Archive for November, 2006
Tommorrow is Galungan in Bali. Some foreign businesses will close early today, to allow staff to get back to their villages.
Sitting here in Seminyak, I just talked to Galaxy owner, Jeff from Australia. Jeff said tommorrow its business as usual for him. Balinese people have an air of excitement right now, its a bit like Christmas eve, with decorations and
penjors all over the place.
Galungan lasts for 10 days, although most people will be back to work within a day or 2. Galungan celebrates the return to Earth of the Gods. Their stay finishes with Kuningan, the most important day of the lot, when they leave.
If you are in Bali right now take a drive around the Ubud area, East Bali, or any scenic part of Bali. The streets will be lined with penjors creating a magical setting.
source : www.baliblog.com
November 28th, 2006
Bali has a list of famous artists from the 20th century. One of the most famous was I Gusti Nyoman Lempad, painter and sculptor, who is best know for his ink drawings of mythical Balinese Hindu scenes.
The house is located right on Jl. Raya Ubud, the main street and is almost opposite Nomad restaurant. There is no admission fee or any staff on duty. Lempad’s family still live there, so it feels more like a house than a museum.
Entering though an archway, you’ll see a few family housing structures, that display artwork. When I last visited, no people seemed to be around, apart from one young guy, looking after a group of fighting cocks in their cages. There were several cages of other birds, and this made the whole place feel very Balinese.
I Gusti Gede Udayana is Lempad’s grandson, and still lives in the house along with other relatives. At the rear bale of the family compound, there are ink drawings, carvings and other works by Lempad, including this cremation tower.
Gede is super relaxed, and didn’t seem to be trying to sell anything. We talked about his grandfather, and I asked him if he himself had met some of the other famous Ubud painters. He said he had met Rudolf Bonnet and also Tjokorda Gede Agung Sukawati ( the last king ). It is interesting to note that Lempad, Bonnet and Sukawati were all friends, who died within a few months of each other. They were cremated together in Ubud in 1979.
Among the items Gede showed me, was a decorated door carving which was done by a relative, to replicate a Lempad painting. There were also some masks that Lempad was working on, and other memorabilia including newspaper articles, one of which was signed on the back by Suteja Neka, founder of the Neka museum.
I asked Gede if his grandfather had taught him to paint and draw. He said he had but it was so hard to be like him. When I asked what tips the master had given him, and he said Lempad had told him he must start with the head of a figure, then figure out where the arms and legs must be in proportion. He also told Gede to learn to draw in clean lines, which Gede said was very hard. Lempad’s paintings are usually black and white, with maybe some red and have that simple clean set of outlines.
Gede told me that sometime Lempad would use a little gold leaf or other color but really preferred black and white. The Chinese block that they used for making ink, and the mixing bowl are still around and today the artists use modern paints too.
Gede actually builds houses for a living now, and showed me a book showcasing one of his creations in Ubud for an American family. He’s no slouch and does great work.
Some of the other artist with works on display here are very talented too and I looked at a traditional village scene one guy did under Gede’s magnifying glass. The detail was incredible and the price was $500 for the 7″ by 5″ painting.
I asked if he gave painting classes, he said no but his friend did, the style is traditional. I will have to call back to arrange a session with him, and who knows what skills I might pick up.
Gede said the house is always open because they live there, so I suppose any reasonable time you feel like visiting is okay with them. It is true that the best collection of Lempad’s work is at the Neka Art Museum.
There are so many fancy galleries that cater to western buyers, that all owe a debt, to the art scene created by the like of Walter Spies, Rudolf Bonnet and Nyoman Lempad, yet here at Lempad’s house the family carry on as though not much has changed.
Puri Lempad Bali
(0361) 975618
•What is it?
The former home of I Gusti Nyoman Lempad, often referred to as Bali best artist.
•Where is it?
Jl. Raya Ubud across from Nomad restaurant.
•What’s there?
