After leaving Beratan Lake, we made our way to the rice terraces. It took around 40 minutes along windy country roads. The rice terraces have always been on my list of places to see, so I was looking forward to this trip.
Stopping by the side of the road to take some of these breathtaking views.
We stopped for lunch overlooking the rice fields, the restaurant served a simple buffet lunch of curries and stir fried vegetables. It was so relaxing just sitting and looking over the terraces.
I had a quick tour of the outside of the restaurant and was intrigued by the different chairs and benches in use. I also took a video of a waitress trying to evict a stray dog!
I wonder what the hole is for! Stationary Wheel ChairsPizza Oven
“I’ll leave when I want, thanks”
After lunch we walked across the road to take a walk along the rice terraces. The different tones of green were amazing and I was stopping every few seconds to take photos. We saw mostly women in the fields, of course! It looked to be back-breaking work. We could have walked the loop but it was already late in the afternoon and we had over an hour’s journey to drive back.
A little piece of home!
I can’t imagine the exhaustion these people feel at the end of the day, still so primitive and much the same as it was many years ago.
My dear hubby is a big rice fan and we eat it nearly every day at home. I have a rice cooker so it’s always cooked perfectly. Woe betide if there is too much water and it ends up sticky! Before the rice cooker is opened, he says “did you cut the rice”. Rice has to be chopped or cut before it is served.
Jatiluwih Rice Terraces are now a protected UNESCO Heritage Site and well worth visiting. They span more than 53,000 hectares of agriculture fields mostly covered with rice terraces. The system of terracing was developed based on the Hindu religion’s beliefs of being in harmony with nature.
We had a fabulous day visiting the temple first and then the rice terraces, it was well worth the drive.
Setting off from Perth to Ubud, we caught an afternoon flight to Denpasar on Batik Air at 2.15 pm. We arrived at 6 pm but didn’t reach our destination until 9.30 pm. I had booked a driver with Booking.Com who had waited for over an hour for our appearance. There was an extremely long wait to disembark before boarding a bus to the terminal, then the wait for visas and our luggage to arrive, so we didn’t meet June, a very lovely man, until 7.30 pm. The traffic in Bali is notorious and doesn’t seem to get better over the years. I’m sure the drive to Ubud would have been even longer if it wasn’t for June’s incredible prowess in driving, formula one style. I closed my eyes many times as he overtook cars and trucks, I’m not sure how this would have helped in any way!
Finally arriving at 9.30 pm, we told the reception staff that we would have dinner immediately. They were extremely helpful and we did our check in while eating a most delicious dinner overlooking one of the beautiful pools and under the magnificent “Strawberry Moon”. We were staying in the middle of rice fields in Ubud, something I have wanted to do for a while, for four nights at The Plataran Ubud Hotel and Spa.
Slipped behind a cloud, the second I pulled out the camera
After dinner we were shown to our villa, which we had been told was a free upgrade!
On first appearance our room seemed incredible, but after an almost sleepless night due to noisy people staying in a house overlooking our villa but not connected to the hotel, we decided otherwise. First thing the next morning we asked the reception staff if we could move to our original room. Just after breakfast we packed up and moved on.
Day Two – Exploring the hotel grounds
The Plataran Hotel is surrounded by beautiful lush gardens, situated minutes away from the hustle and bustle of the busy Ubud streets. The rooms look out onto bright green paddy fields of rice, where you can watch the women harvesting and whacking the rice.
You can walk through the paddy fields by following a path of stepping stones. We continued our walk around the rest of the grounds and found fish ponds and waterfalls and sheep, rabbits, chickens and ducks.
Heron having a rice grain snack
Rice Field
Sheep in the mini farm
Grains of Rice
Scaring off the little rice birds
It was such a peaceful setting with only the noise of the birds and and the water gurgling along the little gullies.
Tunnel of Serenity
We followed the route through to a small village just outside the hotel.
Happy Chappy trimming his grass Dog Whisperer Hubby
Breakfast is served at the same place we had dinner overlooking the pool.
