Ubud: Monster Madness & Silent Saturdays

19th – 23rd March 2015

     We had a slight conundrum whilst in Medewi. With the Hindu festival of Neyepi (Silent Day) fast approaching do we venture to the cultural heart of Bali, Ubud and waste a day sat in a guesthouse or do we stay in the Muslim dominated Medewi with the promise of wild beach parties? Strangely enough we turned our backs on the beach and headed inland. It may sound crazy but Jono and I both agreed we had dawdled long enough in Medewi and it was time to move.

     Once again we caught a cheap public bus, this time all the way to one of the terminals near Denpassar. Remaining unsurprisingly consistent this overstretched transit van retained the standard features of non-existent leg room, durian air freshener and a box of free range chickens under the seat. However it was clear that this vehicle must have been part of the luxury fleet due to the appearance of a bus conductor. Sadly we soon realised my initial assumption had been incorrect when the vehicle slowed to a halt on a slight incline. The geezer jumped to his feet, pulled a large wooden wedge lassoed in thick rope from under an adjacent seat, threw himself off the bus and rolled the wedge behind the rear passenger wheel. It was at this point both of us realised the guy’s actual occupation wasn’t a bus conductor at all, but a HUMAN HANDBRAKE! (Actually thinking back to it there were two kids sitting on the roof called Pebbles and Bam Bam).



Market street n the heart of Ubud

Pyscho Goat

Weird Pig wth Afro 

     90 minutes later we arrived in the busy island capital of Denpassar and frankly we didn’t intend to stay. The streets of Denpassar were really just generic urban sprawl lacking in features unless you count the congestion. Taxi drivers clung onto the bus looking for business even before we had reached the bus terminal. As one elderly Indonesian lady left the vehicle on the city outskirts one such driver hung his head through the window, saw me and asked the ever familiar phrase “Where you going mister?”, to which I frankly replied “Where this bus is going. That’s why I’m sat on it”. Now I understand that it helps to show a certain degree of anticipation to get ahead of the game in a competitive market, but this was ridiculous. Once at the bus terminal we left Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble behind and flagged down one of the many bluebird taxis to take us the 12km to Ubud. Bluebird are mentioned in the Lonely Planet guides and are known in the region as the most professional taxi service on the island. They always use the meter and have the bluebird logo and contact number on the windscreen. There are many fakes around though so if any refuse to use the meter due to “technical issues” or “because it broke this morning” find another driver. Between Denpassar and Ubud the scenery from the cab window was pretty spectacular. Despite Indonesia’s monetary poverty when compared to its neighbours the country certainly contains natural riches beyond measure.



Tina Turner Lizard with acrylic nails

      We finally arrived in Ubud late in the afternoon to a height of activity. Tourists were jostling through the streets searching for guestrooms and locals were weaving through the dense traffic on mopeds rushing to help out with the preparation for the upcoming festivities. Sure the silent day was not for another two days but plans were in place for the much anticipated evening parade. The festival of Neyepi is all to do with tricking evil spirits away from your home or town. As with Bonfire Night in England some locals construct idols to burn. In England it’s traditionally models of Guy Fawkes. In Bali its huge fiberglass monsters called Ogoh-Ogoh. After settling into our room at Sania’s House we went on a monster hunt. The majority of the Ogoh-Ogoh were being constructed on the football pitch in the centre of Ubud. They all looked good enough to be used as props in some big Hollywood horror movie. A huge ginger wolf, a snarling wild boar and a weird green lizard woman that kind of resembled Tina Turner. Definitely would have given me nightmares as a kid.     
















Ubud had a surprise in stall for our first night when we found out our German friends from Yogyakarta were also in town. Dennis and Mara had set off to Bali a few weeks before we arrived and had already explored the Gili Islands and Lombok. It’s always great to bump into people you have shared experiences with and although it’s unlikely we will see this cool couple again as they only had a few days remaining before heading back home, having a laugh and sharing experiences around a restaurant table seemed like a fitting farewell. We can only hope that our paths cross again someday.

     Bumping into past friends became a growing trend in Ubud as the next morning we heard our Spanish buddy Alberto had rolled into town literally. Alberto was another member of our temple group in Yogyakarta and like Dennis and Mara he had also hightailed it to Bali to hit the surf and explore the island by scooter. Thankfully our room at Sania’s House was large enough to accommodate three people so Alberto joined us in our tourist trap refuge.



This is what rabies does to animals

    The town itself has plenty to distract the typical tourist crowd. Markets selling all kinds of tack from slingshots and sarongs to Bintang lager vests and cock shaped bottle openers. The perfect gifts to airmail home to your loved ones (Hmmm I hope my Dad likes that bottle opener). Art galleries and craft shops also account for most of the shop fronts in town with wood carvings, stone masonry and oil paintings galore. If all this bores you can always chill out in a bar and people watch whilst tucking into some Nasi Goreng or if you’re feeling really adventurous wander along one of the popular walking trails along nearby rivers and rice fields. However we never had time to venture beyond the town limits as it wasn’t long before the much anticipated national holiday of Neyepi kicked off to an energetic start.

