Sights in Indonesia
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Blanco Renaissance Museum
The picture of Antonio Blanco mugging with Michael Jackson says it all. His namesake Blanco Renaissance Museum captures the artist's theatrical spirit. Blanco came to Bali from Spain via the Philippines. He specialised in erotic art, illustrated poetry and playing the role of an eccentric artist à la Dali. He died in Bali in 1999, and his flamboyant home is now this museum. More prosaically: enjoy the waterfall on the way in and good views over the river.
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Surabaya Zoo
South of the city centre, Surabaya Zoo has a good collection of lions, tigers, elephants, hippos, kangaroos and reptiles. If you’re not planning to visit Komodo, the dragons are worth a visit – 32 mini-komodos hatched here in 2009. The animals look typically nonchalant, but the park is well laid out, with large, open enclosures.
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Pasar Ngasem
At the edge of Taman Sari, Yogya’s bird market is a colourful menagerie crowded with hundreds of budgerigars, orioles and singing turtle doves. Pigeons are the big business here (for training, not eating), but occasionally owls and raptors are also sold.
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Adi's Gallery
Many of the better local artists display their works here. Adi's hosts occasional special events like live music and many popular special exhibits. The gallery is a project of German artist Adi Bachmann.
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Beachfront Walk
Sanur's beachfront walk was the first in Bali and from day one has been delighting locals and visitors alike. Over 4km long, it follows the sand south as it curves to the west. The countless cafes with tables in the sand will give you plenty of reason to pause. Look for ferries crossing Selat Badung between Sanur and mysterious Nusa Penida. Offshore you'll see gnarled fishermen in woven bamboo hats standing in the shallows rod-fishing for a living. At the northern end of the beach, elderly men gather at sunrise for meditasi – swimming and baking in the black volcanic sand found only at that end of the beach.
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Ketut Rudi Gallery
These sprawling galleries showcase the works of more than 50 Ubud artists with techniques as varied as primitive and new realism. The gallery's namesake is on display as well; he favours an entertaining style best described as 'comical realism'.
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Petulu
Every evening at around 6pm, thousands of big herons and egrets fly in to Petulu, about 2.5km north of Jl Raya Ubud, squabbling over the prime perching places before settling into the trees beside the road and becoming a tourist attraction. The herons, mainly the striped Java pond species, started their visits to Petulu in 1965 for no apparent reason. Villagers believe they bring good luck (as well as tourists), despite the smell and the mess. A few warung (food stalls) have been set up in the paddy fields, where you can have a drink while enjoying the spectacle. Walk quickly under the trees if the herons are already roosting.
Petulu is a pleasant walk or bicycle ride on…
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Po Hwa Kong
Reflecting the religious diversity of the island, this historic Chinese Buddhist temple (built in 1806) acts as a spiritual centre for believers of all faiths, including Hindus, Christians and Muslims. Inside the compound there's a classically Chinese combination of dragons, gods and clouds of sweet incense. Make a donation and the whippet-thin, kretek cigarette-puffing guardian will give you a personal fortune reading (in Bahasa Indonesia only). It's just east of the port in Ampenan.
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Pranoto's Art Gallery
The husband-wife pair of artists Pranoto and Kerry Pendergrast display their works here. The scenes of Indonesian life are lovely.
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Puputan Square
Across from Pura Jagatnatha, this classic urban park commemorates the heroic but suicidal stand of the rajahs of Badung against the invading Dutch in 1906. A monument depicts a Balinese family in heroic pose, brandishing the weapons that were so ineffective against the Dutch guns. The woman also has jewels in her left hand, as the women of the Badung court reputedly flung their jewellery at the Dutch soldiers to taunt them. The park is popular with locals at lunchtime and with families near sunset.
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Pura Maospahit
Established in the 14th century, at the time the Majapahit arrived from Java, this temple was damaged in a 1917 earthquake and has been heavily restored since. The oldest structures are at the back of the temple, but the most interesting features are the large statues of Garuda and the giant Batara Bayu.
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Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary
This cool and dense swath of jungle, officially called Mandala Wisata Wanara Wana, houses three holy temples. The sanctuary is inhabited by a band of grey-haired and greedy long-tailed Balinese macaques who are nothing like the innocent-looking doe-eyed monkeys on the brochures. They are ever vigilant for passing tourists who just might have peanuts and ripe bananas available for a quick hand-out. Don't hand food directly to these creatures.
