16th February 1992 Day 211

The Diary
My mam's and Beth's mam's birthdays. We celebrated by getting out of Kuta. The Perama Bus Company, a slightly smaller concern than Greyhound, squeezed us, lots of other passengers and everyone's luggage onto a small bus with no air conditioning. Fortunately the journey only took 50 minutes. Upon arrival at Ubud we were inundated with offers of accommodation. Shades of the backpacker experience in Australia. Unlike backpackers' in Australia we were transported by moped rather than by minibus. A backpack, small rucksack and big passenger doesn't help a small moped getting up hills.

But we all made it and we were quite pleased at our lovely little Ibunda Bungalow that we had inadvertently haggeld for and agreed 25,000rp. Free breakfast and hot water. Cheap at half the price. As usual, everyone was called Ketut and we paid for one of them to do our washing. We also signed up for some Balinese dancing - they'll try to sell you anything here.

We then had a quiet stroll around the village. It was very touristy but still a lot more relaxed than Kuta. People tried to sell us dances rather than duff watches. The shops were all local arts and crafts. a few tape shops, money changers, restaurants and shops renting motorbikes. At 6pm we got into a battered old minbus with lots of fellow "arts aficionadoes" to see the dancing. Very BIFF, with lots of rhythmic dancing and a few wild costumes acting out a story. For an encore one of the dancers dressed as a horse and walked on the hot ashes of a fire. He didn't look too HP afterwards.


2012
$2.60 for a night.


Ketut and Balinese names - see here


Tape shops. Cassettes. Music. A long distinct format. Almost.


HP - happy.


More BIFF. I spent several Uni summer holidays working on BIFF. It funded several inter-rail trips around Europe.