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Published: February 9th 2007
It is said that when the continents and islands had been created on earth, the Gods gathered together. The highest god explained to all other Gods, that there is one more island to be created, a special island for all Gods and that on this island, all Gods will be worshipped and honored util the end of time.
So the Gods started to create the most outstanding island of all. The bottom and upper layer, the foundation, the soil and then the bright and colourful sky.
The Gods were very delighted with the result and decided to name the island: "BALI"
- Bali --> Kuta - When I checked into my flight from Kuala Lumpur to Denpasar, the capital of Bali, I wasn't sure what to expect from Bali, a place that has been called by so many different and almost magical names like "The hidden Paradise", "Morning of the World", "Island of thousand Temples", "The last Paradise on Earth" and of course the most famous name: "The Island of Gods"! So I asked myself how divine and paradisal a place on this greenblue planet can possibly be?!
When I first spotted the green island
Arrival
Bali Denpasar Int. Airportfrom my plane window, laying gracefully with it's mountain peaks and volcanos in the middle of the endless blue ocean, I was impressed. There was nothing divine about this island but from the distance it looked simply beautiful and even a bit like a paradise.
My first steps on Indonesian soil at the airport felt good. The amtmosphere was somehow different to the airports I had been on my trip before. It was nice to smell the scent of flowers, relaxing to hear the soft Balinese music in the background and to pass by friendly people. So it felt good to be in Bali even though I haven't even went through immigration.
More than four thousands years ago, Bali was an emerald green, tropical rain forest covered island. The first wave of human arrivals from across the seas brought with them techniques for rice cultivation, new languages and new customs. These early immigrants and others who followed over the years helped to create a haven.
For many centuries - and until today - Bali has attracted visitors from all over the world. It is so attractive for its colourful ceremonies, natural scenery, and the smiling people. Their
Surfer
at Kuta beach waiting for the right wave colourful religious festivals and ceremonies, the traditional music and dances have been a way of life, and have unwittingly contributed much to the success of tourism on Bali.
The Balinese people are predominantly Hindu and their traditional and religious beliefs are as strong today as they ever were. But then, the soul of Bali is actually a mix of everything, Indian, Asian, Javanese and especially it's a place with appreciable Mythology.
The island itself covers an area of 5.600 square kilometers, with a volcanic mountain range that stretches from the western tip to the eastern side of the island, with Mt. Agung (3142m) being the highest peak.
I was travelling the first leg of my journey alone like I usually do. I don't mind travelling just by myself as a solo traveller as it has some pros like you can do whatever you want to do or stay or move on whenever you feel like. I always meet fellow travellers on the road anyways, so that I rarely have to spend my time alone if I don't want to, but then it's nice to have a travel companion who you actually have known for a while and
Silly me
strolling through the ricefields not just some kind of strangers, in short: it's nice to have a friend by your side.
So it happened that my dear friend Kumiko from Tokyo, Japan, was starting her 6-7 months or longer journey through Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Iran, Yemen, Sudan, the Middle East and Southern Africa at the same time, so that she decided to fly down from Tokyo to Bali to meet up with me and to travel in Indonesia together for a while before continuing her journey to Sri Lanka.
I met Kumiko a few years ago in Northern Laos, in a small town near the Lao-Chinese border called Muang Sing and we became good friends. Kumiko has been to countless countries and is one of the few people I really have to pay tribute to when it comes to travelling.
We decided to meet at a guesthouse called "Komala Indah 1" in Kuta. I arrived in Bali around 11:00AM took a taxi to Kuta and checked into one of the bungalows before heading out for a stroll through the town and along the beach, as Kumiko's flight was arriving a few hours later around 17:00PM on the same day.
Lost in Green
Woman working in a ricefield Kuta is the most touristic and vibrant area on Bali and was shaken by the devastating bombings of two crowded nightspots along the main road on October 12, 2002. About 180 people were killed in the attacks, which seemed to be aimed specifically at Western tourists. Bearing in mind that nowadays one million tourists flock to this little island every year, looking for everything from entlightenment to drunken debauchery, Kuta kind of reflects the dilemma of being a major tourist destination and how Bali balances precariously between Eden and Eden after the fall.
Though it's definitely not the best place on Bali, with numerous bars and restaurants, souvenir shops and all kind of fastfood chain branches, Kuta is at least a good place for surfing. The southern coast of Bali is known as a prime spot for surfers. So, like honey attracting bees, Kuta Beach is irresistible to surfers and sun-worshippers of all ages and nationalities. Even though I don't surf, I like the idea of being just you and the sea, the sea and you, waiting for the right wave, riding it, and then, for a few moments nothing else matters... it's just you and the wave and
the sea around you... everything else will be forgotten for a moment.
