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Ubud is a town in central Bali. Half or more of the town and nearby villages seem to consist of artists' workshops and galleries, mostly retailing cheap reproductions for tourists. There are some remarkable architectural sights, artistic gems to be found, and a general feeling of wellbeing to be enjoyed thanks to the spirit, surroundings and climate.
Ubud gets it name from the balinese word ubad (medicine).
While Ubud seems to outsiders like one small town, it is in fact 14 villages, each run by its own banjar (the land-owning married men's association; in effect the local government). It's clear that Ubud has been growing rapidly and some central parts are coping less well with the influx of tourists than in previous years (although the drop in visitors following 9/11 and the Kuta bombings slowed development). That said, most developments are sympathetic to the zeitgeist, if not designed specifically in the style of Balinese architecture. Growth is continuing due to the popularity of the Ubud area, but there are still terraced rice fields along the rivers and regular, quiet village life carries on relatively undisturbed just a stone's throw away. However, the encroachment of hotel rooms onto paddyfields near Monkey Forest is noticeable, and some industrial areas are beginning to resemble the uglier parts of Kuta.
Due to its location 600 meters above sea level Ubud enjoys somewhat cooler temperatures than the coast, although the midday sun can still be scorching.
Orienting yourself in Ubud is fairly straightforward. There are three main streets, Jl. Raya Ubud (the "Main Road" of Ubud), Jl. Monkey Forest and Jl. Hanoman. At the intersection of Jl. Raya and Jl. Monkey Forest is the Ubud Market, the Ubud Palace and the main bemo stop. If you go west along Jl. Raya a bit more than 1km, you'll reach the area across the bridge known as Peliatan. Jl. Hanoman is a bit quieter and makes for more plesant walking. The primary cross streets are Jl. Dewi Sita and Jl. Gootama. The town sprawls around for several kilometers in all directions, but if you choose a reasonably central place to stay it's easy enough to walk about on foot.
Tourism on the island developed when Walter Spies came to Ubud, an ethnic German born in Russia who taught painting and music, and dabbled in dance. Spies and foreign painters Willem Hofker and Rudolf Bonnet entertained celibrities including Charlie Chaplain, Noel Coward, Barbara Hutton, H.G. Wells and Vicki Baum. They brought in some of the greatest artists from all over Bali to teach and train the Balinese in arts, helping Ubud become the cultural centre of Bali. A new burst of creative energy came in the 1960's in the form of Dutch painter Arie Smit (1916-), developing The Young Artists Movement. There are many museums spread all over Ubud, including Museum Rudana.
The main street is Jalan Raya Ubud, which runs east-west through the center of town. Two long roads, Jalan Monkey Forest and Jalan Hanoman, extend south from Raya Ubud. Puri Saren Agung is a large palace located at the intersection of Monkey Forest and Raya Ubud roads. The home of Tjokorde Gede Agung Sukawati (1910-1978), the last "king" of Ubud, his descendants currently live there and dance performances are held in its courtyard. It was also one of Ubud's first hotels, dating back to the 1930s.
Monkey Forest Park is a small nature reserve located near the southern intersection of Jalan Monkey Forest and Jalan Hanoman. It houses a temple and over 200 long-tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis) monkeys.
About 5km to the west Ubud is the Ayung River and the village of Sayan, home to many upmarket hotels like the Four Seasons.
From Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubud
Text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
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