rice field yoga

I just have to say: lovin the comments!!! You guys all rock.

So Saturday Leda and I hired a tour guide who was totally amazing. I so freakin wish I could post pictures, but alas, internet cafe city once again. Soon though! So we saw two temples that day, Tanah Lot and Ulu Watu. Both were pretty amazing. Ulu Watu is something like 600 years old. While there we got to see a Kecak Dance and it was mindblowing. First a holy man comes out and sets down an offering, lights some incense (Bali is mostly Hindu), chants a bit. Then a group of maybe 30 bare-chested Balinese men that all come out and dance around, chanting what sounds like "chuck chuck chuck" in these cool patterns (it's like Ligeti on speed for the music nerds out there). The guys range in age from like 15-60. Some guys sing, some guys just chant the whole time. It has a very improvised feel, but it's all very practiced and organized. Our driver's done it before and was filling us in on the details. So after the initial chanting, different characters then come out, dressed in various costumes, and through dance tell this story of Rama and Sita and how she was kidnapped, etc. etc. The guys are like the Greek chorus, from what I gathered. I'll post pix of it in a day or so, but suffice to say Leda and I sat there with our chins to the floor. It was awesome. On our tour we also checked out a family compound, which was pretty neat. The different buildings on the compound are like different parts of the body, and the head is the temple. Neat. We ate a so-so dinner on the beach with a fantastic view (we were literally in the sand). Sunday morning we checked out of honeymoon haven (Nusa Dua) and headed to Ubud.

We are thoroughly digging Ubud.

It's such a different vibe from Nusa Dua, but such a wonderful vibe! I have to say I love both the beach vibe and the mountain vibe - good good stuff on both counts. But if someone held a gun to my head and said "you must live in Bali", it'd be Ubud all the way.

There's a big expat community in Ubud, and I can really see why. It's super lush and green and beautiful here. It's also the cultural center of Bali, so there are tons of art galleries, little shops, and even live music that doesn't suck. We found a great yoga studio called Yoga Barn - recommended by several teachers - and we took our first class there this morning, taught by a girl from LA, go figyah. She was great. The main room at the studio has only 1 wall, the rest open space. We did yoga facing a rice field. The teacher literally said "open your heart to the rice field." I mean what's not to love???

The food's been amazing and the shopping is a bit out of control too. My infamously horrid negotiating skills are actually improving. They basically expect you to bargain here, and the little dance that goes down is so crazy-interesting. The seller acts offended at first, so then you say "okay don't need" and you start to walk away, then they say "okay okay okay" and start to negotiate. Leda's the master, but I'm getting better.

Today we ate at a cafe called Three Monkeys, and a local painter had art on display there. I bought one of his paintings - for $150 USD - and I'm so excited. It's just beautiful. And it makes me happy to support the local guys. Oh and speaking of local, whenever we eat rice it's locally grown. How mind boggling is that?

Tomorrow is my birthday but not really - won't be officially until midnight local time - so I guess that means I have to celebrate for 2 days. The Asia July 22nd and the US July 22nd. Heh. Back in Singapore tomorrow night then head to Thailand on Friday night. Will post pix soon! Love!