BvHHS: MC.INDONESIA/BALI JOURNEY 2009 no.4

It seems that ordinary Hindu families had their own altar.

16 nov. On the way out to Bali's east coast

In retrospect, I should probably be taken down to south Bali, where there should be plenty of fine white beach areas around Sanur, which was perhaps better here than in Kuta. But I thought that it was probably even more tourists than here.

I decided to drive to the east coast to see if I could find a hotel out near Bangsal Beach. From there I would then continue up the volcano Mt. Bantur to Lake Batur.

There was no hotel along the east coast, so I decided to cross a little into the country to a small village Pande. I found a cozy Homestay / Hotel.

I took a little walk around town on market and enjoyed the calm that was here early in the evening. I am still the only tourist in town, so you have a lot of attention. I found an internet cafe, to add some thoughts.

17 nov. Towards the top of Mt. Batur

It becomes somewhat cooler when I got up a bit in height, so I must have the thin jacket ready. There are also shaded when I drive through the big woods.

Lake Batur is located at an altitude of 1.300 m. I tried to drive around it, on the small gravel road. It was plotted on the map and figured, therefore I thought that I could come all the way around to the temple Pura Ulun Danu Batur. A trip of 40 km. After more than 12 km. with some heated up and descent along the edge of the lake, I chose to stop for a cup of Teh, to give my body to rest a bit.

Unfortunately I had not read properly in all my tour guides. I had overlooked that there was a very old culturally isolated village Trunyan Bali Aga. Villagers here considered their family members dead bodies, in a special way. They are placed in holes created by the clothes and bamboo canopies. Impact of an old tree is said to preserve the body from decay.

A young man offered to take me out to the dead city in a canoe at 1/2 hour. I could also spend the night with him. I still have very little energy in this hot and after this difficult ascents on a bumpy gravel road.

It requires energy, if you have to be with come strangers. He made me aware that I could not drive on my MC. the last stretch around the lake. He forgot to tell that I actually was not so far away from the village and that I probably could reach it on my motorcycle.

The Lonely Plant guide write specifically about this place. If one leaves his MC. you must not let the helmet or baggage be on the MC. otherwise it may disappear while doing a little hiking. Elsewhere, there is always a kind of parking guards where you parked your MC. Therefore everyone here in Indonesia, let their helmets remain attached to their MC.

Very tired and disappointed I drove back. I continued my drive up to the top of Mt. Penulisan and then it went down to the northern most point of the city Balis Kubutambahan. I had no energy to see any of the other temples.

Lovinga Beach which stands for 'I love Indonesia'

I had decided that I would reach Lovina Beach where the beach is also a mixture of gray and black Vulcan sand.

I stopped in Singaraja and looked on my map to see how far there was to Lovina Beach. A man on a scooter stops and asks where I was going. I mention Lovina Beach and he told me that there was 8 km. trailers and that he would recommend a hotel he works as a manager. I made clear to him that I would go to Lovina Beach and find a hotel I like. I drove on towards Lovina Beach. Just 1/2 km. before I got there, the man on the scooter is in front of me and drive a little farther and make signs to me that we must turn toward the beach side. We had now arrived at the hotel he works for. Reluctantly, I turned to the road and toward a huge fine hotel in modern Indonesian style.

They told me prices that were not unreasonable, but expensive enough. Since I probably have worked somewhat hesitant, and it was now outside the tourist season, they offered me a bungalow for half price. Again with an open outdoor showers. Here I could enjoy a few rest days.

Here is the road down to the restaurant, swimming pool and the beach. Notice the little kitsch iron trellises.

I am sitting and enjoy my leisurely tourist status in my sarong. I bought it, so I got rid of constantly having to hire one to get into the various temples. It was also handy when I only had to go down to the beach for swimming.

The manager would still not let me go. I was completely finished after a very tough 10 hours of driving. He asked me if I was not interested in seeing dolphins next morning at 6:00 am. in 1 1/2 hours. and then 1 1/2 snorkeling and looking down at coral.

I was not sure that it was a good idea for me to practice diving. I was probably not physically ready yet. So I said yes to this tourist package, although I did not wanted to see dolphins jumping slightly up and down. But I would be able to enjoy the sunrise and the sea and then see the coral sea with a snorkel and swim goggles.

Along with two others, I was out and chase dolphin fins in a boat the next morning. Slowly turned more and more boats up, like us were they hunting the poor dolphins, there probably wanted to have their morning swim for themselves.

Having been lucky enough to see some tail straight in the beginning, they disappeared suddenly and we was then hunting them over the next 45 min. where you suffered from noise from the boat's engine.

We in our boat ended the hunting of dorsal fins and sailed back to some coral areas where we had snorkel and goggles on. Underlying the surface, I could look down upon this wondrous world of fish in almost any color. They were so close a few times that I tried to catch them by hand. But they are too fast. The largest fish was probably 40 cm. It was incredibly beautiful with the sunlight that broke through the water surface, especially at the edge of the really deep water where one's gaze through the sunlight of coral are able to disappear into the depths. The red colors were not represented. Blue, really blue starfish and many types of fish and corals.

19 nov. This is a tourist day

I decide to go on a day trip up to Mt. Penggilingan to Lake Bratan. On the way I saw first the Chinese Hindu temple Pelabuhan Buleleng in Singaraja.

Temple Ulun Danu Bratan, had a really nice park. On the road I saw a waterfall. It was quite far away from the road, so I had to pass an incredible number of tourist shops. I it was very tiresome.

When you takes off to see something you always expected a bit more than you get. I had forgotten to take a jacket with me even though I knew it would be somewhat cooler up here in the high. Again there came a fierce rain that made me soaking wet again. Luckily I had my Sarong with which I could tie around my chest so I had little protection.

20 nov. I leave Bali

I decide to leave Bali and my next goal is to reach a small town of Pasir Putih located on the north side, on the eastern part of Java. It was a 200 km. drive. According to the map a little Beach Resort.

On the way I visit a Buddhist Monostery Brahma Vihara-Arama.

Then a Hot spring, which I really had looked forward to for the sake of my back. It was incredible rejuvenating with 45 minutes of this source and then a Javanese massage. Throughout the day, I had no problems with my back on my journey back to Java.

I took my sarong around the life and visit a temple, on the edge of the slightly more rugged and less fertile northwest corner of Bali. The temple really needs a reconstruction.

I have not met so many baboons of my road. But now they was on top of my MC.