Temple Trekking and Monkey Business
Gate of Heaven
Three thirty in the morning arrives awfully quickly. By 4am we are heading to our first temple which is Lempuyang Temple also known as Heaven’s Gate.
We drive up, up, up. Then we pay for a shuttle bus to take us up, up, up some more. Then we climb up, up, up a steep hill…and we are there.
It is a pretty but small temple. The main attraction is the instagrammable photo in Heaven’s Gate with Mount Agung in the background.
Like many temples, there is a sign listing things that aren’t allowed in the temple including menstruating women, babies under 105 days old and doing yoga poses.
They are well organized for the photo of the gate. Everyone gets a number with their ticket. When your 
number is called it’s your turn to pose in the gate. There are two guys taking pictures using your own cell phone. They give you a number of poses and that’s it. You give them a tip.
Some of the poses are quite amusing. When we arrived around 6:30am they had just called 13 and our number was 49. It is a very long wait till our turn…like an hour and a half.
Tirta Gangga Water Temple
The next temple is Tirta Gangga Water Temple. Gorgeous gardens. There are stepping stones across a pool full of humongous koi fish. Click here for a short video of the Temple.
Taman Ujung Soekasada (Ujung Water Palace
The next temple is also a water temple; Taman Ujung Soekasada (Ujung Water Palace). We cross a white bridge decorated with flowers and surrounded by beautiful gardens and palm trees. The ponds are filled with all kinds of lily pads and water lilies, big and small. Best of all is the view from the top of the hill, not only can you get an overhead view of the palace grounds, you can see the mountains and ocean in the distance. Click here for a short video of the temple grounds.
Elephant Cave Temple (Goa Gajah)
Our final stop is the Elephant Cave Temple (Goa Gajah) . This 9th century complex is both a Buddhist and a Hindu Temple. It has a meditation cave. This is all in a jungle like setting. There is a beautiful waterfall. It is so hot that I want to throw myself into it.
Monkey Forest
Our driver drops us off at the hotel where we take advantage of the air-conditioning in our room before heading out again.
It’s a twenty minute walk to Monkey Forest which is a large park set in the jungle on the outskirts of Ubud. The park has three temples and a population of over 1,000 Balinese Long Tailed Monkeys that are free to come and go.
As soon as you get into the park you see monkeys running around on the paths. We see one monkey topple the garbage can in front of the store and dig through for snacks (he found some Pringles).
The park is stunningly gorgeous and worth a visit just for the scenery. Click here for a video of some monkey antics.
The monkeys are not afraid of people,. You have to watch that they don’t steal from you. It is fun to watch their antics. Click here for a short monkey video.
We stay in the Monkey Forest until closing time at 6pm and then have a delicious supper at nearby Tropical View Restaurant. Afterwards we end our day with 1 
hour massages ($10.00 CAD each including tip and tax)
