Taman Festival – Abandoned Amusement Park – Bali, Indonesia

Just north of Sanur and about 30 minutes from the craziness of Kuta, is an abandoned amusement park.

Construction began in 1997, it was to have simulation games, 3D theatre performances, a crocodile pit, unique animals,mountain eruptions at planned intervals, and laser light shows at night.

Unfortunately, a bad economy prevented it from opening and the project was abandoned in 2000. There are rumors that the crocodiles were left in their pit and locals fed them live chickens until the crocs eventually ate each other.

Taman Festival Entrance

A man near the entrance collects a 10,000 Rupiah entrance fee and then you can wander the park with no restrictions. Some of the dilapidated buildings look quite dangerous, so proceed with care.

 

Before the fire.

 

The jungle began to take over and on Dec.10th, 2012, a fire ravaged one of the main buildings, leaving only a skeleton behind.

 

 

 

There are no rollercoasters or ferris wheels in this park, but incredible and sometimes creepy graffiti covers every wall in site.

Scary crumbling statues can be found throughout the large park.

The theatre is a dark and scary place with large holes in the floor. Be sure to use a flashlight if you dare to enter.

 

           Tip: Be sure to bring flashlights and plenty of bug spray.

 

Bali Kite Festival, Sanur, Indonesia

The Bali Kite Festival is a competition for local males to showcase their village’s skills in the sky. These are not normal kites. They are huge. Some have tails over 100 meters long.

These huge kites are so large that they cannot be anchored to the ground by string. Thick ropes are manipulated by multiple team members to make the kites dance and dive in the sky.

Other ‘new creation’ kites, look like things in life that have taken to the sky in 3d form. One example of this is the massive 700 kilo dragon. We missed its performance at this festival, but its maiden voyage is in the video below.

 

The teams compete for best launch, best design and longest flight to win money provided by sponsors.

The festival is free with local vendors providing food and drinks.

The schedule for 2016 is below with locations.

 

1. Bali Kite Festival: 22-24 July, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

2. Belega Kite Festival: 30-31 July, Masceti Beach, Gianyar

3. Pelangi Denpasar Kite Festival:  5-7 August, Mertasari Beach, Sanur

4. Dangin Peken Dhananjaya Cup Kite Festival: 13-14 August, Mertasari Beach, Sanur

5. Banjar Banjaran Kite Festival: 17 August, Abiansemal, Badung

6. Tanjung Kite Festival: 19-21 August, Mertasari Beach, Sanur

7. Sanur Kite Festival (Sanur Village Festival): 26-28 August, Mertasari Beach, Sanur

8. Pelangi Badung Kite Festival: 2-4 September, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

9. Ungasan Kite Festival: 10-11 September, Ungasan

10. Pelangi Gianyar Kite Festival: 23-25 September, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

11. Tabanan Kite Festival: 1-2 October, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

12. Bekul Kite Festival: 1-2 October, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

13. Namaste Kite Festival: 8-9 October, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

14. Biaung Kite Festival: 15-16 October, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

15. Rockiller Kite Festival: 21-23 October, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

16. Bali Kite Festival 2016 (closing ceremony): 29-30 October, Padanggalak Beach, Sanur

Sea Turtle Release – Kuta Beach, Bali, Indonesia

It has been over a year since my last post. Since then, I have left Myanmar and gotten engaged! I now live with my fiancee, Matt, in Bali. I have the horrible job of posting all about this relaxed and beautiful paradise.

First, moving to Bali has been such joy. Although I appreciate my time in Yangon, I love having little luxuries like electricity and water 24/7 again. Fast internet, western food, and healthy living are things I missed and definitely don’t take them for granted.

 Now, onto the fun of releasing baby turtles. From March to September, female turtles make the long journey to their birthplace on Kuta Beach. Yes, they return to where they were born 25 years before to lay their eggs.

Bali Sea Turtle Society (BSTS) takes the eggs from their nests and keep them safe from predators and tourists in their hatchery. The eggs hatch 45 to 90 days later.

BSTS then posts on their facebook page that they will be hosting a release at their hatchery on Kuta Beach. It usually happens at 4:30 PM, so everyone needs to arrive at 4PM to pick up a free token to exchange for a baby turtle. The place is easy to find on the beach promenade, as it has a giant sea turtle outside that contains the hatchery.

As I said, this is completely free, but you can donate money or purchase t-shirts or jewelry to support the hatchery. In exchange for your token, they give you a plastic container with sea water and a baby turtle inside. The turtles try desperately to escape to the ocean, so we had to put your hand over the top. But you shouldn’t handle the turtles!

We then walked down to a line on the beach and waited for the announcer to give the okay for release.After a short countdown, the turtles are all quickly moving across the sand to get to the ocean. It is important for them to be put on the sand and not in the ocean. They have to feel the sand to remember where to return when it is time to lay their eggs.

