Week 98 - Kupang, Ubud, Bangkok (Indonesia, Thailand)

We woke early at a loss with how to spend another day in Kupang. We’d already spent time there while waiting for our Timor Leste visa application authorisation and had decided to go straight back to the town from Timor Leste to ensure nothing else could go wrong and we’d make our flight back to Bali. After twiddling our thumbs trying to get the internet to work in our room, we wandered down to the hotel restaurant for coffee overlooking the sea. Kupang is an odd town and is really spread out and although we stayed at a central hotel there was nowhere within a 15 minute walk where we could get breakfast, or lunch. As soon as it got to a reasonable hour we wandered in to town to buy some snacks then set up base at the Lavalon cafe, a magnet for every white person in Kupang that is actually pretty rubbish other than a nice sea view and decent internet. That night we went to the night market near our hotel for a BBQ fish feast. 

We had a lunchtime flight to Bali so booked a cab and headed to the airport after a morning coffee. The flight was almost on time and, after dropping and picking up passengers in Maumere and Waingapu, we arrived in Bali. Our first port of call was at the Nam Air office to follow up on Karen’s lost bag. Having been missing for nearly a month they were providing an appalling service and still hadn’t updated her on progress. We managed to get hold of a managers email address and were told they’d follow up again and get back to us the next day, suggesting a bag had been found and that they’d check to see if it was Karen’s and let us know. Feeling like we might actually have made some progress, we headed outside and jumped in a metre cab to Ubud, back to the hotel we’d stayed at during our previous visit.

We arrived after dark, took novel hot showers and ate a gourmet meal at the hotel restaurant, enjoying the high level of service and the ambiance. 

We slept well but woke early with a morning of chores ahead of us. After a fantastic relaxed breakfast we rented a scooter and took our laundry to one of the only per kilo places we’d found in town. Next stop was an internet cafe to print out pages and pages of flight tickets, train tickets, hotel bookings and visa forms, preparation for the last four visas we’ll be needing before we get back to Europe. We rode back through the Peliatan area of Ubud to try to find the barbers Rhys went to last time but discovered it closed. Something was happening and people were milling about outside the temples, taking in offerings and socialising.

On our way back to the hotel we stopped by BARC, one of only two charities in Bali that look after abandoned and mistreated dogs. We’d intended to visit last time we were in Bali and really wanted to check the place out. It was fantastic, the work they do is incredible, although of course they could use more funding and more space, their country sanctuary, for unadoptable dogs to live out their lives in peace, was recently closed by the government for having the wrong permits and they haven’t been able to afford to buy more land. We were shown around and spent about an hour asking questions and giving the dogs some TLC. They’re not all kenneled and run around jumping on you for a hug and a pat. There are plenty with skin problems and more than a handful paralysed from the waist down but with only a few exceptions, they’re all incredibly happy. 

In my element, cuddling dogs at BARC, Bali.

After our trip to BARC we headed back to the hotel to shower and chill before we walked back into town, through the Monkey Forest, to check out the shops. Since Karen’s bag was lost and she was taking home all our Indonesian souvenirs, we really wanted to replace some of our favourite pieces, a Balinese wood carving and some fabrics. After lunch in our favourite cheap wine bar with a cheeky lunchtime carafe of white wine, we walked through the market to find what we were looking for. Rhys wandered home to leave me looking at fabrics and I followed shortly after. We ended up back at the wine bar again for dinner.

The following day was our sightseeing day, to visit all the temples nearby that we’d missed the last time because of my foot. We were up early and headed out on the bike shortly after breakfast. Our first stop was at the 11th century Goa Gajah, the Elephant Cave, a buddhist hermitage with bathing pools. Quite a small sight with bathing pools and a cave that you enter through a carved demons mouth. Set in a nice patch of forest, it would have been lovely to follow the stream down to the next sight, Yeh Pula, a 14th century hermitage, but as we had the bike, we decided to ride to it. Again, as at Goa Gajah, we were among the only people there and it didn’t take long to walk to the carved rock face. The carvings were impressive stretching for 25m and showing, they think, scenes from the life of Krishna but it’s real appeal was its solitude, unusual for Bali.

Rhys at Goa Gajah, standing in the devils mouth, Bedulu.

Me at Yeh Pula, Bedulu.

Back on the bike we rode to our first temple of the day, Pura Samaun Tiga. We nearly didn’t go in as there was a ceremony in the building next door and we’d pulled up at a side entrance and didn’t think there was much to the temple. As Rhys didn’t have a sarong, I wandered in and discovered the main entrance, calling Rhys over to come in to explore. The temple was beautiful. As with most Balinese temple complexes there were a series of courtyards with grand entry ways ascending up the side of the hill. We wandered around soaking in the atmosphere and marveling at the carvings. Although quite modern, having been rebuilt after the 1917 earthquake, it was majestic.

Rhys at the entrance to Pura Samuan Tiga, Bedulu.

