Monkeying around Ubud

We have to visit the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary (Ubud Monkey Forest) while we're here!  Similar to what we saw in Arashiyama, the monkeys are free to wander around.  However, humans are not "caged" here in order to interact with the monkeys.  Maybe they should be, because we heard lots of warnings about hiding anything shiny (even sunglasses) and not bringing any food inside - the monkeys will find it!  Our driver told us someone from our hotel was bitten the previous week.  Since they've been known to carry rabies, I'm not interested in doing anything that might cause them to bite me.

Not following advice!

So we follow everyone's advice, but others don't!  Even though every guidebook says you shouldn't feed them, there are people inside the sanctuary selling bananas, etc for the monkeys.  They climb all over the people and snatch it out of their hands.  No playing keep away!

We didn't see them take anything from people but we did see them playing with man-made items - a sunscreen bottle, a water bottle and an item stolen from a souvenir shop.  Scraping the rock is the best interactive picture of a monkey.

He's scrubbing the ground with the rock.

There are baby monkeys around, too!  It might be hard to see in the pictures, but Mom has a grip on the baby's tail, so he can't go too far away.

Too cute!

The baby tail makes a good leash for Mom!

Monkey highway (literally!)

Steve does an incredible job taking photos with the new camera.  Normally with my phone the photos turn out well, but the difference between the two results are miles apart.

Steve with the camera.

One of the best photos on my phone.

 



 

Can I take him home?

I think this is a yawn - but he could look vicious!

 










Sometimes it's difficult to take a picture of the monkey's face because he turns away from you.  I think they're tired of having their picture taken.  Steve has better luck here, too, because he can zoom better with the camera.

Spa day for monkeys!

There are very interesting statues and carvings throughout the forest....

I don't want to know what he has behind his back.

What's in the bowl he's holding?

He's looking at us!  Why does he have fangs?!?

 ...and sometimes just really strange ones.

I don't even know what to say.

At least he's first in line!

This is one of my favorite monkey pictures from the trip!  This old guy is just hanging out, waiting for the gates to open...

I wonder if they offer free moped parking?

We also spent time walking around the shops of Ubud. It's much bigger than we thought.  It reminds me of a cruise ship port town - there are lots of souvenir shops, boutiques, restaurants, etc.  I don't know how they all stay in business.  We're here during the shoulder season, so it's not too crowded, but they must do well during high season.  It takes a couple of visits to town before we walk most of the streets (and we don't go in a lot of stores).

Traffic in Ubud, too!

There are temples in town, and here's a small part of one.

I love all the details in the carving!

Steve's beer even comes with its own
ice bucket so it stays cold.

There's so many restaurants, we just pick one at random.  Almost all are open-air, so there's no air conditioning.  It's hot and humid, but being in the shade with a fan cools us off a bit.  I've found if I can get the hair off the back of my neck it helps, too!  It's too short for a ponytail, but I use a hair clip to twist it up and hold in place.  Not my best hairstyle, but with the temperatures I don't care that much.

My lunch - only $4!