Yesterday, accidentally I listened to a song entitled “Moon River” by Andy Williams. It brought back my own “Tom Sawyer” memories. Back in 80s when I was a little boy, my friends and I used to take bath in Ayung River that runs on the western part of our village. We swam, played, or did various mischiefs while taking bath in our “Moon River”; and for the adults, they were busy washing their clothes or having a little chitchat about the current gossip in the village. Boys and girls, men and women, crowded the river late in the afternoon up to the evening. The river was our public meeting place where we had a chance to mingle with other villagers.

However, nowadays, rivers in Bali are losing its unique function as public meeting place especially in south Bali, such as in Denpasar and southern areas of Badung regency and in other areas in Bali, the number of the people who taking a bath in the river diminishes greatly in two decade. These drawbacks are the result of many factors such as the volume of the water in many rivers in Bali has decreased makes it quite difficult for bathing and washing activities; some even cease to flow. The quality of the water also contributes to these drawbacks; clear and healthy river water can only be found in the mountainous regions; pesticide and pollution decrease the quality of river’s water. Last but not least, most of Balinese have their own bathroom and taking a bath or washing in the river become impractical since we have to walk or ride a motorcycle to reach the river.

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Home grown and Home made

* It’s a great place to buy healthy foods & products while you meet your friends!
* It’s great energy and supports small local businesses!
* Saturday mornings, 9:30 - 2, Pengosekan - Ubud, at Pizza Bagus

Each Saturday morning in Pengosekan, just outside central Ubud, 11 small Bali businesses set up their organic produce, healthy foods and products, and greet a wide variety of buyers - locals, expats, pembantus, and tourists.

Originally envisioned to provide local, independent, small organic growers with a way to sell direct to buyers – and therefore keep them growing organically - the market is now is 11 small Bali businesses including small farm grown organic produce and rice, homemade food products, education about caring for our environment & reducing waste, other healthy foods and products - the variety is too big to imagine.

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ON TOUR

ODALAN BALI: An Offering of Music & Dance by Gamelan Cudamani

USA/Canada (Oct-Nov ‘07)
www.cudamani.org

ÇUDAMANI, the 26-member music & dance ensemble from Bali, Indonesia presents ODALAN BALI featuring cutting edge new works as well as rare classical forms of Gamelan repertoire.

Bali is known worldwide for its music and dance. But in the village of Ubud, in Pengosekan a new music is forging ahead: Çudamani’s bold and cutting edge music compositions and dance choreography is created collaboratively and resonates with both traditional and contemporary audiences. Never performing solely to entertain tourists, the 26 member Çudamani ensemble will travel to USA and Canada this fall, to present it’s critically acclaimed production of “Odalan Bali: An Offering of Music and Dance” in twelve cities from Oct 18 – Nov 19, 2007.

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worldleisurejobs.com - The Spa at Maya, part of the Maya Ubud Resort and Spa in Bali, Indonesia, has added three double treatment spa pavilions to its riverside spa property.

The new pavilions – each boasting two treatment tables and a separate dressing room – are located on the banks of the Petanu River and are connected to the existing spa via a boardwalk along the river’s edge.

The boardwalk also features an open-air reflexology deck, suspended over the river with views of the water below and the surrounding rainforest.

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There are many good restaurant and warung in the Ubud area. Each has unique characteristics and special values. Below are some place to eats out of hundreds restaurants and warung around Ubud.

Ary’s Warung
Located in the heart of Ubud, overlooking a major historical temple, Ary’s Warung maintains its long and impeccable reputation of providing friendly yet professional service and surprisingly knowledgeable as well and of course, excellent food.

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Ubud, the art center of Bali offers many beautiful and interesting places to visit. Below are some “a must visit place” in Ubud out of dozens interesting places there.

Puri Saren Agung

Puri saren is Ubud’ s main palace, lies on the northeast comer of the town main crossroads facing the market, the exact center of Ubud, 200 m east Pura Saraswasti. This is an elegant palace with cool nuance. Puri Saren Agung is the palace of the Sukawatis dynasty, the ruling family of Ubud since late of 19th century. Visitors are free to roam in inner courtyard of the palace to see the ornate thatched Bale (traditional house), royal heirlooms, and numerous colonial-era photographs.

Pura Saraswati

Pura Saraswati is the royal temple of Ubud. Situated near the Puri Saren Agung, behind the Cafe Lotus. The temple is a masterpiece of I Gusti Nyoman Lempad. The visitors can find a magnificent lotus pond, beautiful garden, numerous of beautifully carved Bale and shrines. This temple is dedicated to the goddess of learning, Dewi Saraswati.

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