Small family compound used by Lempad’s relatives. A couple of example of his work, other art memorabilia. Nice people.
•Admission:
Free.
•Opening hours?
Pretty much whenever you want, but be respectful as its a family house.
•Who is Lempad’s House good for?
People who are interested in Balinese art, Balinese art history, meeting an artist’s relatives, in an everyday setting. People who are downtown in Ubud and want a handy place of interest.
•Who is Lempad’s House not good for?
People wanting to view a complete collection of Lempad’s work. People looking for an impressive museum, people who like guided tours.
source : www.baliblog.cm
November 28th, 2006
A ketupat is a pyramidal packet of compacted rice, wrapped in banana leaves. In Legian Bali, Ketupat is also the name of a restaurant. Ketupat is located on Jl. Legian, behind Jonathan’s Gallery. You will be able to spot it, by the 2 Balinese ladies standing outside, guarding 2 bantens, (towers) of fruit.
Saturday evening past, Barrie, Candika nad a freind of their from Melbourne, invited me to sit with them, and once again enjoy the delights of Ketupat. Under a large bale structure, complete with table, cushions and bamboo roof, we chatted next to the pool. Barrie, an expert in Indonesian cuisine, ordered starters, which included kangkung, the green leafy vegetable in sambal, and a Javanese dish of green beans and bean sprouts, in a tangy sauce. All the starters were great. For main course I had Sate Nusa Penida, a set of thick grilled satay sticks, with chicken lalapan (raw vegetables), and rice. Barrie ordered a huge fish, which slowed down his chatter to a crawl.
Reading a restaurant review by BaliEats, it seems at one time they didn’t have the extensive menus. They do now, and its an impressive a selection, of food from around the country as you’ll see.
Ketupat has vegetarian options for main courses and main courses for 40,000rp. Some of the more elaborate main courses are around 90,000rp. Ketupat is a great place for a romantic dinner, or a place to go with a couple of friends.
Ketupat
Jl. Legian 109,
Kuta.
(0361)754.209
source : www.baliblog.com
November 28th, 2006
Touring the Ubud area, one will often find unique restaurants and galleries, in the most unexpected places. Stopping for a quiet drink / snack, helps to break up a trip and one great palce to stop is Gaya Fusion Of Senses.
Gaya Fusion Of Senses is located along Jl. Raya Sayan, the main road that runs south from Kedewatan. Amid lovely surroundings, the gallery features displays of modern art from domestic and foreign artists that last 2 weeks.
The gallery is set in the ground floor of a 2- storey building and is very spacious. When I visited the artist on display was Made Wianta, who seems to specialize in large abstract works. This one made of nails. Here’s the description.
By the entrance to the gallery is a display of goods, made on the premises including tableware and decorations. This stuff isn’t cheap, a vase I looked at cost $135. One of the staff told me they can handle large orders, and many of their customers are from Europe.
The top floor of the gallery is actually a bar and restaurant, which offered rice field views. I had a gado gado (steamed veggies and rice with peanut sauce) for 20,000rp. Trendy music created a relaxing atmosphere, not hard in a tropical climate.
Directly behind the gallery are 3 villas. The asking price for these is $120 per night but the staff hastened to tell me I could bargain.
This place is a great stop, off on a road trip and makes for a very pleasant detour on a day trip to Ubud. Maybe I can pursued and them, to display my first effort at painting some time later!
Gaya Fusion Of Senses
Jl. Raya Sayan, Ubud, Bali
(0361) 979253
gaya@gayafusion.com
Gaya Fusion Of Senses
•What is it?
Art museum, bar, restaurant.
•Where is it?
Jl. Raya Sayan, close to Ubud.
•Admission:
Free
•Who is Gaya Fusion Of Senses good for?
People who like abstract and modern art / interior arts. People exploring the Ubud area, and wants a relaxing place for lunch. People on a road trip, looking for a great pitstop.
•Who is Gaya Fusion Of Senses not good for?