The restaurant is on the fourth floorWatching me have a swim
View from our room
Ubud’s Main Streets
Today we were just going to be tramping the busy streets of Ubud. Soaking up the atmosphere and trying to keep dry.
Ubud is a town in the uplands of Bali, surrounded by rice paddies and steep ravines. It’s also a popular destination for arts and crafts and made famous after the film and book “Eat, Love, Pray”. Home to shrines, temples, yoga barns and warungs (small cafes and restaurants). Also nearby is the famous Monkey Forest, which we would not be visiting!
Not too busy Monkey on a wireMonkey in Monkey StreetThe rain is getting closerStaying dry Time for some refreshmentTaco anyone?
It’s hard to work up any pace walking along these pavements, the paving stones are generally sticking up at odd angles and then there are the ubiquitous motor bikes and scooters parked haphazardly. Anthony was constantly telling me to “be careful” as he knows my predicament of footcidents over the years.
I had time to have a pedicure and foot massage in one of the many spas along the roads and have to say it was most relaxing, although she could have gone easier with the pressure!
We eventually headed back to the hotel to have a shower before dinner, but disaster was awaiting us. After having a rain shower I noticed that the bath was black! I ran the water again and sure enough there was black silt coming through. I’m not sure how I didn’t notice, maybe because I had my eyes shut. Anyway a long story short, we had to move rooms once more until the problem was fixed.
Meeting up at 10 am in the lobby we headed off in the direction of the river with a stop for coffee and a bowl of porridge for me! It was a very chilly 5 degrees so I made sure I was well rugged up.
River LiffeyOn the Ha’penny Bridge Posing with the locals Heading to Trinity College
One place I was interested in seeing was The Book of Kells, located in Trinity College. So we walked over to see about tours and tickets. There was no ticket office only an app to scan to buy tickets. What a palaver to do this, and we weren’t the only ones finding this difficult. Finally we managed to download all tickets and headed off to wait for our time slot.
The Book of Kells
The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript, containing the four Gospels of the New Testament. It was created in a Columban monastery in either Ireland, Scotland or England. It is believed to have been created around 800 AD. It takes its name from the Abbey of Kells, County Meath which was its home for centuries.
The book itself is kept under a large dome, with just a different page being turned each day. No photography is allowed of the book itself.
For me to think of a book like this that has lasted for centuries, through wars and pillaging is astounding. How was it hidden and preserved all these years? That is something that is not really known.
The illustrations and ornamentation of the Book of Kells surpass those of other Insular Gospel books in extravagance and complexity. The decoration combines traditional Christian iconography with the ornate swirling motifs typical of Insular art. Figures of humans, animals and mythical beasts, together with Celtic knots and interlacing patterns in vibrant colours, enliven the manuscript’s pages. Many of these minor decorative elements are imbued with Christian symbolism and so further emphasise the themes of the major illustrations.Source – Wikipedia.
Pages of the book are enlarged with descriptions next to each illustration. The paintings are wonderful to see and the more look the more you see!
It took me a while to find all the images mentioned in the page next to this painting.
⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️⛪️
After this we walked around to The Long Room, the main chamber of the Old Library. This room is nearly 65 metres in length, it is filled with 200,000 of the Library’s oldest books and is one of the most impressive libraries in the world. The books are still used by the students of the college.
The Long Room
Old Wooden Ladders Wrought Iron Staircase “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing”“When the mind is thinking it is talking to itself.”
The Grounds of Trinity College
Sphere within Sphere and me!
Lunchtime was looming and stomachs were rumbling so we went in search of a pub, not that hard in Dublin. We found a French named Irish pub, where we had a hearty mushroom soup.
We had a walk to St. Stephen’s Green next and to have a look at the prestigious Georgian houses surrounding the green.
Scenes from the streets
Umbrellas up high
The iconic flower stalls
Clocks and Signs
Georgian Doors
Fancy Door Knobs
Ornate iron lamp posts with seahorses – Irish Parliament
Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre
“They lived and laughed and loved and left.” – James Joyce
In the wake of all the walking we went back to the hotel for a well earned rest before agreeing to meet later for drinks and dinner.
