I’d been in Ubud just a few days when I was viciously attacked by monkeys. It was an incident that had me in tears, lost me a bottle of Sprite and reluctant to ever return to Monkey Forest. It just wasn’t safe.
Monkey Forest is, as you would expect, a large forest filled with monkeys. There are over 300 of them and after spending five minutes there I had deduced that all 300 are evil.
Tamed by the presence of humans over the last 20 years, these monkeys will do anything to get their hands on any food you may be carrying. It’s not uncommon to see them jumping and climbing over tourists, and they’ve been known to get very aggressive – stealing earrings, food and cameras.
Despite the aggression, if you manage to keep your distance, make sure not to carry anything valuable, and definitely don’t bring any food (don’t try and hide it either – they WILL find it!) into the forest then you’ll be able to somewhat safely hang out with the monkeys… and realise just how cute they are!
My favourites were the babies and even though I knew they were far from innocent, I couldn’t help but squeal at how adorable they were.
When I wasn’t running around like a madman taking photos of babies, I was creeping up on adult monkeys to take photos of their testicles.
The monkeys of Monkey Forest were cunning, aggressive and yes, pretty terrifying. And it was frightening venturing into the forest on your own and trying to avoid being attacked.
If you stay far away from them, however? Then you can appreciate just how cute they really are!
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This is brilliant Lauren! I am putting this on my list of places to go – I love monkeys!
Ah, monkey testicles. Classic :) Great photos – glad you survived your experience! I almost got bit my a monkey in Hong Kong once. I still think they’re cute though.
Josh – Badge of Awesome recently posted..[Blog] The Virgin Mary vs. Giant Squid: That’s Awesome
Sorry to hear about your stolen Sprite. Hope the cute baby monkeys made up for it. (Cause they are pretty darn cute!)
Gina recently posted..How to Cope When Your Spouse Travels Without You
Okay, those baby monkeys are TOO CUTE! Too bad they will grow up to be evil…
Amanda recently posted..I Kissed a Moose and I Liked It – Animal Encounters in Alaska
If you would like a monkey-viewing experience that is full of delight and not one jot of terror, I highly recommend visiting the monkey park in the Arashiyama district of Kyoto, Japan. It was one of the highlights of our Japan trip and the monkeys who are there are all very docile and used to humans. You are allowed to feed them, but only from inside a special room, but while we were outside with the free-roaming ones, they all pretty much ignored us and couldn’t have been less interested in what we were doing. I don’t know what might have happened if we had a bottle of Sprite, but I’m glad I didn’t find out!
Steph (@ 20 Years Hence) recently posted..Celebrating Obon in Matsushima
this sounds like my nightmare! lol i hate aggressive animals.
jmayel el-haj recently posted..Sukhothai Historical Park – Central Plains
Looks like the monkey in the last picture crossed some line with a female monkey and is now suffering from the consequences, lol.
Could have been worse though. You could have been injured. Glad to see it did not put you off.
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I think the worst thing about the monkeys is not that they’re little thieves it’s that they’re so damn cute. It makes it impossible to hate them: “Damn you!! Get back here you little bast…….awwww, look…he’s eating my wallet. Quick, where’s my camera?”
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Girl, please check out my comment on your Hot Ballon Adventure at Bled.
Hahaha at the last picture! I was like, “SHEESH! That’s a baby?!” until I read more carefully.
These monkeys do sound terrifying. Now go get in a fight with an orangutan – that’s a challenge. I’ve never heard of that happening before. Then again, I’m sure you’d make it happen ;)
Tom @ Waegook Tom recently posted..Gaziantep, I’m Sorry But I Despise You
Even the cute ones are evil? Surely not…
Andonis recently posted..Visiting The Shaolin Temple
Those monkeys are really cute. I am amused whenever I see monkeys in zoos. They’re really energetic but beware, some of them are really aggressive when being handed with food.
Mike recently posted..Low Price Package Holidays: Gran Canaria
These photos are really amazing! I have to ask, what camera did you use to take these great photos?
Elle of Solo Female Nomad recently posted..Is A Fear Of Flying Just Plane Silly?
sorry for your sprite, but u’re right they’re sooo cute hehe! noted your tips, thanks! ^_^
leandra / adbenturera recently posted..Up in the Air with Gulf Air
Awww, they’re just so cute. I don’t like to think of them as mean. When I was in the Serengeti the jeep drivers would get really annoyed with them for stealing stuff. They’re definitely a pest out there.
Vicky recently posted..This is How I Find the Cheapest Flights…
My first encounter with a monkey is when I was a kid for educational trip at school. Yeah, some of them are evil because one monkey actually pee on one of my teacher. Good thing she bought extra clothes and there is a comfort room at the zoo.
Awww! He has a mohawk!
Stephanie – The Travel Chica recently posted..Have you seen my O face?
lmao. Creeping up to take photos of their testicles. Amazing :D
Laurence recently posted..A month in New Zealand–my perfect itinerary
There is no way these things are cute. They are just pure evil. I went there once and vowed never to return!!
Turtle recently posted..Making the perfect gin and tonic
I didn’t hear good things about it before I was in Bali, so I opted to skip it. Some of them are cute, but not enough to make me want to get that close to them.
Ali recently posted..Sometimes I Fake It
LOL, this totally reminded me of an episode of Dirty Jobs with Mike Roe where he visits a monkey sanctuary. The whole episode was him and his team trying to keep from being attacked from above. I’m sure it was a beautiful place, this just added that extra dose of “hunted” fun. Thanks for sharing.
Lisa recently posted..Wind Turbine Technician Schools
I just got back from a visit to Bali and we also visited the Monkey Forest.
I was in turns, scared out of my wits and utterly enchanted.