Sunday Sept 28th to Monday Sept 29th
Today Kadek, our driver that we have used before, was picking us up at 9am so we got up early and went down to have breakfast before we left. It really confused the staff that we were there early and without Merv & Michelle. Since Merv & Michelle’s table is always reserved (even though they will tell you they don’t save tables) it was not a problem.
It was good to see Kadek who was right on time. He always stocks the car with Bintang beer for Kathy and snacks for us. Our plan was to go to Besakih Great Temple. We were actually supposed to go here in April when we were here on the cruise but instead we had to go get passport photos due to our blank page issue. Funny story about the Besakih Temple. We were watching a Hallmark movie one night before leaving on our March cruise and the movie was filmed in Bali. They went to the Besakih Temple and I googled to see where the movie was filmed and that was how we knew about the Temple.
It is a 2 hour drive to the Temple which is up in the mountains. Traffic in Bali makes everything longer than it should be.
The blue dot is where the Temple is and the heart is our hotel. We are getting to see a lot of the island but they say to see the northern part of the island you need to spend the night somewhere. Too much to drive in 1 day.
The Temple is on the slope of Mount Agung which is an active volcano which last erupted in 1963 and the lava flow missed the Temple by just a few feet. Mount Agung is 10,000 feet high. Besakih Temple is the most important, largest, and holiest temple of Bali Hinduism. it is not a single structure but an extensive complex of 23 separate but related temples, with the largest and most important being Pura Penataran Agung. The temple is built on six levels, terraced up the slope. It is estimated that construction on the Temple was completed in the 15th century.
You pay an entry fee to get in and that includes a guide that is just for your group. You do have to cover your knees so they tie a cloth around you. Since the complex is so large and goes up a slope they have a cart that takes you up to the top and then you walk back down. There are lots of stairs even once at the top.
Kathy and me at the entrance gate with our knees appropriately covered.
There are several of these “split” gates around the temple grounds. You are not allowed inside any of the temples but you can look in through the gates.
There was a funeral procession taking place while we are there. The bodies are actually cremated and then the remains are carried up to the Temple. The mourners had lots of offerings for the ceremony including a live chicken and duck that will be sacrificed according to our guide to ensure a happy ever after for the deceased. The mountain you can barely see in the background is Mt Agung but it is normally covered in clouds.
The street leading back down to the entrance and both sides are lined with shops. It is funny how quickly you get acclimated to prices in Bali. If I go to the grocery store it cost 6000 IDR (.36 cents). I wanted a Coke Zero (they do not have Diet Coke in Bali just Coke Zero) and the first shop I went in wanted 20,000 (1.20) still a great deal but I said no way and walked to another shop where she also said 20,000. When I said no thank you she quickly lowered it to 10,000. I felt that was a fair deal, she still made a little profit. Kathy said I can’t believe you did all that for 60 cents.
After the temple Kadek drove us through the mountains to the town of Kintamani which overlooks Mount Batur and Batur Lake. They have restaurants with great views overlooking the caldera. We were actually here in April but it is so beautiful we did not mind going back. We had lunch at a great restaurant and took some pictures.
Kathy had a large Bintang for lunch.
They ahve these great venues for pictures.
After lunch and enjoying the views we headed back to our hotel which took 2 plus hours due to traffic.
We got back to the hotel just in time to drop off our stuff, wash up a bit, and then meet Merv & Michelle to catch a cab to dinner at a Greek restaurant. We hope to spend another day with Kadek touring but turns out we have seen most of the tourist places in Bali that are close enough to do in a day so we will have to see.
Monday – No plans for today. I was also not sure if I was going to dive again since I have now done most of the dive sites close to where we are on the island except a big wreck which is still 2.5 hours drive away. I had complimented my dive master after the dive on Thursday to the folks at the shop and they reached out to let me know that they were going to Nusa Penida on Tuesday and Rizal, the dive master, was available. Smart on their part so I went ahead and booked diving again.
We had breakfast and then came back to the room to watch the Chiefs game on the iPad. Glad they won and looked a little better. We hung out on the balcony of the room and I took a nap and then we got up and went for a walk and some shopping. There are so many shops, some nice and some flea market knock-off stuff. I had seen a pair of Adidas Yeezy sneakers in black and white that I was interested in. I hated the idea of Kanye West getting any money from the sneakers but they are most likely knock-offs and Kathy read that Adidas cut ties with Kanye. I tried them on and liked them so after a little back and forth (900,000 to 500,000) I bought the sneakers for 30 US. If you go on line they cost anywhere from 110 to 260. The quality seems good so we will see.
We had dinner on the beach at the restaurant we ate at when we arrived in town.
Tomorrow more diving.