Sorry this is late, will try and finish it soon.
After much stopping and starting to look for kitchen bits and pieces for home, we finally arrived at the Pacung Indah. David and Moira were there in the restaurant to meet us along with Davids father Ian, son Adrian and Adrians lovely girlfriend Cat.
Walking in once again felt like home as we have shared so much with David and Moira over the last couple of years, and yet this was the first time we had been together with them at their home in Bali for almost four years.
Its amazing how you tend to perceive things, we have spent time at Pacung while they have been in Australia and they have spent a lot of time at our home, but the conversations about people and places we have in common make us feel that we were all there together anyway.
Well now we are.
The staff were all quite pleased to see us, Sienna most of all. They had all heard about the new arrival and most of the ladies clamoured for the chance to have the first, second, third or fourth cuddle. Sienna responded in kind with grins all around and was happy to be whisked away while we settled into our suite.
Suite 1, as always, was a pleasure to wander into. Even more so with the little changes David has made. He's had a large opening cut into the wall between the sitting room and the bedroom to capture the magnificent view whilst 'resting' on the king sized bed.
Rae was absolutely rapt with the fresh roses laid out on the bed, whilst Cracker was rapt that the wall had been removed and the dunny view back! As for Sienna, at 14 weeks old she was happy to be anywhere that Mum was.
After we settled in we wandered down to have a look at David and Moira's new bungalow and to say g'day to their babies. The bungalow is one of those to die for places that people dream about having. Not huge, not small but just right. Outdoor bathroom, outdoor entertaining area and a view that takes in Gunung Agung, the lights of Denpasar, Nusa Lembongan and enough rice terraces and bamboo to make even the oldest Balinese excited.
The babies that we talk about are their two Macaques, Barbie and Spanky. Barbie was given to them to look after by a local wildlife foundation along with another Macaque named Ken. Mainly because David was in charge and not Moira we ended up with Spanky ;-)
Ken has since escaped and refused all attempts to get him to pay maintenance.
It was only three bananas a month.
Barbie now growls a lot.... go figure.
A snooze was now on the agenda, as we knew a hectic night was looming. It was one of those ‘I gotta get up soon so what's the point' snoozes though that almost make ya feel worse. Buuuuuut, as we know, 20 minutes now can make 2 hours difference later......and it did ;-)
It was time to greet the crew
Tonight was to be a little bit special at Pacung Indah. The staff and locals were all invited along to the restaurant for a Joged Bumbung (Boom-Boong). The occasion was a ‘Welcome Home' for David and Moira after their extended time in Oz and the village was pumped for it. This is somewhat akin to a westerner's view of dirty dancing.
David had said earlier that one of the things he enjoys most about these evenings was watching the Gamelan group arrive and go through their set up process. After having seen it I must admit that he is right. They turned up with all their instruments on the back of a large truck, that to them, would seem like the No.12 bus would to us. It's just the normal mode of transport that they would use for such an event. They made their way through the restaurant with great care and respect for the instruments that they carried. It was obvious to anyone watching that they held the tools of their trade quite dear.
As they found their positions for the evening, small amounts of tuning began to give you little tingles and set the tone for what was to come.
Within minutes of the group arriving the restaurant began to fill with staff, their families and a number of local villagers. All were excited about tonight's performance, as they knew it was for them.
We were part of a group of only 11 Bule at tonight's performance and felt like honoured guests. David had pointed out to us that this was to be the staff's night and he wanted them to relax as much as possible. To that end, his son Adrian and Adrian's girlfriend Cat, got into the swing of things and took over from the staff.
Cat dressed in a Satpam outfit and greeted everyone as they entered whilst Adrian looked resplendent in traditional Balinese garb serving drinks to all and sundry. All appreciated the gesture and many had a good laugh as well as photos with the two new 'locals'.
The buffet was soon brought from the kitchen for all to share and what a magnificent feast it was. Most of the dishes were traditional Balinese fare, the names of which escape me. I can tell you that most of them were quite spicy but very enjoyable. The most enjoyable of all being the Babi Guling supplied by David and Moira's manager Wayan Astawa and cooked by his wife.
It didn't take long for the music to get underway and for the band to hit their straps.
This was a new thing for some of us as we had not been part of local entertainment for entertainments sake before. We have seen many different performances over the years but this was by far the most fun to watch and participate in. The dancers are given great leeway to perform in a very suggestive manner, a manner to which the local lads respond very kindly. The dancer uses every ounce of her sexuality and her ability to lead the band to entice crowd participation in her performance.
The band showed a unique ability to be able to follow the dancer and her different responses to all of those who danced with her. They also chanted in a manner that heightened everyone's experience and made everyone watching feel as though they were part of the show, which inevitably you would become, like it or not.
One of the first up to dance was David's Dad Ian. To put it in perspective, Ian is 75 years old and suffers from Alzheimer's. Ian has a long history in amateur theatre and it certainly came to the fore this evening. He thoroughly enjoyed every moment and got up to dance a further two times as the evening progressed.
After each of the five young ladies had completed their performance a Priest removed their headdress and seemingly absolved them of their sin with a short blessing. The next dancer would then have the headdress placed upon them and it would start all over. Many of the young men in the restaurant were keen to show their prowess as a dancing partner for these young ladies, with most showing equal grace and the sense of fun that seem to be part of the life of every Balinese.
One in particular, a young waiter named Made showed an ability that impressed even his workmates. At one point in his dancing the music and chanting of the band began to follow his antics and left the appointed dancer at his mercy. He milked it for all it was worth and when he finally left the floor it was to rousing applause and cheers from all present. Not to mention the relief of the young lady dancing.
It was not long before David and Moira took their turn on the floor showing us all why it is that they fit so well into this community. They spanked, whipped, chased and Matadored their way around the floor leaving everyone in fits of laughter.
In amongst all of this one young man truly caught the eye. He was a member of the Gamelan that had what seemed to be the simplest of jobs. His position was in the centre of the band and his instrument was a simple hand held gong. The job he performed all evening long was to keep the beat, striking his gong at an even pace without the slightest fluctuation. He spent his evening in raptures, head tilted back and to the left, eyelids fluttering over rolled back eyes and a never ending smile.
While his fellow band members played, watched and enjoyed the performances in front of them, he simply lost himself in what is obviously one of his great pleasures in life.
This alone was worth being there for.
Sadly this part of the evening ended all too soon. The band was soon packed up and heading out the door and, in typical Balinese fashion, the crowd disappeared in a flash.
We were now down to just a small group of people that were looking somehow to continue the marvellous experience we had just had. Fifteen or so of us remained chatting animatedly and enjoying a few drinks when something rather unexpected happened.
Among the remaining group were some well respected members of the local Pecalang as well as high-ranking members of Pecalang from surrounding regions. Without going into too much detail we shall just say that a rather willing altercation occurred nearby that concerned a number of these gentlemen. In short order, Moira stepped into the middle of this altercation, which immediately ceased upon her word and soon found the main offender kneeling at Moira's feet showing ultimate respect. This left not only us but also the remaining staff members gob-smacked. It was then relayed to David by a couple of the higher up gentlemen that this was the respect Ibu Moira had throughout this entire area, such is the work she has done to improve the lot of the local people.
The evening ended soon after leaving us all with much to think about, not the least of which was ‘how did we manage to run out of Bintang?'
Sore heads were bound to be forthcoming in the morning, so we all slipped quietly away with the sounds of gecko's willing us to sleep.
Selamat Malam
CBE
Cracker, Rae and a sleeping Sienna