Advice: If you want pictures, have one person in your group NOT release a turtle. It is very difficult to keep the turtle inside of the container and maneuver a camera.

Hpa-An, Myanmar

I had a three day weekend and my Portuguese friend in town, so we headed to Hpa-An with hopes of stopping at Golden Rock on the way back to Yangon. I booked our bus tickets across the street from the train station. There were no VIP buses, but they had air con. The trip was around 7 hours and the bus was overcrowded. All rows had seats that folded down to fill the aisle; these were all filled in the first few stops. Because of this overcrowding, the bus got pretty hot. April and May are the hottest months in Yangon and this was the end of March. We had one stop for lunch and I was elated to get out of the stuffy bus.

I began going a bit mad because the driver honked a very unnerving horn every 10 seconds. Living in Yangon, I’m used to cars honking a lot, but this was ridiculous. He honked when there was nothing on the road. I think that’s how he kept himself awake. I was so happy to get off the bus in Hpa-An. It was blazing hot, so I opened up my umbrella, and we began walking down the street.

 

I had booked us in the Angel Hotel II. This place was really nice for Myanmar. We had a terrace looking over all of the giant hills surrounding the town and a very modern bathroom. The only problem was the room was full of mosquitoes. Very common problem, but it didn’t last long because my friend is a ninja at killing the pesky blood suckers.

 

 After checking in, we hopped in the back of a tuk-tuk and headed for the bat caves. A bumpy drive later, we pulled up to the gates of a temple. Slipping off our shoes, we walked barefoot up the path. A dog was lazily sleeping on a pagoda and men worked on boats in the river to our right.

We walked further up the path and the trees opened up to a temple, the bat caves, and a woman pointing for us to climb up the cliff. I hate heights and became terrified when we reached a ladder that wasn’t bolted to the rock. My friend held the ladder and I very slowly ascended. A small pagoda adorned the top of the cliff. With shaking knees, I carefully walked around the narrow space between the pagoda and a sheer drop to the ground below.

We were the first of about ten tourists who climbed to the top, so we had the prime spot for viewing. I snapped at a few people for smoking at the pagoda. It’s considered very disrespectful. A man from New Zealand had just been sentenced to two years hard labor for disrespecting an image of Buddha by putting headphones on it. The people of Myanmar are warm and welcoming, but they don’t put up with religious ignorance.

When the sun went down, some locals at the bottom began hitting empty plastic containers with sticks. The noise stirred up the bats and they flooded out of the cave. As they went over the water, they formed a snake-like line that curved and moved as they flew out in a cluster.

After the bats, we had a quick dinner at San Ma Tau Restaurant. We couldn’t find any food in town that was nearly as good. This was excellent and safe traditional Myanmar food.

The next day, we hired a local guide from an English trade school. The proceeds were going towards funding the school. He took us to caves and temples all day.

        

A monk was on his cellphone at this pagoda.

  

The Sadan Caves were my favorite. We walked through the cave, which was spectacular, and then boarded a boat to take us through a low rising cave and up a paddy field canal. 

   

  

After the boat ride, we went to the local’s swimming pool. A family was harvesting rice nearby.

We also visited a weaving factory. The weavers were incredibly talented and fast. In exchange for their work, they are given a salary and accommodations. The dismal housing was on stilts with a small creek of sewage running through the middle. It was really depressing, but another reminder of how lucky I am.

               

The next day we boarded our ‘bus’ to Golden Rock.

Advice: Angel Hotel II is around $35 a night, but worth it. Breakfast is served on the top floor and the views are really great. Plus the modern bathrooms make life a bit easier.

Soe Brothers Guesthouse is the cheaper option with dorms and also where you can rent motorbikes. It is possible to drive yourself to all of the sites or hire a tuk-tuk driver to save you some frustration in the heat.

Kanchanaburi, Erawan Falls, Thailand

THIS IS MY 300th POST!!!!!!!!!!

For a long weekend, I met up with one of my new friends I met traveling in Indonesia. We met in Bangkok and then took the train from Thornburi train station at 7:50 A.M. for 100 baht. We arrived in Kanchanaburi at 11 A.M. and went searching for a scooter to rent. After that, we drove for an hour to the Erawan waterfalls. A short hike through the jungle and we saw the first level. There are seven.

We hiked all the way to the top. The water was cold and full of the fish used in pedicure tanks. Some were actually quite large and all nibbled at my feet. Monkeys came swinging down to steal our things, but I kept them out of their reach.

Unfortunately, our fun was cut short by a giant rainstorm. The lovely warm day now felt freezing. I shivered the whole way down to the parking lot. We had to wait for the rain to subside before we could go anywhere. After my friend bought towels and dry shirts, I felt much better.