The interesting Pura Dalem Agung (Temple of the Dead) is in the forest and has a real Indiana Jones feel to it. Look for the Rangda figures devouring children at the entrance to the inner temple.
You can enter through one of the three…
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Taman Burung
Taman Burung is home to over 200 exotic birds from Asia and Australia, and some Indonesian wildlife. After years of neglect the whole place is steadily being renovated and conditions improved.
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Bali Botanical Gardens
This garden is a showplace. Established in 1959 as a branch of the national botanical gardens at Bogor, near Jakarta, it covers more than 154 hectares on the lower slopes of Gunung Pohen. The garden boasts an extensive collection of trees and flowers. Some plants are labelled with their botanical names, and a booklet of self-guided walks (20,000Rp) is helpful. The gorgeous orchid area is often locked to foil flower filchers; you can ask for it to be unlocked.
Within the park, you can cavort like a bird or a squirrel at the Bali Treetop Adventure Park Winches, ropes, nets and the like let you explore the forest well above the ground. And it's not passive – you hoist, jump,…
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Beach Promenade
One of the nicest features of Nusa Dua is the 5km-long beach promenade that stretches the length of the resort and continues north along much of the beach in Tanjung Benoa. Not only is it a good stroll at any time but it also makes sampling the features of the other beachside resorts easy. The walk is paved for most of its length.
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Biasa Art Space
This large, airy and chilly gallery is owned by Biasa designer Susanna Perini. Changing exhibits highlight bold works.
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Fish Market
Smelly, lively and frenetic, the open-air fish market heaves with life. Boats land with their hauls and the deal-making, selling and transporting is manic. Watch out for porters carting impossible loads barefoot through the muck.
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Ganeesha Gallery
Ganeesha has exhibitions by international artists and is worth a visit – walk south along the beach.
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Gegar Beach
Worth a day trip from anywhere in south Bali, Gegar Beach has a string of tidy stands on the sand that offer drinks and snacks plus a few that rent out umbrellas, loungers and water sports gear for kayaking, wind-surfing etc. Expats in the know mob the place on weekends; on weekdays it's very quiet. Reefs offshore mean the surf close-in is feeble(aka kid-friendly) . Wiry seaweed harvesters toil in the sun, blithely ignoring sunbathers.
A short walk south of the St Regis Bali Resort, Gegar Beach is reached by car via a small road over a somewhat askew bridge that runs 300m off the main road south of Nusa Dua. Parking is 2000Rp.
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Kemarin Hari Ini
Glass objects created with laminated Japanese paper sparkle in the light at this airy gallery. Primitive works mix with the starkly modern.
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Produce Market
Across from the temple, the produce market is small but has one of Bali's best selections of fruit and veg. Many savvy top-end chefs do their shopping here, and farmers from across the island know to bring their best or most unusual items here. Arrive early for the best viewing.
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Pura Gegar
Just south of Gegar Beach is a bluff with a good cafe and a path that leads up to Pura Gegar, a compact temple shaded by gnarled old trees. Views are great and you can spy on swimmers who've come south in the shallow, placid waters around the bluff for a little frolic.
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Pura Ulun Danu Bratan
This very important Hindu-Buddhist temple was founded in the 17th century. It is dedicated to Dewi Danu, the goddess of the waters, and is actually built on small islands, which means it is completely surrounded by the lake. Pilgrimages and ceremonies are held here to ensure that there is a supply of water for farmers all over Bali.
The tableau includes classical Hindu thatch-roofed meru reflected in the water and silhouetted against the often cloudy mountain backdrop – a classic Bali photo opportunity. A large banyan tree shades the entrance, and you walk through manicured gardens and past an impressive Buddhist stupa to reach the lakeside.
There's a bit of a sideshow…
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Pura Ulun Siwi
The temple Pura Ulun Siwi dates from the 18th century. It is different from other Balinese temples in that it faces east, rather than north to Gunung Agung. It's thought this is because the site dates back to the 11th century when Java's Mt Semeru was still the focus of local piety. Look for farmers collecting water here to bless their fields: the anti-rodent powers are considered especially strong.
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Theater Art Gallery
Specialises in vintage and reproduction puppets used in traditional Balinese theatre. Just browsing the animated faces peering back at you is a delight.
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