In Reply to: First time to Bali posted by Vortigon on Saturday, 20. January 2007 at 18:14 Bali Time:
Glad to hear you are going to Ubud! Apart from the surrounding villages that specialise in various artefacts (hence egg painting village, stone carving village, bed cover village etc etc) it is great to see the everyday life of Balinese people around Ubud. If you get a chance to visit a village you can see the housing and lifestyle of the average person although they invariable clean up a lot before visitors arrive! The time taken every day to make and distribute "offerings" and the work that goes into larger creations when there is a ceremony at the temple is truly amazing. Of course this is just part of everyday life for Balinese women! You can ask your driver or guide if you can accompany them to a ceremony. If you have not already booked a driver I can highly recommend our friend Putu Putra who speaks good english and has a new car (pututour@yahoo.com or mobile 081 2366 5584). The (very early) morning markets in town are also a great insight into the life of local people but wear sturdy shoes i fyou are not keen on squished fruit and veges over your feet. If you have any questions about day to day life staying in Ubud please feel free to send an email to sampsonja@iinet.net.au