Everyone Should Visit Bali - Part 3 - Ponni

One afternoon, we got out of the pool early to head to Ulu Watu, a Hindu temple on the Southern coast of Bali, to watch the sunset and see a traditional Balinese fire dance. Ulu Watu is about an hour and half drive from Seminyak, and in Bali, it's normal just to flag down a taxi for a drive like that. Walking to the street, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. We hailed a cab, got in and the rest is History. The God's must have been smiling on us, because we ended up in the back seat of Ponni Sihombing's taxi. Ponni was the most amazing Balinese man we met on our trip. He knew all the history of Bali and Indonesia, spoke fluent English and Korean, but for the life of him, could not get our names right. So, while with Ponni, we were Mr. André and Miss Julie!

Andrew's Korean duck-tail haircut in it's full glory.
The monkeys at Ulu Watu
Anyone not wearing long pants was
given a loaner sarong and belt.
Andrew is so sweaty!

This area of the Eastern coast is lined by these giant cliffs.

So beautiful

Not so beautiful

Mr. André & Ponni

BFF

Miss Julie & Ponni



Sorry, this could be considered porn.



"Alright, girl... Look sexy for the camera!"

"For this one, I want you to gaze off into the distance."

These ones charged at us from the forest
in a stampede, all carrying tomatoes.
It was frightening.

Almost sunset
The beginning of the fire dance

The girl in red has some sweet braids,
like she just returned from a Caribbean cruise!

This dance is done without instruments.
The chorus of men circling the fire chant to create the music.

That big guy in the center was Andrew's favorite

There's that sunset!

By chance, Ponni was our tour guide for Ulu Watu, but a few days later, on our last day in Bali, we had him take us around Denpasar (the capital) and finally to the airport. Our first stop in Denpasar was a huge market for locals, selling everything from fruit to fabric. It was neat, but unfortunately we didn't get any pictures. From the moment we entered, we were stalked/hounded by this annoying woman, so we never had the opportunity to fully enjoy it. We did, however still manage to get a few spicy chicken (maybe?) satays as snacks and Ponni bought us some mangosteens. Both were cheap and delicious!

After the market, we headed to the Bajra Sandhi monument in the center of the city, honoring and commemorating Balinese people's struggle for freedom. The tower, shaped like the bell a Balinese priest uses during ceremonies, is in the middle of a lush courtyard and beautiful park, both with koi ponds and gardens. Also, by law, it is the tallest structure in Denpasar, at 45 Meters/148 Feet. The intricate, Balinese traditional architecture combines with the beautiful landscaping to create an impressive sight. It was one of the coolest things we saw on our trip.

(Somehow, we didn't manage to get a picture of it in
it's entirety, so this one is courtesy of the internet!)

André & Julie at the front gate

B&W really shows off the perspiration!

Insane Architecture

At the top of the spiral staircase in the center of the tower was an observation deck with 360 degree views of the city. It was neat, but with the sun blazing down and the lack of moving air, it was like spiraling our way 150 Feet up into an oven.

Ponni wanted us to kiss in this picture, but it was too hot and Andrew's face was far too sweaty. Sitting as close as we were was uncomfortable enough!

Ponni feeding the fish
Good pose, Pon!
There was a gazebo like this in each corner


An angel delivering water
This was in the courtyard of a hotel and an apartment
that was behind the restaurant we had lunch in.
Plants everywhere




The last stop before the airport was a stretch of
docks so we could look at the sailboats and yachts.

This boat was pumpin' some phat beats




Kitchen!

Flowers, maybe?
Or they could be vegetables...