IT WAS A VERY BUSY DAY!

Started out early and didn't end until after 6:30.  With several times in and out of the bus and the oppressive heat and my goodness it was a tiring day.  We began by going to a weaving village where they were busy creating and weaving the Ikat (pronounced Eekat) The intricate patterns are designed by men - but it is taboo for them to weave them - so, in another larger room there are several looms where the clack of the shuttles and treadles is a lovely sound.  The young women are adept at their craft and are proud to show their work in progress.

Ikat fabric isn't for everyone.  Several in our group were interested in purchasing some pieces and were happy at such a huge selection.  It was very clear after seeing the weavers at work how to tell the quality of the Ikats.  We were shown the best of the best and also some inferior ones and a good way to tell is by the price here in Bali.  At home, I think without having seen really good ones - it could be easy to pay a high price for something of a lesser quality.

We were treated to a traditional Balinese lunch - once again, the no spice .... well you know. I ate my lunch and tried to remove most of the little slices of red chili peppers.  Sigh* chili peppers are only considered a vegetable here not a spice.

Next we stopped at a place where they were producing silk Ikats - how beautiful they are and quite expensive by Bali standards - but still very cheap compared to prices back in Canada.  Enough about Ikats?  Oh but wait there is more!  Our next stop was at the home of a lady who did incredibly beautiful creations and used all natural dyes.  The colours were so subtle and I really liked what she had to show us.  These works or art were unequal to anything we had seen.  These pieces were her private collection and I was so glad to have had a look at them.

We stopped at a market where there were lots of Ikat fabrics available for sale and our friends on the tour were able to purchase some to take home.  I went on a hunt with 3 other ladies for spices, however, we only managed to find one stall that had any for sale.  I did pick up a few to take home. This island is part of the Spice Islands, so it makes sense that I would be able to find some good spices here!  On Friday we are going to visit a food market, so I am sure that I will be able to find a good selection there.

Kids are kids every where in Bali - as school is out everyday at 1:00.  They go to school for 6 days a week starting at 7:30am.  They are always ready to smile or ham it up for a photo.  Here you can see how dark the sand is - black sand.  Notice sadly all the garbage in the background. Not the white bags, the the clutter just in front of them. I didn't actually take pictures of the garbage - but it is everywhere.  People just walk and drop and I'm sure some of it s result of stuff floating in on the oceans too.  I did find the tiniest piece of sea glass -I have a collection of small pieces for Atlantic Canada and will add this to the bottle at home.

One of the favourite passtimes of the children is to fly kites on the  beach.  They aren't always this ornate, however in groups of two or three they have them dancing in the sky and take great delight when they touch another kite.  It was fun to watch them carefree and having a lovely afternoon - school is out at 1:00 in Bali.

 

Our last stop was to walk a ways on the black sand beach to see the production and perhaps buy some sea salt. Wow what an arduous task it is for this 3 man operation.  First he has to make 50 trips to the ocean and carry the water back and pour it onto the prepared sand - then after some drying has happened, the salt is gather up and put through a kind of sluice box with added water and then the heavily salted water is taken to big troughs to dry for days out in the sun.  Finally after much evaporation, the salt crystals are gathered and packaged for sale.  Can't get more pure than that!

                         

So today I had my first I hope the very last encounter with a squat toilet.  It was a desperate and hurried venture. Suffice to say, the squat toilet won and I had to pay 5000 rupia for this experience. Thank god for plastic bags and vinyl seats. 

So back to the hotel - hop in the shower fully clothed...yah you know... A good cleansing and cooling shower, in my nightie and just to relax and read my book was just what was needed. Tomorrow is another day.