Jody and I went in 2000 to Bali. The day after we arrived we thought it would be great if we rented a Jeep and toured the island on our own. That day is one of the best days of my life. I don't think Jody and I will ever laugh that hard again. One of our first stops was the monkey sanctuary in Ubud. When we were getting out of the car I told Jody don't lock the keys in the car. Guess what? OMG. I think the entire village of Ubud tried to open our car with every tool available. Nothing was working. Then a very, very old man walked up, stuck his car key in the door, and unlocked our car door!!! I wish I had a picture of him but as soon as he unlocked the car, he turned, and walked away.
A few of our saviors.
There are so many beautiful things to see in Bali. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking.
This kind of scenery wasn't too bad to look at either! Oh, how I love those little blond surfer boys!
We did all the touristy things. Here we are at Ulu Watu. Seriously, so beautiful.
Jody and Michelle - 2000
Sean and Michelle - 2001
We went to a Kecak dance that totally blew us away. It was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. It puts you into a complete trance. But of all the things Jody and I and Sean and I did we ate good food. I mean really, really, really good food.
The places I preferred to eat at were the small family run warungs that you can find while wandering down a gang (alley). I crave the food I ate in Indonesia. The smell of the spice market, the beauty of the open kitchens, the smiling faces of the proprietors.
The owner of my favorite warung putting giving an offering. This woman made killer Nasi Goreng. I can't even think about it without drooling.
Tonight I made my dinner in honor of all of those fantastic meals I have eaten and all the wonderful people I have met on my travels in Indonesia.
We were lucky enough to be able to get a few of the ingredients out of our backyard.
We made Lumpia, Udang Goreng, Sambal Udang, Mie Goreng, and Chicken Satay with peanut sauce**. Since I have a broken arm Sean helped me out a lot!
Lumpia Semarang and Udang Goreng (Indonesian spring roll and fried shrimp)-
Sambal Udang (Prawns in chili sauce) -
Mie Goreng - (Fried Noodles)
Chicken Satay and peanut sauce -
The only things missing were some ice cold Bintangs and the sound of the ocean crashing to the shore. Dinner made me so happy tonight. It made me almost as happy as this...almost.
**I didn't post recipes this week because it was hard enough getting this all typed up with my arm. If there is a recipe you would like I would be more than happy to send it to you.
