Personal responsibility

Imagine the damage if one were to step in this gap in the sidewalk. I have seen this sort of dangerous path over and over in developing countries, but it doesn't seem to faze the residents. Maybe it does but I just don't know about it.

We considered renting a car or motorscooter before we got to Bali, but watching drivers here cured us of that notion right away. Scooters weave among cars and trucks with a recklessness that is frightening to watch. Car drivers don't mind it and let the scooters do their thing. Drivers tailgate relentlessly and it is a wonder that there are not more wrecks.

We went to Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave) yesterday morning to see the carved entrance to the cave. The cave itself is not deep, with a statue of Ganesha and a trio of lingams in it. We managed to get there early enough to beat the crowds, but the carving was in the shade at that time of day.

We are spending a night away from Ubud tonight  near a lake called Danau Beratan. It has a famous temple near the shore and I wanted to photograph it. Me and a whole lot of other people. Laurie wondered what people did when they visited a tourist attraction before the day of selfies. We walked from our hotel to the temple and on the way back we heard two different gamelan orchestras playing at small temples.

Today is the full moon and there are a lot of ceremonies at temples. This morning, before we rode up here to the mountains, we visited a major temple that has a big spring welling up inside it. A lot of people brought offerings and bathed in the pools that are fed by the spring.

Before that we walked down into a river valley to see shrines that were carved into cliffs hundreds of years ago. We were the first tourists of the day and had the area to ourselves most of the time. The walk was mostly steps that wound through rice fields, a beautiful sight.

Bali is full of temples. Many homes have sacred structures in their yards and there are temples in every neighborhood, often more than one. The most imposing part of most temples we have seen is an elaborate gate leading from the entrance courtyard to the rear of the temple. The gates are tall, intricately carved structures with doors in the center. There is a fierce looking guardian over the doors, just a face and hands. I haven't learned the name of or story behind the guardian, but I plan to ask our hotel owner when we get back to Ubud.