Dinner, bars and bands
Tonight we were venturing to Roberta’s, an Italian restaurant within walking distance of our hotel. The reviews said it was noisy but the food was good, it also mentioned a glass atrium.
We had a table near the bar area and noticed an engagement was in place. We got chatting to the bride to be, I think she was glad of a chance to take the weight off her feet as she sat down and gave us her life story!
Sicilian Hake, saffron, orange, chickpea, baby spinach and gold almonds
It was time to sample one of the bars that Temple Street is so famous for. We opted for The Temple Bar Pub and squeezed our way to the bar! I hadn’t been to a place this packed since my twenties. Not a place to go if you are claustrophobic! Everyone was singing and laughing and it did feel like gatecrashing a party in full swing.
Stools in front of the band!
A great rendition of I’m a Believer
Walking back to our hotel
A marvellous second day filled to the brim with sights and sounds, delicious food, wonderful company and fantastic entertainment.
And to finish with a very apt quote
“Work is the curse of the Drinking Classes” Oscar Wilde
Over the past couple of days we have been traipsing around the streets, reacquainting ourselves with our favourite areas of Hong Kong. Central is one area that we have always enjoyed walking around, from here you can join the Central-Mid-levels escalator to access the streets of Soho, namely Elgin Street and Staunton Street. The escalator was built in 1993 and at that time was the longest in the world. Old and new buildings exist along side each other creating unique scenes.
The Old Hong Kong Police Station, Hollywood Road and Jardine House, Central Stone Slab Street and Shelley Street
The two guys above are both wearing safety harnesses that aren’t attached to anything! No helmets but to be on the safe side they have their masks on.
We stopped for lunch at a tiny Italian restaurant just off one of the levels of the escalator, one which we had been to many times before. We were happy to see that it wasn’t a Covid victim.
Spaghetti Marinara
Just outside Anthony noticed a girl painting a mural, so I asked her if I could take her photo.
The damp grey walls could all do with a bit of paint. She was doing an excellent job. Take a look at the murals in the slideshow below.
The smell of fresh pine leaves outside this shop brought back so many memories of our Christmases in Hong Kong. We would always have a real tree, since moving to Australia we just have a fake one now.
Anthony’s favourite food, animal intestines. Sadly I don’t share his taste in food and I’m not a fan of Chinese or Japanese food.
I mentioned before that there are many wonderful sculptures in Hong Kong, I love the ones below.
Sitting Couple by Jill Chadwick
Silver Fighting figures
Two ladies taking their babies out
Sweet Potatoes and Hot Chestnuts
Thanks for coming along for the walk around Central. There’s always something to see that’s odd or quirky and you can always find so much artwork around. It’s great how Hong Kong are renovating all the old buildings and holding onto the history. There is a place for everything here.
During our week in Bali, Anthony and I hired a driver to visit one of the many waterfalls that Bali has to offer. Tengenungen was around 30 minutes drive away and our driver was going to wait for a few hours while we explored.
This not a free attraction but the fee to enter is minimal. Before walking to the steps down to the waterfall there is a small strip with many stalls selling the usual Balinese crafts. They were all calling out to us to visit on the way back.
This was the first sight of the waterfall and the glass bridge across the river. The bridge wasn’t open that day, which was a relief with the sun beating down.
It was an extremely hot and humid day and there were nearly 200 stairs to traverse! The stairs of course were not nice and even enabling one foot after the other, rather they were all different sizes; steep, wide, narrow and shallow. So it was a case of walking down like a toddler learning to walk, for me anyway.
There was a hotel set amongst the rocks with a gorgeous looking swimming pool and tables with umbrellas around it. I’m not sure if you would want to spend more than one night here.
A cute bird’s nest, large enough for a person to sit in. I did see a lady climb in, I wasn’t brave enough as the drop was too steep! It didn’t look that safe, it definitely wouldn’t have passed health and safety requirements in Australia.
Face sculptures set in the hillside
Finally at the bottom we saw there were “bridges” to cross the pool to the waterfall and more steps going up the other side. I decided to sit and watch Anthony go across as it all looked a bit risky to me. If someone was going to fall in it would be me.