After our three stops in Bedulu, we continued to Pejeng only a short distance up the road. We had three temples to see in Pejeng, Pura Kebo Edan (Crazy Buffalo Temple), Pura Pusering Jagat and Pura Penataran Sasih. The first was by far our favourite. Although only small, we arrived just as they were preparing for a full moon festival to start that afternoon and the temple was filled with stacks and stacks of perfectly arranged, brightly coloured food offerings, including fruit, soft drink cans, cakes, whole cooked chickens and fish. While the women were busy preparing and making the offerings, the men were sitting outside surrounded by piles and piles of pork from a 300kg pig that had been slaughtered that morning, that they were chopping up and skewing to make into satay. Everyone was so happy and we were invited to return later to see the parade. 

Offerings stacked at Pura Kebo Edan, Pejeng.

Making satay, men outside Pura Kebo Edan, Pejeng.

After Pejeng, we had one more stop to make and followed the road north to Tampaksiring to call in at Gunung Kawi, one of the most important ancient sites in Bali. The tour buses had already arrived but as the site was so big it didn’t feel too crowded. We donned our sarongs, paid our entrance fee and continued to walk down the stairs into the vine strewn, tropical valley where we were met by two sheer cliff faces, across the river from each other, carved with rows of candis (shrines) in 8m high niches. It was an impressive sight. Each one of the 10 candi is believed to be a memorial to a member of the 11th-century Balinese royalty, but little is known for certain.

The rice terraces at Gunung Kawi, Tampaksiring.

Rhys posing in front of some of the candi, Gunung Kawi, Tampaksiring.

After driving the back roads and stopping for some rice paddy photo opportunities, our sightseeing was done and we joined the traffic heading back to Ubud. We made a quick stop at BARC again to donate some cuddles, wishing we’d known about it so we could have volunteered there properly for a couple of days. 

We stopped at a hiking gear shop to start buying supplies for Nepal and between there and the hotel, I managed to lose our key. As we’d already returned the bike when we discovered the fact, Rhys ended up walking back to the shop to check I hadn’t left it there while I packed our bags ready to leave the following day. The rest of our afternoon was spent at the hotel relaxing, hiding from the downpours that are part and parcel of visiting Indonesia at the start of the monsoon season. The rain didn’t last long though and we popped out to finish buying our replacement souvenirs and for dinner at a liittle restaurant in Nyuhkuning, the village we stay in in Ubud, just south of the town proper.

We were sad to leave Ubud the next day and as always, could have spent longer there. It might be extremely touristy but it’s incredibly easy to leave the hordes behind and get out into the countryside. Driving around the backstreets and through the nearby villages you see that it’s not all put on for show, the men really do wear sarongs and bandanas, buildings are decorated with stunningly intricate carvings and there are beautiful shrines peaking over walls absolutely everywhere. I wish we had more photos to show what it was like but I think you have to go to really appreciate it.

We had a taxi booked to take us to the airport for our flight to Bangkok and arrived in plenty of time for a chilled airport experience. Our flight landed on time and other than confusion over which airport we were actually at when we landed (Bangkok has two airports, one a train ride from the centre and one a bus), we made it to our hotel, a short walk north of Khao San Road, backpacker central. As it was late by the time we arrived we dropped our bags and wandered out for delicious, cheap, pork and rice street food before heading down to Khao San. We didn’t stay for long and after walking a lap of the block, went back to bed.

The next day was an early start to head to the agency that the Indian Embassy has assigned with visa applications. We jumped in a cab only to find out from the driver there was a 4 day public holiday so we were nervous that the agency wouldn’t even be open. Then, just as we got close, I realised we hadn’t packed the wallet. The cab turned around and we went back to the hotel, then back to the agency across town, grateful at least that the national holiday meant the roads were quiet. Luckily the agency was open and was extremely efficient, we lodged our applications in about 30 minutes with the only issue being that the holiday meant the embassy was closed for 2 days. Visas should take 6-8 working days and we’d already booked a flight to Deli on day 9 which, with the closure, now became day 7. So fingers crossed we get lucky otherwise we’ll be booking new flights.

After the agency we jumped on a train to take us to an electronics shopping mall to get Rhys’s laptop fixed again. Another day, another computer repair. We finally found a new keyboard that wasn’t quite right but would do the job, before walking around the corner to Centre World, the biggest shopping centre in Thailand, with a severe lack of maps or any useful signage. Eventually we found a little area of sports shops selling a handful of pairs of expensive hiking boots and agreed we’d come back if we couldn’t find any elsewhere. 

Back at the hotel we had a couple of hours to do research for China and India before heading back to Khao San for street food and, of course, buckets. We got talking to an Irish couple of the table next to us and as the night went on were joined by more and more people. It was a great night and after eating a scorpion, buying rude bracelets and stopping at another bar to dance in the street on the way home, we’d had your typical night out on Khao San and were ready for bed (after Rhys had a midnight swim at the hotel that is).

Rhys enjoying the highlights of Khao San Road, Bangkok.

We were late waking the next day but pulled ourselves together for yet more shopping, this time at the MBK Centre which is more like market stalls inside selling everything under the sun, all of them fakes. We got long johns for Nepal and some other bits before Rhys spied a smart fake Omega watch that he instantly fell in love with and had to have. It looks identical to the real one but it about 99% cheaper.

Back at the hotel, we had some down time while the monsoon rains swept in before more street food for dinner. We did a quick lap of Khao San and booked a bus ticket to get us to Koh Chang the following day, before deciding to call it a night.