| Off the Beaten Track
Richard Mann
Paradise is a vastly overused word in Bali but Villa Kunang-Kunang is genuinely a little slice of paradise all by itself, set in three hectares of beautifully landscaped tropical gardens and overlooking one of the sources of the dramatically scenic Ayung River.
A short drive north of Ubud the visitor turns off the main road, passing through a rustic gateway and into a driveway lined with deeply evocative Buddha statues - evocative because Buddha represents peace and tranquility, the very qualities omnipresent at Villa Kunang-Kunang.
The only exception is perhaps the frogs which croak at night and the odd friendly bark from Toby and Buwung who greet every visitor and belong to the owner, Ibu Murni, famous for her restaurant, Murni's Warung and shops and as a pioneer of tourism in the nearby arts and culture centre of Ubud. The very spacious villas are furnished with a mixture of Balinese and Indonesian contemporary and antique furntiture and look out over a steep, wooded ravine terraced with ancient emerald rice fields.
Hidden away is a vast infinity swimming pool overlooking the tranquil vista disturbed only by the cry of a bird or the shout of a farmer.
If Ibu Murni has time she takes her friends and guests along trails where tourists never go, explaining the tropical trees, flowers and plants and many aspects of the Balinese way of life. Each villa has a book specially written for tourists about Balinese life and culture.
Richard Mann
Murni's Villas, Murni's Warung, Murni's Warung Shop and Kunang-Kunang Shops, Ubud. Tel: (62) 361 972146, Fax: (62) 361 972146, (62) 361 975282
Richard Mann has lived and worked in or been connected with Asia for almost three decades. His wife, Jenny, is from Sumatra, Indonesia. He stayed in Villa Kunang-Kunang while writing and researching Bali, Off the Beaten Track.
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