In Reply to: monkey forest in Ubud posted by shim on Monday, 25. October 2010 at 05:59 Bali Time:
Every time I am in Ubud I visit the monkey forest - I see something different every time I go. I go there for the peace and to watch the antics of the monkeys. There are heaps of ancient banyan trees with their hanging aerial roots - stunning. It's eerily quiet most of the time, which I also love. If there is any noise, it sounds muffled - weird acoustics which adds to the atmosphere. There is an ancient mossy temple down the steps towards the river & a bigger temple up the steps towards the rear of the forest worth a look.
If the adolescent monkeys are playing in the rock pool in the centre of the forest, you are in for a treat. They are hilarious, playing chasey, dive bombing off a tree branch, etc.
One time when it was cooler, I watched them tiptoe through the water to get to fruit, as if it was icy cold. Very funny.
Once I was sitting on a retaining wall watching a mother monkey with her gorgeous little baby when another monkey snuck up on me from behind and climbed up onto my shoulder. I stood up & started walking (as instructed by one of the rangers) and it climbed back down - no drama, other than my quaking knees! If you sit and watch for long enough, you can work out the pecking order of the pack. Fascinating.
Another time I saw a mother monkey with a dead baby, cradling it in her arms, trying to get some response from it. You could see her heartbreak. There was no way she was letting her baby go without a fight. So sad. Again, fascinating to watch.
Just keep in mind that you are the intruder in their habitat & give the monkeys some space & respect. I personally have never seen them be aggressive, but I can imagine they would retaliate if teased or thwarted, so just use your common sense - we are talking about wild animals here.