It's every man (or woman) for him/herself and size matters!!! As cyclists we are near the bottom of the road users food chain!!! Trying to right at a roundabout was an experience, as was avoiding the occasional huge pothole or puddle without pulling out in front of one of the bigger beasts of the road. Surrounding all this activity were the fumes and pollution emitted from the ageing vehicles, constant tooting of the cars and motorcycles and regular shouts of encouragement from the passengers and drivers at two mad touring cyclists, trying to make a way through all this!! However we still managed to take in some of the Balineese street life whilst cycling along - the highlights of which were a local cyclist carrying about one hundred doormats on his bike (our luggage equated to about ten of these!!) and a boy cutting his friend's hair at the side of the road with a pair of carpet scissors!!.
Ten miles later we cycled into Sanur and stopped for a desperately needed beer and an end to our most exhilerating cycle for weeks. ......and what else happened
After the euphoria of the bike ride we settled for more leisurely pastimes and enjoying the Asian culture. Trapped in our hotel, due to the tremendous downpour ("didn't you pack a brolly") , we eventually got to a restaurant and had to decide between the true local dishes (at 80p - 120p) or splashing out on more western fare (200p).
Walking along the road there was constant harrassment by locals offering "transport" when we were just browsing the shops or restaurants - this called for drastic action. So we learned the Indonesian for "we're just going for a walk" and it worked a treat. So for anyone else going to Bali in future, "Jalan Kaki" impresses the locals, gives them a laugh and stops the harrassment.
Generally the people were enormously friendly and peaceful. Their Hindu religion is clearly very important and the whole place is dotted with "offerings" (a small parcel of banana leaves filled with flowers, rice and other goodies) to the Gods - placed up high and to the Demons - placed on the ground, so a major hazard for the cyclist and walker but a great treat for the stray dogs.
After a couple of days in the beach resort of Sanur, we cycled the 20 miles north to Ubud. The route was filled with hundreds of craft shops - woodwork, ironwork, stonework, silver smiths and loads of great fabric shops. The wooden furnituire was exceptional - beautifully designed and handcrafted tables, chairs, cuboards etc.. we could not resist enquiring about prices: a large dinning room table that would be at least 1000 pounds in UK shops, was only 85 pounds local price, even before negotiation!
As directed by The Rough Guide, we found some decent accommodation "in a quiet area", slightly off the beaten track. What the guide book didn't tell us was that uninterrupted sleep would be impossible due to (1) a newly built "heavy rock" recording studio next door, (2) the nocturnal barking dogs. (3) the creaking bed, (4) the heat and humidity (no air con here) and if you did drop off (5) the cockerals made sure we did not sleep past 6:00am.
Lack of sleep could have been a contributing factor to Caroline's Kamikaze tumble down some marbles steps in the bathroom, which knocked her clean out! Eyeballs in the back of the head, the lights had gone out!! Fortunately, just as D was off to seak assistance, a light came back on and bar a few bruises all was well.
Took in a few sight including a days cycle to see the magnificanet rice terraces. The following day we then headed back towards the airport for our flight out. We plumped for a fairly rustic chalet on the beach but returned after our evening meal to find the bathroom inhabited by a spider the size of a dinner plate and various other beasties resulting in a restless nights kip - roll on some luxury in Singapore!
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