We spent only 3 1/2 weeks in Ubud, but by the time we got there we were eager for some fun children’s activities. We managed to find a Ceramics studio, Sari Api, that was willing to teach a small “private class” for my two girls, and a friend’s two children. The fee was 150,000 Rp per child for the small group, and they were able to complete a few projects that they could have eventually taken home (after letting it dry for...

Our driver, Dewa, told us that the Mother Temple of Besakih was not to be missed. He had a few pit stops planned along the way—one being a coffee plantation, Satria Agrowisata. We don’t drink coffee or tea, but we didn’t want to be rude. After all, it still sounded like an interesting thing to learn about—so off we went! If you love drinking coffee, you may also want to purchase fun mugs that you can use at home or at the office....

We arrived at Pura Tanah Lot, a unique temple located directly on the ocean in Southwest Bali, in the early evening. This temple is built on a rock formation that is surrounded by ocean when the tide is up, and is a popular place at sunset. Our driver/guide/friend, Dewa, dropped us off at the gates, and off we went to explore inside the vast grounds. There were rows and rows of vendors with a surprisingly great variety of wares! We were...

After visiting the Bali’s rice terraces we went to Alas Kedaton Temple, a small forested area (approximately 15 acres) where hundreds of monkeys and fruit bats make their home. A group of woman with matching shirts stood near the entrance, and one woman stepped forward as our (free) guide/monkey handler. I later learned that these women are part of the co-op of stall/shop owners who sell tourist wares in the entrance of the temple...

One morning we decided to go visit the Royal Water Temple of Pura Taman Ayun. Our driver took us the on a scenic drive there (Okay, let’s face it…it’s all scenic outside of the city)! We pulled over on a narrow street in front of some stores and Dewa took us across the street to see this view (not before being hounded by the store owners who wanted us to pay parking fees): Little kids materialized from out of nowhere, hawking...

The next destination on our Balinese exploration was the famous rice terraces of Bali!  “Subak” is the cooperative social system that controls the water that irrigates the agriculture of Bali, and it is interconnected with the Balinese water temples. Water from natural springs and river canals flow through the temples, and then is divvied out to the rice terraces. It is therefore easy to understand why temples and worship is so...