in the 'Heart' of Bali - Ubud

We said 'goodbye' to our beautiful, clean, comfortable room at Villa Jaya in Lovina, Bali and hired a local guide to take us to Ubud. We stopped in Candikuning where Corey waterskiied in an extinct volcano, and fed some monkeys hanging on the side of the highway. We arrived in Ubud lastnight and have been exploring around this lush, definitly overstuffed, city. We went shopping lastnight and bought some very cool things, we also decided to try the local drink, Arak Sangria. Rice wine, rice whiskey, soda water, orange juice and fruit sit fermenting in a pitcher, then it's served. After one sip i swore I was drunk. Blah. Anyways needless to say we shopped some more after our Arak sangria and I bought a comforter! Totally the most practical thing to buy in Bali right?? It is beautiful, and Corey nearly topped my 'crazy-thing-to-buy' status when he started haggling for a full size bongo drum (no success though). We are staying in definitely the most interesting place, it's impossible to explain so I will upload photos onto Picasa soon.
People are VERY money hungry here which is a downfall and tends to put you in a bitter mood when you're asked if you 'want transport??' 100 time in 100 steps. The Balinese are, however, fantastic if their profession has nothing to do with tourism. The unique style of architecture, music, and art is VERY evident here.
j.