Summer Year 3 - 2011

Summer was a much needed escape after an insane year. I arrived in Baltimore a bit shell-shocked from life in Egypt post-revolution. I wandered zombie-like around Baltimore for the first week home while I also took an AP course at Goucher College and battled crazy jet lag.

Then, fourth of July weekend at my niece's 4th birthday party (where I was very happily surrounded by my 'other family' who have been my third set of parents and siblings since I was 12) - Lil opened her present and said "OOOOooo a magic wand! Thank you Aunt H! Bibbidi-Bobbidy-boo!" I just needed that little bit of magic: everything was right with the world again. I spent the next two days visiting friends and extended family, meeting new cousins and 'nieces and nephews' born during my year-long absence from Baltimore, hugging everyone in sight, and being happy to be alive.

I flew back to Cairo for a few days to meet-up with my roommate and then we flew off to Bali for a wedding on the tiny island of Nusa Penida. The Bali Posts speak for themselves, as do the pictures below.

Finally, it was off to Thailand (where I rode elephants, pet tigers, zip-lined through the jungle, ate amazing food, and sweat like I never knew was possible) and Singapore (two days of amazing food and wine....and orangutans) before settling back in to Cairo and catching up with friends as I started what I knew would be my last year here.

Candidasa, Bali, Indonesia

Nusa Penida, Bali, Indonesia

Ubud, Bali, Indonesia

Jimbaran, Bali, Indonesia

                                     

Bangkok, Thailand

Ayathuya, Thailand

Chonburri, Thailand

Kanchanaburri, Thailand

Singapore, Singapore

Bali Part II - Touristing

After the wedding in Nusa Penida, several of us headed up in to the hills to Ubud in Bali.

Now, I was really excited about Ubud. It's meant to be full of crafts and artists and beautiful rice paddies and scenery. One guidebook described it as "The Real Bali."

Um, NO. The Real Bali is Nusa

Penida, where people are friendly and going about their lives with the occasional sideways glance at all the Westerners descending on their tiny village and there are no tourists. Ubud was a tourist center.

Ubud does have it's gorgeous bits, that's true. My hotel was in Tjampuhan, a 10 - 15 minute walk from the town center at the convergence of two rivers in a steep valley. Places where water meet are considered holy in Bali, and with the lush surroundings, it felt both mystical and magical. The hotel was situated on one slope of the river valley - the opposite slope was only dense jungle. The sounds of birds, monkeys, frogs, and mosquitos (it was July in Bali after all) lulled me to sleep each night different birds woke me each morning which was really lovely.

Hotel Tjampuhan

The town of Ubud, however, was jam packed with tourists from all over the world (and monkeys) - so packed that at certain times of the day it was difficult to navigate the sidewalks. Prices for handicrafts were a bit high - in some places costing the same as they would in retail shops in the U.S. There were jems to be found, however. For example a little restaurant that fronted on a hot, busy street but, in the back, opened up to just 8 or so tables facing verdant rice fields and a cool breeze. There I tried "Balinese Sangria" - Fanta and Balinese Rice Wine with cut-up melon. It was really tasty and refreshing, believe it or not!

Balinese Monkey

There was also Marni's Warung across from my hotel, where I had two fantastic meals. From the street, it doesn't look like much, but the restaurant has three open floors of restaurant that cascade down the steep valley of the river. One floor had a swank little lounge that played some of my favorites from the Cole Porter era while my friend and I drank Balinese Rose (not bad wine, really!) and took advantage of the free wi-fi. With wine and three courses, dinner for two cost about $40 and the view was amazing. (there is a whole blog post coming on food...)

Above Ubud is an artist's town called Penestanan where I watched women hand painting silk and where, clutching a map from a popular guidebook, I got lost. So did some French tourists holding the same map...and some Spaniards and Germans. Still though, beautiful rice fields,

friendly people, low grey clouds that wanted to let loose a torrent of rain but (thankfully) held back, and a taxi ride home that got 'stuck' in a ceremonial procession that was incredible.

Silk Painting

Procession

Blessing At Low Tide

After Ubud (where I got excellent medical care for the

bronchitis and sinus infection I was

suffering from by this part of the trip), the wedding party reconvened in Jimbaran for the sunset beach blessing of A + D - which was a beautiful evening on the beach, reconnecting with some old colleagues that did not make it to Nusa Penida, eating fantastic fresh seafood, and making new friends.

The evening before the blessing, a group of us went to see the Kecak fire dance at Ulu Watu temple near Kuta at sunset. The Kecak dance has no music, instead a beat is provided by nearly 100 men sitting in a circle, each of whom has a different part. I cannot do the description justice, so I recommend watching the Bali No Reservations episode for the best effect. Ulu Watu is beautiful, situated on a high cliffside above the ocean...with more monkeys. It was too smokey to get very good pictures of the temple when I was there, so I again refer you to No Reservations.

