Days 110 to 114. Kalibukbuk back to Ubud - Bali in General

Sunrise on the Bali Sea, Kalibukbuk.

Our time in Kalibukbuk was very sedentary. Of the five nights we spent there we only did one activity. Even though I left with the idea that I would hire a bike. The activity we did was an early morning dolphin watching excursion which I'll descride in a moment. First about the area we stayed.

Kalibukbuk is one of a few towns in the Lovina area. This is situated on the north coast of Bali. Its brand is an area which is quieter than Kuta in the south. The sea is gentle and rolling as opposed to the vibrant surf of the south coast. We found a bungalow really easily for quite a bit over our intended £10 a night budget. However, we were to offset that by limiting our paid for activities. The sea was very nearby. However, with the boats and general look of it, it didn't look inviting to swim in. This was ok as our bungalows had the perk of a sister resort which had a pool which we could use. We got very lazy. When you analyse beach vs pool how can the beach win. Beach equals sand everywhere and rubbing the inside of your shorts. Keeping a constant eye on your belongings on the shore. Repeating the beach hawkers you don't want a bracelet or sarong. The pool was clean and was fountained in the sense there was a turnover of water provided by overspill and models of Balinese princesses pouring water back into the pool. With the pool and the quiet (we often had the pool to ourselves) I lept forward many pages in my latest book; Highways to War by Christopher Koch. A great story about correspondents in the Indochinese Wars which I will be reviewing in my book club.

On Day 111, 23rd July. We had booked the dolphin excursion. This was another sunrise thing which is something easily traded on in Asia. We had to be at the beach to catch the boats for 6am. Once there we realised how popular this excursion is for the many tourists in the area. The beach at 6am was crowded with people of all nations looking stunned by morning and dangling Nikons around necks. As the sun rose to the east of the Island the whole beach aimed a lens and the orange forcing through the clouds and sillouetting the boats that had already launched.

Our turn came up and the boat, a sort of catamaran, became available. It was almost like a canoe in a sense. We sat on boards and not within the hull at all. Another couple sat in the front and we took 10 minutes to reach where the dolphins were. We knew when we reached the place as thats where all the other boats were. All chasing a school of dolphins everyone fiddling with their cameras to get the lighting and autofocus correct. Some like me were switching to multishot as these dolphins would leap for a about 3 minutes top, then submerge to where they are faster and more at ease. When the sun rose properly it was magical. Maybe partly due to my battery being low, or maybe feeling a bit sea sick, I resigned my camera to my bag soon after I'd taken a few. Seeing dolphins jump so near us, one of the few animals to be drawn to man in an inquisitive sense. This was something I needed to burn into my memory and not watch through a view finder (in any case Sarah was videoing). A word on whether this is nice to the dolphins. Well the dolphins are there every morning. They have the whole sea to escape if they didn't want to be around the boats. I'm convinced this was enjoyable for flipper. However, I still think a mass of boats and whistles pointing and shouting had all the glamour of a colonial hunt for a tiger. The boats would chase the diving dolphins and do a kind of pinscher movement. Dolphins are intelligent in the extreme and have by now worked out how painful a rotor blade on a fin can be, so as soon as the boats move in they are under the water. For someone to get a perfect framed shot. Ultimately they are lovely creatures, and I'm glad they like us humans and I will continue to check the back on tins of tuna.

The food in the area of Kalibukbuk was the best so far, which is saying something for Bali. The seafood was a plenty. Smoky flavoured marlin with a Balinese sauce of shallots and chilli made me come back to the Warung Dolphin Restaurant on three occasions. Another restaurant, I wasn't feeling adventurous so just ordered a tuna baguette. This was not a tuna baguette in the sense of Pret a Manger near your office. Not mashed up fish and mayo. This was a tuna steak seared on the barby in a sandwich. So tasty you forgot you spent half the time swatting mosquitos.

This was our life for a few days. Great sea food, dips in the pool which took us up to today. Day 114, 26th July. We took the 9am bus back to Ubud. On the 28th we are attending a cremation ceremony. This is a ceremony which happens every 5 years in the Balinese calendar which I think is 210 days long, so almost every 3 years in the gregorian calendar. In accordance with Balinese Hindu tradition bodies are popped inside bodies of bulls and cremated to join spirits or something. Its a great priviledge to see it. As invited we returned to Warsi Bungalows in Ubud where we will be for the next 3 nights.

On Bali in General.

We have now visited 4 different places in Bali and I think I am almost qualified to make a judgement on the place in general. I wanted to do this maybe prematurely as I watched the countryside go by from Kalibukbuk to Ubud this morning and it is fresh in my mind. Probably per square mile it is one of the most beautiful places in Asia I have visited. You only get a sense of this when you are outside the tourist areas. Green paddy fields dot the landscape then leave you to be replaced by dynamic jungled hills. Bridges span high over small streams pouring spring water. As you reach a height you then find yourself giddy from a big landscape falling of into eternity. Sometimes not into eternity, sometimes to a blue sea. As we were about 40 minutes outside of Ubud, my jaw nearly dropped before being mindful of my coffee breath. I looked down on this lake dotted with small houses. I can't describe it very well.

The temples, and we've seen loads are almost uniform. They seem to all have a gateway on sharp triangles pointing out. Still the magnitude of temples and where you find them, means you haven't seen them before at all. Plopped in jungles, on hills near a beach. On the roads everywhere, be careful where you step, the pavement is littered with offerings of flowers and incense sticks parceled in small wicker baskets no more than 4 inches square.

Bali is more than rice paddies and sarongs.

And the people. I always lauded the Cambodians as the nicest Asians I've met, but now I don't know. I'm going to still say the Cambodians but the Balinese are very close. So helpful and inquisitive in a nice way. "hello, where are you from? where are you going?" this is asked everywhere in Asia, its a sales pitch here as much as anywhere. That said they asked you with almost palms held open and I think they really want to know. Of course there are hawkers. Lets get a figure out here. Our daily budget is about £45 a day at the moment. The Balinese average earnings are about £66 a month. How would we British act if we saw hundreds of people walking aimlessly up and down our streets, knowing they may have about £2000 to £5000 in their pockets at any moment. Mug them is the initial answer (especially in Liverpool). After that, you think I wouldn't throw in the towel where I work and invest in a taxi? With this in mind I think the Balinese are very restrained. Where many used to work in farming, a guesthouse now sits. The job is gone and those may be the people we see pushing us to spend 50p to pound on a bracelet. With this in mind, I feel mean and stingy every time I ignore them. When I do buy from them, I feel bad that I chose one. How come I chose that one to give a days wages to, what about her next door. I feel bad for haggling sometimes. I walk away with a saving of £5 and I feel victorious. Thats 3 days wages to this vendor. Responsible and ethical tourism meets with so many questions. Ultimately it's better we are here than not, and the longer I stay travelling the more of my wealth is distributed amongst those in the world less well off than I. In that sense, my occassional ignorance and haggling has some greater good. If I think that I sleep well tonight.

I've digressed again. I cannot big up Bali enough. Please come to Bali and please make the effort to visit the interior. If, as with most, Kuta is the jump off point, don't be dismayed. It gets better. However, if you are there have a Bingtang. Eat at Tubes. Order the Snapper with Balinese Sauce. Wherever you are in Bali. Relax.