After it stopped raining, we jumped back on the scooter and drove back to Kanchanaburi. Our last stop before dark was the bridge over the river Kwai. It was built during world war two by prisoners of the Japanese. It connected Thailand to the Death Railway in Burma, named for how many people died during its construction.

Exhausted, we dropped off the bike, hailed a tuk-tuk to the bus station, and found a spot in a van to take us back to Bangkok.

Taling Chan Floating Market, Bangkok, Thailand

While in Bangkok, I wanted to see a floating market, but one that was more authentic and not swarming with tourists. My friend and I decided to visit the Taling Chan Floating Market. At around 8 A.M., we took the BTS to the Woing stop. From there we took a taxi for around 120 baht.

The entrance to the market is lined with sellers peddling all kinds of foods and trinkets. After walking down the long lane of vendors, we walked onto the docks to see the floating markets. Women sat in boats with colorful produce, some had food cooking on a little fire burning in the boat. Tables sat in the middle of the docks and boys ran up and down from the boats to serve people the fresh food.

        

After sampling a few dishes, we joined a boat tour of canals for 100 baht. The tour stopped at a small village with a pretty temple, orchid farm, and a catfish feeding spot.

The village is built on the water of the canal. Most houses are on stilts.

                 

 Hundreds of fish made large splashes as they fought for food.
After this, we made a stop for a Thai snack of sticky rice and beans cooked inside of bamboo. A man cut the bamboo open with a machete.

When we returned, we easily hailed a cab to take us back into the city.

Trawangan, Gili Islands, Indonesia

To end my holiday and celebrate New Year’s, I headed for the Gili Islands east of Bali. This is a popular spot during this time of year, but luckily, I had booked my bungalow months in advance. My luck didn’t end there either. A very good friend from my days of living in San Sebastian, Spain was also in the area and joined me. I love these little coincidences, when I meet friends all around the world. I’m never really traveling alone.

There are two ways to get to the Gili Islands from Bali. The first is to take the slow moving ferry that stops in Lombok. The second is the much more expensive (around $100 return) speedboat with transport directly from the airport. We didn’t want to spend most of the day on a ferry, so we took the speedboat.

Trawangan is the largest of the Gili Islands, but that doesn’t make it big. We walked around the entire thing in about an hour. Our bungalows were so cute! A high tiled roof covered a pillow cushioned terrace with a hammock, giving it a truly Bali look, but inside was modern, air conditioned, and eclectically decorated.

December is rainy season in this part of Indonesia, but we did get long periods of sunshine. This was the perfect place to relax before going back to work.

Horse drawn carts, bicycles, or walking are the only transport around the island.

The restaurants had a relaxed atmosphere and creative culinary delights that I had been missing in Myanmar. We preferred eating at a particular spot on the beach, but I also couldn’t resist the Mexican restaurant in the middle of the island. It was the closest thing to authentic Mexican that I have had in years. Everything was unrealistically delicious or maybe it was just how happy I was.

We made it to our favorite beach restaurant just in time to grab a drink and watch the fireworks at midnight. I couldn’t imagine a better start to 2015.

After all of the magic of a spectacular New Year, I had to go back home to Myanmar. Maybe I’m getting too conservative, but this woman was wearing what looked like a bra and a diaper to the airport. I can understand why places demand a dress code.

Accommodation: Puri Sayang Bungalows – Really cute bungalows, lovely staff, and close to all the action, but in a quiet neighborhood. Contact: purisayangtrawangan@gmail.com

Hpa-An, Myanmar

I had a three day weekend and my Portuguese friend in town, so we headed to Hpa-An with hopes of stopping at Golden Rock on the way back to Yangon. I booked our bus tickets across the street from the train station. There were no VIP buses, but they had air con. The trip was around 7 hours and the bus was overcrowded. All rows had seats that folded down to fill the aisle; these were all filled in the first few stops. Because of this overcrowding, the bus got pretty hot. April and May are the hottest months in Yangon and this was the end of March. We had one stop for lunch and I was elated to get out of the stuffy bus.

I began going a bit mad because the driver honked a very unnerving horn every 10 seconds. Living in Yangon, I’m used to cars honking a lot, but this was ridiculous. He honked when there was nothing on the road. I think that’s how he kept himself awake. I was so happy to get off the bus in Hpa-An. It was blazing hot, so I opened up my umbrella, and we began walking down the street.

 

I had booked us in the Angel Hotel II. This place was really nice for Myanmar. We had a terrace looking over all of the giant hills surrounding the town and a very modern bathroom. The only problem was the room was full of mosquitoes. Very common problem, but it didn’t last long because my friend is a ninja at killing the pesky blood suckers.