Finally, my trip in Bali coming to a close, my friend and I booked a villa with an infinity pool and dining pavilion (read: SWANK) in a tiny village near Canggu. For the last two days in Bali, I relaxed by the pool and made one last excursion - to Tanah Lot, a temple on the West Coast that is surrounded by water at high-tide.

View from the Dining Pavilion

One of the "you must do" things in Bali is to watch the sunset at Tanah Lot. I visited just before sunset and the location and light were beautiful, but the area was so packed with tourists (I should mention here that it was high season), the idea of staying until the sun went down and trekking back to the parking lot in the dark with the masses was not alluring.

Despite the crowds, though, I did manage to take a few pictures with no tourists in them (a major feat, I'll have you know).

Time in Bali was over, but I was ready to move on to the next adventure: Thailand!

Bali Part I - The Wedding

First, let me just acknowledge that my life is pretty cool at the moment and I am ever thankful for the awesome twists and turns my life has taken in the last three years. I'm happily back home in Cairo, having just returned from a three-week + vacation to three countries. There are so many highlights from the last month, but I am going to start at the beginning and work my way through in several posts because that is the only way to properly recount the amazing (and somewhat exhausting) adventures I had.

The whole purpose of the trip to Bali was the marriage of my British friend, and former colleague from Cairo, to a Balinese man she had met on one of her many vacations to the island. Several of us from Cairo were originally planning to go, but due to various factors only a few of us from Cairo made it, as well as some former colleagues, and guests from all over the world.

The trip began with one night in Kuta; Bali's tourist center on the East coast that was like every other touristy beach side resort I've been to in the world (think Ocean City, MD...or NJ...or anywhere else they have one). This was the 'getting over jet lag' portion of the trip so, other than a brief walk on the beach and hours stuck in traffic I saw nothing of Kuta. This is not something I see as a loss.

Next, those of us in Kuta met up with the rest of the wedding guests outside Candidasa on Bali's South-West coast. Everyone was staying in lovely, thatched-roof lodgings on the sea with beautiful views, great food, and simple, well-ventelated rooms that did not need aircon (fortunately, as there was none to be had). The view, as you can see below, was amazing.

The hotel shared a tiny dirt-road with another, similar hotel

and restaurant that ALSO had really good food. There was not much else close by, but the little hotel was so lovely and cheap that one didn't need to go anywhere else. Regardless, as we were in the area of some temples and villages, my friend and I booked a three-hour tour that included a water palace, a water temple and a traditional village.

The village of Tenganan (pictured at right) asks for a donation for your visit, assigns you a free villager to tour you around the village (and tout their handicrafts), and does not allow foreigners to stay overnight - thereby doing its best to preserve a traditional way of life in a modern world. Cock fighting was very popular there, and they dye the feathers of the birds bright pinks, oranges, and yellows for the events.

After the donation we visited three historical sites. The first, the

water palace Tirta Gangga, was breathtaking. Loads of pathways, gardens, and fountains that were really beautiful and unusual. You could even swim in the waters at the palace. Pictured at left is a bridge at the temple and some of the beautiful flowers in bloom around the enclosure.

The second site - a palace - was interesting, but not terribly photogenic. The third, the water palace Taman Ujung, was lovely; a small building surrounded by water with beautiful bridges and pagodas raised high on a hill above the lake. The water palace, though, did not have the stunning foliage of the Water Temple a short drive away.

Touring done, it was time to venture to Nusa Penida (a tiny island off the south coast of Bali) for the wedding. A + D were to be married in a traditional Balinese Hindu ceremony in the family compound in a tiny village on Nusa Penida. The guests stayed in home-stays (essentially small rooms in buildings built within or behind a family compound) dotted around the village. We had a cold-water tap at shower-height and a manual flush toilet, all a 5 minute walk from the family compound (in one direction) and the beach (in the other direction), so really not so bad.

Unlike many Western weddings these days, there was no hall, no big white dress, and no

catering truck delivering goods. The family stayed up all night preparing food (including spit-roasted suckling pig, spicy shredded chicken, deviled eggs topped with sambal that were extra spicy, and other traditional dishes) and ceremonies began the night before the wedding, stopped briefly, and began again in the pre-dawn hours. The bride's makeup and hair was the most elaborate part of the ceremony and took hours to put-together as each gold leaf and bow was on an individual pin that was attached to the hair.

The ceremony was meant to begin at 8, but the priest was

coming on the ferry, and the ferry is

often late, so the priest was late. This was totally fine as it gave all the westerners a chance to pose for pictures with the bride and groom, and to snack...

The family compound was set-up in a festival like manner with a snack stand with sodas and finger foods that were replenished all day by local women from the village. I feel that this addition to weddings (as the idea that you do not have to just sit and watch the wedding, but are really at a party from start to finish) was something we buttoned-up passive wedding guests could learn a lot from.

