A Bali-wood Moment

The book that started it all

Just before we left for Bali, Lia stumbled upon an article that, in a nutshell, lamented the fact that Eat, Pray, Love had turned Ubud into a hotbed of middle-aged, kaftan-wearing, single women who were all out to write a novel and snag a Javier Bardam. While the article did have some truth to it (even if it was a little too snarky), my fellow travelers and I bore no shame in seeking out the now famous Ketut.

As I mentioned in my previous post, Ketut is a very common Ubud name. And asking someone for the whereabouts of a Ketut is akin to asking a Filipino if they know where Jun-Jun, Bhoy, or Kuya lives. So if you’re looking for a specific Ketut, you need to be well, specific. In this case, we asked about Ketut Liyer.

Ketut, and nothing but Ketut!

Our driver knew exactly where to take us and pretty soon we drove up to the family compound Elizabeth Gilbert so aptly described in her book, which was later depicted  in the Julia Roberts film. We hopped out of our van, casually wandered in, and just like that, there he was: the Ketut, sitting on the little balcony of one of the compound’s homes, gazing about. It was felt, quite literally, as though we had stepped into a made-for-movie moment.

Nyoman and his grandson

Ketut’s son, Noyman, greeted us, and we asked if we could have a photo taken with his father. Nyoman agreed, but informed us that a reading would cost US$20. We immediately flocked over to Ketut, jockeyed for our positions, and snapped away—slightly star struck, rather demanding, and in a rush. I think we were all secretly worried they would shoo us away before we could get our facebook-worthy shots!

And just like in the movie Ketut said, “Wait moment, wait moment, Ketut drink coffee.” Apparently, we had walked in just in time for his afternoon snack. 

Lia decided to sign up for a reading. I was also open to going for my own session, and in the meantime, stayed by Lia to get some blow-by-blow documentation. Once seated, Ketut proceeded to give Lia her reading.

Eat your heart out, Julia Roberts!

“You very pretty. You make me happy. Your eyebrows, very pretty they make me happy. Your cheeks, very pretty…” You guessed it! They made Ketut very happy.

The rest of the reading went something like this…

K: You have boyfriend?

L: No.

K: You have husband?

L: No.

K: Why not?

L: I don’t know Ketut, you tell me—that’s why I’m here! 

When he read her palm he said…

K: You will have a success. Because you very pretty. Not like Ketut. You very pretty, you make Ketut very happy.

K: You be a writer. (Which Lia already is.)

K: You work with beauty. (Which Lia already does.)

L: Can you tell me something I don’t know?

At this point we were all dying of laughter. It really was turning out to be something of a joke. 

L: You know Ketut, I’m psychic.

K: I’m sick?! What am I sick of?

The conversation went around in circles for a little longer. And as it turns out, a life-altering reading wasn’t in the cards for Lia. But the hilarious experience was totally worth every penny she spent.

It was also quite sweet to see Ketut proudly show off his dedicated copy of Eat, Pray, Love. He even asked Lia to read aloud the passage where he first appears in the book.

I didn't see the point in sitting though a repeat performance of what I had already read in the novel, watched in the movie, and had just seen happen right before my very eyes a few moments earlier, so I opted out of my own session. But Nyoman was kind enough to snap a solo shot for me. For one last parting shot, I joked Ketut saying, “You know, I can give you a reading.” But the wise man just looked at me quizzically, and I figured we had come upon yet another lost in translation moment. So I thanked him, and left.

Whee!

 ***

Later that evening I told Andre, our resort’s German owner, about our afternoon with Ketut. He stifled a laugh and told me he could have saved us some money. “Let me guess, did he tell you that you’ll have success? He tells everyone the same thing!”

Andre did add that it isn’t really Ketut’s fault since he doesn’t know a lot of English. “If someone who understands Balinese goes for a reading,” he explained, “Ketut can tell you a lot of things. Like if you need to do some work to help the tress, or how many children you’re going to have. But in English, you all get the same thing.”

Now I’m glad I struck up that conversation because it helped me realize that I should actually go easy on Ketut. After all, it isn’t his fault he’s famous. Besides, it isn’t every day that one gets to encounter an Ubud institution with a bit of Hollywood on the side.

Hmm... Maybe next time!

Here's a link to the snarky article:

http://jezebel.com/5601522/how-elizabeth-gilbert-ruined-bali