Rice paddies and wandering

Last night we walked into town to see the market, only to discover it closed at sundown, so we mostly saw shutting down stalls. A further trip is needed today! We had a wander through the backstreets, which are filled with shops selling paintings, clothing and jewellery. Spas also frequently feature and I was very tempted to try the 'doctor fish' foot treatment - but have so far resisted. Here you put your feet in a tank of fish and they nibble away all the dry skin for the 'ultimate' pedicure.

We had dinner at Casa Luna, the restaurant owned by the teacher at the cooking school. The ginger icecream was delicious and one I will be trying my best to recreate!

So today we went for a circular walk in Ubud Kaja through the paddy fields. They were absolutely beautiful. They are split level rice fields with amazing irrigation systems. It rained all night last night (poured!) and the water was still running exactly as and where it should. This form of tiered irrigation is called subuk irrigation, and the rice fields are run as cooperatives. More that 1200 subak associations oversee this supply of water and every farmer must belong to his local subuk. The farmers make enough for themselves, for offerings to the gods and a little to sell at market. The conditions in Bali means there are usually two, and sometimes three, crops a year. Help is also enlisted from the rice goddess Dewi Sri and throughout the paddies there are shrines and offerings.

The tranquil atmosphere was somewhat impacted by me shrieking and jumping a few feet in the air when I saw a snake. Of all things I am scared of snakes have to top the list. This turned out to be the first of three (visible) snakes. I dread to think how many more were lurking in the undergrowth. This led to loud chanting of 'stomp, stomp, stomp' when going through areas that looked particularly inviting to snakes... I'm half minded to write to the rough guide and tell them to add 'big black and small brown snakes' to their list of wildlife you may see on this walk. Yeeks. Still, we made it round safely and it was a beautiful trip.