Some sights in central Bali

Long-tail Macaque

Monkeys are extremely important to the Balinese.  Stories, dances and folk tales feature monkeys prominently, in particular, the Kecak Dance.  Originating in the 1930s, the Kecak is usually performed by men with its roots in a trance-inducing exorcism dance.  It's also known as the Ramayana Monkey Chant, and is performed by a circle of 100 or more performers wearing checked cloth around their waists.  They percussively chant "cak" while throwing up their arms.  This depicts a battle from the Ramayana (an ancient Sanskrit epic) where the monkey-like Vanara helped Prince Rama fight the evil King Ravana.

And so, it's not an overly surprising concept that long-tail macaques have free reign in The Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary.  Found in Padangtegal village, near Ubud, this holy area includes a main temple, bathing temple, cremation temple and two graveyards.  Along with a brochure, asking visitors to treat the monkeys with the utmost respect, vendors sell bananas which they claim are the "special monkey bananas".  As if they discern between these and bananas purchased elsewhere!

The Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary

The 300 or so monkeys lounge on ancient carvings while feeding their young, and swing off the noses of fierce stone dragons.  Offerings are set on the altar, to appease the gods, and the monkeys unceremoniously toss things aside in the search for their favorite food.  The Sanctuary has become an ecological preserve and is the site of several research programs.

monkeys having a water-fight

Monkeys will be monkeys, however, whether in a sacred space or not.  We spent a few hours meandering down the pathways, watching the alpha-male of one of the groups bring a coconut high into the air and drop it on the ground, patiently, until it finally cracked and he sucked up the juice.  Then he pried open the husk and proceeded to eat the whole thing without sharing.

Aron's new friend

These little guys were fascinated by everything, a buckle on my sandal, the sunglasses in Aron's pocket, but mostly, our 1.5 litre water bottle. We have a crocheted rattan water bottle holder that is worn either in front or the back; like a messenger bag.  Everything happened so quickly:  I was watching a baby monkey that was on Aron's shoulder, fumbling with the camera.  Suddenly I was startled by a weight hanging off my water bottle holder, that I had swiveled around to carry on my back.  I couldn't see what was going on, and so I moved the water to the front of my body to see the culprit who was trying to steal the whole thing.   After a bizarre struggle that only lasted a couple seconds before I realized I was fighting with a monkey (!) we had no choice but to relinquish the water bottle.  The thief promptly bit through the plastic, then unscrewed the cap and dumped all the water out before boredom sent him wandering away.

There are quite a few sights in central Bali, and Pura Gunung Kawi was one of the stops on our itinerary.  To visit this temple complex, Aron had to be appropriately fitted with a sarong.  Other than a blue sash for my waist, I was considered modestly dressed, despite my bare shoulders.  After a steep descent down uneven stone steps, we found ourselves in a well-maintained water temple with shrines & pavilions.  A river winds its way through the ravine and rice paddies are farmed on the hillside.  Inside the temple, ancient sculptures & carvings were interspersed with shadowy dark tombs.  These tombs were all empty; if they housed remains at some point, we're not sure what has happened to them.  

Pura Gunung Kawi's tombs

Mount Batur was another destination and the slopes of this active volcano are covered with lava.  The huge 20 km. crater contains Lake Batur's blue depths, considered sacred.  We also stopped at Tegangan waterfall and a coffee plantation, specializing in what is known as coffee "luwak".  The process of this world-famous coffee starts with nocturnal cats who eat the coffee fruit.  After digestion, the coffee is then collected for cleaning & roasting.