A Love Affair with a Balinese Dog

This is a story of a dog we met during our Bali trip.

His name was Luki.

We met him during one of those free and easy afternoons when we had no particular tourist spot or café to visit.  It was our seventh day in Bali and our third day in Ubud. We have explored the main street, Jalan Ubud Raya and we have frequented Jalan Hanoman more than a couple of times because of Kebun, our favorite cafe in Ubud.  We've done our super-relaxing massage which is a must whenever you are in Bali.  The other day, we had a tiring day as we climbed Mount Batur.  So that Thursday  afternoon, we were just wandering  and it was pretty-much uneventful until we met a special dog. And that day turned out to be one of the most memorable days we had in Bali. 

The place was Jalan Bisma.  Like other streets in Ubud, it was lined with smaller temples, quaint cafes, home-stays and villas. We were greeted with nods and smiles by the locals as we walked past them. Occasionally, a lady wearing the traditional Balinese clothes with flower offerings passed by.

Ubud is Bali's artistic hub. 
And the people staying in Jalan Bisma expressed their art on the streets through this.

Balinese loved using flowers. 
White flowers were used to make these stairs even prettier.

Cobble-stone streets with old-world and artsy places to eat or just relax.

 

 

 

We stopped by one of the shops so my hubby could buy some shirts. It took him more than the usual amount of time he took to buy clothes.  One because he was haggling which is a necessary and valuable skill when shopping in Bali. And two because deciding whether to buy a "Hurley", a "Bintang" or an "I Love Bali" proved to be a very difficult task.  I patiently waited and just sat on the floor, amused that he was having difficulty deciding. And that he was shopping.  

 

Then this little dog with brown fur and round eyes came out of nowhere. Unlike the other Balinese dogs who announced their presence with loud barking even from far away, he quietly approached.   He was obviously shy but was curious just like any dog.

 

I started tapping his head and he responded by licking my hands. I liked him and he liked me.  When my hubby saw him, he liked the little dog too. No, he loved him, almost immediately actually. And Luki felt the same. And they had a nice time cuddling.

 

When we started walking off, he followed after us and refused to go back.  That night, when got back to our tiny Balinese villa, we kept thinking about him. 

 

 

 
The following day, while enjoying the famous pork ribs at Naughty Nuri's we still couldn't get Luki off our minds.  We decided to visit him again and asked the staff of Naughty Nuri's to pack our leftovers so we could give it to him.  

We were so happy as we walked along Jalan Bisma again,  excited to see his cute little face. We wondered how he would behave when he sees us again. Would he be as friendly as he was the other day? Would he love the yummy ribs from Naughty Nuri's?   

As we walked, we realized we didn't know exactly where he lived or even who his master was?  We went to the store where we saw him the other day but he wasn't there.  We started calling out his name hoping he recognize our voice or his name and would come out.  But he was nowhere to be seen.  We kept looking and calling for him.

After getting temporarily discouraged and distracted with the other dogs in the neighborhood,  we saw his little frame walking next to the store where we saw him the other day.   We excitedly followed him to where his house (or his master's house) was apparently. When he saw us, he recognized us and he was so thrilled, wagged his tail and ran towards me then to my hubby.  I think he liked my hubby more than me. But maybe cause hubby had the Naughty Nuri's ribs with him haha!


These Bali dogs found my hubby very attractive haha! Thanks to the ribs!

We gave this dog some of the bones. 
But he didn't show us love and warmth as Luki showed us.
 It was an unrequited love.

 

Cuddle and photo-op before he ran to my hubby for those pork ribs!

 

 

 

Look at them! Totally unashamed of PDA!

We gave him the ribs. Lots of it.  With lots of love and pats on his tiny head and rubs on his neck.  When we started walking away, he again followed after us. This time he followed until we got worried that he might follow us back to Singapore haha!  Or that we might kidnap and smuggle him out of Bali.    

But when we passed by the rice-fields, he got distracted by the dragonflies and went to  play with them. We were left on the sidewalk waiting.  By then, we had to pork ribs to lure him. So we slowly walked away. 

Somehow, you always remember the back of the people you meet.
Or maybe those of dogs.

That night, while having dinner, we wished we could have stayed longer and played with him more. Or that we could have brought more pork ribs.  On our last day in Bali, we wanted to see him again but opted not to.  Goodbyes are always heart-breaking.

Have you ever met anyone or anything that made you fall in love with a particular place? Feel free to share in the comments section.