I thought you would be able to swim in the pool down below but there were signs saying no swimming, I probably wouldn’t have gone anyway because of all the rocks. The sight of the waterfall amongst all the lush tropical greenery was worth the effort.
Anyone could use these signs to take selfies with, but again I wasn’t brave enough to climb over the logs and through the water to get to them.
Anthony’s journey across the river
“Hello from the other side”
I’m glad to say Anthony made it back in one piece and then we made our way back up again. Oh, boy was this tough going. I was stopping every four or five steps and with a lady hot on my tail. I had to keep turning round and apologising but she said, “no, you’re okay, it’s exactly my pace”. Then she said “you must be 30 years younger than me”! Well that would have made me 30 or her 90, maybe it was my hat and dark glasses.
Once at the top we stopped and looked at one of the stalls and I bought a dress and Anthony bought himself a sari! He said he wanted to wear it around the garden at home, but he wore it to dinner that night. He surprises me everyday.
Stopping off for a coconut and a last look across the river at the bridge.
It was a lovely morning and I’m glad we made the effort to go. There are so many different places to see in Bali but the heat does affect you, early morning is the best time to go.
We’ve recently returned from a fun filled week in Sanur, Bali. It was wonderful that we could all be there, a great family reunion. Originally I had booked a place in Seminyak, but after looking at reviews I really wanted a place where the beach was more child friendly.
I had booked us all rooms at Segura Village Hotel, which was right on the beach. Checking in at Perth airport was not as bad as I thought, there is an app you have to download and you need to show vaccination certificates. On arrival at Denpasar you need to buy visas. This rule was brought in again earlier this year.
After we had collected our luggage I looked for our driver which I had organised through Booking.Com. I thought I had got quite a bargain, but you get what you pay for! Our driver’s van was literally on its last legs and the exhaust falling off, it’s a wonder we didn’t all pass out from carbon monoxide poisoning.
As soon as we had checked in we headed to the pool to join Laurence and Maddy who were already five cocktails in!
As you can see it was evening before we decided to get out
Over the next week we relaxed and unwound either at the pool or the beach. The beach in Sanur is probably one of the more child friendly beaches in Bali. The tide has to be fairly high for a proper swim.
How elegant, Anthony said I should try this to improve my posture!
Lachie channelling his inner guru and Rosie building sandcastles
The hotel was set in lush tropical gardens and had two beautiful pools and a small baby pool with a slide.
I preferred the smaller pool surrounded by rocks and palms, it seems like the resident ducks did also.
The winding path to our room. We had the upstairs room.
Sanur has a 7km boardwalk all along the beach, I thought I would be walking off my buffet breakfast everyday, but found it was far too hot! Not for Anthony though who went for long walks every day, he loves the heat. Also the ladies from the shops are extremely persistent. I know they have been struggling for the last two years and we did buy a few items from them, but they did tend to hound you and even wait while you had lunch to corner you on the way back!
Bars, Boards and Alleyways
Dinners were either at the hotel or along the beach. As both Lachie and Rosie had long afternoon naps they were able to join in the fun.
We all love visiting Bali as it’s such an easy trip from Perth. A three and a half hour flight with no time difference. It’s reasonably priced and there’s so much to do. We had a couple of trips to a safari park and waterfalls (more posts!).
We finally set the dates and found accommodation to suit all our needs – basically a room each and at least two bathrooms. I had booked a fabulous house across from the beach with four bedrooms and three bathrooms. This trip was a celebration of Cheryl’s ??th birthday and we had been looking forward to it for a while. So with the boot jampacked with bags, cases, snacks and wine we set off around 9.30 am. The drive is approximately 3 hours, a bit more with a coffee and lunch stop along the way.
Our first stop was a farm shop with a cafe where we had coffee. I’m a bit wary of horses so I thought I was quite brave to go in for a stroke, but this horse was just too adorable not to.
Happy Wives at The Happy Wife, Bunbury
Second stop was a lunch break in Bunbury in a place called The Happy Wife with a view of the water.