People who don’t like modern art galleries, trendy places. People who are seeking traditional Balinese art.
source : www.baliblog.com
November 28th, 2006
If I had a pot of money and time on my hands, I might build a house in Bali. Even if I don’t, just thinking about where it would be, is a lot of fun. Riding around on my motorbike and marking spots with a GPS, I see there is no limit to the amount of scenic spots on the island, with relatively cheap land. As always, location is the real factor you have to consider, when building a house.
Personally, I’d never build a house on the beach. Reason being, is 5 minutes after its built, someone else will build next ot me, behind me, around me. Better to find a nice chunk of land in a valley with a view. One of the most scenic valleys I’ve seen, runs 13kms from Dausa, on the rim of the Batur crater, down to the NE coast at Bondalem. There are no ‘bules’ living there, the valley affording views of the coast, with coconut, mango, papaya, avocado and a host of other fruits dripping from the trees. Only problem with this place, is where do you go for stuff. Nearest supermarket, bank, cinema, doctor, ATM will be in Singaraja, over an hour away. Same thing with some of the highland places I see in Jatiluwih, or Penebel. The access is often via rutted roads, the nearest big town being Tabanan, the nearest real town of interest being Seminyak, 90 minutes away.
One of the best places I’ve visited, and think of as ideal, is near Tirgagangga in East Bali. Just behind the town of Amlapara I remember there being a large, virtually unpopulated valley. When I say unpopulated, I mean by westerners. The reason I like this area is that East Bali feels like a lower key, more traditional place than the south of the island. I always get a good feeling about that part of Bali. The valley directly behind Amlapura, to the north, offers sweeping views of perfect rice terraces, a river running down the center (no annoying local road with noisy motorbikes!), cheaper land than in Seminyak, decent access with a car, 10 minutes to Amlapura, 30 minutes to Candi Dasa, 15 minutes to the coast and 45 minutes to Amed. There you have it, ATM’s and banks, sweeping ricefield views, coastal access, white sand beaches and restaurants. Next time I go I’ll post the coordinates. With the new Kusamba Bypass stretching all the way to almost Padangbai, you can jet out to East Bali faster than ever before. Even if a Bypass to other parts of the Bali happens, you’ll be hard pressed, to find the attractions of what I mentioned, plus the water palace at Tirtagangga, in such close proximity.
Another area that will explode in the next 10 years will be Ubud. I’ve seen nice land in Tegallalang and other areas, with easy access to Ubud.
Fun isn’t it to dream?
source : www.baliblog.com
November 28th, 2006
Ayam bakar is grilled chicken, ikan bakar is grilled fish. Both are popular in Indonesia. In Seminyak, one local place serves a good deal on both of these.
Located on Gang Plawa, across from Jl. Dhyana Pura, 100 meters in from Jl. Seminyak, is a large green cloth sign saying simply ’sate kambing” (goat satay). Popular with locals, side dishes of fried tempe, tofu and vegetables are available. At lunchtime the place is busy with locals, but if you hang out long enough you’ll get served. Good place for a cheap dinner too. In a hurry, I ordered fried chicken instead of grilled. My 2 pieces of chicken, lalapan (raw vegetables), rice, tea, was 15,000rp.
When my mother in-law was over here, 4 of us went, ordering 5 main course and 4 drinks. The price was 50,000rp!
source : www.baliblog.com
November 28th, 2006
There are a variety of maps available for visitors to Bali, including paper map, plastic maps, guidebooks with maps of the island eyc. The most detailed map of Bali, that is widely available is the Periplus Bali Street Atlas.
The 2005/2006 edition cost 145,000rp in the Periplus shop at Made’s Warung in Seminyak. In Bintang supermarket they charge 195,000rp. Published in Singapore by Tuttlepublishing, the book has 171 pages, with a selection of detailed, clear maps.
Using my GPS to mark small villages on Sunday, I referred to the Street Atlas and was able to utilize their coordinates on the maps to locate them exactly.
