Waking up this morning, a feeling of slight disappointment crossed my mind as I considered the fact that today would be my last in Bali.
As I mentioned yesterday, I feel like this is a place where I could certainly enjoy a longer holiday, but for this trip, I think three days has been long enough. Perhaps it's the fact that it's been extremely laid back that I have enjoyed, and aside from being on my own here, it has been an enjoyable stay in this part of Indonesia.
Today I planned to continue the formula that has worked so well for me in the last couple of days, and so looked at the map to see which part of Bali I could explore today. On both Saturday and Sunday I headed north, so made the decision today to go right out of my hotel and take in the sights of the south coast.
One of the few things I did know about Bali before I came here is that there is a temple on the south-west coast of the island which is a popular tourist attraction, and I attempted to work that into my plan for today.
I decided then to visit a couple of the beaches in that direction, knowing that from previous day's experience it was a good idea to have a few places in mind to head towards, in case the lack of road signs, or indeed their frequency thwarted my progress at any point.
The sun was beaming down once again as I headed out around lunchtime. It's yet to be confirmed, but I think I slightly overcooked my arms yesterday in the Bali sunshine. They were a little sore this morning, despite smothering myself in sun cream yesterday. I guess we'll find out in a couple of days time if for the second time in my life I have got sun-burned - both occasions have also coincidentally have involved riding a motorbike. People usually suffer in the water as their sun cream isn't strong enough or they forget how warm they actually are because their body is mostly cool, and I think in the same way that riding a moped as deceived me about how hot my arms are getting.
I made an early stop on the way to the town of Uluwatu, picking up some crisps and a drink before setting off on my way again. On the map the hotel owner gave me he'd written that Uluwatu was 40kms away, but I soon saw a sign which said 7.5km and then a minute later one which said 5km... Signs really are not my friend in this country.
I've really never had the craving to own, ride, or ride on a motorbike before, but having taken my scooter out on the open road for a couple of days, I can see how it appeals to people. There is a certain freedom you get with the wind rushing across your face, but for me, that is usually balanced out my by a bug hitting me in the mouth at high-speed. My natural defence system would obviously be to use the visor on my helmet, but it is very dirty and scratched making seeing things difficult. I figure vision is fairly essential so I have resorted to sunglasses and attempting to keep my mouth shut as much as possible whilst riding.
Uluwatu was about another ten minutes ride away from where I'd seen the last sign pointing me in the right direction. I followed the road as far as I could before finding a sign post indicating that the beach was close my. I pitched up my bike, and paid my 3000Rp to the old ladies running the parking racket in front of the steps which led down to the beach itself.
They were pretty steep, and led to a few shops where some friendly local people tried to encourage me to buy some of their goods. I declined politely before inquiring where exactly the beach was before descending down another even steeper set of stairs to eventually get to what looked like a cave.
All of the other beaches I've seen in Indonesia have been quite wide and welcoming, but the one at Uluwatu was very different - in a good way.
On reflection it was more of cove than a cave with some shade under the rocks which lined the edge of the space. I figured it was quite a small beach at first, but being a bit of an explorer I climbed over some stones which led me to another cove, and eventually out into a much wider space.
This looked like it was the place to be....
There were plenty of people out surfing, and swimming in the water, but handily there was also an area under the rocks which seemed to be perfectly chiseled out to sit underneath. I obliged to take a spot in coastal erosion's natural seating area, and enjoyed a good couple of hours watching the waves lap against the beach.
One thing I was slightly concerned about was getting trapped, or marooned in this little area of the beach as most people who came round the corner from the original place I had descended the stairs appeared to be swimming through. Eventually when I decided to move on, I was grateful to notice that even though the tide was coming in, it was possible to wait until the waves were in the right place, and then desperately run back to the safety of the original cove.
I think Uluwatu beach was probably the most outstanding of the three I'd visited to that point. It was cosy enough not to be too packed full of people, and the surroundings with the rocks and the high cliff edges were almost perfect. The water was clear and blue, but also slightly cool which was a nice contrast against the sand which wasn't quite melt your feet hot, but certainly indicated some prolonged exposure to the sun.
After spending some time on Uluwatu, I headed back up the steps to my bike, hopped back on and decided what to do next. I was torn between going to the temple or heading to another beach, so I thought about it over an ice cream at a local shop, and made my decision to go to the sea temple.
Obviously having planned this trip out over a long period of time, I can't remember all the information about the places that I have written down to visit, but for some reason Uluwatu Sea Temple stuck in my head - not sure why.
After doing a little loop of the area, just to see if there were any more beaches available for later I managed to navigate my way to the temple, parked up and went to the entrance. It was starting to get busy coming up on 4.30pm with lots of people presumably hoping to spend a couple of hours there to witness an impressive sunset over the cliffs.
Before entering the temple I had to wrap myself in a rather lovely looking sash....
...at first I was given a sarong to wear, but a lady swapped it for me saying that it was enough as I was dressed relatively conservatively anyway.
Also before entering, I took note of the sign which said that people needed to be observant about the monkeys who live near the temple, and then it dawned on my why the name had been quite familiar.
I get quite a lot of my information, rightly or wrongly, from Wikitravel, and this is a direct quote about Uluwatu:
"The temple is inhabited by large number of monkeys, who are extremely adept at snatching visitors' belonging, including bags, cameras and eyeglasses. Keep a very close grip on all your belongings and stow away your eyeglasses if at all possible. If you do have something taken, the monkeys can usually be induced to exchange it for some fruit. Needless to say, rewarding the monkeys like this only encourages them to steal more. Locals and even the temple priest or monkey ranger will be happy to do the job for you, for NO tip required."
Things like that fill you with such confidence don't they?
