Next morning was good fun. We'd booked a cooking class at Casa Luna. Did this online at home some time back because we wanted a specific day (menu) and a guided tour of the food market. Glad we'd booked as the class was full; a veritable United Nations with Japanese, Malaysian, French, Canadian, Americans, Kiwis and Aussies. A fun group. The market tour was enlightening and the food techniques we learned were interesting and readily adaptable for home. The class was "hands-on" or not, as you liked. Some of the dishes were VERY different and we ate them for lunch washed down with palm wine (hmmmm?) and hibiscus tea (yummy).
In the afternoon we had a driver booked who took us north of Ubud. We went to the coffee tasting plantation and tried various teas and coffees, including the "celebrated" Lewak coffee, famous for having the raw fruit/beans passed through a small, ferret-like animal where (we're told) they are affected by enzymes in the critter's gut, producing a wondrous and exorbitantly expensive coffee. Rp 30,000 for a small tasting cup. We thought it was perfectly sh*thouse. We bought some local cocoa and flavoured teas which we'd sampled, but gave the coffee a big miss. Transpired that this was a good move as Customs in Perth told us they would have confiscated it, so don't get conned into buying some!!
We also went to the Botanical Gardens on the way home. Just gorgeous! Masses of the most exquisite orchids. The Gardens (3 hectares) are for sale if you happen to have a lazy $US1.5 million lying around.
The lowlight of the trip occurred on our way home when our driver ran over a dog. Not a stray; somebody's pet. It ran across the road right in front of our car - couldn't be helped. June, not being a dog person, was unaffected. The driver was upset, and Muggins here, being part of a pet rescue and rehoming group, burst into tears.
Had dinner at a little place we found on JL MF called Sagitarius (sic). The food was so good and so cheap we ate there several more times. Small Bintang Rp18,000, Ikan Bali (big chunks of white fish poached in a fragrant spicy coconut milk broth served with rice and assorted veg sambals Rp22,000. Also had an excellent meal here consisting of smoked mackerel flaked through potato salad on greens with a creamy avocado puree with other bits and pieces on the side. Cheap, yummy and a bit different.
Other recommendations in the area include Wayan's Cafe and Bakery. Had great Crispy Duck and Cap Cay. Loved Ibu Rai for its imaginitively flavoured Lassi (lemon coconut), great Chicken Nasi Campur and its decor of "living" walls.
Friday, we had our driver booked for the day and first up we made the pilgrimage to Lake Beratan so June could discharge her obligations to her deceased parents. Fittingly, en route we got caught up in traffic and personnel going to a Cremation Ceremony and while it was very interesting and our driver gave us some background about proceedings, we had to take a fairly hairy detour through tiny village backstreets which were never meant for that much traffic. If I'd ever seriously considered hiring a car in Bali, the traffic we encountered this day certainly disabused me of the notion! These people seem to have a deathwish.
Lake Beratan and its surrounds are really beautiful. So cool and tranquil with beautifully manicured gardens and trees. I kept June company and took pics while she did her thing and after the emotion had subsided, we headed off towards Kuta/Legian for lunch and some serious shopping. Had lunch at B-Couple where they had a live band doing covers of 80s hits and very good they were too! Had a really icy Bintang and assorted satays delivered to the table on a little ceramic brazier thingie full of live coals. I was impressed to the point that I hunted down some of these mini bbqs at Ubud Ceramics. They'll be great for outdoor eating in summer.
Spent the rest of the afternoon shopping around Kuta and we were happy with our purchases of shoes, bags, sandals, makeup, watches, clothes etc, including the ubiquitous Bintang teeshirts and stubby holders.
On Saturday the weather looked "iffy" so we opted for a quick early jaunt to the market (to finish off the gift shopping) and take advantage of "morning price" ;-). Then we spent some hours getting a bit of culture, checking out the galleries and museums. Late afternoon, after all the walking, I opted for foot reflexology which was wonderful and a facial which made my skin feel like satin. 40 minutes each for a total of 70,000 Rp.
By evening it was bucketing down with no sign of a let up, so we ate at the hotel early then returned to our room to watch the Magpies v Bulldogs on satellite and make substantial inroads on our litre of Bombay Sapphire.
Last chapter to come. Thanks for the encouragement.