Bali monkey snatches Pune woman's glasses

• A Pune traveller warned of aggressive macaques at Bali's Uluwatu Temple
• Monkeys snatched a visitor's prescription sunglasses upon arrival
• Tourists are advised to be cautious or skip the temple to avoid theft

Discover the startling reality behind Bali's popular Uluwatu Temple, where playful macaques turn menacing, targeting tourists' valuables and leaving visitors like this Pune woman in disbelief.

Temple's Treacherous Talons

A traveler from Pune, India, recently shared a harrowing account of her visit to the renowned Uluwatu Temple in Bali, highlighting the aggressive nature of the resident monkeys. Priti Jain, a chartered accountant, took to X (formerly Twitter) to alert other tourists about the persistent threat posed by these animals, who are known to quickly pilfer items from unsuspecting visitors. The temple, celebrated for its stunning cliffside vistas and traditional dance performances, is also home to a large population of long-tailed macaques. While many visitors anticipate a charming interaction based on online videos, Jain's personal experience revealed a much more stressful and unsettling situation. She described the monkeys as 'SCARY and an absolute MENACE,' constantly on the lookout to seize phones, glasses, jewelry, and other small possessions from people wandering through the temple grounds. Jain herself had just purchased a new pair of power sunglasses for her trip, only for a monkey to snatch them within moments of her arrival, leaving her in disbelief and uttering, 'Yaar this is not done.'

A Blind Spot of Trouble

The incident at Uluwatu Temple became particularly distressing for Priti Jain due to her significant eyesight impairment. She relies heavily on corrective lenses, wearing sunglasses with a power of -4. The monkey's brazen theft of her new sunglasses left her in a precarious situation, as she noted, 'I have a very high power (-4) and thankfully I had a spare or I would be roaming around almost blind.' Even after putting on her regular prescription glasses, she narrowly avoided another monkey attack, recounting the day as 'just a very, very bad day for me.' Despite the stressful ordeal, Jain found a sliver of relief in the fact that her expensive Prada sunglasses were safely back home. She acknowledged that losing those would have led to 'a very, very expensive heartbreak' and potentially caused her to 'genuinely break down.' This close call emphasized the importance of caution for all visitors, especially families with young children, as the monkeys appeared highly active and targeted tourists throughout the temple complex.

Bali's Monkey Mayhem

The cautionary tale shared by Priti Jain resonated with many other travelers who have encountered similar situations in Bali. Numerous users on social media platforms chimed in with their own frightening experiences, often involving the same temple or the popular Monkey Forest. One user shared a story of being forced to retreat nearly 400 meters at the Monkey Forest because a monkey blocked a narrow passage. Another recounted a near-identical incident at Uluwatu Temple where a monkey snatched their sunglasses, but they managed to retrieve them by offering a food packet. The aggressive behavior of these macaques is a recurring theme, with one visitor noting that the monkeys even snatch hairpins. The danger escalates if one attempts to push them away, potentially leading to aggression. Some suggested that temple staff might intervene by offering food to the monkeys in exchange for stolen items, though others pointed out that it's their territory and humans are intruders. Amidst these accounts, Jain suggested that visitors might consider skipping the temple altogether if the stress isn't worth it, recommending nearby Malini Cafe as a more pleasant alternative for enjoying the sunset, even finding the famed Kecak dance performance less than extraordinary.