We arrived at the house just before the check in time but luckily the keys were in the box already. After we had sorted out who was to sleep in what room, with Cheryl having the best of course we set off for Dunsborough to do a spot of shopping, as you would on a girls’ trip. We all love the shops here as they are very different from Perth and no big name brands. There are some great quirky shops to pop in and out of.
Back to the house and to make a start on the wine and snacks we had brought with us before heading out for dinner.
Making a start on the essentials!
Here we all are having a gossip on our veranda
Time for dinner at Caves House which is around a ten minute drive away. We have all been to Caves House before either to stay or have dinner. It is set in beautiful grounds so we had a wander before heading in for dinner.
Time for another bottle!
Returning to the house after for – yes you guessed another bottle – and a game or two of Monopoly Cards. I have to say the game took a bit of getting used to without a board!
As Laurence and Maddy only have the weekend and evenings to spend with us I thought it would be nice to get out of Melbourne for the weekend. So we packed up the car and drove out of Melbourne towards the Great Ocean Road. Our first stop was Torquay for lunch along the seafront. We had blue sky and sun all the way.
Waiting for lunch Torquay BeachCatching a waveGreat Ocean Road
It was another hour’s drive from here and it was coastal all the way with fantastic views. Arriving in Lorne around 4pm, I was dismayed when I saw our accommodation! It looked like a prison block, the photographer had excelled himself with photoshop. The sheets were clean at least, but everywhere else was quite grimy. You get what you pay for, and it meant more for dinner!
We went for a short walk before dinner but it was very chilly so we didn’t stay out too long.
Lorne was founded in 1869 and is now a popular surfing and holiday spot. It gets incredibly busy during summer. There is a huge caravan and camping site almost on the beach. Cafes, restaurants and bars line the parade along with gift shops and boutiques.
Erskine RiverThe main street of Lorne
The white cockatoos are enormous and very tame. It’s a wonder they can still fly.
ContemplationA rainbow over the cargo ship
We had a gastronomic gourmet dinner that evening with cocktails and wine. It was an Asian Fusion restaurant overlooking the ocean.
Tempura Bug Tails Crying tiger lamb shoulder with Vietnamese mint & iceberg lettuce Golden Fried Rice
As usual I forgot to take more photos of the food.
After a fairly good night’s sleep for all of us except Maddy who was suffering from a sore throat, we found a cafe along the front for an FEB – Full English Breakfast. Next on our itinerary was a trip to the waterfalls, of which there were many in this region. The drive to the carpark was only 30 minutes and there were different trails to walk. We chose the shortest one, around a 40 minute round trip. Ankle deep mud and fallen trees made this walk quite arduous.
Laurence had crocs on with white socks, Maddy had white trainers on and Anthony had walking shoes on. Luckily for me I had waterproof boots on but not hiking boots. We came across a couple with proper boots and the mud was up over their ankles! But we pressed on regardless.
At one point, to try and avoid the mud I thought I would walk to the side holding onto the ferns. The ferns slipped out of my hands and I ended up doing a downward dog pose and couldn’t move, my face was inches from the mud. Laurence tried to grasp me around the middle and kept telling me to let go, he would pull me up. Maddy was watching and crying with laughter at this point. I will never relinquish my title of being the most accident prone person.
Won Wondah Falls, Great Otway National Park
Although the waterfall was quite underwhelming, we all enjoyed the walk apart from the mud now caked on our shoes and splattered over our legs.
We were soon back in the car and on our journey back to Melbourne. Stopping for lunch in a pub on the way home, we sat outside and enjoyed a bottle of wine, until a young boy kicked a ball right into my face! I honestly thought my nose was broken, it was such a shock. Luckily it wasn’t just very bruised. The dad made the poor boy come over and apologise, I felt quite sorry for him. Not such a great finish to a tremendous weekend!
The challenge for Friendly-Friday this week is a collaboration between Frank from Beach Walk Reflections and Amanda at Something to Ponder About, it’s all about finding shapes in photos. Looking through my galleries I’ve found a few.
The Indian Ocean through a circular sculpture at Cottesloe Beach
Rectangles and Circles
Triangles and Circles in a waterwheel in Kokonoe, Japan
Arches under Golkonda Fort, HyderabadChowmahalla Palace, Hyderabad
