Archive for October 2nd, 2006
Zooming up towards
Bedugal I didn’t really manage to get anything to eat. Realizing that local Balinese food might be the only thing on offer, on quiet coutry lanes, I took the opportunity to stop at a roadside place in the Luwus area. Along this main road, are several large restaurants that cater to tour groups.
These places are never going to be that pseical, but handy for a quick pitstop. My nasi campur (mixed rice contained sprouts, chicken, egg, prawn crackers, spring roll, for 25,000rp. It was decent, nothing to write home about. The thing I liked was the tree in the parking area. Stopping underneath it to shelter from the sun, I looked up and saw a whole array of jackfruit.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 2nd, 2006
Soon after my lunch i decided to take a left turn and explore. Within 30 seconds I was on a quiet lane with a
Balinese temple in front of me. lines of young school kids in brown shorts and orange shirts were on thero way home and yelled to me as I passed. After a couple of snaps I asked a local lady how far Jatiluwh was. She said 5km, so I rejoined the main road. Its always worth checking out the quieter lanes, as you never know who / what you’ll find.
Right after I climbed a hill (felt like I was at Kintamani) and swung round a corner, past a bus shelter, a street sign pointed the left turn to Jatiluwih. Literally 1 minute after I took this turn I was on a quiet road, riding through lovely scenery. A woman carrying a large banten of fruit on her head passed by and I grabbed a blurry photo. It occured to me that when I go exploring in Bali, for every decent photo I take, 20 other possiblities go floating by. Windows of opportunity open and close 3-4 seconds later. I’m riding a motorbike, so there’s not much I can do about it.
Fertile valleys were to the left and right of the ridgeline I travelled and local houses were visible just below the road on the right side. I could see people lounging under bales in their dirt yards.
Stopping at a village called Soko, a group of local people surrounded me and were very friendly. They launched inot the ‘are you married, where is your wife from?’ routine and i gave them 2 photos of Ika and Jevon. “Ganteng sekali” (very handsome) they all said. Surprisngly one lady told me she was Muslim, that would account for the mosque (masjid) at Soko. Apparently many of the locals are Bugis, from Sulawesi, just how they got to the highlands of Bali is a mystery. One girl wore a Muslim headcovering, while an older lady walked around in just her bra. So obviously there is a mixture of Muslims and Balinese Hindus.
After a Pocari Sweat (5,000rp) I said farewell and rode off. My scanty Bahasa Indonesia, easily enoguh to have a conversation with those present.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 2nd, 2006
In the shadow of Gunung Batukaru, this whole area is so fertile. The wet season brings rain from the SW and dumps it on the southern slopes. Slowly cruising through some stunning scenery, I passed a small tour bus. The driver had stopped on an outcrop, giving his passengers a chance to get out and look for photos.
Riding another 100 meters, I pulled over and photographed Balinese locals cleaning their motorbikes from a freshwater stream. Down the road others were bathing. Taking a tour bus is a frustrating experience, becasue the drivers do not necessarily know where the best shots are, and you cannot pull over if you see one.
Rounding a few hairpin bends, swinging through delicately nurtured sawah ( rice fields) and heading west, away from the road (I used my GPS), I considered the plight of the tour bus people. A steep cement driveway presented itself on the right side, so I took it. Leaning forward, and using 1st gear to overcome the extremely steep incline, I made it to a dirt track, where I gained a view of sawah and small villages on the opposing side of the valley. Passing locals I stopped and chatted. Some of the older ladies did not want their photo taken, the younger ones agreed. Everyone was friendly and the vibe I got, was people here were simple folks, just earning and living and not having much / any interaction with the tourist industry.
Locals told me the steep, heavily rutted dirt track, dead ended. My bike was bouncing and slipping all over the place and ocming down was exciting. The lady I photographed wearing the white kebaya, zoomed past me and waved, so I threw caution to the wind and let up on the brakes. Arriving back at the main road I checked for traffic and continued west. Shame the tour group could not do this kind of thing, no way that bus would make it up the hill.
Very close to where that little side trip occured, was Cafe Jatiluwih, the sparcely trafficed, but ideally situated tourist restaurant. I stopped for a ginger tea and photographed their menu. Staff lounged around, clearly it was not a busy day.
For sure there are lovely rice terrace in the Jatiluwih area. It not the kind of place where one view is going to knock your socks off though, its more like a string of lovely vistas, best enjoyed a slow pace, and combined with frequent stops and drinks.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 2nd, 2006
My return route took me through
Penebel, back to
Tabanan. On that main road I saw many small
roadside ceremonies, with a priest sitting crossed legged in front of locals and vehicle. Outside one temple I stopped to photo a group of
motorbikes.
The reason for all this was Tumpek Landep, the ceremony that occurs every 6 months (lunar calendar of 210 days) to bless metal objects, including cars, motorbikes and computers. prayerrs are said, offerings are placed, and holy water is spashed. Onr time at an interent cafe, I was working and a girl came around giving offerings, splashing water over the computer and me. Back in Seminyak, I stopped at Circle K. There were not any priests handy so I splashed 3 slurps of my drink on the bike. Hope that will keep evil spirits and crazy locals at least 50 yards away.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 2nd, 2006
Sunday afternoon in Bali, a quiet time of the week, to spend with family and friends. Ika, Jevon and I took off to Pantai Geger, in Nusa Dua, for a quick dip and a snack.
Sunday afternoon turned out partially cloudy, which was no stress for me, but did mean Pantai Geger was about 30% of what you’d expect on a Sunday. I took Jevon into the shallow water which he loved. The gradient is gentle and there are only occasional ripples to worry about. Jevon held my hand and wading through the water, fell over several times. He didn’t panic or complain though, and after coughing up the water, carried on having a good time.
Ika loves smoothies and has always said the best place in Bali is the Nusa Dua Beach Grill, at Pantai Geger. She got a banana, yoghurt, peanut butter, dates, coco cream, honey smoothie, which lived up to expectations. Ika and Jevon also shared a spaghetti carbonara which was plentiful and good. I enjoyed 2 lovely arak madu’s, which were indeed, better than 90% of the other places that serve them. So thumbs up to the Nusa Dua Beach Grill. Great location, great food / drinks.
Getting to Pantai Geger, using the route from Bypass Nusa, taking the intersection before the main gate, over the hill, we went straight through the first small intersection, right at the second, follwed the raod up the long hill, looking for the sign ‘Nusa Dua Beach Grill’. That route from Seminyak takes about 30 minutes.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 2nd, 2006
Bali’s weather has been slightly changeable of late. Sunday afternoon was a bit cloudy, with partial sun. Sunday night seemed a tad steamy (maybe it was my imagination) and we had a downpour.
At 6am monday morning, the skies were grey and the temperature cooler than normal due to the downpour. As I sit here in Seminyak typing, we have sunshine outside and today is expected to be sunny and clear.
Here’s the 10 day weather forecast for Bali.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 2nd, 2006