Bali Style

Cathy and I got up and were driven into downtown Ubud and walked around shopping and looking at stores. After lunch we went to Jean Francois Fichot. He is a Frenchman who has been living in Bali for 30 years. He designs and sells jewelry. If his house is not in Architectural Digest it should be.

You walk down a typical Bali street and there is a small gate. You then walk down approximately 100 stairs. At the bottom of the stairs there is a foot bridge crossing high above a flowing stream. Everywhere you look are green jungle plants. The walking bridge has a gate and once you cross the gate there are stairs leading up to the compound. His house is in the Balinese style you always see but it is filled with art objects beautifully placed. It is all open on the sides with walkways from his kitchen to his various other rooms including his temple.

The pool area is gorgeous. It is an amazing place to live! He wears a lot of his own creations. Cathy picked up a few choice items, as did the rest of the group.

We then drove to town and went to Bamboo, a Balinese men’s shirt shop. It was my chance to increase my wardrobe.

The hotel moved us to private villas. We have our own pool and outdoor shower. It is very secluded and nice.

Before dinner we had drinks at the hotel and William and his wife Jean, from Threads of Life joined us. She had just returned from East Timur and spoke about textiles that she had found there.

For dinner we went to a restaurant situated in an old temple. A traditional Gamelon Orchestra played while dancers preformed classical dances. The outdoor setting was beautiful. I don’t think there are any closed air-conditioned restaurants in Bali.

Did I mention it was hot and humid? Cathy took a shower before dinner. We left our villa and within 20 steps she was soaked again!