Slightly worried by the threat of being robbed by a monkey, or a local, I clipped both of the straps together on my bag for the first time this trip, took off my sunglasses for the first time today and knotted my camera around my wrist. Safety first.
Walking down some steps I found myself taken in by the beautiful view of the structure itself which was more like a fortress than anything else. From this side, but also where I ended up later, you could really follow the wall along, and not on quite as grand-a scale, but it looked as though I was staring out at the Great Wall of China. Below, the clear blue water turned over on the rocks to create incredibly beautiful white waves which then bashed up against the cliffs - it was another of those annoying moments where I feel like my camera will never truly be able to capture the beauty of what I was seeing:
I decided to walk to the right at the t-junction I came, with it looking as though there was a good area to view the rest of the fortress in this direction. The path led to an open area of grass which has some excellent viewpoints on, and provided you didn't mind braving going near the cliff edges somewhat, it was possible to fit in quite a panoramic scene.
There were people on all sides of the area taking photos, and I took note of one particular couple who were watching their step very warily. Although the Wikitravel page said that 'fortress guides' could be hired to provide you with not only information about the fortress, but also protection from the monkeys, it appeared like they were doing their best to protect the public from the menace at large without even being asked.
A couple of monkeys came climbing up the cliffs and into the area where I was standing, and immediately the guide went into waist pouch and grabbed some food out which drew the creatures away from where people were.
Unfortunately some not so intelligent people behind where I was standing had decided that the monkeys wouldn't like Lays Seaweed flavour crisps, and that it was OK to crack open a big bag whilst standing taking pictures; naturally this drew quite a lot of unwanted attention their way. The mere sound of the bag opening drew about 25-30 monkeys rushing out of the trees and in their direction, meaning that the panicked person now being over-run by new found popularity had little option than surrender their snack to the ground where the monkeys began tucking in.
I managed to get relatively close to a couple of them, but having been warned that they can strike unexpectedly, I was pretty wary of what was going on behind me.
One woman who was taking pictures of a monkey was then suddenly swamped by two of the cheeky little critters who grabbed hold of her sarong and sash combination, refusing to let go, and forcing one of the guards to have to pacify them with food. I guess in some ways, this is what sort of encourages their behaviour, because I did read somewhere that the way to get things back if the monkeys steal them is to offer them a food bribe, but then surely I feel like monkeys are intelligent enough that if they're hungry then that stealing belongings from people is probably going to be quite productive for them in terms of getting fed.
By this point it was like being back in Bako National Park so I bravely stepped my way through them all, still slightly concerned by their sketchy movements, and headed back on the wall towards the top of the hill which had been able to photography really well from the open space.
The path seemed to wind on forever, and eventually ascended into plenty more photo taking opportunities as well as an chance to see the actual temple which the whole place was built around. The gate itself was locked, but you could see inside to the white marble floors, and there were also some interesting miniature pagodas which I presume are used for the purposes of reflection.
The twisted concrete path led me down again, but as I turned the corner it led to the right, and to another bit of wall that I didn't know was there previously. Due to the shape of the cliffs, it was hidden behind the original bit of wall you can see, so I climbed up there was well in order to take some picture of the area I had just been walking on from a different angle.
People were beginning to gather for the nightly show which is held in a Greek-style theatre at the centre of the temple. It takes place at sunset giving people an insight into Indonesia culture, but also allowing them to see the sunset beautifully behind the walls of the imposing fortress walls.
I headed up as high as I possibly could before the path ran out, and I was forced to head back on myself. Whilst walking I saw one of the guides heading into the buses to remove some more monkeys. He was using a catapult to aim in their direction (but not shoot at them) and this eventually made them disappear towards an open area where there we a lot of people sitting. It was here that I saw the power of bribery at work, as a monkey stole someone's glasses, and he was given some food to trade with the animal to get his possession back. With a little bit of a gentle persuasion the man eventually got his glasses back, but considering a monkey had had them in his mouth and dragged them along the concrete floor for a couple of metres, I'm not sure they were in any kind of wearing condition.
I decided at this point that I had probably explored all there was to explore in this impressive sea temple, and if I was quick then I could probably get to another beach in time for me to watch the sunset.
I hopped back on my bike, and rode towards Uluwatu Beach, this time turning right before I got there in the direction of an area called Patong-Patong.
Not in the same away that Kuta, Legion and Seminyak were, but it was fairly built up with restaurants and hotels, a note I took for later when I needed to grab some dinner on the way home. I made it to a bridge were I saw a few people watching the sun go down, but I pulled up a little further along, and after having a little stare off with a monkey which refused to budge, I parked my bike and took another set of very set of very steep stairs down to the beach.
Like Uluwatu Beach, Patong-Patong was quite small. I think the tide had washed part of the beach away for the evening, but I walked as far as I could and sat on a large enough rock where I felt that I wasn't going to get washed away. There were still lots of people out surfing, and some people enjoying a swim in the water, but I was quite happy to sit and watch as the blue sky changed to orange and eventually pink before climbing back up the now totally pitch black area where the stairs were before heading in the direction of a restaurant, and then home.
I got back to my room at about 8pm after another relaxing day, feeling pretty satisfied that I'd achieved everything I'd set out to do today, as well as in Bali generally.
It's been a really lovely stay here, and a change of pace from the way I've been exploring towns and cities on my journey so far. I'm not sure when I will make it back to the beach, potentially in Malaysia, but more likely in Thailand, but I feel like these three days have given me a taste of what Indonesia has to offer in terms of picture postcard clear blue water and golden sand.
There are so many good photos that I managed to take today which I am really happy with, and also a couple of videos which aren't exactly Spielbergian blockbusters, but if nothing else will make you feel fairly relaxed whilst watching them and listening to the sound of the beach.
Daylight
Maroon 5 (2012)
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