Horses and Monkeys

The couple that swam with the dolphins and fed the monkeys had told me about a place for horseback riding (turned out they were a veterinarian and his assistant – no wonder!). Sunday morning’s pouring rain ended just in time – I’m not sure if we would have gone rain or shine. I was with another couple here too, but in this case it was a mother and daughter. We rode on a black-sand beach – there were few houses and people here – and forded a couple of rivers. We then went past rice paddies and through a couple of villages – away from the touristy area, we could see how real people lived. There were walled complexes for extended families, and each house had its own Hindu shrine for ceremonies and offerings. A couple of trots but I never cantered – I didn’t have those closed-toe shoes they always tell you to wear, and the faster gaits were tough in my Chacos. Nonetheless, it was great.



The ride ran long and I rushed back to the hotel to check out and have a quick bite (another piece of Death by Chocolate cake) and then had the driver who had taken us on the excursion drive me to Ubud, the upland cultural capital. Along the way there are various towns, each specializing in a different craft – batik, silver, wood, masks, stone. The horseback ride had tuckered me out and the cake hadn’t been enough to eat and the driver had to get back, so I didn’t stop, but that’s okay – maybe next time. I was sad to leave Un’s – up until then I don’t think I had felt sad when I moved on.


In Ubud, the hotel had individual guest cottages, complete with outdoor sleeping platform and ricefield view. No internet in the room (I guess Un’s was the only place where I had it, now that I think about it) so more time to read. I walked over to one of Ubud’s main attractions, Monkey Forest – a temple complex with a lot of monkeys. More monkeys! But it was a must-see of Ubud. A must-eat of Ubud is crispy duck, and I had some for dinner – a mini-rijstaffel in presentation, with several dishes, but here the main one is duck!