air before going to bed.

We had a light dinner and then turned in a bit early for our flight the next morning. Time for the next section of our Indonesia vacation: a completely different island where there be dragons!