Blogs from Gunung Agung, Bali, Indonesia, Asia
May 7th 2012
I got chatting to Christine, a girl from Belgium, also travelling alone, on the boat trip back to Lombok. We got momentarily separated by a horse man who insisted i get in his carriage. we went about 100meters and then he wanted 70.000 from me! Here that's big money (fiver lol). I was furious but then his mate arrived and my idea of running off went out the windeow. Instead I give him 10,00 and stormed off. Apparently this happens often. Anyhoo - Chritine wanted to do aAgung too. We exchanged deets and then went our separate ways in Padangbai. Me back to Kuta to find Christoph. Then that night at 8pm. Christoph and I travelled to Besakih, a village that has the great besakih temple. It's the holiest sight in Bali. Simply because of it's ... read more
January 12th 2011
Nous sommes restes dans un bungalow pres du Palais. Apres l'avoir visite, nous avons organise avec notre hote, Ketut Sarjana, une randonnee a travers les rizieres et parmi les villages des alentours. Nous avons pu avoir de jolies vues du volcan, Mont Agung. Le lendemain, c'etait un jour important pour les villageois: le jour de la benediction du riz. Ca consiste a emporter diverses offrandes aux temples et de prier les dieux de proteger les cultures de riz. Nous avons pu y assister, il a juste fallu porter le costume traditionnel: le sarong - Tout le monde etait vetu de blanc sauf Dave et moi (en rouge et violet), bref on etait reperable a des kilometres a la ronde!... read more
August 6th 2009
We spent a few days in Ubud sorting our bags out, doing some washing, shopping and eating lots of lovely food! We then decided it was time to see some of the island as we had only been to the harbour and to Ubud so, we set off with Ketut our host, on a trip around the island for the day. We visited Goa Gajah, the elephant cave, followed by Tirta Empul and it's holy springs. From here we went for lunch overlooking Gunung Agung, the holiest peak in all of Bali, it was pretty chilly looking out over the massive volcano and i even got goose bumps - very nice sensation! After lunch we took a lovely drive through the rice terraces and through some handicraft villages along with a trip to a coffee and ... read more
Day 169-170: Tulamben to Gunung Agung, Bali
Published: July 16th 2009Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Gunung Agung
July 16th 2009
Tuesday, July 14th Today we had to say goodbye to Ric and the nice people at Ocean-Sun because we were off to climb the volcano, Gunung Agung. When we tried to pay, their credit card machine didn't work and we didn't have enough cash, and since this part of Bali has very few internet providers and no ATMs at all, we had to take their banking details and promise to pay the balance into their account when we arrive back in Denpasar. Pain in the butt, but what can you do? We were told that the nearest ATM was in Amlapura, a town en-route to the volcano. After a few wrong turns we eventually found a bank but we couldn't get any cash. We continued driving around in the hope of finding another ATM, because if ... read more
Bali Bombers Hanged with care by the fireplace
Published: January 31st 2009Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Gunung Agung
December 24th 2008
At 4am a bluebird pulls up to the gate. For the next half hour en route to Juanda, as the meter ticks away, Teghan recounts the previous late night out when she’d met with a few friends at the Lido to wish our collegue Dave farewell. She didn’t drink too much and left around midnight. She noticed a motorbike pull into the bar’s car park only to turn around and exit just after her. The journey across town follows well light avenues with ocassional traffic. But pulling into our neighbourhood in east Surabaya, a less travelled road obscured by tall tamarinds, the motorcyclist pulled alongside Teghan and tried to snatch her purse containing her plane tickets and a considerable sum of cash. The purse strap wrapped around her neck did not snap as the thief had ... read more
The Scree & Sunrise of Gunung Agung
Published: September 9th 2008Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Gunung Agung
August 25th 2008
Day 5: Gunung Agung It’s pitch black. My knees ache. My legs are loose, wobbling with each unstable step. This is not helping in the least bit. The scree beneath my feet, the chalky volcanic rock, crumbles with the slightest pressure. I grip a flashlight in my mouth with clenched jaws and take a large step over an ice-less crevasse, then reach out for the boulder opposite, quickly feeling for handholds. Up ahead, as a streak of light breaks the horizon, there is a tussle. Irregular noises catch my attention as a chorus of stone ring down the mountainside. A voice sounds alarm. Someone has gone down. I quickly pull the light from my teeth and look into the darkness. It isn’t long after dinner when Laura & I are in bed that I find myself ... read more
Beautiful Moments at Sidemen Village
Published: January 13th 2008Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Gunung Agung
January 11th 2008
Sometimes, beautiful moments may come unexpected. This Friday, I was on an office trip to Sidemen Village at Karangasem Bali. It is quite a remote area which takes 1 hour drive from Denpasar. At first, I didn’t have any thoughts in my mind. Just prepare myself in a very long journey to a remote area which took 2, 5 hours drive, as said by my Balinese colleagues (which in fact never went to Sidemen anyway). Then miracles happen. First, I just realized that the new driver is formerly worked in a travel agent. He used to bring tourist from every part of the globe in tour exploring Bali. Made, the driver’s name, suddenly introduce me and Dina, my colleague, to a new world of Karangasem. He explained and brought us to places which I never knew ... read more
November 28th 2006
find the pictures to this article here: http://www.nomad4ever.com/2006/11/28/walking-on-the-moon/ No, not the old Police Song! But why not? Our recent day trip around Bali took us to Lake Batur (Danau Batur) and Mount Agung (Gunung Agung), the highest peak (3014m) on Bali soil in the north-eastern part of the island. Amazing scenery! It really looks like your are on a different planet. But wait - first you have to get there. This was actually easier than expected, as tomorrow the Hindi on Bali celebrate the start of the Hari Raya Galungan & Kuningan fest. That's something about celebrating and entertaining the ancestors spirits. So, today everyone seemed to be busy decorating for that reason. Very few traffic on the roads. All entrances to houses and temples were in the process of being decorated with palm leaves and ... read more
Graffiti, Rice Balls And A Sacred Mountain
Published: May 17th 2006Asia » Indonesia » Bali » Gunung Agung
May 17th 2006
I got up for breakfast about 8, and was presented with the greatest breakfast table views I have ever had! The only better breakfast view I can think of came last summer in the alps, a piece of fruit cake scoffed down with Dan at the summit of Mont Blanc Du Tacil, but the fear of death and shivering probably made it slight less idyllic. I went back to bed hoping to sleep up ready for the nights climb, but with no luck. For lunch I went to the buffet at the hotel. Stocked up with carbs, I sat down to eat at my deserted table. I did wonder why there were 20 staff for maybe 3 customers. Then I found out. All of a sudden a coach arrived, then another, and another. Almost instantly the ... read more
September 10th 2005
We had three days left of our Bali trip. The first day was spent chilling out in Villa Shanti, the relatively luxury hotel Sharon had picked out for the two days around the wedding. Some of the guests went back to Dreamland, but it turned out the waves were even bigger than 2 days ago and even experienced surfers were not allowed in the water. I was glad I'd opted for the calm of the hotel pool! The following day we moved acommodation to Legian, near Kuta. However we were not too happy with the place so made plans to climb the Volcano, Mount Batur the following day, which was also our last day. In order to get to the summit before the heat of the day we needed to leave Legian at 5am. This was ... read more