Periplus Bali Street Atlas breaks down the island by scaled maps. There are 3 small scale maps giving an overview at 1:200,000, 56 medium maps covering all of Bali including Nusa Penida at 1:60,000-1:75,000 and 45 large scale maps, zeroing in on the population centers, at 1:10,000-1:25,000
Bali is a propinsi (province) of Indonesia. The Periplus Bali Street Atlas breaks down administrative zones into kabupatan (district), kecamatan (municipality), kelurahan (village area) and banjar (village). For example, Jl. Melasti would be in the kabupatan of Badung, the kecamatan of Kuta and the kelurahan of Legian Kaja. The wedding I went to a while back, would be in the kabupatan of Tabanan, the kecamatan of Kediri, the kelurahan of Nyitdah and the banjar of Babakan.
Periplus Bali Street Atlas also give a topographical view of the island, enabling one to see the physical features, which for me, makes life a lot easier, when exploring.
source : www.baliblog.com
November 28th, 2006
Everythime I read the news, its all about people kiling other people, and general bad things. According to one group of people, war is just up-tight men, trying to show how big they are. There are better ways to release all that pentup energy.
A friend of mine in Oregon sent me site, that calls people to action. GlobalOrgasm asks participants to channel their energy, into something more positive than war. Here in Bali, people paddle for peace, swim for peace, march for peace, put on carnivals for peace, why not have an orgasm for peace? Makes as much sense as everything else.
Global Orgasm for World Peace
•What is it?
A chance to let off some steam while thinking of peace.
•Where is it?
Your house, car, any place that tickles your fancy.
•When is it?
December 22nd, winter Solstice.
•Why should you participate?
Stress is a killer, this might make you live longer. You can channel your peaceful energy into whatever cause you want. I’ll be thinking of peace in Bali.
One, two , three….Oooooooohhhh!
source : www.baliblog.com
November 28th, 2006
MBarGo is the best nightclub in Kuta. Located across the street from the old Sari Club, this modern joint offers a dance floor, large bar area and lounge bar. Usually its is rocking and a favourite with Aussie tourists.
Friday night I rode down there to check it out, arriving around 11.45pm. The place was pretty empty and I sat at the bar, watching a re-run of Arsenal vs. Newcastle, along with the staff. All the while MBarGo’s sound system pumped out the tunes. Looking at their drink menu, I saw a selection of the usual cocktails, Caipirinha, Mojito, etc. prices ranging frm 45,000-55,000rp. Beers were 15,000rp, your choice of Bintang, VB, Fosters, draught Heineken. I enjoyed a couple of VB’s, definitely a different taste than Bintang.
Freidns of mine in the surfing industry have told me the lack of Aussies, means way slower business. Kuta and Legian are hit the hardest. Seminyak does okay, because of the expats and Euro’s. Between Idul Fitri and Christmas there is always a slump.
Places like MBarGo, that spend a ton on rent, staff, eqiupment etc. really need to score big on Friday and Saturday, as well as creating some excitement at other nights in the week. There just didn’t seem to be that much going on last night. I left around 12.45am and there must of been 20 people in MBarGo.
source : www.baliblog.com
November 27th, 2006
Warm weather, sunshine, a great setting and the ocean. What more could you want? In Semnyak Bali, we’ve got all of that, and more.
Saturday morning I strolled down to the beach, to see what was going on. The usually array of taxi drivers were lounging in the shade, reading newspapers, eating etc. Although its technically the wet season now, there’s no rain. The wind is greatly reduced, meaning you can enjoy the beach without getting sand blasted and there is very little garbage on the beaches, or in the water. Ocean temperatures are also higher at this time of year, making Bali a phenomenal place for a vacation.
Check out air tickets in our right hand sidebar. With great bars and restaurants, friendly boys and girls, and perfect weather, you’d be crazy not to come to Bali.
source : www.baliblog.com
November 27th, 2006
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