BALI 2024

We had an early start - 7:30am pick up. After picking up 2 more couples we headed off to the Food markets. This is where we met our cooking teacher, Ketut. He showed us around all of the stalls, pointing out some of the different fruits, spices, vegetables & sweets and we got to try some of them. We tried Snakefruit which had an outer layer that looks like snake skin but on the inside looked like garlic. It was fibrous and tasted a little like a cross between pineapple and apple and we liked it. I bought a small bag of them to take back for the boys. We hopped back into the car with our driver, and he took us out to the rice fields. Ketut explained how they inherited the fields from their ancestors who were often servants. For their good work they were given four plots of land from the kings. We were then driven to the house for the cooking lesson. We went upstairs, where we found benches and cooking facilities with some of the food already prepared for us. Ketut showed us our menus which included the 9 recipes we would be making, both vegetarian and meat. He would demonstrate what to do, and then we were sent to our benches to do it ourselves. We got to use a very large mortar and pestle to mix ingredients as a base for many of the sauces that they use in Indonesian cooking. We cooked and then were able to taste the food before adding the rest to large containers for eating later. The dessert we made was called Klepon Cake or Sticky Rice Cake. The mix was like Play-Doh, and we all sat down at the table and started to make the pretty green spheres. Best part was we then sat down to eat everything we made.
Base Gede, Tempe Manis, Ayam Bumbu Bali (Balinese Fried Chicken), Lawar Urab (mix salad), Sate chicken with coconut, Pepes ayam (chicken in banana leaf), Sambal Cacang (peanut sauce), Mie Goreng, Sambal tomato, Klepon Cake.
Meanwhile back at the villa the boys were getting ready for their very own adventure - taking on the might of the Ayung River. Our driver Leping picked Tony and Haydn up at 9am and it was straight to the Bali Bintang HQ. After signing the obligatory waivers in case of death, accidental injury, scurvy or a nasty rash on the arm they were kitted up with a buoyancy vest, helmet and paddle. Then it was a quick trip up the road in a truck to the stairs that lead down to the river - 300 in total, or so they were told. After some quick rafting instructions it was time to hit the water. The boys were in the front of the raft and after nearly falling out on the 1st set of rapids settled into a good paddling rhythm. The entire 11km journey was amazing and the scenery spectacular. They got to stop at a waterfall and stand (almost) under it. Then, it was time to walk back out of the valley and to grab a bite to eat. The buffet was minimalist but had a lovely setting - being surrounded by rice fields. We all met up again at Green Rabbit, a funky coffee shop where I had a hot orange coffee-black coffee with orange juice in it. It was quite nice but not something I'd drink all of the time. We went back to the villa to relax in the pool, got the boys to try the Snakefruit and listened to music. Gave the boys some of the leftovers we had brought home from the cooking class and they enjoyed it. Tony especially liked the Klepon Cake. We decided to go out for a late dinner as this was our last night in Ubud. We walked down the street to Sami Warung and Bar to enjoy some 2 for cocktails and yummy food. Michelle had Jackfruit tacos which were delicious and you wouldn't have known it isn't meat. Back to the villa to pack, ready for our move to Nusa Dua tomorrow.Read more