The monster mash.........It was a graveyard smash!

 

    Once the sun retreats to end the penultimate day before Neyepi the locals appear for a monster march of impressive proportions. Men, women and children of all ages band together to carry the cumbersome structures along the main street to a nearby temple where the monsters are quite rightly put to the torch and cast out in the prevailing wind. Not since the Hindu festival in Kuala Lumpur had we witness such a cacophony of lights, lyrics, music, and mayhem. On many occasions across Indonesia I have felt a definite divide between the local and tourist population but on this particular evening all the jealousy, naivety to foreign culture, disrespect, stereotypes and resentment vanished as everyone embraced the holiday vibe. If you visit Indonesia during Neyepi. Don’t head to the Muslim regions to avoid silent day, decide instead to stay for the parties just before the big day.

entrance to the cool Balinese home compound known as Sania's House

I know I miss our dog (Zac) and cat (Chester)
but I can always find other creatures to wind up 

     Silent Day was pretty much what was described on the tin. Nobody is allowed to leave their hotel, all public transport (including flights) come to a halt and all the stores are closed. It’s as if the whole island switches to energy saving mode and focusses on the things that matter closer to home. For backpackers and holidaymakers the day offers the chance for people to turn to more traditional forms of entertainment be it reading a book, writing a diary (or notes for a blog post) or having a drink and a game of cards with friends. It does however help if you have a place to stay that offers a little space to manoeuvre alongside a social vibe and we found such a place. Sania’s House is located in the very heart of Ubud just next to the street market. It’s an inexpensive guesthouse set in a stunning traditional Balinese home complex with its own pool. After a month or so of rooms infested with termites and bathrooms with frogs the place seemed like a secluded Garden of Eden. The place was a real find and with three people staying in the room the price dropped to £4 a night, so a stay won’t break the bank.

Great Place to try local cuisine and help others

Located on a quiet corner of the football pitch in the heart of Ubud is the quaint, little café “Sjaki’s Warung”. On the grounds of a local charity run school for developmental disadvantaged kids the café offers a place where the students can practice their English with customers whilst learning how to run a successful eatery. If you’re looking for the best Indo dishes in town look no further and the best thing is that all proceeds go straight back towards funding this great project.

Go on guess which one is Spanish

Unfortunately we never had the chance to venture outside Ubud as by sods law the heavens opened with unrelenting rain the day after Silent Day. Alberto left us to surf in Southern Bali for a few days and Jono and I caught a bus the following morning to the harbour town of Padang Bai. The gateway to Lombok and the Gili Islands.

Visas and vistas in Java’s historic hub

7th - 13th March 2015

We were a little upset about leaving Pangandaran as we could have quite happily chilled out there for a fortnight but as usual it seemed no sooner we unpack it’s time to bundle our belonging again. Once again our outbound mode of transportation was a cramped minibus but at least the seven hour journey was bearable.

queuing at the Kraton

    It was mid-afternoon by the time we reached the hostel area of Java’s city of culture and history, Yogyakarta (also spelt Jogjakarta). Finding some overnight digs is straight forward enough as there are three pedestrian alleyways (conveniently signposted as gangs 1, 2 and 3) opposite the central railway station. Each gang offers a number of guest homes, restaurants and other useful services so there is no real need to venture long distances, unless you want to. We booked a room at “Setia Kawan Losmen Guesthouse” opposite the popular “Andrea Hotel”. Setia Kawan was comfortable enough and for a reasonable price of Rp 100,000 our stay included free breakfast, en-suite bathroom and A/C.



It's lavish for Indonesia at least

     We decided to wander the streets on our first full day and headed toward the “Kraton” area. The Kraton makes up the very central district of the city and is home to the palace grounds. The grounds are a good way to kill an hour although if you visit expecting grand and expensive artifacts it may be a little disappointing. Many of the exhibits seem to showcase the royal families “incredibly fascinating” collection of tea pots, coffee mugs, cameras and other everyday items. Don’t miss the cutlery, frying pan and spatula exhibit you’ll only regret it. If you have not seen a shadow puppet show before the palace contains a nice seating area to highlight this important ancient form of entertainment although it is better to visit in the evening to experience the show in all its splendor.

 

     To see the best that Yogyakarta has to offer you have to venture outside the city. Java’s most popular attraction Borobodur temple is around an hour’s drive away and the best tours leave early at around 4am to capture the sunrise over the temple from a nearby vantage point before visiting the temple proper and then returning to Yogyakarta to visit another popular temple Prambanan. We booked the tour at the main tourist information centre with some friends from Pangandaran and prepared for the early morning wake up call.

sunrise view

A local minibus driver picked us up bright and early and headed to the vantage point. Sadly our efforts went unrewarded as fog and cloud cover obscured the sunrise (it is the rainy season so it was always going to be a long shot), however it did highlight another type of tourist that without fail offers a comical spectacle. I’m talking about the “TRIPOD TRAVELLERS”. Despite it being obvious from the outset that opportunities of photographic bliss would be limited, these idiots still jostle, push, fight and distract their way to what they believe is the perfect spot for panoramic photographs.

