DaysInOz

First we stopped at Goa Gajah, the Elephant Cave. Apparently it's an elephant head above the entrance to the cave, I didn't think it looked like an elephant but it was still nice :)

Then we got to try some coffees, teas and hot chocolate. Neither Andrew nor I like coffee but we actually liked 2-3 of them and bought the vanilla and the gingseng coffees and lemongrass tea and ginger tea.

Then it was time for lunch and we had lunch at a restaurant called Bar Swastika (!) and we had amazing views over Lake Batur and Mt Batur.

On our way back to the hotel we stopped and had a look at rice fields.

It was a really nice day and we were both really impressed with the coffee place.

Andrew in the borrowed sarong at Goa Gajah

Me at Goa Gajah

Luwak coffee, cocoa, cinnamon, vanilla

Samples

Coffee

Lake Batur

Mt Batur

Rice terrace

Själva templena va stängda men det gjorde inget, vi var ju där för att se aporna :)

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Today we went to Ubud and walked around for about 5 hours. We checked out the market, some shops and the Monkey Forest. When we finally managed to get to the forest there was a sign saying it was closed, but there was no gate and we saw another couple walk in so we followed. It didn't take long until we saw the first monkey and then there were more, they were everywhere! I think the monkeys are a bit scary and I don't want them to get too close. There were people selling bananas which we could feed the monkeys with but no thank you, we saw a woman who had bought bananas and the monkeys were all over her.

The actualy temples were closed but we didn't mind, I mean we were there to see the monkeys :)

Ingen får gå ut, vakter går ute på gatorna och ser till att ingen lämnar sitt hus eller hotell, man får inte tända brasor eller ha lyset på, man får inte jobba eller väsnas för mycket.

Allt detta är för att övertyga de onda andarna att Bali är obebott så att dom lämnar ön ifred i ett år till.

Vi fick alltså inte lämna hotellet men som tur va fick vi lämna våra rum och vi fick bada i poolen och sånt.

Sen kom personalen och började tejpa igen fönstrena och dörrarna på vårat rum med svart plast, jag frågade varför och det var så att vi skulle kunna ha lamporna tända inne. Det var ju snällt men det är ändå lite läskigt att inte kunna se ut, men å andra sidan, det är kolsvart ute så det finns inget att se.

TV kanalerna funkar inte men vi har DVD spelare och köpte några filmer i Thailand så vi har ju nåt att kolla på :)

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Today it's Nyepi Day, the Day of Silence. It's not as bad as it sounds, we don't have to be completely quiet but we did get some rules to follow.

No one is allowed to go out on the streets or to the beach or anywhere, there are guards patrolling the streets to make sure no one leaves their house or hotel, you are not allowed to light fires or turn on the lights, you are not allowed to do any work or make too much noise. All this to convince the evil spirits that no one lives on Bali and they will leave the island alone for another year.

So yeah, we were not allowed to leave the hotel but luckily we were allowed to leave our rooms, we could stay by the pool and stuff. Then all of a sudden some members of staff started to cover the windows and doors of our room with black plastic. I asked them why and they said it was so that we would be able to have the light on without it being visable from the outside. That was nice and quite clever of them but it is a bit creepy to sit here without being able to look out, but on the other hand, it's completely black outside so we wouldn't be able to see anything anyway.

None of the TV channels work but we have a DVD player and we got some movies in Thailand, so we've watched some of those :)

Imorrn är det Nyepi Day, Dagen av Total Tystnad, det är mer eller mindre precis som det låter och "firandet" började idag med att de flesta ställena hade stängt eller stängde tidigt. Så när vi skulle ut och äta middag var det svårt att hitta nånstans, men vi gick till samma ställe vi var på igår, dom hade fortfarande öppet.

Sen va det en parad med stora "dockor" som kallas Ogoh-Ogoh som symboliserar elaka andar. Dockorna va inte vackra men det var väl det som var meningen, men de små barnen som hjälpte till att bära dom var skit gulliga!

Tomorrow will be interesting. We got an information sheet with some rules for tomorrow but they weren't that clear. I mean, we are not allowed to turn the lights on, but what about the TV and laptop? All this is "happening" between 6 am tomorrow morning to 6 am Saturday morning. So if we can't use the TV or laptop or have the lights on, there will be an early night tomorrow :)

Kom i måndags, då va vädret lite hit och dit, lite moln och lite sol, vi tog en promenad till stranden, där blåste det halv storm, hade hela nyllet och huvet fullt av sand när vi kom tillbaka.

Igår regnade det, det var bara lite duggregn så vi tog en promenad, satte oss på en restaurang för att äta lunch och då började det spöregna helt hysteriskt, riktigt monsunregn. Så när vi hade ätit klart tog vi en taxi tillbaka till hotellet. Sen gick jag till ett spa här i närheten och fick lite massage.

Bali är jäkla billigt, både mat, massage och taxi och sånt. Alkohol är det inte lika bra med, i en del affärer kan man köpa sprit men det är inga man känner igen och dom varnar för att dricka "lokal" sprit, man kan bli förgiftad och det vill vi ju inte :)

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We are now in Bali!

We arrived on Monday, the weather was a bit so and so, a bit of cloud and a bit of sun. We took a walk to the beach but it was sooo windy there, we got completely sandblasted, I still have sand coming out of my ears and hair!

Yesterday it rained, started of as a drizzle so we took a walk, then when we were having lunch the rain picked up, big time, it was proper monsoon rain. So when we'd finished eating we took a taxi back to the hotel. Then I went to a spa nearby for some massage.

So far Bali is cheaper than Thailand, at least for massage, food and taxi and stuff. However, the selection of alcohol is not very good, there are no real "brands" and they say you should be careful with local alcohol cause you might get poisoned and we don't want that now do we :)