When I finally met Kumiko we had the chance to catch up on the last years and I was happy to see her. We went for a walk and had our first dinner together in years. We talked a bit about Laos and she told me that she had visited Laos again and that some places I know from back then like Vang Vieng and Muang Sing do not exist like that anymore. There were much more tourists and guesthouses, restaurants and bars. It was interesting, because I had actually heard the same a few years ago when I was in Laos, back then a Japanese girl told me that she travelled Laos in 1997 and there were only two guesthouses in Vang Vieng at all instead of 8 or 9 and very few travellers. Now there are probably 2 dozen guesthouses and I don't wanna know how many travellers. I am a kind of curious how it will look like in a few more years from now, so I decided to go back to Laos one day, just to see what have changed.
We made
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Flavour of adventure our plans for the following days and decided to leave busy Kuta on the next morning for Ubud, the cultural capital of Bali.
- Bali --> Ubud - Ubud, which lies a 2 hours busride from Kuta, is the artistic heart of Bali and provides an escape from the hustle and bustle of some beach areas. Located in the cooler hills, it affords stunning views of terraced rice fields and the Ayung River and Gorge. Balinese culture is alive and well in Ubud with some of the finest workings in wood, stone and silver on display in galleries, studios and handicraft shops. For the ladies there are many Balinese boutique resorts and world class spas set in the rice fields with beautiful views. In addition Ubud is a good place for traditional music and dance and some people say it has the island's finest cuisine.
On my last evening in Myanmar I met a French woman and when I told her that I am going to Bali she asked me if I'll go to Ubud. Then she told me that 10 years ago people could stay inside of the Royal Palace in Ubud. She wasn't sure if
Vendor
At Kuta Beach it's still possible but back then it wasn't expensive and at night she and her friend could stroll around inside of the palace courtyards and felt like King & Queen as there was noone else staying. I was all ears and decided to check it out when I am in Ubud. So I told Kumiko about that and she was raptured about the idea of staying in a real royal palace, so was I. Therefore, we told our taxi-driver in Ubud to get as to the palace and asked him if it's possible to stay inside of the palace and he answered something like "maybe, but very expensive!", but nevertheless we decided to check it out.
There was no sign like "hotel" or whatever at the palace, so we just asked someone sitting on a terrace behind a table. The man confirmed that it's possible to stay there and told us to follow him. We went inside the first courtyard of the palace and then through a wooden antic door (with a: "no entrance" sign) and entered a another garden courtyard with several bungalows built around a main altar, a beautiful place, a peaceful, green oasis we fell in
Creature
Good one? love with right away. Then he showed us the bungalows, all with a big terrace and sofas, and then he opened a big wooden door with beautiful golden carvings, so that we could see the room with a huge bed and aircondition. The bathroom with bathtube was right next to the room and half open, means partly with no roof so that one could like look into the sky at night while having a bath or shower.
Then he told us the price and we were like: "too expensive, we can't afford that!" but actually I didn't really care how much it was to stay there as I wanted to stay there no matter what! Kumiko was positive for that as well. At the end we bargained down the price and just had to pay 35USD per night for both of us together including breakfast. Not a bad deal for the experience of staying in a real palace!
It was great to stay there. Sometimes other tourists entered the courtyard and were surprised to see us on the terrace, sitting or laying on our sofas, sipping tea, eating our brekafast or smoking cigarettes... in addition we were the
Creature
Evil one? only ones who stayed there, so at night we had the whole place just for us and felt like King & Queen indeed - Priceless!
We liked the place so much that we stayed for another night and believe me I would have stayed even longer... if we weren't on a tight schedule.
The days in Ubud Kumiko and I spent differently. While I was touring some of the islands sights with a private driver just for me (I know, what a luxury! - I am sooooo spoiled!), Kumiko spent her time in spas with massages, manicures and all that girlie stuff... then at the end of the day we just met at our place and went out for dinner together.
Ubud has some of the best restaurants Bali has to offer. Therefore, visitors to Ubud spend a lot of time in restaurants and cafes. A wide range of international food is available. Standards are high and prices are reasonable. Many restaurants have created tasteful, elegant environments that are ideally suited to socializing and relaxation.
...so life in Ubud was good.
In Ubud one can see tradional Balinese dance peformances, the shows are not performed
inside a building like at some other places in Bali, but outdoors right in front of original sights like an old temple, or at a beautiful garden or even inside of the royal palace.
So in the evening we went to a Kecak-Dance performance. Kecak is the most famous of the Balinese dances, the Kecak, originated from the Sanghyang dance choirs, who cant a distinctive 'kechak-kechak' accompaniment. The Kecak, as a dance, developed in the 1930's, in the village of Bona, where it is still performed regularly. The theme is taken from the Ramayana and tells the story of Rama, who with the help of the monkey army, tries to rescue his wife from the clutches of the evil King Rawana. This a very exciting dance to watch, and is performed by large group of chanting men sitting in a circle, waving their arms and swaying to and fro, in time with the chants.
Sometimes it looked like that they were singing and playing not for us but to the Gods... but then, it is the "Island of the Gods" anyway...
To be continued… next: Indonesia - The World under the Sea...
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lanegra
La Negra
great shots
really sparked my interest in the country.. so many places to see and so little time!