Here I go again, breaking away from my general intention of living in Bali for a short time as more of a means to experience life as an Indonesian would, as opposed to a tourist with deep pockets, and splurging on a multi-stop tour provided by a family that we have been fortunate to befriend in our time living here in Bali. At a half million rupiah (less than 50 USD,) we treated ourselves to a three-stop adventure that lasted from early morning until well after sundown. It turned out to be a fantastic day, and also ended up giving me the footage I needed to edit my favorite video that I’ve created since starting my new YouTube channel.
After quite a bit of driving, but with fascinating scenery that I enjoyed along the way, in a late model Honda minivan here in Bali, we reached our first destination which was Bedugul Temple & Lake. There was a small, per person fee for a ticket to enter the grounds, which we paid, and off we went exploring. I’m not a huge fan of Hindu Temples, or temples in general, but that didn’t make this place any less fascinating to experience. I observed right from the get-go that there were many tourists here, or “bules” as the locals would call someone as plainly white as I am. In fact, I talked with a couple of very nice Aussie ladies who were intrigued to guess where I was from, based off of my accent. That was very interesting to me, for the very fact alone that one never thinks of themselves as having an accent at all. I’ve come to learn that the majority of bules touring Bali are Aussies, followed by Europeans, Russians, Asians and Middle Easterners, with my American self being slightly more of a rarity. Here we are in the photo below. Mama, the girls and myself, at the lakeside, taken by those nice Aussie ladies.
Mama and the girls were having a great time exploring the grounds and seemed very interested in the Temple itself, whereas I was content with just observing and taking in the people, the grounds, and the lake that was around me. I had become dead set on wanting a speedboat ride from very early on after we had arrived, and after patiently waiting for the girls to tire themselves of the general grounds, I finally got that wish, which easily turned out to be one of my favorite parts of the day, as you can see in the video above. There was a great feeling being out on the lake. A combination of the cool wind hitting my face as the boat reached higher speeds, the mist of the water that the boat kicked up and the view of the surrounding mountains and sky, all came together to create a very enjoyable, natural high.
Our next stop along the tour was The Jatiluwih Rice Terrace, which was touted as the most beautiful rice fields on Earth. I cannot verify this however, since it is the only attractive looking “rice terrace” that I had ever seen before, but it was indeed gorgeous. Although my least favorite stop of the day, it was no less fascinating for me to experience at least once in this short, spontaneous, unpredictable life. Here is a picture of Inas and myself with a partial view of the rice fields in the background.
This was also where we had planned to stop for lunch, as there isn’t much else you can do here, short of maybe having your own motorbike with you and riding the fun, winding roads that surrounded this pretty looking area. This was also my least favorite part of the day. The few restaurants that were offered here were all very expensive, at about the pinnacle of what I’ve come to learn as the “tourist price,” as compared to the “local price.” While I can’t even remember the name of particular buffet that we ate at, I can say that it was a total violation of my intent to live this short time in Bali Indonesia by stretching my money and avoiding the tourist prices. The menu and the cost of the food were poorly displayed, leaving it to be a guessing game of how it even worked. We weren’t seated at any particular table, so we just chose our table and sat down. We weren’t approached by a server, so we assumed to get up and head for the buffet and fix a plate. Intending to just have a light lunch, and still in the dark as to what the price range of the food and drinks here were, we kept it small and simple. Two plates, not even completely full of food, one bowl of soup, and a couple of cold iced teas. Now, to be fair, I will point out that the view from the restaurant was fantastic, and the ambiance was equally as good and welcome feeling. Even the food wasn’t too bad at all, and I am a very picky eater (which makes it very difficult for me to find foods I like while living in Bali, but that is a story for another blog of it’s own.) After nearly finishing our small portion of food, that is when the waitress finally came around with a check, which to my astonishment was more expensive than the the cost of the entire tour itself. I am usually never one to ever bother to argue when it comes to overcharges or missing food at a restaurant, as I see these matters, in a general sense in this life, to be to trivial and meaningless in the big picture to even bother wasting negative energy on, but I made a rare exception to my own rule in this case, and was able to at least cut our bill in half, which was still a dent in my wallet that I was intending to avoid at all costs, (and yes, I had to throw in that little pun.)
I really want to clarify that I’m in no way a “cheap” person in this life. I tip extremely well, even when I’m dead broke myself. I spend money for what I need and seldom compromise quality or function, yet avoid buying useless shit that I don’t need. You’ve got to live while you’re alive, and that means not dwelling on a single penny lost. That said however, I really came to Bali with the last bit of minuscule savings that I had to my name, after losing my job and everything in late 2016, with nothing of possessions left back home in the states but a twenty year old Camry (that still runs like a champ after 200,000 miles, by the way,) and my self-built desktop computer. My life is half over, and I am here on the other side of the world, in the other hemisphere even, looking for whatever it is that will make me feel less lost, which I’ve felt for my entire existence. So far, I’ve found a family to protect and care for, and that alone has made every effort to make this crazy , spontaneous journey well worth it. This is why I am doing everything that I can to live as a local, and not as a tourist. Every dollar counts during this risky and daring adventure. But, back to the days activities.
The final stop, and quite a haul away from the rice terrace, was a The Tanah Lot Temple, located right on the beach. I was most excited for this final leg of the trip, simply because I love the beaches here on Bali. This place did not disappoint, despite the dense crowd of tourists there. Again with a small, per person fee to enter the grounds, we set off through a maze of stores, selling everything from snacks to wooden, penis shaped key chains, until I saw a weasel and was lit up with instant delight, as I love those little suckers and they’re not at all common in The United States to have as a pet, so I never get to play with one. This little guy was in a cage, sadly. Then just right across the way at a coffee shop where they sell luwak coffee, which is literally coffee made from weasel shit, I was even more happy, as there were two weasels hanging outside, no cage, snuggling together. I asked Mama to indulge herself in a coffee here so that we could give this guy’s coffee shop our business, and then I could pet his weasels. That was easily tied with the speed boat ride for my favorite part of the day. Then, at the same coffee shop, there was a bat hanging out. Yes, pun most definitely intended, and also yes, an actual bat, with some really big, bitchin’ wings that he was happy to spread out for me as you will see in the video. It’s not everyday that you get to sip a latte next to a big bat, but hey, this is Bali Indonesia.
It was nearly perfect timing when our walk through the maze of shopping and dining ended up at the beach, with the temple located just offshore, that could be accessed with a short, brave walk over several rocks in the water, when the tide permitted. The sun was close to setting, and the visuals were fantastic. I just walked anywhere and everywhere that the fluctuating tide would allow me to reach, taking photos and video as well as, most importantly, using periods of time without the camera to just take it all in, and be in the moment. Here’s a quick musing from this experience. I came across a really buffed dude getting photos taken by his girlfriend as he was shirtless and flexing his muscles, with the beach in the background. I told Mama, hell, I practically begged her, “please let me take my shirt off and go flex and imitate him and you take my picture. It will be fucking hilarious! Even though I may get my ass kicked.” Needless to say, Mama was entirely against my comical idea, but I did manage to get a picture with this dude in it to show you.
I remember that feeling as the sun began to drop below the horizon. It was gorgeous, and it was also a reminder that I was absolutely exhausted at this point. I think this comes through in the video when I talk during toward the end, just before we were getting to leave the beach and begin our, near hour long ride back to our apartment in Denpasar. I was happy that we took this tour, and grateful for the new experiences I was able to have on this continued wild adventure that I am on, living temporarily in Bali Indonesia.