Tri-plodders fighting for that perfect foggy view

In fact some of the more experienced “Tri-plodders” seem to have spent so much time standing next to their beloved camera stands they begin to resemble the cumbersome items. Many carry one of those hiking sticks with a handle which allows them to turn the stick into a seat. Ironically as they sit there with a branch shoved firmly up their bottoms they fail to realise that as they now have three legs and should have just taped the camera to their head instead and saved themselves a few hundred queens’ heads.

Bruvs on Borobodur

     Borobodur was a much nicer experience and although it’s fair to say we have visited so many temples in the last few months few live up to the spectacle of the Khmer temples of Cambodia, Borobodur was a real surprise. After climbing the many steps to the top visitors are presented with a collection of small domes containing stone idols. The temple itself sits in a valley surrounded by sleeping active volcanoes in every direction. It’s easy to see why people see the area as a special religious sight.

what a view!



PLAYER!

    



You can see why faith is important here

 Talking of religion and spirituality, unusually the peaceful serenity atop the temple was disturbed by the incessant chanting of what I at first believed to be a school of monks. It was only when they crept into eyeshot that it became apparent most of the howlers were western tourist who had obviously paid money to be involved in some journey towards spirituality. Now it’s important to say at this point that I consider myself an atheist and although I accept many people use religion to achieve great things there are aspects of it that are quite hilarious and this was one such example. Stereotypes are sometimes a bad thing but on this occasion it was hard to ignore the demographic of the people paying good money for this sponsored groan-athon. At first glance no similarities existed. It was a mixture of men and women of different ages and ethnicities. However almost all had dreadlocks, silk trousers, hemp shirts or the dreaded top knot. After travelling Asia for six months we have met many people who fit this category and I can safely say that the only reason these people persevere with looking like an utter imbecile is so they can head back to the hostel and boast about how spiritually cleansed they feel. That’s all well and good but I think the only thing that’s been truly cleansed is their damn bank account. No wonder the monk had a smile on his face because essentially his found a way to make money by doing very little. 

     

Where's Jono gone?

The group of twenty or so tourist followed the monk in slow precession circling the temple before climbing to the first level where they would circle the temple again and so on all the way to the summit. Always moaning inaudible notes and waving their hands in a way that resembled the Macarena. The ones nearest the monk at the front always looked keener than the stragglers who judging by their faces had finally realised they could have done the same thing for free without forking out $50. They say there’s one born every minute but it’s not every day you get a group of them at the same place (unless you visit Old Trafford at a weekend).

A gaggle of morons

    Our third and final stop was at Prambanan temple and after Borobodur it was a little bit of an anti-climax. The sight was a pretty much an undamaged replica of the ruined temples we saw in Thailand in Ayutthaya, except it lacked any real character. If you haven’t seen an Asian temple before try to visit this one before Borobodur and you’ll see what I mean. Sure the carvings are exquisite but the temple itself felt dingy, smelt of urine and offers limited photographic opportunities unless you like the sight of Yogyakarta in the background. All was not lost though because we got to see our minibus driver have an argument with another passenger after they realised they had paid more than us for entry. They got their money back in the end and our pissed off driver was kind enough to give us an aggressive drive back to our guesthouse.

Prambanan

    If you visit Yogyakarta you have to try the temple day tour. On our occasion we didn’t get a good sunrise but that’s the way it goes sometimes and in many ways Borobodur makes up for the tours faults.

The carefully carved spires are impressive

Travelling Tips at the temples

·         The minibus drivers will try to sell you entrance tickets before entering the temples. Just kindly decline and buy a ticket at the appropriate desk. The drivers buy the tickets themselves to sell on at a slightly inflated price.

·         It is possible to buy a combo ticket for both temples although it’s not clearly advertised at the desk (The signs only show adult and child prices for one temple). If you request the combination ticket the women at the ticket desk will know what you mean and you can save a little money.

·         Visitor with student cards pay 50% less. Just try with a driving license, who knows you may get lucky.



Traditional Go-cart track at Prambanan



     I would like to say that we visited more sights on our 6 day visit but unfortunately for us we had an administrative barrier to cross in the form of a visa extension. Unlike Malaysia and Singapore visitors from the UK and other countries can only obtain an initial 30 day visa on entry unless they apply for the two month visa from their home country. Obviously we haven’t been home for a while so were therefore stuck with the initial 30 days. This visa can be extended for an additional 30 days if you need longer and we sure needed more time to get to Bali and Lombok to search for a final boat.

     Many people apply and obtain the Indonesian visa extension however sometimes the procedures can be a little confusing and advice online is limited so here is a quick guide on obtaining an extension in Yogyakarta (other immigration offices may vary in speed and professionalism). It took three long days but we finally had our visa and were ready to continue through Java towards Bali.