Once the priest arrived, she wrapped herself in a white piece of fabric and sat on a bier of offerings and began the ceremony while the bride and groom sat a few feet away under a banana plant canopy and were entertained. Nieces came out and did a traditional Balinese dance (my favorite, a serious little girl of about 5 or 6, smiled only once before the dance so focused was she on getting the moves right). Next, Balinese comedians came out and told jokes, did dances, and made merry to keep the atmosphere lively. All through this, the priest continued her preparations in the center of the compound and the band (best wedding band ever for traditional music - just amazing!) played on.

The Priest

The Dancers

The Band

Finally, it was time for the bride and groom to get involved. They were blessed, anointed, lead around a collection of offerings carrying baskets and swords made of sharp leaves, prayed with the family, fed each other bananas (so much less messy than cake!), and were then married. After the ceremony, the new husband and wife and the husband's family went to each of the 7 temples in the village to pray while the wedding party absconded to the beach for a bit of sunshine and napping until the reception.

Best of all, better than the fact that I was on vacation in Bali, it was beautiful to witness the love, happiness, and great sense of humor that the bride and groom shared. I was so glad to be invited and to watch my friend, who is one of the most positive and energetic people I've ever known, marry into a wonderful family that was kind enough to let us descend on their family compound with cameras and questions for two days.

This is only the first four days in Bali. Bali to be continued in my next post...

Bali Brief

I wanted to get a few thoughts down on Bali before I leave tomorrow for Thailand. None of my pictures will be ready until I get back to Cairo, and I am typing these thoughts on an iPad which is a biit cumbersome, so just a few brief notes.

I came to Bali for a wedding, I am not sure anything else would have gotten me here and I am not sure I will ever return, but what a beautiful and interesting place! My trip began in Candidasa, on the southern coast of the island not far from the ferry port to Nusa Penida where the wedding took place. White sand beaches, beautiful blue water, and stunning palaces and temples dominated the first part of the trip as the wedding party coalesced in a few small, fabulous thatched roof cottages on the sea.

Once everyone had gathered from far corners of the world (the U.S., Hong Kong, the U.K., Egypt, Australia, Brunei, Austria, Canada...you get the picture) we all loaded onto a ferry for Nusa Penida, a small island off Bali where we were guests in the Made family compound for the traditional Balinese Hindu wedding ceremony between my friend from Egypt and her Balinese partner. Our lodgings were home stays which were basic accommodations that featured manual flush toilets (i.e. You use scoops of water to flush the toilet) which took me back to my Algonquin days in college. For only $50 for two nights lodging, ferry tickets, and all my meals for two days I was more than happy to forgo a few 'modern conveniences'. The wedding was a once in a lifetime experience I will write about once the pictures are ready - it really deserves it's own post!

Next, several of us went to Ubud, where my lodgings were decidedly more lush, surrounded as they were by jungle foliage. Ubud was a bit crowded, and by that point I was quite I'll with Bronchitis ( forutnately threes was a clinic right next to the hotel and I got some antibiotics), but my friend and I still managed to have fun, even when we got lost (along with folks format least 3 other countries) trying to follow a poorly drawn map in the guidebook.

The second part of the wedding was in Jimbaran on the island's west coast - a sunset blessing on the beach that was just perfect.

Finally, I am wrapping up the trip in a tiny village North of Canggu near Tanah Lot, where I will go for the sunset tonight. This is by far the most posh accommodations I have planned for the entire trip- as I've been sitting by my villa's private infinity pool al day watching the goings on in the rice fields that stretch out ot infinity from my perch. This morning I strolled on the sparkling black sand beach along the edge of the sea, and just marveled at the beauty of it all.

Anyway, not my best bit of writing, but just wanted to get some thoughts down on Bali before I head off to part two of my SE Asia tour.

Bali and Beyond!

The theme of Summer 2011 is going to be the South East...

Auspicious dates have been located on the calendar and it looks like, at the end of July, I'll be island hopping in Indonesia with my favorite Cairo friends to attend what is surely to be a very spectacular wedding! Following that, the plan is to explore further afield in the region - Vietnam? Thailand? Malaysia? Who knows! Though it certainly looks like there is tons to see in Bali alone.

In preparation for Bali (and beaches), I'm working on my belly - back to Weight Watchers it is. In 2004, WW guided me to a 60 lb weight loss that it took 6 years and 11 countries to put back on. Now, it's time to start the eating right again, which means turning my back on dear Julia Child, who has guided my cooking to such amazing results with her whole-stick-of-butter recipes; and Mr. Anthony Bourdain, who has guided my eating further afield, but also into a bit of over indulgence. And by a bit, I mean full, four-course chef's special menus that do NOT come in tasting portions. It's hard. I LIKE full stick of butter recipes; they are tastier and easier to cook - but such is life.

Good news - it's working.

Obviously, I'm not going to turn my back on trying deep fried haggis in Scotland next month...but it's all about baby steps, right?