Graffiti, Rice Balls And A Sacred Mountain

---

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 restaurant was rammed to the rafters with europeans wearing such monstrosities as pink tracksuits with 'bali 2006' written on them. I scoffed my food and left, more than a little annoyed by the people who kept standing about 6 inches from my face to have their photos taken with the view.

At 19:30 Wayan, my guide came to pick me up. After an hour on his rickety mountain we came to the Besakiah temple complex, and started our climb. Headtorch lighting the way we clambered up loose soil and tree roots for waht seemed like an eternity. Every 20 minutes we stopped so Wayan could have a cigarette - the amount he smoked im suprised he could even stand up, let along climb Balis highest mountain. At around 2 we stopped, Wayan made a fire and we had some Sate and Coffee. I then had time to get my head down for some sleep. With only a sarong as a sleeping bag and nothing to lie on i managed about 5 minutes sleep, and about 2 hours shivering. After this 'rest' it was time to finish the climb to the summit. Timing was perfect, and we arrived at the top just as the sun was rising. The view was epic, from Lombok in the East to Java in the West, and of course all of Bali in between. Mt Batung which had seemed huge yesterday now seemed to be barely visible amonst the rest of the crater.

So to the descent. I was shocked in the daylight to see just how devestated this mountain is. The whole route up it is graffitied, and piled with rubbish on the lower slopes in particular. All of the guides make fires for their clients when travelling overnight, and the scars that this leaves are everywhere. In short, its a shit mountain to climb for the views. If people just paid the slightest bit of respect - collecting their rubbish, using fire pits and not graffiting then all would be ok. I find it funny that the guides respect the mountain enough to pray 3 times on it, then use it as a rubbish bin.

In the afternoon after the climb I made my way back to Denpasar, and back to the Nakula Familar.

---

Photos

Looking back
Gunung Agung with Besakiah in the foreground