Bali, Indonesia (day 31 - Feb. 6, 2023)

Bali bike ride

Not sure what possessed me this morning. I decided to rent a scooter to get to a place called Tanah Lot. Very un-Jared like of me. Somehow I managed to make it there and back without much incident :D It was quite the ride though! Driving the narrow streets past all sorts of houses, shops, shrines, and a few rice paddies. From the hotel, it was a half hour ride to Tanah Lot. There is a temple there on an island/peninsula that just attaches to the main island when the tide is out. If it was a sunny day, the place would be incredible, especially at sunset. Tanah Lot is a park you have to pay to enter. Inside is an art market and a number of different Hindu temples. The main attraction for tourists is the island temple which is named Tanah Lot.

Met a nice lady named Ketut Sumiati, probably in her mid 40s to early 50s, right when I arrived to park my bike. She sold me some cold beverages and we had a chat for a bit. I asked her about all the temples and shrines that are all over Bali. She explained that they are Balinese Hindu shrines and every household has one. A house is typically a larger group of buildings which houses the extended family as well. Each morning the people bring offerings to these shrines. She asked where I planned to go the rest of my time here and suggested some rice terraces (Jatiluwih Rice Terraces) about 1-1/2 hours from my hotel. Depending how the weather looks tomorrow I might head that way. Ketut also explained that she had learned English in jr. highschool, which is pretty typical in Bali from what I understood. She said that her name is a typical Balinese name for the fourth child of the family, so there are lots of people named Ketut in Bali. It was nice to learn more about the culture here, thanks Ketut :)

Tanah Lot - the temple island

Lots of stray dogs throughout Bali

At the time I arrived at Tanah Lot, the tide was coming in. There are locals that help the tourists wade through the shallows to get to the small island holding the temple of Tanah Lot. Tourists are not allowed past the gates on either side of the island which lead into the actual temple. At the bottom of the island is a natural spring of fresh water. The people there told me I could wash my face and drink from the spouts there. I did, after which they requested a donation :D But not before one of them added rice to my forehead and a flower behind my ear, haha. Good cultural experience I suppose :)

There was an elderly lady sitting on one of the raised garden bed edges, weaving something with grass or maybe palm leaves. She said hello (the only English word she knew) and offered me some fruit I had never seen before. I gave her a few thousand Indonesian Rupiah in return. I looked it up later and the fruit was rambutan, a fruit with a spiky red skin and a white interior. It was a nice sweet fruit, quite tasty. As I walked back past here I asked if I could take a photo :)