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Thought to be a former hermitage for eleventh-century Hindu priests, the moderately interesting Goa Gajah , also known as the Elephant Cave (daily 6am-6pm; Rp3100 plus donation for compulsory sarong and sash), displays impressive carvings around its entranceway and used to serve as meditation cells or living quarters for priests. To get there, either walk or drive the 3km east from Ubud's Jalan Peliatan, or take an Ubud-Gianyar bemo, which goes past the entrance gate. Chipped away from the sheer rock face, the 25-metre-long series of fourteenth-century rock-cut carvings at YEH PULU (daily 6am-6pm; Rp3100, plus donation for sarong and sash) are delightfully engaging, but hardly ever visited. The story of the carvings is uncertain, but scenes include a man carrying two jars of tuak (palm wine), and three stages of a boar hunt. To reach Yeh Pulu, get off the Ubud-Gianyar bemo at the Yeh Pulu signs just east of Goa Gajah or west of the Bedulu crossroads, and then walk 1km south through the hamlet of BATULUMBANG . If driving, follow the signs to where the road peters out, a few hundred metres above the stonecarvings. Balinese people believe Pura Penataran Sasih (Rp3100 donation; sarong and sash required), in the village of Pejeng, to be a particularly sacred temple, because this is the home of the so-called Moon of Pejeng - hence the English epithet, Moon Temple. The moon in question is a large hourglass-shaped bronze gong that probably dates from the Balinese Bronze Age (3rd century BC), and at almost 2m long is thought to be the largest such kettledrum ever cast. Etched into its green patina are a chain of striking heart-shaped faces punctured by huge round eyes. To get there from Ubud, take a Gianyar-bound bemo to the Bedulu crossroads and then either wait for a Tampaksiring-bound one, or walk 1km to the temple. The alternative route from Ubud, preferably by motorbike, is the five-kilometre back road that heads off east from the Jalan Raya/Jalan Peliatan T-junction.
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