Around Ubud

Ubud is wonderful. It's a balance of Balinesian nature and culture. Sure, tourism is thriving here but it isn't out of balance with the local vibe. More specifically, tourism doesn't wipe out or replace all Balinesian. Our rooms look out onto a rice field, rice the major staple in the Balinese diet. I think we've ended up with the best rooms, not to mention views in the place.

Down Monkey Forest Road, we headed to the market in the afternoon. Hand-carved items of cats, owls even male parts, silver, bags, sarongs, everyone wants to you to be his or her customer. Most say it's for luck. Whether first customer, last customer, first customer after the last, it all seems to revolve around luck. Who doesn't want to be lucky? Pretty smart tactic, if you ask me. The Ubud market, however, does have some serious steals on batik, and on dresses. Uh, oh. Note: for any clothing needs, go upstairs! The prices are half and there is more selection.

After the market, we lunched and then hit the tourist information center. Every evening, troupes of dancers perform traditional Balinese dances. The performance we're slated for is of both Legong and Barong dances.

At dusk, the stage with the Ubud Palace doors as the backdrop, the performance began with Gamelon music. Fifteen men or so, use hammers on xylophone-like instruments made of bamboo. Backed by Balinese drums and cymbals, the haunting, staccato plucks of the hammers set the stage for the opening of the show. Traditionally performed to entertain kings, one woman descends the palace steps onto the stage to commence the Legong dance. Precise movements, exquisite costuming and intense facial expressions the dance is mesmerizing. Two more women join the first and weave among one another in rhythm and response to the music. Their costumes shimmer, layers of gold, reds, greens, ornate jewels, the make-up striking. Girls enter troupes to learn the dances at young ages, in order to master the movements, the expressions. American aside: a woman in the audience sells drinks, snacks and mosquito repellent.

Next is the Barong dance, divided into several sections. The parts of the dance serve different functions. In the first part of the Barong, a huge dog and monkey take the stage. This portion of the performance is listed as an overture before the main performance, but I have to admit, this performance intrigues and delights as much as any other part. The jaws of the dog are wooden and snapped together to make an impression.

The remaining parts of the Barong tell a story, revolving around a main theme of Balinese culture. Good and evil. Everything in Bali is known to have two sides, a good and bad, each of which must be respected and appeased. The remaining acts of the Barong dance involve a widow and her black magic being confronted by a white magic guru. The guru carries orders from the king to heal all who have fallen under the widow witch's spell. The two enter into the battle of good versus evil. The witch burns a banyan tree, the fire of which the guru extinguishes in order to restore the tree back to life. Aware that she has lost the battle, the witch transforms herself into a monster. Forcing the guru's hand, he too transforms into the protector. The people of the town surrounding the two, those who feel evil threatening their bodies pierce themselves with kris knives to combat it, good eventually prevailing. The last of the dance closed with the full moon rising above the palace. I wanted to howl!