After checking in, we hopped in the back of a tuk-tuk and headed for the bat caves. A bumpy drive later, we pulled up to the gates of a temple. Slipping off our shoes, we walked barefoot up the path. A dog was lazily sleeping on a pagoda and men worked on boats in the river to our right.

We walked further up the path and the trees opened up to a temple, the bat caves, and a woman pointing for us to climb up the cliff. I hate heights and became terrified when we reached a ladder that wasn’t bolted to the rock. My friend held the ladder and I very slowly ascended. A small pagoda adorned the top of the cliff. With shaking knees, I carefully walked around the narrow space between the pagoda and a sheer drop to the ground below.

We were the first of about ten tourists who climbed to the top, so we had the prime spot for viewing. I snapped at a few people for smoking at the pagoda. It’s considered very disrespectful. A man from New Zealand had just been sentenced to two years hard labor for disrespecting an image of Buddha by putting headphones on it. The people of Myanmar are warm and welcoming, but they don’t put up with religious ignorance.

When the sun went down, some locals at the bottom began hitting empty plastic containers with sticks. The noise stirred up the bats and they flooded out of the cave. As they went over the water, they formed a snake-like line that curved and moved as they flew out in a cluster.

After the bats, we had a quick dinner at San Ma Tau Restaurant. We couldn’t find any food in town that was nearly as good. This was excellent and safe traditional Myanmar food.

The next day, we hired a local guide from an English trade school. The proceeds were going towards funding the school. He took us to caves and temples all day.

       

A monk was on his cellphone at this pagoda.

  

  

The Sadan Caves were my favorite. We walked through the cave, which was spectacular, and then boarded a boat to take us through a low rising cave and up a paddy field canal.

 

   

  

After the boat ride, we went to the local’s swimming pool. A family was harvesting rice nearby.

We also visited a weaving factory. The weavers were incredibly talented and fast. In exchange for their work, they are given a salary and accommodations. The dismal housing was on stilts with a small creek of sewage running through the middle. It was really depressing, but another reminder of how lucky I am.

                       

The next day we boarded our ‘bus’ to Golden Rock.

Advice: Angel Hotel II is around $35 a night, but worth it. Breakfast is served on the top floor and the views are really great. Plus the modern bathrooms make life a bit easier.

Soe Brothers Guesthouse is the cheaper option with dorms and also where you can rent motorbikes. It is possible to drive yourself to all of the sites or hire a tuk-tuk driver to save you some frustration in the heat.

Kanchanaburi, Erawan Falls, Thailand

THIS IS MY 300th POST!!!!!!!!!!

For a long weekend, I met up with one of my new friends I met traveling in Indonesia. We met in Bangkok and then took the train from Thornburi train station at 7:50 A.M. for 100 baht. We arrived in Kanchanaburi at 11 A.M. and went searching for a scooter to rent. After that, we drove for an hour to the Erawan waterfalls. A short hike through the jungle and we saw the first level. There are seven.

We hiked all the way to the top. The water was cold and full of the fish used in pedicure tanks. Some were actually quite large and all nibbled at my feet. Monkeys came swinging down to steal our things, but I kept them out of their reach.

Unfortunately, our fun was cut short by a giant rainstorm. The lovely warm day now felt freezing. I shivered the whole way down to the parking lot. We had to wait for the rain to subside before we could go anywhere. After my friend bought towels and dry shirts, I felt much better.

After it stopped raining, we jumped back on the scooter and drove back to Kanchanaburi. Our last stop before dark was the bridge over the river Kwai. It was built during world war two by prisoners of the Japanese. It connected Thailand to the Death Railway in Burma, named for how many people died during its construction.

Exhausted, we dropped off the bike, hailed a tuk-tuk to the bus station, and found a spot in a van to take us back to Bangkok.

Taling Chan Floating Market, Bangkok, Thailand

While in Bangkok, I wanted to see a floating market, but one that was more authentic and not swarming with tourists. My friend and I decided to visit the Taling Chan Floating Market. At around 8 A.M., we took the BTS to the Woing stop. From there we took a taxi for around 120 baht.

The entrance to the market is lined with sellers peddling all kinds of foods and trinkets. After walking down the long lane of vendors, we walked onto the docks to see the floating markets. Women sat in boats with colorful produce, some had food cooking on a little fire burning in the boat. Tables sat in the middle of the docks and boys ran up and down from the boats to serve people the fresh food.

        

After sampling a few dishes, we joined a boat tour of canals for 100 baht. The tour stopped at a small village with a pretty temple, orchid farm, and a catfish feeding spot.

The village is built on the water of the canal. Most houses are on stilts.

                 

 Hundreds of fish made large splashes as they fought for food.
After this, we made a stop for a Thai snack of sticky rice and beans cooked inside of bamboo. A man cut the bamboo open with a machete.

When we returned, we easily hailed a cab to take us back into the city.