Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
houses from Java that comprise the museum. The only feasible way to get here is with your
own transport; it's about a 5km cycle ride from the bottom of Jalan Monkey Forest in Ubud.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: MAS
By bemo
Mas is served by all Ubud-Batubulan bemos, which zip through the village and
will stop anywhere on request.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Taman Harum Cottages
In the compound of Tantra Gallery, Jl Raya, southern Mas 0361
975567,
tamanharumcottages.com
.
The two-storey villas and suites are the best choice
here, affording fine ricefield views from upstairs. All rooms have a/c and hot water and
there's a pool, restaurant and free transport to Ubud (20min), an
d cu
ltural c
lass
es can
be a
r-
ranged. Non-guests are welcome to eat at the restaurant. Doubles
$58
, suites
$96
, villas
$109
Batuan
A ribbon-like roadside development,
BATUAN
was the original home of the
Batuan style
of painting
and is now a commercial centre for all styles of Balinese painting.
Batuan is dominated by large
galleries
lining the main road, while smaller studios are
tucked away in the traditional neighbourhoods to the west; look out for “painter” signboards
above their gateways. On the west side of the main road, the
I Wayan Bendi Gallery
, named
after the most famous exponent of the Batuan style of painting, displays some of the great
man's work, while the sprawling
Dewa Putu Toris
, another large commercial enterprise, is
also worth a visit; it's located 250m west off the southern end of the main road, in the
banjar
of Tengah - turn west at the
raksasa
(demon-giant) statue and follow the signs. Just before
the gallery you'll pass Batuan's main temple,
Pura Desa-Pura Puseh
(dawn-dusk; dona-
tion), graced with appropriately elaborate gold-painted woodwork.
At the northern limit of Batuan, a plump stone statue of a well-fed baby Brahma (officially
known as Brahma Rare and unofficially as the
Fat Baby statue
) marks the Sakah turn-off to
Blahbatuh and points east, while the main road continues north.
Sukawati
Southern Batuan merges into northern
SUKAWATI
, a lively market town and a major arts-
and-crafts shopping destination. It's convenient for public transport as Ubud-Batubulan
be-
mos
stop in front of the town's
art market
(
pasar seni
), which trades every day from dawn
till dusk inside a traditional two-storey building on the main road, Jalan Raya Sukawati. Here
you'll find a tantalizing array of artefacts, paintings, fabrics, clothing and basketware, piled
high on stalls that are crammed together. The scrum, and parking, are so bad that a second
market,
Pasar Seni Guwang
, operates about 1km to the south, offering the same range of
stuff but in slightly less frenetic surroundings.
