Bali Swing & Monkey Forest

A miracle has happened, we actually made it on time for breakfast! The night was quite restless and we only slept around 2 o'clock, as usual, but this time Juja woke up before the alarm clock. Around 10:30 am, breakfast was served on our little terrace, we were able to choose what we wanted beforehand (either various egg dishes with toast or pancakes with various fruits). Fresh fruits and tea were also served. So this is what a typical Balinese breakfast looks like in a homestay:

After breakfast, we got ready and talked to our hosts about the best way to get to the 'Bali Swing'. The host mom then organized a taxi driver for us, who drove us there after a little negotiation for 250,000 Rupiah (15€), waited for us, and brought us back.

'Bali Swing' is a kind of park that spreads over a slope and the valley and offers various activities. The main attractions are the 12 large swings, which are between 10 and 78m long, and you swing over the abyss with them. There were also some waterfalls and 2 natural pools.

Here are some pictures:

On the way back, the taxi driver dropped us off at the Monkey Forest. Even before we reached the entrance of the forest, monkeys were everywhere. We then decided not to pay the entrance fee but rather watch the monkeys on the street and in front of the entrance, that was entertainment enough 😊

The monkeys were not aggressive at all, they mostly did their own thing and weren't interested in people. The only difficulty was when people passed by with paper or plastic bags. They liked them a lot and wanted to play with them immediately, so they tugged on them 😀

Eventually, we were able to tear ourselves away from the cute little monkeys and headed home (10 minutes walking distance). When we arrived at the accommodation, we jumped into the beautiful pool again!

In the evening, we went to the Kecak Dance at the temple around the corner at 7:30 pm. It is really difficult to describe this traditional dance, if you're interested, I can send you a video. Many men sit in a circle together and make summoning movements to a kind of rhythmic chant. The end was the most interesting part. After 50 minutes, there was applause and most of the audience, including us, thought the show was over, but we were quickly informed that the fire/horse dance would follow. Then the following happened:

In the middle of the temple, a bonfire was ignited with coconut shells. Afterwards, a man dressed in a horse frame/costume entered the temple and danced around the fire to the 'chant' of the group of men. Suddenly, 'the horse' jumped barefoot into the bonfire and raged and jumped around in it. Some men came and gathered the glowing coconut shells into a pile again. After that, 'the horse' started dancing again and jumped back into the fire. Glowing coconut shells were deliberately shot towards the audience. The front row, including us, suffered the most, and we had to quickly lift our feet to avoid being hit by the glowing shells. It was definitely unexpected and a little frightening. This procedure was repeated several times until the 'evil horse' was finally caught.

It was definitely very interesting, and our host dad was glad that we watched it.